New Website!

I'm super excited that my new website is now live. I've been thinking about a new website for a long time, even thought I could design it myself, but I came to realize I should just design for print, web is hard. I decided to use a template from Blu Domain and I'm so happy I did. It was so easy to use and customize. Would love your thoughts on the new site and while you're there, be sure to sign up for the newsletter. You'll find it on the contact page.

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Rental Sales Gallery Fall Show

The Rental Sales Gallery Fall Show is this Friday and I have two new photographs in the show! Stop by and meet the artists, enjoy refreshments and view over 200 new works by gallery artists. It will be a great show, don’t miss it!

Show Details:

Rental Sales Gallery

Friday, October 15 from 5pm – 8pm

1237 SW 10th Avenue, Portland, OR 97205

www.portlandartmuseum.org

The gallery is located at SW 10th and Jefferson adjacent to the Portland Art Museum in the Eliot Tower

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Beaverton City Hall Show

The Beaverton City Hall show starts this week! I’ll be hanging my work on September 1st and the show will be up through September 30th. I will be debuting six new photographs from my TTV series, which were photographed at the Historic Deepwood Estate in Salem. There will also be 3 other artists displaying their work in the corridors of city hall. Check out Beaverton KATU for more information.

Show Details:
Beaverton City Hall
4755 SW Griffith Drive,
Beaverton, OR 97005
City Hall Hours:
8am -5pm Monday – Friday
September 1st - 30th

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Tualatin Art Splash

I had a lot of fun at Art Splash and hope to do it next year! Here are some photos of my set-up.

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Tualatin Art Splash & 2011 Calendar Sneak Peek

The Tualatin Art Splash is this weekend! There will be over fifty artists displaying works in oils, acrylics, photography, ceramics, glassware, jewelry and more. The show will take place under a large tent alongside the Commons Lake in Tualatin.

I’ve been working hard getting my photography ready for the show and I can’t wait for it to start. I’ll have several framed pieces, large and small, available for sale, as well as matted prints, note cards and my 2011 desktop calendar.

Show Details:
July, 23, 24 & 25
Tualatin on the Commons Lake Front
8325 SW Nyberg Street


Show Hours:
Friday, July 23 ............... 12:00pm - 9:00pm
Saturday, July 24 ........... 10:00am - 8:00pm
Sunday, July 25 .............. 10:00am - 4:00pm

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Photojojo

Great stuff on Photojojo! 

>Keep Calm and Snap On Print

>Diana Lens

>Foto Clips

>Magnetic Polaroid Frames

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I Dream of Paris

1. Metropolitan Paris II, 2. 19 juin 2010, 3. Hotel de Crillon, 4. Escalier du ministre #1, 5. Paris, 6. Mesas, 7. steps to heaven, 8. Arc de Triomphe, 9. Ruelle - Montmartre

I’ve been dreaming of Paris for as long as I can remember. There is so much to love. The Eiffel Tower, of course, I’ve had my Target Eiffel Tower lamp for years. But it’s more than just that. It’s the cobblestone streets, sidewalk cafes, art and architecture. Oh, the photos I could take. I dream of it in black & white, it makes it even more romantic.

I’ve set goals for myself, I’ll go by a certain age…time has passed. But I think it’s closer than it ever has been; there are talks of the next big purchase and passports. Doesn’t writing down your goals help you achieve them? Maybe this will help.

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I was reading the book Exhibiting Photography by Shirley Read last night and I came across this quote by David LaChapelle. I just really appreciated it and it hit home for me. I’ve had moments when I’m frustrated and tired, putting in a ton of work and seeing little result. But I just remember, I’m doing something I love, taking photographs I love and as much as I hope for something more I’m not going to change to make someone else happy.

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Historic Deepwood Estate

Over the weekend I was going through my photos from the Historic Deepwood Estate in Salem, Oregon. I always go back through my photos months after I shoot them to see if I have missed anything and as time passes I tend to see my images with a new perspective. This time around I began to see a story unfold in several of the photographs.

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Argus 75

This is kind of a delayed post. I wanted to post this on Friday, but I had a wedding to go to in Seattle and family in town, so I'm just now getting to it. Also, I spent Monday in Cannon Beach. Photos coming soon!

I discovered TTV or Through the Viewfinder photography a few years ago and loved it. After spending some time researching how to do TTV and what kind of camera to use, I purchased my first camera through ebay, an Argus 75. Once it arrived, I coaxed my husband into assembling a “contraption” to block the light out with cereal boxes. We spent a whole afternoon driving around town and taking photos. I was hooked.

A proud moment for me came when some of those first photos were accepted into the Rental Sales Gallery at the Portland Art Museum. The photos are now up on the PAM website!

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Logan Mat Cutter

Another one of my favorite tools is my Logan 450 Mat Cutter. I haven’t used it in a while because I haven’t been doing as many shows, but it’s one of my must haves. The sizes of my photos aren’t always a standard size, so it’s nice to cut my own mats to fit my photographs. I have been creating my photographs in standards sizes recently because it does make it a lot easier for framing. Lately I have been cutting larger size mats and my mat cutter doesn’t accommodate bigger sizes. A new mat cutter has been on my wish list for a while.

Over the years I’ve learned that it’s a good idea to have your art matted if you’re going to be selling it to the public. I have been cutting my own mats for many years, but it is always a little nerve racking when you try it for the first time or if you haven’t done it in awhile. Do your research and find the mat cutter that will work best for you. You can purchase large sheets of mat board at your local art store and then cut it down to the size you need. If you’re not very good with math (I’m not at all!), get ready to learn about fractions and decimals. You’ll be doing a lot of measuring. I discovered a great website to help me along. And remember practice, practice, practice!

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Adobe Photoshop

After I take my photographs, I load everything on the computer. I pick out my favorites and do some minor work in Photoshop: 

• Color correct
• Sharpen
• Crop – I don’t crop my photos very often. I like to frame my subject in the camera. Sometimes even though I framed my subject in the camera, it just looks better cropped.
• Convert to black and white – I don’t do this a lot either, but sometimes a photograph just has more pop in black and white. It’s not that I don’t love black & white, I kind of the let the photograph speak to me. If it’s right I’ll do it.

I took a few digital photography classes in college, so that’s how I got my start with Photoshop. A lot of it is just playing around and trying new things. The internet is a great source, if I have questions on how to do things. I also love Scott Kelby’s book The Photoshop CS2 Book. I haven’t used everything out of the book, but there are about 5 or 6 great tips that I use every time I process a photo in Photoshop. Definitely check it out!

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Digital Canon Rebel XT

I was asked at an art show last summer what kind of camera I used. I am embarrassed to admit I didn’t know. I did know it was a Canon Rebel, but with the new models and similar names (XS, XSi, T1i – I know now because I looked it up) it was confusing and quite honestly I didn’t care that much. I purchased the camera because my uncle is into photography too and he does his research. I’m not much into research and the technicalities of the equipment I use. Is it easy to use? Check. Does it take nice photographs? Check. Can I adjust f-stops, shutter speed, ISO, etc? Check. And I only have one lens for the camera, the 18-55mm kit lens that the camera came with.

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My Favorite Tools

While I truly believe that it’s talent and creativity that creates great art and not the equipment you use, having a nice camera, paint brushes, etc. certainly helps when working in your creative medium. Here are my favorite tools:

• Digital Canon Rebel XT
• Adobe Photoshop
• Logan Mat Cutter
• Argus 75

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And the Winner is...

Ashley! Thanks to everyone that left a comment. Have a lovely Saturday.

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My First Photographs

My first photographs weren’t great. In fact, looking back, they were pretty awful. But I loved it and kept at it. Eventually, I found my style and mastered the camera (sort of, there’s always something to learn). Have a great weekend!

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My First Camera

I didn’t have a camera of my own when I first started my photography class. Luckily, my father had some interest in photography and loaned me his Pentax K-1000. I love that camera and was devastated when it broke during one of my classes. I needed to have a camera to finish the class and instead of having it repaired, we decided it would be better to buy a new camera. I purchased a Canon Rebel. While the Rebel was a good camera, it just wasn’t the same. I eventually got my own Pentax K-1000 and my father had his repaired.

The K-1000 is a great camera and perfect for someone just starting out. It’s a manual camera, so you have to learn how to set the aperture and shutter speed. I now shoot with a digital camera and I still shoot on manual. I have no idea how to use any of the other settings on my camera.

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My History with Photography

This is a week of firsts…first class, first camera, first photos.

I’ve been taking pictures off and on for over 10 years. After you have been doing something for so long, you start to think, how did I get here? Well, this is how my love of photography started…

It was my second semester at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan and I was starting to meet friends. One of my new friends, Ann*, decided to take a beginning black & white photography class and I decided to join her. Photography wasn’t something that I knew much about, but I thought it sounded interesting and fun. After developing my first roll of film in that black & white darkroom, I was hooked even though my first photos weren’t very good.

After the semester was over, I realized how much I was going to miss photography. The university didn’t offer that many photography classes and I realized I wasn’t ready to be at the university so I enrolled at Oakland Community College**. The community college had a full program and numerous classes. I took every class they offered in photography and eventually earned an associate’s degree in photography.

I highly recommend the photography program at Oakland Community College. I really enjoyed my time there and met a lot of great people.

