Daniel Ruf

Practice

       "Those who find beauty in all of nature will find themselves at one with the secrets of life itself."
                                                                 L. Wolfe Gilbert

During the last several days I've spent my time working indoors with flower setups in preparation for the natural outdoor floral occurances that should be coming soon.  Too me it's a whole different exercise in seeing and working almost in miniature.  It's also a time when I spend long moments with my nose within inches of the ground absorbing the aroma of the spring soil and Mother Earth.  Here in northwest Iowa there is a large "spring flush" of color and then things sort of slow down and the task becomes being at certain places at certain times for certain species.  Of course weather plays an important part in all of this as well as the warming spring light of the sun.

The blog image is brought to you by a grouping of daffodil's, well, one exactly...the others were watching in envy.  I "constructed" (liberal use of the term) a fairly large box where light from my electronic flash would be bounced around, thus avoiding shadows.  The background is a blurred print that I use for such occasions (I need to make more, but usually forget) that provides a complimentary "garden" feel of color and blur. 

I was about ready to fold things up when I decided to try a shot of the back of a daffodil and I'm quite happy that I followed my instincts, although I do stress in my beginner classes of the importance of working from several points of view from any subject.

Winter is fading fast, the lake is about to shed it's icy coat and it won't be long before the lush Spring greens will surround all of us.  Take the time to get out, walk, chase the kids, run the dog and enjoy this greening of the earth.

Go Baylor...Sic 'Em Bears. 

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

Review

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.  Live the life you have imagined."  Henry David Thoreau

For those of you that are hard core photographers I have a couple of sites for you to visit that I think will be rewarding and maybe even put a little thrill in your day.  First, I would suggest that you click on the Guy Tal link at the right and then go to his blog site to read his "Course Corrections" post.  It's well written, covers a lot of the curves and hills of this think called fine art photography and is just good reading.  He's one of the masters and makes some excellent points. 

Two other masters, John Barclay and Tony Sweet, also linked in the upper right, also have blogs that are posting their work from a workshop they had in Cuba.  Their work is beautiful and is an artistic journey of the area from their perspective as very fine photographers.  It will be good viewing and give you the opportunity to see how others handle the craft of fine art photography.

As for this blog post the image is one of my still set ups at an old barn at the Peterson Park Heritage site near Ingham Lake.  Both me and my good friend Mike Houge have traveled there often just to stretch our creative muscles and enjoy the lighting of the morning.  As you can see it's nothing fancy, but it is a joy to play, develop, and design.  This sort of thing can be done in your house, in a corner, with ambient light or artifial light and when the weather stinks.  You'll be surprised at how the time flies when you get involved in the creative process.

Go Baylor...Sic 'Em Bears

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

 

 

 

Creativity Of Others

"photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still."   Dorthea Lang

The blog image was captured at a local heritage site in a one room school house that I worked this past Spring.  It is as I found it, complete and untouched except for the addition of one more baseball bat from my prop collection.   It is another reminder that our world is full of found still life collections, just waiting for us to recognise them and collect them, whether in our memories or as subjects of art.

I spend a fair amount of time looking at other art media whether in a magazine or museum or gallery. When I work at the A Piece Of Work gallery in my town of Spirit Lake I am fortunate that there is a collection of art magazines for patrons to take or borrow and in down time I will usually scan or read one of the magazines.  I enjoy not only looking at other mediums and reading of the process, but also seeing what sorts of subjects inspire other artists and how they develop them for viewers.

As many of you are aware I love doing still life work and take advantage of any opportunity that presents itself when I'm out.  Most times I develop a scene on site with some of the prop items I have with me and they're not too high end.  I'll look for old books, my childrens sports items, trinkets and clothing items and sometimes I'll even find items at the site.  Sometimes I'll get into the still life mode just to fill days when weather or other conditions aren't favorable for photographic work.  Whatever the case it is an opportunity to create, produce and learn.

The point is that we should take any opportunity to learn from others whether it be technique, vision, design or approach.  Type of medium should not be a constraint nor tools used.  As a matter of fact, when you think about it, most of life is a still life or with a camera, it will become one.  Just look around and let your creative spirit loose.

