Though the weather is still a bit chilly here in NJ, the trees and trying to do their thing. I’ve been keeping watch of the cherry blossoms in Branch Brook Park. It is my annual treat to watch the park come to life with the beauty of the cherry blossoms.
As I’ve written before (see previous post, Branch Brook Park, Newark), there are nearly 2,000 cherry blossoms in the park. They aren’t fully bloomed yet, but I’m hoping to catch them in their fullness next Saturday, April 18. I hope it’s a nice day with warming temps than we’ve been having.
Taken Saturday, April 4, 2009
I can see the Belleville section of the park from my deck. I noticed people out trying to enjoy the blooming trees even though they are still a little skimpy. It was pretty chilly—about 48 degrees and very breezy. But that did not seem to deter these two young ladies. (see image below) They were determined to have a picnic among the cherry blossoms.
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of creating my first ad. As a photographer who is also a designer it would seem that this would be an easy thing. I discovered it wasn’t easy being my client— I had to make all the decisions myself. The good thing is if I’m not satisfied, I know I can just do it over. I chose this photo of Valerie, because it has gotten a lot of favorable feedback. Hopefully, the ad will bring in some favorable results.
Lately I’ve been networking using different forms of “social media.” A few months ago a techie friend of mine turned me on to Twitter. It’s a combination of a micro-blog/instant message/text messaging system online. You get to broadcast what you’re doing or just communicate with a large group of people at once. The goal is to find people who have interests similar to your own—you follow them and they follow you (maybe). It’s a good way to network, get information and just share ideas. The key is interact and just sell.
A few weeks ago, I met a young lady, located in Brooklyn, named Qiana Mestrich who has a blog Dodge & Burn, Diversity in Photography. When she decided to “follow” me on Twitter, she checked out my website. She liked my work and asked me for an interview.
A few weeks ago, I did a portrait session with Valerie. She is a writer. Her first novel, Hollyhood, will be released in the spring of 2009. She needed an author’s photo to go on the back of the book. The challenge set before me? Valerie said she didn’t think she took good pictures and often didn’t like any of herself. From my experience photographing people and directing photo shoots, I’ve found that most people don’t feel comfortable in front of the camera and if that is the case, it shows in the photographs. It was my goal to make the experience pleasant and to increase Valerie’s level of comfort. Valerie was a great subject. We were both able to meet the challenge together and ended up with some really terrific images.
On Halloween I was in Hackensack, NJ for an appointment and remembered the annual Clinton Place Halloween displays. The residents on this street are known to go way out with their Halloween displays. Since I had my camera with me I decided to swing by and see what was going on. It was like a festival. The street was blocked off and everyone was enjoying themselves. Even reporter Toni Yates from Channel 7 Eyewitness News showed up to do a live segment with the trick-or-treaters.
Check out the slideshow and the ghoulish happenings on Clinton Place, Hackensack, NJ.
