Senior Portraits at the Beach - Plum Island, MA

Ever been asked for pro bono photography work?  It's worth doing if it's not your normal thing as a photographer.  Portraits are way out of my comfort zone.  But natural light is not.
I had a blast with my friend's granddaughter planning what kinds of shots she wanted.
We didn't know where to start until I found a great webpage that gave us 47 Amazing Senior Portrait Ideas at Buzz Feed by a Buzz Feed staffer!  She picked the ones she liked.  We planned shoots around those ideas.
This is our version of the beach idea we found in the 47 Ideas article:

I picked her up at 6am and drove to the beach as the sunrise was just beginning.  It was cold so we brought blankets and warm clothes for in between shots in and out of the water.

Did I mention it was cold?!  She thought so too!

We ended the morning with breakfast at Friendly's.  I had fun doing this with her and she loves her photos.  It was an opportunity for me to grow as a photographer.

The Marsh - July and August

It's been a hot, rainy summer, which cleans growth periodically.  I have been spared taking photos of that dusty, gray, droopy look.  The lily pads, algae and cat tails are beautiful!

July 10

July 10

It was difficult to work up the motivation to keep looking for different perspectives on the marsh this month.  I want to show the transitions from season to season and find different views of this lovely area.  Can you hear the "but" coming?  Bored comes to mind and challenged!  There are only 2 July dates.

July 25

July 25

July 25

I regained some momentum in August!  It helped to start out the month with photographs of Canada geese.  The colors are starting to mature into darker greens with some dead or dying foliage.  August storms threatened the skies.

Aug 5

Aug 23

Beautiful sunny days with puffy clouds are beach days and give great reflections in the marsh waters.  

Aug 16

You know summer is ending in New England when the purple strife blooms.  Purple strife is an invasive species to our area and can change the ecosystem considerably.  Most people like it!

Aug 23 Purple Strife

Aug 27 sunrise

Fall is my favorite season.  I think I said that about spring too!  I have been photographing this place for 9 months.  Most of my photographs feature reflections.  There are two times of the day when lakes, ponds and marshes are still enough for reflections: early morning and early evening.  Prime time to get out there with a tripod and shoot!  I just wish I would figure out how to anticipate a beautiful sunset already!!

Regata Storica in Venice!

The Venetian Regata (Italian spelling) Storica is truly a festive and colorful race held every year on the first Sunday in September.  What a wonderful surprise to find out we would join local Venetians and tourists in watching the parade and races.

                                     
We were lucky to get seats with a view to the right of the beginning of the races near San Marco Square (below) and a view to the left of the Ponte dell' Accademia (bridge above).

The Regata Storica is the main event in the annual "Voga alla Veneta" rowing calendar. Rowing has been practiced in the Venetian lagoon for thousands of years and today it is particularly well-known for the spectacular historical water pageant that precedes the race.  It commemorates the welcome given in 1489 to Caterina Cornaro, the wife of the King of Cyprus, who renounced her throne to live in Venice.  Scores of typically 16th century-style boats with gondoliers in period costume carry the Doge, the Doge's wife and all the highest ranking Venetian officials up the Grand Canal in a brightly colored parade. The golden winged lion of Venice appears on numerous flags displayed on boats and villas lining the Grand Canal.

The races follow the parade.  There are five races beginning with young rowers in twin-oared pupparini.

Next is the women's twin-oared mascarete race.

Then the six-oared caorline race followed by the international universities boat challenge.

And finally, the most popular race of the twin-oared gondolini! What an exciting afternoon!

The Marsh - May and June

Spring arrived in May.  This is the month all us New Englanders wait for - soft breezes and and pale green.  Earth smells alive.  The marsh is alive.  What a joy to photograph this season.  Sunrise is early - darn it!  Let's begin with May1st - foggy and still and moody.

May 1

I drove out early the next day to catch a sunrise and was rewarded with this beautiful scene.

May 2

A week later the marsh is greener.  It smells greener and a little softer but the rotting stumps in the marsh are still spiky and offer great contrast.  This photograph so far is the only one I like in black and white.  Thanks to Nik Silver Efex Pro, which pays particular attention to each color channel and renders a beautiful black and white version.

May 8

Here it is in the original color.

May 8

Two weeks later the marsh is wearing a completely different look!  The green takes over and the trick is to contrast green growth with blue sky.  

May 27

The water flowing through the marsh is now murky and full of algae and new growth.  Interesting in its own way because the marsh flora seems to be falling over itself to get a drink.  There are now many sunny days and I avoid those for photography.  The light is too harsh and the shadows too deep.  Better a softer cloudy day.  Hint: if the sky is boring (grey) then don't include it in your photograph! Look at this one, no sky!

June 4

I cannot see the sunset from my house.  I also cannot figure out what conditions make a good sunset.  So I have asked my friends to call me if it looks good.  This evening I was sitting in a friend's gazebo and suddenly it was happening!  Raced to my car and I caught the color just in time.  Luckily my camera and tripod were in the car.

June 16

June 16

The last photo for June is to show you the street I am standing on when I photograph this marsh.  Pretty crazy right?!  Cars whizzing by and me trying to set up my tripod right on the bridge!  

June 24

A Lighthouse Day in Maine

 There are 37 historic lighthouses in Maine!  It's going to take me a few years to visit them.  This summer day in July I joined a group of photographers to drive the coast from Portland, Maine south to York, Maine.  We started and ended with 2 of the most iconic lighthouses of the coast of New England.  Above is a photograph of Portland Head Lighthouse.  Built in 1791, it is the oldest lighthouse in the state of Maine and sits on a head of land at the primary shipping channel to the entrance of Portland Harbor.  The midday sun was bright (2pm) but the clouds were wondrous!  Below is my wide angle photograph from the other side of the lighthouse.  In the span of half an hour the wind had transformed the clouds.

We drove south to Prout's Neck Bird Sanctuary.  Lovely pebbly beach and lots of ducks in the water.  I experimented further with my wide angle and I like the results.

Further on south to stop at Biddeford Pool.  Hiking out onto the East Point Sanctuary affords a nice view of Wood Island Light.  The wind came up and the sky filled with clouds.  No golden light yet as it was only 4:30.

Cape Porpoise, a lovely little town just north of Kennebunkport is a nice stop also where I took this picture of the leaning tower of lobster traps.  No lighthouse but a lovely little bay and a good restaurant.  

The weekend traffic through Kennebunkport conspired to almost make us late for a glorious sunset at Nubble Light.  Nubble Light is the nickname for Cape Neddick Lighthouse near York, Maine.  We caught the light and it was a stunning end to our lighthouse day.

The Marsh - March and April

 March 11

March is a month full of changes and weather surprises in New England: warmer days and occasional snow storms.  

  March 12

Only a day apart, these two photographs each give a very different feeling to the marsh.  The ice is starting to melt!  Then a week later it's cold again and still no new growth.

  March 19

  March 26 

Ah, finally!  Water and reflections add a new dimension to photographing this lovely place!  

  April 1

April brings the birds back north.  The Canada geese use this area as a resting place on their long journey north.  The ice melts and early mornings give me nice reflections.

  April 9

  April 18

With the melting of the snow I can suddenly walk off the road and onto the land around the marsh.  This is good because I am getting bored with the same perspective for each photograph.  In the May/June blog I will include photographs of very different viewpoints.  The marsh is coming alive!