Fishing

I am posting this series just because I feel the need to show these to prof. Baranski... (she also told me she didn't want to see these in class)I don't know what he did with these, but I do believe he tried to eat them.

For Fun

I figured I would change things up a bit and add some sport photography into the blog. These are probably the first photos I've ever done that have involved this subject. While they may not have an artistic subject, I think that photography even has a place here as it adds a certain dimension to the action that is going on. Personally, I just like hockey.

FireFly Away Home

Friday our school year concluded with the final gallery opening: the Juried Student Exhibition. I enjoy the lighting in this image, as well as its focus on the fact that Jake, a student, is the focal point, coupled with the fact that it's a student show. There is energy in the picture plane, even though the subjects and colors are limited. I am also intrigued by how the shadow seems to go in a completely different direction than Jake is, creating movement, and a type of dialogue between them.

As this year comes to a close, I am just finding myself extremely thankful for what God set in place throughout it that allowed me to be challenged constantly in who I thought I was as a person. I am finding that change is good, and growth is even better.

Have a wonderful summer, all! It has been a pleasure being in Photo 2 with you! :o)

Perfect

It's been interesting hearing the stories behind the words I have had people thinking about. Several focus in on the pressures that Christianity seem to put on us. The pressure to be perfect, sinless, and to accept. It is important to know who we are, and that we don't have to be perfect. That's Jesus' job--and He does it much better than we ever could.

Christina

This is a photo I took on my mission trip to the Bahamas last year. (I thought I would switch from all the houses this time...) Christina was one of the leaders for my group. I took this photo close to supper time and right after she had woken up from a nap. I love that I caught the moment that she was unaware I was taking a picture. This photo has an interesting contrast between the cool foreground and the warmer and lighter background, although there is a clear analogous color scheme going on. Most of the light is in the back on the trees, but Christina is still the focus. I also like the slight highlights that fall across her face from the setting sun behind her.
Sometimes the things that aren't highlighted or are hidden are more interesting to look at. Although I find the trees in this image beautiful, I always go back to the figure. When taking photos we always look for light because without it, we wouldn't have any image. However, subjects that are swathed in shadow are sometimes just as interesting as those that have sun beams glowing across them. God created beauty everywhere; He didn't just create good things in the obvious places. He found beauty in things that we only see ugliness in or don't even take the time to notice.

Family Picture

This has been a great project for me. I've gotten the chance to talk with each member of my family and take their picture. I've also gotten the opportunity to give my parents a great gift of these pictures to hang up in their house. We've all grown up and gone our own ways, but we still feel at home at the house we all grew up in. It's nice to have a "newer" picture of all of us considering the majority of all the pictures in our house is when we were significantly younger.

Corey Bienert

This is another image about repetition for my final project. I realize that bars on a fan are necessary so people don't chop their fingers off. But it's interesting how, instead of doing a rectangular grid, the manufacturer chose a shape that would mimic the shape of the movement of the fan.

Eye

This image is one that I'm including in my project. I like it because of the way I get to see the intricacies of the eye. The composition is chosen in square format to help keep from creating any allusions about the eye.

Final

Over the past semester my photos have varied quite a bit. One of my favorite things has been to improve the quality of my pictures and learn how to create a complete project. In photos classes I've taken before, I've never really kept my projects together or done anything with them. This semester, I've taken my projects more personally and realistically. I think of them as art projects and not simply photographs. After changing my approach, I realized how much I really enjoy photography and what you can do with it.
For my final project, I've constructed a photo book covered in lace and ribbon. My photos are all scenes of what you could call my 'fantasy world', where I basically got to direct any photos I wanted to take. The finished product will be like a hand crafted book of my dreams.
Instead of finishing the project, getting graded, and putting the photos in a box to store in my basement, I will now have a project to be proud of. Whether I leave the book on a coffee table in my house to be looked at often, or put it on the shelf as a decoration, it is a project that others can look through and get a glimpse of my style of photography and life.

Lady in Red

I was taking pictures of Jen while she was taking pictures. I happened to catch her as she turned to see what I was doing and caught her in the moment of realization. This is what that moment looks like.