*Ann and I lost touch after I left the university, but I’m so thankful she took that class.

**I did return to Oakland University where I earned my Bachelor’s Degree with a major in general studies and a minor in art history.

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Giveaway

To celebrate the new Buttons & Pears, I’m giving away a print of Orange Crush. Just leave a comment on this post or answer one of the following questions:

What topics would you like me to talk about?
What do you think of the new direction for the blog?
What do you want to see on the blog?

Please make sure I have a way to contact you. Deadline is Friday, June 11 at midnight. I'll pick the winner on Saturday, June 12. Your comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

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What to expect from the new Buttons & Pears – Part Two

Yesterday I talked about the inspirations I plan to share. Here are a few of the other categories you can look forward to:

Reviews: I’ll review printers, equipment, books, etc.
Studio Tours: I’ll share parts of my studio, my favorite equipment and materials
Upcoming Shows: I’ll still let you know about upcoming shows. All shows can be found in the right column of the blog.
Sales: I’ll let you know about sales I’m having in my shop
Photographs: New photographs will still be posted on the blog. I’ve been planning on sharing a few before and afters to show what a photo looks like when it comes straight out of the camera and the Photoshop work I do for the final version.

Stop by on Friday for a giveaway!

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What to expect from the new Buttons & Pears – Part One

Yesterday I talked about the new direction for Buttons & Pears. Today I’ll give you more details on what I have planned for the blog. I’ll start next week by sharing my discovery of photography and how I got started. I’m going to try and dig up my first photograph from my very first class. I still have every negative and every photo, even if they weren’t very good.

Here are a few of the categories I’ve come up with:

My Inspiration: This is a big one. Inspiration is a large part of creation and comes in many different forms.

Music: I’ll share which artists and songs inspire me. I believe there is a strong connection between what I’m listening to and how my photographs look. It’s not just while shooting the photographs, but in the processing as well.

Other artists: I’m always inspired by other artists. I’ll share artist’s work that I love and I’ll also bring back Flickr Inspiration. There are so many great images on Flickr and I love playing curator. So be on the lookout for Flickr mosaics.

Objects around my home: There are so many things that inspire me and a lot of the time it’s something in my home. So I’ll share what those things are and how they are transformed into a fine art photograph.

I’ll pick back up tomorrow with a list of the other categories.

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Mission Statement – A New Direction for Buttons & Pears

Over the last few months I have lost focus with Buttons & Pears (if I ever had it in the first place). That loss of focus really got me thinking about what I want to share and what I hope to get from Buttons & Pears. Recently, I discovered Tara Gentile’s e-book 52 Weeks of Blogging Your Passion. I decided to give it a try and it has really helped me create a focus and mission for the blog.

My mission for Buttons & Pears:

Buttons & Pears is an insight into my life as an aspiring fine art photographer. I’ll take a look back at the past and explore how I unexpectedly found my passion for photography and how I’ve evolved as a photographer. I’ll share my inspirations, goals, successes and failures. Through all of this I hope readers will have a better understanding of how I come up with my ideas and the process I use to create photographs. I also hope to inspire others to create, take chances and work towards their goals.

Of course, this will probably change and grow, just as I’ll change and grow as a person and an artist.

This week I’ll talk about my plans for the blog and what you can expect in the coming weeks. I’ve been working hard and have come up with some great ideas that I can’t wait to share with you. I hope you’ll stop by again soon!

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2010 Pacific Northwest Art Annual

I’ve been accepted into the Pacific Northwest Art Annual again this year! I will have two photographs in the show. The opening reception is Saturday, April 24 at 6pm. The Adell McMillan Gallery is located in the Erb Memorial Union at 1228 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403.

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Under Construction

I'm trying to make some changes to my blog without completely destroying it. As you know, I’m creating a new format for my blog which I hope to roll out soon. I would like to have a new layout first. If you have any tips or suggestions please let me know. As you can see I have no idea what I’m doing.

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Spring Opening at The Rental Sales Gallery

I have one new photograph in the Spring Show at the Rental Sales Gallery of The Portland Art Museum! The show will feature new works by gallery artists. The opening reception is on Friday, April 16 from 5pm - 8pm and the gallery is located at SW 10th and Jefferson, adjacent to the museum in the Eliot Tower. Unfortunately I won’t be able to make it to the show. If you go to the show, please let me know. I would love to hear about it!

I am now on The Portland Art Museum's website. Photos are coming soon!

On a side note, I've decided that Buttons & Pears needs to go in a new direction. I'm going to be changing some things around here, so be sure to check back soon!

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12.28.2009 Photo Shoot: In the Button Jar

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12.28.2009 Photo Shoot: Pinecone and Paper

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