A photograph created by Matt Knowles of Aesthetic Design & Photography in Ferndale has recently been accepted into the General Collection of Professional Photographers of America’s 2011 International Photographic Competition. Knowles’ work will be on display at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, January 15-17, 2012, in New Orleans, La. This exhibition is held in conjunction with Imaging USA, an annual convention of professional photographers and several photographic associations.

A panel of eminent jurors from across the United States selected the top photographs from more than 4,000 total submitted entries. Judged against a standard of excellence, over 1,500 images were selected for the General Collection and Knowles’ image was one of only 200 that were also selected to be published in the 2011 Showcase book.

The image that Knowles submitted is from a senior portrait session he did for Ferndale High School student Kayla Ghidinelli. In the image Ghidinelli is riding her horse Lady, while her dog Bandit runs along side in the surf. The South Spit beach in Loleta provided the lovely location.

About Professional Photographers of America (PPA)

Established in 1869, PPA is an international non-profit association for professional
photographers. PPA exists to assist its 22,000 members with unparalleled protection, education
and resources to ensure their continued success in the photographic industry.

I recently took Alaina’s senior portraits who is attending St. Bernard’s in Eureka and currently rehearsing for her role in The Brides of Dracula, which opens this week at the Ferndale Rep.

Alaina wanted to be photographed in the Redwoods, so we traveled down to one of my favorite groves along the Avenue of the Giants. Alaina is a spirited gal, and had fun jumping and climbing over trees. With the dim light available under the forest canopy, shutter speeds couldn’t capture her playfulness, but it was fun watching her have so much fun. It’s what I try to do the most on senior portraits, or actually most portraits in general, let the subject be themselves at a location where they can just go have fun.

After her session in the redwoods we stopped for blackberry popsicles which are in season right now. Yum! Then we found the big walnut tree and let her loose. I barely had my camera bag off my shoulder before Alaina was up in the tree scampering from branch to branch. Part squirrel that girl is.

I had a great morning, thanks for keeping me entertained Alaina. I’m looking forward to seeing The Brides of Dracula this weekend.

Better late than never. That’s what Amanda said when we recently shot her senior pictures. I thought she was planning ahead for her 2010 graduation, but she never got around to getting photos taken for her graduation this year.

She wanted to have her photos taken in the forest, so we headed down to the Avenue of the Giants. I was hoping to catch some fog in the morning but just a mile from our target the sun burst from the fog. I’m pretty used to working with the changing weather in Humboldt county though, so I knew we’d still have opportunities for good pictures.

She brought along a few of her favorite outfits, including her prom dress, and we brought along a vintage skirt from Lori’s collection. We enjoyed a leisurely walk through the forest, and it’s times like this that really reinforce my love of what I do. It’s not too bad working on a Saturday when your office is a redwood forest.

After we finished the shoot in the grove, we headed back up the Avenue. In Pepperwood we passed a fruit stand that had a sign in front advertising blackberry popsicles. Knowing how much Lori loves popsicles and blackberries, I glanced over to her to see if she had seen the sign. Her expression told me she had spotted the sign as well, so I quickly did a u-turn. The popsicles were delicious, and if you’re heading by Pepperwood, do yourself a favor and stop for some.

The proprietor of the stand also pointed us towards a great old walnut tree that I’ll have to use for a shoot someday.

If you are a graduating in 2010, now is a great time to have your senior portraits taken while the weather is so nice.

Picture of the Month – October 2007

I met Valerie at the fair, while she was staffing the Humboldt Creamery booth next to ours. Performing her dairy princess duties quite admirably, she had a smiling face and cheerful disposition the entire fair, which is more than I can say for myself. We spent an afternoon up at her parent’s ranch photographing her in several spots that she picked out. One was an old International flatbed truck that was slowly returning back to nature. We brought the vintage clothing, and she brought along the sunflowers which added just the right punctuation to her already sunny disposition.