Art Images

Last Call for 8x10s, 11x14s, Ornaments, & Art Pieces for Christmas

Need some last minute gift ideas? There’s still time to get some 8x10s and 11x14s from your past shoot to give as gifts to grandparents and loved ones. A few other sizes can also be finished in time for Christmas, plus we can always do a gift certificate to let your loved one come in and get a new portrait created.

Call me soon at 801-728-3317 and I’ll get your order printed and shipped directly to you to save time.

And her are some other fun Christmas ideas, like these fun framed Christmas ornaments. Hang them on your tree for the holidays, then hang them on the wall afterwards. Images are coated, framed, ready to hang and shipped for $79.

BryCox_ornaments

Printed right on wood, this unique art piece will look great in your home.

Art Piece: Pointing Heavenward, Salt Lake Temple on Maplewood. Available in 3 sizes from 8×12 up to 16×24. Shipped to you, ready to hang.
http://brycoxart.com/pointing-heavenward-salt-lake-temple/

Art Piece: Buddhist Temple Prayer Ribbons, printed as a coated metallic photo on a standout, 10×30″. Shipped to you, ready to hang.
http://brycoxart.com/buddhist-temple-prayer-ribbons/

Inner Mongolia art book now available. 9×7 horizontal design in full color.
http://brycoxart.com/art-book-inner-mongolia/

Call me if you have any questions or if you’d like to get something last minute for Christmas. 801-728-3317

Until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part VII)

After the Mongolian Buddhist temple, we were taken to a Mongolian school for young children. The principle met us and showed us around, and everyone was wearing traditional robes much like the ones we were given in our ceremony.

BryCox_MongolianSchool_01

This was a reading class, and the kids all read together, out loud. They were very excited to have us there and seemed to be reading extra loud to impress us. I loved it.BryCox_MongolianSchool_02

There were classes teaching Mongolian dance, Mongolian guitar, and many others. This class was for learning Mongolian writing. I loved the robes, the hats, and the bright colors. This young man was in full concentration and didn’t look up at me at all.
BryCox_MongolianSchool_03 BryCox_MongolianSchool_04

They had me try my hand at Mongolian writing. It was pretty hard, but I copied the squiggles on the chalk board, not knowing if what I was writing was amazing or completely illegible. So then my government friend wrote my name on the chalk board in Chinese for me to try, knowing it would be much easier. So here you can see I have a column of Mongolian and a couple columns of Chinese.

 

BryCox_MongolianSchool_20

This little girl was stunningly adorable. She caught my eye as she was coming up the stairs and I had to stop her. I pointed to my camera and she did a curtsy. I can’t explain why I immediately just loved her so much, but I really like the photo and feel I captured her inner beauty.BryCox_MongolianSchool_05

This is the teacher for the Mongolian guitar class. I liked his outfit and entire manner. I stopped him right in the hallway as he was leaving his class.BryCox_MongolianSchool_06

Outside in the cold winter wind, I saw this little boy in the cool red jacket. I liked his style and got a photo of him and his two friends.BryCox_MongolianSchool_07

There were boys outside practicing archery, and I had to get a picture of them.BryCox_MongolianSchool_08

This young man was gathering up the bows from class and taking them back inside the school. I liked his mixed clothing, and the fact that he was standing by the doorways. Often doorways in town were covered with these blankets to keep the heat in, while allowing people to come and go.BryCox_MongolianSchool_09

This little girl caught my eye and I thought she was adorable. I singled her out for her own portrait.BryCox_MongolianSchool_10

We also visited a market street in town, which was a walking street of shops, and I was able to finally buy a winter cap for my ears. We were leaving the next morning and so I only wore it for a few hours, but it was worth it. Along this market street, all of the shops were almost identical in size. I saw these two little baby kids playing, both in yellow with their mothers close by.BryCox_MongolianSchool_13BryCox_MongolianSchool_12And these ladies, all in pink and black working at their shop.
BryCox_MongolianSchool_11

