It has been a while....

That is so very true, it has been quite some time sine I have written anything for this blog. It is not that I have forgotten, been to busy, or decided not to, its just so very complicated to get blogger to function well with my MAC's. In fact, it is incredibly hard to manage a photo blog using a mac. I have used software to help write posts, but it kept failing. Each piece of software I would try, inevitably would just fail me. The other issue being that I am using blogger and not wordpress. Everyone knows that wordpress comes with ease when you sign up, but I had chose to work with blogger when I began this blog back in 2009. I was using a pc platform with windows live edit, I believe. That made posting images simple and easy. No confusion. No Fuss. Just images and posts.

Moving forward.. We are halfway through January and Holyoke is going through some major changes. For the first time in years, I mean a long time, Holyo

ke is being discussed, very frequent thanks to Alex Morse, the City Council, and the citizens that have a vested interest in creating a New Holyoke. Holyoke being a former Post Industrial City is moving forward seeing better and brighter days. As a beacon of light emanates from the Holyoke, every other city in Western Ma should be envious of the strides that Holyoke is taking. A city with much more possibilities for growth, reward, and prosperity, Holyoke outshines every other city at the moment. That is not to say that Holyoke is better than any where else, it is a statement that places value in what Holyoke has to offer. Unlike other cities, Holyoke is a diverse community with active citizens that are dedicated themselves to creating positive change and boost the city to a higher plateau. Holyoke is coming from grey-er days. Days of violence, arson, high unemployment rates, high teen pregnancy, and abandoned buildings. I have met many more optimistic people than pessimistic people, but there is still a school of thought that is lead to such beliefs, Are we going to see a better Holyoke. Well, if you can't see that the answer is yes, I would strongly recommend a second look. Perhaps a closer glance at how Holyoke is really is a diverse community comprised of people creating and generating a change. It has been happening for years now. One of the greatest things that I have heard in a while came in conversation today, "People are no longer afraid to come down here. They are no longer afraid of the down town section." And it is true. More and more people seek to view the beauty that is Holyoke. And there is a lot of beauty. Not just because I see it once and a while or because there is a few features that are pretty, but because there is so much beauty in the city, that you can see it at just about any time of the day. But of course, you have to make an effort to see it, understand it, and most importantly, appreciate it.

As a Professional Photographer I am concerned with how images represent and speak about their subject matter and content. Each composition has a story, a visual narrative that can speak and create an understanding with its viewer. I have been in the process of organizing my images as I am setting to launch a website in the next two weeks. It has been a long time coming, but the site is almost already. There of coures will be a Holyoke section listed under Social Documentary. However, I am providing a link here, Holyoke On Flickr, that has a small collection of my images. I implore you to investigate, read, study, and visualize the city in which we love so much. The city that we are a part of. The city we call home. Photography is a vehicle for communicating, sharing what we see, and creating a visual dialog. For me it is pretty simple, I am visually representing the city that I see. The city that I hope we can all see. The city we are all a part of.

Photos Copyright Jeffrey Byrnes

jeffreybphotography.com

Thank you.

Holyoke Canal Walk "Fair"

To be fair (no pun intended) is to say that the turn out on the Canal Walk Fair, was, well just that, "fair." You can say it very simply as, poor advertising and marketing of the event. It was great day for such an event. It was sunny, it was beautiful, it was slight unseasonably warm, yet a great day to have been able to make it out. Last year our studio was located right there on the Canal Walk and we knew about this even well in advance. Our studio is a block away now and news never made it down there. I found out late on Friday that the event was taking place. I had not seen a word of it advertised on the web. Facebook of course failed to notify me of such event. But, I must say, it was a good turn out in terms of vendors. I expect the Holyoke Sun will have a nice article about it. I snapped a few photos while I navigated around and spoke with familiar faces.

Alex Morse came out in support. He was quickly engaged into a conversation about his ideas and views.

Alex was handing out buttons that say: "I Love Holyoke" I first saw this button on his shirt when Alex was at the Crush Block Party. I was pretty happy when he handed me one.

 

Among the vendors were a number of artists. Each artist had their works available for purchase. One portrait artist was also set up to draw a rendition of you for a fair price. Everywhere you turned there was a little bit of creativity being marketed and sold. One such vendor, Elton Braithwaite was sculpting and carving into wood. Standing in the sun, Elton carved away with his tools as people stopped and admired his skill and craft as he turned, tapped, hammered, and brushed away the wood chips leaving behind an image imbedded into the wood.

Pausing for a moment, Elton looks at his piece with admiration.

 

I get all the frames for my studio and our clients done from a local framer in town. Debbie, the owner of The Muse Custom Framing and Gallery was a vendor for the Canal Fair. If you are not familiar with The Muse, I urge you to take a visit. She does more than just frame your works, photos, art, she has an entire line of custom matts, gifts, and Holyoke memorabilia. She is located at 220 S Water St, just under the 391 Underpass, off of Main St.

I firmly believe that something beautiful can be amplified by where you place it. This car stuck out and was the subject of a few quick conversations. I took liberty in making my way over and making a few portraits of this fine automobile. Including one little panorama.

 

All in all, it was great day in Holyoke. To end a beautiful day, I joined friends for a little football and food.

Holyoke Townie Stickers

Have you ever seen those clever little stickers that say Townie Holyoke, MA, and thought, "I want one of those?" Well you can get one by clicking this image on the right hand side of the site.

Wednesday Sunset

Wednesday evening after finishing up our last senior portrait session in the studio I left with my business partner to go run an errand. The setting sun perfectly and poeticaly lit the evening up. The moving dust and dirt from the construction on the high performance computer center created a beautiful display as it passed through the light. It caught my attention as we were passing. The haze from the heat on Wednesday left us with an incredible sunset, one of few we have left as summer is folding up.

Here are a few photos.

Holyoke Dam: Night After Irene

I made some photos just after the rain let up on Sunday. I also made a few the following evening at the Robert E. Barrett Fishway in Holyoke. I produce a video, which you can also see on Lenshare, from both sides of the dam. To view both the photos and the videos, visit: http://www.lenshare.com/2011/08/hurricane-irene_31.html

 

Here are a few I made on Monday night. The cloud you see just above the river was forming due to the temperature and the moisture. It was rather interesting to watch the cloud form and move higher up.

 

Road Work

Whether your passing through quickly, have a destination down the street, or you need to make your way through the city for some other form of business, Holyoke has its share of constriction and repairs being made. Most of the road work is not very troublesome, but necessary. At the corner of Race and Dwight, ( the intersection where my business resides ) was being worked on yesterday. The section of Dwight to Main was closed due to the construction. The repair was mandatory and very much needed, as when it rains, the streets and drains back up. In the winter this creates lots of ice. When it rains, this create puddles of marginal size, making parking a wet journey. Here is a quick image made as a response to the construction as I was passing through Holyoke yesterday, going from one shoot to another.

Nice Day

It is a beautiful, warm, summer day. Get up. Go for a walk. Take a gender at the beauty of the summer before it is gone.