Daniel Ruf

Whew!

"What is the good of your stars and trees, your sunrise and wind, if they do not enter into our daily lives"

E.M. Forster

The "Through The Lens" exhibit reception went off without a hitch last night at Arts On Grand and now Mike Houge and myself can breath a sigh of relief.  There was a good crowd of people where we had the opportunity to meet with both new and old friends to discuss the body of work on the wall which was, if I say so myself, massive.  In fact, there was a hint of trepidation in the voice of the assistant when we hauled in the mountain of framed work that we had accumulated. 

As with any show, book or artist submission the showing becomes a measuring stick of accomplishments of the previous year and of the quality and growth of the work.  In my own mind a figurative stake is planted in the ground of the creative process as a marker for things to come in 2012.  It is a challenge, whether intentional or not, to move ahead, undergo new challenges and await the results and I look forward to the trails ahead.

The blog image was taken shortly after I had spent several weeks of printing and framing for the aforementioned showing.  I was tired of looking at white mat board, sick of putting frames together and eager to see if I still knew where the shutter release was located.  While standing in the dining room I began to see of hint of a glorious sunrise, threw gear in the truck and began driving for some location...any location that would offer a reflection.  I was so pale from basement dwelling with the printer that I HAD to have some color...in massive amounts.

It was given in boat loads!

As a side note the Baylor nation couldn't be prouder of its team and Robert Griffen III for bringing home the Heisman Trophy.  A  testiment to those that wait and achieve and finish strong.  Sic 'Em Bears.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you have a marvelous holiday season.

My book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" and new book "Take What's Given" can be purchased online at-  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V

http://500px.com/pigs4u

Gone...

"We are all traveling the vanishing road of a song in the air, the vanishing road of the spring flowers and the winter snows, the vanishing roads of the winds and the streams, the vanishing road of beloved faces."

Richard Le Gallienne

...but not forgotten! 

This scene was one of many that I viewed from my farm home near Milford, Iowa as I looked north from the living room windows.  It was from this vantage point that I could see a sunrise beginning to form as an alert to grab the camera, jump into the truck and get to a favorite spot for a sunrise composition.

Sadly, this farmstead is gone now, burned and buried deep under cropland, never to be seen again.  This has been repeated many times in the last 10 years as farmers work to gain more cropping acres for expansion.  While we are burying our history,  we are also destroying some precious wildlife habitat, that, in this day and age is irreplaceable.

The blog image, which I stumbled across during a search, was taken soon after I had purchased my first digital camera in 2005. It was saved for the very reason that it was what saw and I was surprised at how well digital could convey color as compared to film.   I have changed the sky as the original was blown out in some large areas and the color is tweaked to the pleasure of my memory.

Love of farming should always be done with respect to love of the land for we only abide here for such a short time.

Thank you for stopping and feel free to comment.

My book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" can be purchased online at-

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V

Keeping Cool

 

"I am still learning."   Michelangelo

With the summer heat that has gripped  the midwest I have spent some days going through my archived work looking for refreshment and work during idle times.  The blog image reminded me of my annual frantic search for Columbine and a small park in the town of Redwood Falls, Minnesota where I finally found large numbers of these flowers in a variety of growing situations and I spent the entire morning working at a number of settings.

This happens to be one of my favorites since it involves a nice alignment of flowers and a creek area in the background.  It also required me to use a 1.4 teleconverter on my 70 - 200mm lens (something I learned a recent Tony Sweet workshop) to soften the foreground clutter so that full attention was on the main subject.  After getting everything put together it became a matter of waiting for the wind to cease and for the sun's light to find a spot in the overhead canopy of leaves to light the one flower.  I find during these times that "wishing doesn't make it so", only waiting.

The blog quote from the famed artist and sculpture reminded me of the trials of the digital world...That anything new becomes old in 6 months.  Because of the fast pace of this new art form it has been necessary to learn digital photography info and equipment at a faster and more regular pace than was necessary in film photography, or at least it seems that way.  I think the biggest thing that I've had to learn is to pace myself by learning at my slow pace, remembering to develop my craft.

As my friend Mike Houge continues to tell me, "It's all about the journey" and it certainly appears to be the case.  While standing before the setting of Columbines it's easy to be entertained by the surroundings and it's one of the perks of learning photography.

Summer is half over with Fall on the way and winter following.  Enjoy it all with regular journey's!

Thank you for stopping and feel free to comment.

My book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" can be purchased online at-

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V

Flower Child

"People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time

to have such things about us."   Iris Murdoch

It was during an evening of wandering that I came upon a new prairie tucked among some buildings in our town which has given me a new playground for the past couple of weeks.  I'm not sure where my love of flowers has come from since my biology background of college was more involved with the "dissecting" of parts and identification than fostering wonder.  While crisscrossing this field it came to me that the area becomes one big still life where movement and elevation become the keys to making portraits, and, after all, that is what we're always making when we click the shutter...just beautiful portraits.

This image of "Indian Blankets" was taken with my Canon 5D Mark II and a 70 - 200mm f/2.8 lens with a 1.4 teleconverter attached.  This lens is one of my favorites and I don't know how I lasted so long without this magnificant tool.  It is extremely sharp and has such a shallow depth of field that foreground and background areas become more about colors and shapes rather than clutter.

Very little processing was necessary other than the visits to Nik Color Efex Complete as set up selection and lighting becomes the most important part of these types of capture...as they are with any photography.  Taking the time to find the right accompniment for the main subject goes a long way to formulating the final outcome...plus a little love for flowers!

Thank you for stopping and feel free to comment.

My book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" can be purchased online at-

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V

Surrounded

   

Recently I had the opportunity to visit a national park that I'd always heard about, but never lived close enough to for a visit.  Luckily the opportunity to visit presented itself during retirement and I  jumped at the chance.  The place, Smoky Mountain National Park is located in eastern Tennessee and, during the Spring that I was there, is now on my "must visit" list for the future.  Aside from the fact that it's a beautiful park it has enough running streams of water to be an institution of higher learning in water photography and enough wildflowers to gentle anyone's heart while stirring their creative imagination.

I sometimes think that really good locations help make good photographers even better, but I KNOW that good locations help make good photographers even better when they get back to home turf.  New places seem to rejuvenate the creative "well" so that when one returns to their native stomping grounds their visual responses are keener, at least that has been my experience.  New places also become a source of "continuing education" which I think is necessary for any artist to do on a regular basis, especially in adjunct to a formal workshop in ones medium.

The other more subliminal result of visiting new places is a renewed appreciation of what our good country has to offer in the way of sites, sounds and people that we often forget we are a part of.  In today's "modern" world it's all to easy to become "home bound" in our perception of our world and we easily forget that there are beautiful spaces not far from our door.  And, in those spaces, are beautiful people with entirely different ways of life, loves and dialect.  Just as in Texas, in Tennessee I never tire of hearing a waitress call me "honey" while helping me make a dinner choice.  For some reason, the people in these places are just in a different daily gear and have time to ask about where you're from, about your family and say "Y'all come back real soon" when they say goodbye...and they all seem to mean it.

The blog image is from the Little River in the Smoky's (that's the accurate spelling) and will become a part of the "Ballerina" series of work that I'm accumulating.  I am drawn to trees that take on a certain "pose" in their environment that might represent what one would expect a ballerina to present.  It was taken with a simple Canon 50D with very little digital editing involved except for a tweak called "glamor glow" in Nik Viveza Complete software.

In just a short generation America's national parks have become our best kept secret.  The world of digital entertainment has distracted all of us from our lands greatest entertainment treasures.  Time spent with our families traveling, camping, fishing, etc. has diminished our real life adventures we adults enjoyed as children.  Take the time to see OUR world...and in the process support the local arts.

Thanks to all that continue to support this site by visiting.

    My new book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" can be purchased online at-

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

    For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V1

Stop The Noise

 

"Cultivate solitude and quiet and a few sincere friends, rather than mob merriment, noise and thousands of nodding acquaintances."
William Powell

A persons daily life is much like a piece of art that is made up of many parts in its composition.  Visual, audio and textural entities are some of the most obvious parts and they may act as a "frame" for a moment or as the background staging equipment for an event.  If one lives in a city environment the staging area is not so different from the staging area of someone that lives in a more rural setting, just the volume of the parts of the scene.

It has become evident to me that in today's world the volume of the parts of our world are becoming deafening and rude.  Whether blasting from a t.v. radio or the human scene it would appear that the loudest noise is what gets noticed.  Voices are now blended over one another, pushing and shoving their way to be noticed, making a normal scene a chaotic audio event.  The news is loud, the weather report is loud and even art, in some cases, has become a screaming of "look at me" color, line and texture with little thought of quiet, sustainable composition.  Much of today's more "edgy" photography wears my patience as I try to understand the reason for wasting such a good medium on work that is sometimes quite repulsive.

It is no secret to me that I'm in my own little world out here in Northwest Iowa and that part of the attraction of areas like this, or the canyons, mountains, forests and meadows of any other place in the world, is the peace that one can find in these remote corners.  To some, the lack of NOISE can be thunderous, while to those of us that seek these areas and their quiet moments they become the background staging area for the visual composition.

