Making Photos

Moving

2009-08-04T15:58:00.000-07:00

Well, after three years here at Blogger it's time to move on. I've got a new site up www.larrydhayden.com. The journal portion of the site is up and running and over the next few weeks I'll be posting images into the galleries. Please change your bookmarks to reflect the new site and thanks.

P.S. You can also click up on the title as well.

We Are Not Terrorists

2009-08-01T21:16:00.000-07:00

According to Janet Nepolitano, I could be considered a terrorist simply because I might be taking photographs that don’t make any sense. Ask my wife, I often take photographs that don’t make any sense. What she actually said was “...somebody continually taking photographs of a piece of critical infrastructure that doesn’t make any sense…” I guess the fear mongering continues with the new administration.

I can’t even tell you how disappointed I am in this continued fear based approach to fight terrorism in a way that makes little sense. And before you let me know that it’s OK, even prudent to do so, please consider that about 200M Americans carry cell phones. A very large percentage of those people have a camera in that cell phone with a large enough resolution to provide any kind of detail needed. And let’s not forget the presence of images on the web that would provide the same information. And how about the ability to get precise coordinates of a building, bridge or “piece of critical infrastructure” from Google Earth.

The considerable waste of time associated with checking out photographers being reported by “concerned citizens” would seem to be a woefully wasted use of security resources. Is it really something that is going to prevent a terrorist attack or is it just a means to make everyone feel safer by appearing to do something, anything, to be ”vigilant?” I’ll go with the latter.

Let’s try an example. There are 222,532 results on flickr for “Brooklyn Bridge.” Out of that 200K+ images I would imagine a pretty good idea of it’s structure can be had. If I, as photographer, would park my LF camera on a tripod somewhere on it’s structure how long would it take a “concerned citizen” to question my motives, decide that what I was photographing didn’t make sense and call the appropriate authorities. Since I’m inept at using a LF camera I think there might actually be time for a cop to show up, question me, my intent and promptly remove me from the scene. Another threat stopped in the war on terror.

But if it really is someone intent on harming us and our loved ones, I can imagine the scenario going like this. The bad guy pulls out his cell phone, looks over the side and makes an image. Maybe he even pulls out a DLSR that automatically does everything and does the same thing. Twenty or so people see this, assuming that anyone is paying attention at all, and maybe one makes a call. Some period of time later the proper authority shows up. A conversation ensues, a description is given and the hunt is on for a person of unknown heritage that has taken an image of the bridge. Of course it’s unlikely that this person is ever found because this isn’t Hollywood and the image is sent to the other bad guys to determine the best way to bring harm to your loved ones and mine. A terrorist threat not stopped. At least not in this way.

Simply ridiculous. And simply a wasteful use of precious security resources and an absolute and utterly wasted effort by all involved.

But the concern is even more of an issue as we continually lose more and more of our freedoms as this ”war” continues. Over in Great Britain there is a concentrated effort to arrest anyone who would dare take a photograph. Under the The Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 the British Parliament gave wide sweeping powers to the police to arrest persons exhibiting suspicious behavior with the power to confiscate property. There are widespread reports of police abuse, persons being detained under this act for photographing in a suspicious manner, film being confiscated, demands to delete images, etc., all in the name of making the British citizens safer. How long do you think it will be before a similar law is passed in the United States?

Now I’m all for due diligence, proper vigilance and the need to be wary in these trying days. But the scope of these times allow our government to legislate on fear and that’s even more scary than the terrorist themselves. Mark Twain said, “ Loyalty to the country always. Loyalty to the government when it deserves it. “ I think this is as true today, possibly even more so, as when he said it in his day.

NPPA Letter to Homeland Security

Now I'm off to a place not remotely considered "critical infrastructure."

Sheesh

2009-07-31T14:46:00.001-07:00

Over at PDN there is an article about an “artist,” and I use that word in the loosest terms, in which a downloaded image has been modified by taking the people out of the image.

She’s takes an image, made by someone else, modifies it and somehow gets to publish a book. Go figure. I wonder if it will sell? I really wonder who she knows and how she was able to get this published? It’s mind boggling to say the least and it begs the question of who makes these kinds of decisions and who buys this stuff? And I am most curious about how she can actually make a living.

A link to the article by clicking the title. Sheesh!

Julius Shulman

2009-07-22T14:15:00.000-07:00

I love reading about people, especially photographers, and what they mean to people. Julius Shulman passed away a few weeks ago and there have been a lot of blogs posts, news reports and videos over the last few weeks. Here are links to a few of them.

Tim Mantoani - Remembering Julius "One Shot" Shulman

SMOGRANCH

LA Times

NPR: The Picture Show

LA Times Video on Case Study House #22

Pursuit

2009-07-20T20:50:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all of you that have taken the time to comment here on the blog or send private emails. They are greatly appreciated.

Time has a way of passing all too quickly. What seems important today is decidedly not so tomorrow. And what seems inconsequential at the present time has a way of indelibly making it’s presence known somewhere down the road and becoming very meaningful at a most unexpected time.

Photography for me has always been important but it has usually taken a less than meaningful space in my life. It’s always present but somehow it never really gets to the level I want it to be. It certainly has it’s moments but a sustainable, meaningful existence has proven to be slightly out of grasp. But occasionally I get the time, and an image, that lets me think that I might just be onto something. This is one of them.

My favorite blogger, Dan Milnor, would call this an “Urban Abstract Moment.” And in this case it would be true. It is urban. And abstract. And a moment. I like it and I hope that it just might not quite qualify under his definition. It does include people and the two umbrellas make the image for me personally.

I’ve been trying to get away from where a lot of my stuff has been going lately. Even before I read his post I knew my images were a lot like what he refers to in this post. I needed more people, more interaction, more fluidity. But this is a huge and difficult step for me. It’s scary, difficult and my recent attempts have been abject failures. I expect that to be the case over the coming months.

