E.J. Baeza and his wife, Kathy McCarthy, moved from California to Oregon in June of 2006 in order to begin a new life and livelihood. Kathy became a jewelry designer and E.J. decided to pursue his creative passions for painting, photography, videography and music.

Kathy and E.J. decided to call their new art company Midlife Crisis Studios. In order to differentiate his fine art photography from other photographers' work, E.J. has developed a technique he calls "Renderization." He takes his conventional and digital photographic images and applies a unique combination of digital filters to create images that have a more rendered look than conventional photography. E.J. has exhibited his conventional and "renderized" images at Valley Art Gallery and in other gallery environments in the greater Portland area.

For the upcoming January/February show, E.J. will exhibit a mix of his renderized works with some of his latest black and white works. The digitally processed images reflect his love for nature's flora and the black and whites are a study of the regions "Out Buildings" surrounded by the beautiful agricultural fields. These black and white images feature the gentle contrast between the rigid lines of the buildings set against the fresh, crisp skies and landscapes of autumn in farm country.

Michel Hersen's photography of the West, Northwest, and Southwest is inspired by his knowledge of Hudson River School painting. His objective is to present the viewer with a tableau permeated by inner light, taking advantage of 21st century artistic vision. He uses a clear compositional framework, luminosity and coloration.

Hersen is a field contributor to Nature Photographer and a member of the North American Nature Photography Association.

He has work permanently on display at the Hallie Ford Museum in Salem and Pacific University in Forest Grove, and his landscape, nature and wildlife photographs have appeared in Shutterbug, Nature Photographer, Pacific Magazine, Camping Life, the Oregonian and many other publications. You may have seen his photo of the Portland Japanese Garden in autumn, which serves as the cover shot for a Providence Home Services brochure. It also hangs in Portland City Hall.

Most recently, Oregon Road Trippers chose his shot of the Santiam Pass in autumn as Photo of the Week (Sept. 19-15) and "First Snow on the Salmon River" was picked for Nov. 21-27.

A third-place winner in the Landscape Category for the 2011 "Catch the Color Wooden Shoe Tulip Photo Contest," examples of Hersen's work can be seen at Photographybymichel.net.

Resting snug along the rolling foothills of the Tillamook forest, Les Dougherty's workshop springs to life amongst the trees. Working with a gentle and metered pace, Les fires up his lathe, begins to shape a piece of maple slowly and methodically, grinding down and encouraging the form of a bowl from what had been a square block.

This process between maker and material is just one interaction the artist maintains between himself and his surroundings.

With his medium of choice just outside his front door, the process of working and shaping wood runs full circle at Northwoods Figured Woods. Les grew up with, and around, wood. Having weathered the downturn of the contracting business in 2008, he re-oriented and decided to focus on doing what he likes most: working with the enchanting and beautiful grain and figure of the Pacific Northwest hardwoods.

He is well known for his work with big leaf maples. Skilled in hollow-forms, bowls, end grain cutting boards, and flatware, Les likes to work with each piece on an individual basis, letting the wood "decide" what to become. Paying attention to the fine grain, figure, and spalt* of the pieces Les works with bring him joy – especially when they reveal their form upon the lathe.

Along with the lathe, he holds special regard for his saws, which are a favorite instrument in his toolkit. His attention to detail is what sets his work apart from others. His appreciation for wood was fostered and supported by his father, a fellow woodworker and cane enthusiast.

Les cares deeply about his medium, and is spiritually connected with his creations. This connectedness serves to inform, and educate his growth as an artist, and how he explores his relationship with the wood.