Portfolio of portraits

Posted on December 19, 2011 by waynem

I was asked recently if I had a portfolio of my portrait and people photography.  I knew I had not compiled such a collection in a while so I was going to have to do it soon.  So I took the time to go through my images and attempt to grab what I think are some my best images of people.  They may not be the most popular and the most beautiful or anything like that.  What I was actually looking for was the images that moved people the most. You know, they have had some kind of emotional connection with people either the person being photographed or people who have viewed the images.

So this collection is what I have come up with.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed going through it.

Diana portrait

Diana

Diana dreaming

You can see more images from the Diana session here.

Daniel portraits

Daniel

Daniel

More images from the Daniel session can be found here.

Josh portraits

Josh

Josh

Aljets Family Portraits

Aljets Family Portraits

Aljets Family Portraits

Aljets Family Portraits

Shana and Tom Engagement

Shana and Tom Engagement

Shana and Tom Engagement

Shana and Tom Engagement

Tegan and Dan Engagement

Tegan and Dan Engagement

Michael and Danae

Michael and Danae

Tegan and Dan Engagement

Tegan and Dan Engagement

Michael and Danae

Michael and Danae

Morrison Family Portraits

Morrison Family Portraits

Morrison Family Portraits

Morrison Family Portraits

Forthright Runner - Band Photo Session

Forthright Runner - Band Photo Session

Forthright Runner - Band Photo Session

Forthright Runner - Band Photo Session

Forthright Runner - Band Photo Session

Forthright Runner - Band Photo Session

Maggie Benson Photo Session

Maggie Benson Photo Session

Maggie Benson Photo Session

Maggie Benson Photo Session

Maggie Benson Photo Session

Maggie Benson Photo Session

Stephanie

Stephanie

Gates Family Portraits

Gates Family Portraits

Gates Family Portraits

Gates Family Portraits

Stephanie Portraits

Stephanie Portraits

Stephanie Portraits

Stephanie Portraits

Stephanie Portraits

Stephanie Portraits

Krista Sr Portraits

Krista Sr Portraits

Krista Sr Portraits

Krista Sr Portraits

Emily Sr Portraits

Emily Sr Portraits

Emily Sr Portraits

Emily Sr Portraits

Evan Sr Portraits

Evan Sr Portraits

Evan Sr Portraits

Evan Sr Portraits

Alex Sr Portraits

Alex Sr Portraits

Alex Sr Portraits

Alex Sr Portraits

Alex Sr Portraits

Alex Sr Portraits

Kate Sr Portraits

Kate Sr Portraits

Jodi Studio Session

Jodi Studio Session

Megan and Melissa Portraits

Megan and Melissa Portraits

Cornerstone Commercial Session

Cornerstone Commercial Session

Gus Professional

Gus Professional

Cornerstone Commercial Session

Cornerstone Commercial Session

See wasn’t that fun?

If you are in need of portraits please contact me and I would love to work with you.   Be well and have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

 

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A year end Christmas note 2011, from our family to yours

Posted on December 12, 2011 by waynem
Merry Christmas from the Moran's

Merry Christmas from the Moran's

Michael is a super senior in college this moving into the final student teaching part of his education this yr.  He has a school all lined up for starting student teaching this coming January.

Michael and Danae

Michael and Danae

His wife Danae graduated this December.  Danae already has her first job in Social work at Catholic Charities up in Fargo ND.  They joined in our family vacation this year and we had an enjoyable time.

UMD Bulldog

Found on a visit to Duluth to see Nathan

Nathan is a jr. at UND studying software engineering.  Sounds like this next semester will be very brutal with three software engineering classes but if he survives this next semester he will be almost home free.

Nathan and Mark

Nathan and Mark wanting to go para-sailing.

He took the initiative to plan a trip out to Hollywood this past spring to visit a close friend.  The trip was wonderful he reports, and he has a whole new appreciation for the beauty and culture of southern CA.

