Sneak Peek

Picnic blog is coming. It's all about location! And some food!

Ruin: Photographs of a Vanishing America

Down East books has this to say about Brian Vanden Brink's newest book, Ruin: Photographs of a Vanishing America. "Over the years, the sought-after architectural photographer Brian Vanden Brink, has stolen time from photographing the homes of the affluent to focus on deserted homes and architectural ruins - and their relationships to the surrounding landscape. In Ruin [click here to see a book sample], Vanden Brink captures and illuminates in stunning color and black and white images churches, mills, bridges, grain elevators, storefronts, the 300-foot-tall chimney of a lead smelter, and the pitch-black depths of an Air Force plutonium storage vault. Through Vanden Brink's lens, these structures become iconic, representing an America that was built and then abandoned. His photos capture the long, slow demise of structures that once held immense import and usefulness. With text by historic preservation and architecture expert Howard Mansfield, this collections of photos grants permanence to places that may soon vanish forever."

BRIAN VANDEN BRINK is an award-winning architectural photographer, whose work has been featured in many books and in Architectural Digest, Architectural Record, Metropolitan Home, Elle Decor, Coastal Living, Cottage Living, The New York Times Magazine, Boston Globe, Down East, Old House Journal, Old House Interiors, Fine Homebuilding, Custom Home, and Yankee, among many other publications.

Discovering Maine

Maine has many interesting people and surprising places. Recently we were pleased to find both at Old Sheep Meadows Nursery in Alfred at 90 Federal Street. I was expecting the usual nursery but found down the rolling, rural country road, Michal and Raymond Graber’s charming antique Maine home



surrounded by acres of cultivated gardens to showcase their love of roses, flowering trees, shrubs and perennials including their spectacular daylilies.










Raymond is the rosarian and ecologist while Michal is the landscape designer and horticulturist.






Michal specializes in English gardens as you can see.









They were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary on the afternoon we were there; 47 of those years have been spent growing the roses and daylilies together! Now that’s true love!



We spent several pleasurable hours photographing the daylilies and talking with Michal. At the end of the afternoon we couldn’t resist buying some daylilies for our garden






and selected several plants in different shades of salmon and mauve, beautiful enough for a bride’s bouquet! Want to see more?

If you love old roses or daylilies or would like to see one of Maine’s great secrets, take a trip out to Old Sheep Meadows Nursery, but call ahead to make sure they are open, 207-324-5211. And be sure to give yourself plenty of time to fully enjoy this Maine treasure!

The Maine Photography Show

If anyone has ever entered a juried art or photography show, you know how much you anticipate getting in. When the letter finally comes, you eagerly open it, with anticipation and dread in equal portions.

"Congratulations! You have been accepted into the Maine Photography Show."

Oh thank goodness!

Knapp and I received these wonderful words from the Boothbay Region Art Foundation (BRAF). Knapp got his letter first before I came home from work and was worried about what he would do if I did not get a photo accepted too! He said later that he was considering shredding it and not telling me, but I definitely doubt that!

The BRAF is located in downtown Boothbay Harbor, Maine and have a very dedicated membership who put on this show in April. They hosted a really wonderful opening cocktail reception complete with food, live music and the awards.


We each entered 2 photos and were quite pleased to each have one photo accepted. The guest juror was Elizabeth Greenberg, the Education Director at the Maine Media Workshops and College as well as an instructor.







Knapp's accepted entry, Last Ride, was in the computer category as the photo is excessively colorized in PhotoShop.







My accepted entry, Quiet Time, was in the black and white category and is an infrared image shot with a modified Nikon D70. Experimenting with infrared film is a tedious process, but with digital it is really fun!


While we didn't win in our categories, we loved being a part of the show. Congratulations to the winners! Click here to view.

Backyard Studio

A misty Sunday morning is a perfect time for a little backyard macro work and an opportunity to test out the newest gadget. Knapp just got a LumiQuest Mini Soft Box for the Nikon SB 800 flash. In the midst of a sea of Lilies of the Valley, is a lonely tulip blooming, and Knapp focused the camera on this pink beauty.

The diffuser works quite well! He is also experimenting with other diffuser materials, but this little unit is easy to set up and portable.

A little processing and cropping in Lightroom and voila!

The Trillium was also shot using the Mini Soft Box.

Getting Started

Having never done a blog, it is a little intimidating to begin. So many choices to make! I am not a person that likes too many choices. Just a few will do!

My husband, Knapp, and I are photographers, living in Portland, Maine. Other pix can be viewed at www.stonecoastphotography.com.

Ella