Blog? You have a blog?

Well as I was trolling through Facebook and thinking I have links from it to my 'blog area' but I have not been updating the blog.  So to go along with the only other entry of this year I will do another and just maybe try to update it more often.

Since February of this year I have been working on a correspondence course through New York Institute of Photography (NYIP).  I am doing so to help increase my knowledge and skill set beyond what I have learned from several seminars, reading periodicals, taking photos and just working hands on.  I think every little bit will help me as I strive to eventually leave the job of working for the man and working for me instead.  I have completed the first two units and will start getting the third unit ready to read, study and do the assignments.

I have also spent a considerable amount of money doing some advertising at one of our local High Schools (West Salem, Salem, OR).  I am on a handout/multi-fold sports calendar along with only two other advertisers.  From the company who sold the space, I am also the only photographer on any of the Fall advertising.  I will be offering somewhat lower pricing than other portrait and senior photographers.  Just trying to get some base work coming in so we'll see where it all goes.  Besides the advertising, 10% of my fee goes back to the school to support their athletic/academics programs.

I wanted to include a shot in this installment that I took on a lonely August Sunday morning drive as I was heading back to Salem.  I had spent the night in Spokane, WA and was taking the back highways in a Southerly/Southwesterly direction and church was not in session yet.  It kind of felt good to sit there on the side of the road and snap a few shots as a time of reflection.  I was just a week past from my father passing away suddenly on August 3rd and had and still have a lot of thoughts, emotions, etc running through my head.  Since he should be in the heavens I thought this photo would be appropriate.  

Enjoy and we'll see you on the road!

Tim

A long time - First Post of 2012

So, I have my blog page as my opening window when I fire up my explorer window and leave it open on a tab while I do other things. For months I have looked at the same posting that was the last one back in November. Wow! That is a long time and yes in the mean time I have been shooting, tending to other family things and doing my day job that pays for dream job.

So I decided to finally put up a shot that is at least from this current calendar year, since we are starting the month of April already. It is one or the same Cooper's Hawk that visits my backyard at least once a week in search of some unsuspecting smaller prey. I have had a fair amount of feathers this year so I am thinking between the Cooper's Hawk(s) and some Sharp Shinned Hawks they are keeping my free loading birds in check. But on the positive side, I would bet that the Hawks may only make a strike 1 in 10 tries. Most of the time the little birds are out of sight and silent!


Of course none of this would happen if I didn't enjoy having the other small birds around and feeding them. Plus many of them eat little insects and so forth and that help keep that population down in our hood.


In this case I wonder if the Hawk thinks that maybe a bird would just belly up to the feeder for and easy meal and hence become an easy meal.


Thanks for stopping in! Tim

Union Street Bridge

As many of you might be aware if you live in the Salem area that we have had this really wonderful Pedestrian / bicycle bridge converted from a very old Railroad bridge crossing that goes over the Willamette River. It also provides some interesting shooting in the AM or PM, with or without Fog coming off the river, etc.

It is also a part of my commute to the building I work in that allows me to keep earning money to keep shooting photos. Unfortunately it is not a business with photography as part of its business. So getting to cross the bridge to/from work when I bike commute can give me some really great shots, but usually on small windows out of the year do I get this.

Well on the morning of 10/26 I got a window of opportunity and happened to bring a camera with me. I only happen to bring it, as the morning before It was similar but with more fog so I thought with the very cool nights and some moisture in the air, just maybe I would get another chance.

Included in this post are a couple of shots from that AM. Hope you will enjoy them.

Tim

Portraits

I have decided to get into a little more of the work of portraits and senior year photos. This will not stop me from my normal landscapes, animals and what have you. This is just another area to pursue and work with other folks and continue to become better all around as a photographer.

Included is a shot from a senior /yearbook photo for a local West Salem HS Senior. Cree and her mother gave me a call as mom works with a friend of mine (who recommended me) and asked if I would be interested. Sure I would and I may be a little less expensive than many of the 'full time' portrait photographers here locally. Anyway we did the shoot up in Portland on Sept. 4th for a couple hours in the mid-morning. We wondered around parts of "Old Town" in Portland and had quite a variety of backgrounds to work with and interesting textures from the buildings. I also had my wife in the process as she carried camera gear and reflectors for me, and that was a big help! Overall we had some really great shots and some so-so ones but found enough for Cree to choose from for yearbook and for handouts.

I also cut her the DVD with the photos that I worked on along with the originals. This is partially why I may be a little less expensive as I do not do any of the printing work. I will shot, edit and copy for a standard flat fee. If you would like to talk about some future work, please give me a shout via email at tim.e@opusnet.com


Thanks for reading! Tim -

Nice View for backpacking! Tetons!

So I will include a shot from what we were able to see over half the time we were backpacking in Wyoming in the Teton Wilderness. We headed out of the Pacific Creek TH that was just inside the gates at Moran Junction.

As we hiked up the trail that more/less followed the creek it opened up to a very large valley that had Pacific creek running through it along with several other creeks that flowed into Pacific creek which all (may someday) end up flowing to the Pacific Ocean. Probability is pretty low due to all the other folks taking out some of the liquid resources along the way but some of the water may make it?

Anyway, on the first day hiking in we turned around and this was the constant site we had at our backs. It was great having it coming out also! The Tetons rising above and we were at 7,000 plus feet going through this valley it was a grand site to see. I took this shot from where Gravel Creek comes down and joins with Pacific Creek looking back Westerly. Although the bugs were horrible back there this year the scenery was worth it!

Enjoy! Tim -