It's Almost Ready

I know I've been rather silent on this blog and my other blog for the past few months, but for a good reason.  I've been rather busy working on the organization and planning of the layout for the book.  I'm happy to announce it's almost done.  I still plan a few more months of ironing out the wrinkles and making sure the quality is top notch all around, but here's sneak peak at the last chapter.  The chapter is all about being willing to travel outside of my comfort zone.  It's been an unforgettable adventure, which has left me longing for more.  

Make sure to click the image below for a larger preview. 

It's All Coming Together Now

As the months roll by, I'm happy to say, I'm right on with my original schedule.  Putting together a book requires a lot of time.  So far, I've organized, written stories, bought a new design program to put it all together, I've been learning to use said program, scrapped a bunch of work and the list goes on and on.  This journey has been intense and ever so rewarding.  Seeing the first few pages laid out, putting together the stories with the photographs and realizing daily this is going to happen, makes me elated beyond words.  

I'm ready to share a few of the pages I've put together.  While these are only the JPEG versions (sized for the web), you can click on them and see them near print size.  I left a few mistakes in the text to keep it from being exactly as it will be published later.  

Take a look and let me know what you think.  The road to completion is growing shorter by the day... and nights, as the majority of the work is happening while most normal people sleep.

Adventure Time

I headed out yesterday with Jason Miney for a little adventure.  We've been trying to find exciting new places to photograph and old places that may need to be seen with fresh eyes.  After driving a little over 2 hours, we reached our destination.  Jason and I quickly surveyed the area, made a few makeshift plans and started to work.  It didn't take long for Jason to find something of interest and as I moved a little further I noticed something that I needed to create.  

Ice Crawl

I worked to wedge myself under the pier, so I could compose a frame from under looking out.  Without live view on the IR camera it was a tight squeeze, one I would later learn from Jason, was enough to make him stop working to try to figure out what the heck I was doing.  This is the photograph that started my spelunking endeavors.

We were shooting a lot of color images, as the ice was incredibly blue in hue.  I managed to make a few IR images between the color, but none so hurried as the following.  Standing on slick ice, I had to drop to my knees pull off my back pack, unpack the IR converted camera, get the settings adjusted (I shoot manual 99% of the time) and compose quickly before the sun dipped back behind the clouds.

With Flare

When I'm rushed I often forget the issue of lens flare due to the lack of a lens hood (which I finally ordered today).  I don't mind it in certain images and honestly, it was all part of the experience of making this photograph.

As we worked Jason decided to venture out a little closer to the edge.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to snag an image of his bravery.

  

The Things We Do

The ice was thick and extremely slick in the area he trekked out to get a different perspective.  We did meet a young man named Ky, who without much regard for life ventured all the way out to the lighthouse in the hope of finding a journal he said he left there.  We watched as he went slipping, sliding, crawling and at one point disappearing.  Later, as he returned, he tried to convince us the ice was not that bad, but with a few thousand dollars worth of gear, we opted for shooting another day.  

An amazing day with a lot of new work to add to the collection of infrared work I'm using to hone my skills.  I might even add one or two to the INVISIBLE book.  

Imagination in Isolation

Icarus's Ghost

The above photograph almost made it into the book.   When I framed it, I wanted the lines of the sand to lead the eye to the cloud formation.  I imagine many things while I'm out, especially when I view cloud formations.  This particular formation made me think of Icarus leaving the bounds of the Earth and heading toward his sunny destiny.  With his arms pushed back, knees bent, head toward the sky with only one goal in mind.  That's what I saw when I pressed the shutter button.  When I finally showed this piece to a few people, they didn't see much more than lines and a few clouds.  

I'm not easily influenced by what others think about my work, but this time I had to listen.  The book is more about making a connection to the viewer through the photographs and stories.  Each of the photographs intended for the book were selected based on a number of questions.  When an image passed, it was considered for the next round of cuts.  Icarus's Ghost made it all the way to the end, but fell short on the final cut.  I still find reasons to enjoy this image.  Others may find they enjoy the image as well, but it just doesn't fit the goal of the INVISIBLE project. 

Lens Play

I'm a huge fan of wide angle lenses.  During the last few months of photographing for the INVISIBLE project my Sigma 10-20mm lens hardly left the body of my camera.  It's a versatile lens throughout the short range.  The perspective can change quite a bit from one end of the range to the other.  Here's an image I made at 20mm while I walking through the Ludington state park.

20mm

Not a bad frame, but I hadn't fallen into my groove yet.  I decided to make one more image from the 10mm range  I moved a little bit forward, dropped the zoom and made the following image.

10mm

I moved closer to the stump, lost the sticks on the beach, but also gave the image some depth.  Most notably, the cluster of trees in the distance.  This helped me to decide how I wanted to frame the image for the final image.  I will say this.  I ended up framing it vertically and from another position.  It made a huge difference for the final photograph that will be in the book.

A Sneak Peek

I thought I put a little sneak peak at one of the photographs from the INVISIBLE book.  This is one of Rebecca's favorites.  

Broken 

I don't want to say much about this yet, you'll just have to wait for the book.

Seeing the Unseen

Every now and again, I like to show a before and after image.  This is a straight out of camera infrared image and the final finished photograph ready for print.  It takes a lot of seeing and coaxing to tease out the details for a final photograph.  It doesn't always turn out the way I want, but it really helps when I can envision what I want and what I'm willing to do before I press the shutter button.  

The above photograph is about lines and textures.  In the infrared image the lines and textures are hiding out.  With the right amount of patience and Photoshop skills the lifeless is given life. 

It's been an adventure in seeing, but I'm a stronger photographer because of it.