Photography by Vincent Mistretta

HOME WHAT'S NEW GALLERIES PRINTS BIO BLOG LINKS CONTACT

« Previous Entries
» Next Entries

Category

Landscapes

Landscapes
Seeking Inspiration
12.11.10 | Permalink | 1 Comment

I make it a point to work with my camera as much as possible. Even when my creative juices are not flowing I make it a habit of picking up the camera and trying to make some images. This week was a tough week for me, personally and professionally and to be honest, I had little motivation yesterday to pick up my camera or post a blog. So after dinner I decided to take a ride and see if the dusting of snow we just received and the holiday lights might give me some inspiration.

Floating Christmas Tree

After driving around for a while I saw this Christmas Tree scene floating in a pond. What caught my eye was the eeriness of the floating lights on the snow dusted pond. Something out of a horror movie. The snow on the pond made the light reflection look like steam was coming off the pond.

Holiday Light Blur

I also like trying to make appealing blurs with holiday lights. There are several ways you can do this. One is to twist the zoom ring on a zoomable lens while making the exposure. The other is to set your lens to manual focus and when you are able to get the look and feel that you want, take the picture out of focus. I like the first method best however I find that it is most effective when the light is better than it was last night. That is I had no light since it was snowing!
Landscapes, Travel
Fall Color Passes Too Quickly
11.19.10 | Permalink | 1 Comment

I love this image, calm, quiet, serene.

Fort William Henry Inlet

Hard to beat the feelings you get from fall color.
Have a great weekend!
Birds, Landscapes
Its a Matter of Opinion
11.12.10 | Permalink | Post a Comment

I ventured out on a beautiful fall day with the intention of photographing fall migrants at the beach. Some would say I failed since I came home with few bird pictures worth keeping…..if any.
This is what I did come home with

Fall Foliage

So while some might say I didn’t make any wildlife keepers, I would say I spent a beautiful day outside trying!

This was the closest to a keeper I had all day

Ring Billed Gull Eating

If it wasn’t for the gesture, I don’t think I would like this image either.

Have a great weekend.
Education, Landscapes
Bad Weather Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Bad Photography
11.05.10 | Permalink | 1 Comment

Well bad weather has gripped the North East. Wind, rain and cold are here resulting in most of the remaining fall color hitting the floor. If there were a silver lining in yesterdays rain clouds it came from the wet leaves and bark that resulted from the rain storm. The contrast created by the wet weather is truly awesome.

New Canaan Fall Foliage After Rain

Fall Foliage Color Pops When Tree Bark and Branches are Wet

So next time you think there are no photographic opportunities just because the weather is poor, look again!
Landscapes, Monday Musings, Travel
Monday Musings
11.01.10 | Permalink | Post a Comment

I think some of the best photographic advice I have ever received was “the best zoom you have is your feet”. There really are many ways this can be applied to becoming a better photographer. On a recent trip to Portland Head Light, our subject was clearly the beautiful light house during this magnificent sunset.
Here is a postcard view from on top of the rocks.

Portland Head Light at Sunset

While the above image is ok, it wasn’t striking and after I returned from the trip, I decided (as I almost always do when I return from a trip) that I did not get THE shot I wanted and needed to go back sometime and photograph from a different location/vantage point.

However, what I did leave Portland Head Light with was one of my favorite images from my trip to Maine (below). It is an image of a photographer standing on a park bench, taking a picture of the U.S. flag at sunset.

Photographer at Sunset

An image created because I took the time to stop, turn around and move my feet. We have legs, and they are the easiest photographic tool to use. Why do so many of us stand in one spot when we make images?
Landscapes, Travel
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse
10.27.10 | Permalink | 1 Comment

On a recent trip to Maine, I had the pleasure of visiting a small coastal town named Bristol. One of the many attractions in Bristol is Pemaquid Point Lighthouse. The original lighthouse was built in 1827. This version didn’t last long because the mortar used in its construction as mixed with saltwater, causing the mortar to break apart.

The lighthouse that stands today was built in 1835 with mortar mixed only with freshwater. It seems like they got it right this time!
Here is one of my favorite images from the morning.

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse at Sunrise

Another great vantage point to photograph this lighthouse from is down by the ocean. In order to get there you need to climb down some steep, wet rocks. Keep in mind it is pitch black while you are attempting to do this! Unfortunately I arrived after the best light but was still able to make this click. I especially like the reflection in the tidal pool. Only wish that pool was bigger.

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse from the Ocean

This last image intrigued me because of the position of the flag, and the glow of the light around the lighthouse. Now that I look at it, I wish I had moved the tripod so the flag was a little more to the right of the lighthouse.