But I have to do it. It’s where the passion lies for me in photography and where I’ll enjoy it the most. It’s also what will allow it to come to the forefront more often and become a sustained, meaningful pursuit for me personally. And while I’ve mostly put up stuff on this blog that I’m happy with, and in some cases, downright proud of, I will most likely put up some of the abject failures as well. Maybe I’ll get some constructive criticism… maybe not. Regardless, I tend to photograph for myself anyway even if I constantly struggle with where it’s going. But if I’m not consistently making images then I’m not doing what I just absolutely love to do. And if I’m not doing that then what’s the point.

P.S. I know this is similar to another image but I ultimately liked this one much better once it was scanned and printed.

February 19, 1928 ~ June 22, 2009

2009-06-23T22:44:00.000-07:00

The last few days have been some of the most difficult days of my life.

On June 22nd, we lost a lovely, beautiful, loving and simply amazing woman. Larene Pace, mother to Diane, grandmother to Jordan and mother-in-law to me, passed away and left this world with a void not to be replaced.

I’ve written this post in my head for days now, and as always, what comes out on paper is something less than I would want it to be. But to say that Larene had an impact on my life would be a disservice to the memory of a wonderful and beautiful person. In listening to the stories of the people that knew her well, and those who only knew her briefly, it’s immediately apparent that her presence made everyone better and that everyone was better off for meeting her.

I’ve never been more profoundly sad than I am today. I can’t imagine what we’ll do without her and what our lives will be as we move into the future. It’s the little things I think about, the moments taken for granted that hit me without warning when the vacant spot becomes a gaping hole.

I thought the words would flow for me as I sat down to write this post. But the truth is, that nothing I can say will remotely begin to convey what I feel, what we’ve lost and what Larene meant to all of us. As much as I want too I just can’t seem to get the words to come. The sadness is overwhelming, the emptiness never ending and the grief devastating. The world is a sadder place today without Larene here but we are all better off for having her in our lives and I’m grateful for my time with her.

Cuba: Campo Adentro

2009-06-03T11:29:00.000-07:00

Since I was a little kid I’ve always had an interest and curiosity about other countries, cultures and people. As with many kids, at least I would imagine, I had a deep affection for National Geographic and the stories it contained. As I grew older the photographs really started to intrigue me and I started wondering how they were made and about the people actually making them.

And Cuba has always been a source of intrigue for me. Growing up in the 70’s it was a place that was seen as a threat to the US, specifically a nuclear threat. Well, at least that’s my recollection. Anyway, it’s a place I always thought of and wanted to go to at some point.

And I did actually make it to Cuba while I was in the Navy. But it was strictly off limits for us to venture outside the base. In essence, while I’ve been on the island I’ve never seen Cuba.

David Allen Harvey has a wonderful book on Cuba that I own and I love it. But I recently received a new book on Cuba by Susan S. Bank and I really love this book.

I first saw images from it in the latest edition of Lenswork. Besides the images, the thing that caught my interest was when she started this body of work. She started this work in 2002, well into her sixties, and it’s a wonderful example of producing great work regardless of your stage of life. As I approach my fifties I’m thinking of this a lot.

The book is top notch in the production department. It’s self published and Mrs. Bank spared no expense on the quality. She’s obviously proud of the work and the book shows this.

The images, at least to me anyway, are edited nicely and it’s quite obvious that she is close and connected to the community she has documented in Cuba. She has taken the time to get to know these people and to really share that knowledge with viewers of her images.

I highly recommend this book. And by the way, it was produced with one camera and one lens all on black and white film. Just a lovely book and I’m glad to have it in my collection.

Travel

2009-05-23T15:33:00.000-07:00

In the last few years my business travel has increased in intensity to a point where it is less than fun. Unfortunately, it’s a necessity that can’t be avoided if I want to do my job properly.

As I’ve mentioned before I take the camera on almost every trip. Sometimes it makes it out of the bag and sometimes it doesn’t. In looking at the hotel images I’ve written about previously, I’ve recently noticed a bit of a theme, especially in the color stuff. Whereas the B&W stuff is about the shapes and forms the color work shows a bit of the loneliness the road is really about. This image in particular shows the “glamour” of traveling. It’s the view outside of some nondescript hotel in Seattle.

I post this image because I’m in the process of getting my images into a more coherent group of images, get a new website and develop direction. With the help of Dan Milnor I think I have a start.

If you haven’t been to Dan’s blog please check it out. His photography, especially his B&W stuff, is something I aspire too. His writing on the blog is thought provoking from a photography industry viewpoint, at times hysterical and always entertaining. It’s a daily read for me.

Coming Home

2009-05-19T09:23:00.001-07:00

These two wonderful women are the loves of my life and without them I have no clue where I would be. But I have a sense it would be in a significantly less of a good place than I am today.

I try to make more images around the house but I’m usually met with the rolling of eyes and the inevitable “What are you doing?” But occasionally I get an image I like. Most of them will never see the light of day or beyond the walls of our home anyway. But this one makes me smile because Jordan comes home this week and Diane and I are both very happy campers.

She’s in finals week and will soon finish her first year of college. It’ll be good to have her home and it’ll be fun to see what images I will be able to sneak in over the summer.

Southwest Desert

2009-05-14T17:52:00.000-07:00

Not being a California native, it took me some time to get used to the vast open landscape. But the desert, despite it’s desolation, was instantly a place in which I felt comfortable and connected.

When I first moved to California over a decade ago, it was to escape the comforts of my native south. I say native south, because I really didn’t reside in any one place for a long enough period of time to ever call myself a native of a particular state. But what I knew, where I grew up, and in large part what formed my world viewpoint was developed throughout the southern states.

The terrain was something I was intimately connected with but I can remember a particular flight, somewhere out west although I can’t remember specifically where, and seeing the snow covered mountains. This wasn't the first time, but it was certainly in a way I had never seen them before from the window seat of some cattle car of an aircraft. I can vividly remember thinking about walking above the clouds on the ridges where no one could touch me or see me. I could be alone in the vastness that I saw from the air if I could just get to those peaks and valleys.

But life, being what it is, has to be lived. And that’s where the desert comes into play for me. There are two places that have had a profound calming affect on me in my lifetime. And they both were exposed to me at particularly difficult times and close to one another in time span. The North Georgia mountains and the Southwestern Desert, two completely different places provide me with a calm ground, places that transport me from wherever uncomfortable place I might be into a place where what matters most becomes visible. They are safe havens, spiritual places providing the grounding that I need.

Diane and I spent a few days out in Borrego this past February and it was a great trip. Just the two of us in the Airstream, alone out in the vastness of the desert. It snowed and prevented us from going to our original destination, but as we always try to do, we made the best of it and headed to another place. When we got into Borrego Springs the rain was going sideways, it was cold and windy and I needed to get set up. I did so in the current weather conditions and once finished headed inside. No sooner had I headed inside then the sun came out, the rain and wind stopped and it became glorious.

Luckily for me the weather returned. I made this image as we drove and the clouds gathered. It’s certainly not a great image, but as some of my favorite images do, it brings to bear wonderful memories and reminds me of what’s important.

Hotels

2009-05-09T21:01:00.001-07:00

I spend way too many nights in hotels. I don’t even want to contemplate how many nights this year will be spent in a bed other than my own on these business trips. But, since I have to do it, I’ve taken it upon myself to document them. I’ve written about it before so I won’t go into it here, but I do think I might have something here if I keep trying. Here’s one of the images from Shanghai and the Grand Mercure on the morning after my arrival.

Leica Factory Video

2009-05-05T15:14:00.000-07:00

I'm stuck in the airport killing time and came across this video. If you've ever wondered how a Leica was made this video will give you a glimpse into the manual labor needed to put these machines together. I know there are some camera geeks out there that will get a kick out of it but you'll have to read the English subtitles because it's broadcast in German. Click on the title above to go to the video.

Fresh M.I.L.K.

2009-05-05T13:30:00.000-07:00

The winners were announced in the Fresh M.I.L.K. competition this week and unfortunately I wasn’t among them. After viewing the winning entries it’s clear that my submissions weren’t close to what they were looking for. While I thought, upon deciding what images to submit, that they reflected the theme, it’s obvious that my images were too singular in subject matter and didn’t have enough of the interaction required to address the judges intentions.

But it did provide a desire to enter my work into more competitions provided they meet some criteria that doesn’t blatantly rip off the entrants. Having reread the T&C’s I don’t think I would have entered but would have still liked to win.

This year I am building up a body of work to start submitting for the 2010 juried competitions. It’s the foundation for where I think I want to start taking my work. Closing in on 50, I want to put more effort into my work and less into my occupation. We’ll see how that goes but it’s the plan as I see it today.

The first step of that plan is to get with a photographer I respect and start looking through the initial edit of images I have. I’m also taking a workshop in San Francisco later this year that I really excited about. More on this stuff later.

This is an image from Shanghai. I didn’t get around to processing the film until this past weekend because I didn’t think I had anything worthwhile. I was much more excited about the Japan images. But I did get a few images from China I like and I’ll post them over the next few days. As is typical these days, I’m in another airport flying to another town so bear with me a bit.

Patterns

2009-05-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

I’ve recently printed about 60 images that I really like and that I’ve taken over the last few years. After I received the images I noticed, but had not realized when choosing, that all of the images were from the Leica. I’m not sure if I’m surprised by this or not.

I’ve spent a good portion of my photographic life shooting 35mm and only in recent years have I moved to medium format and only in the past 6 months moved to large format. The Leica was purchased in order to carry a camera with me as I traveled and to replace the digital camera I had which was just too big to carry comfortably. It’s the one I usually have with me and it’s been on 90% of the trips over the last two years.

But on this past trip to Japan I decided to take the Yashica Mat with me after the poor results with the Hasselblad while in Kentucky. I knew I wouldn’t get much time to get out and comfortably make images but wanted to have something with me just in case.

As usual the images, due to the lack of committed time, appear to leave a lot to be desired. As I reviewed the 60 images I printed out, edited them a bit and selected what I thought were strong images I noticed that the images that I liked the most were taken when I had some time to actually get out and make images. In most instances I had time by myself and spent time observing and making images. These few rolls from Japan recently will suffer from the fact that I didn’t get any time to just wander around.

These are two more from Japan and I really liked the patterns in the two buildings. The color one is from one of only 2 rolls of color I used while there in March and they were both taken on a Saturday while I had time to myself and just walked and observed. I like these two images and in the context of the images I’m selecting work well.

Headed Back To Japan

2009-04-19T10:40:00.000-07:00

Last night Diane and I headed down to San Diego to hear John Prine and Josh Ritter. It was a wonderful concert in a pretty exceptional venue. It was held at the historic Spreckels Theater in the heart of downtown San Diego. It opened in in 1912, was renovated in 2004 and really just a beautiful place. Well worth the drive.

I’m sitting at SFO, headed to Japan and preparing for a long journey and a long few weeks ahead. In the next several weeks I’m in Japan, Canada, England and possibly Germany and China. It’s going to be crazy busy and I’ll be in dire need of time off when all is said and done. So the concert was a little bit of foundation for the trips ahead. Music has a way of doing that for me. And it’s made me think a bit about my own photography.

Looking at my iPod I see some 120 songs by John Prine. Out of that number I have about 88 in a playlist and about 20 of those are considered 5 stars. Mr. Prine has been producing music for a long time now. His writing is creative, unique and gets to issues in a way that is thought provoking. Over that period of time I wonder how many of those songs he considers his best?