Go Baylor...Sic 'Em Bears

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

Look Down

                       "Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."  Albert Camus

A couple of weeks ago I was in Ft. Defiance State Park struggling to find something of a seasonal nature, and with the creek dry and the trees stripped I was not too happy.  I was at a point of finishing my work when I happen to look down where I found, between my feet, the subject that has become this weeks blog image.  In a world of brown I found some color and an arrangement that was pleasing.  I'm not often successful at setting up a leaf still life so this find was a "diamond in the rough" for me.

The image was shot with my Canon 5D and processed in Photoshop CS5.  I did a slight bit of detail work in Nik Color Efex Pro 4, a little color punch in Nik Viveza, a very light Fly Paper Texture layer and then a final process in Alien Skin Snap Art to convert the image to an oil painting.  My next move was to reduce the opacity of the Snap Art by about 30% to let the original details creep back in.

We all get caught up in viewing the world from the human perspective of 5 feet off the ground when sometimes the best view is straight down. 

Go Baylor...SIC 'EM BEARS

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

Details, Details, Details

                                 "The principle of art is to pause, not bypass."   Jerzy Kosinski

Ft. Wilkins is located near Copper Harbor on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and is a well preserved fortified structure of the 1800's.  As many of you regular viewers know I'm a fan of still life work and take any opportunity to photograph still life's when they arrive.  Such is the case in this room of Ft. Wilkins when I was there a few weeks ago.  The outside lighting was overcast so the interior of this particular room was much softer, the colors richer and the contrast levels much lower.  All critical elements in photography, but especially most still life work.

I was using my Nikon D300s and I still captured this scene as a 5 shot HDR with processing done in Nik HDR Efex Pro 2, which is a much improved edition from their first intro HDR software.  Later I did some minor adjustments in Nik Color Efex Color Efex Pro with special use of the U-point technology to pin point adaptive changes.  As a final touch I added a texture layer from my Totally Rad texture software which served to brighten certain areas and also add a light texture quality to the image.

While this particular day was quite gloomy it was a prime opportinity to fulfill my hunger for still life work and to brush up on the local history of the area.

Thank you for stopping by and feel free to make a note in the comment section of this blog space and also to visit the blog spots listed on the right side of this commentary.

Go Baylor...SIC 'EM BEARS

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Pledge

"Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction.  We didn't pass it on to our children in the bloodstream.  It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same."

                                   Ronald Reagan

Late in August Mike Houge and myself are going to put together a joint showing of our work for the Dickinson County Nature Center as a fund raising effort for the center and it's activities.  It will be a body of work that will celebrate the area landscape as well as local sites and recreation activities.

Back in 1996 a number of people and organizations of the area put forth an effort to fund the moving and restoration of a one room school house from another part of the county to a site near the center.  Our work for this show has given us unlimited access to the interior of this school and it has been a thrill to spend time inside.

The blog image was a reminder to me of how my classroom days began when I was a youngster when every morning my class would stand and recite the Pledge Of Allegiance.  It's a distant memory now, but was brought back to me as I prepared for this capture.

I'm glad that my advancing years have not wiped away all of my memory, yet.  While the flag is a beautiful symbol, it is so much more than that to me and, I hope, go all of us.  God bless America...this great land and its people.

Thanks for showing up at my site and take your family out to enjoy the Spring sites.

Sic 'em Bears!

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

Candy

"Excellence is not a skill.  It's an attitude."

                                    Ralph Marston

To me doing close up photography is like eating candy...I just can't stop.  The image in last weeks post was taken after I had been frustrated with the days of Iowa winds and lack of tulip "portraits" from my garden.  I know, I could/should have figured away to work with the elements at hand, but my mind was set to a different tune.  I clipped a tulip, brought it into the house to get to work.

That same tulip found it's way to our kitchen counter, and fortunate for me, under a ceiling light by sheer fortune.  During the evening the light was on and there was a beautiful glow caused in the bottom of the tulip.  My attention was peaked and play began.  This story is so simple I've since shared it with my photo class participants and it goes like this. 

After the recognition of possiblity I looked for a background...it was a blue trash can, which I placed a couple of feet behind the flower in the kitchen sink.  (you got to use the props available!)  Being satisfied with the blog image at right I then started bringing out some of my wife's clothes...colored shirts, scarves, etc. to supplement as back drops.  It's a habit that my that my wife doesn't even question anymore. 

 
It doesn't have to be difficult...just fun!

Check out my friend Mike Houge's site, www.mikehouge.typepad.com to see the beautiful flower/close up work he's been up to.

Thanks for showing up at my site and take your family out to enjoy the Spring sites.

Sic 'em Bears!

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

The Others

"The one phrase you can use is that success has a thousand fathers, and failure is an orphan.

Alan Price

I've noted before on this blog site my gratitude for those that have played a part in my growth in the photographic art, whether artist, teacher or friend and the blog image is no exception.  As many of you know I'm a follower of the work and teachings of Tony Sweet and Susan Milestone, Tony's partner.  Their expertise, as well as that of many others listed in the upper right column of this blog, have been instrumental in my growth as well as the growth of many other photographers.

The concept for this particular image came from one of Tony's instructional DVD's "Flower Photography Artistry" that is available for purchase on his website. The image here is a combination of a flower in front of one of my prints from a while back.  The print was of a field of yellow coneflowers and had been blurred in Photoshop Elements as a creative measure.

After fighting the wind on several days in the attempt to capture some images of tulips around our house I decided that indoors shooting was going to be the answer.  Our tulip beds are new and therefore don't offer a lot of background color due to the sparse populations (this will be improved over the next few years with more plantings).  I had wanted to use the background print on several occasions and this became the appropriate time to experiment.

In this case the distance of the tulip from the background is probably double the distance of the tulip from the camera and the setup is catching soft ambient light from a window to the right.  As many of you know I really enjoy doing still life photography in natural light since it is such an exceptional light full of color and softness.

Since I was working with a recently purchased used Nikon D300s I also practice the use of the overlay program which is a fabulous in camera tool that I have high hopes for as well as other camera adjustments that come with this camera.  My thanks again to Tony for his advice and guidence in this selection.

While we all are affected in some way by those that pass through our lives it is often forgotten the role, however incidental, these wonderful "exclamation points" play in ones development.  To all those in the right hand column, as well as many others, a big thank you.

Sic 'em Bears!

Thanks for visiting and enjoy this beautiful Spring.

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

Another Look

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would  hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'."    Erma Bombeck

Last fall I came upon this scene during a different time of day and season. (see the Oct. 2, 2011 blog post).  I was quite happy with the dramatic lighting as well as the new find which led to the final image in the aforementioned post. 

A few weeks ago I was back at the same location absorbed in shooting still life arrangements in an old barn and the farm house (last weeks post) and had pretty much spent a morning of quality time and sunlight.  As I was gathering my gear to leave I looked over to this outbuilding with the idea of investigating the lighting inside (which has to be view through a small hole near the floor since the building is locked), but decided that it probably wasn't much different than the past and wouldn't have the directional lighting from the window on the left.  My "guilty" conscience got the better of me and I finally walked over to peek into the front windows.  I couldn't believe the light falling on the milk cans and began rushing around to set up camera, lens and tripod. 

As I stated earlier, the only possible shot is through a "cat" hole near the floor and lens choice is limited due to the size of the hole.  But, with stiff bones I was able to lay on the ground to get everything in position and......click!

The lesson?  NOTHING is EVER the same with ANYTHING!  A lesson I am reminded of on many occasions.

Sic 'em Bears!

Thanks for visiting and enjoy this beautiful Spring.

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

The Gathering

"All the art of living lies in the fine mingling of letting go and holding on."  Havelock Ellis

For sometime I've wanted to gather some of the memento's of our children in order that I might begin a series of still life images reflecting some of the things I remember most about their adolescent years.  The boys were heavily involved in sports and our daughter as well to a lesser amount.

A few weeks ago I put together a collection of baseball equipment as I glanced into my own past of sandlot baseball, baseball cards and green fields of the past.  I had a place in mind as the backdrop for the remnants and some days later I took on the challenge of making a thought reality all the while the games of the children drifting in and out of my memory.

This image has been processed in Nik software from an HDR capture with following work done in Nik Color Efex Pro 4 and then a couple of light texture layers from Totally Rad followed by a mild Snap Art 3 filter from Alien Skin.

I can still hear the admonition of my wife..."Don't you dare come into this house with those cleats on" and, as a result, the backdoor to our house was usually cluttered with various sports items of the season.

I can't close this post without a big congrats to the Baylor Women's basketball team and the coaching staff for not only winning the NCAA tournament, but also for becoming the first teams, men's or women's, to have a 40 - 0 season.  We are all so proud of their accomplishment's and the time and effort everyone took to finish "UNFINISHED BUSINESS".

Thanks for visiting and enjoy this beautiful Spring.

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