Ocean Waves Over Rocks

An explanation of this photo was requested, so here you go -

This was shot on the New Jersey coast. Right at the Barnegat Lighthouse in Barnegat Lighthouse State Park in fact. There is a walkway leading from the shore up to the lighthouse. I was shooting with my Nikon D70. I set the camera on my Manfrotto tripod about in the middle of the walkway and pointed the camera down at the rocks. When at the lighthouse, I noticed waves occasionally crashing up against the rocks and onto the walkway so I thought I would go down to capture that natural motion. The ocean waves would flow in slowly sometimes and just cover the rocks a little and other times they would come crashing in and completely cover everything. I knew I needed a long exposure for the effect I wanted, which was to show some of the rock, but mostly the swirling water and splashing wave. To get the right effect, I waited until after the sun had set and it was beginning to get dark out.

I shot several, which in this case I think is needed because of the inconsistency of each wave. You can't really set up, take one shot and hope that you got what you needed. I took shots at various shutter speeds and even different angles and different rocks. The large flat rock almost in the center is the one that caught most of my attention. On some waves it would get completely covered so you couldn't see it anymore and on others the water would just slightly wash over it. Between the different shutter speeds used and the different intensity of each wave, I got several different effects.

In this case it was a 2 second exposure with the ISO set at 200 and to extend it that long I needed an aperture of f/24. I obviously didn't need that aperture for the depth of field, only to get the desired shutter speed. The sun set that day at around 5:30pm and this was shot at 7pm with a focal length of 35mm. Somebody commented that they would rather see it in color, but I felt that color was not needed for this image since it would pretty much only be one color. When I do color, I like lots of strong, saturated colors, not just one subtle color. Of course, I'd be happy to print it in color for anyone willing to pay for that and it would be a one of a kind because I wouldn't print it in color myself.

Feel free to comment or check out more of my work on my website or Flickr page, which are both linked on the right side.
Ty Randall

Stolen Art

Here are my feelings on photographing other pieces of artwork.

There are a few reasons you would do such a thing. One is to document a likeness of an art piece for a catalog or brochure, like if it was in a gallery show. This is usually known and approved by either the artist or their representative.

Another reason might be because you were commissioned to document the work for some other reason, like a private collection, or just to show the artist's work for some reason, like a book. In both cases stated above, the artists name should accompany such photograph to give them credit for the work.

Another reason would be to attempt making the work of art into something different based on your own vision, in other words make it "your own." In this case it would be okay to "steal" the art if it is changed enough from the original. I liken this to a musician performing cover songs. A cover song of another artist that sounds almost if not exactly the same is a copy to show respect and admiration and the writer or performer of the song should be mentioned. A cover song that is interpreted differently and done in a new, unique way, becomes more of the new artist's based on the change of performance. Think Jimi Hendrix's Watchtower, the Grateful Dead's Not Fade Away, Aerosmith's Come Together, and thousands more.

In these samples shown below, I call them "stolen art" because I am not the one that did the original sculpture, I am only the one who photographed the sculpture and changed it to fit my own vision and interpretation. They are not exact documents showing you exactly what the entire sculpture looked like as it sits out on public display for anyone to see (or photograph). They are merely the pieces I was most interested in and wanted to do something with.

I should note that even though I changed the original art to my own interpretation, I would however still be happy to list the sculptors name if I knew it. I cannot currently find my notes of that shoot and I don't remember if the artist was listed on it. I will someday return to the site to check and add that later when I find out.

My point is that I think I have abstracted the original piece and changed it to make it "my own." These are all taken from a Veteran's of Foreign War Memorial on display in Roosevelt Park, Edison, New Jersey. I don't think you need to know the site of the original sculpture to view my interpretations, but I list it because so many people wonder what the heck it is and in case you want to go see it for yourself. It is not against the law to visit a public place like this and take a photograph of it. What you do with that photograph is up to you. Rather than show a more realistic document of the entire sculpture or some sort of reference of scale or other reality based information, I chose to express my interpretation in this way because that's my own personal artistic expression. You are welcome to do it in other ways if you want. I'd be happy to provide you with directions if you would like to try.

As always, feel free to leave feedback and let me know what you think.