Nicole, All State Choir at St Olaf College

Nicole, All State Choir at St Olaf College

Nicole is a jr. in high school at Eagan High School.  She had some great musical success this past yr.  She was invited to All State Choir, a week of vocal training and practice at St Olaf College in Northfield, MN. She was given the honor of singing a solo at that event.  You can hear a recording of that here.

Nicole at Nats

Nicole, Evan and teacher Nicole Marschall at NATS

She won 3rd place in NATS, a state wide vocal competition at St John ’s University in Collegeville MN.  She was given the honor of playing Belle in Eagan High School’s winter presentation of “A Christmas Carol, A New Musical”.   Now she is starting to work through the issues of selecting a college.

Mark and his buddies on tech crew

Mark and his buddies on tech crew

Mark is an 8th grader.  He has been involved in the tech crew for the play, band and speech.

Mark with the big guns

Mark with the big guns

I think he would say the highlights for the yr would have been family vacation, going to a Twins game and certainly going to a Vikings game with his best Aunt.

Mark at a twins game

Mark at a twins game

Anne continues being a very busy mom running kids around, volunteering in the community, working her fulltime job at LifeWorks as a Process Analyst and managing much of the house.

Family gathering for Duane's birthday

Family gathering for Duane's birthday

Her dad turned 80 this yr and we feel fortunate that both parents have great health and we able to celebrate the wonderful occasion.

Orchid show at Como Zoo St Paul

Orchid show at Como Zoo St Paul

Her highlights of the yr are, all the great things with friends and family, going to the orchid show at the Como Zoo in St Paul, MN and our family vacation to South Carolina.

The beauty of Wilmington NC Beaches

The beauty of Wilmington NC Beaches

Wayne quit is job, had some wonderful successes in photography, co-founded OxRun LLC, a web development and marketing company with his partner Dan Oksnevad.  There will certainly be many adventures to come.

Captured a water spout on the beach in NC

Captured a water spout on the beach in NC

The best highlights for his yr were volunteering with MN Teen Challenge, the wonderful family vacation to the beaches of Wilmington North Carolina, and  the U2 360 Tour concert in Minneapolis .

U2 Concert Minneapolis 2011 360 Tour

U2 Concert Minneapolis 2011 360 Tour

So I am sure just like most of you, it was a very busy year.

My the blessings of the season be with you and yours for Christmas and all yr long!

 

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Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church Minneapolis

Posted on November 22, 2011 by waynem
Interior Panorama Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church, Minneapolis

Interior Panorama

This is one of those places in Minneapolis that can make you say, is this really in Minneapolis? It is that spectacular.

The church was organized as Hennepin Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church in 1875 by about ninety members of Centenary church, which at the time was the only Methodist church in the city. The Quaker church organized the Sunday school.

During the 1960s, the ground around the Lowry Hill I-94 tunnel was frozen with special refrigeration equipment to protect the church from structural damage in case the tunnel walls should collapse during construction.

The church stands on land donated by T. B. Walker, a trustee of the church. Walker also donated several paintings to decorate the Sunday school. His wife, Harriet G. Walker, was a member.
Wiki

Sign for Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church, Minneapolis

The Sign

If you know the skyline of Minneapolis at all, you know the magnificence of the towering spire which can be easily viewed many places on the western section of downtown anywhere close to Loring Park. The church is known for its Christmas pageant and its outreach to the community.

Interior Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church, Minneapolis

Interior

I know of the church because of its gorgeous architecture. I could spend weeks attempting to capture this amazing edifice but alas time is limited and I had a morning. I decided to focus on the interior. I knew I was going to be using a very wide lens, like say a 14mm but I also wanted to attempt some panorama images with an ultra wide lens. These images are the result of a morning of experimenting. I hope you enjoy them.

So if you have not been to investigate this incredible work of art I encourage you to put it on your calendar and get over there to see this majestic work.

These prints are available at the gallery.

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Fashion Photographers MN – Diana Giebler Session

Posted on November 20, 2011 by waynem

Last week the phone rang and I heard a young woman’s voice on the other end. She says hi my name is Diana and you know my father. It turns out I worked with him years ago in a prior life and I remember clearly the warmth and happiness that he brought to my days. He was a constant source for smiles and I remember those days fondly.

