Running all over the state this summer and fall, I sometimes forget to appreciate the hidden treasures of my local Orlando area.  After becoming exhausted from traveling all over the state, I moved Rocks Springs Run up my list of places to shoot. While it is true that many of the pristine open areas are gone, the rivers and swamps make you think your traveling through Florida 200 years ago, or maybe a Tarzan movie 60 years ago.  The run...

  Scoping the Tamiami Trail After visiting Sanibel Island in Captiva and Lover’s Key in Estero, Florida, I drove down the Tamiami trail for a day trip to visit the , as well as making a few spontaneous stops along back-country roads as I drove through the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve and the Big Cypress National Preserve. My goal here was scope out the area for a kayak trip I’m planning in January, but I did take a few...

Please like my new facebook fanpage, ‘Richard Auger Photography‘ The new fanpage will focus on my efforts Florida nature conservationism, my travels and blogposts, as well as my adventures at art festivals.  As I’ve had great success in my fine-art photography and conservation efforts in 2011, I will be splitting off and scaling back my portrait and wedding photography business during 2012.  This new fanpage will give a...

Artworks Eau Gallie, located in the historic district in Melbourne, Florida, was my last show of 2011, and quite unique from the other festivals I exhibited at this fall. I was enthusiastic to receive the Award of Distinction (2nd in 2D Art), with a cash prize of $1,250.

Last year was an incredible year at Lake Mary Heathrow, where I won my first big ribbon, the Tony Senador Award (1st in Show)  of $2500.  This year, I won again, the Award of Excellence (2nd in Show) with a cash prize of $1000! The weather was beautiful all weekend, and my sales were much higher than last year, with a much thicker crowd.  Lake Mary Heathrow Festival had to switch locations several years back, and patrons are figuring out...

During the summer of 2011, my main focus was on the rivers and waterways of Central Florida. With nearly all of Florida covered in thunderstorms during mid August, I darted out the house for some storm chasing along the beaches of southwest Florida. While rivers require a soft, subtle morning light, black and white beach photos look best during dramatic, ominous thunderstorms. Some old school photographers wait for the perfect shot in one location for days; instead, I choose to follow the perfect light across many locations, tracking weather systems from my mobile devices. During August 2011, traveling down southwest had perfect timing.

For years, I’ve been inspired by the well preserved Old-Florida landscapes of the Ocala area, especially the Ocala National Forest.  I’ve been visiting the springs there for years, which feels like visiting another planet compared to the rest of the overdeveloped regions of Florida.  Ocala has both beautiful water and forest regions with rolling hills, a perfect combination of the deep south and coastal rivers.  Early in...

On October 15 and 16, 2011, I exhibited at the the 4th Annual 2011 Winter Springs Festival of the Arts.  Winter Springs, as I remember last year, had one of the most beautiful locations for a festival, with its bricked pathways in the Winter Springs town center.  I was happy to receive the ‘Award of Distiction’ for my new series, titled ‘Florida 67′. My booth was next to Melvin McGee, a proud self-taught painter...

Since April 2011, I’ve been working on my documentary of the Florida’s rivers, swamps, and coastlines.  Perfecting the technique took several months, followed up by several months of shooting and traveling throughout the state of Florida, from the Gulf Island National Seashore in the Panhandle to the swamps of Big Cypress in South Florida.  The adventures and obsessive study of light, weather, and water were both exhausting...

Rained Out! As many shows as I’ve done, this was the first to be completely rained out.  For almost all day Saturday, and half the day Sunday, it rained and rained without a single pause.  When the rain did stop on Sunday, Winter Park was forecasted to have winds of 20 miles per hour, and then begin raining again.  On Sunday morning, I began to pack up and cut my losses while their was a small break in the weather.  This is very...