May 1st, 2018
Greetings from Santa Barbara. I am very pleased to release a new collection of landscapes from Frye Photography. These eight images are from inspiring locations here in the amazing west.
Some of these images are from the well-known places which abound with beautiful subjects for photography. But, these epic places are also a challenge. The scenery is so familiar and iconic that one can fall into a bit of a creative malaise. This can result in copycat postcard images which are more documentation than inspiration. I find I must slow down and pay closer attention in these well-known places as it requires more intense work to seek out a fresh inspiration and perspective.
In contrast, other images arise from the more “ordinary” places that are not considered a “photo destination” in the travel guide sense. But the magic is still there. Rather than simply commanding the composition these scenes are more subtly produced by a more ethereal combination of location, angle, mood, time of day, play of light, context, and imagination. The mundane (wrongly labelled) shows itself special when conditions of location, eye, and imagination are aligned.
Hope you enjoy these,
Will
Tumalo
West of Bend, Oregon is Tumalo Creek and Falls. Flora, sky, water, and rock combine in drama as the mountains come alive for the northwest spring (summer on the calendar). The center of interest here for me was the sun shining down on the cascading refreshing creek.
Washington Ridge
This is one of those “along the way” places. There is a turnout on Highway 20 going north from Nevada City, CA with one of the epic views of the Sierra Buttes in the distance. One of those “click the classic photo” stops. But a 300 yard tromp through the snow along Highway 20 yielded this out of the way view. The fallen tree leads the eye to the sun-washed snow as the sky above heralds the morning sun.
Vineyard Morning
Between Los Olivos and Santa Maria, CA, Highway 101 winds through wine country. I followed a small dirt road that led away from the main vineyards and suddenly this vista happily greeted me. Trees framed the view while a single distant tree takes center stage. Both are vertically framed by the sky above and emerging grass at my feet. Too much beauty to be contained in my viewfinder. Four shutter clicks led to this vertical panorama!
Schroeder Mountain Fall
Fall in the Sierra Gold Country at 5000 feet on a November day was shimmering in glory just off the country highway north of Sierra City, CA. Gold, blue, and stone grays danced while sky and clouds superintended from above.
Crater Lake – Oregon
Crater lake is certainly one of those epic locations in which the scenery yells “photograph me”. The standard shots are wide angle views of lake and sky. I was looking for a different view and framing – one in which foreground interest could bring more intimacy to the scene. A stand of shaded trees did just that – providing context for the larger than life lake inside the crater. My result is an image that for me captures the tranquility and the majesty this place exudes.
ET Desert
When traveling across central Nevada one enters a huge open desert–almost a lunar landscape. The highway extends straight as an arrow from horizon to horizon. We have seldom experienced such vast solitude. For many hours no other car was visible on the endless highway with distant mountains both fore and aft.
After hours of driving, the desert started to change–Joshua trees peppered the spartan landscape. We pulled over and I trudged away from the highway to find a good subject for a photo. While I was 200 yards from the road with eye stuck to viewfinder, Darlene was back by the sidelined car hearing the palpable sound of aircraft flying just overhead. The sky was clear and cloudless in all directions. Such a loud plane would be easily found. But she nor I could find any to match to the sound. After rejoining the highway path we saw a sign of location and explanation. We were on the Extraterrestrial Highway! Hmmm….
Back in the darkroom this image came to life and is now named “ET Desert”.
Emerald Bay Glory
Lake Tahoe is immense, beautiful, and inspiring. Another epic location. It is also a place of extreme weather–conditions that are common in such high mountain weather watersheds. Later in the digital darkroom, the image was tuned and conducted to emphasize the glory of the landscape as dynamic sky burnishes the terrain.
Central Coast Spring
Central California is the intersection of the essentially coastal south desert with the more verdant north. In spring this special latitude express a fresh and glowing palette of color as the normally dry hills glow in healthy greens and yellows.
