Wow….it’s been awhile since I’ve gotten around to posting anything here. I bet you’re all wondering what I’ve been up to for the past three months. First and foremost was school and studying. It was my first semester as a photography student and I loved every minute of it. I did have other classes besides my art classes and those required some studying and hard work as well but the photo classes were by far my favorite. And now it’s a new semester with more art classes and I’m having a blast with them as well. However, this will be my last semester as an art student until I graduate. I need to focus on transfer studies so I can transfer out to a four year university to get my bachelor’s in photography. Hopefully, transfer studies classes will be fun too.
I’ve been working with a friend of mine on getting my photos out to the world in publications and stuff like that. She works in advertising and her idea involves going through all my photos, picking out a select few, and giving them to different companies for free as long as they give me my courtesy credit. Then, while I won’t be getting paid, my name will at least be getting around and eventually people will see my work and I’ll get recognized. At least, that’s how she says it will work and I’m hoping she’s right.
In other news, I’m officially an award winning photographer now! The first show, Beyond the Lens II, is showing at
Framations on North Main Street in Saint Charles, Missouri. It was a juried show and I entered three pieces, two were chosen for the show. The one on the right, The Tree Stands Alone, won an honorable mention and was sold before the show even began. The other piece, Up the Road Slowly, which can be seen here, was also sold to the same woman. She wanted to take them right away but the ladies at the gallery talked her into letting them stay until the end of the month. I’m going to take in another framed copy of the photos later on so they can be on display through the end of the show. I highly recommend you all go check it out if you have time. There are some really great works in the show by some really talented people. And Framations is just a cool place anyway. It’s a small 3 or 4 room art gallery showcasing the work of some resident artists in the area. From painting to photography, Framations has something for everyone’s tastes. So go down and check them out! You won’t regret it! And if my work isn’t there when you go, you can check it out on my Flickr page. Just follow this link and it will take you where you need to be! Thanks for the visit if you do!
The most recent show I was featured in was hosted by the Saint Peters Community and Arts Center in Saint Peters, 
Missouri. The show which is titled Little Rays of Hope and Big Ideas had guidelines for entering. All entries had to measure smaller than 8″x10″ or larger than 16″x24″ including the frame. All subjects were accepted in mixed media, photography, and painting and it was open to professional and amateur photographers. I entered three pieces in this competition, it wasn’t juried so all the pieces were accepted. The image on the left, Boatloads of Blue, won second prize in the competition. Click the image for a better view of the photo. I also had a second piece place in the competition as well. This photo, Bound, took third. The third piece I entered didn’t win anything but I still think it’s one of my better photos (view it here). It was a beautiful show with both adult and youth categories and the artists in the show were all very talented. If you are interested, The Saint Peters Community and Arts Center will be having another show in February with an animal theme. Contact me if you’d be interested in entering.
And the last bit of big news I have for you all involves Photographer’s Forum Magazine. I picked up a flier for their college photography contest back in October and I entered jut for kicks. Well I got a letter in the mail last week saying that they had 4000 entries and mine was in the top 200 entries! I entered about 7 or 8 photos and they didn’t say which they picked so I’m not sure which one is a finalist. However, they did say that it was going to be posted in their Annual and that I needed to pay $55 to buy it if I wanted one. I’m skeptical about doing that because I’ve heard about scams that make you buy their book and then it’s not a quality publication. I’m going to ask my teacher about it because I’d think that if I picked it up at school it’s less likely to be a scam but who knows. So anyway, we’ll see what comes of that. Either way it’s got to be a good thing, right?
Anyway, That’s about all I had for an update this time around. Hopefully I’ll have more time this semester to post. So check back often and see what else is new. Thanks for your visit!
News and Whatnot 
