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Thank you!

My photo group then heads off to breakfast, for more coffee, lively conversation and of course, pancakes!  My life would be incomplete without pancakes or waffles.  Especially with real butter and real maple syrup, mmmm... but I digress. 

I've had a wonderful summer.  It's my favorite season of the year and the weather is spectacular for getting out and enjoying the great outdoors.

I want to give a shout out to Jennie Baker, photographer extraordinaire, who I assisted that night, at LiveWire.  I'll be posting a new blog coming up soon, from another LiveWire show last week, featuring Melissa Ethridge. 

On stage for this show, started out with Jason Padgett, a man that suffered a traumatic brain injury after a very bad mugging, and is the first case of acquired savant syndrome.  He was fascinating to listen to.  He has a book out called "Struck by Genius:  How a Brain Injury Made me a Mathematical Marvel."  What he talks about almost makes my head explode.

Also guests Joel Warner and Peter McGraw, authors of The Humor Code: A Global Search for What Makes Things Funny, comedians Nathan Fielder (creator  of Dumb Starbucks) and Andy Haynes (you may have seen him on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and Conan).  Christine McKinley, a mechanical engineer, musician, and author of the book "Physics for Rock Stars."  Plus the musical trio from Portland, Oregon, Swan Sovereign, and the band Holiday Friends, from Astoria, Oregon.

I can't wait for future performances!

Kaylee Rob, musician Backstage, in the green roomThe talent retreats back here, between sets, to rest and socialize

#kayleerob #livewireradio #livewire

Then it's three side category competitions that day--salmon, dessert and ground pork categories.  What's great is that most teams have leftover dessert, after they turn in their competition box to the judging table, so the extra is served at the buffet table for everyone to enjoy (the lemon/white chocolate cheesecake, and the double banana cream pie were big hits).  Then comes more music and dancing that night, along with drinking wine and beer, and even a conga line!

The next day its down to serious business.  The meat competitions, rated by the PNWBA judges.  Pork, chicken, ribs... At the top of the hour, the teams turn in a competition box of meat to be judged--but you better beat the clock!  If you're late, you miss that turn in.  You can find photos of the award winners, here:  http://www.beachdreamphotography.com/p94885438   At the top of the hour, multiple pans of competition meats go out on the buffet table for the public to enjoy and try, along with fruit salad, beans and coleslaw.  Once again, tickets for the event sold out in advance, with over 500 tickets sold or given away.

I was busy heading up the salsa and chili competition that day, then we opened it up for the public to enjoy. We even gave away an iPad Aire at the raffle table. 

Congratulations, also, to the Grand Champions--Bad Bones BBQ and Reserve Grand Champion--Lakehouse BBQ! Me announcing the winners of the Salsa and Chili competition   As they say in BBQ, "Keep calm and grill on" and "No one has friends over to microwave!"

Grand Champion--Bad Bones BBQ Reserve Grand Champion--Lakehouse BBQ Part of the Western Town

The sun did peek out for a bit

I was at Dragonfire gallery where my work is, each day for a few hours. I had many interesting conversations with people there to experience the event, plus some that didn't know it was happening and were pleasantly surprised.  My new piece was in the Zen Garden, with other artists.  The theme for the show was "Garden."

When I wasn't at the gallery, I was hanging out at this amazing rental house we found, ten of us ladies having fun, taking photos, playing the board game Apples to Apples, drinking wine and watching the Blazer game. 

Even though it was mostly a misty, drizzly weekend, we had a really nice treat in town, which is the hot chocolate at the Chocolate Cafe.  They sell chocolates there from all over the world, beautifull handmade chocolates, plus Mayan hot chocolate, which has a spicy kick to it, with a dollop of real cream on top.  But wow, those last few sips are really powerful!  Made my eyes water, they were a tad spicy!  I also like running next door to pick up some seafood and chowder at Ecola Seafoods.  Canon Beach has a lot to offer.  We went to Haystack rock on the beach, where the puffins were said to be, but bigger birds were keeping them away.  We also stopped at Icefire Glassworks.   If you love beautiful glassware, check it out.  They have amazing, unique pieces there that have incredible depth and color. 

