The PhotoVision Blog

Fun and sadness on the North Shore!

Mon, 6 Sep 2010 14:28:34 -0500

We had a great weekend teaching and shooting on the North Shore two weeks ago, but the fun was tempered with sadness.

First the good parts: the week before had been rainy in northern Minnesota, so the rivers along the North Shore were running strongly. In addition to the cascade at Sugarloaf Cove (a shot of which is the new Featured Print), we spent time along the Temperance River, looking for new views of the water tumbling into Lake Superior. There are three new images in the Black + White gallery, and here’s a video clip from Temperance.

Now the sad news: on Saturday, the lovely sea arch at Tettegouche State Park fell down! Those of you who have been with me on a PhotoVision Expedition along the North Shore know that I love to catch sunrises from a rocky beach at the Park, shooting across the bay to the arch. There are images of the arch in the Water and Black + White galleries, and it was Featured Image Number 4 earlier this year. We had considered getting up early on Saturday and going down to shoot the arch, but I said, “We’ve don’t that plenty, and it will be there next time” and we slept in - and missed it! Next trip will be a very different vista from that beach….

Como Park Lantern Festival

Sun, 5 Sep 2010 22:18:31 -0500

This was the first time I had tried setting up a booth at the Lantern Festival; in other years, I’ve photographed (particularly the floating lanterns after dark) or taught students. Carolyn and I decided we would expand our participation and offer a variety of craft and photo items related to the Park and the Festival.

We couldn’t have asked for a better location: we were immediately across from the main entrance to the Conservatory and right above the Frog Pond. As a first-time exhibitor, I had expected to be placed at the far end of the world! The only downside to the location was that we were on concrete, not grass, so we couldn’t stake down the canopy - and it was very windy most of the day. We had a few sandbags, and the Park delivered a couple more, but much of the day we had someone holding down at least one corner of the frame!

Other than the wind, it was a beautiful day, and we enjoyed meeting some old friends and making lots of new ones. In addition to my original prints, we had Japanese paper and cloth crafts, and even demonstrated origami. It was a good experience!

Powderhorn Art Fair

Mon, 9 Aug 2010 22:52:01 -0500

I was one of six artists from the Vine Arts Center who put up a group booth at the Powderhorn Art Fair over the weekend. While the temperatures and humidity soared, we introduced the VAC and our work to a great audience. I enjoyed talking with Fair attendees about my upcoming PhotoVision classes and my recent shooting. It was a good - but HOT - weekend!

4th in Minneapolis

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 21:45:01 -0500

My Fourth of July photo class came off well. I had been concerned about the weather all week, but the threatened rainstorms held off and gave us a very pleasant day. We shot wildflowers at Eloise Butler, the falls at Minnehaha Park, building reflections in downtown Minneapolis, the skyline from under the Stone Arch Bridge, and wrapped up with the fireworks display over the Mississippi River - a very full day!

I’ve added some of my shots of the day to the Fireworks page I started last year, and also put some images into the Water, Earth, Life, and Mysterious Places galleries.

There are also several great student images you can check out on the Student Work page.

And here’s a video clip of Minnehaha Falls running hard with the rain just before the 4th.

Oh, Canada (*almost)

Wed, 7 Jul 2010 21:32:55 -0500

We slipped away Up North for the 4th of July, but not to the North Shore. Instead, we headed to the northwest corner of Minnesota, to Roseau and Warroad to help celebrate the 60th birthday of one of my longest-term and best friends. We stayed in a large and comfortable cabin three miles from the Canadian border, had walleye and eggs for breakfast, explored the shore of Lake of the Woods, ate an Uff-da Taco (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stillwater-MN/Uff-Da-Tacos-Enterprises-Inc/111939732175342), sang Happy Birthday and generally carried on! And I finally (only 42 years after moving to Minnesota) got to see the headwaters of the Mississippi at Itasca State Park. Lots of driving, great trip!