Here are a few samples of the kind of landscape subjects you might find during the workshop. I just went for a thirty minute walk this morning and came back with these (not shot on 4×5, but just to give you an idea of the kinds of subjects you can easily find).
OK, this is serious. I want to do something to support the New55 project on Kickstarter that will go beyond my meager cash contribution and perhaps get someone involved who wouldn’t ordinarily care about whether a few photographers have another film to play with.
From now through May 3, 2014, I am offering a full portrait session for anyone willing to make a $55 donation to New55. This session will take place in my home studio or your choice of location in northeast Ohio. I searched through my film supply cabinet and found that I still have seven sheets of Polaroid Type-55 film which I will use to make your portrait. One caveat: this film may not be any good at this point due to its age, in which case I will shoot the session on a digital camera.
You will receive one digital pigment print of your favorite image from the session, printed at 8×10 inches on fine art paper and mounted in an 11×14 inch archival mat. This is a great deal for someone. Normally I would charge a retail customer over $350 for this package. A business client would pay between $800 and $1,500 for a similar session.
But wait! There’s more! Your $55 contribution to the New55 Kickstarter project entitles you to your choice of two backer rewards they offer for donations of $50 or more. How sweet is that?
This session is for a portrait of an individual or small group (2—6 persons). You must schedule an appointment for the portrait session to take place between now and May 3, 2014 and you must become a backer of the New55 project by making a $55 contribution on the Kickstarter site at the time of the session or earlier. Rmember! There is no other charge for this portrait session or the first print—just your donation to New55.
So the first person who contacts me by any means available will get this special offer. There is a contact page on this website or you can start dialing, e-mailing, facebooking, texting, etc., …NOW!
Jaeryn Flanik and Kesley Lynch have completed the book phase of their photo project. The print version of the book was sent to Blurb, the online publishing site on December 19. Those who supported their project through Kickstarter.com will be receiving the remaining rewards very soon. The print version of the book should be in their hands on December 31. They will be sending out those that are going to supporters during the first week of January.
The e-book version is following close behind, although there have been a couple of obstacles to making it available immediately. The Kickstarter supporters who will be receiving a free e-book should be receiving an e-mail on how to retrieve it within the next week.
Kesley and Jaeryn successfully raised the support to fund their grant from Kickstarter.com. The project reached its funding goal with a week remaining in the fund raising period. Thirty four people contributed to the grant fund raising a total of $1811. The two students will now be able to cover travel costs to photograph towns in southern Ohio, pay for printing paper and other materials, and send postcards, prints and copies of their book as rewards to their contributors.
What began as an idea for an independent study course has blossomed into a serious social document that I believe will be a major event in the lives of these two young photographers and will also serve as a model for the use of social networking to support arts projects that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to produce.
The framework for the barn at Hiram Farm is now in progress. You’d think that building a relatively small barn would be simpler and faster than building a house or a commercial building, but when you’re trying to do it on a very limited budget using mostly volunteer labor, progress can be pretty slow. Everything has to be checked over by the construction manager and sometimes re-done. The methods used have to be somewhat accommodating to the limited experience and physical abilities of the volunteers who show up on any given day.
Despite all this, the progress has been steady and the quality of the work has been high. Kudos to everyone who’s jumped in and swung a hammer!
For more photographs of this project, visit the Hiram Farm website and “Like” the Hiram Farm Page on Facebook.
The autumn colors have come and gone, but they left some good memories. The trees around our house were exceptionally colorful this year and the transition took over a month to peak before a sudden frost and a couple of windy nights in mid-November closed the show. A few oak trees are still tenaciously hanging on to some of their leaves, but for the most part we have officially entered “stick season.”