David Fokos:Minimalist Black and White Photographs

I spend a good amount of time searching for extremely talented photographers. You know the ones, the photographers that produce work that inspire others to be just as creative. One such extraordinary photographers is David Fokos David Fokos is a minimalist black and white photographer who uses long exposures to make his masterful photographs. I strongly recommend taking a look at his site. Not only does he have an outstanding portfolio, some of his photographs were made here in Massachusetts. His photographs can be seen at the Robert Klein Gallery Located at 38 Newbury Street Fourth Floor Boston, MA

Constructed Landscapes

I have been doing quite a bit of work with constructing landscapes. Here are a few examples.

This first images was originally shot at night.

These next three images have been revisited. They might look familiar.

Provincetown, Cape Cod, MA

Cape Cod, MA

Cape Cod, MA

As Bush fades away: Obama replaces him.

I can not give nor take credit for this photo series. I found it on a site that had no name . None-the-less, I still thought it was worth sharing as photoshop can provide some interesting results with photographs.

HDR: A composite build up

Joel Meyerowitz: How he photographs on the street.

"The camera puts a frame around life" is a quote that Joel Meyerowtiz uses to describe making photographs in this very interesting and short video documentary. A camera crew follows him on the streets of New York City as he describes his processes for getting close to people without them knowing it. Meyerowtiz is a hero of mine. His photographs and processes are outstanding. I suggest taking several minutes to watch this video. You will learn how he produces some captivating photographs.

Holyoke: Another landmark gone.

This church is no longer standing anymore. Roughly the same time period that I shot the photograph posted a few days ago I shot these. (see post below) I scanned these photographs and then brought them into photoshop to spruce them up and give them an antique and decrepit look.

The flats of Holyoke:

Photoshop: Watch and learn.

Here is a very interesting selection of videos I found that show some interesting things in photoshop.

Changing the background:



Changing the sky:



Changing hair color:

Dave Hill

Being a photographer in an ever changing and extremely rapidly growing industry means one of two things. One, You're faced with a growing trend of photographers flooding the market. Two, staying above the rest of the people (or at least standing out) is a necessity. By this I mean you need to be ever evolving just like the industry is. You also need to have a style and set of skills that keeps you a head of the competition. One such photographer is Dave Hill Dave Hill is an extremely talented photographer. His lighting skills matched with his creative post processing makes him a diverse and dynamic photographer. Dave Hill started a trend. He started producing a certain feel, style, and flare with his photographs. This look spread world wide and has created an entire following of photographers that try and duplicate his methods. Being the trend-setter he is, he's not one to give away secrets that would make it totally possible to duplicate his amazing photographs. People have tried. With moderate success you can achieve a look that is similar to his. But unless you are Dave Hill or someone close to him who knows his creative process, and are willing to share, Dave Hill will easily remain above his competition and continue to evolve as the industry does. I am eager to see what he comes up with next.

Dave Hill Photography

Memories: Disappearing structures of our landscape.

 

This photograph might conjure up some memories. This is a photograph I made along time ago; revisited. Shot using Kodak black and white professional film, scanned, and processed in the digital dark room. Two photographs were merged to from this panorama. I shot the original images back in 1998. I found these tonight with a few other negatives from the same time period. It made me start thinking that my interests with Holyoke began years before I was consciously aware of that I was interested in documenting Holyoke, and before I began my photo essay on Holyoke.

Holyoke, Ma Circa 1998

HDR Landscape: Study of a landscape.

Just after a fresh dusting of snow I took a brief walk around part of Ashley Reservoir. I came across a recently stacked pile of fresh cut logs. I made a few photographs of the arranged composition. 

                            

                                  

Entering Holyoke: Down time on a Saturday afternoon.

  Today I met up with fellow photographer and Blogger Peter from Rambling Van Dog. We had planned to meet with a few other photographs. Due to a few last minute changes in plans it was only me and Peter that had the opportunity to get together. We sat down to have a light meal at The Tavern On The Hill. The food and ambiance are outstanding. The wonderful selection of food, drinks, and views are amongst the reasons I will return again. Me and Peter sat down to continue our discussions from Wednesday at the Paper City Brewery.  The only disappointment was that we didn’t get to view and photograph a sunset. The weather the past few days has been frigid and just altogether uncooperative. That didn’t stop us from having a good time and enjoying our food. I suggest you take a visit to The Tavern On The Hill. You will not be disappointed.

 

 

This HDR image was shot hand-held with no tripod.

Copy Right: Jeffrey Byrnes and Lenshare.com

Photo Essay: The role photographs play...

Greg Saulmon at the Local Buzz has put together a photo essay that shows South Hadley Falls. With the proper attention this area could have real potential. A project like this would be a great addition to the revitalization of Holyoke. Photographs and photo essays like these play a vital role in gaining the proper attention and bringing people into a conscience awareness of what is around them. A photo essay that properly documents the subject matter can give people a new out-look on what they are viewing. Even in they are familiar with the area or the subject of the essay. A well executed photo essay has the ability to not only tell people about what they are seeing, but also has the ability to move, motivate, and inspire people to bring about a positive change. This, is the power of a great photo essay.

