My grandmother gave me a Brownie camera when I was eight
years old, then proudly showed my photographs of her flowers to her Garden
Society. The joy I felt as a young child while taking photographs for others to
enjoy remains today, and it is this passion that keeps me immersed in
photography.
My husband and I moved to Wisconsin in the mid-1970s and,
on impulse, I borrowed a Pentax K-1000 to take my first photography course. I
later attended the Madison Area Technical College and Edgewood University in Madison
where I took both art and photography classes.
In 2007, I received a digital camera as a gift and the door
to photography opened wider than ever. My world shifted as I saw the
possibilities that could be created using a camera and lenses — infinite possibilities
to document the natural world, architecture, history, seeing everything with a
new perspective.
"Even the smallest of details became intensely
interesting. Maybe that's why I love photography. I try to capture what I see,
my own interpretation, not what someone else might see."
I also became a contributor to WisconsinNative.com, writing
and photographing for both the Wandering Wisconsin and Travel Green
features on the travel website through December, 2008. My photography has also
been published in regional magazines, national travel guides, and in a book on
Functional Architecture which was published in London in 2009.
Though I shoot in many genres, I most love the experience
of photographing the natural world. Nature grounds me. I can be myself --
in the forest, the mountains, the desert, or the prairie -- in solitude with
nature.
My hobby is now a career, as I write and photograph as a
freelancer as the principal of Seeded Earth Studio, LLC.
Bo Mackison
Seeded Earth Studio LLC
Madison, Wisconsin
Pool and Courtyard
One of my first stops was to see Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s home and studio in Scottsdale, Arizona. I took many photographs – the tour guide was most kind and accommodating – and so will have a few more to post. More info about the architecture itself will be coming.
- Quite a change of scenery, Bo! I'd almost forgotten how pretty it there this time of year!02/07/2010 - 10:01 pm
- No doubt you are truly enjoying yourself. Warm climate. Wonderful architecture. Will look forward to more images....02/08/2010 - 5:56 am
- Warm Arizona oasis, huh? :)02/08/2010 - 8:56 am
- It looks so warm and lovely and... WARM! You picked a good time to leave the midwest, Bo. :)02/08/2010 - 2:26 pm
at Pendarvis Historical Site
Polperro House is one of six house that are on the interpretative tour at Pendarvis Historical Site in Mineral Point Wisconsin. I love the exterior architectural details on this 150 year old house. Quarried limestone blocks on the first floor, chinked wood on the second and third floors, and quite intricate doors and windows pieced in place.
- Am just loving these historic houses. Especially love the fence and gate in this one!02/07/2010 - 7:00 am
- Ah, this is my favorite of the two. Hard to explain, but this picture sparks my imagination. That's a good thing. :)02/07/2010 - 9:18 am
- Three floors! Wow...that must have been the life of luxury 150 years ago.02/07/2010 - 10:52 am
Mineral Point, Wisconsin
Pendarvis and Trelawny Houses are two of the six featured buildings at the Pendarvis Historical Site in Mineral Point Wisconsin. These homes, originally built in the 1840s, were restored in the 1940s and are furnished with period pieces. Interpreters offer insights as to how the Cornish miners and their families lived and worked when mining was king in this small south-central Wisconsin community. The historical site is open for interpretive tours and demonstrations May through October, but even when it is closed during the winter season, it’s still lovely to photograph when the snow plays contrast with the tan limestone and white trim on the buildings.
- Love these simply styled old homes. Beautifully captured!!!02/06/2010 - 7:11 am
- Ooo I would imagine it would be even better to photograph while it is closed for the winter -- no people to clutter the image. Nicely captured!02/06/2010 - 9:06 am
- I wish I could have watched as these were being built. Those were stone masons who knew their business. Nearly two centuries and they still look great. Excellent photo!02/06/2010 - 11:45 am
- What a lovely shot! I just love the old limestone buildings and houses.02/06/2010 - 3:25 pm
- Definitely a pretty shot.02/07/2010 - 9:16 am
on Michigan Avenue
Paused to do a bit of window shopping on Michigan Avenue, and take a few photographs, too. This store is across the street from the Art Institute of Chicago.
- Such a wonderful collection of musical instruments. Almost as if they're playing to us on the other side of the glass.02/05/2010 - 7:12 am
- That's an attractive photo, though I'm not totally sure why. Obviously, interesting window contents "artfully" arranged. Having the window reflection seems to enhance it somehow, perhaps its the extra texture or since the subjects are partially obscured there is a bit of mystery thrown in.02/05/2010 - 12:38 pm
- I live the composition of the story display, but I think it's the reflections in the window that makes this image interesting. It's one of those images that "the more I look, the more I see."02/06/2010 - 9:11 am
- This one is really neat, reminds me of an old shop or something to that effect.02/07/2010 - 9:15 am
Lensbaby Macro
Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts. ~ Albert Einstein
I spent a few hours playing with the Lensbaby and its macro attachment. I have a frosted glass inset in my work table, a great purchase I found at Ikea for less than $90 dollars. I clamped a light under the desk, and experimented with lighting directed from underneath objects.
This heart abstract is a part of a glass paperweight that has several concentric heart figures imbedded in it. This is one of the photos from my first experiment session. There will be more, as I enjoyed playing with this idea. It’s a great photo project when I’m not in the mood for an outdoor shoot.
- Never know where you'll find inspiration, huh? :)02/04/2010 - 10:30 am
- OK Bo, I not going to go into detail where my dirty old man mind took me with this image. Suffice it to say I saw the background as skin... And I'll stop there. I trust you are having fun with the Lensbaby. I have the macro kit, the fisheye and the soft focus optics. Lots of fun.02/04/2010 - 10:39 am
- I can see where that would suggest a whole lot of ideas. Experimenting is fun, isn't it!02/04/2010 - 11:23 am
- Hve fun with the Lensbaby. I look forward to seeing how creative you can be.02/04/2010 - 2:57 pm
- So very creative..and very cool!!! WOW!!02/05/2010 - 7:13 am
- Bo, I'm really enjoying watching you play with Lensbaby! Thank you for sharing it with us! :o)02/06/2010 - 8:13 am
- Being a huge lover of abstract, this is awesome! Love it.02/06/2010 - 9:09 am
Michigan Avenue in Chicago's Loop
Though I don’t have the urban backbone to live in Chicago – I lived on the near North Side for three years in the late 70s and know that as a true fact – I love visiting the city a few times each year, preferably once each season. On our winter visit, we explored Michigan Avenue and Millennium Park. I took this photograph standing on the stairs that lead into the Art Institute, shooting north up the avenue. The snow cover and chilly temperature added to the overall experience.
I liked how only part of the diamond top of the Smurfit-Stone Building was snow covered. I love that building, and I love its name. I always think I’m going to see little blue cartoon characters hanging around the lobby, but no, so far there have been no Papa Smurf sightings!
- They missed an opportunity. The building could have been blue. :) Too bad.02/03/2010 - 5:15 pm
- That is an interesting building and a great shot! I didn't know there was a Smurfit Stone building. Smurfit is in bankruptcy now and perhaps the diamond will change hands.02/03/2010 - 7:41 pm
- I like how you composed your image. And I LOVE the Chicago Art Institute! I need to go back for a visit. *sigh*02/04/2010 - 6:43 am
- Nice composition. It really does look like a diamond in that sky. I've never been to Chicago. Thanks for the tour!!!02/04/2010 - 7:20 am
- Love this scene02/04/2010 - 10:28 am
- Back some years now, i worked for a large ad agency. My office was in Philly but HQ was in Chicago. I did a lot of traveling but always felt Chicago was one of the nicest cities I visited. Good work on this one, Bo. How you likin' that E-P1?02/04/2010 - 10:43 am
- I totally agree, Ed. Chicago is a great city.02/04/2010 - 1:03 pm
a quiet message
While visiting Shake Rag Alley, I noticed this basket when I peered through the window. There was a bit of a red bow and the turquoise on the table’s edge, so I set up and took a few photographs. It wasn’t until I had the photo up on my computer that I noticed the hand printed message on the edge of the table. It read:
****Without * Risk * Nothing * Will * Change ****
I believe there are few coincidences. So is this a message I needed to read today? Yes, I think it is.