Here, I started to photograph this dog in the image below, because it was framed nicely by the door behind it. As I did, this little child came up to the window and pressed her mouth and nose against the glass. I quickly shifted my focus and got the shot. I’m guessing that it’s a little girl, and you can see her mother working in the store behind her.BryCox_MongolianSchool_14Then as if on cue, her little friend came up to the other window too, both framed by windows, and the dog turned and looked. It was quite a thrilling moment that me and my photographer friend from Malta that I was walking with, talked about for a while afterwards.
BryCox_MongolianSchool_15 BryCox_MongolianSchool_16 BryCox_MongolianSchool_17

That evening we had our last big dinner. We were leaving early the next morning and I had heard about people doing “sword gymnastics” in town each morning. I told my government friend that I was going to get up early to find some people doing sword gymnastics that I could photograph. It meant leaving the hotel at 5:30 am, and I asked about where some places might be nearby. He insisted coming early and taking me which I thought was extra kind. I told him I didn’t want to impose and that I would be fine, but he insisted and drove me to a couple places.

 

The sun had not yet come up and I was pushing the limits of my camera’s ISO settings to get a decent exposure, plus the temperatures were incredibly cold, even with my hat and gloves purchased from street vendors the day before. But it was worth it and I was able to get some great images. BryCox_MongolianSchool_18 BryCox_MongolianSchool_19

There are so many images that I could post, but these last few postings cover some of my favorites. As you can see, I had a wonderful adventure and met some very great people. I’m very grateful for these opportunities I had and for the people that made it happen for me. And I hope all of you that have been following these posts have enjoyed these images too.

Until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part VI)

Having a few hours to photograph the Mongolian temple alone was really nice and serene. Eventually as the sun rose, the sky turned blue and the place warmed slightly. The air become less frigid and more comfortable, and monks began to appear and prepare nearby, opening the Buddhist temple doors and getting in their robes.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_313

BryCox_Mongolia2015_323

BryCox_Mongolia2015_314

BryCox_Mongolia2015_324

BryCox_Mongolia2015_325

BryCox_Mongolia2015_329BryCox_Mongolia2015_330

BryCox_Mongolia2015_332 BryCox_Mongolia2015_331

Once the main monks were ready, they rang the gong outside the front doors, signaling more monks to come and chant, and letting the local people know that the temple was open.
BryCox_Mongolia2015_327BryCox_Mongolia2015_328

BryCox_Mongolia2015_326

As more monks arrived, each took their spot inside, kneeling and beginning their group chant. These two monks watched over as the younger monks read and chanted together.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_339

BryCox_Mongolia2015_335

BryCox_Mongolia2015_340

They normally don’t allow photography and because there were making a special exception, I moved quietly and slowly, not wanting to be a distraction. I picked my angles and shots carefully, shooting slowly and waiting for the right moments. I tip-toed to a few spots to create a variety of angles, mostly crouching behind pillars and objects for concealment and for a low camera angle that matched the height of the kneeling monks. I would sit crouched, absorbing everything in, and just wait for the right moment to shoot. Then I’d absorb some more, look around for another angle, then when I was ready, slowly move to the next spot.

The lighting was extra difficult, being very dark inside with the only light source being a very bright sun-lit door. In relation to the dark room, the door was incredibly bright, and would have created a big washed out area, so I had to pick my angels carefully to not show the door, but also use the light on an angle on the monks’ faces.
BryCox_Mongolia2015_337
BryCox_Mongolia2015_336Soon local guests started to arrive, dropping money and saying prayers. I felt I had the images I had hoped for, so I stepped outside the temple. The room was very small inside with very little room to move, and having guests arrive, I didn’t want to distract or be in anyone’s way.

Waiting outside, I photographed a few local people that visited the temple, like this man. I loved his clothing and layers, and his expression didn’t change a bit as I raised my camera to quickly photograph him.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_341

I found these two men very interesting, they way the stood, studying me, partly in shade, the colors of their coats, their faces – it was too interesting not to shoot.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_342

Out in the courtyard, this woman lit an incense rod and placed it in the alter.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_343

As the locals each finished and came out of the temple, they gathered by the doorway, watching me, some even photographing me with their phones. I liked the personality and balance in the way they all stood.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_345

BryCox_Mongolia2015_333

It was time to leave and I had a walk ahead of me, back through the outer gates, down the steps, and through the terrain and many trails. This is the door to the outer gates at the top of the steps. It was too dark to photograph first thing in the morning, but as I was leaving the sunlight came in at the right angle, casting the right shadows to give this pop and dimension.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_346

BryCox_Mongolia2015_347

Along my walk out, I kept seeing things I had to photograph, like this bench for meditation and tree covered in prayer ribbons.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_348

BryCox_Mongolia2015_349

I took a different trail on the way out than I took on the way in, and it was nice getting a different view. For instance in my last post you’ll remember that I first arrived, walking underneath this large stone structure in the distance. At this point in the day, the sun was up, the clouds were out, and the sky was blue. It was a great way to end my trip to this beautiful place.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_354

Later I photographed a market street full of people and a Mongolian school for young children, all in traditional dress. I’ll share some of those images in my next post.

Until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part V) Buddhist Temple at Sunrise

Early the next morning, we were taken to a Mongolian Buddhist temple. We arrived before sunrise, even before the monks themselves were up. The entire place was empty, quiet, and incredibly cold, especially to me since I was only wearing a t-shirt and light sport coat. The only sound in this serene place were the numerous prayer ribbons flapping in the wind. BryCox_Mongolia2015_301BryCox_Mongolia2015_302

BryCox_Mongolia2015_303

There were trails that led off in all directions through the trees. Some led to this large stone structure held up by four pillars. All of the pillars were covered with prayer ribbons coming in from all directions, all flapping in the wind.
BryCox_Mongolia2015_309
BryCox_Mongolia2015_305

BryCox_Mongolia2015_306

BryCox_Mongolia2015_308

Continuing on through some trails, I found this monk getting up and coming out of his yurt. He saw my camera and waved me off as if to say, “no pictures.” But the government official that was walking with me said some stern words to the monk, and then turned to me and said, “You may now photograph him.” The monk smiled and I was able to get this great portrait.

The government official had become a friend at this point. We had many interesting conversations while I was there, and he also knew that I loved to photograph people and faces, not just locations. I don’t know what he said to the monk, but I was very grateful to get the man’s portrait.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_310

The trails wound their way through the terrain and eventually led to these stairs, going up to the Buddhist temple. I loved that the place was empty, even void of local temple visitors because of the early hour. Having the place to myself to photograph was superb.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_312

Once getting up to the temple and seeing it was closed, I hiked on, looking for more vantage points and ways that I could photograph it from a distance. There were trails in various directions, that led up and down mountains and through small canyons. And some trails were laced with these prayer ribbons that seemed to go as far as you could see.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_320

A short hike up some steep rocks let to a great view of the temple and the sun rising behind in the mountains.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_316 BryCox_Mongolia2015_315

I continued hiking higher and realized that I had very few pictures of myself on this trip. Most of the time after visiting a place, I come home to realize that I have lots of photographs of the things I’ve seen, and no images of me there. I took a moment to shoot a self-portrait using an outstretched arm and my Lumix point-and-shoot. After looking at the image on the back of the camera, I realized I had forgot to remove the shemagh I was wearing to keep my head and ears warm from the cold, winter wind.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_317

I had packed light and was unprepared for below freezing temperatures. I was only wearing my t-shirt and light sport coat because it was all I brought, knowing that on the past trips to Beijing, I was able to pick up good knock-off NorthFace jackets for $15 when needed. But on this trip I was nowhere near the silk markets of Beijing while in China, and when I got to Mongolia, it was far colder.

I did however buy some knit gloves in Mongolia that had the words, “MAN” printed on them, and I almost always travel with a shemagh for its versatility. It’s handy as a scarf, but can be a tourniquet or sling in an emergency. On this trip I wore it often as a face mask to filter the common cigarette smoke or dusty air, I used it as a sunshade on long drives, and here at the temple I wore it as a head wrap to keep my ears and head warm in the wind.

But forgetting that I had it on the photo, I pulled it down around my neck and asked my new photographer friend from Malta to take a few shots of me. He and I got along great and we found ourselves often hunting for very similar images. I liked his eye, and he also shot the same Nikon D800 that I had with me. So with my Nikon, he shot these two images of me.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_319

BryCox_Mongolia2015_318

I was very grateful to get some photos of myself on this trip, and now that I’m home, I prefer the first image with the shemagh tied around my head. Though the scarf isn’t oriental, it does give the image a more exotic look.

Hiking up to the highest point on one mountain, there was a fence of prayer ribbons surrounding a very large rock on a cliff. I shot this panorama and it became one of my favorite images from the trip. I’ve already made up a small 30″ print of it for my home.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_321

Also, my briefcase from Saddleback Leather has become one of my favorite travel items. I use it as an airline carry-on for my iPad, laptop, headphones, and books, and then at my destination I change the contents and straps and it becomes my backpack and camera bag. I had the thought that perhaps if I photographed my cool looking bag in this exotic location, maybe the company would want to buy some images or give me some trade.  So with that in mind, I shot these two images as if for an ad for Saddleback. I haven’t yet contacted them or shown them these images yet, but I really like how they turned out.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_322

BryCox_Mongolia2015_344

At this point, then the temple opened its doors and the monks began to come for their daily chant. I have a lot of images of them worshiping that I’ll share in my next entry. They are some of my favorite images of the trip.

BryCox_Mongolia2015_332

So until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part IV)

After lunch in Mongolia, we were taken to see “a village” where the farmers lived. They had been given notice that we were coming and they were ready for us, dressed and ready to give us a parade down their main road.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_48

As the women danced, there was a little motorcycle trike-type-vehicle with a flat bed that drove down the middle carrying a drummer. Next to the motorcycle walked a cymbal player and a horn player.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_49

Of the entire crowd, I was drawn to the most interesting face, the cymbal player of the parade. I photographed him a few times, and at the end, he removed his gloves and shook my hand with a big smile.

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_37

During the parade, these beautiful local ladies came out to see us and the parade.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_38 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_39

And this little boy came out of his house to show me his puppies by holding them out by their tiny paws. His mom, excited by him getting photographed went to get more puppies for him to show me. Interestingly, the puppies didn’t whine or squeal at all from being held this way. They seemed to like the attention from their little owner.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_40

After seeing the village, we went out to the farm were workers were hustling to bag corn. I found myself shooting a lot of horizontal portraits that showed the local environment. Here you can see the brown empty corn cobs in piles, ready to be hauled off, and bits of corn kernels that didn’t make it into bags get swept up with a homemade broom.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_41

Running and moving quickly as the sun was setting and these guys were working and didn’t want to be bothered, I would wave to people and smile. I love how big their smiles were back to me.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_42

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_50 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_51 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_52 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_53

This last woman was sweeping spilt corn kernels into piles, then separating the dirt by throwing shovelfuls into the air, allowing the dirt to blow to the side.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_54

That night, me and the other foreign ambassadors were given custom Mongolian clothes that were made for each of us, and then honored at a dinner. One nice touch for me was when they played the theme song from “The Magnificent Seven” as I walked up on stage to receive my award. Being a cowboy at heart, I’ve always liked that movie but it also has Asian roots being a re-make of the 1950’s movie, Seven Samurai. I’m not sure anyone else was aware of the connection, but it made the moment more meaningful to me, especially dressed as I was.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_43

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_45
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_46BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_44

As you can see, each day was an adventure and I was treated royally, for which I’m incredibly grateful. Coming up, I’ll share with you the images I created the next morning at a Buddhist temple at sunrise.

Until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part III)

After Beijing, I was taken to Inner Mongolia as a photographic ambassador. There was a photo convention there too, and myself along with some of the other foreign photographers from the Beijing round table were the guests of honor. The drive was a long but beautiful 12 hours.

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_31
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_32

The next morning a local government man who became a friend of mine over the next few days took us on a tour of his city. Being foreign guests, he was in charge of our well being and he also worked as our pseudo-translator. One of our stops included a desert area where he said, “You can photograph ships over there.”