Over the last 30 plus years I’ve had an on and off again love affair with the camera and photography. It’s provided me with a ticket to the world. A way to share what I see with some of the people closest to me. Today, it’s my creative outlet in an otherwise crazy world, at least my little slice of the craziness. And looking back over that span of time I don’t have much that I would really call wonderful, or good, or anything else. Maybe I’m too hard on myself. I’ve been accused of that and to some extent it’s most likely very true. And it raises the question on why I do this, why accept the pressure to produce something meaningful. It really boils down to the fact that I just really enjoy it.

I may never produce anything that anyone would consider great. But I enjoy the images and I think that’s what matters the most. Photography is constantly on my mind. I want to read about it, see it and actively work to produce an image. I really enjoy the process and it’s why I have a camera with me on this trip even though meetings and work related stuff will, in all likelihood, prevent me from making anything worthwhile.

So here’s one from the hotel window during my last trip to Japan. It’s taken through the rain splattered window overlooking the Shin Yokohama train station. Those shapes really interested me and I made several images of the structure over the few days I was there. It’ll mean something someday. Well maybe.

Great Park II

2009-04-17T16:41:00.001-07:00

I’ve finally gotten all my processing completed from the last few weeks of traveling and other outings with the camera. This is one of the images I like pretty well and it’s nice to see something come out like I intended it too.

Unlike my previously documented fiasco’s, I was actually paying attention while I made this image. It was made on the Chamonix over at the Great Park in Irvine. This is an old hanger that will eventually be made into a flight museum. I had stopped over there one day to see what the big ballon looked like and just fell in love with the old space.

I knew the light would look good early so I made a trek one morning not too long ago. It would also give me a chance to use movements to get everything in line and sharp, or not, if so decided. It’s a repeat of an image I posted a few weeks ago that was made on Type 55. But that image used movements to throw the bottom out of focus and it just didn’t work that well for me. Plus this one was taken a little bit after the sun peaked over the horizon and so the contrast looks a bit better to me as well.

It was processed in Diafine because that’s what I’m using at the moment. It doesn’t give me the control over exposure that I could get with something like HC110, but it allows me to practice easily and I do like that. The next step will be to control the negs a bit more and see how much that really affects the images considering I scan everything.

Kentucky Trip

2009-04-16T22:51:00.000-07:00

I spent the weekend in Kentucky with my family to celebrate the 50th anniversary of my parents. It was a very quick trip with just one full day in the state and almost two full days of travel.

I took the Hasselblad and the Leica and thought I’d get some good family images along with a group portrait of everyone who attended the party. Unfortunately the wild gremlins decided to show up at a most inopportune time.

I should know better than to develop key rolls at the same time just in case there is a mix up in the procedure. But in an effort to get the film developed and scanned before I leave for Japan this week, I went ahead and developed the two rolls that had the group images on them. Big mistake.

In order to get me in the photo - something that was seriously driven home to me by my wife, daughter and mother - someone else needed to trip the shutter. I’m not sure what happened there but the shutter was never tripped by the designate. Strike one.

To make matters worse, and like the last post where I sometimes don’t pay attention when I should, I drained the Diafine A and then mistakingly put in fix instead of Diafine B. There is an image on the neg but it’s thin. I might be able to get an acceptable scan from the negative but it’s a bit of a reality check. I need to really get my head into the game when I’m out with the camera.

This is an image of Lily. You might remember her from a couple of years ago. She’s as adorable as ever and certainly knows how to make her uncle feel good about himself. I was told by her dad that the evening we arrived she ran and got into her favorite dress when the call came that we were almost there. It does wonders for the ego. She looks a little disconcerted here but she’s trying to keep her kite in the air while posing for me. At the same time her brother is trying to ram his kite into hers. It makes for a rather frustrating experience for her. But I like the image and I hope that someday she will too.

More Japan - No Words, At Least Not Much

2009-04-13T21:13:00.000-07:00

Here in the US we don't get to see many IranAir flights. Just thought this was worth capturing.

Japan Redux

2009-04-09T16:47:00.001-07:00

These are two more images from Japan.

After spending the day lost, I finally made it back to the hotel and needed some food and some rest. I made my way to a market that was close by, bought some water, ate some chocolate and just plopped my butt down for a bit in a little park. I just didn’t want to take the easy route and head back to the hotel.

So I headed out with another roll of film, a little more energy and decided to see what I could see. Turns out there is always something to see if you just put your mind to it.

I headed out over a bridge that was an overlook for a local train and decided to try and make some images of the train as it passed by. As I’m doing this I noticed the shutter speeds are much faster than I has imagined for the film I thought I had in the camera. I didn’t give it much thought and just figured I had gone through a roll quicker than I expected.

So I head off to find something to eat, preferably sushi, and find a nice place, step inside and am pleasantly surprised to find a sushi place with an english menu and a sushi chef that speaks english. It’s harder to find than you would imagine.

I get some great sushi, some good saki and feel rejuvenated. I’m watching the chef make platters to go and thinking this would make a good image. At this point I’m more than halfway through the roll (or so I thought) when I realize I have Delta 100 in the camera but am exposing it for Diafine like it’s Tri-X. Bummer! Turns out I’m on exposure 35. Big bummer! And I’m thinking I made some good images here and they are going to be SO over exposed. Turns out that Delta 100 in Diafine at 1250 is somewhat forgiving. The images of the chef are complete crap but some of the other images turned out OK. These are a couple of them.

Japan

2009-04-08T09:05:00.001-07:00

I spent a few days in Japan at the beginning of March as well as a day in China. International trips are always hectic for me and it’s rare that I get a chance for some personal time that doesn’t include work. With as much travel as I do for business - about 150,000 miles last year alone - the last thing I usually want to do is spend more time away from home.

This trip was a bit different in that I got a weekend in Tokyo; something I haven’t been able to do in 8 years or so. I spent some time with a friend of mine on Friday hitting a variety of camera shops that I wouldn’t have known about without his guiding ability. It absolutely poured the entire day and the camera never came out, although it should have. But I was enjoying the discussion with my friend, taking in parts of Tokyo I had never seen, and in general, just enjoying the down time.

