Above: Oregon Sand Dunes, August 2003 / © Mark Gresham
In his files were details about the workshop Mark attended where he took this photograph (and the others in this post). It was conducted by nature photographer Charles Campbell, who was apparently living in Eugene, Oregon, at the time. The workshop was called "Magnificent Seascapes" and was held twice that summer of 2003 on the central Oregon coast. Mark registered for the session running August 6-10, a Wednesday through Sunday. The workshop cost $675 and only six students could enroll. From the online description:
"Highlights: Photograph star fish, sea stacks, sea lions, sand dunes and coastal seascapes on the Central Oregon coast. This photo-rich field expedition includes Cape Arago, Shore Acres Park, Bandon Beach Sea Stacks, Heceta Head, Cape Blanco and the Umpqua Sand Dunes. We'll also shoot some fabulous waterfalls at Golden and Silver Falls State Park."
Campbell sent out nine pages of information in advance, most about recommended equipment and other supplies. Attendees were responsible for their own hotels and meals. Campbell recommended spending the first two nights at Capt. John's Motel in Charleston on Coos Bay. The Shooting Star Motel in Bandon, further south on the Oregon coast on US Hwy 101, was recommended for the final two nights.
Sometime in 2004, Mark sent me a mounted and matted print from this workshop. (He cut his own mats with a Logan 40” Intermediate Mat Cutter Model 401 that I still have.) The matted image Mark sent me was (I am pretty sure) from the Umpqua Sand Dunes. As you can see from his mat of the image below, he simply titled it "Oregon Sand Dunes 2003" and signed with his first initial and last name. If there was a note accompanying this photo, unfortunately, I did not keep it.
Above: "Oregon Sand Dunes 2003" matted / © Mark Gresham
Below: Detail on the back of the print of "Oregon Sand Dunes"
On the back of the print, Mark wrote the information above. "Exp" is short for exposure. My daughter Diane now has the Bronica camera and its lenses and other accessories (more about that camera in a future post).
Mark primarily used his Bronica SQ-Ai large format camera on this trip, which he'd just purchased (used) on June 24. These pictures were shot with Fuji NPC-160 color negative film (discontinued the following year, 2004) and Agfa Optima 200 color negative film (discontinued in 2005). H also took some of the same shots with Kodak 125PX (Plus-X- discontinued in 2011) and Ilford SFX 3748 (commonly known as Ilford SFX 200, still available) black-and-white negative films for the same camera (in separate film backs). He may have processed the black-and-white film himself, at his darkroom at home. He had at least one other camera with him with color slide film (recommended for the class).
His slides, contact sheets, and negatives show images of Golden Falls and Silver Falls (albeit with low flows, since it was August), the Bandon Beach sea stacks, the Cape Blanco Lighthouse, tide pools and beach scenes, and what I think are the Umpqua Dunes area. There are also images on the same films of Wizard Island at Crater Lake National Park (which he must have visited on his own, perhaps driving to and from his then-home in California, or to/from an airport closer to the workshop, or perhaps even a visit to his sister Ann near Husum, Washington, just north of Oregon across the Columbia River).
Here are some of the other photos he took on this trip, scanned from the original negatives except for the Wizard Island image, which was scanned from the original contact sheet (because I couldn't get the color right from the negative).
Above: Bandon Beach Sea Stacks, Oregon, August 2003 / © Mark Gresham
Below: Cape Blanco Lighthouse, Oregon, August 2003 / © Mark Gresham
Above: Golden Falls at Golden and Silver Falls State Natural Area, Oregon, August 2003 / © Mark Gresham
Below: Wizard Island at Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, August 2003 /
© Mark Gresham
Above is a map showing some of the places Mark went on this trip. Click on the image (or the link in the previous sentence) to make it larger.
