Another year has now come and gone – where do they go! In many ways I am quite sorry to see the back of 2014 (Read the Retrospective). It was an incredible year for me and in many ways I feel a turning point in my photography. However, it is now time to look forward and begin the new year in earnest. Before I leave for Yellowstone in Winter in a few weeks time I want to announce a new print project give-away that will kick off with my first Photograph of the Month post for 2015.
It has continually frustrated me over the last few years that I really only get to share a digital jpeg of my finished photography on the internet and not the finished fine art print as I envisioned it. The problem with sharing digital images online is that we are restricted to low quality jpeg images to protect our copyright ownership (and sadly images still get taken and used without permission). These low resolution jpegs are just poor facsimiles of the finished fine art print that fail to convey the wonderful tones, textures and subtelties that a well crafted print can convey.
Photography for me is all about the print and as I have written often before I never really feel like I have finished with an image until I have made a well-crafted print. Other than visiting one of the galleries that display my photography in Australia, Tasmania or Aspen in the USA and perhaps purchasing a large fine art print there has to date been no way for me to really share this aspect of my photography. However, I have a plan to change that and beginning immediately, and with every photograph of the month for 2015 I will be giving away free a 13″ x 19″ inch signed, open edition fine art print to the first person who comments on the photograph of the month post here on the main page. Each print will be of the actual photograph of the month and will be made on my favourite fine art paper – Moab Somerset Museum Rag. I use X-Rite Colour Management products in my print workflow and my prints are made on Canon IPF6350 and IPF9400 Large Format Pigment ink printers. This is the same paper, printer and colour management solution I use for all my large gallery prints and the same paper my winning photographs were printed on at the 2014 Victorian Professional Photographer of the Year Awards and 2014 Australian Professional Photography Awards. All you need do to win the print is to be the first to comment on the photograph of the month here on the home page with your thoughts on why you like it and to share the post with your social media outlet of choice. It doesn’t have to be a long winded explanation on why you like the photograph. Just a few words about how it makes you feel, or why you would like to own a print of the photograph is sufficient. I will then send you a FREE 13″ x 19″ inch fine art print to your nominated address including free shipping worldwide.
My reasons for giving away a print every month are two-fold. Firstly, this allows me to share in some small way the finished photograph in my medium of choice with someone who appreciates the photograph and who will hopefully cherish the print; but it also allows me to give back something to the photographic community and share my finished photography with other photographers.
Due to my hectic travel schedule it may take me some time to make and post out each print so if you are the lucky winner for a given month I ask that you jut exercise a little patience and as soon as I am back in my studio in Australia and as soon as practical I will make the print and send it to you – free of charge. Each print will be made and personally signed by me with the same care and attention to detail I exercise on my large gallery prints. There will be a total of twelve prints to win throughout the calendar year and the give away starts immediately with the 2015 January Photo of the Month – You just have to keep an eye out for the next post. Good luck and don’t forget in order to win the print you need to be the first to comment here on the home page on the post titled ‘Photo of the Month – [Insert Month]‘ for the 2015 calendar year with your thoughts on why you like the photograph or why you would like to own a print and to then share the post with your social media outlet of choice.
Hint: The fastest way to be notified of a new post to my blog is to subscribe to updates by entering your email address in the subscription section.
As I have previously written, Ushuaia itself is a wonderful town with some great restaurants, shops and cafe’s and it has been fantastic to meet up with both old friends with whom I have had the pleasure of travelling with many times now, but also new friends who will be experiencing the magnificence of the Great White Continent for the very first time. In some ways I envy those travelling for their first time to Antarctica. Seeing Antarctica for the very first time is an awe inspiring experience and photographing it with fresh eyes is something you only ever get to do once. I always get a huge thrill from the visceral and palpable air of excitement first time and repeat visitors radiate as they board the ship and we throw off our lines and sail down the Beagle Channel. I am very much looking forward to our experiences ahead and sharing everything we discover.
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