All in all, a relaxing, low key trip.  I'll be back at the end of June for another festival there. These are taken with my iPad, and are a little blurry. Of all the things for a photographer to leave at the house--my camera!

My next reception will be in Cannon Beach, for the Spring Art unveiling event throughout town.  I'll be at the Dragonfire gallery. 

Have a great week, all!

From the Trees of Tranquility series

So I re-shot to get that photo, with a different, rounder drop shape. The result is the photo shown here.  It took just over 60 photos.  The funny thing about this background, is with the straight lines of the trees, I can't have the music up too loud or even vibrations from the tv in the next room, or heavy footsteps.  It makes very, very tiny movements in the water, which makes for wavy, Dr. Suess trees!  So I wait a little longer in between photos until I can see the reflection is absolutely still.  I was able to get the shot I wanted, so I started thinking about more backgrounds, with simple clean subjects.  All the trees are blossoming pink and white right now, so I moved on to that background.  From that, the new series just evolved, I kept finding backgrounds of trees that I liked.  Hence, the new series I've started, titled "Trees of Tranquility."

To see the Pacific NW Series, "drop in" (drop in, get it, haha) and see me:  I'll be the featured artist of the month at Aurora Gallery, for First Friday Art Walk, in Vancouver, WA.  April 4th, from 5-9pm.  I will be there from 6:30-8:30.  Thank you, and have a great week!

Multnomah Falls Drop is a photo I've had in my head for awhile, and this is actually "take two" as the first shoot I attempted with these I wasn't satisfied with the result.  The Benson Bridge pictured in this photo, at Multnomah Falls was shut down, Jan. 9th, of this year, after a boulder took out part of the deck and the handrail.  Multnomah Falls Bridge DropOregon's iconic Multnomah Falls and Bridge, taken before the rock damaged part of the bridge.
Open edition. Repairs won't be done for quite awhile.

Soaring Free is from my new layered textures collection.  It seemed to perfectly mimic that days drizzly, gray overcast skies and turbulent water.  The town was quiet, with just a few tourists here and there.  There were several people on the beach, walking their dogs or just beach combing.  If you are ever in Cannon Beach, check out the Dragonfire Gallery, they have a varied and wonderful assortment of amazing artwork. 

Lady in my tea water First I started with just water, to get the timing figured out and ready to switch to coffee.  Milk proved to have its own unique challenges.  For one, milk is a thicker density than water.  I got a lot of "blobby" drops, that looked like all sorts of creatures, for instance, like the white monster from the old cartoon, Scooby Doo (and did you know that the name "Scooby-Doo" comes from the last line of the Frank Sinatra song "Strangers In The Night?").

I also had a lot of lighting challenges with white porcelain, getting it lit evenly.  I ended up with two flashes for the background and hand holding one flash above the camera, to reduce shadows.  I also had to keep cleaning the sides of the cup.  Four hours later, I got a few drops I was happy with.  I did only small enhancements in Photoshop, besides adding the text. 

I changed out the cups of coffee frequently, to keep the dark, rich brown color, as the cream kept diluting it to a caramel color.  I made 12 cups of coffee, drank one and photographed the rest!

I moved on to other projects after that, as I am getting new photos ready for the galleries.  So ten hours later, I called it quits, with quite a few images to upload the next day.  More on that, on the next blog. Strong Coffee

When I was first learning about Photoshop, I swore I never wanted to learn such a complex program.  "I'll get in right in camera," I said.  I started using the Adobe Lightroom program, more for enhancements, than just uploading photos.  I saw other photos my fellow photographers had done, using some Photoshop enhancements, and thought it looked quite nice.  "Ok fine," I said, "I need to learn a little Photoshop."  Fast forward to today, many hours and hair pulling later, to now experimenting with masking, layers, and textures in Photoshop.  How things change!  I'm still only using just the smallest tip of the iceberg, Photoshop does so many different things.

The judges use the 12 elements below as the “gold standard” to define a merit image. Once a print has "merited", it can be placed in the International Print Exhibit at Imaging USA, which is the annual convention.

Twelve elements have been defined as necessary for the success of an art piece or image. Any image, art piece, or photograph will reveal some measure of all twelve elements, while a visually superior example will reveal obvious consideration of each one.

The Twelve elements listed below are in accordance to their importance:  Impact, Technical Excellence, Creativity, Style, Composition, Presentation, Color Balance, Center of Interest, Lighting, Subject Matter, Technique, and Story Telling.

Lights go down, windows are covered and usually three judges silently show the moderator the score they have given the photo (the photo is scored anonymously). Sometimes comments are made as to why a photo received the score that it did.  This is a great learning experience!  Every time I attend a competition, I learn so much.  I have been lucky to merit at each competition, which is not an easy thing to do.  I am humbled by the beautiful photos I see, and proud to be in the same class as these fine photographers. Above is a photo I took last month that merited in this recent competition.  The photo is titled "Solitary Beauty."

I have been experimenting more with adding layers to my photos of different elements.  The photo "Glorious Day" is made of 15 layers of textures, text, and enhancements.  This drop seemed, to me, to be a person standing tall, arms back, face to the sun, smiling and full of hope. It is about freedom, love and the start of a new day. A blank slate, where your dreams and desires can come true.

Here I've attached the original, single image capture and the finished, layered photo.  The two are quite different.  It has been challenging and fun to figure out what looks good to my eye.  What to add, what to take away, what I want the end result to be and what I need to do to get there.

If you haven't been, check it out the festival sometime.  All the shops and galleries are open, some later than usual, and they have live music, artist demonstrations, and wine/hor d'oeuvres.  I'll be at Dragonfire Gallery Saturday from 1-2pm, with my new work.  Maybe we will continue to have more of this fantastic weather, who knows!

Cannon Beach, Haystack Rock

  Glorious DayThis drop is a person standing tall, arms back, face to the sun, smiling and full of hope. It is about freedom, hope, love and the start of a new day. A blank slate, where your dreams and desires can come true.

About the process: I started with a single exposure image of the drop and Cannon Beach, and from there I added layers of textures, text, and color adjustments. It is a long creative process, where each layer has to look just right, until I feel that the photo is absolutely "done," or "complete."

It was really fun to see all the different designs, and how creative they were.  I also want to give a shout out to Sharon of Designers Edge, and Jennifer of JMyers & Associates, two fabulous designers to work with!  Should you ever need design assistance, give them a call!

"Smell, Sip & Smile" by JMyers & Associates by Designers Edge "A Lair Fit for a Queen" by Art Institute of Portland and IKEAWinner of Design Contest "ColorBomb" by Garrison Hullinger Interior Design, Inc

"The Byre" by Manor Fine Wares

This last shoot was rough.  I had a cable for my flash short out, which took a bit to figure out that was even the problem.  Luckily I had an extra that I was not using.  One flash fell partly in the water, then I spilled water twice, plus I couldn't get a sharp focus...There have only been a few people that have seen me work in my darkroom, and they are always surprised at how much work goes into these shots.  I tell myself, that if it was easy, every one would do it!

I have more new work coming.  New photos, but I am working with them, adding textures, layers, and art into the photos.  

This new photo will be displayed in Dragonfire Gallery, at Cannon Beach, starting Nov. 1st. The Rock, Cannon Beach

Thanks for reading, have a great week!

After the show, a handful of us stayed to go on the 20 minute "tour" that turned into the two hour tour, on Johns' yacht, but was alot of fun. He even let Elvis drive!      Karen Overton

More photos here:  http://bit.ly/15LNqu8

John's yacht we got to take a long ride in Me and Elvis. Even photographers get their photo taken occasionally.

Silent Watch

We came upon a great sea of licorice fern, as far uphill as the eye could see, and then on the downhill side of a steep cliff.  The layers of the forest always amaze me.  Bright green ground cover, like the ferns, then the spindly vine maple trees above them, vying for the sun, and the tall, tall Douglas fir trees reaching for the sky.  A great way to spend the morning, as shortly after that, the rains and the wind came in full force and we were glad to be indoors, wrapping our hands around a warm cup of coffee!

Leaves of Three

The Milky Way at Stonehenge, Maryville WA--2

There is very little light pollution out here.  To have such an unimpeded view of the starts is a treat.  Who wouldn't be awe inspired?  Looking up at them, I cannot fathom how big the universe really is.  I feel I am but a teeny, tiny speck, in the grand scheme of things... 

A little history on the memorial:  The Maryhill Stonehenge was the first monument in the United States to honor the dead of World War I (specifically, soldiers from Klickitat County, Washington who had died in the still on-going war). The altar stone is placed to be aligned with sunrise on the Summer Solstice. Hill, a Quaker, informed that the original Stonehenge had been used as a sacrificial site, and thus constructed the replica as a reminder that humanity is still being sacrificed to the god of war. The monument was originally located in the center of Maryhill, which later burned down leaving only the Stonehenge replica. A second formal dedication of the monument took place upon its completion on May 30, 1929. Sam Hill, who died in 1931, lived long enough to see his Stonehenge completed.

Lake Sacajawea, 3,Longview, WA

I recently had the pleasure of partnering with Angela, owner of Photography by Ajay, for "Sparks of Hope", 2013 benefit auction at the Convention Center.  Sparks of Hope is a non profit organization whose mission is to grant wishes to children that are sexual or physical abuse survivors.  Their wish could be anything from a new pair of shoes, to a birthday party, to a musical instrument to play.  I was very impressed with the organization, the people supporting it, and of course,  Lee Ann Mead, the founder of Sparks of Hope.

  What a great mission they have, to help survivors, heal and eventually, thrive!  It was very inspiring to hear the stories and heartbreaking at the same time.  Events for the night included a silent auction,  gourmet dinner and dessert, along with special guests Amy Roloff of the show "Little People, Big World",  Timber Joey, and Mike Fourtner (from Discovery Channels’ Deadliest Catch), among other VIP guests.

Please support this fine organization, as they do great work!

The second session, two days later, and over 200 photos and counting, I got some different shapes, but still a no go.  I also want better sharpness for the background, so I will be improving that in my third session.  The photo above, that kind of looks like Saturn, shows what happens when I don't wait for the water to still--wavy rock in the background.  Also, my depth of field with these shots is vary shallow.  So much so, that I have to adjust the focus depending on what type of drop I'm getting.  If I want a "ball on point" or a "round" drop by itself, it is a different focus than if I am wanting a "collision", which is when one drop falls on top of the first drop and flattens out.  My depth of focus is 1/4, to 1/2 inch at most.

Thank goodness for keeping towels nearby, as one of my flashes took a dunk in the water.  I use multiple flashes for my photos to properly light the background and the drop.  Below, in color, is the background photo I used, that I took last April.  I'm off to Cannon Beach today, for several days, perhaps I'll take a shot to use when I get back. 

Recently I had the privilege of participating in a Portland RAW event, "Generations", which is a FASHION, MUSIC, ART, PHOTOGRAPHY and PERFORMING ARTS evening of entertainment! So what is RAW?  From their website:

"RAW:natural born artists is an independent arts organization, for artists, by artists.   We're a community made up of creative individuals across the nation.   Our mission is to provide independent artists within the first 10 years of their career with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity.   We welcome all genres of art including independent film, fashion, music, visual art, performing art, hairstylists, makeup artists and more.   RAW currently operates in 54 cities across the United States & Australia and counting ..."

It's held at the lovely Bossa Nova Ballroom in Portland, and events are packed.  I demonstrated some water drop photography and displayed some photography for sale.  This is event was great fun, I liked meeting new people, chatting with other artists, watching the models on the runway between music sets, and a drink or two at the bar! 

When you participate in a RAW show, you get a video interview for your use, head shots and other marketing goodies, plus they take no commission from sales AND you can be a part of another RAW show in any of the other 54 cities they are held!  If you know of artists that might be interested in this, here is the website:

http://www.rawartists.org

Thanks for reading, and have a great week! 

Here's the pic with me and Joe Donlon.  Wishing you all a little bit of fun in your week!

The past few months in my drop photography have been trial and error, as I've been disassembling my setup and moving things around, upgrading equipment (including a new lens), organizing, etc.  I did three water drop sessions in a row, where I didn't get a single print worthy photo! As I told myself at the time, "if this was so easy, everybody would be doing it!"

What is a "session?"  It is usually 3-5 hours long, sitting in a darkened room, getting one drop per photo (burst mode will not work for this type of photography) taking 200-300 photos.  It feels strange to sit in a dark room when it's a beautiful bright and sunny day out!   I get out my folding chair, my water jugs, measuring cups with a pouring spout, ice, put music on, and then really think about what photos I want to get, even meditate for a few minutes.  I find this helps tremendously, quieting my mind and organizing my thoughts.

The biggest surprise so far, in doing this series, is my rose photo.  For all of the other photos so far, I had an idea in mind of what shape of drop I wanted to get, and the water was ever so cooperative (yes!!!).  For this photo, I put one of my rose photographs in the background, but was stumped on what shape of drop to aim for.  However, the water knew!  On my third photo, I got a flower shaped drop!  I was astounded.  Amazing!!  It knew what I needed before I even knew!  I love it when things fall into place like this.  I think we could all use more of that in our lives!  

Is milk photography easier than water drops?  It depends.  Milk has it's own challenges.  I use a piece of glass for the milk to land on.  The problem is, glass reflects every piece of dust and swipe from the cloth.  I am tempted to take everything else out of the room, just so there will be less dust!  It is maddening how much dust will just fall on the mirror between shots.  One of the things I use most is a small LED flashlight.  I can see the dust particles, literally, falling down through the air!  The problem with dust, is, it shows up so readily in your photos, especially in macro photography!  I come armed with a can of air, which helps. Windex, several rags, paper towels, chocolate covered espresso beans... 

Keeping the glass scrupulously clean in between every shot, is crucial but a pain.  I spend much more time cleaning and setting up than actually taking photos.  Before my shot, I'm asking myself "where is the drop going to land?  How do I find this spot each time?  What do I pre focus on?"  Auto focus won't work for these shots, as the drop falls much too fast to focus on, so you have to pre focus where you think the drop will go.   The first drop of milk that falls always does an unimpressive "splat".  That's it. Definitely not exciting.  They look like UFOs to me.  I have many white UFO photos, but I delete them as I go.  Having less photos to upload and delete later, works better for me.

I usually add in a little food color. Consequently, my fingers are blue.  I look like I'm turning into a smurf!  I hope this wears off eventually.  Even my lens cleaning cloth has blue spots now.  Whoops. I like to add color, because white milk doesn't have any contrast.  It's just milk.  Solid white is hard to photograph.  I stay away from photographing white flowers, for the same reason.  The highlights are easy to blow out, if it's all white.  Fun for a night, but now it's back to dropping water tomorrow night...

The judges work is done--it's up to the public now to vote.  Mine is in the  "Professional" category.  Voting ends Jan. 26th, and I will find out the results Feb. 9th.

