The workshop last Saturday in Chatham County was a lot of fun, and some great images were created. We met before dawn on the shore of Jordan Lake. Persistent thick fog provided wonderful light. Before we started shooting, I gave a short talk about the visual language of photography and encouraged everyone to avoid photographing the lake, and instead make images of color, texture, shape, line, contrast, pattern, etc.
Maggie Zwilling created this wonderful black and white image with leading lines and high contrast.
Kim Hawks created this surreal abstract impression by focusing on the reflections of pines along the lake shore.
While discussing composition I was distracted by this brown-headed nuthatch.
After several participants made photographs of these charismatic sticks in the lake, I created this image to demonstrate how shooting from a lower angle causes the sticks to cross the horizon, creating more visual impact.
As the fog began to lift we moved to a forest along the Haw River. The spring ephemeral wildflowers were just getting started, and the cloudy skies provided excellent light for plant photography. I encouraged everyone to choose a subject and work it for the next two hours before we took a break for lunch and moved to the classroom portion of the workshop.
While searching for trout lilies I came across this 1/4 inch wide scene. The perfection of a rain drop on each and every leaf tip seems impossible.
Rachel Jones made one of the best trout lily photos of the day. These tiny flowers are challenging subjects, and she worked very hard for this image, lying on the wet ground and trying different ideas until she found one she liked best.
Julie Tuttle gave herself a very challenging subject when she decided to work on beech drops. It takes a special eye to appreciate the beauty of these parasitic plants, but an eye for their beauty is not enough. Julie also put in the time to work this subject until she came up with this excellent composition.
Our two hours along the Haw River flew by, and most people only had time to work one subject well. After lunch we spent the rest of the day in a classroom reviewing our images, discussing which we liked best, and going over ways to improve our favorite images on the computer. I am always impressed with the different perspectives and ways of seeing that come out of these workshops.