HDR Photography - Glenn Norris

High Dynamic Range photography seems to effortlessly fuse the art of photography with image processing and computer graphics, thus creating stunning photographs that have a distinct "painterly" effect. When looking at great HDR photography, you're never quite sure whether you're viewing a photo or a painting - thus the growing appeal of this distinct style of photography.

New Hampshire photographer, Glenn Norris, has been perfecting his HDR techniques over the years, and creates striking images that are visual dichotomies of both beauty and ruin, in addition to more traditional photography. Each one of Glenn's recent HDR photographs evoke strong emotion and each one generates a unique emotional response.


"Extravagance" by Glenn Norris

One would think HDR is a relatively new technique, brought on by the advent of computer technology. Surprisingly enough, the high dynamic range technique was first developed in the 1930's and 40's and some of the earliest HDR images were published in Life magazine.

So what is HDR, exactly?

The modern HDR technique starts with a series of anywhere between 3 and 9 images, taken in quick succession, and at different exposure levels. When dealing with live models, it requires they 'take a deep breath' and hold very still until the shots are complete. The images are then uploaded into a computer and overlapped, using a technique called 'tone mapping'. The end result makes a photograph's details pop in hyper-reality and gives the illusion of the strokes of a paintbrush.


"Self-Absorbed", by Glenn Norris

To learn moer about HDR photography or to view more of Glenn's work, visit glennnorrisphotography.com

Picasso's Women

A few months ago, I finished reading "Picasso: Creator and Destroyer" by Arianna Huffington. Although I have never been a fan of the man's work, I chose to read this book in order to perhaps understand the social phenomenon known as Picasso. I walked away from the read liking his works even less than before. However, one wonderful surprise was the discovery of two very talented women who, unfortunately, allowed him into their lives.


Silence by Dora Maar

Dora Maar and Francoise Gilot each had more talent and vision in their toenails than Picasso's entire body of work. Unfortunately, their work is not found as readily as that of the man they were loved and dominated by. Dora Maar was a photographer and powerful muse to the Parisian Surrealist movement of the 1920's, long before she met Picasso. Francoise Gilot was a painter, and the only woman with enough strength to walk away from him and continue on with her life.


Dead Rooster on a Piece of Newspaper by Francoise Gilot

Although the biography of Picasso was no doubt an interesting read, and indeed helped me to understand his art better, the real treasure of the book was discovering these two talented women. I wonder what more these ladies would have created if not roadblocked by the massive ego of a little man.

Egyptian Revival

So now that the entire month of April has evaporated into a puff of air, I am back to the blog and my continued pursit of artistic inspirations. These days, I am most fascinated by the Egyptian Revival movement. It is brought on by a looming project our art guild is undertaking this spring, where we will be painting tromp l'oeil onto the facade of a locally restored historic theater. This theater's architecture is in Egyptian Revival style, so I thought, "why not carry the facade over to match the architectural integrity?"My next though was, "what the heck is Egyptian Revival?"

...So the quest begins....


Squeezed in between the Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements, Egyptian Revival fared little success as a lasting style, but it had an impact nonetheless. Interestingly enough, this movement experienced three waves of popularity. The first was brought on by Napolean's "domination" of Egypt at the beginning of the 1800's and is seen most often in jewelry and interior furnishings. The third, and by far most successful wave, was brought on in the early 1920's by the discovery of King Tut's cursed tomb. Interestingly enough, the second wave in the mid 1800's seems to have occured almost randomly and without the influence of any singular event, and is seen most often in memorials, cemeteries and prisons. Perhaps the most recognized modern building of an Egyptian style is the Luxor Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, although it should be mentioned that this structure in no way reflects the subtlety or class of earlier movements.



In addition to cemeteries, prisons and mausoleums, this Egyptian style was very prevalent in American theaters. Perhaps the best known and most well preserved of such theaters is Grauman's Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, CA -from the same man responsible for the ever-famous tourist magnet Chinese Theater. Sadly enough, of the 66 Egyptian-styled theaters in the entire world, only 19 are still open today and only two are currently in the throes of renovation.

Shock Art

The most common question when looking at Natalia Edenmont's photography is 'hmm...I wonder how she did that?" The most frequent answer? She kills the animals for her art. I wonder if that's true...



Some call it art, most are outraged. Sounds like a fine example of shock art to me. She says she kills these animals, we believe her, we get upset. Mission accomplished. She is now becoming a celebrity. Whether she does or does not kill the animals for her photography, she has guaranteed her place in art history despite the fact that her images are empty and fluffy. I bet PETA will have a grand old time with her, should she venture to America, eh?


The question that comes up over and over again when in discussion with my friends , is 'what is art?' Here again, with Natalia's work, we are challenged to define the meaning and purpose of "art". There are always a fair amount of egotists with a bag full of charisma and tricks who manage to couch-surf their way to fame. There are the tortured souls constantly exorcising their demons. There are classically trained artists and color-by-number artists and people who should have just never picked up a pencil to begin with. And then, we have the shock artists. Nice play, Natalia!

William Russell Walker

Walker is modern artist, about my age, who is currently living and painting in Georgia. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, Walker received a BFA in Columbus, Ohio.

Walker's works has been shown in several Florida galleries and you can view permanent collections in both Savannah, Georgia and Orlando, Florida.





I adore the old look of his imagery and the warm, muted colors he uses in each of his pieces. A few of his pieces have a decidedly religious flavor, with images of bishops, Christ and forgiveness. Others depict gorgeous portraits and fascinating images of horses.

Suehiro Maruo

muzan-e - a subset of Japanese ukiyo-e, depicting violence and other atrocities.



Mauro, a self-taught manga artist from Japan, has a fascination with deformities, 'circus freaks', birth defects and human oddities and his work has a cult following around the globe. Because many of his illustrations depict graphic sex and violence, his work is often deemed too graphic for many popular Japanese manga publications. Mauro is often considered one of the greatest retro-artists working in the manga field today.



Mauro's illustrations have been featured in the liner art of jazz legend John Zorn's 'Naked City' albums. His book, 'Mr. Arashi's Amazing Freak Show', has been adapted into an animated film, but has received little release. His work is often referred to as 'erotic-grotesque'.

Lithium Picnic

'Philip's work harnesses the three components of great photography: understanding lighting, knowing composition, and bringing out the beauty of his subjects. I love being able to look through his eyes. He's one of my favorite photographers out there, period. ' -Steve Diet Goedde, photographer



The photographical works of Phillip Warner are some of the most beautiful and tastefully executed fetish imagery I have seen. This oft-published and award-wining photographer runs the Lithium Picnic studio, based in Houston, Texas. Photoshoots, however, very often happen in LA, NYC and Miami. I have never been interested in model photography or fashion photography, per se, but I find Lithium Picnic's work riveting. I suppose it's because he takes fringe and makes it gorgeous. That is ever-so-much more appealing than your everyday bulimic junkie runway model!