CHUCK FEIL'S TAO OF PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOPS

CHUCK FEIL'S TAO OF PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOPS - I just finished viewing the multi media show produced during Bisbee based photographer Chuck Feil's most recent photo workshop 'CHUCK FEIL & THE WONDERLAND OF ROCKS'. As usual, it looks like Chuck hit a home run. Having taken several of Chuck's workshops, I can attest to the fact that they're both highly instructive and loads of fun. Chuck has announced two workshops so far for 2011. The first, a photo excursion to Organ Pipe National Monument will, like the most recent workshop, be a camping based experience, which means the fee for the workshop will be highly attractive. This workshop is scheduled for late March 2011. The second workshop, ECUADOR EXPERIENCE 3 will constist of a 10 day photo adventure in Ecuador. Having participated in the first of Chuck's Ecuador workshops, I can assure you that this is one you don't want to miss. This workshop is scheduled for early May 2011. (For more information, just Google PANTERRA GALLERY. AND TELL CHUCK I SENT YOU. By the way, I have received no compensation in return for this article. LARRY ELKINS - ELKINSPHOTOS PHOTOGRAPHY

HAPPY THANKSGIVING.

HAPPT THANKSGIVING

MY LAPTOP'S GOT THE FLU. NOW WHAT THE #%*% DO I DO?

MY LAPTOP'S GOT THE FLU. NOW WHAT THE #%$% DO I DO? - ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO, MY LAPTOP SUDDENLY WENT ROGUE ON ME. A MAJOR VIRUS HAD INFECTED THE SYSTEM. THERE WAS TROUBLE RIGHT HERE IN RIVER CITY. IN WHAT SEEMED LIKE GIANT HEADLINES, THE SCREEN READ - REGISTRY CORRUPTED. I STILL HAVE ENOUGH GREY MATTER BETWEEN MY EARS TO DEDUCE WHAT THAT MEANT. DEAD IN THE WATER - UP A CREEK WITHOUT A PADDLE - TOTALLY SCREWED. SHORT OF GRABBING A HUGE JACK HAMMER, SMASHING THE OFFENDING LAPTOP TO SMITHEREENS THEN BUYING A NEW COMPUTER (THANK GOD FOR ONLINE BACK-UP), JUST WHAT THE @!#$%&%#@$!^^^$@@$%!&$%#@!@#

COULD I DO? THE ANSWER CAME QUICKLY. FIND SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY KNEW SOMETHING ABOUT COMPUTERS, THEN COUGH UP THE BUCKS NECESSARY TO INTICE HIM TO GET THE @#$%&%## THING WORKING AGAIN. SO, HIE HO, HIE HO, IT'S OFF TO THE COMPUTER REPAIR SHOP I GO. THEN I WAIT AND WAIT AND WAIT. I WAIT, IT SEEMS, MUCH LONGER THAN IT TOOK NATURE TO CARVE OUT THE GRAND CANYON. NOBODY KNOWS THE TROUBLES I'VE SEEN. WHEN THE REPAIRMAN CALLED AND SAID THE COMPUTER WAS READY, I ACTUALLY DANCED A JIG. AFTER SIGNING A CONTRACT IN BLOOD (THAT CLAUSE ABOUT DELIVERING UP MY SOUL ONE MINUTE TILL MIDNIGHT NEXT ALL HALLOWS EVE SORTA BOTHERED ME A BIT.), I RECEIVED A BILL FOR MORE THAN I PAID FOR MY HOUSE ABOUT 35 YEARS AGO. i GOTTA ADMIT, MY COMPUTER RAN FASTER THAN EVER. ONLY THING WAS, ALL MY PHOTOGRAPHS FROM 2009 FORWARD WERE MISSING. SO NOW I'M HAVING TO RETRIEVE MY FILES FROM ONLINE BACK-UP . MORAL OF THE STORY. ALWAYS, ALWAYS BACK UP YOUR FILES. BECAUSE SOMEHOW, SOMETIME, DIGITAL DOOGETY DOGGLEPIPER VIRUS IS GOING TO COME YOUR WAY AND GOBBLE UP YOUR PRECIOUS PHOTOGRAPHS AND LEAVE YOUR PIDDLY ASS HIGH AND DRY. LARRY ELKINS - ELKINSPHOTOS FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY

A RATHER STICKY SITUATION

A RATHER STICKY SITUATION - SOMEONE WITH A STRANGE SENSE OF HUMOR HAD PLACED THIS DOLL'S HEAD IN A PATCH OF CACTUS. I just happened to come across it while taking a walk. Luckily I had my camera with me. This illustrates why it's wise to always keep your camera at the ready. LARRY ELKINS - ELKINSPHOTOS PHOTOGRAPHY

IT DEPENDS ON YOUR POINT OF VIEW

IT DEPENDS ON YOUR POINT OF VIEW - This Buddhist monk seems more than willing to get down on his knees in order to obtain just the right point of view to capture images of tourists visiting the Buddhist temple located on Doi Suthep, a mountain outside Chiang Mai, Thailand's second largest city. I was recently asked by a fellow photographer for some input on how to obtain interesting points of view, so here goes. If every time you shoot a subject, you shoot straightforward at eye level, your photography can become quite boring very quickly. Here are some suggestions though for adding a bit of oomph to your photographs. Look up. Pointing your lens upward from a low vantage point pretty much automatically adds interest. If you're photographing a person, this is a method for making the subject appear taller. Shooting up from a slightly low angle will render the subject as simply tall and imposing. Think for instance an intimidating Gunfighter.Get a bit lower and shoot at a more pronounced upward angle and you have Paul Bunyan. Photograph a person from above with the camera lens pointed just slightly down and you will render the subject shorter than in real life. Turn Harlem Globetrotter Jesse into Pygmy Pete. Or shoot from the fifth floor balcony of the hotel and capture a bird's eye view of the swimming pool. Another neat trick that works under certain conditions with a person, or with a statue, is to shoot just the lower portion of the figure. I photographed the feet and lower legs of a golden statue at one of the Buddhist temples in Northern Thailand. Although the statue was about life size, the photos gives the impression that the figure was of monumental height. Which way you turn your camera can have a significant effect on the look and feel of your image. Try shooting the subject holding the camera first in portrait mode, then in landscape mode. Then be daring. Turn the camera topsy turvy, and see what you get. Another great idea is to use extreme telephoto and extreme wide angle settings. Shoot close up using a n extreme wide angle lens to distort your subject. Literally get inside or almost inside your subject. The point is to force yourself, and the viewer, to see the world in a new and different way. So go out and take a different view of your surroundings and discover a whole new perspective in regard to the art of photography LARRY ELKINS - ELKINSPHOTOS FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY

PSYCHO-GOURMET: ROAD FOODIES

PSYCHO-GOURMET: ROAD FOODIES

BISBEE INVITATIONAL PHOTO SHOW

BISBEE INVITATIONAL PHOTO SHOW UPDATE - On the evening of November 6th, 2010, BizzArt Gallery will host the first annual Bisbee Invitational Photo show (B.I.P.S.). Entrants will be judged in two divisions, Arizona Division - open to photographers residing in Arizona and the Cochise County Division - open to photographers residing in Cochise County. Longtime photographers Larry Elkins and Ann Widmann are co-chairing the show. Terry Etherton, owner of the Etherton Gallery, will act as juror for the competition. An artists' reception will be held at BizzArt Gallery, 41 Brewery Gulch, 5PM - 8PM Saturday, November 6th. - LARRY ELKINS - ELKINSPHOTOS FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY