proud to present "life & death" winning professional photographer: ms. amy lorino!

bulb is honored to present the work of friend and colleague, amy lorino!
amy is a houston, texas based photographer and photography teacher.  
she is currently teaching at three colleges in the houston area!  
in her very few moments of free time, 
she enjoys many activities of varying dorkiness.  

this selection of work is a very short, untitled series: a study of produce.  

it all began with a mad dash to the grocery store the morning before a wet plate collodion workshop.  

that asparagus was a revelation.  

this small body of work is a simple exploration into subject matter and still life. 

in the past, i have always explored highly personal avenues. 

this is just the beginning of a new relationship with what i photograph.

- amy lorino

amy has recently begun a blog on wordpress where you can view a few more pieces.

if you have trouble contacting her there, please contact me and we will get you connected!

image by amy lorino

image by amy lorino

image by amy lorino

image by amy lorino

image by amy lorino

proud to present "life & death" winning photographer: audry shapai

enjoy the works of winning student photographer, audry schapai!

audry is a student at the art institute of charlotte studying to earn a ba in photography. 

she has always understood the importance of capturing a moment. with the passing of her father, 

she realized that we should never take anything for granted because things will always change. 

audry  is currently in the process of deciding what branch of photography she wants to concentrate in.

some of her favorites include photojournalism and fine art, 

but there is also an interest in industrial and portrait photography. 

the work included below is a selection of images that have been 

produced throughout her educational career. 

each image exhibits a different photographic technique or tool including 

digital pinhole, medium format cameras, tilt shift lenses and plastic lens holga cameras. 

to contact audry or view more of her work, visit her page at shutterfly!

image by audry schapai

image by audry schapai

image by audry schapai

image by audry schapai

image by audry schapai

proud to present "life & death" winning photographer: amelia fletcher

here is the first installment of posts featuring the stand out photographers
from the life & death photo challenge...

amelia fletcher is currently attending uncc, working on a bfa with a concentration in photography.  
her future plans include attending a graduate program where she will learn her mfa. 
fletcher enjoys many different art mediums, but photography is her passion... 
whether it is working with film, digital or an alternative process. 
she is inspired by the natural world, history, stories from the past, human perception and memory.


the works presented here today are from a series called, "these reckless conditions".


this body of imagery explores the fragile relationship between humans and the environment, 
and our senseless efforts to collect and control it. 
i have always been fascinated with the natural world. 
most of my childhood was spent playing in creeks and woods near our home, 
collecting relics of nature untouched and unaltered by human hands. 
i have always felt a connection to nature's tangible contents and the land around me. 

symbolically and historically birds are of a particular fascination. 
the more i understand my work, 
the more i draw associations to the similarities between the human species and that of the legendary aves. 
birds are revered as one of the most intelligent creatures in the world with complex social structures 
resembling that of humans. 
they have been represented in diverse and prominent roles in folklore and religion 
across the world, since the beginnings of human history. 
in myth and culture they have been portrayed as messengers, deities, universal guardians, and prophets of truth. 
birds communicate using song and body language.
the vast majority are monogamous and they are remarkably equipped to remember precise locations during migration. 
although humans have protected, domesticated, and sustained different breeds of birds,
conversely, they have caused population decrease and extinction of countless species.

because of the process used in the creation of these images, 
the tiniest of detail and delicate elements of each specimen are visible, 
transforming the small and frail into a significant symbol of our existence.


- amelia fletcher




if you would like to contact amelia or view more of her work,
check out her website ameliafletcher.com

image by amelia fletcher

image by amelia fletcher

image by amelia fletcher

image by amelia fletcher

image by amelia fletcher

“No, the point is not only does time fly and do we die, 

but that in these reckless conditions we live at all, and are vouchsafed, 

for the duration of certain inexplicable moments, to know it.” 

