Andrew Browning Photography

427 Cobra...

2010-09-21T16:39:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm behind and yes I've been lazy. I know the four of you who had been regularly checking my blog have probably given up on me by now, but I am going to put up some new stuff anyway. So, to get to it I could have just titled this post "wow" and left it at that, but I went with 427 Cobra because that sums it up pretty well. We took a side track from our recent Yosemite trip (yes, I'll put some of those up later) to see my friend Zack in Santa Cruz. He and his dad had built the beast that you see here as a father/son bonding experience. Pretty good idea if you ask me. As for the car- its a big boy toy and driving it was a sensory overload experience that was completely unforgettable. Thanks to Zack and his parents for having us and giving us a glimpse of Santa Cruz.

Zack referred to this view as "a neutral carbon footprint"

Portland's Japanese Garden...

2010-04-13T16:26:00.000-07:00

Zen and the Art of Japanese Garden Photography - as opposed to motorcycle maintenence.

All Photographs Copyright Andrew Browning Photography 2010.

Portland's Chinese Gardens...

2010-04-12T21:57:00.000-07:00

Spring...

2010-03-01T22:06:00.000-08:00

I decided to put this post off until today as it just didn't seem right to post pictures of the fresh purity of spring during the month of February. Even though the buds burst open here in the valley in the midst of the winter rains. Its kind of an evil temptation, because in Colorado this would be the sign that winter was coming to an end. I think in Oregon it just means we're in for four more months of rain.

Leafy Skeleton...

2010-02-02T22:03:00.000-08:00

I discovered this slightly decomposed leaf in our yard the other day. Only its skeleton remains after three months of winter rain, making it a fun subject for my new 105mm f2.8 AF Macro lens. Hey, after three months of rain you have to find fun somewhere.

John Jaqua Academic Center for Student Athletes

2010-01-25T16:16:00.000-08:00

Just a few years ago the Denver Broncos replaced their beloved home, Mile High Stadium, with a new stadium called Invesco field at Mile High. This was a highly controversial change and the "at Mile High" part was a serious compromise to appease the community. With this brand new academic center for student athletes on the University of Oregon's Campus, financed principally by the founders of Nike, one has to wonder, will it soon be the Nike Sports University at Oregon. Especially considering just behind it, the largest and most expensive PAC ten indoor arena is rising from the earth, upon being finished will bear the name of the Matthew Knight Arena (after founder of Nike, Phil Knight's son). But, back to the new academic center. First, it is the kind of project that every architect dreams of, and ZGF of Portland definitely did not drop the ball. To say it is a display of opulence doesn't begin to describe it. I think if the Egyptian Pharaoh King Tut was an Oregon college sports aficionado this would have been his tomb, not that cheap pyramid in Giza. Its really quite overwhelming, and I honestly can't describe it with words, I even struggled to describe it with photographs, but it sure was fun to try.

The building is surrounded on three of four sides by a reflecting pool (non student athletes who do not get to use the building have referred to it as a "moat")

The three story lobby looking up.

There is no such thing as a "second grade" material in this building, only first class, innovative, beautiful and expensive stuff here.

This is the emergency exit "fire stair." The pattern on the wall is made up of the names of student athlete graduates.

Modern Asian Bathroom...

2010-01-18T20:43:00.000-08:00

So, if you've read my brief profile statement you'd have noticed that I said I'm an architectural designer (and so is my girlfriend Carrie) as well as a photographer. Until now you've probably been thinking, "I'll just have to take his word for it." Well, this is my good friends master bathroom, which we designed and built for him before departing to Oregon. His bathroom(s) started out as the cheapest possible, worst excuse for a bathroom that large scale residential builders think they could get away with (and unfortunately they do everyday). Carrie came up with the original idea of an asian theme and a color palette from the traditional Chinese and Japanese scrolls. Dan's taste, however, is not traditional, so what we ended up with was a strong statement of luxury that balanced the modern and traditional.

Eugene Courthouse

2010-01-05T12:07:00.001-08:00

Yep, that is a courthouse. Didn't believe me at first did you? Better yet, it is a United States District Courthouse, not just a county courthouse. I bet you thought it was a convention hall or modern art museum. Nope, this is the place where our country determines wrong from right.

I see that confused look on your face, and I completely understand. After all, you wouldn't deposit your hard earned paycheck with some guy in a cardboard tent; your looking for something more substantial, timeless and honest.

Does it help you to know that the form of the building is derived from a fluid expression of law? Yeah, I didn't think so.

But, it is an amazing sculpture to photograph, and that's about it.

Note to "starchitect" Thom Mayne: I'm not jealous, (well, maybe a little) but please stop being different just because you can and actually consider the site and place as part of the design. Oh, I do hear that the interior is actually quite well organized, but I don't want to find out for myself.

All Images Copyright Andrew Browning Photography 2010

Fall in Oregon...

2009-11-28T21:51:00.000-08:00

Took a stroll through the University of Oregon's Campus a while back with the "nifty fifty" lens. Fall is particularly nice there as there are hundreds of great trees with leaves changing in colors from yellow to red. The buildings lack a consistent statement in design (look for a future post on that point) that I miss from Colorado, but the landscape is so majestic you hardly notice the shortcomings of the architecture.

All Images Copyright Andrew Browning Photography 2009

The Bridges of Lane County...

2009-11-14T15:49:00.000-08:00

No, its not the Oregon version of the only Clint Eastwood movie that I never want to see. Nor am I a National Geographic photographer on assignment to document the historic covered bridges of Lane County. Too bad though, sounds like a hell of a gig.

