Daniel Ruf

Waiting

   

"Patience is the art of concealing your impatience."  Guy Kawasaki

Several years ago my wife and managed to make our way to the Joshua Tree National Park on our way to the West Coast. Neither of us had been there before and were excited to see in person what we had seen in pictures. We were disappointed that our timing wasn't right for seeing the Joshua trees, but it turned out that as evening approached it was a good time for some landscape photography. The above scene of layers of landscape defined by fog is something I have always enjoyed working with. It is a panorama of approximately 8 exposures.

It was enjoyable for me to stand and wait with some measure of hope that other scenes would follow as the sun got closer to setting on the Western horizon. My wife has always been good at striking up a conversation with people and before I knew it we were talking to a family from Sweden. We did a lot of laughing, talked a little photography and time passed quickly.

Little did I know that the upper blog scene would develop into the above dynamic of light, form, and color. We waited until the last drop of light was beginning to fade and then started the walk on the trail back to the car. I remember distinctly that my mind was full of wishes and hope that once back home I would be rewarded for the patient efforts and chance.

Thanks for visiting....keep safe....wash hands often.....Love one another.....Normalcy will return.

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

Canyons And Cactus

    

"May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome,dangerous,leading to the most amazing view.  May your mountains rise into and above the clouds."

Edward Abbey

Recently my wife and I took a trip the the Southwest where I got to reconnect with Sabino Canyon, which is located near Tucson, AZ. While we were driving to Tucson the day before there was a snow storm in the area mountains which left enough snow in the high country for my morning hike the day after our arrival. It wasn't much, but just enough to give the blog image an added feature and remind me that things in Iowa were not as lovely.

The sunrise had just cleared the mountains to the right of this location and livened up the cactus that made a visual track to the Catalina Mountains in the background. I was thrilled that some snow was still clinging to the high country and thrilled to be back in the Southwest. Unfortunately this was one of the few days of our stay when clouds were out contesting the obnoxious plain blue sky.

When I'm hiking the areas around Tucson it seems the prose of Edward Abbey always come to mind. Ironically I became familiar with Abbey when I attended a photograph/writing seminar back in the late 70's given by Abbey and the famous photographer Philip Hyde. On arriving back in Iowa after the seminar I proceeded to read most of Abbey's books as well as enjoying more of Hyde's work. The seminar has always made the Southwest a little more important in my life.

Thanks for visiting

Places to see more of Daniel's work:

Pearson Lakes Art Center - lakesart.org 

Arts On Grand - artsongrand.org

 

North Woods

"Nature always wears the colors of the spirit."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

A short trip to Three Lakes, Wisconsin to pick up my exhibit work gave me the chance to slip out one foggy morning, race around areas unfamiliar roads with hopes of finding some "eye candy".  As the sun continued to rise and the fog started to dissapate I was starting to get a little concerned.  My mind is calling for patience, but knowing that I would be leaving the next morning didn't make things any easier.

A few more turns and bends in the road brought me to Seven Mile Lake with one lone goose on the lake obviously waiting for me to arrive.  Wisconsin has so many areas of silence and I had just fallen into one of them.  So quiet that I do believe I could hear the sun rise and clouds moving.  It's hard not to just stand in awe of the scene, but time was of the essence as the scene, the light, the fog was changing rapidly.

This image was processed as an HDR image in Photomatix and later processed in Photoshop CS6  CC as well as NIK Color Efex Pro.

We need enjoy all the moments we're given as days pass to years, then to decades, then to centuries and our lives are only a dot on the timeline.

Enjoy the summer breezes and the shimmering sunsets.

Sic 'em Bears".  The Baylor football season is just around the corner!

For more views of my work visit;

http://500px.com/pigs4u

Arts On Grand, Spencer, Iowa http://www.artsongrand.org/

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

Summer Wind Gallery, Arnolds Park, Iowa

Wisconsin...It's More Than Cheese

"Light in Nature creates the movement of colors."  Robert Delaunay

Having spent some beautiful moments in Wisconsin it has become even more clear that the state has much more to offer than cheese and football.  It is miles and miles of forest, marshes, streams and lakes with splashes of color to keep any artist busy for years.

I was there to hang a show at the Three Lakes Center For The Arts, a newly renovated intimate gallery in the heart of the town.  On the morning following the installation I left early in the morning and headed to one of my favorite spots (a relationship of two years) excitedly driving through heavy fog to get there.  One year ago, later in the month, I was making my first trek there on another foggy morning with a wide grin on my face.  Fog is, to many photographers, an act from heaven giving us a whole new  creative "brush" to play with.

