Gunther Schütz, a portrait photographer I admire, keeps inspiring me to experiment with photographing people. Who better to experiment on ... the self. 

Click to see part 2

Matthew G. Beall   Self-Portrait  March 1, 2014

Remember the Forest

in the fog. 

memories. 

Remember the Forest

http://matthewgbeallphotography.blogspot.de/2013/12/the-foggy-way-through-german-forest.html

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Remember the Forest    2011

Some photographs made never change. Many photographs I make change in time because my artistic vision is much like the wind. 

The change is often subtle. After a long time of not looking at certain photographs, I see the image differently than when I "finished" it. Much like painting, a piece is, in my opinion, never truly finished. 

Why? Because I am vision driven. Artistic vision is not static.

Münster Window under the Roof  (2012) from my Ulmer Münster Series , which will be shown in the Stadthaus Ulm in 2015, is an example of subtle changes. The one on the right is the latest version. 

 

A glimpse, a look without seeing tends to be what we all do when it comes to the ordinary. Often the ordinary can become extraordinary when you stop, look at it, and then see it.

Matthew G. Beall Photography   A Place in the City   2012

Matthew G. Beall Photography   A Place in the City   2012

Take a look at the previous portrait
http://matthewgbeallphotography.blogspot.de/2014/02/the-oridnary-is-unique-portrait-look.html

What is unique? Sometimes the ordinary, the every day things we look at but perhaps don't really see, are actually unique. 

Though it's not always easy to stick to, I try to look, see and think about objects. This is the result of this practice. 

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Ordinary Things (Bathroom Sink & Shadow from Blinds)    2012


See more of the ordinary 

http://matthewgbeallphotography.blogspot.de/2011/12/warsaw-chopin-airport.html 

What makes a shot interesting? Why should  the viewer look at the photograph? These are just two questions out of many that I ask myself often. 

In this photograph the subject itself is not all that interesting in my view. However, when you can see it through the lens the way I see it through lens, then, in my opinion, it photograph becomes interesting. 

Matthew G. Beall   How I See It Through the Lens   2014

It's easy to be lazy. It's easy to put things off until another day. It's easy to become comfortable with procrastination.Yes, I am a procrastinator. 

2014 - Procrastinate less.

I got a nice birthday present from Violetta - a two night getaway. I chose Hopfen am See, which is just over an hour drive from where we live and a mere 5 kilometers from Füssen aka the place where Neuschwanstein (Disney castle) is. 

Wow! What a beautiful place little Hopfen am See is. We arrived on a very sunny New Year's Day. We checked into our hotel and were greeted by this:

Zimmer 20       www.hotel-fischer-am-see.de

 

What a damn fine good feeling view!

Although there was NO snow on the ground i.e. at lower levels, the Alps were full of white. Photographer's heaven! Not to mention inspiring for those with a smartphone aka Violetta!

Matthew G. Beall Photography    Violetta and Her Camera    2014

Come on. Look at this freakin' awesome sunset!

Matthew G. Beall Photography   What a Sunset!   2014 

And how do you beat this view?   

Matthew G. Beall Photography    Dusk and the Hopfen am See Village    2014

 There is beauty everywhere, but sometimes you need a kick in the ass to see it in other places.

1093! What a number, and this number is the date of the founding of the Benedictine Wiblingen Abbey. Europe is full of very old buildings. Being from the States, and although I have lived in Europe for many years, I am still amazed by these numbers. Old here is very, very old.

Places like the abbey are always so awesome to photograph. 

Here's a story in Black & White

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey (Kloster Wiblingen)   2013

 Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey Church  (Klosterkirche)    2013

 Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey Courtyard      2013

 

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey Morning Shadows   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey Apartments   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey Middle Court Yard   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wiblingen Abbey Light   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Wiblingen Abbey Sliver of Light    2013  

The Danube river, the Alps and a valley help to make Ulm a foggy place. Fog can be gloomy as well as mysterious. Fog can affect mood.

 The foggy way through the German forest.

Matthew G. Beall Photography   The Foggy Way    2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Inside the Forest   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Deep Inside the Forest   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Rise to the Fog   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  The Foggy Way Never Ending   2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  The Clearing not Clear   2013

Food for thought 

(On a Sunday)

We see what we call black, which is the absence of light. If black is the absence of light, then how can we see black?

In the complete absence of light, our eyes could not perceive black at all because no light is reflected off whatever object there is. Hence, there is no reception, so to speak, to our eyes.

The same would be true for white.

Nevertheless, Black and White are colors ... to me

Also posted on my art blog :: Inside the Studio
http://www.matthewgbeall.com/2013/12/black-white-are-colors-to-me-food-for.html 

Winter day 

breeze calm

Winter day

wind strong

Leaves sway

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Winter Day Leaves Calm  2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Winter Day Leaves Sway  2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Winter Day Leaves Swaying  2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Shadow on Leaves    2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography    Silent Leaves    2013

 From Capturing Exposures Magazine
Making Photographs :: Quantity or Quality?

Digital cameras allow us to take more photographs in a shorter space of time and to publish them within seconds. It's literally a snap!

Less is more. You won't really become a better photographer by simply snapping off a lot of random shots. And simply snapping away doesn't mean that you can replace quality with quantity, does it.

Making a photograph takes intent, knowledge, focus and, yes, hard work. Anyone who attempts to claim otherwise is being either naïve or ignorant. So, get out there and practice with intent and focus. Learn to look, see and think. Bring it all back to the darkroom and make that photograph you have in your mind’s eye.

When I think of Colorado, I always picture two things: Downtown Denver and the Rockies. 

This time round it was Denver for its highrise buildings.

Walking up and down and looking up on 16th street with my camera on a cloudy Sunday in July. 

I learned some time ago that you should always look up. Look, See, Think!

Matthew G. Beall Photography    16th Street Denver 1    2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography    16th Street Denver 2     2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography    16th Street Denver 3     2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography    16th Street Denver 4    2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography    16th Street Denver 5     2013

Black and white long exposure photography

The sea caught. Rocks wrapped in white. Time ever lasting. A Fiction of Nature.

See more here: Fiction of Nature: California Central Coast Series

Matthew G. Beall Photography
Monterey Shore
2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography
Monterey Shore Rocks
2013

Most of my work is black & white. It's fairly hard for me to break away from it. Yet, when there is no choice, you go with what works best, what makes the photograph you envision it to be. 

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Ulmer Münster :: Flowers on a Table    2013

Late fall 2012 I set up my gear on the banks of the Danube at the hydropower station in Ulm. My idea was to convey three things:  Different view, different take, different mood. 

Matthew G. Beall Photography  Ulm, Dam  Through the Lens    2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Ulm, Dam  Gritty Mood     2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Ulm, Dam  Different View      2013

Matthew G. Beall Photography      Down the River       2013

Ansel Adams is often on my mind. Two quotes of his that speak volumes.

You don't take a photograph, you make it. - Ansel Adams

 Dodging and burning are steps to take care of mistakes God made in establishing tonal relationships. - Ansel Adams

Matthew G. Beall Photography       Alps        2009/2011

The Big Five

Light and Shadow = mood

 

Contrast = attention

 

Shape and Form = interest

 

Pattern = interest

 

Texture = emphasis

 

  The QUALITY of light affects the mood of the photograph.

 

Matthew G. Beall Photography
The Old Cemetery in Ulm
2013

 

 

 

 

 

 Black & White Photography

Working with light and shadows in the late afternoon on a fall day.

Love the Light

Matthew G. Beall Photography   Wonderful Light   2013