Library of Congress

Library of Congress at Dusk taken from the US Capitol East Plaza 

Washington DC

Happy Memorial Day Weekend

Lincoln Memorial and WWII Memorial

From the Base of the Washington Monument

Washington DC

Postcard from this Week

Cherry Blossoms with Jefferson Memorial

Tidal Basin / Washington DC

Postcard from Last Week

Moulton Barn   Jackson Hole, WY

Grand Teton National Park

Spring Evening in Washington DC

View from the Jefferson Memorial at Sunset

I've been shooting the Cherry Blossoms in DC now for quite a few years.  I never get tired of it but it can be challenging to produce images that are not just a repeat of previous years.  Typically I go down pre-dawn and shoot as mentioned in this Popular Photography Article.  This year I decided to make my way through the mass humanity and go down in the afternoon - it was great and I was certainly successful - but I still like the early morning hours better.  Of all I shot that day this might be one of my favorite images - and it's not even of the Cherry Blossoms.  I just got a Canon 8-15mm f/4L and this is one example of what it does

Washington DC Architecture

I Love seeing clean lines and symmetry in architecture. This view, taken from within the circular colonnade of Ionic Order columns at the Jefferson Memorial,  lends itself perfectly in framing the Washington Monument.  For me, the columns from this perspective along with the shadows adds a nice sense of “movement” across the image.  Feel free to take a look at more of my Washington DC Photography     

Washington DC Architecture

The Old Post Office Building  Washington DC

Completed in 1899 to house the U.S. Post Office Department Headquarters and Washington DC city's post office, the Old Post Office Building is the second-tallest structure in the nation's capital, after the Washington Monument. The Old Post Office Building occupies an entire city block, centered on the north side of the Federal Triangle along Pennsylvania Avenue.  The Old Post Office Building exhibits a matured version of the Romanesque Revival style, which was popularized by renowned architect H.H. Richardson in the late nineteenth century.

Cherry Blossoms Washington DC

Cherry Blossoms in Full Bloom with the Jefferson Memorial at sunrise while walking along the Tidal Basin in Washington DC

DC Photos: US Capitol from the Steps of the United States Supreme Court

Happy New Year

iPhone w/ Hipstamatic

Fall Color in Washington DC

October is my favorite Month of the Year.  I am truly blessed to live in my little corner of this world that for a short few weeks simply glows with spectacular fall color.  The shots above are basically the view I enjoy through the large picture window in front of my desk, here in my office.  I hope you might,  as I do,  slow down and take a little time each day to enjoy the Beauty of the World around you.

Don't forget the Details

Prepared some images over the weekend to include in a gallery for a new project. Another hotel guestroom/public space decor project. For part of this project the client is requesting architectural detail images of something that might be considered "Main Street USA".

I get a lot of requests for architectural detail images for these types of projects. Requests that include details of many cities, whether it's DC, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, or Dulles or Leesburg, VA. But as importantly, images that could be perceived as the architectural style of those cities. I did a project a little while ago providing all the images for a hotel in Portsmouth, NH. All the images selected by the agency were images I shot in an afternoon in Baltimore. But, they were detail shots from aboard the US Constitution of ropes and pulleys and nautical type thingys. In fact the images from that same group went on to furnish all guestrooms and public space for the Marriott Baltimore Harbor. You can see pages of some of those images starting here in this Maryland Gallery.

So don't forget to shoot the details. I love doing it and it is fun. Having groups of architectural detail images is like having money in the bank. Isn't it a wonderful world we live in that you can create images and instantly market them worldwide!

Here are a few of the images from one group I shared with my client for their presentation regarding this project.
I have something like a million of these:

Working a New Project

I'm providing images to a client for a big juicy hotel decor project. When typically providing images for a project the client will select images from my stock site and present to client. For this project the client needed something "different", "abstract", and "regional" of this rural area. These were my only instructions, beyond that the client (my client's client) didn't know what they wanted until they saw it. This is a good client for me, they have provided me with many good projects. The size of this project is such that I don't mind some extra effort. For an initial round of images I took some recent images I like, added some textures using various blending modes in Photoshop. Tried to take some "regional" images and do something "different" and maybe even get "abstract". I provided the client with 20 or so comps to see what direction this takes. We'll see where it goes but I like the results so far, whether anyone else does is a different matter. But, I'm glad fiddled around with these. It filled my head with some new ideas. I like the effect of adding the textures and shall continue to experiment. The only problem is that I tend to take a good idea then beat it to death. I must show restraint but restraint was never one of my strong suits. Here are a few of the comps I like.