Diana is a natural

Diana is Natural

So anyway, I ask Diana what type of pictures does she what or how does she intend to use them? She says that they have a friend who owns a leather business that needs people to model their products and they keep bugging her to submit some images to modeling agencies etc. I don’t know about you but I have met so many people that dream about being a model or something but it is not a realistic dream for many of them. So I must admit I had that idea in the back of my mind that Diana might be an idealistic dreamer with no hope of fulfilling that dream. Well, I was wrong again.

Fashion Model Diana Giebler

Natural Diana

We decided to meet in the lower town Saint Paul, the artsy section by the farmer’s market. This would be a jumping off location. I had not been in the area for a few weeks so I really had no idea what we would find. On the way there I was thinking of starting things off at the black dog coffee and wine bar http://blackdogstpaul.com/. They are artists friendly and the abidance is always great.

Fashion model Dreaming

Diana Dreaming

Diana showed up and the moment we met I knew this was going to be a wonderful adventure. She arrives with several changes of clothes. She has a can do attitude and she is not put off the cold late fall weather that is threatening snow. So off we go to Black Dogs but when we get there I was a little bummed out that it was so full. Yes, Farmers market was still in full swing and all the cold shoppers went over to Black Dogs for coffee and refreshment.

Beautiful Fashion Model in St Paul

Diana in Blue

So we had to think fast. The building that Black Dogs is in is called the Northern Warehouse. It is an old brick warehouse filled with artist’s studios, and entire vibe is very cool. So we started looking around and found great places to start shooting. All along Diana was an incredible trooper. But without the help of my trusty assistant Mark we would not have been able to work the place well because of some very low light conditions. Thanks for all the great help Mark.

Fashion Photography

Diana

I am going to let you see the rest of the results for yourself. I think you will come to the exact same conclusion that I came to. Diana is a complete natural in front of the camera. It turns out she is also a photographer and a makeup artist so she already knows so much about how to produce and capture emotion and beauty in an image. The morale of the story is yes, follow your dream.

Diana Winter White

Fashion Model

In the Distance

You can see many more from the session here http://flickr.com/gp/waynephotoguy/t6t0d1
If you are looking to build your modeling portfolio please contact me. I would love to work with you.

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Diana Giebler

Posted on November 19, 2011 by waynem
Diana Giebler by !!WaynePhotoGuy
Diana Giebler, a photo by !!WaynePhotoGuy on Flickr.

This morning I experienced the pure joy photographing Diana. She is a complete natural in front of the camera but she is also a photographer and a makeup artist. What a gifted individual.

Thank you Diana, it was wonderful to meet you and work with you.

Mark, thanks for all the help.

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Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church Minneapolis

Posted on November 19, 2011 by waynem

This is a quick share of a little beauty for the day.. More to come with a complete write up of this project..

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License Minneapolis Stone Arch Bridge Images

Posted on November 15, 2011 by waynem

Many of you continue to request the rights to use various selections of my Minneapolis Stone Arch Bridge images. With this in mind I have decided to set up a little micro stock capability where you can go ahead and license any of these images for a set fee. Then after payment you will be able to quickly download the images that you have licensed.

This license fee allows you to use the images that you license for a single use for a website, a single publication, for screen savers or desktop images. They expressly cannot be used for resale or for prints or any other use. If you are interested in licensing any of these images or any of my other images for other purposes that is fine but you will need to contact me so that we can discuss it and come to an agreement.

I hope this is exactly what you are looking for.

