The “P Family” at Thompson Park | Central NJ Family Portrait Photographer June 23, 2009

This family of 6 was a really fantastic session for me.  I’ve known Dad, Joey, since grammar school and I hadn’t seen him in ten years since our 10 year grammar school reunion.

Joey’s wife Erica and I connected over Facebook and when she saw I was a photographer she asked me to do a session with her and her family and I was thrilled to.  Getting to meet their wonderful family was a great and we had such a wonderful session!  With Chris assisting me on the shoot that day – I ended up with the most wonderful set of family photos that I think the family will treasure for all time.

If you remember I featured an HDR-inspired photo of Lil Man “D” on the blog a while back as a teaser:  http://jenrinaldiphotography.wordpress.com/2009/05/21/lil-man-d-and-the-p-family-sneak-peek/

I had a hard time narrowing down my favorites because with 6 family members I got such a variety of “mini sessions” within the session.  I hope you love them as much as I do and I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on what I’ve shared.

Each photo can be enlarged by clicking on them.  Please do so – so that you don’t miss the details! 

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

And a little fun – with the 3 cutest lil gals!

*SMILE!*

Picnic’in Fun at The Red Mill in Clinton, NJ June 16, 2009

Yesterday we took a ride the Red Mill in Clinton, NJ armed with a cooler filled with yummy submarine sandwiches and snacks.  We arrived in Clinton and parked at the Red Mill and walked over the bridge to the side of the waterfall that faced the Mill and set down our cooler and got comfortable.

We ate our lunch enjoying the view of the Mill and the waterfall.

Luckily we were done with our lunch when Chris discovered that we had a lunch visitor sitting directly next to our cooler and US!!  Eeeeeewwwwww!

I did NOT take my time getting up and out of there…but I did go back for a photo!  Ha!

I have been wanting to visit the Mill for about a year and finally had the opportunity.

The ca. 1810 Red Mill was originally built as a woolen mill. Over the next 100 years, the Mill was used at different times to process grains, plaster, talc and graphite. The Mill was also used to produce peach baskets, as well as to generate electricity and pump water for the town.

After we ate I got some photography time in and was able to capture photos of the Mill (after waiting ten minutes for “MR JOHN” to get out of all of my shots! lol!).

It started out as a beautiful sunny day…perfect for a picnic but of course as soon as I was set up with the camera and tripod it started to rain a little. We devised a way to still be able to get my shots:  I carry a black trash bag in my camera bag and we placed it over me and the camera like a mini-tent.  Despite some shots with rain drops in them because the lens got a little wet I took some photos that I was pleased with. 

After photos the drizzling rain stopped, we packed up my gear, and took a walk down the cute little main street of the town and Chris enjoyed an ice cream while I enjoyed an Italian ice. 

The ice cream store was the most charming little place ever —> JJ Scoops!

We had such a wonderful day!! 

The City That Never Sleeps & The Girl That Never Sleeps June 2, 2009

From time to time in between the mayhem I’ve been experiencing in my life at the present time – I get 5 minutes to spare to work on photos I haven’t had time to process.  I hate when it takes this long because sometimes I forget about them…and then it gets so far away from when I took them that I just let them go. I’m trying not to do that anymore.

My goal is to leave them in my “unprocessed” drive until I get a chance to work on them even of that takes me 6 months (as these did below).  These photos were taken on 1/2/09 in New York City.  I have a few handfuls of others from that day that I really like but I will have to process a few here and there when I have 5 minutes (or MAKE MYSELF TAKE 5 minutes).

I LOVE LOVE LOVE lifestyle portraiture and you’ve see A LOT of that subject on my blog in the 08 & 09 posts but I equally love work like nature, landscape, architecture, wildlife, and too many other subjects to name.  I wish I had more time for both but to be honest right now I barely have time to sleep let alone process work I haven’t gotten to OR get out and take new photos like these.

I have about 6 portrait/wedding jobs to begin working on or finish working on so time is limited for me right now.  Unfortunately my time is torn at the present for the next few weeks until I close on both homes.  Many of you know the horror of moving…pricing inspectors for the home inspection, fire safety certifications, appraisals, lawyers, realtors, meeting with movers for price estimates, downsizing a larger home to fit into a condo, packing, etc…well….couple that with my photography work, my full time job, dealing with the things that come along with the loss of a loved one (estate, etc), I have little time for me.

I make time where I can but that is usually late at night when I should be sleeping in bed for work the next morning…I guess I’ve learned to do without sleep when necessary and make up for it where I can.  That’s all part of life so you gotta just “keep on trucking.”

