In a long-overdue move, Etsy has added direct support for purchases using a credit card. Of course, I’ve accepted credit cards on Etsy since the beginning, but the process included a redirect to Paypal for completing the sale. The new direct sales support will allow art buyers to more easily complete a purchase without leaving the Etsy site.
I’ve signed up for the service and expect to be accepting credit cards for direct sales within seven to ten days.
See my Etsy site at www.etsy.com/shop/keithdotson or click on an image in the mini site below!
Thanks for reading. ~Keith
“Spirits Divided” Petroglyphs made by the Jornada Mogollon people of prehistoric New Mexico
There’s no doubt we live in troubled times. With wars and recessions and changing climates and hostile politics and all the other turbulence, it’s easy to feel things are worse than ever before. Pop culture is currently full of references to the fact that the Mayan calendar ends at the end of 2012, portending what some believe may be the end of the world. Apocalypse movies are back in vogue.
I find comfort in history. Taking the long view helps keep things in perspective. This certainly isn’t the worst of times, nor is it the end of time. Mankind has faced challenges throughout our existence (black plague anyone?) and looking at the lives of the ancients reminds me that our problems aren’t insurmountable. As a history buff and a photographer, I’m fascinated by the places where ancient peoples still talk to us. Seeing the mounds, markings, and structures they built helps me feel part of a long continuum — reminds me my earth-shattering problems aren’t so bad in the big picture.
Ancient cultures were often wise, resourceful, creative, and very much in tune with their environments. They were also often superstitious, crude, violent, biased, warlike, and myopic. In short, they were just humans like us. Yet amazingly they found ways to survive, thrive and even flourish. We will too. Hopefully we’ll leave behind something as beautiful and awe-inspiring as some of them did.
See more of my photographs at www.keithdotson.com.
Thanks for reading. ~Keith
Ozone Falls State Natural Area is home to one of the tallest waterfalls in Tennessee and in the eastern US.
Falls Creek meanders (and depending on rainfall, rushes) over a rocky streambead and drops 110 feet into a rocky natural bowl, where a shallow pond acts as a swimming hole. The pond flows underground and escapes downstream into a river. With it’s ancient, mossy trees, misty air, and massive tumbled boulders, the park gives the feeling of another place and time, perhaps long ago. In fact, the atmosphere was perfect for the filmmakers who shot the movie “Jungle Book” on the site.
The area above the falls includes hiking trails and very little signage to warn hikers of the edge. People have fallen over and amazingly, some have survived. Because of mist from the falls and moss on the rocks, the entire area is a hazardous hike.
Ozone Falls State Natural Area has two sections, the area above the falls, and the area below the falls. The upper level is close to the small parking lot, is an easy hike and other than the precipitous fall at the edge, is a quite accessible. The base of the falls is accessed via a slippery, rugged, and difficult hike downwards over boulders and muddy slopes. If you’re able to get down to the bottom, it’s worth the trip.
Below are my photos of the area around the falls, including my black and white photographs, which are available as finely crafted art prints.
See more of my photographs at my Website here, or visit me on Facebook.
Thanks for reading.
~ Keith
Directions to Ozone Falls:
From Nashville travel East on I-40 and exit at the Crab Orchard exit. Turn left off the exit ramp and go to the intersection of U.S. Highway 70. From Knoxville go west on I-40 and exist at Crab Orchard. From Crab Orchard exit, turn right on U.S. Highway 70 going east. The highway takes you straight to Ozone Falls, which is on the right about four miles from the interstate exit.
Tennessee's Ozone Falls, 110 Feet Tall
The top of Ozone Falls, looking out from the edge. As you can see, there are no signs or guardrails to warn of the edge.
This dirt footpath above Highway 70 connects the upper level at the top of the falls to the trail down to the base of the falls.
Fine Art Prints:
All of the images below are available as stunningly printed black and white photographs, suitable for home or office decor. Prints are available in a variety of sizes and prices. Contact me for more information.
Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Old Tree at the Base of Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
At the Base of Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
At the Base of Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Rock Strata at Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Cave below Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Behind the Falls at Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Stratified Walls at Ozone Falls Black and White Photograph by Keith Dotson
Social sharing site Pinterest has become one of the fastest growing and most popular social sites of the past year. But questions have arisen about two things of great concern to photographers and others who create content: Pinterest’s terms of service, and copyright infringement.
