Category: Photography

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Resurrecting an old but popular Ocean City website.

A travel/business directory style site is being repurposed for local art and entertainment.

I am in the process of resurrecting an old travel/destination website, Visit Ocean City at www.OCtheBeach.com, that had a major server crash last year. I am also repurposing it to be an art and entertainment resource for the Ocean City area. We live two miles from Ocean City and do like the music/entertainment at many venues in the area. I will focus on our favorite entertainers and venues within the Beach Resort Area from OCMD to Bethany Beach and Rehoboth Beach because those are the ones with which we are most familiar.

The focus on Ocean City art will, of course, feature photography by me – and be billed/promoted as Bill Swartwout Photography and USPictures. For “Visit Ocean City” I have chosen to feature Pictorem as our POD (Print On Demand) fulfillment partner because they offer free ground shipping within the United States and Canada, where most of our site viewers reside. The produce high quality work and have a satisfaction guarantee. See the intro article here: Ocean City Art Gallery.

Bill Swartwout Photography Ocean City MD Header Image

For many years, OCtheBeach.com was a premier travel directory for the Ocean City area and provided information about local businesses and, of course, a way to book a hotel room. The original site was launched in Late May of 1999 and served for nearly two decades as one of the more popular Ocean City Websites. We were even a member of the Ocean City Chamber of Commerce for 11 years – until they started to directly compete in the hotel reservations market, which was our main source of revenue.

OCtheBeach.com is being “reborn” to coincide with its 23rd “birthday” and is, once again, providing value to Ocean City visitors. There are myriad other websites and (of course) Facebook sites and groups that extol the virtues of every place to dine, stay and play. Visit Ocean City will offer a slightly different “view” of the Beach Resort. We hope you, too, will find it useful.

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Defining One’s Muse for Creating Art

If I do have a muse it is in the form of Mother Nature.

Starting as a child of 11, when my parents gave me a home darkroom kit, I spent most of my time shooting and printing captures of Mother Nature’s creations around where we lived. That has continued throughout my life.

My photography is defined in the way I capture light and shadow and endeavor to do so in the way those elements are created in natural scenes, be they landscapes or seascapes, night or day.

Fenwick Island Dunes and Waves
Fenwick Island Dunes and Waves and Sea and Sand in the Afternoon Sun

I could not say why I “create as I do” but I know that if something out there catches my eye, I will go and take a look. Someplace in my mind I like to think that my photography attempts to capture some of the beauty seen in nature. No matter what medium or the camera used, I have tried to capture the essence of what is seen in nature through the camera. Being able to do so allows me to enjoy every shoot and, as a result, my camera becomes an extension of my eyes.

It is true that the architectural endeavors of mankind are also creative and beautiful and at night they may need artificial light (man-made) to be seen. However, during the day it is Mother Nature that brings out the designs, forms and textures of that architectural “masterpiece.”

Historic Waccamaw River Bridge in Black and White
Mother Nature sets the stage for the creations of man, the bridge and the pier are surrounded by the texture, light and shading that sets this scene apart from normal – especially in a black and white presentation.

My goal or wish, through my photography and writing, is to share with you the view of Nature that I have come to know over the last half century. Just as a painter strives to find unique ways in capturing and creating images, I too am always searching for a variety of creative outlets in photography and, occasionally, in writing.

Photography with its many disciplines is vast, it has been said that there are as many definitions as photographers. My photographs may not be for everyone, but if someone wants to see my work I invite them to do so at:

Link to: My Full Gallery at Pictorem

Link to: My Ocean City Gallery at Pictorem

Link to: My Full Gallery at Fine Art America

Link: Fenwick Island Dunes and Waves Panorama

Link: Waccamaw River Memorial Bridge at Conway in Black and White

The world is full of photographers, the ubiquitous cell phone camera has made sure of that, and anyone can look at the creations of others and say to themselves, “I could do that.” But do they (or we) really have the “eye” to see it? The creative eye that takes something out of nothing and creates a work of art? What does one need to do in order to create art? I have been striving to answer that answer for a very, very long time.

What I am seeking is what my Muse gives me when I visit her throughout the wonder of Creation’s pathways. What is within me seeks expression in the form of capturing a feeling or mood which often resides in the compositions that appear before me. For me it starts with an idea and evolves into the moment of commitment to an image. That is what I endeavor to share with my viewers and buyers.

Camera Screen with a Scene of the Indian River Bridge at Sunset
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Spiral Pattern Abstract Created from a Real Photograph

The colors just seemed to work for a new art creation in blue and black.

A spiral pattern created from an actual night photograph of Fire Control Tower #3 at Tower Beach Park of the Delaware Seashore State Park System. When it comes to abstract art I am more about colors and patterns than anything else. I have always liked blue – nearly all shades – and it goes well with black. So I created this abstract by swirling a “real” photograph that was primarily the shades of cobalt blue you see here along with a nearly all-black background. The colors caught my eye and I thought – just let me swirl these around a bit.

Galaxy Collective Spiral Abstract in Blue and Black
Galaxy Collective Spiral Abstract in Blue and Black

Here is the original photo…I simply thought the colors “worked” for the new rendition. FCT #3 is currently being restored as a museum piece and is lighted at night by cobalt blue spotlights. The tower was originally photographed by me, Bill Swartwout, in a swirling rain. The cobalt blue swirl was, hence, derived from the original image keeping only the blue of the tower and the black of the sky. A collection of lights swirling against a black void is, of course, a galaxy collective and, in this instance, in cobalt blue. A galaxy is made up of stars so the star accent was added for a touch or realism. Right?

While the tower is no longer recognizable in the least, the colors are pretty much intact and make a distinctive design when “swirled” in my image editing software.

Fire Control Towner #3 Night with Blue Lighting
Fire Control Towner #3 Night with Blue Lighting

It is rather obvious from where the abstract was developed once you see the colors of the original photograph. Hey, wouldn’t that (the abstract) make a challenging jigsaw puzzle?

Chose a link below to see the full image for each photograph above. You can see it on various substrates for wall art and also as a variety of home decor items.

Link: Galaxy Collective in Cobalt Blue with Star

Link: Fire Control Tower 3 in Cobalt Blue

Link to: Bill’s full Gallery at Fine Art America

Link to: Bill’s Gallery at Pictorem

Fire Control Tower #3 is bathed in cobalt blue light on a rainy night in coastal Delaware. Fire Control Tower #3 is located at the Tower Beach Facility in one of the the Delaware Seashore State Parks. This tower, along with Tower #4 in the same state park, and several others along the Delaware Coast provided targeting information for the big guns at Fort Miles, several miles to the north.

Fort Miles and the World War II Fire Control Towers of the Delaware coast were an early example of, what we call today, Homeland Security. Fort Miles and the FCTs were built to protect the Delaware Bay from invasion by enemy ships. They proved to be an excellent deterrent because fire was never directed on an enemy vessel throughout the war.