Mere's Attic

After getting addicted to the studio lights, I figured the best way to finish my final project was to borrow Corey's new lighting and bring it to my final photoshoot. I photographed Meredith again, but this time in an indoor setting. We went up to her attic and set up a few scenes that I liked. It was very different from the outdoor and studio shoots I have been doing because there was so much to work with and so much to get out of the way in some cases. Her attic is full of treasures and it was an exciting place to be setting ideal scenes in my head of what I wanted to capture. I am going to miss working with this girl, she has been such a trooper, and an inspiration in my work!

Leaf Erikson

These are a few of the images that I probably won't be using on my final next Monday. Though the lines in them are beautifully created by our Creator, these particular photographs depict the leaf, as a whole, a little too closely for what I am aiming at with my project. I wanted to share them, because I find leaves to be fascinating specimens, especially when in the process of decomposition or being consumed by hungry creatures! :)

I am so glad to see baby leaves growing on the trees on campus after a long winter. I had never really experienced a change of seasons until I moved here, and am enjoying every moment of seeing how things grow back out of (seemingly) nowhere.

corrugated metal

I am still looking at the things we surround ourselves with that are visually repetitive, like corrugated metal.

Home

This project is really personal for me.

I've gotten a chance to talk with every member of my family putting them in the spotlight and getting their photograph. I'm really looking forward to handing my parents the pictures all nicely lit and framed.

This picture is of my Nephew, Caleb. He just turned 1 a week ago.

I actually shot this picture in my living room at my parents house using lights that I just purchased. I like that I'm now able to get consistent lighting regardless of the location I'm shooting at.

Corey Bienert

Summer

I am really excited for summer. This summer I will be cleaning, baking (homemade cherry cobbler :), learning French with my mom, going on photo walks, learning to quilt, and taking a road-trip with my mom to Minnesota just for the heck of it. Summer always has a way of getting busy, but it is filled with fun things to do. Just the thought of summer brings joy to my mind. With summer comes the open prairie, family and my home. Summer. Ah. Is it here yet?

Alternative Crit Space

Class is important, and we all need fresh air. I think this spot can be used even more in the future. It's slightly windy, but we managed.

normal-ish

I took this image in a neighborhood with very expensive and big houses. They were all very massive in visual weight and are well taken care of. While there were some houses in this neighborhood that had gaudy lawn ornaments or half-dead plants, this house doesn't have any kitsch decorations or much of anything that would show character. It seems, well, normal.
This doesn't make the viewers' jobs easy to make up stories about the residents because there is less to communicate the kind of person who lives there, but the part of the image that I enjoy the most is the open curtains on the first floor. We can't see anything definitive through the opening, but it shows an openness and welcome despite the other closed blinds. I'd like to think that room is where they spend most of their time, but then again, maybe the least.
Many people put on airs to appear welcoming or open when they still have huge brick walls up in their lives. As much as we want to be open, sometimes we still stay behind the glass windows of the house we have built for ourselves and never really open up. Normally the reasons I put them up isn't because I don't want to talk to people, but just because I'm scared of confrontation, hurt, or just letting someone in enough to give them a chance to hurt me. That might seem like akin of stretch from an image of the front of a house, but what we do, how we look, and how we interact with others are all indicators to others about who we are. We shouldn't change for this fact, but I think it's interesting to think about how other make assumptions about us and we make assumptions about others often without even thinking about how we are judging them based upon very superficial things. Whether accurate or not, we make up stories about people and their lives by the outside appearance.

One of those oober-photogenic people ...

This is my youngest sister. She just got her driver's permit.

I have an inclination that this photograph exemplifies what she feels :). She is definitely the dramatic roller coaster in our family --- and I just love her expression in this image because sometimes it's tough to come across such a look of enjoyment on her face. Furthermore, the lines stated and implied in the picture plane create very dynamic movement that aid in the rhythm of the way her hair is flying.

danger

This is another shot of Meredith. I've been working on developing my final project idea a little bit more and this is one of the newer shots I love. It's great to learn to use the studio lights, but sometimes the outdoor set-ups are just as fun. For this one, I had to get on Corey's shoulders so I could get the desired angle.
Who knew...photography is a dangerous sport!

Baby pictures

This is the first time that I have been given the ability to take bay pictures for someone. It actually was pretty fun, but... I am not thinking about having any in the near future for sure. Never the less, Arabella was really cute and she posed well for the pictures.*













* most of the time she was sucking on her foot, only a minor detail.

