Greg Molyneux Photography

Category: Blog

Greg Molyneux’s latest photographs and words presented in reverse chronological order.

Cast Adrift
Cast Adrift — 100mm | f/3.5 | ISO 400 | EXP 1/640
I’m testing out a different style of entry here. Instead of writing to some kind of set theme, I will roll with random thoughts. Plenty of notable happenings, with some long anticipated closures are worth mentioning here.
Before all that, tonight’s post—err, this morning’s as it’s already after midnight—would not have happened without some much needed prodding. Within a 20 minute span I bumped into two long time colleagues, and all around wonderful humans, who both noted my dip in photo output. It was not an admonishment so much as a hey, we miss seeing your work. Both flattered and on the spot in the best kind of way, it stuck a chord of inspiration. Knowing I had a batch of flower photos sitting on my memory card, I committed to getting a photograph posted tonight. And while it is tomorrow, I still count this as meeting my deliverable as I have not yet gone to bed.
While I knew I had some solid photos thanks to a promising wisteria blossom, I had not known I had something so to my liking. I was immediately struck by the moody, painted quality to the macro photograph. This low key, soft focus treatise on cross processing transports us into a fantasy struggle set to enchantment fighting back the melancholy invading the marches. I am lost in this photograph, and I selfishly want to see it large and on canvas.
Notable closure happening number one: The some eleven-odd year Marvel Universe journey we’ve been on culminated with Avengers: Endgame. I would be exaggerating if I claimed myself a canon expert of all things MCU. But as a casual to enthused fan it was a splendid end to some 22 films. While it ranks right behind Infinity War in my book, the movie still rocked it. What gives its predecessor the nod for me was greater depth to Thanos, and that the stakes always felt higher in Infinity War. Nevertheless, Endgame was a heck of a victory lap for a team deserved of the praise.
Notable closure happening number two: River Ave. Blues calls it quits! I’m a big-time Yankees fan all about the #YankeesOnly lifestyle. At the center of that world, orbiting only the Yankees themselves, is River Ave. Blues. The most prodigious and prolific sports blog on the internet. Run by fans but at an absolute professional level, the quantity and quality of output since I became a reader back in 2008 (maybe 2007?) is incomprehensible. That impassioned fans with inspiration and dedication could flesh out the best analysis imaginable, on a daily basis, for a marquee global franchise is an exemplar to us all. Mike and Co. deserve (an understatement) this rest, though the rest of us fans will be poorer for it. What an incredible 12 years. Fortunately Mike has set up at Patreon account at RAB Thoughts to give us a little taste of what we will miss.
Notable closure happening number three: Game of Thrones is about to end. 2010 where have you gone? That’s right, within weeks of each other the MCU and Thrones cease to be. Two of the biggest and most followed arcs in entertainment wrap it up together. Couple this with the fact that the Skywalker Star Wars arc ends this December and 2019 is hosting a year of film making closures unlike any other. It is the definition of bittersweet that we have these long, involved, and emotional stories sing their song in full measure, though never again will hear their music the same way again.
I rather enjoyed this open format, free form posting. I will be doing it again.
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May 8, 2019
Heartstrings
Heartstrings — 100mm | f/3.5 | ISO 100 | EXP 1/640
Whether you are hanging your heart on the line. Or drying out ye old heart machine on the laundry line of love. You are putting your heart out there. Plugging away in a world tugging on the old heartstrings. Whatever witty claim the written word could pose, bleeding hearts pluck a fancy and leave a calm repose. A unique flower, perfect heart in shape. Coupled with a tear, emotion is its fate.
It’s fascinating how this remarkable shade loving flower mirrors the presentation of heart and love in art. Or is this another situation where art imitates life? Speaking of imitation, it is a lifelong love of The Legend of Zelda that elevates me to next level bleeding heart appreciation. They make a stunning replica of the heart containers so essential to Link’s questing success. Furthering the link, the tear is a match for the Sheikah Eye—a distinct mark of an esoteric clan orbiting the heart center of the saga.
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April 30, 2019
Unbowed Heart
Unbowed Heart — 100mm | f/3.5 | ISO 100 | EXP 1/200
The heart works. May it pump, flow, oxygenate, and enrich our lives for time unbound. The heart sparks. May it beat strong in clear, steady time setting rhythm to keep our lives apace. The heart thunders. May it power the intense moments where we need it most. A thundering thump drumming quickening cues reminding all we yet live. The heart rests. In the quiet moments of sleep, thought, meditation, and reflection it resets the world. The heart bleeds. May it work yet through the sad times, a solemn lament forlorn for those lost. The heart loves. Our epicenter of joy, kindness, fulfillment, and love. It fills our bodies and fulfills our world with the unbowed energy of peace and love for all time. The destiny of heart is love.
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April 27, 2019
Tiny Dancer
Tiny Dancer — 100mm | f/3.5 | ISO 100 | EXP 1/640
Near on five years later I have made a companion photograph to tango with I’d love to see you in that dress. I am not breaking any ground in stating flowers evoke a feminine grace. Here, as it was five years past, that grace manifests in the likeness of a lithe dancer transfixing us with her craft. Her pirouette moves and shifts the dress setting our hearts to flutter. With the calendar’s turn to spring I look forward to capturing more of nature’s dancers shining light upon our lives.
Of course a shout-out to the incomparable Elton John for the lyrically inspired title.
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April 19, 2019
Magnolia Season
Magnolia Season — 100mm | f/3.5 | ISO 100 | EXP 1/400
For a long while my Jane Magnolia has suffered through meager blooms. About five years back, powered by eagerness and inexperience, I pruned my magnolia a little too much. I did it in spring instead of fall, too. Regardless, it has seen lackluster blooms ever since. Ten or so blossoms at that was about it. Sure, they still flaunted their power purples, but the showing was sparse at best. This year it turned a corner. Dozens of purple wonders splayed out in fine style.
In this photograph I present here a dreamy rendition of a Jane Magnolia blossom. Marked by soft lines and blurred curves the viewer falls easy into the whimsy. Evoking a mood of modesty and beauty. The vertical orientation lengthens the composition and settles the eye on the sharp leading edge of the front petal. Horizontally situated toward the lower third of the frame, it is the only part of the photograph captured in focus. The bokeh pulls back the frame from there, blending the accompanying petals through lessening degrees of focus.
I love making this kind of macro. The mix of a pastel colors, soft flowing lines, minimal focus and maximal bokeh allows the eye to work over the photograph. From here the viewer fills in the gaps. They hear their own stories; see their own enchantment. Flora evokes emotions and memories unique to us all. This here is a canvas set for your imagination to work upon. Magnolia season welcomes all.
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April 17, 2019
The Winter Narrative
The Winter Narrative — 100mm | f/3.5 | ISO 400 | EXP 1/640
The calendar flips March and 2019 has supplied scarcity for New Jersey snow lovers. Several nickel and dime events, sure, but not the mother lode that leaves us ditching rulers for yardsticks. Jim Cantore has monster measurements to make out west this year. This is the ebb and flow nature of winter in the Mid-Atlantic. Boom seasons sprinkled in typical years of bust.
Yet recency bias dominates the narrative. Social media is rife with it doesn’t snow like it used to claims, and while I share the frustration it is not true. Consistent, big snow is not the norm. Take the dry years that carried us from the 80s through the early 2000s where the foot plus storms could not add up enough fingers to make a full hand. You had 1993, 1996, and 2003. I remember a big event in 1987 or 88—the first primetime snow storm I remember—when I was a kid in East Brunswick, but I am not sure that cracked a foot. After that, however, the boom time set in. Dispersed between down years (not unlike this one) you had 2007, multiple foot plus events in winter 2009-2010 and 2010-2011. 2012 and 2013 were a total roast fest but then more big time action came in 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018; much of which documented by this photographer. New Jersey snow lovers have had it made. A regression to the mean is probable.