Just this morning, I received an email from Pinterest that included this paragraph:
Our original Terms stated that by posting content to Pinterest you grant Pinterest the right for to sell your content. Selling content was never our intention and we removed this from our updated Terms.
In a separate bullet point, Pinterest says this:
We released simpler tools for anyone to report alleged copyright or trademark infringements.
For photographers, sites like Pinterest and Tumblr present a conundrum. Is it a fantastic way to spread awareness of your work and help build a reputation, or is it simply an avenue for your work to be used without due credit? I’ve dabbled in both Pinterest and Tumblr. My experience is that they might be fun, and build a small awareness of my work, but they rarely lead to click-throughs to my Website, and never contribute to sales… at least as far as I can tell. The culture of Pinterest even discourages using it as a venue for self-promotion.
What’s your opinion? Do you use Pinterest or Tumblr or other sites similar in function?
Photographers: Do you see these sites as promising tools or infringement quagmires?
Collectors: Do you find new artists on Pinterest or Tumblr? Would you ever purchase art based on an interaction or discovery of new art on the sites?
My sites are here listed here. Feel free to visit if you’re interested in seeing my work.
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/keith_dotson/
Tumblr: http://keithdotson.tumblr.com/
Thanks for reading. ~ Keith
One of the amazing things about being a photographer who works primarily outside is experiencing nature in all of its most beautiful moments. Unfortunately still photography can’t capture the full sensory experience… the sounds, the smells, the joyous feel of cool breezes or warm sunlight on your skin.
With that in mind, I recently recorded this beautiful and haunting chorus of frogs near a rural pond on a dark night. Unlike most of my posts, this one is aural rather than visual.
Enjoy a brief snippet of nature sounds with A Chorus of Frogs:
To see my photographs, visit my Website here, or come meet me on Facebook here.
Thanks for viewing.
~ Keith
One of my favorite film cameras is the Yashica Mat-124 G medium format film camera. The Mat-124 G uses 120 film, which produces 2 1/4 inch square negatives in 12 and 24 exposures. 120 film is still readily available online and it can be processed in a home darkroom or at several film labs across the US.
Like its more expensive and similarly designed cousins from Rolleiflex and other manufacturers, the Mat-124 G is a twin lens reflex camera, with the top lens feeding the image onto a ground glass in the view finder (illustrated below) and the bottom lens exposing the film. Well-made and sturdy, with excellent lenses, the Yashica Mat series provided an affordable entry-level path into medium format photography. The Yashica Mat-124 G was the last of the Yashica twin lens reflex cameras produced, and in spite of its old-fashioned appearance, it was manufactured until the mid-1980s.
The controls of the Yashica Mat 124-G
Yashica Mat 124 G defined
- The top lens provides an image to the viewfinder for focusing and composition.
- The bottom lens exposes the film.
- The dark blue area indicates the film advance winder. On 12-exposure film, the handle cranks one-half turn and returns back to its home position, priming the shutter for another shot.
- The green square shows the exposure counter window.
- The red square shows a 12 or 24, as a reminder to the number of exposures of film that you loaded into the camera.
- The dial inside pink square controls the shutter speed.
- The dial inside the aqua square controls the aperture setting.
- The shutter actuator is indicated by the yellow circle.
- Not shown: Above the lenses and the Yashica face plate, visible to the photographer from above, is a very effective light meter. This is the major innovation of the 124-G over it’s older brothers from the Yashica Mat line.
The left side of the Yashica-Mat 124 G
- The large knob is for focusing adjustment. Within the knob is a window that reminds you whether you’re shooting color or black and white film. The scale above the focusing knob is used to calculate approximate depth of field.
- The two, small silver-rimmed knobs are used to load film into the camera. The lower knob holds the spool of unexposed film, while the knob at top-right holds an empty spool to receive the exposed film. Unlike 35mm film, 120 film has no canister and therefore does not get rewound. Once the film is completely exposed, it’s safely wrapped inside a dense tail of paper that follows after the end of the film. Don’t worry. It works.
- The notched black cap covers the battery chamber.
Yashica Mat-124 G shown with the viewfinder hood opened and the focus magnifier raised.
Looking into the viewfinder of the Yashica Mat-124 G twin lens reflex camera.