Golden Stone Arch sab_001

Golden Stone Arch sab_001


Minneapolis Arch Bridge sab_002

Minneapolis Arch Bridge sab_002


Stone Arch Golden Light sab_003a

Stone Arch Golden Light sab_003a


Stone Arch Golden Light II sab_003

Stone Arch Golden Light II sab_003


Stone Arch Bridge Black and White sab_004

Stone Arch Bridge Black and White sab_004


Magnificent stone arch bridge sab_005

Magnificent stone arch bridge sab_005


Classic Arch Bridge BW sab_006

Classic Arch Bridge BW sab_006


The City Comes Alive | Stone Arch Bridge sab_007

The City Comes Alive sab_007


Day time Arch Bridge sab_008

Day time Arch Bridge sab_008


Photos of Minneapolis sab_009

Photos of Minneapolis sab_009


Red Bull on the Arch Bridge sab_010

Red Bull on the Arch Bridge sab_010


Stone arch bridge Graffiti sab_011

Stone arch bridge Graffiti sab_011


I do have many other collections of photos of Minneapolis and in the future many of those images will be available this way also.

If you have any ideas for improving this process or any other great ideas please contact me .

If you are looking to purchase a print you can find those at the gallery.

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Minneapolis Central Public Library | A study in Architecture

Posted on November 12, 2011 by waynem

After I had seen my friend and fellow photographer Chris Andersen’s picture of the Minneapolis Central Library way back in 2007, I knew that we had an architectural marvel on our hands.  See image here.
His image gives a spaceship like feel to the structure and it gives one a sense of the possibilities that there are for capturing the incredible edifice in many unique ways.

Photographing the Architecture of the Minneapolis Central Library

Looking up at the Minneapolis Central Library

From the web site archrecord.construction.com

The Minneapolis Central Library is a dynamic, resource-rich downtown destination, conveniently located between Hennepin Avenue, with the arts and theater district to the west, and Nicollet Mall, the backbone of the city’s business and shopping district to the east. These two downtown districts each have their own orthogonal street grid, creating the unique, trapezoidal site for the library when they converge. This shifting urban geometry carries through the massing of the building, with one block following the east grid and the other block following the west grid. The resulting “courtyard” informs the shape of the five-story, glass-enclosed galleria and the sculptured, wing-like roof that spans over the

So it was my turn to finally get out and attempt to capture the wonderful structure in a new and interesting way.   I was surprised how nervous I was as I was riding in on the train thinking about how I was going to attack this project.  It was a mostly overcast morning so I was worried about the light.  Would it be flat boring light?  Would the sun peak through and give me an explosion of interesting morning light?  Would there be throngs of people mulling about the structure keeping me from capturing the building in a clean and uncluttered way. These are some of the challenges of being a photographer.

I knew I wanted to photograph the front main entrance.  There is so much there to capture the imagination.   I also decided to use an extra wide lens to attempt to capture the grandeur and immensity of the structure and also distort it to allow for all kinds of new possibilities.

The Sun comes out at the Minneapolis Library

The sun comes out

The sun did indeed pop out from behind the clouds and gave me some moments of magic.

Interior of the Minneapolis Central Library

The rich warm interior

The warm light in the library’s interior catches the eye and warms the heart even as winter is approaching.

Minneapolis Central Library Panorama

Minneapolis Central Library Panorama

If you have not been to the Minneapolis Central Library I like to encourage you to go, both for the books and for the experience of the art of the architectural wonder.   And if you are a photographer be sure to bring a tripod.  They are very photographer friendly there.
Have a great adventure and happy shooting.

Many images are available for sale at the gallery.
http://waynephotoguy.imagekind.com/

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Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011

Posted on October 31, 2011 by waynem

 

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 - Mass Choir

Mass Choir II

The amount of creative and artistic talent south of the river is quite amazing to consider  sometimes.  In this case I am thinking about the vocal talents of the students in school district 196 and this even includes younger children.  So what am I talking about?

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011

Steve Albaugh

Well on Sunday evening Oct 30th 2011 at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church in Apple Valley, MN the Dakota Valley Choral Festival was held.  This was apparently the 35th year of this festival and the church was packed for very good reason. This festival is so well run and the level of talent is so high that the show gives the listener the impression that they are listening to a college choir.