Surrounded by peace I was in awe as the sun began to rise more colorful than usual, largely due to the wild fires in Canada, which gave another "color filter" to work its magic.  With time ticking away as the sun rose higher, I was quickly looking for spaces that would work well as the sun crested the tree line.

As my time was short in Wisconsin I was trying to "double down" on an image which was hanging in the exhibit a few miles away that was from the same area under similar sunrise conditions.  That was enough of a personal challenge for me to keep looking and hoping for a place at a time which said more than last years efforts.  How can I lose when standing wet from the knees down to toes watching an event that kissed earths beginning.

Thank you for joining me again and if you are near to Spirit Lake, Iowa I'll be giving a gallery talk at the Dickinson County Nature Center on July 16 at 5 p.m.  I am also giving a one day beginning photography workshop on July 22 starting at 9 a.m and going until 4 p.m.  Early sign up is on going through the nature center at 712.336.6352.

Sic 'em Bears". 

For more views of my work visit;

http://500px.com/pigs4u

Arts On Grand, Spencer, Iowa http://www.artsongrand.org/

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

Side Street Gallery, Arnolds Park, Iowa  www.okobojiimages.com

On The Road

"The world is but a canvas to our imagination."  Henry David Thoreau

It's been a few years since I first visited the Smoky Mountains N.P. and my return finally occured a couple of weeks ago, even if only for a few days.  The first time I was with a Tony Sweet workshop group in the spring, this time it was with my wife (her first visit) and it was the edge of Fall.  

On the drive from Iowa my mind was racing about places I would visit within the park area and the wonder of whether we would be in time for Fall color.  As it turned out the color was really just beginning, but apparently in a rush as certain areas seemed to change from green to Fall splashes within our time there.

The traffic was horrible during the day, but my working time of very early mornings and late afternoons was relatively quite, especially as I ventured off the main park road and onto my favorite surface of gravel.  The dawn walks were as they were on my first visit...filled with facination and rejoicing as bits of color revealed themselves in the early light.  It is a place of wonder and beauty and I can hardly wait to return.

My wife was awed as well, since our Fall color in Northwest Iowa is a bit more "conservavtive" with less of the reds and oranges.  I was happy that we could be together in a place that I first met without her.  While the workshop was a special time for me, our journey there was much more special as an act of sharing a place she had only seen in my work or heard me talk about.

Thank you all for visiting and I hope you are sharing those special moments with your loved ones as time does pass quickly.  Have a good weekend and a belated thanks to those special veterans that have served this country with great honor and courage as well as their families.  It's a time when I remember my fathers service and the wife that waited those long years for his return.

Sic 'em Bears...Great job winning at Oklahoma...now to finish business.

For more views of my work visit;

Arts On Grand, Spencer, Iowa http://www.artsongrand.org/

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

Side Street Gallery, Arnolds Park, Iowa  www.okobojiimages.com

http://500px.com/pigs4u

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19338959@N06/

Those Magnificent Billowing Clouds

"Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit."   Edward Abby

When clouds beckon I come running and on this spring evening I found myself at a familiar stop with an overlook of a common Iowa site...farms and clouds.  How much better can it get?  Even though our area has really begun to green up, the site of billowing masses is a great start.

In reference to the quote of Edward Abby above I'm reminded that while I thoroughly enjoy walking the trails of the woodlands of the north country I also realize that scenes like the above are also my wilderness when it comes to our local scenics, along with the lakes areas and marshlands. As I'm sure I've commented before, having been a farmer I can stand on this roadside and surmise in my mind what can be taking place around the farm.  Evening chores, feeding of calves or perhaps prepping a planter for use in the coming days of field work.

It would be impossible for me to separate my connection to these events even though they're long past activities in my life.  Modern age citizens have become more and more distant from the farming sector as they've also become more distant from the rural geography.

All that being said, this average scene of silo's, barns and fields can take on a glow once the addition of clouds and late evening light bring their brush strokes to this rural canvas.  I'm touched by every highlight and dark shadow as much as I'm touched by the fact that these scenes are fleeting in our lives.

Thank you all for visiting and may you all have glorious spring days ahead.  My return to A Piece Of Work gallery will be May 1...so glad to be back.

Sic “Em Bears. Go Baylor!

For more views of my work visit;

Arts On Grand, Spencer, Iowa http://www.artsongrand.org/

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

http://500px.com/pigs4u

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19338959@N06/

 

 

 

Peace

                        "In all things of Nature, there is something of the marvelous."   Aristotle

It seems that our area of Iowa has caught it's 5 months of winter all in one month, but the good thing is that it might be coming to an end with last yesterdays 8 inches of snowfall and blizzard like conditions.  The good thing is that winter scene opportunities were extended for this photographer as my 2012 winter portfolio is very thin.

