As I look out the window in western Montana to a dreary afternoon, I have just realized fall is upon us. After a summer of record breaking heat, dry conditions, and smoked filled skies a change is here. I vividly recall three months ago on the first day of summer heading out early in the morning with some friends to photograph sunrise at Lee Metcalf NWR, which of course in western Montana meant an early morning. Little did we know what to expect in the weeks and months ahead as we dressed in layers on a cool morning.

Now it is a time to look forward on the beauty of fall. But the question which I have heard asked numerous times is will the above normal summer temperatures make the magic of fall different? I’m not the one to answer the question, but maybe a call to a friend who studied meteorology is in order. Either way I am doing the research now and looking for the locations which may yield a punch of color in the upcoming weeks, since sooner than it arrives the magic of fall will be gone.

If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area and are looking for a child portraiture photographer I would suggest checking out Annie Florin Photography. Annie is specializing in natural light, and natural environment child portraiture which can provide a different perspective versus a studio setting. Check out the website to view some of her work, and give her a call if you would like more information.

This evening I headed downtown for First Friday in Missoula, Montana and it was a special treat since I knew two of the artists showing. The first photographer was Melanie Wright (http://www.stonesthrowphotography.com) presenting some of her photographs at The Catalyst. Melanie has quite an eye for seeing which is obvious in these photographs.

The second photographer was Marcy James at Gallery Saintonge, who up until recently taught black and white photography at the Rocky Mountain School of Photography where she is now the Curriculum Director. Marcy’s newest work of Butte was quite extraordinary and a mix of black and white and color. With the black and white she used some alternative methods of presenting the work, with layers of wax over some of the images and other techniques to draw the viewer even more into the image. While I recognize Marcy more so for her black and white work, I was surprised to see a collection of birds in color. However the presentation of these creatures is quite unique with images of birds in trees and then many small 2×2 blocks above with birds in flight, airplanes and other items you would find in the sky. It is quite hard to describe but an impressive collection.

If happen to be in Missoula this month, I would highly recommend making a stop to check out the galleries on Higgins.

The blog needs to start with a message, and here it goes…

Over the past few years I have been told that I know interesting items and at times can be a source of information for people. This was news to me, but none the less I figure why not share some of this knowledge of photography and other relevant information. Bringing us to this blog, where you will find information which you may or may not find useful at times, but either way be sure to check back as you never know what will show up here on the blog.