None of this is to say I am not bummed. I love snow; it can never snow enough. But considering our low latitude—the 40th parallel—that has us due west of Portugal, mind you, many variables must come together to produce big snow. This casual rant is a simple reminder to fellow NJ snow lovers to appreciate our big storms since we never know when we will bust out the yardsticks next.
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March 2, 2019
Ice World Ignition
Ice World Ignition — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures
Tonight made for a proper sunset. The essential cadre rolled deep and even brought the support staff. There was snowpack, sea ice, disused dock pilings, and a painted reflection brushed by a solar goodbye burning out slow with smoldering intensity. It was fantastic.
Sure the temperature was biting and the wind unforgiving. Of course leaving the house with a pair of gloves would have made perfect sense. Hey, even a woolen hat would have proved wise. Yet when the ice world ignites the fire inside burns passion red.
This is winter at the beach. This is when the power sunset hits, when the seascape on our eastern flank locks in ice and casts a panoply of color. The marshes, bays, and coastal ways captured by cold, locked tight to the landscape despite battle from tidal forces. The power needed to freeze the land and stem the tide is striking. Cold, weather, nature—it all means business. A reminder of impermanence and subordination to big ‘N’ Nature.
Cold as I was, I was beyond pleased to be out exercising camera tactics amid the cold splendor. It was obvious this was the best shooting conditions I’ve encountered in months, even longer. The most promising since late last summer when I made a bunch of great shots only to have a corrupted file transfer render all data unretrievable. That moment had left a sour taste in my mouth for months. This evening cleansed the palette and froze it all away.
After a low output 2018, I am pleased with efforts and outcomes in 2019. I committed to making this a better year for my photography. I am delivering against the commitment. Writing about it here helps hold me accountable. It makes it more real. A commitment to myself and to you welcomed website visitor. Yes, you.
With any luck it is a touch warmer where you are at, and you were able to enjoy this photograph in comfort. Cheers, and thanks for your support and attention.
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February 2, 2019
Gradient
Gradient — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | EXP 0.5 sec
Take wintertime day glow, a lazy shutter, a bit of hand induced motion blur, and throw them in the pot. Add a fresh pour over of Lightroom and let steep. Add a dash of hope and your cauldron will yield a striking gradient mirrored across the great blue void. Cutting its center is sun streaked poise rendered only at day’s end. Now plate your study in color, movement, and form; landscape as emotion, a mirror world reflecting hope and fear.
So how did I make this shot? Quite simple, really. I capitalized on a day glow of intense blue to orange, calm Little Egg Harbor bay water, and my hands. With a smooth right to left motion parallel to the horizon I was able to introduce motion blur into an already minimalist tableau. I am drawn to the simplicity of this style of photo execution. It’s easy to get exciting over a high drama sunset with a slamming composition set off by first rate foreground, and don’t get me wrong, I love it, too. Yet there is something to being less. A hat tip to the understated—the introverts of the nature world. Perhaps it is my own predilection to introversion that brings me quite satisfaction in a far more subtle, nuanced world? Or maybe I am overindulging my self-importance behind the mask of understatement?
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January 24, 2019
When Winter Comes
When Winter Comes — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures
The onset of winter has me inspired. After a subpar shooting season in 2018, leave it to a modest snowfall to turn the tide. First came the photo I made at Stafford Forge—an inspired output that pleased the residents of your favorite social media platform. Two days later, when a fine splash of color made an appearance over the familiar expanse of Dock Road marsh, I was there, and I was ready. A calming sight—the serene scene. Ice creeping in atop staid tide pools, snow pack propping up marsh grass, and sublime pastels coloring the sky with a master’s touch.
I had great company, too. My girlfriend’s two year old daughter made the trip with me. An excellent co-pilot if there ever was one. We hung out roadside taking in the bracing air and pretty pinks in an understated bonding moment. I even had her pop off a few shots of her own, hoping to bring joy to the next generation of photographers. It’s remarkable, really, the intensity and focus an untarnished brain brings to new encounters. I’m not sure where we lose that capacity as adults, but we are no doubt poorer for it. Oh for the wisdom of babes.
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January 17, 2019