Photographs shot with the Yashica Mat 124-G camera
The following images were scanned from negatives I exposed with this Yashica Mat-124 G camera. Only by looking at the full-size scans can you get a true sense of how sharp the Yashica glass can be, and the incredible amount of detail the medium format negatives can hold.
Winter Tree Atop Earthen Mound Built by Civil War Soldiers in 1863, at Fort Rosecrans, Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"Spokes" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"Scoreboard" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"Foggy Morning in the Back Pasture, Tennessee" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"Stones River Civil War Battlefield, Tennessee" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"Cannon at Fort Rosecrans - Murfreesboro TN" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"The Old Mill" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
"Roadside Memorial" Black and white photograph on Fuji Acros 100 ASA 120 Film. Copyright 2012 Keith Dotson. All rights reserved.
All the black and white photographs shown above are available as fine art prints. Contact me for pricing information.
And, be sure to visit my Website to see more of my work, or become a fan on my Facebook page here.
Thanks for reading!
~ Keith
Yes – that’s yours truly listed among the gallery photographers at bottom 
. Official Wallspace invitation text is republished below.
Official Opening Reception
Saturday March 3rd 7-10pm
607 N La Brea, LA, Ca 90036
one block south of Melrose
Wallspace has been open for over a month but now it is time to celebrate with an official opening night reception on Saturday March 3rd 7-10pm at 607 North La Brea (one block South of Melrose).
In conjunction with the day-long Miracle Mile Art Walk, wallspace invites you to come view wonderful work by Los Angeles-based artists, both emerging and established. Hung in a salon stye, we include over 300 pieces by 50 artists and photographers.
DJ Tesslove spinning and refreshments from 7-10pm.
All the best and look forward to seeing you.
Valda Lake
Wallspace
607 North La Brea
LA, CA 90046
Gallery direct: 323-930-0471
Email: art@wallspacela.com
www.wallspacela.com & www.graphicspaceonline.com
Wallspace Artists
amadea bailey, randall bass, mark benson, mb boissonault, hilary bond, mark brunner, cutter cutshaw, todd davis, shannon drake, ruben esparza, andrea fellers, sean finocchio, kim gritzer, patrick hammerlein, stephanie han, zeal harris, linda jacobson, cj kang, jenn kennedy, jung ji lee,celeste maguire, rose masterpol, melinda mcleod, nick mcphail, sona mirzaei, dan monteavaro, michelle oppenheimer, gary palmer, sonja salinas, amy shock, lulu stewart, chris trueman, ioana urma, stephanie visser, nina weintraub and neil wicks.
Wallspace Photographers
Five of My Winter Landscapes Exhibited by Toronto-Based Photography Art Gallery in February
"Alone with the Silence" 16" x 20" black and white photograph by Keith Dotson, 2007. On display at Toronto-based Garland and Ford Contemporary Photography through February 2012.
I’m happy to announce that five of my winter landscape photographs are currently on exhibition at Toronto-based art photography gallery, Garland and Ford Contemporary Photography. The group show, titled “Cold Traveling: Interpretations of the Winter Landscape,” features snowy black and white images made in Wisconsin and Boston, along with amazing work by several other photographers.
Curated by gallery owner Julia Hrivnak, the show lasts only for the month of February, 2012. See the entire show online here.
To see more of my black and white photographs visit my website, or come talk to me about photography on Facebook.
Thanks for reading!
~Keith
“Nine Springs” Landscape Photo to Be Displayed on Capital City Trail in Fitchburg, Wisconsin
Madison, WI — This color landscape photograph taken at Madison, Wisconsin’s Nine Springs E-Way Watershed Park has been selected for use on an educational display that will be posted along the wonderful Capital City Trail and at McKee Farms Park in Fitchburg, Wisconsin.
The purpose of the displays, which will be installed after the Spring thaw, is to educate the public about the springs and the watershed system. I’ll post photographs of the completed displays once they have been installed.
To learn more about my photography, visit my Website, or come talk to me about photography on Facebook.
Thanks for reading.
~ Keith
I’m Now Represented by Bentley Global Arts Group
I’m happy to announce that my photographs are now represented by Bentley Global Arts Group, based in Austin TX!
Related to this, I’ll have some exciting announcements over the summer.
Here’s my gallery page on their site:
http://www.bentleyglobalarts.com/search/q/keith+dotson
"Foggy Tree Row" is one of my photographs now represented by Bentley Global Arts Group. Copyright 2012 by Keith Dotson.
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