Daniel Ruf

Enjoy The Leaves

       

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

One morning I was looking out a window looking at the autumn leaves hitting the ground and realized that the previous frost had done its damage and I needed to get out to gather what pics that I could before every leaf had hit the ground. I grabbed my camera gear and ran to the truck to start my sleuthing for the autumn views.

The trip was a lot of stops and starts as I would get out, set up camera gear, take the shot, gather the gear up and place it all in my truck and head to the next opportunity, if there was one.

After cruising up and down roads I started to head back toward the lakes areas for a different scenic view which turned out to be a good decision or listening to that other voice that does tend to show up quietly at times. As you can see in the blog pic above not only did I have some nice shadows to work with there just happened to be a dock and a person to create the attraction that was needed to complete the image.

My experience over the years have taught me that the best pictures are the ones that included a bit of a surprise to fill in the blank spaces.

Thank you  all for visiting my blog site and I wish you the most beautiful Christmas this year.

More of my work can be seen at Arts On Grand in Spencer, Iowa

Keep Looking

"Life rarely presents fully finished photographs. An image evolves, often from a single strand of visual interest - a distant horizon, a moment of light, a held expression." Sam Abell

Our eyes are one of the most magnificent parts of our body we've been blessed with. They are always working, except when sleeping, and making hundreds of "corrections" minute by minute. From bright light to morning softness they adjust and focus continuously.

Photography is an art form that requires vision along with creativity. When one is out with their camera their eyes are flashing from one subject another while at the same time adjusting to light, color, movement, near and far changes. These concepts of our eyes are also a requirement for photography. The camera is our instrument to focus on the subjects we find, enjoy and capture.

In order to progress in the creative process of photography it requires constant looking, evaluating, and returning to the subjects we find. As I've noted in several of my blog posts I continually return to subjects of the past as was advised by my good friend Tony Sweet tonysweet.com during his workshops.

A single subject can change from one day to the next based on time, light, season, etc. and the results of these changes can be amazing and is good enough reason to keep looking and returning to subjects as well is finding new ones.

Keep looking, my friends and thank for visiting my blog site

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

Missing And Finding

 

"If you want to be a better photographer, stand in front of better stuff." Jim Richardson

If there is one thing that has been the result of the virus is that we all have missed something, whether it be time, place or friends each of us have made sacrifices that we'll never get back. My "something" was making the regular trip to Arizona in the winter and also a planned trip to Italy, land of my ancestors even though my DNA says my genes are more comfortable with British and French connections. IT HAS TO BE WRONG! 

The blog post above is from Sabino Canyon, a place I've spoken about more than once on this blog site. Not only do I get to photograph some incredible light in the canyon I also get to take walks with my daughter and her crazy dog Murphy. It's a time to switch gears from the lakes region of Iowa to the comfortable landscapes of Arizona.

That being said...the time of lock downs and masks has also resulted in other photographic adventures and opportunities.

Our town has an amusement park that decided to light it up through the night as a big thank you to the nurses and first responders that have given so much of themselves to keep us safe and healthy.  On this particular morning I found splashes of color that I didn't know existed as the park is usually dark through the deep of night. I can remember scrambling up and down the docks looking for different angle options. Social distancing wasn't a problem here...just me and the lights.

Even during the day I was occupied with other options of social distancing by sitting in my truck and waiting for the possible.  Being retired makes this a normal day, but I made a bigger effort to find warm blooded options for my camera and in many of the situations I wasn't looking at their butt as they scampered away into the dense forest.

It's impossible to "candy coat" this event that we are all facing on our planet. The solutions involve staying safe, wearing a mask (that might be the reason for the perky ears), and finding something to thrill your heart and soul.

Thanks for stopping by

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

No Snow?

"It is the life of the crystal, the architect of the flake, the fire of the frost, the soul of the sunbeam.  This crisp winter air is full of it."

John Burroughs

It's been a dry winter so far with up and down temps. Last week it hit 50 degrees on one day and it's 25 degrees today. No beautiful snow blanket covering what's left over from autumn. In our part of the world weather life we're having is an ominous sign that a climate surprise is around the corner.

The blog image is the results of a very thick fog we had last week combined with very cold morning temps.  As the morning wore on the tree branches started to gather in the frost particles which made a nice garment covering the trees.

It was a nice change from the humdrum clear skies we were having that was punctuated by high winds. I think I'm already tired of this drab looking winter, yet asking for snow is almost a crime!

We still get our colorful moments which makes up for lack of snow. This tree caught my attention as it seemed to be waiting for me. My actual destination was behind me, but I thought this scene was worth my attention.

By the way if you search YouTube for Judy Hancock you should find an amazing video of here discussion of Minimalist Photography along with a selection of her beautiful work. 

Thanks for visiting this site and feel free to comment while you're here. 

Wishing all of you a very merry Christmas and fabulous New Year. It has to get better, right?  Hold good thoughts, be safe, enjoy your family and extend a loving hand to all

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

Transition

"Autumn's the mellow time." William Allingham

A rainy day, leaves are falling and the color is silently disappearing. While it was the prettiest autumn that I have seen since  moving to Northwest Iowa in the 80's it feels like such a short visit this year. Last year at this time I was wearing out my camera in Maine during my first visit and the color was blazing. Color in our part of Iowa is a little more subdued and a smaller variety of tones.

The blog shot was taken a couple of days while it was raining. Boredom had taken it's toll and I was planning to take my chances that some fog and haze might have some nice options for photography. I decided to handhold my camera rather than drag a tripod around and it was a little test of a new freedom. There was no setting up of the "pod" as well as no extending and retraction of the legs for each photo session. It was fun.

As I passed this scene I happen to catch the reflections in the water and then the "subtle" blue tone in the background. I quickly made a "U" turn and glad I did. With some fog in the background and spots of color in the last tree of autumn I felt that I had some options to work with.

Processing was done in Lightroom and Photoshop and then some dabbling in NIK Color Efex Pro 4. 

The docks are coming out and the area is going through its regular autumn alterations. It won't be long before the scene is covered in ice and white stuff. Actually, the weather report is calling for some snow this weekend.

Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're in the Spencer, Iowa area the last couple of weeks of my exhibit at Arts On Grand is still showing

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

Autumn.....So Soon?

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

It's unbelievable that it is autumn already! It seems like just yesterday we were watching the new flowers bursting and having to mow the lawn. The fact is the this is the norm for people of retirement age. It just seems that weeks fly by while we get older. 

The blog image is from a local park on a morning when an unannounced thick fog spread over our landscape. Of course the weather sources didn't happen to mention the fog in the forecast and I had a late start and had to choose the closest location that might have promise.

Just behind me was a totally different composition with the suns rays warming up the color of a grassland landscape. It was a morning of treasures as the fog was around for another hour or so. Since then high winds have shaken a lot of leaves off the trees and the landscape is getting ready for the winter season. 

As I was concentrating on getting these shots I could here pheasants and owls adding their say to the show adding the the autumn feel.

Thanks for following my blog and have a great week and a safe week.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I had an unexpected opportunity to hang and exhibit at Arts On Grand in Spencer,Iowa this past week. The show will be up until November 7. The title of the show is "Along The Way" and is a collection of not only lakes area themes, but other places where my wife and I have been outside of Iowa the last couple of years. If you're in the area Arts On Grand is worth the visit.

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

A Long Time To Wait

"We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us."  Joseph Campbell

It's been quite a awhile since the last fog event in our area of Northwest Iowa...so long that I can't remember the last time. Because of the wait I was thrilled when I woke up to hazy street lights and hoping that the fog was going to lead to some fun photography.

The blog scene has a much welcomed "Z" line running through the picture with layers of fog caught in the depressions. The interesting thing is that the lake areas really didn't have fog hanging around as I found out making my first swing the the lake areas.

This scene was shot with my Canon 5D Mark IV with a 400mm zoom on the front end. It wasn't until I saw the RAW file on the computer that I saw a bird taking flight near the middle of the image. Judge by the size I'd say it was a hawk of some kind.

The editing process started with Lightroom and Topaz AI Denoise, then Photoshop for the details, and NIK software for final touches.

The next day found us with another foggy morning, which provided another opportunity to try some different areas of our area. This wetland area is a prime area for gulls, pelicans, herons and ducks. As I took this shot a line of pelicans was making their way toward me and the camera. Luck is always welcome.

Thanks for stopping by my blog. The season is making a turn with a lot of leaves and acorns hitting the ground. It won't be long before we'll be seeing the white stuff, but the time for logging fall color is on its way.

Thanks for visiting...Keep safe and use the social distancing options and masks

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

Options

   

"For me, the camera is a sketch book, an instrument of intuition and spontaneity."  Henri Cartier-Bresson

Spending an afternoon in a wooded area last week gave me the opportunity to work with natures figures. The oak trees in our area can take on some really graceful poses and with some nice lighting and a few flowers the options for creativity increases. In this case I was first attracted by the light in the background and the flowers in the fore ground. A pretty simple scene to work with. 

At home it went through the editing process starting in Lightroom and moving on to Photoshop to do the finishing detail process. After I finished I decided I'd like to see this scene as a black and white to weigh the differences.

While the scene holds up well, IMO, I still wanted to push this image in another direction. At first I thought I would use the opacity slider to bring in a little the color to see what difference that would make.

After a lot of fiddling I decided to use the brush tools in Photoshop and selectively paint in a thin amount of the original background yellow/green color in certain areas.

As you can see there are three images created from one particular capture. A lot of times I find my brain is locked in to certain "used" creative options and I forget to take on some different challenges.

I used my Canon 5D Mark IV camera with a 24 - 105mm "L" lens for these captures.

Thanks for visiting...Keep safe and use the social distancing options and masks

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

Posing

"Trees go wandering forth in all directions with every wind, going and coming like ourselves, traveling with us around the sun two million miles a day, and through space heaven knows how fast and far!"  John Muir

Trees have had my attention for many, many years. From my work with the U.S. Forest Service during my summer vacations away from college, to traveling the the country and hiking miles of trails. I see them as ballet dancers, comedians, and statues. The first blog image reminded me of "high five"! And glad I was since I didn't really want to work on removing the leafless branch touching the clouds.

I've spent more time than I can remember walking among miles and miles of trees during my life and only to become even more amused by their color, stature, grace and strength.

This colony above, joining limbs in togetherness and laying patterns of color at their base created by the pattern of their limbs and clusters of leaves. How can one not be drawn to this spot of light, shelter and warmth? They are inviting, inclusive, and dancing. How can one not be drawn to this meeting of limbs?

And then there is the ballerina; graceful, inviting, and welcoming. In front of a backdrop of color and softness surrounded by fog. A tree that is leaning forward asking to dance. Almost bowing a graceful thank you and at the same time pointing to the dance floor that is perfectly lit for this occasion.

Being alone in the forests of the Northwest obviously did a number on my cranial functions, but, in reality, trees are quite beautiful to me as well as entertaining. Yet everyday we lose them, sometimes one by one and sometimes acres at a time. We are losing an element that not only holds this good earth together, but shades us from the miserable heat of the sun, from a flash drenching of rain and shelters the musicians of the forest...birds.

Thank you for dropping by...go plant another tree

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org