First Friday Art Walk at my newest Bend Art Gallery: Volcano Vineyards Tasting Room
The First First Friday Art Walk for February 2010 is almost upon us and I’d like to officially invite everyone to the Volcano Vineyards Tasting room located at 126 NW Minnesota St(between Bond St and Wall St.) in Downtown Bend. I’ll be there Friday February 5th between 5PM and 9PM and my Fine Art Photographs will be hanging there through March 2010. I will have several new fine art photographs on display and the Quons will be playing as well, which should make for an entertaining evening.
Interior of the Volcano Vineyards Tasting room in Downtown Bend, Oregon
As the First Friday art walk for downtown Bend was cancelled for January( because it was on New Years Day) This Art Walk for February should be especially busy and exciting. Below is another shot of the interior of The Volcano Tasting Room with some of my fine art landscape photographs on the walls.
My fine art photographs hanging at the Volcano Vineyards mothership in downtown Bend.
Finally one last shot of the lovely and affable Liz Ratcliff who along with her husband, Scott, is the owner and operator of Volcano. If you see Liz on Friday night, buy a glass of their amazing Syrah and tell her the landscape photography looks stunning!
Liz Ratcliff of Volcano Vineyards fame!
I hope to see some of you Friday Night At Volcano! Come enjoy the Great Wine, Great Music and Great photography at my newest fine art photography gallery in downtown Bend!
Thanks for Visiting,
Mike Putnam
New Photographs Now showing at the Volcano Vineyards Tasting Room in Downtown Bend, Oregon!
I’m excited to announce that I recently hung some of my new Oregon Landscape Photography at the Volcano Vineyards Tasting room in Downtown Bend. Their address is 126 NW Minnesota St., which is located between Bond St. and Wall St. Through some mutual friends, Mark Merrick and Susan Ruzzo, we have gotten to know Scott and Liz Ratcliff who are the owner operators of the Volcano Vineyards and we all decided that their beautiful new tasting room would be an excellent location to share my art work with the people of Bend. They source their grapes in Southern Oregon where they craft phenomenal reds and whites. Their wines really are excellent. In fact, Volcano Vineyards is considered to be the most highly decorated winery for its size in the U.S. ! Follow this link for some more information about Volcano Vineyards’ recent awards. Volcano Vineyards. Below is one of the Oregon Landscape photographs that are currently on display at Volcano.
Photo/picture of Oregon's Mount Washington in autumn now on display at the Volcano Vineyard tasting room in Bend, Oregon.
Timing and hard work and good friends were the keys to capturing this stunning Oregon Landscape photograph. I’ll simplify by saying that I’ve worked hard to make good friends, explaining two of the three keys. I take it back, I’ve been very lucky to find great friends here in Central Oregon. One of these great friends is Troy McMullin, who is an excellent photographer and exceptionally talented beer drinker. Thus we are friends! Troy found this glorious location which aptly displays the beauty of Oregon’s Mount Washington after he had scouted long and hard. It takes a grueling bushwack through dense underbrush along with a good GPS to find this location and I would have never found it without Troy’s extensive advanced scouting and his unusual ability to suffer in the name of adventure. Regardless, I owe him a thanks and I’ll probably buy him a beer sometime in gratitude for pointing me to this wonderful scene. As I mentioned, Timing was also crucial to capturing this landscape photograph. I wanted fresh fall snow and preferably some fall color on the opposite shores of Cabin Lake. The key is to get snow on the mountain and not around the lake and to have clear skies to the east so that the rising sun is not blocked from Mount Washington’s summit and preferably some clouds behind Mt. Washington to add some interest to the sky. Well, after several visits to this difficult location, everything came together. Once again, timing and/or luck were critical!
I was busy this fall. Below is another picture now hanging at Volcano. In this image I captured some wonderful fall color along the Crooked River north of Redmond, Oregon. Here is a link to a previous blog entry about this landscape photo. Crooked River Photo.
