Love My Typos, Don't You !!

Just a note about my last post, smiling sofa, I guess you figured that out. Sorry I never said I could type, but I try.

I have a reception coming up on July 5, 2008 from 2-6PM at Gallery 4463 in Acworth Ga. The gallery is located at 4463 Cherokee Street in Acworth. This is a gallery I joined recently and this is my first time with work showing. There are about 30 artists represented in the gallery, with many mediums. Please come out and support me and all the artists.

I tend to photograph a little better than I type.

Mike

A Smiking Sofa & Some Trash !!

These images were made above the gallery at The Ritz Theatre in Brunswick, GA. The sofa really grabbed my attention as soon as I came into the room. The tear in the front was an added addition to the image.

The trash cans were very graphic and the light through the window was amazing. I took about 20 images from all angles and these were the best. The light in the upstairs area was unbelievably as you will see in my later posts from the same shoot.

Sorry to be so late posting today, but I was unable to upload any photos for a few hours today, some kind of an error with the software. Have a great night, will post early tomorrow morning.

Mike

Beauty and Ugly!!

Just a quick post today, I'm very busy. Here is a touch of two worlds, both taken at the same location in downtown Brunswick, GA. I hope you like these two. I will try to get on with the Ritz photos later today.

The Ritz !!

The actual reason for my trip to the Georgia coast was to meet the director of the Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association, Heather Heath. I was meeting her and looking at the gallery to help make decisions about the number of prints I need for my show October 3 - November 26, 2008.

The gallery is in the old Ritz Theatre in downtown Brunswick and while we were there Heather mentioned the upper stories of the theatre had not been rennovated, if you know my work at all that was a photo op I could not pass up.

This was the first image I made on the second floor, you can tell artists and actors frequent this place. It turned out to be a treasure trove of photographic opportunity for me. I will post more images later today. Have a great morning.

Mike

Last Brunswick Downtown!!

These images were all shot around the Glynn county courthouse, as I said before it"s beautiful. These are all midday shots, but the light is still passable. The plant is also some kind of palm, with the first one being the inside close up. I'm through with the downtown stuff so we will be moving on later today. Gotta go for now.

Mike

Downtown Brunswick, GA

The Glynn county courthouse is one of the most elegant and well landscaped I've ever seen. The grounds are loaded with palms and all kinds of flowers. The courthouse itself is drop dead gorgeous and very photogenic even at midday. We had the intentions of coming back in the afternoon to photograph it in better light, but didn't make it. Too much to photograph and not enough time. Will post later today, have a great day.

Mike

Brunswick Trip !!

These images are from the docks and the farmer's market near there. The first image was really great, a shrimp boat that hadn't been to sea in years and Old Glory was still flying proud. The next imsge is just watermelons in some cool light. Madagascar palm in bloom, at least I was told that was the name of this plant, they are very common on the Georgia coast. The last image is just more melons in cooler light. Will continue to post more images from my trip as they are processed. Have a great night.

Mike

Brunswick Shipyard !!

These were the first photographs taken after we arrived in Brunswick. These boats never leave the docks. They are shrimp and fishing boats, diesel fuel has put these older boats to rest. They can no longer afford to go out because the price of fuel is more than they could ever get for the catch. What a shame as these are the older boats with lots of character. The other docks are covered with new million dollar yachts and fishing boats that are apparently mainly for pleasure. One of the older boats hasn't been out in 3 years.

These photos were taken around 10:30 AM, not the best of light not the worst of light. We spent about 1 1/2 hours here and then went to the local farmers market. Will post some of those later today.

Mike

Recovering!!

Sorry for the delay in posting, but I'm still recovering from my 4AM till 10PM three day shoot in coastal Georgia. Nobody deserves to have so much fun. Brunswick, St. Simons Island, Sea Island and Savannah in 3 days and we just scratched the surface.

I also set the dates for my show at the Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association. The show will be hanging in The Ritz theatre in downtown Brunswick, GA. Directions and address to follow closer to the show.

Below is the first image I shot before sunrise at the Boneyard on Jekyll Island. We shot for about 3 hours and really had a blast. More images tto follow later.

Mike

Brunswick Trip!!

Just a quick post. It's 4:45 AM headed for the Boneyard on Jekyll Island, will post later. Having a great time so fa. Wake up everybody!!!

Mike

On The Road To The Georgia Coast!!

I left home this morning at 3:15 AM on my road trip to the Georgia coast. I will be in Brunswick at about 10-11 AM this morning. I have a long time friend and mentor Bill Kettering along for the ride. He is the man responsible for me picking up my first SLR camera in 1974. Bill has been a photographer since the early 70's.