-Annie Dillard Pilgram at Tinker Creek

life & death photo challenge: announcement of "winning" submissions

i want to thank everyone who submitted to the life & death photo challenge. 

this theme is always captivating and can be approached in so many ways. 

i enjoyed looking at each artist’s different perspective.

life and death are subjects that have always been at the forefront of the artist’s mind; 

whether we are trying to deal with the loss of a loved one, 

capture forever a moment that is gone or 

cling to the hope of a new beginning. 

personally, i was most attracted to the more abstract images; 

the photographs that were not quite so literal yet held a dreamlike, eerie essence instead. 

some appeared almost as if they had come out of the world of edgar allen poe 

(quoth the raven, nevermore)!  

it was those images that portrayed the mysterious and esoteric qualities of both life and death 

that were able to catch and keep my eye. 

with that being said, I also connected to the literal nature of amelia fletcher’s 

second image of the tiny, deceased bird, taking something that can, at first, 

seem shocking or even grotesque and presenting it in a manner that is both beautiful and poetic.  

- michelle jammes

gallery manager

castle gallery

new rochelle, new york

thank you once again for participating in this bulb photo challenge.

we look forward to the upcoming blog features presented by each of the following photographers:

amelia fletcher

audry schapai

christy megenbir

and in the professional category:

amy lorino










*all jurors of bulb photo challenges are third party volunteers that are not compensated for their participation.
*all submissions are presented to the juror without identification of the photographer responsible; they are completely anonymous to the juror.

life & death: an exhibition of photographs

below, you will find the images selected from the submissions for the

life & death photo challenge.

each photographer interpreted the concepts of life and death in their own unique ways.

enjoy the show.

(the "winning" photographs will be announced later this week in a separate post)

image by amelia fletcher

image by karla eargle

image by audry schapai

image by tiffany dyer

image by christy megenbir

image by jen crickenberger

image by amanda johnson

image by david hough

image by amanda markham

image by jeff dugan

image by jordan fogal

image by andrew amelinckx

image by kelsey mcneil

image by lauren phillips

images by jordan fogal

image by craig reynolds

image by tiffany dyer

images by james reeves

image by lauren phillips

image by jen crickenberger

image by amy lorino

image by amanda markham

image by breanna dobbins

image by john russo

image by christy megenbir

image by james reeves

image by kelsey mcneil

image by mike baker

image by karla eargle

image by amelia fletcher

counting down to awesomeness...

hey bulbers!

this is just a little reminder that there are
11 days left
until the submission deadline for the
life & death
photo challenge!

go out and take photographs!!

a halloween inspired photo challenge... life & death

it has been a long time, bulbers!
but today i give you the next bulb photo challenge!

my buddy tom suggested  that the challenge involve one of my interests...
dead animals!  a grand idea, tom!

since october is the spookiest month of the year (except for april... arbor day can be frightening!),
i thought it a great idea to have a death inspired photo challenge!

so i present to you, friends and followers,

life & death!

interpret the theme as you wish and make beautiful images!
(dead animals are my thing, they don't have to be yours!)

this competition is open to photographers of all levels
using all manner of photographic media...
feel free to use film, digital slrs, alternative processes, camera phones and photo editing software!
have fun embracing your dark side!

submission guidelines:
*images should be resized to 8 inches on the longest side at 72 dpi (roughly 980k)
*files should be flattened jpegs
*files should be labeled with your first and last name and numbered (mine would be SarahBaron1.jpg)
*email submissions to sarahcbaron@gmail.com with the words "life & death" in the subject line
*in your email, specify either the "Student" of "Professional" category

*please limit your submissions to 2 per person

**the deadline for submissions is November 1, 2011

the submissions will be curated and presented in an online exhibition.
this exhibition will be posted to the blog on November 5th.
the juror will then judge the images and choose two "winners" from each category.
winning photographers will receive a feature on bulb!

the guest juror for the life & death challenge will be michelle jammes!
ms. jammes is the gallery manager at the castle gallery in new rochelle, new york.
the college of new rochelle is located about twenty miles north
of grand central station in new york city. it can be easily reached by car or train.
ms. jammes received her BA from the university of south florida
and her MFA in photography from the pratt institute in brooklyn, new york.
she has previously worked as a gallery associate at the latin collector gallery in manhattan.
michelle jammes is, herself, a photographer,
currently living with her lovely family in the quaint college town of new rochelle.