Oregon vs. USC

2009-10-31T20:59:00.000-07:00

Not having tickets for the big game tonight, my plan was to create a great image of Autzen Stadium. I've had this idea in my mind since our first trip up to Skinners Butte, the overlook here in Eugene, and witnessing the great view of the stadium from that vantage point. My interest in the structure increased after attending the Utah game there in September. I've since found out that Autzen was originally designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrell of Chicago in 1967 (they also did things like the Air Force Academy). Anyway, Oregon pounded USC, (always nice to see the university of spoiled children lose a football game) and I got a powerful image of Autzen on an exciting, sell-out night.

Kentucky Falls

2009-10-26T21:59:00.000-07:00

Recently I used my googling skills to find this place - Kentucky Falls in the Siuslaw National Forest. I then used my rally driving, mileage tracking, and navigation skills to actually get there without getting lost. Definitely a bit out of the way. Just another breath taking bit of scenery that Oregon seems to have more than its fair share of, but someplace has to make up for Nebraska and it might as well be Oregon.

These photographs are dedicated to my grandfather who passed away the same week I captured them. He was also a photographer, and he would have loved to have joined me that day. While he would have been just as overwhelmed by the beauty of falls, I think, being a biology teacher and naturalist, he would have been more focused on the details of the place that I probably missed completely. I hope that when I come across a place like this I will remember him and allow myself to see more than the obvious.

New Lens!

2009-10-14T12:28:00.001-07:00

To fill a hole in my focal length range I decided to add the Nikon 70-300 f4.5-5.6 AFS VR to my bag. No, this isn't a several thousand dollar three ton exotic monster, its a light, sharp, semi-pro quality lens and a steal for the price. The reason I went the light and cheap (albeit slow) over heavy and expensive is that I just don't use these focal lengths very much professionally. Architecture and Interiors require wide angle lenses (14-35 mm) and I've got that range well covered with the expensive, heavy and amazing 14-24 f2.8 AFS and the older but still quite great 20-35 f2.8 AF. This new lens actually rivals some of the more expensive pro lenses around 200mm for sharpness and its got a feature that I've never had before: Vibration Reduction. VR allows you to handhold the camera at shutter speeds up to four stops slower than you normally could, or would have to resort to a tripod, and still get sharp images. Combine this with the low light performance of the D700 and you have one powerful tool in less than perfect conditions. But, my professional work usually has me on a tripod with a wide angle lens, so this lens fit the need and the budget perfectly. If you've managed to read this far I'm going to reward you with some pictures of our dogs (my favorite test subjects for any reason) using the new lens.

Pretty fantastic for $550 considering a savings $1500-7500 for pro f2.8 lenses.

Grand Cayman Island - Hurricane Season '09

2009-10-07T11:07:00.000-07:00

Another catch-up post...

Back in early September (ahem- height of hurricane season - ahem) we went to Grand Cayman for Carrie's family gathering. Only kidding about the hurricane season part; there were no storms anywhere near us this year. The weather did, however, reveal how hurricanes come to be. I have never been in an environment that was more hot and humid, and I've been to Tulsa in August. I mean I'm Norwegian and Swedish so I can appreciate a good sauna, but this was almost too much. At least in a Scandinavian sauna you jump out and roll in the snow; who knows how the Caymanians survived before air conditioning. But, I've probably been much too harsh, given the choice between staying home and a hot wet gorgeous Caribbean island I'll pick the island every time.

Thanks to the Lee's for letting me tag along!

Not a bad view!

Sunrise to Sunset

Giant Sea Turtles (~5' dia.) at the Turtle Farm

Rum Point - A pretty cool place even if it is touristy

This is how 8 month old niece Lauren felt when mom and dad went to dinner without her.

Starfish! near Rum Point

I've got a b&w version of this on my homepage that I think I prefer.

The Grand Tetons...

2009-09-28T21:01:00.000-07:00

A little catch-up back to our super fun drive out to Oregon.

The highlight of our trip (other than the 30 miles of "4x4 only" quality pass-way through major road construction on Wyoming Hwy. 287 that shook and vibrated the bikes on top of my car so much that a bolt came loose from my perfectly fitting roof rack causing us to immediately stop and search the gravel 30 ft. behind my car for thirty minutes only to find said bolt resting in the gutter between the hood and the windshield on my car, but I digress...) was the our day visit to Grand Teton National Park. Initially we were planning to go to Yellowstone, but the previously mentioned road construction and warnings of more construction on the road we have to take in and out of Yellowstone made our decision for us: we were spending the day in Teton and saving Yellowstone for another trip. This worked out because I happened to have my camera with me (shocker, I know) and I got to spend most of our day taking photographs of the most beautiful granite in North America I've seen (no I havn't yet been to Yosemite). Anyway here's the results:

We accidentally on purpose ran into the very new Visitors Center at Grand Teton.

Actually, we had seen the project published in Architectural Record and were very impressed and when we drove past it on the south end of the park were pleasantly reminded that it was here!

The last shot before another long day on the road.

Well, I guess I'll have a photo blog then...

2009-09-22T21:17:00.000-07:00

So, I've come to the realization that it would be to my advantage to have my own photo blog for several reasons. First, I've actually become good enough as a photographer that I can shamelessly show off my work. Second, having recently moved away from my friends and family to a new and alien place, I feel compelled to stay in touch with them and this is how I'm hoping to do it. Finally, its looking like professional photography may have to run a parallel path with my architecture career, and it seems a blog would be a good way to establish a personal connection with any prospective clients be it photo or architecture.

Expect to see many photographs, from vacations to things I find interesting to samples from commercial shoots. Also, look forward to my super special sarcastic writing style.

I think this will serve as my introduction and my first few post (after this of course) will backtrack a bit, but I'll have some fresh content up soon eh!