Defining Moments

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Well, it’s been a looong time since I’ve taken a few moments to do some recreational shooting. I’ve just been very busy with work. I have no doubt some of you have noticed there hasn’t been anything new up at Photernal for quite a while. I have been meaning to announce an end to that project. Well, less of an end than an evolution. I plan to continue, when I can, a similar vein of shooting, but with more art and less structure. I will be focusing on producing print-quality art. Keep your eyes open later this year for a new website, as well as a local showing of my work in print. For now, here are a few images taken this morning:

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Last month I entered several shots in the Harvest Farm & Preserve photo contest. Final winners were announced today, and I’m proud to announce that one of my images was the overall winner! I was quite honored considering the quality of the other prints in the running. Incidentally, if you don’t know about Harvest Farm & Preserve, you should click on the link and check out their site. It’s a pristine green space right in Iowa City, that I didn’t even know about until recently. Doug and Linda Paul and family are doing a great thing by keeping this land natural and undeveloped. My winning image is posted below, and you can see a larger version, plus some others I submitted, by clicking HERE. Ten contest finalists had their images printed and framed, and they will be on display in the spring at the Englert’s Doug and Linda Paul Gallery, and I believe most of the prints will be for sale.

Also, I am a little behind in blogging my senior sessions this year, but I decided to brag about myself first. Expect more posts in the coming days.

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A poet and one-time Iowa resident, Deborah Ager, contacted me late last year. She had seen one of my Photernal images and thought it would work perfectly as a book cover for her upcoming poetry volume. A few months later, I am thrilled to have the book in hand, and there is a photo below! Deborah lived for a time in Lamoni, Iowa, and her poems, those which I have read so far, feature strongly the flavor of our state. Her book, Midnight Voices, is available HERE, and the original photo was posted on Photernal HERE.

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Congratulations to Jacob for winning the new iPod Nano! Thanks to all the 2009 seniors who participated, and thanks to Apple for taking back the OLD iPod Nano when I found out they had just announced a newer better version. This thing’s pretty sweet…I kinda wanted to keep it.

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I have been working toward a collection of fine art prints in my spare time, and hope to have several available for purchase by late fall. These will include photos and other digital art. I will be introducing two limited edition pieces this Sunday, at Paws for a Cause at the Johnson County Fairgrounds. These will be framed photographs of the Coralville Dam, commemorating the Iowa floods of 2008, and sales will benefit the Animal Center. “Before the Flood” was taken on May 26th, with the reservoir at 706 ft. “717″ was taken on June 16th, just after the water level peaked at 716.96 ft. Each print is made from archival pigment inks on acid-free velvet paper, set behind Artique Conservation Matboard and UV-resistant Conservation Clear glass. Twenty-five of each title will be printed, and will be signed, numbered, and ready to hang. The prints will be on display this Sunday at the Paws for a Cause event.

Through December 1st (or until the run is bought out), the prints will be offered at the special price of $185, with all proceeds going to Friends of the Animal Center Foundation, to be used for flood recovery of the Iowa City Animal Center. Each print is approximately 10″ x 14″, with the finished framed and matted size being approximately 17″ x 21″. Please contact me at the studio if you’d like to have one of these limited edition prints, and help the Animal Center at the same time!

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I’ve just started a facebook business page for Adamson Studios. This will be geared toward keeping in touch with high school seniors, so if you’re on facebook, click HERE and become a fan! See which images I chose to put in my 2008 senior album. Past senior clients will find ways to earn FREE prints, and ‘09 seniors can earn credit toward their session and a chance to become an Adamson Studios Senior Ambassador for the class of 2009!

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I had several fun people in yesterday. I will be doing this from 2-8 today as well, and hope to get lots more! Come in with your costumes, no appointment necessary during this time. Scroll down for details! Here’s a small peek at what I did yesterday:

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Just a reminder about the Halloween costume contest and free photos! Get a free mini-session, free prints, and have a chance to win a free family session!!!  The original blog post with all the details is HERE.

Hope to see you!!

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Scroll down for sample photos.

I’ve decided it would be fun to have a Halloween costume competition. To encourage participation, I will be offering everyone a FREE print, and awarding a free child or family session to the winner, along with a free framed 16×20 print. Bring your kids! If you don’t have kids, come yourself!  Or bring a pet!!

DETAILS: I will take 4-6 photos of each participant in a five-minute mini-session. Results will be posted to a gallery on my web site sometime the following week. Choose one image per costume (one costume per participant) and let me know by phone or email. I will have a 4×5 print made and have it at my studio for pickup.

WHEN: Tuesday Oct.30th, from 4-8pm, and Wednesday Oct. 31st, from 2-8pm at my studio, 1106 N. Dodge St. in Iowa City. There are no appointments. People will be photographed as they arrive, so there may be a short wait.

PARKING: Please do not park at the Hilltop Tavern! The studio driveway has 3-4 spaces. If it is full, there is plenty of space on N. Summit, just around the corner.

VOTING: When the gallery is posted, there will be a poll on my studio blog where people can vote for the best costume. I will keep the voting open for one week, and whoever gets the most votes will get the free session.

FINE PRINT: Basically, there is no fine print. Anyone can participate, and everyone who does gets a free print, with no strings attached. The winning prize also comes with no further purchase obligation. The session is a 30-minute studio session and may be used for a child, family, or pet sitting (not valid for senior or location sessions), and the framed 16×20 can be converted to credit toward other products. The prize cannot, however, be converted to cash.

Call or email me if you have any questions!

Some clients have volunteered to be photographed early, so I can post some sample photos: