Hello, my name is Cynthia Traun (Mackowick). My passion for photography started young as I would watch my Aunt Sandy work her magic. Whenever we would visit her in Colorado, I would spend time viewing the recent photos she developed and hung on her wall. I was in awe. She taught me the basics of composition and some of the rules of photography (some of which I now break for fun as rules are meant to be broken at times). Your career as a teacher, no doubt, taught you that you never know when you will spark an interest in a child that would last a lifetime.

More appreciation is needed… Although my father is no longer with us today, I would like to thank both my parents who taught me to see the beauty in the world. They have always encouraged me to use my creative mind and to view the world with open eyes. What would life be without creativity?

Part of what I like to capture in my photographs stems from what my father and I did when I was a wee little one. We would travel around the countryside in southwest MN looking for abandoned houses and farmsteads. He would remind me that there are stories behind these places and sometimes, we would make up our own. To this day, the excitement of seeing these abandoned or neglected properties is beyond any words I could write. My husband, Dan, constantly pushes me forward and encourages me to push my craft a little further when the opportunity presents itself. I am fortunate enough to have someone by my side that is as passionate about photography as I am.

Some say that you must have a different mindset when capturing black and white images since the attention-grabbing color is absent. Others need color and find black and white images lacking feeling or punch. Personally, I am drawn to both color and black and white photography; both can evoke great feeling and emotion. However, a strong black with a perfect combination of contrast, texture, and lighting can send shivers up my spine any day.

It is a different world when you live life behind the camera and I tend to view ordinary objects in a different light. What may seem disorganized, debilitated, or crumbling to the “passer-by” is what I often considered art. My photographic mission it to see the beauty in everything around me and capture that moment in time.

I am a converted Nikon DSLR shooter. My main body is a D700. My post processing workflow incorporates Adobe Lightroom and Nik Software.

More of my images can be viewed at: Cyndietraun.com and Cynthia Traun Photography (Gallery)