May 1, 2011

Golden Song - Shell Beach, California, April 2011

I’m right on the shore, the waves of the incoming tide lapping against the legs of my tripod, sometimes making me step back to keep my feet dry. The sun is just setting off to the right, casting an orange warmth on the largest of the rocks. The sky is simple, but it’s smooth, the gentle color soothing, and the lines and details on the rocks are mesmerizing in their intricacy.

California is a beautiful place. Due to its population and popularity, it always always the most east access, but if you get there and get settled it’s really breathtaking. There’s so much to see and so little time to get it done before rush hour.

For Photographers. How it was made…

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April 30, 2011

We’ve been on the road about two weeks and are about halfway through our Spring trip. Heading to CA first, I taught a few workshops, and now we’re moving out of CA and headed for more landscapes and adventures. We plan to head into AZ now and visit the Grand Canyon. We’re trying to avoid campgrounds and get out in the boondocks as much as possible.

CA has been a tough State. Really beautiful, but sometimes frustrating. The State, County, and National land tends to be outrageously priced (don’t get me going), and it’s sometimes hard to find the free boondocking areas that are prevalent in many other States.

We carry a MiFi with us so we can keep the business running, research and mark locations, find the best gas prices, etc. Apps like All Stays Camp & RV, Gas Book, Right Here, and Geotag Photos Pro are invaluable.

I’ve also started experimenting with a 4×5 view camera for the resolution it can give me in larger prints. Learning what it can do is quite an experience. I’m being very conservative with frames, but in the right situation, I think it will be amazing. It sure feels good to use. As long as you’re not in a hurry.

Of course, I’m still capturing digital images. I think, in the future, both film and digital will have a place in my work at the initial capture . They both have strong advantages in various situations. It’s become a good learning experience as I study 4×5 technique.

Stay tuned for some new pieces as we move along. If you want to see more frequent updates, you can get those on my facebook page

Gav

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March 5, 2011

God’s Fist – Yellowstone NP, Great Fountain Geyser

I was the only one there at sunrise and it was beautiful, but not what I had hoped for. Great Fountain steamed calmly away as the sun rose, but no great fingers of water reached skyward. This was not going to be so easy.

Great Fountain is not on a schedule like Old Faithful. It generally blows about once a day and while it can be roughly predicted, it seems to be no exact science. I took a few images of the pool and then begin to wander nearby areas, hoping to catch it later. Around noon I came back to find crowds gathering and cars lining the sides of the narrow loop road. It seemed everyone was here now. But only I had the satisfaction of having been there with the sunrise.

I grabbed my gear and hustled along the line of cars, to where a surprisingly large gathering was taking place. Fortunately most everyone wanted the high vantage points. I just wanted this lowly spot down in the weeds off the roadside. About ten minutes later, she blew. Slow and spurting at first, but then spectacular.

Bright sun is generally not the most ideal light however and my mind was racing like fanatic and I varied the setups I had been envisioning, working with filters and tweaking settings in an attempt to make something memorable of of this scene. The truth is that the resulting sequence from these moments were on my computer until months after I returned home. They sat patiently on my hard drive, waiting for me to become inspired. I saw them now and then, but secretly I was remembering the peaceful sunrise and wishing it had happened then.

In time I sifted through them more closely, thinking in terms on tone, analyzing details and thinking about the process. The light was actually pretty amazing. And there was one frame that stood out above the rest and it was higher and more spectacular than any others from this majestic water show. Once I started working it, I knew I had only needed one frame and this was it. I hope you enjoy… Gavin

Release details: Prints Available.. Order Open Edition originals above.. Master prints and Signature Limited Editions are listed below and can be ordered by contacting gallery.

Released prints….

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March 5, 2011

Entrance to Death Valley. Gavin Seim.

This is one of those photographs that I overlooked for awhile. It’s not earth shattering and it may never be seen as one of my best, but the more I look at it the more it tells a story. The harsh afternoon sun, the heat waves fading into the distance. The approaching car, escaping from the clutches of the tortured hills.

The long line of the road leads my eye in and then it curves away. I know the place beyond is dry and barren. At least I think I know. But at the same time, my sense of adventure wants to go there anyways. It senses there’s beauty (and perhaps water) just over those mountains.

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March 1, 2011

Click To Listen>> Photography Podcast. PPS #75
Review in iTunesVote on Podcast AlleyDirect Podcast Feed

Today’s Panel... Gavin SeimDenns ZerwasEric GuggenheimMark Teskey.

On this roundtable we discuss a lot of tips and mistakes to avoid from various genres of photography. We also get into some news, industry and business talk and more.

Podcast #75 forum discussion:

Notable Time Indexes:

  • 00:00 Introductions, micro 4/3 stuff and other news.
  • 21:25 Workshops announcements.
  • 26:17 Techniques for different situations. Architecture.
  • 35:09 Techniques for different situations. Outdoors.
  • 53:15  Techniques for different situations. Weddings.
  • 1:00:50. More tips on photography. Avoiding mistakes.
  • 1:20:40 Marketing. Things on our mind about the industry.
  • 1:37:15 Announcing Pro Photo Show LIVE.
  • 1:42:14. After show. Random things.

Links to things we mentioned.

Info on live show. Post coming soon with details. I’ll add a link.

Lights & Shadows. HDR and tone workshop. Coming to CA in April.

LR Power, Lightroom workshop. Coming to CA in April.

The new Fuji X100 rangefinder style.

It goes head to head with the Leica X1.

Some other interesting models.

Ricoh GXR,

Sigma DP2.

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