I walked, looking for what didn’t make sense – perhaps some giant, land-locked ships deserted in the desert. But instead I saw a sheep herder and his sheep a ways off. “Oh SHEEPS!” I said in my mind. And being raised in farm country of Utah, I was less interested with photographing the sheep but instead enthralled with the sheep herder. I love faces, especially when I travel and I ran up to this man, waved, and pointed to my camera to signal that I wanted to photograph him.

I wasn’t prepared with my pro gear this morning. I thought we’d be shaking hands or something, so I was actually in my suit and only had my small Lumix LX100 point-and-shoot camera around my shoulder. But I love that camera for it’s dials and manual controls and I was quickly able to get these portraits of this man, shot just as you see them, un-cropped.

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_35
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_36

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_47

I started to understand what it meant for this city in Mongolia to have us foreign photographers visit as “photographic ambassadors.” They were proud of their city and wanted to show us everything, from museums, to farms, to their cultural heritage of schools and Buddhist temples. They fed us great food each meal and wanted us to get great images of their part of the world which they hoped we’d go show the rest of the world. All of this was seen as good publicity for their city. Plus they mentioned multiple times what a great honor it was to have all of us from so many different countries, there to visit their city in Mongolia.

At this point we took a lunch break and returned to the hotel and I was able to change into my casual clothes and refit my leather shoulder bag with my larger, pro camera gear. I was also able to go on a short photo walk around the hotel in search of some gloves as it was below freezing there and all I had packed for clothes besides a suit was a couple t-shirts and a sport coat. I found some great gloves and also captured these abstract moments.

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_33 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_34

After lunch we were taken to see a village where farmers were working. I shot so many images there. The local people heard we were coming and were dressed for a parade down their main road when we arrived.

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_49

It was quite an experience and I have a lot of those images to share coming up. But as you can see, each day was an adventure, and I’m incredibly grateful to have been a part of this event.

Until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part II)

Before leaving Beijing for Mongolia, I took a few hours between meetings to walk a few miles around my hotel. I quietly photographed people and the scenes around me. Here are some of my favorites, starting with some older men flying kites, something I hadn’t noticed in my previous trips to China.

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

And with Beijing being a city of 20 million people, there is a lot of variety in city life in just those few miles around my hotel. I hope you can feel a sense of what it’s like to visit this city from these photographs.

© BryCox.com, Bry CoxBryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_18© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox © BryCox.com, Bry Cox © BryCox.com, Bry Cox
© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox © BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

© BryCox.com, Bry Cox© BryCox.com, Bry Cox
© BryCox.com, Bry Cox© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

The complexity of the newsstands are interesting to me. And in this first image, you may not notice right off the bat, but the salesman’s face is behind the glass in the upper left corner.© BryCox.com, Bry Cox© BryCox.com, Bry Cox

After this photo walk I had a big dinner to attend. Then early the next morning we traveled to Mongolia, a long 12 hour drive. It was much colder up there and I had to make due with what little I brought with me as you can see in this self portrait overlooking a Mongolian Buddhist temple at sunrise. Some of my favorite images of the trip were created in Mongolia, and I’ll share some of those in my next posts.

Cox_China2015-2880-Edges-900p

So until next time, America.

Bry Cox at Photo Beijing China & Inner Mongolia (Part I)

I just got back from speaking in China at Photo Beijing, 2015 where I was treated like a king. It was such a great experience and I’ve been anxious to share more about this trip. My hosts also asked if I’d be a photographic ambassador and visit Inner Mongolia as well, and I took a lot of great images there of the most interesting faces. I’ll share more about that later. For part 1 of this trip I wanted to start with Photo Beijing 2015.

BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_01

I wrote an article on street photographer Vivian Maier, which is getting compiled with other articles into a book being published later. Because of that article, I was asked to travel to China to speak on Vivian Maier. (I’ve also posted that article online for paying members of my photography training site for it’s insight into posing and reading people’s personalities.)

After speaking on the opening day, they had a big ceremony complete with red carpet where they had me walk while being photographed by a huge crowd of people. While walking amongst the camera clicks and flashes, they had television cameras too from CCTV, and I could even see myself projected on the huge screen in the distance as it cut from camera to camera. The whole thing was quite exhilarating.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_02 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_03

I was so excited that I made this iPhone video at the top of the carpet, still on a high from the walk.

