MHJphotos's PhotoBlog

Lucas & Elyse

2010-06-21T16:22:11Z

The wedding of Lucas & Elyse Dawson - My cousin's daughter. I've been starting to mess around more and more with overlays in PS to give my images a fresh look, while still maintaining my desire for classic and timeless images. Amazing to me that I've become so in love with Wedding Photography over the past few years. It's truly my passion now. Sharing the day with a bride and groom on what is perhaps the happiest day of their lives is something that I truly love. Miss you guys. Mat

Whopping Wapiti Matman!

2009-10-05T16:11:54Z

Hey guys! Been a LONG time, and I continue to receive emails from photoblog that my account will be removed if I don't post something. It's not that I don't WANT to post, it's just life often gets in the way. It's really a rather lame excuse though. I'll try to post a bit more frequently than once a year, but am not making any promises as to how often I may be able to come up with something to post. I wonder how many of my friends are still around? If you're still out there ... sorry I've been such a slacker! Hope all is well. Mat

Sheep in Wolves Clothing?

2008-11-12T19:57:02Z

A few shots from Wolf Haven International, in Tenino, WA. This is a rehabilitation center, as well as permanent sanctuary for injured wolves and one of only a handful of locations where one can see Red Wolves, Mexican Gray Wolves, etc. They are part of a national breeding and reintroduction program. A really, Really neat place! For anyone interested, especially those photobloggers here in western WA, Wolf Haven offers a 3 hour Photography Tour with the resident Professional Photographer (and it includes a continental breakfast!) Cost is $75 and proceeds benefit Wolf Haven International, as well as their photographer. They have an exclusive agreement with their photographer that only she is able to sell images of their wolves. I actually think that's a fantastic idea and a great way to protect the work of a photographer that's been a part of their team since 1998. The photography tours require a minimum of 6 people, and a maximum of 10 people for the tour, and they close the facility to all other guests. These images were taken while we toured the facility on their standard 1 hour long tour. You have to shoot through chain link fences, so lenses that have large apertures are helpful to mitigate the effects of the chain link. All of these shots are at ISO 800, with a 70-200mm 2.8 lens. A 300mm 2.8 (or longer!) would be IDEAL and should render the chain link almost non existent. I could have heavily cropped these, but since I HATE cropping ... Should anyone be interested, please let me know. I'd LOVE to spend a few hours shooting these beautiful animals, and even though I wouldn't be able to do anything with the images commercially, spending time with a 'professional' photographer, who has been shooting these wolves for 10+ years, should provide a good opportunity for learning and growth. More information can be found at: http://www.wolfhaven.org/photoTour.php Who's in?! Mat

FAITH

2008-11-11T22:44:22Z

FAITH: "All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen." Ralph Waldo Emerson I had fully intended on posting something completely different today, but I was making some 'inspirational posters' for my website, and felt a tug to post my most recent, yet simple creation. This is meant for someone out here ... most likely just me. Mat Updated: Added #2 per Jan's suggestion! =)

Snoqualmie Falls

2008-11-10T21:05:59Z

Just a small handful of images from Snoqualmie Falls from a gorgeous fall day in September. I've been hoping to post several shots that I've taken over the past few months when I've been unable to post. Hopefully this is the first of many posts in a row! Hey, a man can dream, can't he?! All of these shots remind me of the splendor and majesty that can be found in Nature. From the big and powerful, to the small and intricate. Such beauty all around us. We just need to look for it. Mat

Cedar Creek

2008-10-22T19:59:47Z

These are just a few shots from Cedar Creek, and the Cedar Creek Grist Mill in South Western Washington. I've been so busy all summer and fall taking Wedding pictures, senior portraits, family portraits, etc that I haven't really had too much time to shoot, just for me (let alone blog!) I saw this Mill on the back of a calendar and I said to myself: Self? You're going to go shoot that! So I drove 125 miles to spend an hour along the creek shooting a few pics of the Mill and Cedar Creek that runs alongside. The mill was originally built in 1876 and can be read about at Cedar Creek Grist Mill. I miss you all! Mat

Self Portraits

2008-09-04T18:44:45Z

Striking resemblence ... no?! For other amazing pictures of other members of my "family", be sure to check out what Heidi posted tonight. All of the "Johnson's" looking their best! Anyone who has followed my blog over the past year probably knows by now that I am my own best audience (that is when I'm not off on some adventure and shirking my posting responsiblities!) After taking pics at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle last week while on vacation and seeing several of the various Primates at the zoo, I knew what I HAD to post. Truth be told, I'm having a hard time containing the laughter right now as I type! I'm such a dork. In all seriousness, this is a FANTASTIC zoo, and I got many, many images that I really liked. Mat

The Oregon Coast

2008-09-01T22:07:21Z

WOW, has it been a while! You guys have no idea how much I've missed hanging out with all of you. For the past couple of months, we shot 3 weddings on consecutive weekends, a 'Senior Prom' (yes, literally, a SENIORS prom!) I helped TCC with some Youth Football Pics (well, I didn't actually do much ... she was the master behind the lens!) and spent a week resting from all of the hectic non work related work that we got ourselves into! We're taking senior portraits this weekend at Mt. Rainier, weather permitting. These are a few shots from our recent vacation to the Oregon Coast. Some typical sunsets, at least typical when you can SEE the sun along the Oregon coast, some mushrooms, waterfalls, Haystack Rock, etc. Most of these are essentially out of the camera, with the exception of a couple that I was messing around with some colored filters in Photoshop. I have an amazing book from an Australian photographer who traveled the U.S. over the course of a few years to shoot every state. The images he creates are stunning! In many of his shots, he uses effects very similar to a couple of these shots, and I've loved the look ever since I got this book. I'm not normally one to alter reality too much, but I really love the way the sunset looks in purples, pinks and magentas! Hope you enjoy! Mat

Geometry

2008-07-22T21:36:12Z

I have no idea what this wildflower is called. However, seeing the flower, in the shape of a star go to seed, and having the seeds also form a polygon, is amazingly cool! Well, at least its cool to me. The color version is as shot from the camera. The BW is a square crop. I don't often use square crops (I don't often crop, period), but I think it works here ... especially in BW. Mat

MRNP - Photoblogger's Style #2

2008-07-21T22:43:40Z

Several more images from the trip that Julie, Eric, JR and I took up to the Sunrise area of Mt. Rainier National Park. Many are similar to ones from yesterday, a few slightly different shots. Please, if you haven't checked out their blogs, check out my blog from yesterday by clicking here. All of the specific links to their shots are readily available in yesterday's post. Believe me, you owe it to yourself to click ... They're that good. We started our day at the parking lot of the Sunrise Lodge within MRNP. At 6400', its the highest point one can drive in the park. We opted to only climb a few hundred vertical feet, instead of climbing to the summit of the 14,410' peak. You guys have no idea how much fun I had during this trip ... even if I was outmanned by 3 CANON shooters, and teased unmercifully about my lens hood! Again, as I stated yesterday ... find some people local to you who use this site and put something together! Believe me, you won't regret it. Mat