David Stoecklein

Here is another western photographer David Stoecklein. He photographs a lot of western themes in color and in monochromatic to give the photos an older look. Here are two examples of his work but there are many on his website: http://stoeckleinphotography.com/



He gives the top photo an interesting look by only using color on the man's face and bandana. The photo below is looking vintage because of the monotone technique used.



Other photographs are more traditional themed and in color. I am definitely interested in the scenic shots more than the cowboy ones. I always lean towards nature and not people in my photographs for some reason but his work is beautiful no matter what the subject matter.

Cliff and Doris Kolber

My Aunt moved to New Mexico in 1971 and ever since then my mother and I have had a fascination with the Southwest. Cliff and Doris Kolber photograph a lot of different locations but I saw their photos of Bisti Badlands in an issue of Nature Photographer magazine and was interested enough to look up their website: http://www.kolberphotography.com/-/kolberphotography/default.asp








































The stark beauty of the southwest is evident in their photographs. They also did a series in Utah which is also beautiful. The first time I went to Utah I knew immediately where all the alien planets on Star Trek were filmed. It's amazing that places exist like that in the United States.

Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman

I'm going to deviate from the assignment and do a book review. I have been in a winter funk that was sucking all my creativity out of me so I went to the library for inspiration. I came across a book called "A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book" written by two bloggers Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman. http://abeautifulmess.typepad.com/ This is a great book to get creativity flowing again. They have a lot of ideas on how to shoot fun portraits using unusual backdrops but also how to take better pictures in general. I like the ideas on how to shot interesting photos about your life and your friends lives.



Also on the importance of candid shots. My favorite photos of my son are the candid ones but you have to be fast to get them but well worth the effort.



If I had to describe this book in one word it would be "fun". Sometimes life gets too serious and this was a nice outlet for me to remember how to put fun back into my photos.

Paul Politis

When I was browsing the internet on my tablet looking for black and white photographers I came across Paul Politis. http://www.paulpolitis.com/bwgallery/ At first I was interested but when I got on the computer where I could really see his work I became less interested. It's not that his work isn't good it's more that it's not my type of photography. I enjoyed some of the abandoned buildings he had photographed:



 but not so much the Dead of the Night series that was too staged:



He also had a series of photos that were blurred and crowds of people on a city street that were kind of boring to me. I really enjoy candid shots of people when some kind of surprise is involved like a facial expression or interesting situation just not people walking in the city.

I can see the value of his photographs and why other people would enjoy them but it's not for me.

Ansel Adams

Of course I will start with Ansel Adams. http://www.anseladams.com/

My love for photography started with his beautiful black and white landscapes of our National Parks. His use of contrast and beautiful scenery made such compelling images it's hard to not want to try and duplicate the effect. 













In addition to wanting to be a better photographer I wanted to be a park ranger. That was not in the cards for me but here I am in a digital photography class with the hopes that I will love photography as much as the young girl did many years ago.