Mother and Child Portrait

I was on assignment in New Jersey. It was Thanksgiving Day and I was shooting at a public dinner for the "less fortunate." It wasn't specifically for homeless people, but there were homeless there. It was also for people who maybe couldn't afford a big Thanksgiving meal, or didn't have the knowledge or time to cook one, or maybe didn't have anyone to spend the holiday with. It was held in a church and lasted for about 6 hours. People were welcome to come at any time, stay as long as they wanted, and eat until they couldn't eat any more. There was even some entertainment of church groups singing.

I actually had fun there talking with different people and took a variety of different pictures, some for the assignment and some for myself. I even had time to sneak a little of the food. I noticed this one lady with her boy at a table and tried to talk to them, but didn't have much luck. I guess they either didn't speak English or didn't really want to talk. I at least got out of them that she was the mother to the little boy. I thought she looked old enough to be the Grandmother, probably because of her body language. She sure didn't appear to have much energy. After watching the boy for a while, I figured she was just exhausted from trying to keep up with him all day long, every day.

The boy did what most boys his age do as soon as he finished eating. He started getting fidgety, then sliding down his chair, then crawling around under the table, then when told to come out, went running around the table and then around the entire room. I watched as he did all this and took a few photos of him running around. When I looked at the mother, she seemed sort of defeated, like she either did not have the energy to chase after the boy or didn't know how to control him. I guess I felt a little sorry for her. I wanted to help her out, but I didn't want to step into territory where I shouldn't have been stepping.

My solution was to see if I could get the kid to stop long enough to pose for a picture with his mother. That would calm him down for a minute and get him close enough to her so she could hang on to him and not let him run around anymore (if she wanted). I caught the boy as he went screaming by the table. I kind of pointed and used gestures to show him that I wanted him to go over to his mother so I could take their picture together. He appeared to agree to it and she seemed grateful for the opportunity also. This is the one and only shot I took of them because she let go of him and he took off to run around some more.

Feel free to comment and leave your opinion about it.

It was taken with a Nikon D70 at a focal length of 42mm because I was right next to them. I used a side mounted flash with the shutter speed of 1/60 of a second and aperture was f/4 because I wasn't interested in having a focused background beyond my subject.

Ty Randall Products in Mays Landing, NJ Borders

"Put your makeup on Baby, fix your hair up pretty
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City" - Bruce Springsteen

I am happy to announce that Ty Randall photographic products are now available in the fifth retail location at the Borders Books and Music in Mays Landing, New Jersey. Borders is located off exit 12 of the Atlantic City Expressway.

One thing I noticed on my drive down to deliver my postcards and bookmarkers to Mays Landing was when I got below mile 56 on the Garden State Parkway, I started passing signs that were facing backwards. I turned to read what they were and discovered they were signs saying "Wrong Way."

I of course paid closer attention after that to idiots that would be driving up in the wrong direction on the interstate. Maybe those signs are for all the summer tourists that go to the shore and have a little too much to drink before driving home. Shortly after the "wrong way" signs I also started noticing "One Way" signs posted on the side of the parkway. I guess that was in case I didn't notice the traffic moving in the same direction for the last 100 miles.

I had to laugh as I wondered exactly how far south Atlantic City is that people down there are too stupid to tell which direction they were supposed to be driving on the highway. I really wanted to meet some of those dim-wits, because I'm sure they would make a great photographic subject. Unfortunately, I was too sick when I delivered my stuff, so all I did was drop it off and drive right back home again - following the one way signs of course.

Feel free to let anyone else you think may be interested know about this.

Below is a sample of one of my postcards from Margate, New Jersey, which is a stone's throw south of Atlantic City. Lucy the Elephant is a famous New Jersey landmark built as a hotel by a land developer to attract tourists and landowners to the area. Apparently it worked. If you want to read more about Lucy, go to http://www.lucytheelephant.org/.

Photo Comparison - vote

Below are two images I took recently of the same location, the water falls in Clinton, New Jersey at sunrise. It was a chilly autumn morning so you can see the fog rising from the water while the sun is starting to touch the trees above. I am wondering which you prefer, the vertical shot or the horizontal shot? Feel free to let me know either by commenting here, sending me an email, or a comment on facebook. If you think they both suck, feel free to let me know that also. Feedback and criticism helps one grow and improve.
Thanks.