Apr
03
2013Last Friday we went exploring once again to the Fisher Body Plant on one of our Advanced Urban Outings through Motor City Photography Workshops. I have been to the Fisher Body Plant probably eight times at least. It is one of my favorite places to shoot, but after exploring so many times it can be a challenge to shoot something new. And that is what I did this day – I used my Canon 100mm macro lens to shoot some abstract images. I tend to rely heavily on my Canon 10-22mm ultra wide angle, and while I love it, it is a nice change to do something a bit different. I like to flex my creative muscles when I can 
Instead of heading towards the usual places I shoot inside the building, I explored areas I had never been to before. Who knew there were areas I hadn’t seen? I walked around shooting some of the exhaust pipes (at least that is what I am calling them, not sure what they actually are) and the interesting shapes they were making.
I have been playing with the idea of creating a composition workshop. I love composition and trying to find a texture, shape, play of light, whatever it may be that will make an interesting subject. You will see what I mean in my images below.
Feb
04
2013
Last month Jesse and I were given an opportunity to visit and shoot some of Detroit’s well-known architectural gems. Thanks to meeting Michelle of Quicken Loans at Art-is-in Market at Twelve Oaks, she had arranged permission and access to several buildings owned by Quicken Loans in the downtown Detroit area.
We were given a tour by one of Quicken’s interns, where we took a walking tour of several buildings: First National Building, Chase Tower (aka “The Qube”), Chrysler House (formerly the Dime Building) and the Madison Theatre Building. Several of the buildings afforded us a great view (and new to us) of the Detroit skyline. We started the tour in the Dime building, where we were taken to the basement of the building to view an old bank vault still in existence. We also entered one of the many tunnels that runs beneath the downtown area – that reminded me more of what we typically see when we are out exploring in Detroit — dark and dirty!
Afterwards we had lunch at Small Plates – their sweet potato fries were to die for! I recommend their food the next time you find yourself looking for great cuisine in Detroit.
Thanks again to Michelle for setting this up for us, it was a great experience!
Jul
04
2012
On Monday, my photography friend Basil and I visited Windsor with the intent to shoot the Detroit Skyline. So far, I have been pretty lucky in choosing days to visit, as I have been able to get some nice skies and weather while shooting.
Basil had never shot the skyline before, so I played tour guide and showed him the best spots along the riverfront to shoot. We arrived an hour before the golden hour so we could walk and get some good vantage points. My goal was to shoot a little further east along the shoreline, as I have seen photos of Detroit with rocks in the foreground. We did come across many rocks along the shore so I was really excited to capture some of those in my compositions.
We started on the East end of the riverwalk, where there were these rock outcroppings. I found these cool old posts sticking out of the water with some rocks nearby.
I even found one with a little tree growing out of it
As the golden hour started, I captured an HDR photo with some nice clouds and sky color:
While Basil stayed where we had just been shooting, I walked further East towards the beach of rocks to capture some photos from this vantage point. I attempted some light painting on the rocks, but I don’t think they turned out as lit up as I would have wanted. That is what photography can be some days, a lot of experimentation!
Here I made an adjustment with the color, turning the blue to a purple shade.
Basil pointed out to me that he had found a vantage point near a street light that was turning the rocks along the shoreline into this deep orange/red color. Of course, I had to go and see for myself, and captured a few images of the rocks with the skyline. So yes, this was the true color of the rocks! I actually had to desaturate the rocks otherwise they would have been too dark.
At this point, we had been shooting for about 5 hours, and my feet were starting to ache, it was a good night of shooting and time to head home. Thanks Basil for coming with me on this trip!
Jun
28
2012Besides the Rust Belt Market, I will also be selling my work this summer (along with Jesse Welter of Parker Creative) at these fine art fairs listed below (with links to fair website):
Wyandotte Street Art Fair - July 11 -14, 2012
iArt Redford Fair - July 21 & 22, 2012
Allen Park Street Fair – August 3 & 4, 2012
DIY Street Fair (Ferndale) – Sept. 14-16, 2012
If you plan to be at any of these fairs, please stop by and say hi!
Jun
08
2012Back in April, through Motor City Photography Workshops, I was able to get inside and shoot the Michigan Train Station. And this time, we had permission from the owner of the building for our photography group to take a tour through the first floor of the building (I am part-owner of MCPW if you didn’t know that already).
Now, this was exciting because it was through one of our members that we received permission to visit, with her connection with a Channel 2 news anchor. It was to be a surprise for our group, so we kept it a secret. You see, we already had an outing planned to shoot the OUTSIDE of the train station. No one knew that we were getting access to shoot the inside.
As you can imagine, people were very surprised and happy to be allowed to see inside the station. We wore hard hats and signed liability waivers, but that did not detract from the experience. The security company foreman took us on a tour and gave us a very informative historical rundown of the building itself. I learned many things I didn’t know about it.
Below are a few of the photos I captured while inside. With the work that is being completed on the building, who knows when or if I will ever get access again. Even though I had been inside the station twice before, it had been over a year since my last trip. I was once again astounded by the impact that building had on me. It is just so big, and even with it’s deterioration, still so beautiful.