Oregon's Crooked River Canyon with brilliant autumn color
There are three separate images that I captured during a family backpacking trip into Canyon Creek Meadow at the base of Three Fingered Jack during this past summer. It is extraordinarily lucky for me to get three separate images with my large format 4×5 camera that are print worthy during the same trip but that was the case this summer during our trip to Three Fingered jack. The Canyon Creek area is always beautiful but this year the lupine meadows were especially full and stunning. Below are a couple images taken in the upper Canyon Creek Meadow.
Picture of Purple Lupines in Central Oregon's Canyon Creek Meadow
I like that the lupines in this images are in excellent condition and I like the gentle sway that some of them have which gives this Oregon wildflower picture an elegant feel. There were Lupines everwhere as you can tell from the following image, also taken in Canyon Creek meadow.
Photo of Oregon's Three Fingered Jack Mountain and Canyon Creek Meadow at sunrise.
Finally, here is one more picture from Canyon Creek Meadow that I took on the same backpacking trip. It is a different part of the meadow and I believe it generates a much different feel than most photographs you will find of Three Fingered Jack or Canyon Creek Meadow.
Picture of Central Oregon's Three Fingered Jack Mountain and a wildflower lined alpine stream.
As I think about all the images I’ve currently got hanging down at Volcano, I realize that I’ve got that place pretty packed. I hope Scott and Liz don’t mind! Below is a distinctly more wintry image I took two years ago at Benham Falls along Bend, Oregon’s Deschutes River Trail. I was lucky to be able to drive to this location after such a heavy snow fall. It was actually pretty questionable and my poor daughter Emma got cold feet while patiently waiting for me to compose this snowy photograph. I’ve been to Benham many times and I’ve always had contrast control issues but the heavy snow load allowed me to capture an image that was not too contrasty. I am especially happy that I found this scenic waterfall while the trees around the river were still heavily flocked with snow, making for a great landscape image and making me a happy photographer!
Photo of Benham Falls in winter. This well known Bend Oregon waterfall is located along the Deschutes River Trail South of the city of Bend,Oregon
The following is a Sparks Lake Photo that I have never printed until now and I’m very excited about it. I captured an awesome light display with great snow on South Sister and Broken Top in this image. I was able to capture rare and wonderful light at one of Oregon’s most photogenic locations. Please stop by volcano and tell me if you like it as much as I do!
Photo of a beautiful sunrise from one of Oregon's most photogenic locations, Central Oregon's Sparks Lake.
Below is one more photo that can be viewed at the volcano tasting room in downtown Bend, Oregon. It is a simple but beautiful image of a vine maple overhanging the North Santiam River slightly west of the Cascade Crest. This individual tree had some of the most wonderful layering and color of any vine maples I’ve ever seen. It is a simple image but has a pleasant artistic feel.
Vine maple in autumn color along Oregon's North Santiam River
Well, that includes all of the Fine art landscape photographs that I currently have displayed at the Volcano Vineyards tasting room on Minnesota Street in downtown Bend, Oregon. Please stop by to see my work and while you are there, buy a glass of wine. The Syrah is my favorite! Their wine really is excellent and Scott and Liz Ratcliff (the owners) are great people who are growing a unique and special business right here in Bend. While you are there, you might also tell them you like the photographs that currentl decorate the walls of their lovely tasting room!
All the Best,
Mike Putnam
Oregon’s Mt. Washington Fine Art Photograph
The next of my soon to be released fine art prints is one that I’ve been trying to capture for two years now. It is a location that I have to thank Troy McMullin for. He scouted this image quite some time ago and I’ve searched for the appropriate conditions to make this shot work ever since then. My goal with all of my fine art large format photographs is to capture Oregon’s beautiful locations at the best time of year and under the optimal conditions. Optimizing variable photographic conditions of light, flower and plant colors and weather patterns obviously makes for a better fine art photograph but it also serves to better represent the beautiful and wild Oregon locations that recharge my soul. Photographing these locations in anything less than optimal conditions doesn’t do them justice. A good parallel to sub-optimal photographic conditions would be making your wife who you love more than anything go out to dinner for a fine meal without letting her shower and brush her teeth. (My loving wife would kill me!) She deserves better as do the wonderful Central Oregon Locations which I love so much!