And on Friday night I was able to have dinner with some old friends I haven’t seen since our company was acquired several years ago. I had the camera but never got it out. The food and conversation were just too good.

On Saturday I had time to myself and I braved the trains and went exploring. I got lost. I could have stuck to cabs (a very expensive proposition) and gotten to wherever I wanted to go. But I thought I’d hit Yokohama and then head to Kyoto on the train. I made it to Yokohama, ended up on a wrong train back to my hotel before heading out to Kyoto and so I spent a couple hours exploring before I decided to find my way back.

These are some of the images.

Having recently read about the issues in Kyoto maybe it’s a good thing I missed it.

Inauguration Day

2009-04-07T07:49:00.000-07:00

This is a little late and not as timely as I had intended.

I’m getting caught up on the backlog of film I’ve had since early January. Over the last two weeks I’ve developed about 12 rolls of 35mm, 6 rolls of 120 and 16 sheets of 4x5. Now I am getting them scanned, spotted and adjusted in PS.

I’ve been developing in Diafine since the beginning of the year. It’s really helped to standardize, get my process down and know what I’ll get. On 4x5 I’ve been using Ilford FP4 because 100 sheets of the stuff was included in the price of the Chamonix when I bought it. I’m exposing it at ISO 200 and processing in Diafine 3+3. It makes scanning the images pretty easy and I like it so far. The negs would be difficult to print in the wet darkroom but I don’t think I’ll be doing that any time soon so I’m not worried.

With the Leica I’m using Plus-X at 400 and Tri-X at 1250. I’m really pleased with that combination in Diafine. I used some Delta 100 in Japan at ISO 80 and I like those as well. So that’s my line up for the foreseeable future.

In 120 I’m using HP5 at 800 and FP4 at 400. I have 3 rolls of Delta 100 at 64 for the dr5 process which I want to try once again for some images. I’m not sure how far I will take that but I plan to see what I get and also try the Efke 25 for the Chamonix.

These are images I made as I traveled on January 20th. It was an historic day and I wish I had planned a bit better and stuck around LA for the festivities instead. I won’t put any of the others up. It’s my guess they will need to stand a bit of time to mean anything to anyone else, if they ever will at all.

The Annenberg Space For Photography

2009-04-01T17:52:00.001-07:00

Took the day off and headed to The Annenberg Space For Photography up in Los Angeles. If you are in the area it’s worth the trip and it’s free to enter as well. In addition, they will validate your parking for 3 hours which will allow you time to visit, eat or have a coffee. For $3.50 it’s a great deal.

The space is small but there was quite a lot packed in. During the afternoons there is a digital exhibition on a large screen that really makes the images look wonderful. It’s a slideshow on steroids. There is also a room with a large plasma screen with video of the photographers speaking about their photography. Throughout the space there are images on display from the various photographers being showcased.

The inaugural exhibit is a group of LA photographers including several from the LA Times. In addition Douglas Kirkland and Greg Gorman are included in the exhibit. Kirkland showed some new work as well as some of the Marilyn images he’s famous for. Gorman showed the same old tired work that he’s been showing for the last 10 years. As my wife said, “...seen it all before...”

My favorite images were from LA Times photographer Carolyn Cole. (Read an interesting article here. Her work was simply amazing and to hear her speak on the video was telling.)

There are also images there from Julius Shulman famous for his images of Southern California architecture. Really cool work to see. He said in his video he shot one B&W image and one transparency of the places he would make images of. And by the way, he’s not a shooter, he’s a photographer. He doesn’t carry a gun. Listen to an interview on NPR here.

Click on the title to go to the Annenberg Space site and check it out. And look for the photographers that are speaking for the Iris Nights lecture series.

This is an image from a side trip over to the Great Park in Irvine. It’s on Polaroid Type 55 and taken with the Chamonix. I’ve got some sheets yet to develop but should get them done soon.

Washington Post

2009-03-31T08:39:00.000-07:00

I’ve just spent a bit of time this morning, time I really didn’t have, looking through articles on the publication of a seven-year-old girls circumcision. To say that I’m sickened and outraged would not provide a level of understanding to my feeling at this particular moment.

Tewfic El-Sawy, over at The Travel Photographer, first brought this to my attention in his wonderful blog. I’ve not been over there in some time and was catching up this morning when I saw the posts. He has some links to other writers that are equally outraged. What I didn’t see were any US based commentary (other than Tewfic’s) that spoke of the hypocritical editorial decision to publish these images.

I travel quite a bit in my job and am fortunate to see other view points other than what we get force fed here in the US. That, and the fact that I was exposed to a variety of cultures as a kid, provide me with a willingness to see other viewpoints. I also spent time in the Navy traveling the world and going to places I would have otherwise never been exposed too. All of that provides me with a deep appreciation of world viewpoints.

And what I’ve found over the travels and years is that we aren’t very different when it comes right down to it. We all want to be treated with respect, we almost always respond in kind when a smile is given and we just want to get along in life without a lot of hassle.

But what I increasingly see is a complete disregard for anyone from another part of the world that doesn’t have a voice to defend themselves. In this case, Andrea Bruce might have been exposing an abhorrent practice that provides that voice. But when she took images of the the seven-year-old girls face, submitted them for publishing and then took an award for the photographs, she became part of the hypocritical nature of this country in particular.

I won’t go into the arguments that others have made. If you want to see what the issue is read here, here and here. But I will say to those that are reading this and think “What’s the big deal?” I’ll ask you to do as Tewfic did and think about your own daughter ,or son, or family member, and tell me what the big deal is. But of course that wouldn’t happen in the US because we would all be in an uproar about protecting the kids. But a seven-year-old Kurdish girl doesn’t deserve the same respect. And that, given the state of the world affairs, is the crux of the problem. When we stop caring what happens to the individual we stop caring about what happens to the whole.

What Does Photography Do For You?

