Image City Photography Gallery
Newsletter
Issue: # 45August 19, 2011

We publish our brief Newsletter during each of our exhibits to pass along information and reviews of the exhibit, photographic tips, selected images and news of other participation opportunities at Image City. We thank you for your interest and we look forward to another great year of fine photographs and events. We hope to see you at each of our 13 shows in 2011.

In This Issue
"Portfolio Showcase 2011" our Current Show
Peter Marr's Picks from the show
Arts at the Gardens in Canandaigua
Image City Critiques -- Next Session Wednesday, September 7 at 7pm
Gary Thompson's Photo Tip
Calendar of Upcoming Events at Image City

Portfolio Showcase 2011 Eight Selected Portfolios

Current Show Runs Through Sunday, September 4

  

Portfolio Showcase 2011Our current exhibit is our third Portfolio Showcase and it is being very well received. The eight selected portfolios in the exhibit are by Steve Malloy Desormeaux, Tim Fuss, Michael Gow, Chris Kogut, JFK/AJVK, Thomas Kredo, Susan Larkin, and James Prutilpac. We know you will enjoy the superb artistic talents of the selected photographers and the wonderful themes and photographs represented in the exhibit. 

 

The photographic submissions to the Portfolio Showcase 2011 are an exceptional body of talent; we are sharing it with you by displaying a selection of the photographs by all who entered the juried competition. The display, on our large, high-resolution video display, is in  our East Gallery along with displays of the products and services of pixelPRESERVE, Denison Creative, and Lumiere Photo, who are the underwriters of the awards given to the selected photographers. pixelPRESERVE and Denison Creative designed and published a book of the photographs in the show. The high-quality book would be a perfect addition or gift to any art-book collection and is available for purchase. We very much appreciate the underwriting support again this year of Denison Creative, pixelPRESERVE, who have recently remodelled their location on Monroe Avenue, and Lumiere Photo, who has recently moved to our neighborhood, in The Neighborhood of the Arts.

 

We round out the show with work by Glenn Alexander of pixelPRESERVE, Artists-in-Residence, Jim Patton, David Perlman and Gallery Partners Dick Bennett, Carl Crumley, Steve Levinson, Gil Maker, Dan Neuberger, Don Menges, Betsy Phillips, Gary Thompson, Phyllis Thompson, and Sheridan Vincent.


First Friday Gallery Night is September 2 when the Gallery will be participating in  Rochester's monthly night of arts and culture. The Gallery is open on First Friday until 9pm.

For full details of the show click hereBe sure to check out the link to the "Preview of the Show Gallery" to see a selection of the fine works in the show. 
Peter's Picks for the Current Show

Peter Marr selects his favorites

 

Peter Marr makes his picks of the show from the work of the featured wall artist and the guest photographers. For this show, he made his choice from the eight selected portfolios for Portfolio Showcase 2011. He writes an interesting and entertaining commentary on the chosen photographs. We include a shortened version of Peter's comments here in the newsletter. To see larger images and the full article click here.

 

Penitentiary 5 by Steve Malloy DesormeauxThe first selection is by Steve Malloy Desormeaux where Peter observed that for the photograph Penitentiary #7 that "Steve's poignant and haunting black and white photographs from inside a derelict penitentiary, superbly evokes horror, abandonment and tragedy, so that there can be no disillusionment in the observer's mind, that such penal institutions are lamentable and shocking places. Each of his eight masterly prints are creatively expressive, and his exemplary use of available light, which is essentially single-sourced, dramatically highlights astonishing detail, form and texture. All of the author's images are fascinating and inspiring, making my selection of one to comment further on, extremely difficult. I finally chose print #7 because it is the best illustration of what you do not see, that is so vitally important. Here, a single, rusted bed frame offers both a dimensional indicator, and more meaningfully, a chilling reminder of how solitary confinement in such a forbidding prison cell, must have been a devastating experience for any luckless inmate. This claustrophobic enclosure of sheer unclimbable walls, offered little solace or hope of escape, and even the shaft of light from the narrow slit in the ceiling was just illusory......."

