The Sea in Black and White

Everyone who knows me knows that I love black and white photography, and I use it a lot in my portrait work.  I think black and white photograhy is very... soulful. One of my favorite quotes from Ted Grant is, "When you photograph people in colour, you photograph their clothes.  When you photograph them in black and white, you photograph their souls."   Yes, I have a special fondness for black and white photographs.  On the other hand, when I go to the beach, I enjoy taking in all the vivid, tropical colors, and the way the hues change with the time of day or the weather.

Well, I've recently discovered the timeless look of the beach in black and white ...

I can imagine the travelers who have come to this very spot throughout the years, to relax and have fun with their friends and family -- taking in the same sea, sky and atmosphere that we enjoy today.

These are a few favorite black and white images from a recent early morning visit to Clearwater Beach.  This beach has a great vibe - it gets very busy and crowded, with lots of activity.  It's the perfect place to either get in on the action, or just people watch.  I'll feature that side of Clearwater Beach in a future post :-)  This time, though, I concentrated on capturing some of the quieter moments - early in the morning, before all the activity gets under way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


I love the look of closed beach umbrellas ...

Early in the morning, while all the tourists are sleeping ...

There was a lot of sea weed on the beach this morning - remnants of  Tropical Storm Debby.  

An open air shop with all the "beachy stuff" you need.  

At the southern end of the beach ... 

I leave you with one more closed beach umbrella - because I can't resist :-)  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kristin's Senior Photos

Here are a few of my favorites from a senior portrait session with Kristin.  We took some shots with her camera, since photography is a big part of her life.  She's a lovely teen with a lot of natural talent and a special eye for photography.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lindsey's Modeling Session in Sarasota!

I recently spent an afternoon exploring the lovely city of Sarasota with Lindsey, creating photographs for her modeling portfolio.  She wanted fine art pieces -- something a little different -- and, as usual, I wanted to capture images that she can treasure for years to come.  Sarasota is a beautiful city, and there are so many great locations to shoot there.  On this trip, we visited artsy downtown Sarasota, hit the beach at Lido Key, and wandered the spectacular grounds of the Ringling Museum of Art.  Here are a few of my favorites from the day.... 

Lindsey is such a fun loving, sun-shiney girl -- and I think her

personality shines through in these images ... 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sarasota!

I've been thinking lately about a brief visit that I made to Sarasota about a month ago on my way back from Sanibel Island.  When we left Sanibel, my friend, Maureen, and I decided that, instead of hitting the major highway, we would meander liesurely up the coast from Ft. Myers back home to Clearwater -- and that we would stop whenever and wherever we wanted to.  It was so much fun!  Our route took us through gorgeous, artsy Sarasota.  A friend had told me about St. Armand's Circle, which is at the entrance to Lido Key across Sarasota Bay.  It's a large circle of fine shops and restaurants with a  European feel, in the middle of ... well... paradise!  I've read that the circle is named after Charles St. Armand, a Frenchman and first island inhabitant.  There are several courtyards and patios with lush plants and these beautiful, graceful statues based on Greek and Roman art.  I was fascinated with the statutes.  I loved them.  The sight of these beautiful works of art set against the blue sky was inspiring. 

Of course, my love for black and white takes over... when you strip away the color, all you see is the subjects.  I like the simplicity of this elegant lady and the coconut palm behind her. 

A few more of my favorites...

 



 

We only had a few minutes to explore that day, and I was only able to quickly get these few shots.  I can't wait to return with my camera, when I have more time to wander aimlessly (one of my favorite things to do!), soak in the atmosphere and capture more of the beauty of that place.