They also had these models wearing dresses made of photographs, walk the carpet the opposite direction.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_04 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_05

At the top of the carpet, there were welcomes and speeches from government and photographic dignitaries.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_06 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_07

And I had to get a photo with me with my friend Bing, who invited me over to China, and who I got to know years ago when I first went to China to speak in 2009. Her father is one of the most well-known photographers in China and was in charge of the event.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_08

After the red carpet ceremony, we were taken to a television theater and asked to sit on the front row for another opening ceremony event, this time we were entertained by amazing local dancers and singers. Again, this was all filmed by cameras from CCTV, which continually cut to cameras on us. Sometimes, the cameras were awkwardly close to my face, so close I couldn’t see over them to see the dancers.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_09 BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_10

All of these images I’m posting were shot with my small Lumix point-and-shoot camera, which I love for it’s manual controls, retro look, and very small size. It was the best camera to take on a trip like this, giving me both control as well as a very small size and weight.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_11

The next day, me and the other speakers were part of a roundtable discussion. I was the only one from the US, and other countries represented included Bangladesh, Malta, France, Germany, UK, Indonesia, and many others. We all wore headphones with receivers capable of receiving various channels of audio from the translators. It was incredibly interesting to see so many people with so many backgrounds and languages, all connected by photography.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_12

Somehow when my name was translated from English to Chinese and back into English, it came out as “Bry Cox’s Bio.” So a few times throughout the event I saw my name written this way.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_13

I was also given some translators at this event, local college student volunteers that followed me around everywhere and made my life easier.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_14

When they asked if I’d come speak on photographer Vivian Maier, I had no idea how big of an event it would be. They had beautiful signs like this printed around town inviting the public to an exhibition of original prints shipped from New York.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_15

And here I am at the exhibition after I was done with my work and meetings, wearing more relaxed clothes. It was an incredible show. They had 50 original images on display, and they had made wall paper based on her negatives. It was all quite beautiful.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_16

Before this, I had only seen Vivian’s images in books. It was quite an experience to see them up close and in person, looking at real silver halide prints. The detail that close was incredible and the images were even more beautiful and inspiring.
BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_17

Of course in Beijing I went on some photo walks where I did some of my own street portraits that I’ll share in my next post, images like this cute little boy driving his motorized trike through the busy streets of Beijing.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_18

And later in Mongolia I was presented with custom made traditional clothing in a ceremony which I’ll get to in a later post. And while there, my hosts took me to photograph a Mongolian primary school where kids wrote in calligraphy with giant brushes, to a Buddhist temple at sunrise, and to a local farming village where the residents put on a parade for us. During all of this I created some photos that I’m really excited about, and I’ll share them in the next posts.BryCox_PhotoBeijing2015_China_19

So until next time, America.

Caribbean Street Images Using My Point-And-Shoot Camera

I’ve been so busy with the studio and with speaking gigs, that I am behind on my blog. I’ve got a list of shoots that I’ve been meaning to post about and that list keeps growing. But I recently went on a spontaneous Caribbean cruise, and thought I’d share some of the images I created there.

A big group of friends were going on this cruise and asked us to come. I loved the idea for the photographic opportunities and chance to turn off my cell phone for a solid week, but we had said no because there were too many reasons why it didn’t fit into our calendars. However the night before the boat left, things seemed to just work out, so me and two other friends spontaneously just packed our bags and took a redeye flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico to see if we could somehow talk our way on the ship. After a crazy adventure in getting there, everything worked out and we stepped on board completely surprising everyone.

I packed my normal big bag of camera gear ready for any photographic opportunity, but ended up only using my small point-and-shoot because of the size and mobility. It’s more about how you use the camera than what camera you use.

Here are some of the images I created.

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com

I love faces and portraits of people when I travel. Plus I like to walk and explore areas and absorb and photograph the abstract scenes that make you feel like you’re in a unique place.