Recently, while watching a movie, I became increasingly aware that the the score of music was in such competition for attention that the words being spoken by the actor were almost inaudible.  Such a lack of regulating volume was a shame considering that both the music and the spoken words were eloquent.

Regulating levels of composition in my life is no simple matter, especially considering my Italian/German/Irish ancestry.  Be that as it may, I am still in control of the color, levels and intensity of my personal compositions.  Those special times when I'm out in nature are more special to me because there is no need for words as the sound of peace is the musical background of what lays before me.

The blog image is a capture from the Texas hills that has been processed via Photoshop CS5 and treated with Nik Color Efex and Viveza filters.

Thanks for visiting my blog site.

    My new book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" can be purchased online at-

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

    For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V1

 

Winter Color

"My apple tree will never get across
And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
He only says, 'Good fences make good neighbors'."

from "Mending Wall" by
Robert Frost

Finding winter color can be a challenge up here in Northwest Iowa and I had been looking for quite some time for a Bittersweet vine to work with when I stumbled on this one, clinging to an old fence line that has escaped removal by the land owner. I was most fortunate that the day started with a nice heavy fog which gave way to a heavy layer of hoar frost on everything in the open, including this stunning blast of colorful Bittersweet berries.

The demise of Bittersweet and other fence "decor" is the result of the push/rush by many farmers to add a couple of acres and/or reduce the need to keep planting machinary, etc. clear of snagging these "tempermental" land dividers.  My minimal experience in the field had taught me to allow a couple of feet of clearance to avoid such problems, but I'll admit, watching with a craned neck and steering a tractor were not my strong suit at certain times. 

The biggest problem in removal of a fence line is about more than just the loss of some Bittersweet vines or grape vines.  Since a margin for error was required for working along a fence line with farm equipment, it meant that most fence lines "protected" about 3 - 4 feet, counting both sides of the fence.  This "acreage" was, and still is, vitally important as wildlife cover, especially with such birds as pheasants and animals like rabbits, etc.  Today, it's not uncommon to see whole sections of land (640 acres) that are devoid of fence lines, meaning a large loss of wildlife habitat and food sources, especially during the winter months.  Add to that the fact that fence lines make acceptable snow fences during the winter and one can clearly see that fence removal is a harsh solution to gaining an acre of ground, maybe a row of corn or beans, and faster completion of farming chores. 

While I do understand the farmer "side of the fence" I'm not sure that a row of corn makes up for loss of habitat and snow fence with the removal of these aged lines of demarcation.  And, yes, as I found out personally, good fences do make good neighbors as some farmers tend to farm a little farther out of their fence line when a sturdy fence is absent.

The blog image is a simple production using Photoshop CS5 and a mild use of both Topaz Adjust and Nik Viveza plug in to enhance sharpness and color presentation.

Thanks for visiting my blog site.

    My new book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" can be purchased online at-

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

    For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V1

Getting Out

"Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather. "
John Ruskin

Shortly before Christmas we had a break in the weather leaving a delicious layer of new snow on the ground and some sunlight which "forced" me to grab the gear and head to the truck.  It was late afternoon when I started out and as the light started to really get low I found my way to a couple of spots that I thought would work the best for the light at the time.  While heading down a familiar gravel road I past a farm driveway, gave it a quick glance and then kept driving.  My subconsious must have caught a glimpse of the beautiful patterns in the snow because that inner voice was screaming "GO BACK, IDIOT".  As I usually listening when the word "idiot" comes out I proceeded to back up the hill, park the truck, and get out into the crisp winter air.  When I moved around the rear of the truck it was then that I again caught the visual dining table of oblong circles pointing right up that long quiet drive and ending at the lonesome corn crib, a vanishing feature in our part of the world.  As the light was getting low and color began to paint the sky I had to work fast getting my gear set up while making some decisions. 

The area was a bit tight to work in since there was a very ugly machine shed to the immediate right side of the subject, but I think the directional indicators of circles and vegetation along the side helps to move the eye up the hill to the quietly waiting crib.  It also was clear that an HDR capture was necessary due to the light sky and dark foreground areas.  As I finished the work at this location I trudged around the area to see if there were a better positions, but this was the best spot and viewpoint for the subject.

The blog image is a result of the evening shoot and I began the editing process by using the new Nik HDRefex program.  I did some minor tweaks with the software to achieve the final conversion and was thrilled by the results, especially since it was the first time I had pulled something from the new Nik software. 

The longer I looked at the image, and after printing up a couple of greeting cards, I really felt that some frosting was needed to hold the viewers attention a bit longer in the environment.  Since the moon was getting close to being full and had cleared the horizon to the left I decided that I could introduce a moon to the landscape to see how it looked.  After seeing the results I was even more pleased with the outcome and left things be from there.