2009-03-21T14:36:00.001-07:00

Over the last several weeks I’ve forced myself out more often with the camera. I’ve got several rolls of 120 to develop, multiple rolls of 35mm (from my extensive travels of late) and about 10 sheets of 4x5 that needs processing. All of this has led me to thinking what photography does for me.

The biggest thing it has done lately is really reduce the stress and allow me to forget any other stuff while I’m out making images. That is especially true with large format, and to a somewhat lesser degree with the medium format gear. While out, I’m getting better at looking and seeing, and in the end, making images.

This is an image from the San Juan Capistrano Mission. It’s a favorite place to go and see if I can see an image and practice with the Chamonix. This isn’t a particularly good image but it’s a start, at least for me. I set up in front of the door and if I had one person stop I had ten. It was an exercise in maintaining some amount of focus as I tried to set up. It also was an exercise in learning how to use the camera properly in order to use it improperly for the type of images I want to make.

USA Network's Character Project

2009-03-20T15:09:00.000-07:00

Here is another image from the travels over the last several months. There are a lot of images to come and to be added to this body of work.

When you get a chance to check out the new project over at USA Network. It’s a group of photographers going out into America and checking out the character of the nation. It’s not a TV show - which I’m entirely thankful for - but it will be a traveling exhibition and there will be a book.

There is one photographer in particular who’s video is especially good in my opinion. Check out Anna Mia Davidson’s work on farmers up in Washington that have committed to organic farming. The video does a better job in explaining what she is doing, and why, than the other photographers that I viewed. Looks like and overall interesting project from some good image makers.

Large Format Rejection

2009-03-04T17:05:00.000-08:00

Here are some examples of the learning curve associated with moving into large format. I found this site not far from my house one evening just as the light was going down. I got up early the next morning to shoot again and decided to take the QL film I had and see what I could do with color. I also wanted to see how easy it would be to get it developed at my favorite lab.

When I got the film back there was an obvious light leak as well as dead space that I had a difficult time figuring out. With large format I’m still getting the process down and when mistakes like this happen it can be difficult to troubleshoot. And as much as I dislike electronics, my background in troubleshooting makes this a bit easier for me to break down to find the cause. It’s one of the rare times when I am methodical.

Anyway, I was shooting some Type 55 on Saturday (images to come) and I was having the same issue. I wasted two sheets of this valuable stuff before I saw that I wasn’t getting the packet properly seated once I made the image. Sure enough... light leak. One problem solved but I should have done it before I went out that morning.

The other issue is lost likely a result of not puling out the packet far enough. Both images that show this have the exact same of unexposed film so I think that is the cause. I’ll make sure I pull the packet out all the way in the future. So now you know the other reason I had to crop this image.

Headed To Shanghai

2009-03-03T00:44:00.000-08:00

I’m presently sitting in seat 13G on an American Airlines flight to Tokyo headed ultimately to Shanghai. That’s 5451 miles to Tokyo from LA and another 1119 miles from Tokyo to Shanghai. That’s a lot of miles no matter how you look at it.

In my bag is one Leica, two lenses, 8 rolls of Provia 100 and 16 rolls of black and white film. That’s 864 images to be made and the goal is to shoot all 864 frames this week. That’s about 123 images a day; approximately 3 rolls of film over the 7 days. Of course I don’t have an actual 7 days since I just crossed the international date line (I can see it on the flight map). It’s an exercise of making myself shoot, see and find out if I can make an image that resonates with me.

I like the word resonate. It means something to me I can’t quite identify but I know when I feel it and when one of my images resonates (at least for me)... for that matter when any image resonates.

Here is an image that doesn’t resonate. It’s a poor attempt with the Chamonix and it required a crop. I studied under Jack Corn, a renowned documentary photographer in the 50’s and 60’s, who taught me to frame in the camera. I’ve never really shaken that, especially when I shoot 35mm.

But LF allows for some of that and it’s going to make me come out of a comfort zone and basically learn to shoot in a very different manner. I’ll still try to compose in camera - why lose the real estate - but will be more open to other arrangements.

This image is an example of that. I really enjoy panoramic images. This image was something I just saw in a panorama when I was setting up. I couldn’t get close enough because of a fence to cut out the cloudless sky, nor did I have a lens that would have brought anything closer. So here it is. My second posted LF image which really isn’t. Taken on Portra 160VC with a Fuji QL holder which is another post altogether and another reason I had to crop.

Trying, Trying, Trying

2009-02-28T17:36:00.000-08:00

I learned something about my photography this morning during a little jaunt out to Joshua Tree. I’m reasonably proficient with the Leica. I’m getting to a point where the Hasselblad and I are getting along. But I wholeheartedly suck with the Chamonix.

It’s actually not surprising considering I’ve probably put 15 hours or so in actual time with the Chamonix. The Leica, on the other hand, sees far more usage and I’ve been shooting 35mm since I was in 7th grade. The Hasselblad is a little more work and it makes me think that I should have stuck with the Mamiya RZ 67. But it needed to go, and all I can say is good riddance, because getting rid of it actually brought me to this point in my photography.

The Chamonix is just a different beast all together. I have to slow down - not my strong point - and I have to work from a fixed point. And I think that’s the hardest thing for me. Trying to see my image has always been difficult for me. I’ve never been very good at pre-visualization. It just doesn’t work for me and my style of photography.

I knew this going into LF after taking a class with Michael E. Gordon prior to investing in the camera. But I’ve not been able to sufficiently shoot enough to see and find the shot. I’ve got some darkroom work to complete after my trip to China and Japan and we’ll see if anything stands out.

I did develop a couple of images from last weekend but I’m not happy with them. Too many mistakes and not enough real vision. I did figure out one of my issues with the Fuji QL holder though. I wasn’t getting the film packet seated after exposing. One problem worked through and solved.

Her is another image from a recent trip up to Seattle. I think it will eventually work out that I have enough stuff I like from hotels to put a small body of work together I’m proud of.

