Innocence of Admiration

“There is an innocence in admiration; it is found in those to whom it has never yet occurred that they, too, might be admired some day.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

Innocence of Admiration

ss 1/640 f 5.6 ISO 400  60mm macro

white backdrop, natural light, direct light, – full sun, manual settings, manual focus

You guessed it! The Gerber Daisy represents innocence in the Victorian language of flowers. To see the monochromatic edition of this flower, visit my Thursday post on Monochromia.  I would love to hear which you prefer – color or black and white. I look forward to your thoughts!

Have a fabulous weekend!

The Beast

Watch, don’t turn your back,

Never let your senses slack,

When into the woods

You journey.

For it is there,

That wild beasts lay idle,

And hide,

Until dusk draws near.

Then, just as the sun’s glow

Begins to fade,

The beasts awaken,

No longer hiding from the day’s trespassers.

They pounce,

And if you are not prepared,

Your heart may skip a beat, and

With a fleeting moment of fear,

You’ll run, then disappear. 

copyright Robyn Graham

Chives

 

Chives

SS 1/80     f3.5     ISO400

Chives I

SS 1/100     f4.5     ISO 400

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.”  – W.B. Yeats 

I thought the above quote fit nicely with the pictures of Chives from my garden.  The blooms are magical and the scent, very sharp – an awakening of the senses.

I’ve missed all of my virtual friends the past two weeks.  As indicated in my last post I was very busy putting together an exhibit that included 18 portraits that I framed and matted myself.  I am happy to report that the exhibit was a great success and I now have framing in my repertoire of offerings when I open my studio in September.  Yes, you read that correctly!  I am opening a photography studio!  It is such a leap of faith for my future as a photographer, but I am excited for the opportunity to have a space to call “home” for my fine art work as well as a beautiful facility to do portrait and product work, and teach workshops.  My senses are certainly aroused with the planning and preparations for the studio. I am frequenting thrift shops, consignment shops, antique shops and more to find the perfect, multi-functional props and decor, and enjoying every minute of it.  I promise to share pictures of the studio and the grand-opening festivities.

In addition to the aforementioned exhibit, I hung another exhibit today.  The Bank of Princeton in Lambertville, NJ has a gallery that they open to artists for month-long exhibits.  I hung 40+ prints today with the help of my husband and daughter.  The gallery looked beautiful!  Next up is two-person exhibit at The Red Filter Gallery in Lambertville, NJ.  I just placed my order for six large (16in x 24in), black and white prints to be framed, matted and then hung in the gallery from July 8th, 2014 to September 8th, 2014.  It is an honor to be able to show my work in such a fine establishment where many incredible photographers have shared their work.  I feel like I am walking in the footsteps of a dream.

Enough of my excuses for not blogging over the past two weeks!  I look forward to catching up on what I’ve missed from all of your wonderful blogs once the school year wraps up at the end of the week.  Soon enough my children and I will be all settled into the routine of summer and I’ll be able to sit outside with the laptop, linger over a cup of coffee, and catch up on what I’ve missed.

Blessings to all!

 

 

Doylestown Art Days and Shop Sixty Five

It is with excitement that I write my post this evening.  Doylestown, in the heart of Bucks County Pennsylvania is an extraordinary community with a heavy focus on the arts.  Many artists; painters, authors, photographers, musicians, sculptors, potters, and others, have lived, or presently live in or around Doylestown.  Several artists lead by Stephanie Lisle, owner of the Bucks County Project Gallery, recently joined forces with the local business alliance and created the event “Doylestown Art Days”.  From June 5th to 8th over 60 merchants are opening their doors and giving local artists the opportunity to display their work in a unique environment.  I feel very blessed to say that I was paired with “Shop Sixty Five“.  “Shop Sixty Five” is a unique and fabulous boutique in Doylestown.  To describe it as the height of fashion is an understatement.  The staff is always eager to serve customers and help them find exactly what they are looking for and what makes them feel and look great.

I am thrilled to be displaying 6 to 8 of my fine art pieces in “Shop Sixty Five” this week and even more delighted that I had the pleasure to photograph the beautiful ladies that work in the store.  They were so fun to work with, so photogenic, and so very gracious to let me spend hours in their store photographing.  You probably won’t hear from me the rest of the week as I am busy framing and matting the portraits (17 of them) to be displayed in addition to my fine art pieces.  Wish me luck and let me know what you think of the sample of images below!  I always love to hear from you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Complexity and Simplicity

Complexity and Simplicity of Nature and Light

“To love is so startling it leaves little time for anything else.” – Emily Dickinson

Love Intertwined

Love Intertwined

SS1/60, f5.6, ISO 320

An addition to my Calla Lily Series, which began in 2013.  The original “Intertwined” can be found here.

Believe Me

Believe Me  (meaning of the red tulip in the Victorian Language of Flowers)                                                                                                                                                                                                                

SS 1/1250 f5.6 ISO 400 60mm

Believe me…I am thrilled that May arrived with sunshine and warmer temperatures!  After inches upon inches of rain the past two days the sunshine is a welcome blessing!  I hope the sun warms your heart and soul today!

Perfect Happiness

Perfect Happiness

Does it exist,

That thought

Of

Perfect bliss?

When two come together

And create

Perfect happiness?

Yes,

If,

Each is willing

To embrace

The differences

And toast to

The times,

Yet undefined.

copyright Robyn Graham

Wishing you much happiness throughout the week!

Swirls of Color

Swirls of Color

Life

Is full

Of challenges,

And surprises.

As they come your way,

Swirl them

Through your thoughts.

Embrace them,

Let them color your world,

And enjoy them.

copyright Robyn Graham

Don’t worry, I did not waste good wine to create this image.  The image was taken the same day I was playing with oil and water to create abstract photographs.  To learn about that technique and see colorful oil and water images click here.

Light Painting – An Inspiration

Light Painting

grilled pepper and onion

SS 1/60, f3.2, ISO 400

This image was inspired by Herald Ross.  I encourage you to visit Herald’s website/blog.  His work is very inspiring and beautiful.  Herald is a light painter and creates magnificent photographs by using a special technique with light diffusers that he makes and sells.  I, unfortunately have not had the opportunity to attend one of Herald’s workshops, but have had the privilege of seeing some of his students’ work on his blog.  I was so inspired by Herald’s work and the work of his students that I purchased one of the flashlights Herald recommended in a recent blog post, in addition to the diffuser kit that Herald makes and sells on Etsy.

The photograph above was created using my new tools.  The subjects in the image are from my husbands lunch that was so beautifully presented and fabulously delicious at Quinoa.

Below are two additional photographs – flowers of course – that I took a couple of weeks ago using the light painting tools mentioned above.  I still have much work to do to master this technique, but I will be enjoying every minute of it.

Charming Light

SS 1/50, f 3.0, ISO 640

Painted Lily

SS 1/50, f3.3, ISO 640