Emerald Bay Photography News and Updates

I'm so terribly behind in posting fresh images to my blog - a side effect of being always on the run and working, I guess...

But - I recently had the privilege and delight to shoot a portfolio for a company that specializes in concrete floors and countertops, and I thought I'd post some shots here. Not in the least because there's a special - and surprising - beauty to concrete that made me personally abandon my previously held (wrong) conception of cement as a rough material, suitable only for rudimentary construction uses.



Over the last few years, concrete has experienced a surge in interest as the versatile, clean and modern material that it is. Refined with color and in the hands of an artist concrete contractor, it can be turned into a thing of true beauty. It is nearly endless in its uses, highly customizable (with inlays and custom shades of color), easy to take care of, and stands up well to the test of time.





Wikipedia educates us on this interesting tidbit also: "Cement should not be confused with concrete as the term 'cement' explicitly refers to a dry powder substance. Upon the addition of water and/or additives the mixture is no longer referred to as 'cement' but 'concrete', regardless if aggregates have already been added or not."



And did you know? Unlike with a granite countertop, you're never locked into a certain color with concrete. Want to remodel that kitchen, but the new look doesn't jive with the current color scheme? No problem with concrete. You can simply have a new color applied over the old one. Cool, eh?

Look in the Sept/Oct issue of Concrete Decor Magazine for more of my shots.

Labels: architectural photographer Bend Oregon, architectural photography, architecture, commercial photographer Bend Oregon, concrete, countertops, floors, product photographer Bend Oregon

Last Saturday night, the annual Drake Awards were held at the Tower Theatre in Bend, Oregon. The event is put on by the Advertising Federation of Central Oregon and honors the best of last year's creative efforts in the advertising arena.

While I had entered the Obsidian Stock website for my own company (props for the kickass design go to my biz partner and designer Lance Hardy), another one of my photographic projects ended up winning a Silver Addy for best "Consumer Website" in the Interactive Media section: the Tigerlily Home site.



Yay! Good job, Kristi - and congrats to Mindy.

What's really rewarding for myself is that after shooting product for the site in many, many sessions over the span of last year, Mindy ended up with a website that is not only visually interesting and functional, but also exudes a luscious, tropical feel that perfectly fits the wares she sells. Kinda like browsing through a Thai market - only that it's located online (and downtown Bend)...

Labels: Bend Oregon photographer, commercial photographer Bend Oregon, product photographer Bend Oregon, product photography

Whoever said product photography had to be done in a studio, with a white seamless background and a ton of 500-watt lights?

Well, when the program chair of the High Desert Museum's upcoming Sagebrush Auction asked me to photograph some items for the western-themed event, I couldn't think of a better place to shoot them than in her own house (which happens to be a gorgeous log home I previously shot for an upcoming issue of Bend Living Magazine).





The August 13 auction is the Museum's single largest fundraising event and promises fabulous food, "frontier" fun, music, and live and silent auctions, featuring dozens of unique items (like the ones above). Proceeds from the Sagebrush Rendezvous support the Museum's educational programs that serve more than 12,000 children throughout Central Oregon.

So if you're a photographer or artist and would like to donate a print or two (tax write-off, folks!) to the auction, contact me, and I'll hook you up with the right person.

Labels: commercial photographer Bend Oregon, photography, product photographer Bend Oregon

For some inexplicable reason, I'm terribly fond of this image:



Or is it just me? Does anybody else like the almost painterly quality of this image? The way the chair, hat, painting, old indidan leather jacket, logs, and set of fireplace pokers come together? How the single spotlight casts this interesting light on the scene?

It was taken on a recent furniture shoot, almost as a sidenote, for no particular reason really, and just because to me, the scene seemed so saturated with Cowboy romance.

I just found out today that two images from this shoot are in consideration for the cover of the updated version of the book "Cowboy High Style".

I somehow hope it's gonna end up being this one.

Labels: architectural photographer Bend Oregon, architectural photography, Bend Oregon photographer, commercial photographer Bend Oregon, photography, product photographer Bend Oregon, product photography

I love my job.

Especially when I get to shoot assignments that take me to beautiful homes, let me meet wonderful new people - and give me a slice of education I would have never gotten otherwise.

Take for instance a recent shoot I did for a high-end reproduction maker of Molesworth furniture in Cody, Wyoming.



Molesworth who, you ask?

Yepp, I posed the same question. But in preparation for the shoot and to get a feel for the image style of the book (as my images will get featured in the updated version of the book), I read up on this interesting icon of Western style in Cowboy High Style by Elizabeth Claire Flood.

To quote the author: "Bow-legged cowboys, buffalo silhouettes, bucking horses, Indian teepees, an antlered elk - all icons that symbolize the rugged West. These, plus sensuous natural woods, vibrant leathers, and colorful woven fabrics are the raw materials of western casual elegance.

The western decorative style first became fashionable in the 1930s and 1940s, when dude ranches and lodges were among the most popular tourist destinations. Many of these retreats were outfitted by Cody, Wyoming furniture maker Thomas C. Molesworth, who worked mainly with swollen burls, rich leathers, and vibrant Chimayo weavings, to create the sturdy, streamlined furniture for which he has become famous. By adding romantic western and wildlife motifs through detailed wood carvings or paintings, Molesworth promoted a high style of furnishings that captured the spirit of the West."

Indeed. Shooting these beautiful furniture pieces, I started to really appreciate the smooth woods with their characteristic burls; the soft, supple leathers in their rich tones of red, and the intricate hand-carvings of arrows and teepees.

I'll be forever grateful for the education this job provided me - never mind that it also spoilt me for all eternity. I will never look at my furniture the same way again ...

Labels: architectural photographer Bend Oregon, architectural photography, Bend Oregon photographer, commercial photographer Bend Oregon, photography, product photographer Bend Oregon, product photography