Ralph Nordstrom
Ralph has been interested in photography for as long
as he can remember. He has not had any formal
training but attends workshops as well as leading them.
"I'm just trying to get better," Ralph comments.
His photographs have won a number of awards and he is an experienced
educator. He has had the honor of serving as judge
for the Orange County Fair in California as well as
photography contests of local photography clubs. He sells his photographs in art
festivals, street fairs and on his website.
Ralph knows the importance of
continuing one's own personal growth and development.
He always carries a Canon G11 with him and uses it
frequently. "I've learned more about composition
from this camera because one learns by doing.
Every time I hold it up to take a picture no matter what
it is I think 'composition.'" Ralph continues his
growth by regularly attending workshops and has studied
with such masters as David Muench, Alain Briot, Jack
Graham, Jerry Dodrill, Uwe Steinmueller, Tony Sweet,
Joseph Holmes, Charles Cramer and Mac Holbert. "I
don't have time to learn it all on my own so I turn to
those photographers I admire."
Ralph believes photography is art. He
approaches photography from the mindset of a painter.
He wants the same creative freedom that a painter has.
He also believes that art is interpretation and
communication. "My photographs don't reflect what
the camera saw; they reflect what I saw." As such,
his photography is his very personal interpretation and
impression of the beautiful world around us.
Ralph makes extensive use of the tools and techniques
that are available to digital photographers. He
photographs with Canon bodies and lenses. His main
software tools are Lightroom, Photoshop and Photomatix.
He also uses various plugins from Nik, onOne Software,
Pixel Genius and others. And he uses a PC.
"When you can look at two photographs, one produced on a
MAC and the other on a PC, and can identify which is
which, then the computer matters. Until then,...."
He often devotes days and even weeks and months to get
his photographs to sing. He is constantly
developing his Creative Vocabulary to more effectively
express himself through his art. But his images
are not fabricate; that is, he does not add elements
that were not in the original scene. "I believe it
is OK, no, necessary for photographers to adjust
tonality, hue and saturation to make strong, compelling
images. But I also believe they should be honest
about it. I don't think there is anything to
hide."
Ralph loves leading workshops and sharing his
knowledge and experience with others. And he is
awed by the wonderful photographers of all skill levels
that join him on these adventures. He hopes to see
you on one of them sometime soon.
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