Have a great day y'all and thanks for reading my blog!

http://www.photooftheyear.net/vote_form.asp?category=5

I didn't know that "floating" has been around since the 70's.   "Floatation is a special kind of bath. Floating in a Himalayan salt solution, enclosed within the tank, is an extraordinary experience. Liberated from time, you travel deep into your innermost self.  While floating, you are completely isolated from the outside world because the tank insulates you from all external stimuli. Additionally, the enclosure in which you are floating and the tank itself, maintains the same temperature as your body, so it doesn’t have to provide its own energy to balance the temperature," Dr. Barbara Hendel says.

Besides lowering your blood pressure, heart rate, and anxiety, what I found interesting is that floating stimulates Alpha & Theta brain waves (associated with the creative process and meditative states).  There are many artists that frequently do art after floating. Art that comes from these sessions is usually so unlike what we normally do.

I found awareness.  I found muscles tense, that I didn't know were tense.  It is very strange to feel weightless and float like oil on top of water.  Almost like an astronaut, but in the water.  Stretching takes on a whole new meaning as there seems to be no boundaries.  Afterwards, I felt a sense of calm that is hard to put into words.  I can only describe it as a deep, peaceful quietness.  Some compare the one-hour floating session to a vacation, because we return from the experience totally relaxed.  I think we could all use more of that! 

This is the drop I got the next day after bowling.  I find it interesting that it looks like a bowling pin!  I like bowling.  Each time you're up there it's a chance to get a strike, a fresh start.  It's always fun to go with friends and family, especially when you cheer each other on.  The anticipation, the crack of the ball against the pins, the cheers when you do well.  It just feels good!  

It's like life.  Some times you win some, some times you lose.  But every day is a fresh start.  How important it is to give positive encouragement to others.  I don't bowl often enough. I don't give enough positive comments.  I get caught up in the race of life and forget to slow down and enjoy the ride.  I'm considering this a little reminders to get me back on track...

I can see why performers use it in their acts, and movies use it in scenes where I normally hide my eyes.  Except I don't watch scary movies.  The first one I watched was "Amityville Horror" when I was young, and that night I slept in the bathroom with the light on!  I'm a big wimp.

The fog reflects flashes in interesting ways.  Sometimes, more frustrating than interesting, but different, none the less.   I guess that is the same reason we don't use our high beams when driving through fog?!  

Besides learning that I needed to use gloves just to handle it (which they told me at the store), I discovered a few things at home.  I added a few more things to my darkroom.  Hammer, check...Ice chest and towel, check...Gloves, check...  The hammer is to break up the ice into manageable chunks.  Unlike Sharon Stone in the movie "Basic Instinct", I don't own an ice pick.   I also discovered that bigger chunks and/or warmer water = more "fog".  I frequently had "too much fog", which obscured too much of the drop.  Getting those delicate tendrils of fog to show up in the right place, is hit or miss.  I figure that if I have to explain that the photo is not hazy, that it is dry ice, then it's not distinct enough. 

It's fun to see ice "boil" under water and bubble.  Sadly, it doesn't last long enough.  I think I will just have to make more trips to the store, as this is one challenge I am going to conquer!  Wish me luck!

Photo above:  "Set the Night on Fire"

(Named after the Jim Morrison song "Light my Fire")

From these files, I compiled a 4 minute slide show of drop pictures, with early photos to most recent ones.  When deciding on music for this movie, one of the first pieces of music I came across was Robert Miles "Children"  Dream version, from the DreamLand Album.  I kept coming back to it.  When I finally decided on it, I bought it from iTunes and played it.  This was when I discovered that the version I first listened to and liked had the first 10 seconds missing.  Ironically, the first 10 seconds are sounds of rain and thunder!  Perfect for water drop photos! It also has "Dream" in the title, the same as my company, "BeachDream Photography".   I had to smile.  It was meant to be.

http://youtu.be/ndggJswRU_E

    Recently I had the privilege of photographing Kim and Mike's wedding with a fellow photographer.  Being a photographer you get to be up close and personal with the wedding couple and you are right there to see and feel every emotion.  You are just a few feet from them as they go through one of the most important days of their lives.  It's happy, it's stressful and it never goes perfectly.  It goes by entirely too fast.  So for most couples, capturing that moment in photographs is of utmost importance, and rightly so!