I am meeting with the director of the Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association to review the space for my show October 3 - November 26, 2008 at the Ritz Theatre in downtown Brunswick, GA. We will be photographing all along the Golden Isles area and especially Jekyll Island.

Mid day Friday we will be driving to Savannah, GA for the last 2 days of our short, but hopefully productive shoot. We will be photographing downtown, River Street and of course Bonaventure Cemetary. Should be as much fun as you are allowed to have in 4 days.

Check back as I will be posting photos as the trip goes on. Have a great weekend!!

Mike

Just a couple of images from a trip I made to Rome, GA earlier this spring. We went as a group from the Paulding Photography Club, if anyone is interested in becoming a member you can contact me . I am the founder and president.

Sorry I've been a little slack on posting lately, lot going on with my galleries and work. I am leaving for Brunswick,GA at 4AM tomorrow morning and will try to post images from Jekyll Island, Brunswick and Savannah

as I shoot them. Hope to have some great stuff. I am meeting with the director of the Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association for a show October 3 - November 26, 2008. Hope some of you can travel there for the reception, what a beautiful area to visit. Will be posting tomorrow from the road.

Mike

One More Flower!!

Just one more flower shot for today. Don't know the name of this one either, it's another roadside dweller. Saw this while photographing some horses in Kingston, GA. I thought this was a very unique flower, it has some amazing detail in the center. I won't post anymore flowers until later. Hope you enjoy. Shot with Canon EOS 1DS MarkII, 24-70mm.

Mike

Summer Flowers

I was just killing time on Saturday and saw these flowers. I have admired the orange wild butterfly milkweed for years, mainly because it grows in the most inhospitable terrain I have ever seen. It tends to grow in a dry, dusty area. It is one of the most beautiful plants you acn see late in the spring. The pink balls I have no idea what they are called, if anyone knows, please send your comments and let me know the name of these. Hope you enjoy these, I will post more later.

Mike

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!

Just a quick post. Happy Father's Day to all fathers. I had a wonderful time this morning with my Dad, Mom, daughters Mandy & Olivia, son Nathan and son-in-law Scott. Nothing like having the swhole family present on such a beautiful day in Georgia. Again Happy Fathers Day to all fathers everywhere.

In God I Trust

Her is a color version of a different angle on the morning post. I hope you all like it, as I said this morning I have been passing this at least twice a week for a long time. Just goes to show how you can put things off and the next thing you know they are gone. I will try not to put shots off again, but oh well, sh*t happens!! Try to do better than me is my best advice to all.

Delivering Photographs to Rockmart Civic Arts Commission for a show which begins June 21, 2008 at the Rockmart Arts Gallery. Will have more info later.

Mike

A Shot From My Daily Travels

I have been driving by this scene for about 10 years now and every time I say "I need to shoot this before they tear it down". Well yesterday I finally did what I had been saying. I will put up the color version later today, but the B&W is very dramatic. It was shot with my Canon EOS 5D and a EF 24-70mm f2.8L lens @43mm. ISO 100, 1/500 sec. at f16. The file was converted in Lightroom and tweaked in the Grayscale Mix.

Mike

Hodges Mine

Just a small taste of this wonderful location in Bartow county in Northwest Georgia. It is an old abandoned iron ore mine. All the old pits have since filled with water and are populated with beaver. The water is a bright greenish blue and on good days the skies are beautiful. I will be posting more photos on Friday and over the weekend. If anyone would like to make a trip to this location contact me and I can give directions. It is well posted, but I went 3 times and was never bothered. I think mainly it's posted for people on ATV'S. It's absolutely gorgeous and only about 45 minutes from Atlanta. See everyone tomorrow.

Mike

Collins-Freeman Wedding Highlights

This is one of my favorite shots of the day. What an elegant bouquet and those beautiful little shoes. The wedding was wonderful and everyone was absolutely great. They made a beautiful couple. Just a small tear of happiness on the best of days. Ashley was a beautiful bride. What was going through her head as she held Josh's ring before putting it on his finger. They made a beautiful couple. And last but not least a little fun with the ringbearer and the groomsmen's cigar. LOL. The day was great and all had a wonderful time. We all hope Josh and Ashley have a lifetime of love and happiness.

BUSY WITH THE COLLINS-FREEMAN WEDDING!

Just a quick note today. The Gallery 4463 reception was great last night. Wonderful art work, food and some great sax by John Clemmer. We had a great showing of support and Ann Cockerill sold one painting.

If you are in the area, please visit the Paulding Fine Arts Gallery at 122 Main Street in downtown Dallas, GA. The Paulding Photography Club's 1st Annual Countywide Photography Competition is on display until July 5, 2008. The gallery is open Tuesday's from 11AM-3PM and Saturday's from 10AM-2PM.