- Wow. That just hit me like a juggernaut in the gut. Thank you for sharing it... I think I needed that message today too.02/02/2010 - 12:32 pm
- Bo, me too. I loved this photo and the way you drew us into the post, and the message, and those moments when that is just what we need to hear...02/02/2010 - 12:33 pm
- Very full post. The visual effect of the reflections in the glass and the image in the building as well as the message.02/02/2010 - 2:31 pm
- A beautiful window capture and a very apt message. Indeed. I certainly needed that message today. Perfect.02/02/2010 - 2:47 pm
- As I looked at the wonderful image I could see there was writing, but couldn't read it. Thanks for sharing the words -- a important message contained in those words.02/02/2010 - 4:46 pm
- That is indeed a message and thanks for passing it on!02/02/2010 - 8:29 pm
- Somehow we always manage to find the exact thing we needed to hear... it is so true.02/02/2010 - 10:26 pm
- ooooooh....love the message hidden within...and then clear and claifying!02/04/2010 - 6:53 am
- I think it's a message I needed to read, too. Thank you, Bo. It's a great shot. I've been getting caught up with you and admiring your recent shots. You're an amazing photographer.02/08/2010 - 2:26 pm
Shake Rag Alley
A soul mate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks. ~Richard Bach
- There's a lot of history symbolized there!02/01/2010 - 5:42 pm
- BO! I'm unable to "follow" you for some reason and have to remember to check in here daily. That's tough when I leave for spells so forgive me!!!! I'll get around to commenting on everything soon but please know how much I love visiting, love your photography and am astounded by the simple details of photos such as this very one! Love it!!!!!02/01/2010 - 8:08 pm
- Wonderful detail..and I love your accompanying quote. Perfect!!02/02/2010 - 7:13 am
- Great image, the lighting was selected well to bring out the texture in the wood! Nicely done.02/02/2010 - 7:47 am
- What great visual texture. I love this photo.02/02/2010 - 9:07 am
- I love how clearly defind the shadow in this one, pretty awesome. Enjoyed the quote too. :)02/02/2010 - 10:05 am
in Shake Rag Alley
We visited one of my favorite towns in southwestern Wisconsin this weekend – Mineral Point. As one of the oldest settlements in Wisconsin, this is a town filled with much history, and also with many, many old buildings. The photograph is of one of the original cabins in Mineral Point, built about 1828.
See the little concrete elf peeking out the window? Love that elf!
Mining was big in Mineral Point from 1827 until the 1860s and roughly half the citizen’s had their roots in Cornwall. Lead ore was abundant if you were willing to do the work, and at peak, the town’s miners and furnaces were producing nearly 44,000 pounds of lead every day. The original homes of some of these Cornish miners have been restored at one of Wisconsin’s State Historical Sites, Pendarvis.
And this town even comes with its own bit of trivia. Q: What famous TV game show host was born and buried here? A: Allen Ludden, host of Password in the 1960s and 70s. Remember Allen Ludden on Password? Remember when he and Betty White were married? They were married for nearly 18 years, until his death in 1981.
Ludden ended each show with a password of the day. I loved collecting those words; even as a child I loved to play with words. I wrote the daily passwords in a black and white notebook after every show. He would end the show the same way every day, although the word, of course, was always different.
“And the password of the day is appreciate. So long, see you tomorrow, I hope.”
- Welcome to my neck of the woods. Most long time residents of Mineral Point seem to take the history and the old buildings for granted. Seeing how other people photograph and appreciate the buildings I drive past every day is always an inspiration to me.01/31/2010 - 4:42 pm
- Looks like they have kept that cabin in good shape! Just looking at that door makes me want to go inside and back into history.01/31/2010 - 8:03 pm
- Very nice historical note. The town sounds fascinating. Do you have any close ups for those quintessential Bo texture photos? I always love the way you capture the texture of older objects.02/01/2010 - 8:21 am
- I love that elf too! Haha.02/02/2010 - 10:03 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Dominique King, Bo Mackison. Bo Mackison said: What does a log cabin, lead mining, and the old game show, Password, have in common? Well I'll tell you, plus a photo! http://bit.ly/cfTz9j [...]02/02/2010 - 8:31 pm
Abstract in Green
I’m experimenting with the Lensbaby Composer, a sweet little lens on a ball and socket that allows me to swivel the lens and focus on a focal point – or not! I find that using what some photographers refer to as a “play lens” frees me from the rules and lets me take photographs that I usually see only in my imagination.
I love the abstract feel of this plant leaf taken with the macro-adapter. A bit dreamy, out of focus, a bit like thinking about the nearness of spring while mired in the last days of January.
- I simply HAVE to get a Lensbaby. I keep talking about it, but I think it's time to do it! Love the effect you achieved in this one.01/30/2010 - 4:22 pm
- This is really beautiful, Bo. I'm yearning for spring as well. I've had enough of this bitter cold.01/30/2010 - 4:56 pm
- Well as to Spring the Ground Hog has his say on Tuesday. The abstract feel of your lensbaby is pretty cool.01/30/2010 - 5:38 pm
- I like the image and color, Bo. For some reason it immediately made me think of pictographs, perhaps Egyptian.01/30/2010 - 7:56 pm
- Such beautiful greens. Have been wanting to play with a lensbaby myself. What unusual and wonderful 'spring' effects!!!01/31/2010 - 1:13 pm
- Very springtime! Like this one. :)02/02/2010 - 10:01 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Bo Mackison, D Murphy-Rodgers. D Murphy-Rodgers said: Yearning for spring: beautiful experiment with green and macro on Lensbaby Composer by @bo_mackison http://bit.ly/aIq6bs :o) [...]02/01/2010 - 6:49 am
by Bo Mackison
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