Earlier this month I was in a photography funk. I did not want to write about photography, take any pictures or attend any photography classes or meet-ups. It was really interesting because usually, photography is the activity I turn to when I need to express myself. However, for some reason, it became something that was more draining than invigorating and the last thing I need in my life is another activity that drains me. So, I decided to get out of town and take a little adventure just to refocus and reorient.
The adventure I chose was the beach; well, three beaches actually -- Virginia Beach, Myrtle Beach and Hilton Head. Now I have been to the beach before, but it was in San Francisco and it was freezing. I stood there with my jacket on for fifteen minutes before leaving; it was miserable. Thus, the thought of going to a warm beach had a real appeal to me. While I was not a huge fan of Myrtle Beach, I really enjoyed both Virginia Beach and Hilton Head. Each day of my trip I would sit on the beach during the day and then take photos at the beach around either sunrise or sunset. Something about watching the sun rise and set over the ocean perked me up. I also made it a point to just capture cool candid shots of people enjoying their time at the beach or of objects at the beach. By the end of my week long road trip I was ready to get back home and my funk was over.
I tend to take myself on photo adventures pretty regularly, however, I have never just set out in my car and gone looking for new inspiration. There was a certain amount of freedom in doing just that so I may have to make it a more regular occurrence. If you want to take a look at some of the photos from my beach road trip and my other photo adventures feel free to head over to my website -- www.miniphotog.com.
Earlier this year one of my photos was selected to be part of a juried exhibition. I was very excited as it was the first time I had ever submitted artwork to a photo competition, so, naturally, it was also the first time my work had been exhibited anywhere. Once my work was accepted, however, I had to figure out the logistics of having my work printed, matted and framed.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I alternate between AdoramaPix and ProDPI as my printers. Due to size limitations at the venue, I planned to print the photo as an 8x10" and then frame so that the maximum size was 11x14". However, when I submitted my photo, I did not crop the image to 8x10 so when I printed my photo, it printed at around 6.6x10 inches. Needless to say, this made finding a mat for my work a tad bit more difficult.