I will be posting some photos of the Collins-Freeman Wedding tomorrow and Monday, so check back and see how we did.

Mike

Reception Tonight!!

It's Friday!! Just wanted to invite everyone to the reception at Gallery 4463 in Acworth, GA tonight. It's a wonderful gallery filled with talented artists of which I am a very new one. I am so new I do not have any work on display until July 2008, but I will be there tonight . Please come out and help support the gallery and all it's members.

The gallery is located at 4463 Cherokee Ave. in downtown Acworth, GA. Turn left or right at the only light in Acworth, follow the one way street and the gallery will be on your left at the stop sign. Looking forward to my first reception with the artists and please try to come by. The reception is 6:30-10:00 PM June 6,2008.

I will be busy shooting the Freeman-Collins wedding tomorrow and will try to post some images ASAP.

Mike

The Last Of Cave Springs!!

These are the last photos I will post from my Cave Springs shoot from February 2008. What a wonderful place to shoot, from the old school to the antique shops, park, cave and the city proper. I have yet to find a location I enjoyed as much as this one. Everyone should try to visit at least once. It is such a small laid back town with so much to see.

These photos were all taken inside and yet there is so much more to see. Be sure to visit the cave from which the cold clear spring water flows. People come from miles around to fill bottles and jugs of the cold water.

Anyone interested in visiting Cave Springs can goggle the city, but it located just north of Cedartown on Hwy. 1oo N. and is well worth the drive. All my work is available for sale online at Http://mnalleyphoto.com . Feel free to email me at mike@mnalleyphoto.com .

Thanks for checking out my blog.

Mike

More Cave Springs Images

Just a few more of my Cave Springs, GA. images that were made on a shoot on February 14, 2008. Cave Springs is the home of one of the first schools for the deaf. These buildings are all a part of this school. I went with the intentions of photographing the exteriors of the buildings, but I got lucky and met a city emplotee who allowed me access to all the buildings. They are in the process of renovating the school and I may be the last person to photograph them in this state.

One of the old buildings was a part of a study of the paranormal and had cameras set up for quite a few days to try and photograph any paranormal activity. Needless to say I was pretty glad I was there during daylight hours. I don't think I can remember a shoot where I came away with so many good images. It was a very enjoyable morning and I plan on returning in the near future and hopefully I can photograph the after renovation images also.

Mike

THIRD PLACE FINISH!!!

"She Got Leg" takes 3rd place in the Paulding Photography Club's First Annual Countywide Photography Competition. We had 33 entries from 13 entrants in the competition. The judges were Paul Craighead, the chairman of the Rockmart Art Gallery, Mark Hutchison and John Clemmer from Gallery 4463 in Acworth, GA. The show will hang at the Paulding Fine Arts Gallery located at 122 Main Street in downtown Dallas, GA, from June 1st through July 5, 2008. The gallery is open tuesday's from 11AM-3PM and Saturday's from 10AM-2PM.

Congratulations to all who participated and all who won awards. 1st place-Karen Kendrick-Lanternman's Mill, 2nd place-Brad Haven-Autumn in Tellico, 3rd place-Mike Nalley-She Got Leg, Honorable Mention-Donna Stansbury-Stick a Fork in It.

Anyone interested in The Paulding Photography Club can visit our website at http://pauldingphotographyclub.org .

Mike

We are up and runnung!!!

Well folks, this is the first step in my blogging life. I hope to provide everyone with photography tips, photoshop & lightroom tips and lots of photographs from my studio and location work. Also lots of FINE ART and info on my shows, seminars, classes and workshops.

Now a little info on me. My name is Mike Nalley and I was first introduced to photography in 1974 by a close friend, who is still a local photographer in the Metro Atlanta area. I fell so in love with the medium that 5 years later I persued and successfully acheived an Associate of Arts in Photography from the Art Institute of Atlanta in 1980.

I owned a successful studio in Marietta, GA for a few years and made ends meet, met lots of gorgeous models and enjoyed tons of commercial assignments. Shortly after I met a wonderful girl, got married, helped raise 3 fantastic children and lost the itch.

Hooray for February 2006 when I spent 1 month on St. George Island outside Apalachicola, Florida with film cameras in hand. I shot about 30 rolls of B&W and Transparency film, of which I had 1 really good and printable image, but I had my shooting eye back and my love for the art back. I have yet to slow down since then.

I now shoot almost completely with Canon digital equipment and own a studio in Dallas, GA. I have shown in numerous galleries in Metro Atlanta and have had work shown in many competitions locally. I have a one man show scheduled for October 3- November 26, 2008 at the Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association in Brunswick, GA. Also another one man show at the Carrollton Cultural Arts Center in Carrollton, GA.

Hope to see all of you sometime at events and gatherings.

Mike