Untitled

This is a collage of my Mom I made awhile back. I love taking pictures of people when they are behind the camera. It is fascinating seeing that person's love for photography and seeing how the take pictures. When they realize they are behind the lens of someone else's camera, they change, at least a little bit. They either tense up or get 'pose-y.'

Twilight

This was fun.

I had a bunch of my family members come by for my photos final.

And after getting the shots I needed for my project, I had my brother and his GF recreate the Twilight poster.

It's actually a picture that I've worked on for far longer then any of my other images. They sure do post process those things alot.

rhythm

I have been exploring the idea of rhythm in both nature and human life in History of Design. I think we gravitate towards things with a repetition and rhythm that we can recognize. We orient our life around a series of rituals that impose their order and meaning on our lives. This stack of books is not only a repetition of form but a glimpse into the day to day practice of someone's life through their subjects.

The Front Door

This photo is from a cute little neighborhood in West Dundee. I found this house interesting because while landscaping and colors of the house don't necessarily speak too loud of a message about the person who dwells there, I did find the positioning of the door to be interesting. It is not visible if you are straight in front of the house. This is clearly not something that you could easily change when you move in, but it is interesting to consider what kind of message a hidden front door is saying to visitors and about those who live there. When I look at this house, I think of it as an old-person house because of the faded mint green and peachy brick and garage door. However, they must not be too old because the bushes are trimmed. I may be completely off, but those are my assumptions. These assumptions are what I am interested in for my project.
The hidden front door concept makes me wonder why the architect chose to design the house that way. It makes me think about what it was supposed to hide and why it was being hidden. Did the original owners not want visitors? Were they not welcoming to those who were uninvited? I think we often put up walls to avoid or hide things as well. We look away if we don't want someone to talk to us or we don't do an activity just to avoid people. I don't think this is what we are called to do as Christians, but we do it anyway. I think we are truly wanting to show God's light, we need to be open to what he wants us to do and those He places around us.

Little Things

So I have this fascination with Peas. I got the idea from the nut project I did earlier this semester and decided to focus on a pea. I love the shape, the small size, the color, and the intrigue with how they bend and curve after being cooked.

To focus on the pea as the subject I stripped any other element, giving the pea a white background. This way the viewer is forced to look at the pea, and the pea only. When I make a final of it the pea will be bigger than someone's head.

Untitled

This photo was part of a shoot I did for

a design project I have been working on.

The expression on his face is a little over

the top in this particular photo. The shoot

was supposed to be a little over the top,

however this particular photo was caught

during an actual serious moment where my

brother was trying to get his daughter to

participate by entertaining her. It ended up

entertaining me more then it did my niece.

Dad

For my final assignment I've been toying with a few ideas: portraits (in studio or in a common surrounding), family/those I love dearly (their different faces I see or just straight portraits), clouds, and various portraits of Josh (from the straight portrait to the portrait of his ear). It's a mess really, but I'm just shooting them all and seeing which one pulls to the front in the end. None of the projects are solely for photography, between methods and critique, photo II, and outside of school work I hope to develop them further. For photo II I will end up choosing what I'm able to complete in the amount of time allotted to me.

I chose this image in particular because this face of his is a loving one that I love seeing. Also, one of my favorite parts about my dad's face are the smile wrinkles on the outsides of his eyes. The image also showcases his eyes, which are a brilliant blue. I often think I can see Jesus in his eyes.

Really Bland

This picture happens to be part of some of the concepts of my final project that I am devising. However, aside from that context, the food I ate tonight was pretty good. From the picture's standpoint, I don't feel it does it justice. Even in reality, just looking at the food in the bowl didn't make it all that much more appealing. The place that I took this out from does a nice job of presenting itself, however, when it's food leaves the building, I think there is something lost in all of it. So I guess we don't just eat our food with our mouths.

wind

This is a photo I took of a student here at Judson. I had never met her before she agreed to come take some photos with me. I am so used to getting up-close and personal with friends or family I photograph, but I don't often find myself photographing portraits of a stranger. It changes the entire experience not to know the person. You have to figure out how to photograph them without having any previous connection with them.

Portraits

I've decided on yet another project idea for my final.