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 Eagan High School

Eagan Choir

There were four choirs from the local high schools of the district, Apple Valley with director Joel Beyer and accompanist Bill Blatzheim,

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 - Apple Valley

Apple Valley

Eagan directed by Randy Schafer with accompanist Margaret Boehlke, Eastview directed by Greg Douma accompanist again Margaret Boehlke and Rosemount with director Steven Albaugh accompanist Judy Sagen and there was the Dakota Valley Festival Children’s choir directed by Kari Douma and Kelley Sundin accompanist Kellie LeClair.

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 Eastview Greg Douma

Greg Douma - Eastview Director

So each choir presented several pieces on their own presenting a dazzling array of choral styles eras. Of course the little tykes stole the show because of their great energy and antics that they used to present their material.

Dakota Valley Festival Children's Choir

Dakota Valley Festival Children's Choir

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 Kelley Sundin

Kelley Sundin

After each choir presented then all the choirs got together to create a triumphant mass choir.  This large choir was conducted by Dr. Angela Broeker from the University of ST. Thomas and the accompanist with Mark Johnson.

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 - Mass Choir III

Mass Choir III

The evening was concluded with the Battle Hymn of the Republic and of course the entire audience was invited to sing along.   I am sure you can imagine the power, energy and pride that were displayed while that song was being sung, it was pure pleasure.

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 choir reflections

choir reflections

The only way an astonishing festival like this can go on year after year is by the commitment and support of the entire school district leadership, the school principles, the music departments of each school and the retired choral leaders in the community that continue to give above and beyond what would be expected of any mere mortals and I for one am a very grateful community parent.    I thank you all and I salute you.

Dakota Valley Choral Festival 2011 Eastview choir

Eastview Choir

Many more images are available.  Contact me if you would like to request some.

Most of my images are for sale at the online gallery.

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Graffiti Graveyard Duluth MN

Posted on October 30, 2011 by waynem

Have you ever heard of the concept Graffiti Graveyard?  I did a little Google search to see if this is a common name and if there were places like this throughout the country or even  throughout the world but all I have not come up with anything.  So this must be  something peculiar to the City of Duluth Minnesota.

Graffiti Graveyard UMD BullDog

My wife and I adventured up to Duluth one fine autumn afternoon to visit our son at college.  After visiting for awhile and going out to Pizza Luce for some of the best Pizza in
the nation, my son wanted to show us this place that the locals call the Graffiti Graveyard.

Graffiti Graveyard Sandals

“There also exists under a section of Interstate 35 a stretch of graffiti known as the Graffiti
Graveyard. It is known throughout Duluth. Many residents remember visiting the
Graffiti Graveyard during their teenage years.”

From Wiki

So we decided to go.

It is located right across the street from the Bayfront Festival Park and then you go under highway 35.  I know an odd place for such creative works of art.

Graffiti Graveyard Cat in the Hat

There are two things that blow my mind about this place.

  1. The incredible number of works of art.
  2. The way that real art is destroyed by people painting new stuff on top of old stuff.

Graffiti Graveyard Trash

The creativity and level of artistry is truly amazing for some of these works of art.  My sense as I looked at some of these pieces is that some of the painters were “REAL ARTS”
in a more conventional means also. Meaning I am guessing that some of these painters make their living creating these or some other types or art.  But then to see an incredible work destroyed by someone painting some junk work on top of a masterpiece.  It is
kind of like there is no code of ethics among some of these artists as to how to treat other people’s fine work.  That was so odd.

Graffiti Graveyard Dr Seuss

One more thing that amazed me was the realization that this collection of art went on for ¼ to ½ of a mile. Can you imagine that?  What a huge collection of works.

So if you are ever in Duluth I would highly encourage you to get out to the Graffiti Graveyard.   I would encourage you to not go out there at night and if you do make sure you go out with a large group and bring good lights. The place can get a bit scary.

 

Graffiti Graveyard Reflections

See you on the next adventure.Contact me if you want to license any of these images.

Many other images are available at my gallery http://waynephotoguy.imagekind.com/

Updated – I found a great youtube video on the graffiti graveyard here..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VLfa4Py-cQ

 

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