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.com

BCox_Cruise2015-421Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com BCox_Cruise2015-599 BCox_Cruise2015-588 BCox_Cruise2015-586 BCox_Cruise2015-551BCox_Cruise2015-552 Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com

I always take my own photos, using a self-timer and an extendable pole. I used to come home from places with lots of photos, but no photos of me because I’m the one behind the camera. Some years ago I’ve made it a resolution to always get photos of me too.Bry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.com Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com Bry Cox, ©BryCox.comHere’s my taxi driver on one island. I aimed and shot this without looking through the lens. I really like how it turned out.

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com

Yes, I packed my tux. It seems silly to take a tux on a boat, but since I wear it almost every day just hanging around my house anyway, I figured I’d take it.

Bry Cox, ©BryCox.com Bry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.comBry Cox, ©BryCox.com

And this last photo was taken by a friend using my camera. I really like this background and photographed a few people from this island here (as you can see above. ) Just ignore the fact that my foot is cut off. 🙂

Make sure you check out my main website, BryCox.com. And until next time, America.

Bry Cox Studio Spring Highlights

Spring is here, school is ending soon, and there are lots of reasons for fun new portraits. Check out some of these highlights from my blog. Click on any image to see more about that shoot or story.

High School Seniors & Grads

School will be ending soon which means that it’s time to get your senior/grad in for portraits. I can make you some really cool announcements or make up photos to go in announcements you may have ordered from school. Many senior men are also getting missionary pictures at the same time. See some samples from the shoots for Whitney and Blake.

Cox_WBigler-sr-8x20-The-Cape-oooClick image to see more of Whitney’s Senior Pics

Cox_BJohnson-sr-292-edgeClick image to see more of Blake’s Senior Pics

Weddings

I love weather. It gives me a lot to work with in creating a dramatic image at a wedding. Here are two weddings, one in the wind from this last weekend and one from a rain storm that you’ve got to see.

Cox_KLowe-W-1185b-EdgeClick image to see more of Kami’s windy wedding.

Cox_Rachelle-W-1

Click image to see more of Rachelle’s rainy wedding.

If you’re getting married, come in and let’s talk about weddings. You’ll be able to see in person my very custom wedding albums, and what I’ll make for you.

New Awards and Recognition

• My lighthouse image, “Isle of Light” was featured in Professional Photographer Magazine.

Cox_PPAMAG-Apr2014_CropClick image to see more of about the magazine story.

• Top Wedding Album and Design Scored HIGHER Than Anything in Utah

BryCox-AlbumsVideo

Click image to see my albums.

• The Professional Photographers of America have awarded me “Elite” Status

Cox_PPA2014-104b-750pClick image to see more…

Hunting Lighthouses

This last week I was teaching a workshop on lighting up in Tacoma, and I took a free day looking for lighthouses on Vancouver Island, Canada. See what I shot.

BCox_Victoria-2014-526-edge

BCox_Victoria-2014-425-Pano3-Edge

Summary

Spring is a great time to create some personal art for your wall, whether it be family portraits, high school seniors, or something for your upcoming wedding. Give me a call at 801-728-3317 to talk about your dream portrait, and also feel free to browse my blog and main portfolio website for more cool images.

Until next time, America.

My “Isle of Light” Lighthouse Image Featured in Professional Photographer Magazine, April 2014 Issue

My lighthouse image Isle of Light, is featured in this month’s Professional Photographer Magazine. The magazine features a few images that did well at national competition, and shares the story of how those images were made.

Here is how it looks in the magazine.

Cox_PPAMAG-Apr2014_Crop

I created this image while speaking on the East Coast after getting bumped from a flight. It was also selected to be in the PPA Loan Collection Book after scoring well at nationals.

This image is available on my art site in various sizes and finishes, if you’d like it for your home or business entry.

Professional Photographer Magazine is a publication that goes out to all professional photographers throughout the US as well as other parts of the world. If you’re photographer, you’ll find this on page 20. Here is the double-page spread.

Cox_PPAMAG-Apr2014_Spread

It’s always an honor to be asked to be in this magazine, and this image is one of my top favorite lighthouse images I’ve created too. I’m glad they love and appreciate it and wanted to showcase it.