Paper City Brewery: A Photographic Exploration Part II

I was very interested to document what the employees were doing, their jobs, how they process was functioning, and to photograph them while they did what they were there to do. One hour of shooting is not enough time to document the process completely. My goal would be to spend a few more days, hours, and perhaps a month or two making photographs to form a larger documentary on how a micro brewery functions. Paper City is only open to the public from the Spring-Early Fall. All summer long they open their doors a few nights a week. People are welcome to come in, purchase a glass, and drink till they are comfortable. As the customers leave with smiles on their faces, they are give a complimentary sample to take with them. I look forward to returning to Paper City to make more photographs and produce a much stronger and dynamic documentary on the Micro Brewery.  A grateful thank you goes out to my friend Peter. He was able to get us into the brewery so we could make these photographs.

 

Copy Right Jeffrey Byrnes and Lenshare.com

Paper City Brewery: A Photographic Exploration Part I

Wednesday night I joined my friend Peter for a tour of the Paper City Brewery in Holyoke, Ma. We were supposed to meet with a few other photographers (Holyoke Pixel Club). However, weather factors and job responsibilities kept them from joining us. The owner of the brewery gave us permission to explore the brewery on our own and make photographs at our will. We stood amongst cases of freshly brewed, bottled, labeled, and packaged beer that is produced there. Inside the brewery the temperature was almost the same as outside. The extreme cold did not stop us from walking around and making photographs. Below are the HDR photographs that I made. In a second post, A Photographic Exploration Part II, I will have some photographs up showing the employee’s process inside the brewery.

As we walked through the building absorbing what we were viewing, our cameras were ready to capture the constructed compositions that were uniquely arranged. I fell in love with the architecture that this particular building has to offer. Expressing my interested to Peter, he quickly informed me that a few floors below us, there is an entire level, some 12,000 sq ft available. Immediately this set off a few ideas of a studio and business location. I would love to have a studio set in a massive building like this. Ample amounts of nature light, massive windows, brick walls, exposed wooden ceilings, hardwood floors, and a piece of history is something I would like to relocated into. Needless to say, exploring the brewery, photographing, and learning a little bit more about the History of Holyoke, has yet again given me more of a reason to continue to photograph and work in Holyoke.

Peter and me sat around for a little while discussing our plans and ideas. We both share common ideas and interests with our photography. Yet we approach it in two totally different styles. During our discussion, a few of the volunteer employees came through as they were about to leave. They stopped to talk with us and see why we were photographing them, the brewery, and what our general purpose for being there was. They were very curious and eager to hear our reasons. A few explanations and a few conversations later we weren’t perceived as some guys working with cameras.

Part II will have more of an essay and discuss a possible longer term project about the brewery.

HDR Composite

Some HDR

 

I would like to welcome Registeryourcamera.com to the Lenshare network. To the right you will find a click-able link to the site.

Some added protection...

After reading a post from The Online Photographer I decided to share one of the sites that I read about. Register your camera is a site that ensures the used or second hand camera and other photo equipment you are buying is and never was stolen before you purchased it. This is something worth looking into.

Panorama from Race St, Part II

I shot this so it could be part of a Diptych. Just think how long a Diptych panorama could be! This is another once upon a time used set of train tracks in Holyoke. The now abandoned set of tracks still remain as a piece of history from Holyoke’s once thriving industrial era. 

 

Panorama as seen in a previous post. 

Bags, Bags, and more Bags.

When you are out in the field, traveling, or just carrying your equipment from shoot to shoot, you want to have the best and most durable bags possible. I came across a site that has some very great prices on some very good bags.

With a tripod strap and small compartment for the feet of the tripod, plus the ability to carry your laptop, this bag is number one on my list of bags to purchase.

Lowepro CompuTrekker Plus AW

This next bag falls into a specific style that I prefer. I prefer a bag that holds the camera up top like the picture above. I feel this is a more secure way of placing your camera in the bag as apposed to the to bags that keep the camera at the bottom. Bags like these also open wide and have almost all your equipment and gear easy to grab at once instead of open different parts of the bag.

SoundKase Photog Camera Pack

Naneu Pro Bravo Camera Backpack Military Series - Small

Budget friendly bag. Not my preferred way to place my camera in a bag. But this seems to be a very secure way bag.

This site features great deals on bags. All the above mentioned bags can be found on this site. The prices and discounts are almost unbeatable. Great prices on Camera Bags Lowepro makes some very good bags. They have a great product line that you can see here at Lowepro

Some snow, some rain, some HDR in Holyoke

During the rain we had on Wednesday I took a few minutes, well more like an hour to do some HDR photos.

I saw around several abandoned chairs in the very small area that I was in today. I saw chairs in the most awkward of places. Places you wouldn’t be found sitting or even want to sit.

 

 

All photographs Copy Right Lenshare.com and Jeffrey Byrnes 2008-2009