It continues to amaze me how just jumping into a vehicle with a bag of camera gear can make a normal winter outing a real thrill and doesn't even have to involve sliding on the ice.  I can distinctly remember thinking I was going to lose the light and lose the opportunity to find something photogenic, but give me enough gas, an old corn crib, lonely lane and some descent light and I'm usually happy.

Wishing you all a happy new year!

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota  www.lanesboroarts.org

http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V1

 

 

 

Dalliance

 

"My first thought is always of light."  Galen Rowell

One definition in Webster's Dictionary of the word "Dalliance" is "an action that is not serious".  If this is true, then much of my work could be considered a dalliance, a sniff of a wildflower, laying among wildflowers or gazing at light on wildflowers.  It takes a lot of dalliance to reduce my normal human ego down to a distance of about 6 inches, which is where many wildflowers exist.  It takes a lot of dalliance to appreciate the fragrance of a woodland meadow since it's not usually available to the casual observer.  And, it takes a lot of dalliance to appreciate the last rays of warm sunlight that showers fine edges with lights crystals.

Deciding on camera gear, setting up tripods, looking for position are all dalliance's...or the moments when the surroundings begin to infuse our psyche.  The longer the search the more our physical systems hone in on the peripherals of our camera and lens.  If at this point one is still just setting up a camera and lens, then it's time to sit down, adjust our attention to the reason of residing at this location, and breath.  The object of our consideration will not move and our capture will not be moving unless we absorb the ecosystem of the fascination.  You know, the birds, the sound of the waves brushing the shore, the wind.  It's all simple, but our species has progressed (?) so far so that our eyes and ears are only attentive to the most obvious of human clutter....NOISE...both visual and audio.  Hence, our personal space has been reduced to office cubical and home with few of us dallying among the sounds and visuals of Peace.

The blog image, a simple onlooker of my dalliance, was made all the more precious by the dance of light.  What in broad daylight is a ball of fire, flattening colors and tones throughout, becomes stardust during the fragile hours of dawn and dusk.  The sun is much like us...it has it's moments...two each day to be exact!  Add a little fog or haze and its dazzling rays offer us a longer time to dally. 

Thanks to all that have taught me the art of dalliance.

Take time this Christmas season to........................................................dally!

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

"Art On 16th"  http://www.hankhallarton16th.com

Artisans Road Trip www.artisansroadtrip.com  

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota  www.lanesboroarts.org

http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V1

Buried Treasures

Recently I was watching a television program concerning various fossil finds around the country and the thought came to me that the narration treated these bones of unfortunate animals as treasures, hidden in the earth, from a time long ago.  As I reflected on the rendered scenes of the environment of that time I couldn't help wondering what civilizations in the distant future might think of the remains our civilization leaves behind as our historic ledger.

I've noticed a lot of discussion lately about the environmental movement as it relates to endangered species and become really disappointed by those that would take issue with the preservation of some near extinct species which they feel is insignificant, especially when the plant or animal is standing in the way of some huge construction project of human design.  Advocates from both sides of the debate hurl platitudes back and forth in an effort to sell their position to a public that, in most cases, is ill equipped to even render a fair opinion on the subject or even cares about BOTH sides of the argument.

The question that I have for those that see no real reason to yield to an endangered species is when is the time right to grant consideration to the last of a species.  Would it be when just one elephant is left standing?  Or perhaps it would be when clean water is no longer available and lines have begun to form in the streets behind some tanker truck that shows up on the odd dates of the month.  I know to many this might sound like a huge stretch, but I'm not sure it's as far off as people believe.  In fact, I'm not sure many people, other than environmentalists, give a moments thought about any of this as long as such things as lumber and eggs are still readily available at any price.

As a retired farmer I've been involved in many discussions, around a table in the local grain elevator, concerning commodity prices, falling markets, cost of production, etc.  One flag that is always raised in these discussions is that the American public will never understand the value of food and it's production until the shelves at the local super market are bare, such as we saw years ago in film clips from Russia.  Just as today's public is more removed from the farm sector than it was 50 years ago, so are those same individuals more distant from the wilderness experiences of families of the past.

Ansel Adams once discussed the value of the American wilderness as a re-creation experience over recreational experience and I think that's a pretty profound statement for our time.  Until we see the value of the environment as a place to recharge, reflect and contemplate many of us will fail to see or value the wildness that still exists on this planet.  More importantly, until we see the value of open space over office space, many will never stand on the side of endangered ecosystems.

Nature Photographers Unite!

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

"Art On 16th"  http://www.hankhallarton16th.com

Artisans Road Trip www.artisansroadtrip.com  

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota  www.lanesboroarts.org

http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V1