August 8, 2010

2

f164, journal

Silver Waves of Grain:

  • Silver Waves of Grain. | Near Moses Coulee in Central WA | This image is available in print.

Making landscapes comes with the privilege being able to focus on one subject. Unlike with a wedding, where I need capture a multitude of stunning images, the goal with fine art is a single frame. Lately I’ve been focusing on the idea of a large effort going towards the single frame. Sometimes the more work it takes, the more pride I feel for the piece.

I am satisfied with this and it will probably appear in my Signature Collection as a 30-40 inch piece. That does not happen every time I go out, so I’m happy. It’s a simple landscape, yet it embodies northwest farming without clutter or distraction and does so in a way that I think in unique, the sea of blurred grain surrounding the lone family of grain bins which will soon have their bellies filled with the very ocean that surrounds them.

For Photographers. How it was made…

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May 10, 2009

1

f164, Fine Art, Nature

Imperfection. Yellow Flowers:

Photography is about light and how we see that light. I took these last weekend using a Lensbaby which is a selective focus manual lens (a tilt shift look, for those who know what that means). The result is a little imperfect and not as clear as the expensive lenses I often use. It’s not for everything, but used at the right time it can be effective. This flower was not at it’s prime, but because of that it stood apart from it’s nearly perfect brothers and sisters. It took  my attention and in the end was my favorite of the group. Imperfect, but not unseen.

These flowers (Arrow-leaved Balsamroot I believe) are everywhere this time of year. Bringing focus on just one, instead of the many, keeps the eye on the beauty and not on the crowd, while still knowing the crowd exists. This starts in camera, but does not end there. Even in the film days photographers worked with their images to put the attention where they wanted it.

Just to illustrate the power of the edit, I’m posting one of the plain uncorrected images next to the final version below. In this case basic correction, then one of my effects and plenty of burning and dodging (lightening and darkening certain areas on the image) brought of the depth and made the flowers stand out the way I intended. For you photography lover I’ll post a before and after to show the processing… Gav

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May 5, 2009

1

beauty, color, f164, Fine Art

The Whispering Barn:

The Whispering Barn - 2009, Gavin Seim. Central WA.

I’ve driven by this old barn a hundred times. It’s a few miles down St. Andrews RD, above Coulee City. It always caught my eye, standing resolute and solitary. But I didn’t finally photograph it till spring of 2009. I’m glad I did because shortly after the view was completely altered, with new fences and other work in front of the barn. It was a peaceful place, silent as the sun set over the farmlands and the light sank down behind distant hills.

Release Details: Prints Currently available… Contact Gavin for details.
24×40 inch signature canvas limited edition  |||  24 inch open edition print.

For Photographers…

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January 31, 2009

2

f164, Fine Art, Nature

Winter Solitude: A Washington Sunset

This is my masterpiece of the week. It’s from last Sunday’s drive and was taken overlooking the Columbia river just off Manilla Creek Road. (Here’s the coordinates on the map). You can click the picture for a bigger view.

I did this with two, three shot HDR images of the scene stitched together as a panorama. The view  was amazing. We stopped here earlier in the day, so I knew it had potential. We moved on, but at sunset came back for the shoot.

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September 26, 2008

0

f164, Fine Art

Desert Sun

A lone cowboy rides across the barren dessert atop his faithful sorrel. His silver spurs glisten in the hot afternoon sun as a dry wind rustles through tumbleweeds caught on the countless boulders scattered along the barren landscape. He looks out gloomily from underneath his weathered gray hat for a sign of the life-giving water he seeks. There is none to be found. They trudge onwards.

OK, enough of me trying to write.  I have enough projects on my hands, including a couple books, so I best not get started on another story. Besides that, this is a shot I took yesterday near Ephrata Lake. There was water and greenery not a hundred yards beyond this shot. Interesting how fast the land around here can change.

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