I keep jumping around trying to choose something that I'm passionate about, but it keeps changing. I like the ideas that change. It helps me keep things fresh. Here's one of the shots that I shot last week. I'm really looking forward to seeing how my final turns out.

Corey Bienert

Suspended

I am still amazed at how nature seems to sing with every breath of breeze that passes by.

And in waiting, how gracefully each bit of creation rests.

This weekend I was able to go visit my family in South Carolina for Easter. Through their backyard there runs a small creek. Such a peaceful place --- I just wanted to capture that stillness and beautiful grace that hid there day in and day out, from the sun rising insistently each morning, until when it set with its warm afternoon glow. Yes, it sounds cliche to say all of this --- but I just truly felt that these images communicate things that, yes - we know - but, at the same time, sometimes forget to take as being beautiful - or patiently waiting, hidden, in someone's backyard. I feel that the colors in the above images are successful, and that they definitely create a mood and carry a rhythm.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I was shopping in this amazing vintage store in Elgin when I came across these amazing finds. A wedding dress that actually looks presentable (I guess all the 80s inspired dresses were at Goodwill). It is amazing to me that these items have lasted through time. I especially love the tins, and would love to use them to decorate my house someday. I played with some of the preset settings in LightRoom for the top image, to give it a more antique feel. Even though the demand for these items have come and gone, they have found new life. Even though they are obviously worn, rusted or tattered, they can still be seen as beautiful.

April showers? what about the April flowers?

You all know the familiar saying... "April showers bring May flowers." Well what about the April flowers? Honestly, they are the bravest. Not even the trees are sprouting greens, yet these spring flowers are already in full bloom. Daring little buggers.

All-American House

This is one of the photos I took for my final project over Easter break. I was trying to experiment with what kind of houses I photographed and in what way. All of my photos for in-progress had the same composition which could be strong, but I didn't want to choose that without exploring more compositions. This house pretty much had to be shot in a vertical format because of the shape, and I think it is much more successful this way. The warm/cool contrast is interesting and the landscaping and red door lend to the portrait of the person living in the house.
This house seems like an all-American house with the manicured yard and the bright red door. From this image, you can see that whoever lives in this house cares a great deal about the way it looks. We work on what we care about. Whatever it is, we take care to make it look good. When it comes to our houses or possessions, some people put a great deal of effort into making it look a certain way. While I've been paying more attention to houses and what each looks like, I have to wonder how much it reflects the person living in it. Some people hate the way their houses look, leave it the way it was when they moved in because they don't care, and some design it specifically to who they are. By taking photos of and calling out these houses, I am making an assumption about the people inside of them. We often make assumptions about who people are whether it is based on a feeling or a physical attribute or appearance. I think to some extent this can be valid, but this kind of intuition can lead to false assumptions and judgments. As much as these things can speak to who we are, they can also create a facade that may or may not be representative. The moral? You can think you understand, but don't be so close-minded to think that it has to be true. Through these photos, I am creating curiosity about who lives there and each viewer will create their own story to go with the images, but I have to be fully aware that these stories might be made up. I think that's what makes them interesting though. We don't know for sure... that's why we find ourselves curious and guessing.

From Above

I started taking some aerial shots and was pretty pleased

with the results. It definitely helps to present these objects
in a different perspective in order to bring something more
to the table other than it being just a picture of a toilet.
It becomes more of a scene that the viewer is looking on.

As I have been trying to figure out what I'll be doing with this summer, I have been given cause to reflect back a lot on last summer. Over these past couple weeks on facebook, I have been beginning to see many of my friends from the place I worked last year talking about going back there again. I have been thinking about the camp my family will be running back home. Thinking about how my sister will be working as a nanny. I just find it so exciting that while we are in school, there are so many possibilities for just being free to go wherever we need to or want to with our months off from classes. We don't have housing holding us back, or families of our own yet. There is just so much that can be done.

I especially like these two images out of the many that I shot last year. They really captured the feel of where I lived and worked. The rustic-ness, the warmth, the colors. I feel that the first one exhibits a strong composition --- but it is also just very typical of the types of people that I found myself surrounded by in Montana/Wyoming.

New Project

This is one of the portraits I'll be using for my final project.

My project is kind of hard to understand...and a little hard to execute. But I'm in the middle of the process. I like the way the lighting looked in this image. Studio shots are definitely my calling lately for photography projects.

Corey Bienert