 

Foreshadow by Tim Fuss

For the second of Peter's picks, he chose

Foreshadow by Tim Fuss noting that "In Tim's truly excellent black and white prints, he has referenced various human experiences as viewed in the waters of upstate New York. All of his images are dynamic and thought-provoking, making the choice of just one to comment on extremely difficult. I finally selected Foreshadow, and in addition, I will relate what this print means to me in terms of human perception. I should note that waterfalls have emotional appeal, and as we cannot grasp the physical details of water in motion, we are therefore free to interpret them in any terms that we please. In Tim's powerful print, there are two large expanses of intense blacks, which for some are negative space par excellence, but to me, they remind me of how incomprehensible the vastness of time is for human beings. Coupled with this, is the fact that black is a space in which forms move from as an active force or repeating rhythm, and in this image we have an exquisite ribbon of an irregularly curved water cascade, that sensually and rhythmically, traverses diagonally across the available space. This moving water creates contrasts of brightness, which are at the core of visual perception and design, which here forms both natural and graphic formations and introduces perspective......."

 Morning Walk for Alms by Chris Kogut

Peter's next selection is Morning Walk for Alms by Chris Kogut, commenting "How could anyone not be excited and entranced by Chris's creative portfolio, which impressively illustrates the rich historical and cultural tradition and diversity of Burma, all proudly being sustained in spite of the non-existent harmony between the current ruling regime and the citizens of this great country. I greatly admire all of her eight prints, but as I can only comment on one of them, I chose Morning Walk for Alms because for me it personifies the belief that moral order of man and the natural order of heaven and earth are inextricably linked, a Burmese philosophy shared with the people of China. Set in a delightful, scenic woodland of overarching trees, with the magic of quiet side-lighting splashing through the dense foliage, there is an aura of mystical atmospheric presence. Here, in a timeless early morning ritual, along a well-trodden pathway, four Buddhist monks devoutly make their way, journeying probably to the temple, following the footsteps of countless others who have used this route for many centuries. The soft light beautifully captures every facet of their features and clothing, giving the monks an ambience of reverence, piety and resolution that is just awesome. The brilliant red of the cloaks that are artfully and symbolically worn by the three monks, contrast resplendently with the bright blue alms bowls carried preciously in their left arms and hands........." Note that Chris Kogut has produced a fascinating book of her exceptional photographs and text called Inside Burma, Photographs of an Enduring People. The 125 page book was produced by Denison Creative and pixelPRESERVE and is available at Image City with proceeds from the sale going to an organization lending humanitarian support to the people of Burma.

 

Appropriated Landscape No 7 by James PrutilpacFor James Prutilpac's Appropriated Landscapes #8, Peter noted that "Here, parts of the Rochester landscape, including the aqueduct, have been appropriated by talented graffiti artists as background canvases for their spray painting expertise. Impressively, the author has aesthetically used a lot of artificial lighting in each of his prints to photograph these epic scenes to give us truly memorable images. The #8 print is an outstanding example of how imaginative lighting has transformed this usually dull and dreary aqueduct into a highly colorful, vibrant thoroughfare. The radiant light from all of the open alcoves and arches add a tremendous three-dimensionality to the image, without distracting us from admiring the consummate artistry of the graffiti on the walls and massive columns. Whilst admiring the vividly-hued designs and writings, we are aware that all lines, even the dark shadows, inextricably try to draw our attention to the black rectangle at the end of the passageway. Realizing this, the author added an element, or should I say series of elements, that not only was a creative and magical touch, it resulted in introducing a powerful mystery quotient. I refer of course to loops of blue lights, that culminate half way down the aqueduct into ghostly apparitions of people, when the lights are superimposed on faces that were painted on some of the massive columns that support the aqueduct....."

 

As always, we thank Peter Marr for his contributions to this wonderful review of his picks from the exhibit.

 

Image City @ Arts at the Gardens - Sonnenberg Gardens August 20 & 21
Popular Regional Art Show in Canandaigua

 

Image City Photography Gallery will be exhibiting at the Arts at the Gardens this weekend, August 20 and 21. This two day juried fine-art and fine-craft show and sale is held on the grounds of Sonnenberg Gardens & Mansion State Historic Park in Canandaigua, NY. Special reduced admission is $6.00 and includes access to the mansion and gardens. For more details and a $1 off coupon that you can download, click here. It is another great time and place to see great work and chat with the artists in a very pleasant place. If you go, be sure to stop in and say "Hi" while you are viewing our photo exhibit. 