I digress from the photos below…but I thought it might be a good idea to explain what I’ve been up to (not as an excuse for not getting the jobs processed as quickly as I promise my customers), but to at least explain where I’m coming from and that I’m doing my best! 

Also, to my fellow bloggers…if I don’t make it to your blog to comment, I always try to get there and catch up!  Thanks for coming by and commenting even when I haven’t been by in a bit!

After all that…here are today’s images:

Sites from the top of the Empire State Building…

You can find pigeons anywhere in NYC…even on top of the Empire State Building.  This lil guy wasn’t phased by me & my lens in his face one bit.

I love how you can just make out the city below in the bokeh.

Hand-held shots with no flash in St. Patrick’s Cathedral…how MAGNIFICENT is his site!

Alone In A Crowd May 26, 2009

You cannot be lonely if you like the person you’re alone with.
Wayne Dyer

Rise Toward the Heavens April 2, 2009

I feel within me that future life. I am like a forest that has been razed; the new shoots are stronger and brighter. I shall most certainly rise toward the heavens.

~Victor Hugo

*Click to view larger*

The Winds Are Left Behind March 24, 2009

From the desert I come to thee, On a stallion shod with fire;

And the winds are left behind In the speed of my desire.

~Bayard Taylor

The Peacemaker March 17, 2009

The 150-foot Peacemaker tall ship and its crew docked in Wilmington, NC Saturday, March 7, 2009 and will call the Cape Fear River home until after the Azalea Festival, first weekend in April. We visited on the day the ship first arrived and watched as a crowd gathered to board the ship.

All about the Peacemaker

News Article 1 – News Article 2 – News Article 3 -  News Article 4

The Peacemaker, originally named Avany, was built on a riverbank in southern Brazil using traditional methods and tropical hardwoods, and was launched in 1989. The original owner and his family motored in the southern Atlantic Ocean before bringing the ship up through the Caribbean to Savannah, Georgia, where they intended to rig it as a three-masted staysail schooner. The work was never done, however, and in the summer of 2000, it was purchased by the Twelve Tribes, a religious group with 50 or so communities in North and South America, Europe, and Australia. They spent the next seven years replacing all of the ship’s mechanical and electrical systems and rigging it as a barquentine. The refit vessel set sail for the first time in the spring of 2007, under the name Peacemaker.

The Peacemaker will be used to travel between the communities of the Twelve Tribes while providing an apprenticeship program for their youth in sailing, seamanship, navigation, and boat maintenance. Source: Wikipedia

*Please click to view larger so you don’t miss the details!*

The Breadline March 5, 2009

“In other periods of depression, it has always been possible to see some things which were solid and upon which you could base hope, but as I look about, I now see nothing to give ground to hope—nothing of man.”

– Former President Calvin Coolidge, 1932

*Please click to enlarge*

George Segal

Depression Bread Line, 1999

cast bronze, 2/7

Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ

Click here to read more about the sculpture.

PS:

Many of you were interested in the sculpture (titled “Relative”) that I posted 2 days back.  Some of you asked about the set up of the shot so I processed the photo below.  I have a few more shots of this statue but the one I posted already is by far my favorite with the most unique angle.  I wanted to show this version I took standing at ground level facing the front of the sculpture to give you a better idea of how it was set up.  I stood under the statue to the right to get the view I showed HERE.

G. Frederick Morante

“Relative,” 2003

Cast Bronze, Steel

Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ

Along The Iron Veins March 4, 2009

“Along the iron veins that traverse the frame of our country, beat and flow the fiery pulses of its exertion, hotter and faster every hour. All vitality is concentrated through those throbbing arteries into the central cities; the country is passed over like a green sea by narrow bridges, and we are thrown back in continually closer crowds on the city gates.” ~ John Ruskin

*Please click on the photos to view them larger*

Paterson Museum

Paterson, NJ

The Great Falls of Paterson March 2, 2009

GREAT FALLS STATE PARK
McBride Avenue Extension and Spruce Street, Paterson

The Great Falls of the Passaic River is a prominent waterfall, 77 ft (23 m) high, on the Passaic River in the city of Paterson in Passaic County in northern New Jersey in the United States. One of the United States’ taller waterfalls, it played a significant role in the early industrial development of New Jersey starting in the earliest days of the nation. It is part of the Great Falls of Paterson-Garrett Mountain National Natural Landmark as well as a National Historic Landmark District. (Excerpt take from Wikipedia)

On Saturday we took a ride to the Great Falls of Paterson in Paterson, NJ.  I had no idea what to expect, besides what I’d seen in photos on the internet.

Standing on the bridge that runs directly over the falls was quite amazing!  You’d never expect to find this natural wonder in the middle of downtown Paterson!  The falls are majestic to view and standing on a bridge 77 feet (or higher) directly above them, looking down, is quite an experience!

For an overcast day I’m pleased with the final results (after a little Photoshop post processing and some cloning to remove the garbage that shamefully littered the falls…yes, I’m serious).

This is the closest I’ve come to a mini-Niagra falls!

*Please click to view larger to see the details*

Taken with the 12-24 Tokina

Taken with the 18-200 VR

American Eagle 01

Relaxin! February 28, 2009

When I came upon this sculpture I did a double take.  It was so life-like!

I thought someone was reading in the grass at the sculpture park.

The details of the stature were fantastic…the texture of the sweater, the fallen shoe in the grass…who wouldn’t do a double take?

Have a relaxing weekend, friends!

*click to view larger*

J. Seward Johnson, Jr.

“Summer Thinking”  1991

Cast Bronze

Let us dance in the sun, wearing wild flowers in our hair February 25, 2009

Let us dance in the sun, wearing wild flowers in our hair…  ~Susan Polis Shutz

*PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGES TO VIEW LARGER*

Today’s blog post was inspired by Mike Palmer’s recent sculpture post.  When I saw it I realized that I had 2 folders full of photos from a couple of trips I took to the Grounds for Sulpture in Hamilton, NJ in 2007 & 2008.  I have so many photos I haven’t processed…all I can do is get to them a little at a time.

Julie mentioned she’d like to see a full shot of the sculpture so I’m adding it into the post for reference although the face is a bit bright.

The “Two-Fifty-Eight” February 24, 2009

Saturday’s agenda included a car ride up the 258 North, approximately an hour outside of Jacksonville, NC, to look for photo ops.

I was determined to find all of the abandoned “gems” that I had been scoping out on my previous road trips in and out of North Carolina.

I was able to get most of what I wanted to capture (which I’m sharing with you below) as well as an additional property I photographed (before being chased away) that I will share sometime this week (when I have time to go through & edit them).

It’s been wonderful to have someone interested in riding along with me on these photo journeys, who may not be a photographer, but appreciates my enthusiasm and love for it.  It certainly makes these photo hunts all the more pleasant!

Since I’ve tapped out my surrounding areas in NJ I love having another state to explore!!!

I used a number of editing software and actions on each of these to get the desired look I was going for.

*Promise me that you’ll click on each version to view them larger.  The smaller versions just don’t do them justice!*

A personal favorite (below)!

Another favorite

I processed this one two ways…I think I like the one above best because of the golden tones and the creepier sky but I’m getting various opinions…what do you think?

Bridgeton Covered Bridge / Bridgeton, Indiana February 20, 2009

When I visited Julie in November of last year we took a trip to snowy Bridgeton.

Bridgeton, Indiana is home to the oldest continuously operating mill west of the Allegheny Mountains.  The mill overlooks Indiana’s most famous covered bridge and waterfall.

*Please click all photos to view larger and in more detail*

The Bridgeton Covered Bridge was burned on April 28, 2005. The local community immediately came together and decided to rebuild the bridge. Fund raising began and on January 12, 2006 a bridge raising ceremony was held. On August 28, 2006 the spans of the bridge were lifted onto the abutments. The completed bridge was dedicated on October 1, 2006.

We toured around the rest of this charming town and saw some neat sights like the Country Store…

The Country Store was built sometime between 1884-1886.  Today the building functions as both a gift shop and a restaurant.  The Bridgeton Country Store is open for most festivals.

…and the 1878 Barn.

Canvas on Demand February 17, 2009

Below are 2 recent canvases of my work that were printed up as gifts and ordered through Canvas on Demand.

I loved the results and wanted to share them with all of you in case you were interested in canvas prints and wanted to see more examples.

I think that printing your work on canvas gives extra life to the photo.

This is the San Diego Skyline from my recent trip to California. It’s an “gallery wrap” so the photo wraps around the edges of the canvas.

This is “I Heart NY” from December 2007.  It was named because of the heart that was formed by the sun & shadows on the skyscraper on the left of the photo.  That detail was something I didn’t discover until I open the photo on my computer when I got home.

This was not an image wrap.  The edges were done in black.