Gumballs

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

This weekend was pleasantly warm and a walk outside was in order. It's the end of January though, so things are still pretty brown as seen in this still life of gum tree balls and leaves.

Friday from the Files

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh0

File photo of the pier at Wrightsville Beach, near Wilmington, North Carolina. One of those places where I would like to be.

Test Shot

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Phil Allison stands in for a lighting test on a recent commercial job in Greensboro. Phil has been working with me for several years and is a great assistant as well as a top notch photographer in his own right. In this business, you're only as good as the people you surround yourself with.

Old Blow Torch

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Still life of an old blow torch in the machine shed.

Saturday Night Music

The family and I spent a wonderful Saturday night in Grays Chapel listening to neighbor Gerald Hampton and his friends Molasses Creek from Ocracoke Island play their music in celebration of 15 years of the Goat Lady Dairy. Good food and good fellowship was had by all.

(Photographs copyright 2011 b Dan Routh}

Seed Cleaner

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Old seed cleaner. Julian, North Carolina.

Friday Portrait

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Portrait of younger son Devin, before his trip back to New Hampshire.

Matches

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Old box of matches from my green table series.

Kitchen Still Life

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Detail of my wife's lemon meringue pie.

Warmer Temperatures

A rise in the temperatures on Sunday brought the farm cats out of their usual winter resting spots. Tiger (above) and Pablo were out enjoying the sun.

(Photographs copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Mason Jar

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Still-life photograph from a walk around the farm on Sunday. Grays Chapel, North Carolina.

Pig Picking

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Neighbor Tommy Routh works on a 360 pound pig he and his son-in-law Bobby cooked all night, last week in Grays Chapel, North Carolina.

Spare Tire

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Still-life from an old Ford Model A at Routh Oil Company in Lineberry, North Carolina.

In The Snow

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Winter view of the smokehouse across the road at my Grandpa's.

Teacher

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Dr. Cathy D. Kea, professor of education at North Carolina A&T University, works with a group of young students recently at their school in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Airport Goodbyes

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

During the holidays this year, the whole family was together. Older son Tristan and his wife live with us and younger son Devin was in from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. Every flight in means a flight out and Mom having to deal with the goodbyes.

.22 Cartridges

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Still-life image of some old .22 caliber cartridges that belonged to my Grandfather.

Local Faces

A short stop by Routh Oil Co in Lineberry, North Carolina yielded a few portraits opportunities on an afternoon last week. Eric Routh above and Dori Routh and Harry Whitaker below.

(Photographs copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Grandma's Shears

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Still-life of my grandmother's pinking shears. She made almost all of her own clothes.

Farm House Detail

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

Architectural detail of an old farm house in northern Randolph County, North Carolina.

On Being a Greensboro Photographer in 2010

(Photograph copyright 2011 by Dan Routh)

We are here in 2011 and I guess it’s time to make a few comments on this blog and what it was like to be a photographer in Greensboro in 2010. Photographically for me, 2010 was really a pretty good year. I shot a lot, especially for this blog, and I shot a lot of photographs that meant something to me on a personal level. I started this blog as a marketing tool for my business, but somehow it has begun to evolve into something else. Because the economy has kept me close to home, I have shot close to home and discovered that the community around Grays Chapel is full of opportunities to produce documentary images of the places, folks and things that are here. I’ve begun to look at my neighbors more seriously and I’ve discovered there are a lot of wonderful people doing wonderful things right here. I hope to continue documenting these people and things, and I appreciate all the very kind comments I have received on many of the images I have posted. If I can make someone feel something or remember something through my images, then I have succeeded as a photographer.

On the business front, 2010 was not nearly as wonderful. I have been producing commercial photography for some 34 years, and I can honestly say that this was the worst year business-wise I have ever had. Face it, the economy sucks, especially in the Greensboro area, and many clients that I used to do work for on a regular basis have either disappeared or pulled back seriously. At the same time, prospective clients have seen that they can shop around for the lowest price and many, many folks in my profession are more than willing to work for anything, regardless of their costs or what their work is really worth. And finally, I have seen some clients just settling for less quality in general. With the rise of mediocrity in our culture, sometimes all a client wants or needs is an image, and any image will do, hence the rise in the use of low cost or no cost microstock sales.

What will 2011 bring? I honestly don’t know. I do know that things can’t keep going the way they are now for professional photographers in general and me specifically. Hopefully the economy will improve and things will start to thaw out in the advertising and editorial markets. Perhaps I will finally learn how to adapt to this changing market; believe me, I’m trying. Perhaps I will reach a crossroads and have to make a turn. That is a possibility. I do know that no matter what happens, I will continue to shoot as much as I can, because besides being a professional photographer, I am just a photographer, first and foremost.