Quotes

2009-02-23T08:12:00.000-08:00

On my way to the office on most days I pass an elementary school with the best quotes on a sign just off the school’s parking lot. This morning’s quote - a new one is posted each Monday - was particularly good. It was, “The difference between try and triumph is a little umph.”

I think it is especially good for the current environment and what, not just the US, but the world is facing today. My personal belief is that now is the time to start doing things differently at home, in our jobs, in our communities and certainly in our schools. We are ready to bail out everyone but, it seems, the schools, the students, the teachers. And when I read these quotes I often think of the person, or persons, that find them and put them up for the community to see. It’s a teacher, or someone very intimately involved with the school and it’s student, that finds these quotes and give us all a lesson. Maybe our government should find this person and hire them.

Instantaneous

2009-02-22T10:35:00.000-08:00

I’ve spent the last few months thinking about the immediate nature in today’s society. As it relates to my photography, and therefore this blog, I wonder how much instantaneous gratification is really needed. There have been other posts recently on this topic, and they have said it much eloquently than I will be able to accomplish, but I’m going to address is a bit anyway. (Mark Tucker’s comes to mind at the moment.)

I spent the weekend developing my backlog of film. I did it two 35mm rolls at a time, over a period of several days, and finished up with a couple rolls of 120. I’ll be posting over the next few weeks but the process got me to thinking even more about how everything needs to be done “right now.”

Most of this film is several months old and I really had to think about where I was when I shot the images. They have mostly been from business trips, and there are far too many images of the dogs included, but they waited to be developed as we dismantled the office I spoke about in the last post. And despite the fact that I thought most of it would be crap, there are a few images in the mix that I do like. I doubt I would have anything any better had I been shooting digital but I know I would have had more images to sift through and be disgusted with.

So here is the only color roll developed in the last few weeks. It was shot on Kodak E200 on a trip to San Francisco for the day. There were two I like from this roll and that was it. The rest of it didn’t work out too well mostly because I am always in too much of a rush on trips like this. More to come.

First Post of 2009

2009-02-05T10:14:00.000-08:00

The new year is here, it’s February and I still haven’t posted anything here on the blog. There is a ton of film to be processed, the office is in disarray, the garage completely full of stuff from the work finally completed in the house, which is causing the film backlog to grow larger and work is just a complete time sink. (Although I’m happy to say I still have a job unlike some unlucky people I know.)

So here is a link, courtesy of the The Travel Photographer, from a photographer located in India. Nice images — a hassy shooter — of issues in India we here in the States are unlikely to know much about. It’s worth the time to check out and read through.

A Smile For Today

2008-12-15T16:08:00.000-08:00

There are days when you just need something, almost anything, to make you smile. For no particular reason this is one of those days and considering the work being done at our house, I'm sure my wife could use one as well. And since my daughter is taking finals for the first time I'm sure she could use a moment of brevity too.

So for them and just in case there is anyone else out there that needs one here it is. For a moment or two smile, laugh and just enjoy yourself.

M.I.L.K.

2008-11-25T14:26:00.000-08:00

For the first time, I’ve entered 5 of my images to a photography competition. It’s called, Fresh M.I.L.K.: Friends, Families, Lovers & Laughter and it’s being held this year to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the first MILK competition. In 1999 it drew some 40,000 entries representing 164 countries and I expect this years competition will draw more than I can even imagine. Click on the link above and you can get more details, but what drew me to it was that, unlike so many competitions, it doesn’t look to take all of your rights away with the submissions. It’s also ultimately going to be judged by Elliot Erwitt, a photographer I’ve always enjoyed. The theme was also compelling and something near and dear to my heart.

I submitted one of the images above and thought combining the three in a triptych would work but I’m not sure it’s the case. In total I think I will submit 10 images from the last several years of my family collection. It’s time like this I want to document them because I think it’s when we are really thoughtful of what is meaningful it always comes back to family. The images I submitted have personal meaning to me and ones that I hope will resonate with others as well.

Updates

2008-11-19T17:05:00.001-08:00

For the last several weeks I’ve been experimenting with Diafine and various film stock. I’ve also been perfecting my developing skills after years of digital and sending out to labs. It’s been a challenging few weeks and I’ve made more than my fair share of mistakes. In addition to that I’ve been trying to familiarize myself with the Chamonix and that’s proven to be a lot of fun if not time consuming. I’m not a slow, contemplative guy and that set of traits is most certainly needed in dealing with the learning curve associated with large format.

But I seem to finally have my head wrapped around the process and all of the associated work that goes with the nits and nats of large format photography. I’ve loaded and unloaded film, developed some 4x5 sheets with no real issues, and done so with my little system that allows almost immediate feedback. Thanks to Diafine, and my garage temperatures, I can pretty much soup up film at will and when time permits. This is the first sheet of film I’ve been willing to show.

I wanted to do something for Veteran’s Day this year but I just couldn’t get to a place and do anything special. So I decided to try something at the house. This is the flag from Diane’s brother, a Vietnam Era veteran that’s no longer with us. It sits in Jordan’s room and serves as reminder of the sacrifices attached with military service both past and present. I come from a long line of veterans and proud to say so. This is a little late for the actual holiday but it’s still appropriate given the current world situation.

The Boy In The Moon

2008-10-31T18:02:00.000-07:00

Photography, as with the written word, has always been an avenue to tell a story. I’ve never been very good at it, and am amazed at the talent of someone that can tell a story, visually or with words. Click on the title to see, hear and read a story that will make you think, question and wonder. It’s the story of a rare disorder and the boy who has it. Told by his father, a journalist for the Globe & Mail, it’s eye opening to what other people go through on a daily basis. You’ll need some time.

Fairyland Palms

2008-10-29T21:37:00.001-07:00

Fairyland Palms

OK, I’ve had enough of the political coverage. Enough of the business coverage and just about had it with all the negative stuff on TV. So I’m watching a DVR recording of Fleetwood Mac (shows my age I know) and enjoying the music and not worried about much else. So I thought I’d post an image and go wherever it may lead.

