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Capturing Nature’s Essence
Written By: Jenny King | Issue: 2016/12 - December | Photograph By: Cynthia Strain Photographer
Cynthia Strain, of Mill Creek Gallery & Framing in Highlands, is an avid environmentalist and birder who has brought her passion to photography. Strain opened the gallery where she sells her landscape and wildlife images in 2004.
Her artistic talents were first expressed through the use of pastels when she lived in Arizona. Even though she sold many of her pieces, she was not happy with the medium.
“I’m a straightforward artist, I like to represent what I see in realistic terms,” she says. “I found I was trying to put too much detail in my pastels and realized I could capture what I wanted with film.”
After moving to Highlands in 1982, she was fortunate to study under Gil Leebrick at the Appalachian Environmental Art Center (then part of the Highlands Biological Station) where she learned darkroom and photography techniques.
Through the years she has transitioned from film to digital and misses her time in the darkroom. But she says her time in front of the computer cropping, adjusting color, and utilizing other techniques is just as rewarding.
She shoots in RAW, which requires a good bit of post-processing. However, she says, “I’ve never gotten into special effects that a lot of people use. I like the way things look. I don’t need them to look differently.”
There’s that realism streak again!
While many people have seen her mailbox photographs at the Highlands Post Office, the best place to see Strain’s work is at Mill Creek Gallery, located in Village Square next to Kelsey-Hutchinson Founders Park. She carries prints of all size as well as postcards, greeting cards, magnets, car tags, and her coffee table book, “Highlands Through the Seasons.”
She also does framing in-house using traditional materials and recycled barnwood. She is happy to book appointments for portraits, weddings, and other events. As a born teacher, Strain welcomes students. “I want people to take good pictures with what they have. Even if it’s just a phone.”
To see Strain’s work online or to book an appointment visit her website at CyStrainPhotos.com or give her a call at Mill Creek Gallery (828) 787-2021.
