Collaboration

Collaborative effort – “we must hang together or surely we will all hang separately.”
Ben Franklin

Getting together with 3 other classmates tomorrow to brainstorm business possibilities. We all have strengths that compliment one another. Skills including writing, extroversion, business and printing. We are all artists in our own right and each of us possess artist sensitivities and sensibilities. I’m going in with an open mind and a positive attitude. My goal is to be affirming to all and help us understand how we can help one another.

Continuing to recover from surgery – mostly using a cane and expanding how far I dare walk – several blocks now. Suture removal is Thursday. I continue to plow through my dahlia work. Here’s two more. I rarely post the bee shots anymore but I’m drawn to this particular one.

Pointed beauty

Show Time

Stuff your dad told ya . . .

Life can seem to be ‘Busier then a one legged man in an ass kicking contest.’ And, ‘no rest for the weary.’ Despite being at home and recovering from surgery I still have stuff that needs to get done. So between doctors appointments, physical mobility limitations (foot surgery), following through on time commitments to my work. etc. I feel like that proverbial one foot man. O woe is me, LoL, lots of folks out there would trade me in a heartbeat.

The glass is half full – just got to keep from knocking it over.

Been posting my latest work on flickr and got a nice ‘atta boy’ – recognition in the ‘Explorer’ Gallery. The flickr powers that be choose 500 images on a daily basis to highlight the best of each days uploads – consider that tens of thousands of images are uploaded daily to flickr and it gives you an idea of significance of a nice little pat on the back. I’ll take all the recognition I can get – not as good as money but ‘better then a poke in the eye with a sharp stick’ (another dadism )

This Dahlia shot grows on ya – leastwise it has on me – enough so that I’ve decided to include it in my upcoming exhibit. I call it “Leaving Dahlia.”

Leaving Dahlia

Upcoming Gallery Exhibit & Opening Night

Upcoming Show

Winston Rockwell’s work can be found online:

http://www.northwestnaturalimagery.com/

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/winston-rockwell.html

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Opinions are like behinds – sometimes we are behind the curve and occasionally we are ahead of the curve. Or, some such balderdash. Thankfully we all see creativity differently, otherwise it would be pretty darn monotonous.

I see beauty everywhere – from the allure of the commonplace revisited and re-imagined to the uniquely different. The nexus of perceived glamor depends on what we chose to focus upon. There’s truly nothing new under the sun – but we all bring our own creative vision to the passion I call photography.

I enjoy blending elements of an impressionistic painting style with the sharpness of photographic detail. I ‘see’ the aesthetic beauty of the detail of a petal, blossom or leaf blended with and inserted into a glamorous painting.

I love both the ‘wow’ factor and the subtleties of my creative adventures. If being creative ain’t fun they why do it? On that note here’s some of my fun from last summer.

Zinnia Contrasts Tones

Zinnia Contrasts Tints

Hurry up and wait

Made a big push the last couple of weeks to have my ducks in a row prior to my surgery. Man makes plans, gods laugh. Went in for the last bit of pre-op procedures today and found out surgery is postponed until this Friday March 2nd. Very anticlimactic – even outpatient surgery is a big deal and to be prepped and ready to go – leastwise the prep that I can do – just feels awkward.

Such is life – a long strange trip. They did provide me with a knee scooter – wasn’t what I was expecting. I expected a walker with a knee rest. This is more like a weird 4 wheel trike with brakes. Anyhow, looks to be fun and I hope I don’t hurt myself playing with it. I’ll post a picture  of it next week.

Winter is having it’s last gasp in the Seattle metro area. Below freezing temperatures at night and snow mixed with rain. Glad I don’t have to drive or commute in it. I guess waiting until the end of the week will make it easier for my nurse (ma) to get me home after surgery (no snow at weeks end).

Also, I’ll have 72 hours to work on my remaining flower shoots (dahlias!!); design a flyer for my gallery exhibit in April; and make a concerted effort to do a conservatory shoot – almost 3 months since my last photo adventure – longest gap in 6 years.

Enough rambling. Here’s a fun  shot from last September – in a neighbor’s front yard – more or less a wild pack of geraniums.

Purple Passion

Distant Memories

The Pacific Northwest winter with its gray, gloomy days that seem to drag on are relieved by the memories of last summer’s blaze of color. I love color and the ways that it contrasts and compliments its environment. Everywhere I looked natures palate brought so many shapes and angles into contrast with unique combinations . Such a contrast to gray winter monotones. I did spot snowflake blossoms on a stroll a couple of days ago – harbingers of colors to come.

Progress, incremental but still progress. Finished the photo shoots from last August and now working my way through September. Seven more that will be finished within the next couple of weeks, hopefully. I’m looking forward to the Dahlias – two day shoot with lots of color, experiments and the bonus of the blossoms in front of the Seattle Asian Art Museum.

Surgery next Tuesday – hoping that it will make my walkabout’s easier and longer in duration and frequency. Only time will tell. I feel fortunate to have access to quality medical care through the VA health care system. Say what you want about the government – this is a classic example of how it benefits our society.

Posting a flower from the entrance to the Woodland Park Rose Garden.

Tints and Tones of Orange

Wait and Hope

It’s tough for me to be patient and stay involved in the day when there are so many variables impacting the near future. People have been generous in their donations and I appreciate it. I’m trying to set up times to deliver the framed prints and it’s proving to be challenging but ultimately doable. I’m hoping to start my dental care ASAP – funds are still pretty tight, as I’m sure they are for most folks.

I realize I haven’t taken the time for a photo shoot in more then two months – still a ton of images to finish from last summer. Life is hectic and I have surgery scheduled two weeks from tomorrow (02/28).

Rocky and I will be holding an exhibit at Ocean Gallery in Kirkland from 04/07 to 04/28. Rocky set the gig up and I’m pretty excited – it’ll be my 1st gallery show. I will be exhibiting floral pieces as a compliment to his larger landscape pieces.  I’m meeting with the gallery owner tomorrow and will be posting the information as soon as I am confident everything is in place. We’re hoping for an opening on Saturday April 7th from 5 to 8 pm.

I’m slowly but surely working my way through last summers work and here’s a shot at the Queen Anne P-Patch of a rose. I still have a whole shoot from Woodland Park Rose Garden to process. Time management is tough with so many irons in the fire but I’ll figure it out.

Something to contemplate during gray skies.

Unanticipated Generosity

Life can engender many emotions. The last couple of weeks have been a bit of a roller coaster. Disappointment at indifference and surprise at cheerful generosity from unanticipated sources. You never know who will or won’t help – until you ask.

Several people responded to my requests by indicating that they didn’t have the resources or that they don’t donate money to friends or acquaintances. I appreciate that those folks at least took the time to acknowledge my request – to me that is just as important as the ability to help out. A number of people did not respond at all – not sure whether or not it is simple indifference or the desire to avoid having to say no. I’m just moving forward and not worrying about what did not occur.

A number of people are being quite kind and generous. I want to acknowledge how much I appreciate their consideration and efforts to help out. It really is amazing who chose to help and the degree to what they did to help. I am so thankful for the friends who are there when you need their assistance.

Uploaded images to my website and print on demand websites I utilize. I had my first couple of online sales – a long time coming but hopefully a sign of better times to come. I also worked on a triptych suggested to me by my friend John Manuwal. It is 3 images of the Cooper lake inlet – it was fun experimenting. The image of the triptych and the original photograph was well received.  I think that passion, play and fun are all deeply interconnected – well they are for me.

I’m posting the triptych which I titled ‘Triptych the Light Fantastic’ and the original piece “Cooper Lake inlet.’ Hope they bring beauty to the eye of the beholder.

Cooper Lake Inlet Upended

Triptych the Light Fantastic

If I logout of facebook I can’t gain access via the use of either link

Quite a conundrum. I having a hard time activating a link to my donor gallery. I’ve tried a couple of different ways of setting up a link. And, the gallery is suppose to be available to the general public.

You can check out my website – a portion of the images there are a part of my donor gallery. Also, my flickr photostream contains the gallery images and tons of other posted images – which can be intimidating to look through. Best bet on flickr is to look at the ‘sets’ I’ve established. Sort of breaks it up into bite size albums. My website is also divided into galleries and I know for a fact that it is accessible to all.

http://jonmack.photoshelter.com/

Using the flickr image to see my sets/albums requires you to click on the flickr image on my blog, once you arrive at the image – if you click on photostream in the right hand margin it will take you to the set/galleries I have established.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cascademotif/

Until I can figure out a way for anyone/everyone to directly access my ‘donor’ gallery the additional $10 for other images is eliminated.

Hope this helps people locate my donor gallery

Try this link if you are having difficulty accessing the gallery via the link I established on my blog page. Copy and paste into your browser address box if the link is not clickable. This stuff sure can be complicated.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2537845806566.2113960.1266247638&type=1

It’s a definite exercise in humility, and a bit humiliating, asking people for help. We live in a country where the philosophy is that ‘if you can’t get it on your own, there must be Something wrong with you.’

In most other respects my life is OK. Designing a flyer for my niece. Lots of medical appointments with upcoming surgery the end of February. Got a place to live, food, clothes, access to medical care, transportation, my photography gear. It is all about the half full glass.