Photograph of Oregon's Mount Washington at sunrise with fresh autumn snow
Fresh snow on Oregon’s Mt. Washington was paramount for making this Photograph work as a fine art print. Without a heavy load of fresh snow, Mt. Washington looks small and meek. With snow, it has the Matterhorn like appearance which makes it one of my favorite Oregon Mountains. This Particular lake happens to have great trees on the opposite shores which are covered with lichen. At this particular time of year, the blueberries and huckleberry bushes on the opposite shore glow with the colors of fall. The clouds moving in on the right side of this image also help but from a compositional standpoint. As the focus with my 4×5 camera was very sharp in this image, I think this will make an exceptional Large format fine art print. The print is not yet complete but combining fresh snow, fall color, and great light at a beautiful Central Oregon location makes me think this fine art print will proudly represent Oregon’s natural beauty.
Thanks for visiting,
Mike Putnam
New Fine Art Oregon Landscape Photography at the Bend Fall Art Hop
I’m excited to announce that I will have a few new Oregon Landscape Photographs available to the public for the very first time at my usual art haunt, Pandora’s Backpack (the Patagonia Store) on Bond Street in downtown Bend, Oregon. Art Hop should kick off at about 5pm and should wrap-up at about 9pm. If any of you are in the vicinity, please stop by, say “Hello” and check out my new work.
Below is one of my new images which will be unveiled. It features Three Fingered Jack Mountain in the Central Oregon Cascades and a beautiful little alpine stream.
Photograph of Three Fingered Jack Mountain in the Central Oregon Cascades.
Lots of alpine wildflowers, live water , a cool local mountain, early morning light and interesting clouds help to make this image a winner. I captured this photograph while on a backpacking trip with my wife and daughter this past summer. It is a little bit painful to admit that the summer is in fact past! Here is a link to a previous blog entry bout our trip to Three Fingered Jack and Canyon Creek Meadows.
Below is an image of Smith Rock State Park’s legendary ”Monkey Face” formation. It is an iconic and stunning rock tower recognizable to rock climbers around the world and hikers around Central Oregon. This is another Photograph that I captured with my 4×5 large format camera this past summer.
Smith Rock State Park's "Monkey Face" at sunset
Great sunset light and a beautiful cloud grouping will make this a special fine art print for those of you who are rock climbers and hikers of Smith Rock’s famed trails.
The last of my new images is from the crown jewel in the Bend, Oregon Park system, Shevlin Park. I often run in Shevlin Park. It offers several great trail runs/hikes which you can learn more about here. Shevlin Park trails. While I’ve always considered Shevlin Park an gorgeous and special place, I’ve had little photographic luck there until last autumn when I captured the following image which I’m thrilled about. You might even say that I’m as excited about this image as my daughter Emma is about picking out new school clothes, which is saying a lot!
Photograph of Shevlin Park in Autumn.
This image captures several things about Shevlin Park that I love. Riparian environments,fall color,old growth ponderosas, larch trees,and Tumalo Creek are all embodied by this beautiful image! For a few more fall images from Shevlin Park, you can visit the following blog entry. Shevlin Park. I hope you all enjoy it and I hope I to see some of you Friday, October 2nd 2009 at Pandora’s backpack in downtown Bend!
First Friday Art Walk at Luxe Home Interiors in Downtown Bend. Come see the best in Oregon Landscape Photography Oregon
I hope everybody checks their Email one last time before leaving work for the weekend because I”m getting this announcement out a little late. I’ll be showing my work tonight, Friday June 5th at Luxe Home Interiors in downtown Bend , Oregon. During Art walks, the wine usually starts flowing at about 5:00PM and end at about 8:30PM. I’ll be there at about 5:30 due to some parenting responsibilities. If any of you are in the vicinity, please stop by and say “Hello”. Luxe is located at 856 NW Bond St. which is the same street that the Deschutes Brewery is on but Luxe is a couple of blocks to the south.
Photograph/Picture of South Sister reflected in Sparks Lake in the Central Oregon Cascades
The above Sparks Photograph will be amongst the many fine art landscape photography prints of mine on display tonight, so please stop by get some free wine and patronize the arts! I hope to see you all tonight.
Mike Putnam
Bend Oregon First Friday Art Hop!
I’ll be showing my fine art prints at Pandora’s Backpack in downtown Bend for the 2009 spring Art Hop on April 3rd. Pandora’s Backpack is located at 920 NW Bond Street, Suite 101 Bend, Oregon. The Spring and the Fall art hops are the most highly promoted and anticipated of the First Friday events in downtown Bend. Typically it is an exciting, festive evening, so please stop by and patronize the arts! Things tend to start to kick off at about 5PM and wrap up at about 9:30 PM. I’ll be there with my fine art prints and, homemade easels a smiling face and a few new images. Below is one of the images I’ll bring along which has been lightly shown but has received rave reviews from the Aspen tree lovers in Oregon.
Aspen grove in fall near skyliner drive west of Bend, Oregon
The pure density of the fall foliage in this aspen grove picture makes it an enjoyable and festive image to view. I’ve always been a huge fan of aspen trees and aspen groves in that they seem to have a special energy. While I won’t divulge exactly where this photo was taken, I’ll tell you that it was taken west of Bend and it probably isn’t where you’d think it is! I’ve searched all around Central Oregon and I had very little luck with aspen groves until I found this scene. If you are an aspen lover, I think you’ll enjoy this photograph. The Next image is one I captured while backpacking along the Broken Top trail with my good friend Old Mike Croxford who is currently on an extensive post retirement road trip. Click here to read more about Old Mike’s Road Trip. Old Mike is a great adventure partner because he can carry a lot of weight, he doesn’t complain, he loves the great outdoors, and because he makes coffee in the morning! I remember how pleased i was to return from taking sunrise shots adjacent to Broken Top Mountain in the Three Sisters Wilderness area and find that not only was Old Mike awake but he’d already made coffee. Excellent!
Picture of spring wildflowers along the flanks of Broken Top in the Central Oregon Cascades
The combination of senecio, red indian paintbrush, and alpine fireweed make a playful wildflower foreground with one of broken Top’s pinnacles as a background. This is a very alpine area where it is difficult to find great flowers like these. I’ve never found an official name for the small glacial lake in the mid-ground of this picture but my friend Dave Nissen of Wanderlust Tours refers to it as No-Name Lake which is as good as an official name as far as I’m concerned. When anybody who is as gifted of a naturalist and as sharp a person as Dave has a name for something, I don’t need any other references. Therefore, my official name for this lake is “No-Name Lake”.
This next picture is a favorite of both my wife and my good friend, Big Todd. It was taken somewhere near Alder Springs Trail Head south east of Sisters, Oregon. I’ll have it at the art hop but my wife will be mad at me until I put it back over her dresser, unless of course I sell it! It is my favorite grouping of Bitterroot blossoms in an area managed by one of my favorite charities, the Deschutes Land Trust. It really is a special area and a great early spring day hike as it is relatively low in elevation and has some diverse and beautiful terrain but if the balsamroot are blooming, please beware because the rattlesnakes are out of their winter hibernation!
Photo of bitterroot blossoms near Alder Springs trailhead in Central Oregon
This final spring art hop preview picture is of one of central Oregon’s favorite locations, Tumalo Falls. I shot this photo with my daughter in a driving rain. Despite the associated gusting winds, the rain was helpful. It served to enhance the saturation of the scene that was already at it’s peak of fall color. despite the fact that one can find hundreds of pictures of Tumalo Falls, this is still my favorite. The combination of color, composition, memories and a long exposure make this photograph a strong representation of a beautiful location.
Picture of Tumalo Falls near Bend, Oregon
Please stop by and say “Hello” if you happen to be out in downtown Bend during the upcoming spring art hop on April 3rd. I’ll have the above fine art prints there as well as many others.
I Hope to see you all there!
Mike Putnam
First Friday Fine Art Photography show at Pandora’s Backpack
I’d like to officially thank Rod Bien of Pandora’s backpack in downtown Bend for hosting my photography show last Friday(3/6/09) The store is great, Rod has always been generous in allowing my huge fine art prints and cumbersome easels to clutter up his store and the staff at Pandora’s backpack is also a great group of people. Mo, Jordan, Thad and everyone who chipped in at last Friday’s art walk. It is very appreciated.
Mt. Bachelor and Red Indian Paintbrush in the Central Oregon Cascades
We had a great turn out and it was especially nice to see some old friends and collectors who I had regrettably lost touch with in the past couple years. Above is one of the many images that are still hanging at Pandora’s backpack which I captured with my large format 4×5 film camera.
For those of you that don’t already know, Pandora’s backpack is according to my understanding a Patagonia concept store. Meaning they are privately owned but carry almost a full line of Patagonia clothing. Perhaps if Rod Bien happens to stumble upon this entry , he could give us some details. Regardless, it is full of high quality, well made outdoor gear from my favorite outdoor company, Patagonia. Old Patagonia catalogs were one of my early photography inspirations. When I lived in Kentucky with my parents, I had a small collection of photos cut out of old Patagonia catalogs taped up next to my spot at the dinner table. It was my happy spot! Back to Pandora’s Backpack. It is a beautiful store with very attractive brick walls and some nice rugged wood details, all of which combine nicely with my large format fine art prints and the hand made cherry wood frames that I create for them.
Lichen covered basalt columns in Central Oregon's High Desert
The above is another one of my fine art photos which is currently hanging at Pandora’s backpack. I captured this image near the alder springs area outside of Sisters, Oregon. I met lots of new Bend residents at the show virtually all of who are living in Bend for the outdoor experiences that are available here. Having the Deschutes River, the high desert, old growth ponderosas, and the Cascade Mountains all within minutes of each other and minutes of Downtown Bend make this an amazing place for me to live.
Middle Sister, North Sister, Mt Washington, Three Fingered Jack, and Mt. Jefferson as seen from Tam McArthur Rim
This is yet another fine art image hanging at Pandora’s backpack and yet another reason I feel lucky to live and work in Central Oregon. An endless supply of beautiful photography subjects and some amazing sunsets are nothing to complain about. The above photograph was taken from Tam McArthur Rim high on the flanks of Central Oregon’s Broken Top Mountain in the Oregon Cascades. The sunset was clearly stunning but the view is always grand from this location. From left to right are Middle Sister, North Sister, Mt. Washington, Three Fingered Jack, and Mt. Jefferson. It is truly an amazing volcanic viewpoint.
If any of you are interested in seeing more of my work in person, please stop by Pandora’s backpack where my work is semi-permanently displayed. It is located at the On Bond street in the St. Clair building in downtown Bend.
Central Oregon Virtual Autumn Road-Trip
As our daylight shortens, the colors fade and hard frosts glaze my lawn nightly, I submit that Fall, perhaps my favorite season has officially come to an end. I would argue that autumn os our most under rated season in the High Desert of Central Oregon. The core of Bend is awash in the yellows and reds of maples and the oranges of mountain ash. Riparian zones along the Deschutes River are ablaze with the reds of red osier dogwoods and the yellows of alders. The Santiam and Mckenzie Rivers are second to nowhere for the intensity of their vine maples. Anyone who has driven over Santiam Pass in October can attest to the splendor of lava fields aglow with vine maples in full seasonal regalia. I’ve put together a small collection of images celebrating the autumn color of the Central Oregon area. Some of these images were captured in previous years while some were just weeks ago. For emphasis, I’ll take you on a virtual road trip, leaving from my front door. We’ll wonder a couple blocks away to Bend’s pride and joy, Drake Park and Mirror Pond. I rarely take photos of scenes that have houses or obvious indications of human habitation but for Mirror Pond I make an exception. When My wife , Debbie and I were planning on leaving the East coast, I stumbled upon a Bend Chamber of Commerce website with Mirror Pond as it’s lead shot. I was smitten! Imagine glaciated volcanoes framed by huge Ponderosa pines edging the wild and scenic Deschutes River right in the heart of Bend’s downtown area. Wow! I knew where I wanted to live. Below is an autumn sunrise shot from the location that sold me on Bend.