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse with Flag

The last 2 images just don’t do it for me. They were good attempts but I guess I just have to go back to Bristol some time soon! It rarely happens that you are able to create the exact image you want the very first time. And with sunrise lasting only 30 minutes or less, you can’t get to every position around the lighthouse that you want. There are always sacrifices in life.
Education, Landscapes, Wildlife
Make Lemonade
10.23.10 | Permalink | 2 Comments

Moose in Baxter State Park

Last week was an important week for me. As many of you know I have been working hard on my photography over the last 2 years. My friends and family will tell you that my work ethic in most things I put my mind to is second to few others. So I have been working the last several months with a mentor, Moose Peterson. I pursued Moose as my mentor (I think he wanted to have little to do with me at first!) for several reasons. Most importantly because he has dedicated his life to using photography as a communication medium in a way few others have, by speaking on behalf of wildlife. The message he communicates is one of compassion and awareness for the wild heritage that is all around us but rarely appreciated.

The message he communicates best however is the love affair he has with his craft. That message shines through with every press of the shutter he takes. There is no better way of proving this to you but to tell you to look over his website and read his new book, Captured.

The reason last week was so important is that my mentorship with Moose is coming to an end and I wanted to impress him with where my photographic skills have evolved. Doing so was important to me partly out of pride and partly because he has become like an older brother. Moose balances constructive criticism with making sure I don’t get full of myself by letting me know my skills are still a work in progress. But at the conclusion of our week together and during the 9 hour drive home from Baxter State Park, I realized that the outcome of the images I had taken over the course of the week was secondary to the other lessons I have learned from Moose (I know you are all getting confused on which moose I mean!). Most importantly, that every image I take needs to be filled with passion for it to be worth the paper or memory card I used to store and display that image.

Our week culminated in Baxter State Park with the intention to photograph Moose during the rut. I have never seen a moose in person before and I had anxiously anticipated this trip. But a Nor’easter that rolled into the area seriously dented our plans. 1 of 3 days was a complete rain out and the other 2 were gently said, not very cooperative. To Moose, these events were taken in stride. His answer to my obvious disappointment and frustration was to go and do what he does well, turn lemons into lemonade. While finding moose was out of our control, making great images wasn’t.

Fall Foliage in Baxter State Park

The program I have been involved in with Moose is Master of Light Program. If you want to seriously take your photography to the next level, I strongly suggest considering this mentorship. BTW, its not for the faint of heart, its a lot of work but the rewards are worth it if you are serious about being a better photographer. And if you think being a better photographer is only about f-stops, exposure and focusing, you have a big surprise coming!
Landscapes
In Search of Moose
10.20.10 | Permalink | 1 Comment

Part of my recent trip to Maine included a stop at Baxter State Park. While the Moose were elusive there was no shortage of beauty to photograph.
Baxter is a 210,000 acre park that was created by donations and contributions from a former Maine Governor, Percival Baxter. It is truly a beautiful spot and one I plan to visit again sometime next year. Hopefully I will find more moose upon my return!
Landscapes, Monday Musings
Monday Musings
10.18.10 | Permalink | Post a Comment

I was fortunate to have spent the last 8 days in Maine. I love to spend time behind my camera, especially when the subject matter is something as spectacular as fall foliage in Maine. The time is void of the hustle and bustle of everyday life, just me and my subject(s). It was on this trip that I decided I needed a new schedule for my blog. So today is a new beginning. I will be starting you all off each week with Monday Musings. This is meant to be a fun way to kick off the week on everyones worse day, Monday! The new posting schedule will be 3 times a week, as close to Monday, Wednesday and Friday as possible. Over the course of the next few weeks, the new blog schedule will be accompanied by new work in the main gallery of my website www.vincentmistretta.com
Hope you enjoy!

Road on our way to Sandy Stream Pond, Baxter StatePark, Millinocket, Maine
Landscapes, Travel, Wildlife
Africa Day 2, Victoria Falls and Zambezi River
12.04.09 | Permalink | Post a Comment

Sunday was an intense day, not only was it our first full day in Africa (after roughly 30 hours of flying) but it was a day with 3 scheduled location shoots, 1 more than we would have on any other day. After we photographed in Mosi-Oa-Tunya National Park we were off to Victoria Falls. As many of you know, Victoria Falls is one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

Victoria Falls from the Zambia entrance

Above is a picture looking at the falls from the Zambian entrance. You can visit the falls from either Zambia or Zimbabwe. Given that this was the beginning of the wet season, the falls were almost dry. In another 2 months the falls would cover the full length of the photo along the right wall. We were told that when the falls were in full force, we could not stand where we were taking pictures because the mist and force of the water would overwhelm us.

Man sitting on dry Victoria Falls

If you look closely at the above photo, you can see a man sitting on a dry section of the falls, this will give you a perspective of just how massive an area the falls cover. I would estimate that the section in this photo was approximately 1/8 of the full width of the falls.

Victoria Falls across the foot bridge

Many of you have heard about people bungee jumping from Victoria Bridge. Here is the bridge. If you look closely at the photo below, you can see the building on the bridge people jump from and the bungee as it hangs down from the bridge.

Victoria Falls Bridge

Later in the evening we took another sunset cruise down the Zambezi River. In the photo below, we were looking down one of the rivers tributaries that led to the falls. You can see in the photo the mist from the falls.

Victoria Falls Mist from Zambezi River

African Crocodile along the Zambezi River, Zambia

All in all, our trip to Zambia was very memorable albeit short.

« Previous Entries
» Next Entries