     Good rapport between the photographer and the client is vitally important to capturing those incredibly special moments.   A couple that is flexible and has fun with their wedding day,  makes all the difference.  I had great fun with Kim and Mike, and their wedding went beautifully.   I was able to capture several tender moments, that made for wonderful photos that they can be proud of.

    So in closing, I write this to Kim and Mike:  thank you for letting me be part of your special day!  And to all those reading my blog out there:  give your local wedding photographer a hug, it's a tough job! 

     Rather than getting frustrated, I change tactics and go for something completely different.  The photo above is what I call a second phase  drop, which makes more of a "mountain" shape, than a "column".   I don't often try to get these.  Second phase is a later drop, that happens after a whole set has occurred:  drop, crown, column, ball, back down into ripples then to a second phase.  It's also smaller, and often slants to the left or right, rather than straight up and down.  This column is pointing "left of center". 

  For inspiration, I always ask myself, what would happen if... And I choose something different from what I normally do.  This photo is the result of putting together colors I wouldn't usually pair together.  I like the effect though, it works for me.

  Sometimes life is just a little "left of center!"  You never know what paths it will take you down...

     Earlier today, I was looking outside my kitchen window at a steady rain falling on the cement.  Each drop makes a ring that expands to a larger ring,  then another drop falls and makes its own ring.  Over and over.  My photography has changed how I see the world.  When waters coming out the faucet, I see the columns that rise up.  In a split second it's gone.  Pouring milk in my coffee has me equally fascinated.  It happens so fast that most of the time my brain doesn't even register it.

     I know photography is in my blood.  Every time I go somewhere, anywhere, I see photos.  I see curved lines and repeating patterns in the taco shells, line up like a big shell mountain.  I see a rainbow of colors in the displays of precisely spaced vegetables, laid out at the grocery store.  I see perfect, puffy white clouds in the sky and think what great clouds for a photo, if only I had a good foreground!  How the late afternoon sun streams in the windows onto our daughter, perfectly highlighting her hair, so that she looks like an angel.  Or the way the fog winds its way through the layers of forest, as I'm standing on the hill above my parents home in the country.  There's a quote that I always think of when I'm there-- "where the forest touches the sky, that's my kind of country", by Louis L'Amour, famous author. L'Amour's birthday would of been next week, as he was born on March 22, 1908, in the days of the American Frontier. 

     But, I digress.  It's more than the forest, sky, drops or my family.  When I capture a moment in time, that one picture that makes me catch my breath and smile, I know that I am hooked. 

     One thing I have always found fascinating is how the water has a mind of it's own. I get unexpected results all the time.  At a friends store last week, I found an interesting book  titled:  "The Hidden Messages in Water" by Masaru Emoto.   In his experiment Dr. Emoto used about fifty different water sources varying from glacial water in Japanese mountains to filtered water from a faucet.  He then attached different messages to each water sample and even had a Buddhist monk bless some of them.

     Some of the messages were: "Love and Gratitude," "Thank you," and "You make me sick." He included a variety of positive and negative thoughts. He then froze the water samples on Petri dishes in a freezer at -4 degrees Fahrenheit for 3 hours. His stated results showed a strong correlation between the message and the formation of the water crystals, and then he photographed the crystals. Water samples with optimistic messages on them created "nice-looking" crystals and the ones with pessimistic messages created "ugly" crystals.

     I found it all very fascinating.  Water has a frequency, a vibration?  I believe there are a lot of things that we can't see that we have yet to know and come to understand. So I did my own experiment.  I attached a message "love, joy and peace" to the tray of water, and I sent good thoughts to it.  This is one of the resulting images.   I have never had this shape before in a collision (where one drop hits the top of another drop).  Also, to Jeff, thanks for pointing out the smiling face in the column!

     I think that's kind of cool. I like unexpected surprises like this...

     Going through my files, I found one of the first photos I had taken of a drop, in March of 2008.  I started thinking about the changes I've made since then, and how different my photos are now.  For one, my equipment has changed.  I went from one on-camera flash to FOUR off camera flashes. I am on my third drop system now, an electronic timing device.  Although it's not foolproof or simple by any means,  I do get more consistent results with it.  I changed backgrounds, added gels, upgraded my camera, and I shoot In RAW format now, instead of JPEG.

     I also changed location:  from a tiny bathroom (no window, so I could get the dark room that I needed), to a full size room with room darkening shades, chair, desk, supplies, and various lights.  I work in total darkness when the camera shutter is open.  One thing that has been consistent is the wonderful help of my significant other.  When I get stuck or I can't get the results I'm looking for, there are many times I peek my head around the door with the same words "can you help me figure something out??"  Two heads are better than one!  He has a more engineering approach to my creative approach.

     When people say, "how long did it take to get that photo?"  Well, I started taking photography very seriously, around 2006.  Before then I took pictures, but mostly of just family, vacations, personal events, etc.   The long answer would be: "it took me $10k in equipment, numerous college and professional classes, six years of consistently taking photographs on a daily or weekly basis, being away from family and friends, getting up before dawn to get that shot when I would much rather be sleeping in, and basically living/breathing/thinking about photography eight days a week.  That's all that led up to that shot".  

     Die hard photographers are a funny bunch, we take it quite seriously and put a lot of work into it.  We "collect glass" (buy lenses) and can discuss at length the merits of which lenses to buy.  We're up to date on what new cameras are coming out and lamenting that now ours seems "obsolete" now.  When one of us says "I'm going to take a picture over there" we know that they don't mean just ONE picture.  We are much more comfortable BEHIND the camera, than in front of it!   I belong to four photography groups, and I'm the assistant Organizer of two of those.  We get together for monthly meetings to talk about photography, and we go out on many photography outings to take photos.  Now everyone in the group  knows that if you get down on the ground or in a precarious position to get THE photo, that SOMEONE in the group will be taking a photo of you, to post on the internet later!!  No one in the group even blinks an eye when we say that we've taken over 100, or even 300 or 500 photos at an event.  Because they have too.  We go shooting in the rain, cold and even ice sometimes.  Our Christmas lists are things that fit in our camera bags, not stockings.  And sometimes it's even a new camera bag itself!

      Now when people ask "how long did it take to get that photo?"  I just smile and say, "do you want the short version or the long version?"

     Milk is a fun medium, if not messy!  I stayed up late last night experimenting.    The color is from bakers food coloring.  There are a few challenges.   Milk and food coloring are fairly splashy and little tiny drops went further than I was expecting.  I quickly learned to take measures to cover up all surfaces that would stain!   I take one shot then spend more time cleaning up surfaces than taking photos.  I end up turning on my flashes in between all the photos, because they have timed out before I am done cleaning up.  The surface I'm dropping drops onto must be scrupulously clean, as any streaks, spots, or tiny fibers will show up in the pictures.   I'd rather get it right the first time than get a great photo but have to spend a lot of  time in Photoshop cleaning it up!  Now a bottle of glass cleaner occupies some of my work space!  I also have to be careful not to use cloths or paper towels with too many

     I got a few surprises that were quite interesting.  One drop with green food coloring flattened out; it looks like a flattened jesters hat to me.  One milk drop that had pink food coloring, made a little heart shape, that was fun.  Another is when I moved to trying double drops of milk:  these created an effect I can only describe as "fractured."  They have long tendrils of colored milk reaching out of the frame.  I also thoroughly flush out all droppers and such, as dried milk in them would not be a good thing!! 

     There is always music in my studio, it keeps me awake and is fun to jam out to.  It takes me probably a half hour or so to set up and just as long to clean up, so my photo shoots are 3-4 hours usually, sometimes I do an all day shoot though if I'm getting good results.