STEALING MOTHER NATURE

Was out in the big wide world the other day just looking to shoot. At 20% art and 80% business, well...let's just say I don't get out as often as I used to.

Shooting is a spiritual thing for me. Probably because I spend a good deal of it in nature. You could easily say it's my meditation. So I look for places that aren't often touched by humans, and if they are, these places are treated with respect to the land and the many bits and pieces that inhabit that land.

I honestly believe Mother Nature is one of the greatest artists of all times. Otherwise, why would we simple human artists continue to copy her work and show it off as our own. Oh sure, we make our own renditions of the art using Mother Nature's art as our subject, but the true creation is already there.

And with that, I share with you the art of Mother Nature.

Wood Work #1 - Abstract

Bouquet - Still Life

Red Eye - Color

Weeds - Found Art

Wetlands - Lines and Patterns

Wood Work #2 - Abstract

Wood Work #3 - Abstract

Wood Work #4 - Texture

These photos were taken at Land's End Wildlife Management Area in King George, VA and at the Canal Walk in Fredericksburg, VA.

BUSINESS MARKETING 101?

Or maybe I should title this TALK TO ME, PLEASE.

This post is a bit off the beaten path of my normal posting. No pictures, no art. It's business.

Lately, it seems that the whole idea behind marketing has been e-marketing. It's crammed down my throat every day, every minute, every second. I go to networking groups, where my intention is to get to know you and your business, while I hope your intentions are to get to know me and my business, but instead I'm basically told the only way I'm going to get business is through e-marketing. Facebook; LinkedIn; Google; Flicker; Picasso; and now, Google+. I have to write blog posts and articles and post them online and cram my name into every web directory that will let me so I can be number one on the all impressive Google search (I don't even use Google to search). I'm supposed to register on Google places and get recommendations on Yelp and every other site that serves the same purpose.

You know, if I had time to do all of this, I wouldn't have time to do any work.

Here's my point, if there is a point to be made. Today was organization day for me. Cleaning out my computer files, backing up, all that good in house stuff that must be done, and while browsing through my client files, it occurred to me that not a single one of them came from my website, my Facebook page or my blog. They all came because I introduced myself and started a conversation or through a referral. Amazing! Good old fashioned marketing.

What every happened to that? Good old fashioned marketing. What ever happened to people talking to people?

The gripe about all of this is when I'm making business decisions, I want to know who I'm making that decision with. I'm not going to get any sort of feel from deciding to use your services based on a website, Facebook page, etc. And while I do grasp the idea that the media out there on the internet is simply an introduction, it's never enough. Now I have to set up an appointment with you to see if you can provide the services I need. Then I have to find others in your industry and set another appointment, do cost comparisons, and there's that all important personal touch that's part of every business transaction. So let me ask you, do I spend all my precious time bogged down with appointment after appointment, or do I call a business associate or two and ask them if they know someone they'd recommend for the job? You better bet it's the latter.

Seriously, what ever happened to the art of communication? (Ah, there's my third title for this post.) I really hope it's not dead. While I do believe that the internet serves a purpose for business, it's an aid to marketing, not a solution.

I don't need to know how to e-market. My clients take themselves seriously and they take their business decisions seriously and without communication...personally, I'd have to rethink my business tactics.

Is it just me? Does the business world still market itself via human contact? Is e-marketing the do all, end all of the business marketing?

I'd really love to hear some input on this.

HISTORY IN THE 'BURG

I've spent the past month tromping around the battlefields of Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania. It's not the first time I've been to these historic sites. I've hiked the trails of Wilderness Battlefield, been to Chatham Heights many times (the view of Fredericksburg is breathtaking), tripped out to Slaughter Pen Farm and walked the fields, and I've taken to the hills of Marye's Heights and the Fredericksburg National Cemetery. In those days I wasn't always shooting.

But it came to my attention how important this area is to those who've spent their lives here. I'm not Virginia home grown. I'm Pennsylvania home grown and lived close enough to Gettysburg to understand the importance of its history. I've also visited Gettysburg on occasion and felt the deep loss of those who fought there. While touring the battlefields of our area, again, I felt that loss.

It becomes highly apparent when visiting such sites as the Confederate Cemetery in Spotsylvania and the Fredericksburg National Cemetery at Marye's Heights. All the stones; all the losses. The ones that always tug at my heart are the Unknown grave markers.

Unknown Confederate Soldier at Spotsylvania Confederate Cemetery

To see the number of those markers astounds me. I think of family who never knew. I think of comrades who weren't there to identify the loss.

But there's so much more to this history than the loss of life. There are elements of the war that stand to remind us. The cannons at Chancellorsville; Ellwood (part of the Battle of Wilderness and Spotsylvania Courthouse); Chatham Manor at Chatham Heights; and the Angel of Marye's Heights at Marye's Heights.

Cannon at Chancellorsville Battlefield

Ellwood

A scene of Generals Gouverneur K. Warren's headquarters at Ellwood

General Andrew Humphreys
Fredericksburg National Cemetery

 

Angel of Marye's Heights

This last one, the Angel of Marye's Heights tells a compassionate story of Richard Kirkland, a confederate soldier who aided wounded Union soldiers on the battlefield.

While these icons of history serve as a reminder of our bloody past, their images serve an artistic view of that past.

While working with the showcase for Congressman Wittman's office, it occurred to me how important these images are and how they serve our community, as well as preserve our past. It created a different view in my mind of the importance of our area; reminders of who fought and why they fought; sacrifices made; the joining of our country. The Civil War, known as one of the bloodiest and deadliest wars of our time, represents so much to so many and it's important to keep that history alive - as a remembrance; as a reminder; as a memorial to those who sacrificed their lives.

House by Fredericksburg National Cemetery

Statue at Chatham Manor

All photos are available through ArtLease.