Bloghttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/en-US2012-02-14T09:22:30ZSquarespace Site Server v5.11.81 (http://www.squarespace.com/)Another friend with a businesshttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/10/18/another-friend-with-a-business.htmlMatt Graham2011-10-19T01:13:35ZAbstract Artist Cory Webb Local Business Painting Pennsylvania Pittsburgh businessI'm so busy being a dad and working as a crazy completions engineer. So I have little time for photography. So I figured breaking the 3 month lull on the blog with a promoting a great local business in PA. A good friend of mine, Cory Webb has started to publicly promote his art business. Cory has done several large feature paintings that put my photo canvases in a competition for wall space. He is a really great artist with amazing creativity. He will look at your empty wall, look at your surrounding furniture and come up with a painting that complements the color palette of the room. Go check him out!

Here is a piece that Cory did that we just love in our living room. Ends - 16"x30", Middle 30"x40" Oil on canvas

]]>Elbow Valley Revisitedhttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/7/24/elbow-valley-revisited.htmlMatt Graham2011-07-25T01:37:23ZAlberta Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon TS-E24mm L II Elbow River Highway 66 Kananaskis Country Landscapes Rocky Mountains Valley panoramaI just love the Elbow River Valley. It was the first place where I caught my photographic bug in 2009. It is here where you can get up close with the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains that can been seen to the west of Calgary. I woke up at 4:30 am to get out for the 5:47 am sunrise that magically came down the valley and lit up the peaks. Used the Canon TS-E 24mm L II lens, tilted to get best apparent DOF.

I do wish I had a z-pro filter holder to use a polarizer, but I guess I will have to wait until the fall when Cokin gets back into business.

]]>Road to Mt. Kiddhttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/7/23/road-to-mt-kidd.htmlMatt Graham2011-07-23T12:48:36ZAlberta Alberta Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon TS-E 24mm L II Digital Darkroom Highway 40 Inspired Kananaskis Landscapes Mt. Kidd Rockies Warming LB Polarizer panorama road tilt-shiftI was recently back to Calgary with my wife and with new addition to my family Olivia. I tried my first tilt shift panorama with the Canon TS-E 24mm L II lens. This technique was inspired by Darwin Wiggett, who has taught me some amazing landscape photography techniques. I adjusted the tilt of the lens to get the most DOF and then took two exposures shifted up and down. Merged together in Adobe Photoshop Photomerge.

]]>AJ Design and Decorhttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/6/26/aj-design-and-decor.htmlMatt Graham2011-06-26T19:10:00ZAJ Design and Decor Interior Design Local Business Pennsylvania photography

A good friend of mine, Amy Memory has started an interior design company in Cranberry Twp, PA. She has some great talent with her business and she did a great job designing a Classic Winnie the Pooh theme for my daughter Olivia. Amy also asked me to take photos of some of her designs. She is a great resource and knows her stuff.

Her company AJ Design and Decor has a website located and you can "Like" her work at her Facebook site.

]]>Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant facing the stormhttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/5/2/beaver-valley-nuclear-power-plant-facing-the-storm.htmlMatt Graham2011-05-02T18:30:00ZBeaver Valley Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM Canon EOS 5D Mark II Clouds Evening HDR Nuclear Power Pennsylvania Photography Reactor Urban Landscapes storm

With the Japan Nuclear disaster leaving the news, but will forever linger in the people in Japan, I thought it would be interesting to see where the nuclear reactors are near my house. I am definately not a proponent of nuclear power, but it is quite awe-inspiring to see the massive cooling towers spewing steam into the atmosphere. I took is with my new Canon 24-70mm 2.8L and my Canon 5D Mark II.

]]>it's time for an update!http://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/4/14/its-time-for-an-update.htmlMatt Graham2011-04-15T01:30:47ZAlberta Cranberry Township Events Gear IPad 2 Landscapes Pennsylvania Photography Printing Prints Resolve Photo apeggaSo three people that I care about bugged me today on why my blog has not been updated for ages. Well sorry about that! Lots of new stuff going on in my life.

So let start off with the first: New Place!
We no longer live in Mars, but in Cranberry Township. The new house is quite the change, but the community is pretty much the same! NOTE: I took the picture down as it was too close to home to the internet. If you want to see it you will have to visit!

Ok, on to the next thing: iPad 2
Yes I stood in line at the Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh for 2 hours to get a 64GB Black 3G model. I gotta say it is awesome. I feel sorry for the Macbook Pro that has been sitting on the coffee table begging for attention!

Next up: APEGGA Art Show participant!
I decided to enter 2 of my favourite photos to the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta Annual Art show as part of their Annual General Meeting. I call upon my friend Costas Costoulas of Resolve Photographic Services created some wonderful canvas prints. He is my go-to guy for all my printing. So good that even in the USA, I trust Costas with giving me the best product!

Here is the Art Show setup that Costas did for me!

Well that is enough for today. Thanks for bugging me Mike, Bec and Dad!

]]>Death-cicleshttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/2/4/death-cicles.htmlMatt Graham2011-02-04T05:05:34ZAbstracts Blue Sky Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Canon EOS 5D Mark II Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Sun Winter ice iciclesI have been busy, but here is another one.

I cannot believe the icicles that have formed in Pennslyvania. It seems like after a snow fall, al the heat in the buildings escapes out through the uninsulated attics and melts the snow. I could not believe hearing dripping water on a freezing night while walking the dog. Some of the icicles are 7 feet long hanging from the 2nd story eves-throughs. Well I could not resist the urge to take some pictures.

]]>The Glass Pillars of Jade Mountainhttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/1/3/the-glass-pillars-of-jade-mountain.htmlMatt Graham2011-01-03T21:03:38Z17-40L Canon EOS 5D Mark II HDR Jade Mountain Landscapes St. Lucia Sunset Travel Photography golden hour honeymoonAll around the Jade Mountain resort are pillars with colorful glass structures rising to the sky. It is so hard to describe the beauty of them so what's better than a photo. I took this shot from the Celestial Terrace (my fav spot of the resort). St. Lucia was hit by Hurricane Tomas on October 31 and had some considerable damage all of the island. I did notice that some of the pillars were bare, maybe destroyed from the hurricane. I was very impressed with how the resort looked considering the hurricane. Kudos to the staff on the repairs and cleanup.

]]>Sunset at the Celestial Terrace - Jade Mountainhttp://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2011/1/2/sunset-at-the-celestial-terrace-jade-mountain.htmlMatt Graham2011-01-02T20:37:56Z17-40L Canon EOS 5D Mark II Celestial Terrace HDR Jade Mountain Landscapes St. Lucia Sunset Travel Photography honeymoonI am still trying to get through my honeymoon photo set from St. Lucia. With Christmas over I have been able to sort through the keepers and the ones that will be deleted forever. This photo is from the Celestial Terrace at Jade Mountain Resort. I was so blown away from this place. I will still be planning a review as I would love to convince anyone to visit this incredible get away in the Caribbean Sea. On top of the resort and the restaurant at "Jade" is the Celestial Terrace. Here you can relax on comfy couches and watch the sunrise, the sunset or the billions of stars you can see at night.

]]>A year in review - Best of 2010http://www.mattgrahamblog.com/journal/2010/12/31/a-year-in-review-best-of-2010.htmlMatt Graham2010-12-31T21:16:12ZAlberta Landscapes Pennsylvania Photography best of 2010Well as 2010 nears to an end, I want to do a best of 2010 post as inspired by Jim M. Goldstein of JMG Galleries. I think I have grown in skill and knowledge of photography and I can give credit to the countless blogs, websites, books, workshops, courses, and photo tours I have been to. I have learned more about Photoshop, HDR and other post processing techniques too.

2010 has been a very eventful year for me. In chronological order (not by most amazing):

In January I was offered a job in Pittsburgh working in the Marcellus Shale,
In February I attended a Winter photo tour with Darwin Wiggett and Alan Ernst at Aurum Lodge,
I was married in May to an amazing woman on one of the sunniest days of the year in Calgary.
We moved to Mars, Pennsylvania in June and started working in the new office
In August we found out we will be expecting a new addition to the Graham family in April 2011!
We welcomed family to our new digs in PA in September and October,
Spent 7 days in St. Lucia at Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain Resort,
I looked back at all of my 11224 photos I took in 2010 and came up with my top ten: