Welcome to my website, where I share my favorite images from my photographic journeys. Having a career in the accounting and financial world, photography has been my creative outlet since the 1970's when I first picked up my parent's Kodak instamatic camera and began taking pictures around our local area in northern West Virginia. My passion for photography has only grew over the years as I evolved from shooting film to fully embracing the world of digital photography.
Living in West Virginia, most of my photographs are taken in my home and surrounding states in the eastern US. However, I have developed a deep love-affair for the western part of the country, from the Rocky Mountains and desert southwest to the Pacific coast. But in reality, I sometimes feel like some of my favorite photos are taken within minutes from my home when I can be there on the right day and the right time for the best shooting conditions. Good photos are as much about timing and just having the passion of wanting to shoot as it is about being in wonderful locations. Sometimes the simple everyday subjects right around us are the best.
I have placed my images in separate galleries according to location as well as genre, as follows:
West Virginia Western Lowlands - The geography of West Virginia is primarily made up of two regions, the Appalachian Plateau in the western part of the state, which is of lower elevations, and the Appalachian Highlands in the eastern part of the state.
West Virginia Eastern Highlands - These are images from the more mountainous eastern and southern portions of the state, consisting mainly of the Alleghenies, a range of high ridges and deep valleys within the greater Appalachian Mountains.
Ohio - Most of my Ohio photography is from the geologically unique Hocking Hills region in southeast Ohio as well as along the Ohio river in what is known as the Mid-Ohio Valley.
Eastern - This gallery contains photos I’ve taken in the eastern US outside of West Virginia and Ohio, as well as from the Caribbean.
Western - This gallery contains photos I've taken out west, a part of the country that I absolutely love. I only wish i could be there more often.
Cities and Architecture - Living in a very rural state I don't do a lot of these type of photos but would like to do more in the future.
Nature - This gallery holds images generally of smaller nature subjects such as flowers, blossoms, butterflies, and close-up foliage.
Wildlife - This is another area of photography that I haven't done that much of but having recently bought a longer focal length lens I hope to expand my wildlife portfolio.
Panoramics - I shoot panoramics by taking two or more single images and stitching them together to make a wide format image. All panoramics are in the 1x2 format, where they are twice as long horizontally as they are vertically.
The Art of Photography - While I strive to bring an artistic element to all of my photos, I started this gallery to display photos that are more in the genre of fine art rather than photos of a specific recognizable place. These photos just didn’t work well in any of the other galleries so needed a home of their own! This is an area of photography that I really want to expand on going forward as this is where you can really express yourself through your photography, which I find more rewarding than just shooting a nice scene. Photography as an art form also frees up the traditional boundaries of photography and gives you the creative freedom to expand your horizons. In art there are no real boundaries, rules, or guidelines on what you can create. As the late Bob Ross often liked to say, it's your world and you decide what you want in it.
Thank you for visiting my site and I welcome any comments on my photography. Just send me an email at [email protected] or you can make a comment through the website. I am also on Facebook and Instagram at Michael Ribas Photography.