The above image is a blur created through the use of Photoshop and camera movement.  I often forget about using this creative tool, but once I get the chance I'm glad I have that option.  While it might appear to be a black and white it does contain some color, but still remains a monochromatic image.

After all that's gone on this past week I could stand in the peace of the place above for a long time wishing to never return to society.  My thoughts and prayers (seems so feeble) go out to all those affected by not ony the Boston bombing, but the West, Texas explosion as well.  While it is much simpler to accept the reasons of an accident like happened in Texas, I will never be able to understand (nor should I) the acts of violence on mankind. We are being surrounded by visuals of violence not only caused by extreme individuals, but also coming from our televisions, computer games, websites and social media.  As if this were not enough it seems that each year the violence in the media gets "ramped up" to increase viewer ratings.

The kindness and graciousness in our societies is slipping away the same as those precious areas of natural beauty and there are few places to run for cover.  One can still find a coffee shop in rural America where the talk is more about the Friday night basketball game or crop prices and less about our crumbling of our values.  And there are still small spots like the image above where one can reside, sit, walk and ponder the "truth" of life or tomorrows joys.

This quagmire that we find ourselves in is not, in my opinion, God's doing, a corporations doing, or a countries doing...it's our doing...or lack of doing.  It has less to do with who has guns or a political philosophy and more to do with the slippage of American values and the lack of respect and comfort with one another.

I wish comfort to all those affected by the trauma of this week and if you weren't affected by any of it, then I suggest you check your pulse.  We all need places were our hearts and minds can heal.  For some it's our home and family and for others it might be a natural place or church, but where ever it might be our world is in great need of healing.  Healing starts with a lot of Love.

Thank  you all for visiting.

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

More From The U.P.

            "Imagination is everything.  It is the preview of life's coming attractions."   Albert Einstein

Traveling west from the small town of Ontonagon, Michigan one will arrive at the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, situated in the Porcupine Mountains, otherwise known as the "Porkies".   In that park is one of America's photographic icons, a mile long piece of the Presque Isle River including the Manabezho Falls.  I visited this area a number of times throughout my stay in the U.P. to experience the many changes caused by the movement of light across the scene.  The river bed is a cluster of pot holes, stone slabs and rapids and when the light is right colorful reflections enhance the water surfaces making photography a real thrill.

A nearby bridge supplies a nice overall view of this stretch of the river and nearly ever person carrying a camera will take the 15 second "quickee" and then move on to other photographic recording.  Those with a more serious photographic drive will find themselves not only shooting from the bridge, but losing hours weaving along the waterline below the bridge searching the curves and angles and lines found in the details of the waters course.

For me the pursuit of photography is no doubt a huge learning experience, both through books, workshops, or hands on trial and error.  It also contains two sensational "highs"...one being achieving the final image and the other...the search.  Each takes time,effort and curiosity which are all necessary in the final result.

A certain amount of passion doesn't hurt either!

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

Camera Shake

"And this, our life, exempt from public haunt, finds tongues in trees, books in running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything."  William Shakespeare

The blog image is not exactly a result of camera shake, but rather a culmination of a number of slight movements done during a multiple exposure with my Nikon D300s.  It's one of the reasons I hunted around for a good, used Nikon that was capable of not only processing multiple exposures in camera, but also image overlays as well.  While these same creative tasks can be accomplished via computer software I find it more appropriate to be able to get a final result while on site, since much of the time these sorts of creative "roads" take a number of attempts to get the desired results.

I love working in birch groves as there is a certain peaceful voice that exists there.  Unlike standing in a forest of whispering pines, a birch grove has a voice of crispness which is so synonymous with Fall along with the golden radient color of the seasons final warmth before winter slips in.  The distinct white peeling bark welcomes a gentle touch of the velvet smoothness that surrounds the tall limber trunks that gently sway in the strongest breezes.

Find your birch grove laced with deer trails and scattered golden leaves and listen to the passing Fall.

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

Back From Michigan

                    "Artists are just children who refuse to put down their crayons."  Al Hirschfeld

I managed to slip away for some time in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan and just managed to catch the color before it blew way a couple of days ago.  The forecast of snow, sleet, rain and heavy wind, however, were my invitation to exit and head for home yesterday.  There were still other places I wanted to get to, but the thought of being battered about by the elements for the remainder of the trip seemed unwise.

While I haven't had much time to process the work from the area I did get to one image that was taken in the Porcupine Mountain Wilderness Area that feature a several water scenes that I wanted to visit.  The blog image is a simple scene that I found that was a closeup of both hard and soft features that are found around waterways in the area.

Thank you for visiting and make sure to take the time to enjoy the last vestiges of fall before they slip away.

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