Autumn sunrise over Bend, Oregon's Mirror Pond
From Bend we hop into our fuel efficient hybrid vehicle (this is Oregon after all) and head west on highway 20 towards the storied Metolius River and the quaintly rustic town of Camp Sherman. Below is an image I’ve never published before. I enjoy the Ponderosa trees that partially define the Metolius basin and the golden fringe enhancing the rivers elegantly curving shores. I’m going to paraphrase a section I read from a fishing guide about the Metolius River which I think also applies to photographing the Metolius basin. ”If you can’t enjoy time spent in exploring the Metolius, you have no soul.” Perhaps a bit extreme but people who are fortunate enough to have spent time along the Metolius’ shores will admit that it is a truly special place whether fishing, photographing or exploring.
Central Oregon's Metolius River fringed by golden shores and saluted by land locked ponderosa trees.
Next we continue west over the lava fields of Santiam Pass and down to the diminutive community of Marion Forks. The following image is from the shores of the North Santiam River slightly west of the cascade crest. I love the strong vertical pattern contrasting with the technicolor display.
Autumn colors and patterns along the North Santiam river
The following image is also along the Santiam River. I make an annual visit to this vine maple and its double layer effect. One layer of varied color and literal layers of branches gracefully extending beyond the river’s banks. There’s something about this expressive tree and its gorgeous annual display that always makes my return visits worth while.
Expressive vine maple overhanging the banks of the North Santiam River, in the Oregon Cascades.
Next I move along to the McKenzie River and one of my favorite autumn scenes. This image is also about texture and color. It was an amazing view and made a wonderful fine art print with its combination of delicacy, vibrancy and and compostion. I love the flowing feel offered by the moss streaming down upon the vine maples akin to the rain that gently fell upon me as I captured this image. I returned to this location four times before I found the desired synergy of color, texture and light.
Vine maples in autumn adornment merge with cascading moss in the Oregon Cascades.
Next we proceed to Scott Lake, near McKenzie Pass. Every year the Huckleberry bushes along the Lakes shore put on a display that is muted by the drama of the distant snow-covered cascade mountains .
Scott Lake in autumn color reflecting the three sisters(from left to right) North Sister, Middle Sister, and South Sister.
Now traveling east, we pass Belknap Crater the martian-like lava flows of McKenzie Pass and make a quick stop at yet another surreal alpine scene. the following image is a jumble of textures and color as Huckleberries, Blueberries and willows intertwine in front of a lodgepole pine tree audience.
blueberry, huckleberry and willow mix in an alpine meadow near McKenzie Pass.
Now we progress back toward the town of Bend stopping just shy at Tumalo State Park, one of my formerly secret autumn locations. On certain years, like the one from the image below, the color can be outstanding and the scenery is always pleasant , even in less than optimal years.
Autumn color along an oxbow bend in Central Oregon's Tumalo State Park.
Passing through my beloved city of Bend, we now turn west on Galveston street and turn west towards Tumalo Creek. The following image was taken with cutest and sweetest assistant possible, my daughter, Emma. It was raining hard and I fought with water spots on my lens for quite some time before capturing the silky flow of Tumalo Falls and the pastels hues of the surrounding riparian environment. We got drenched but I got the shot from an Iconic Central Oregon location.
Central Oregon's Tumalo Falls in Autumn
Finally, we meander down to the Deschutes River and its famed River Trail where I captured this image of the river in full autumn color. I recently licensed this image to Orvis, the fly-fishing company for use in one of their stores. I love the color, the flow patterns, and the lava background which in part helps to define this special area of the world that I call home.
Central Oregon's Deschutes River in full autumn color.
It should be understood that I did not capture all of these images in the same year, much less the same day. Having said that, this trip can easily be taken in one day and beautiful color can almost always be found somewhere along the way in the month of October and early November.
Oregon Cascade Mountain Gallery
High Desert Print Gallery
Trees and Wildflower Prints Gallery
Rivers, Lakes and Waterfalls Gallery
All content © 2010 by Mike Putnam Photography