Until next time, America.

Hunting Lighthouses on Vancouver Island, Canada

I love the adventure of hunting down and photographing lighthouses. It’s the perfect activity for someone like me with wanderlust. The entire process is cathartic and inspirational. It requires driving through un-populated areas on old curvy roads instead of fast and straight highways, it means driving with the window down and smelling the sea even if it’s cold outside, it means hiking and sometimes scrambling up and down mountain sides to get to the right spot, and it means sitting and watching light and soaking in the atmosphere around you with no one else around as I wait for the right moment to shoot. And in the end, I leave with a beautiful image that I hope others enjoy, but even if they don’t, I know I will enjoy it and the process of creating it.

This week I had a speaking job in Tacoma Washington, and decided to go a bit early to photograph some lighthouses on Vancouver Island, Canada. I love the adventure of photographing lighthouses, and really like the Victoria area on Vancouver Island. I’ve never had time when I’ve been up there to get out to the lighthouses and photograph them. This was the trip to do exactly that.

After landing in Seattle, I took my rental car over to Victoria, Canada on the COHO ferry. This self portrait is me with my point and shoot, on the cold and windy bow of the ferry. Even though it was cold, I always like being outside on a ferry rather than inside. Everything is different outside on a ferry, and it makes me feel like I’m on an adventure. You can smell the ocean air, you feel the droplets, and you can look off at the dark water beneath you as you crash through it.

BCox_Victoria-2014-526-edge

After landing and getting established in Victoria, I went out lighthouse hunting. I first photographed the Fisgard Light outside of Victoria. Access is only open during the day and when I got there, I was told hat the light itself was “closed” for the day, but other parts of the ground were open. I paid the fee and went to find an angle where I could still get close and photograph it, knowing I could get around the construction and workers. And that I did. I was able to get right up close, and I spent some time there hiking around the rocks and looking at the light, created these images.

BCox_Victoria-2014-213-edge BCox_Victoria-2014-223-Pano2-Edge BCox_Victoria-2014-243-Edge

I really loved the clouds and the dramatic sky, and thought a black and white would work well. Even though I love the red of the building, this black and white may be one of my favorites of this lighthouse.

BCox_Victoria-2014-257-bw-edge

Before leaving, I did this self portrait with the lighthouse with my point and shoot on manual.

BCox_Victoria-2014-570-color-edge

The next lighthouse, Sheringham Point, was quite hard to get to, being a long drive up the western coast of the island. Along the way, I looked for my favorite fish and chips hut on the water, but it was closed for the season. When I finally got to the lighthouse, I found that it too was closed — abandoned and gated off by the government. The surrounding land was also locked and controlled by a land developer. Everything was gated and blocked off. It took some hiking and some ingenuity to get to it, but here are the images I created.

BCox_Victoria-2014-425-Pano3-Edge

By this time, it was getting late in the day, and being on a different part of the island, the weather was dramatically different, giving this lighthouse a very different and beautiful mood. And the rocky cliffs to the side were my favorite part, and I thought were part of the character of this lighthouse. I found a way over to the side where I could photograph the lighthouse using the cliffs to frame it. These looked much more dramatic than the images of the lighthouse from other angles.BCox_Victoria-2014-481-Pano2-edge

I sat on this rock for a while watching the light move and change, and listening to the crashing waves beneath me. I thought it a cool place to created a self portrait with my point and shoot.BCox_Victoria-2014-594-edge

Being on the hunt, my mind was distracted all day. It was here sitting, that I realized that I still hadn’t eaten breakfast and it was actually dinner time. So I headed to the nearby logging town of Port Renfrew to get some fish and chips, and then from there took the long way back to Victoria, making a loop up and over the island using a curvy logging road. I arrived back in Victoria at night and got some Chinese food for a late dinner in Victoria’s China Town.

All along the way, I also took abstract images on my iPhone and posted them to my Instagram feed. There are iPhone pics of these lighthouses as well as abstracts from the ferry and other interesting things. You can see those here, http://instagram.com/bry_cox

Until next time, America.