Image City Critiques

At Image City on Wednesday, September 7 at 7pm

 
Each month, we have had a good turnout for Image City Critiques, our free program at the Gallery to provide participants an opportunity to engage in a friendly, constructive, and positive critique and review of their photographs. The sessions are held on the first Wednesday of the month. Join us for the next on Wednesday, September 7th from 7:00-9:00 pm. Please bring 2 or 3 jpg images or prints. Images may be on a CD or on a thumb drive and should be sized at most 1MB in size and at most 1500 pixels on the longest side. If you have any questions please contact Don Menges (dmenges@rochester.rr.com) or Gil Maker (gmaker@mac.com).  We look forward to meeting with you on Wednesday, September 7 at 7pm. This month's assignment is to try to take and bring "balance" into your composition. Please send digital files by Tuesday, September 6 to gmaker@mac.com.
Gary Thompson's Photo Tip of the Month

Photographing Ocean Waves 

 

The Wave of Pemaquid by Gary ThompsonAn enjoyable and creative way to shoot ocean sunrises and sunsets is to find an area where large waves crash and splash across a rocky foreground. One such area is Pemaquid Point on the Maine coast where the summer sun can be used to outline ocean waves as they crash against eastern sloping rocks. When preparing to make these kind of images, spend some time exploring different angles to find the best spots from which to silhouette breaking waves. This means that you will generally be using backlighting of the waves and rocks as your subject matter. Make sure that you select a safe spot for you and your equipment and avoid getting any ocean salt spray on your camera or lens. Once you have determined your shooting spot, study and time the pattern of the waves for many minutes.  

 

Bracket both your exposures and shutter speeds in order to obtain the best images. I like to shoot with speeds of 1/250 through 1/500 of a second.   An advantage of the sun providing backlighting is that your exposure can be quite fast without needing to adjust your ISO. Because the bright sun will create a dark image when using a normal matrix meter reading, I like to overexpose this kind of image by bracketing between +1 and +2.5 stops (again with a matrix meter reading). Check your histograms for the best exposures with your digital camera. HDR techniques might or might not work because of the motion of the waves.

 

To help diminish lens flare I use only one filter and that would likely be an 81A warming filter. I don't use a polarizer for these kinds of images as they increase the risk of lens flare and will slow the shutter speeds too much.

 

If there are clouds present and you can sunburst the sun, problems of lens flare will be reduced and mood and interest will be added to your images. To enhance a sunburst and provide some depth of field, I use as small an aperture as I can that still provides a fast shutter speed. A long lens of 100-400 mm will enable you to isolate and aesthetically compose your subject. A long lens will also help to keep you and your equipment at a safe distance from the ocean.

Check your equipment frequently, and clean your camera, lens, and tripod after shooting near the ocean.  

 

My example image is entitled The Wave of Pemaquid. It was captured with slide film and I printed it from an interneg in a traditional wet chemistry darkroom with considerable burning and dodging. Click here  to see a somewhat larger image and the webpage with past Gary's Photo Tips.

 

Calendar
Image City Photography Gallery, 722 University Avenue 
 

August 20 and 21 -Image City @ Arts at the Garden, Sonnenberg Gardens, Canandaigua, NY 

 

September 2 - First Friday Gallery Night, 6 - 9 pm

  

September 4 - Final day for Portfolio Showcase 2011

 

September 7 - Gallery Critiques Session 7pm


September 7 - First day of Rochester Moments by Sheridan Vincent
September 9 - Opening Reception: Rochester Moments by Sheridan Vincent

September 10 and 11 Image City @ Memorial Art Gallery M&T Bank Clothesline Festival

October 5 - First day of Diamonds, Rabbits, and Stars by George Wallace, Gil Maker, and Don Menges

November 2 - First day of Perspectives - Near and Far by Phyllis and Gary Thompson and Friends

November 30 - First day of the Annual Holiday Show at Image City.
 
Image City Photography Gallery   Hours: Wednesday - Saturday 11 - 7, Sunday Noon - 4  
 

There is no admission fee to visit Image City Photography Gallery

Contact Information

 Image City Photography Gallery, 722 University Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607

585.271.2540 
website: www.ImageCityPhotographyGallery.com 

 

In the Heart of ARTWalk in the Neighborhood of the Arts
 
Image City Photography Gallery | 722 University Avenue | Rochester | NY | 14607