This is another image from a day out with the Flexbody. I’m still not sure about the camera but it’s unlikely I’ll get rid of it. It’s unique enough - only 2500 made - that I want to keep it and see if I can learn to get along with it a bit better. In the meantime I’ve jumped into the large format arena full force. After a good day with Michael Gordon, large format isn’t so scary. I’ve shot a few sheets, developed them, and found it’s something that I think will fit pretty well with what I want to accomplish with my photography. Time will tell if that is true but I think it’s going to be a good choice and I look forward the experience. I think shots like this will be more aggressive and allow more freedom with LF than I can get today. It’s really a very versatile system.

Palm trees are everywhere in Southern California. There was a huge importing of palms to Southern California in the 1920’s and 1930’s, and a lot of these trees still exist in California today and have actually come to symbolize the state. But there is only one native tree to Southern California and that is the Washington Palm which is rare according to what I’ve read. I’ve not done much more searching beyond that but I’ve always thought the palm trees in Orange County looked too perfect and they have always intrigued me photographically. But as with much of my work it’s never very flushed out. This just happened to be a day when I thought I might be able to capture what I was seeing.

Office Parks

2008-10-17T16:08:00.000-07:00

I spend a lot of time in office parks, coming, going, coming, going... in my day job. I spend some of the time just looking as I drive by and wonder what I can see and if I could make an image. A few weeks ago I took out the Flexbody, which I am not getting along with very well, and wanted to try to get a better feel for the camera. Driving home that afternoon I saw images in my head and thought I might be able to actually make an image I liked. This is from the first roll that I developed yesterday.

I thought the Flexbody would allow me to get what I wanted better than a straight focused sharp image. And for the most part it did. These office parks are the factories of my youth. They house workers like me who push out products doing the same thing day to day. I may wear a tie today but it’s not much different than when I flipped metal from one pallet to the next at the aluminum factory. But I do have air conditioning and that’s a major plus.

I’m back to developing my own stuff because I didn’t like the delay, didn’t like the condition my negatives were coming back, scratches, dust, etc. and I wanted to get my stuff developed and worked a little sooner in relation to shooting it. And the reality is I can scratch them, cover them in dust absolutely fine by myself and it’s a lot cheaper. So after a few mistakes here and there I think I’ve got it down again and will get through my backlog of stuff in the coming weeks. I’ve already developed 7 rolls this week but I purposely used rolls I knew didn’t have anything good on them for the most part, you know, just in case.

BJ

2008-10-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

Most of my work lately has been of family -- documenting them, the animals, and just in general -- making a record of what I know it to be. Someday this will matter to a few people. Right now I don’t think so, but since there are only a few readers to this blog we’ll see. But mostly I am doing this for myself because I simply enjoy the act of photographing. And as I’ve written before, there aren’t many in the family that seem to enjoy it as much as I do. Actually, they may like the images as long as they aren’t of them.

But it does get me thinking about photographers like Mark Tucker who seem to be able to get over that and make wonderful images of people close to him as well as those that might not be. I also look to images from Mark Robert Halper for inspiration as well. He just goes about his business and makes striking images of the people in front of his lens. There are other guys like Jay Reilly who I recently came across. I couldn’t shoot his way but his images really resonant with me. It really looks as if he enjoys himself very much doing something he obviously loves. And then there is Michael E. Gordon, a landscape photographer that produces images that I just really like to look at.

So this is an image of BJ, my brothers horse and extraordinary one at that. At least to me he is since I know nothing about horses but any four-legged creature that comes up to me wanting an ear or nose scratch is extraordinary. I’m a sucker for the attention. I hope my brother likes this since he wouldn’t let me get an image of him.

James Nacthwey - TED Project

2008-10-03T14:24:00.001-07:00

James Nachtwey won a TED Prize in 2007 which gave him a chance to “change the world.” You can see the award video here.

Today, TED and James Nachtwey launched XDRTB. Check out the images and give it some thought. It’s not the only issue in the world that needs attention, but along with the other issues, it needs action. I’m excited to see this type of imagery being used and more excited for what this might do in bringing about education and knowledge to people that don’t know about this. I’m also excited to see how technology will be used in the future to make lasting and important changes in the world.

It makes my previous post rather irrelevant.

Bummed

2008-10-02T13:20:00.000-07:00

Working with camera equipment, as with any type of precision equipment, leads you to think things just won’t wrong. Rationally I know this to not be true, but I simply have it happen so rarely that I think the issues I hear with other cameras won’t happen to me. Inevitably it does, the gremlins find you and make you pay at the most inopportune times.

My Leica has a frozen shutter and it’s being sent in for repair. I am so bummed right now. But I have other cameras so I’ll get by but I had plans for it over the coming weeks and I’ll have postpone or go with something else.

This image is from my backlog of scanning from this year. I can’t believe it’s already October and I still have undeveloped film. It’s a shame really, and since I’m no Garry Winogrand, I don’t really have any excuses.

I do however, need to shoot more stuff like this when I’m back in Kentucky. Documenting my family, and the place where I grew up, just seems natural. Unfortunately my family doesn’t necessarily agree. So I get what I can and occasionally make an image I really like.

Mark Tucker's Dottie

2008-09-30T23:14:00.000-07:00

We live in interesting times with access to information, ideas, people... that we would have difficulty knowing anything about 20 years ago. Case in point, blogs. It's interesting to me that blogs have connected me to people I don't know and provided insights into their lives I would otherwise have no ability to know.

Mark Tucker is a prime example. Years ago, in a forum now closed, I paid attention to Mark's posts. They always struck me as smart, thoughtful and respectful. I starting paying attention to his photography and love to see his new work and am really glad he starting blogging recently. I actually had a chance encounter with him in New York at Photo Expo several years ago. He has his "plungercam" over his shoulder and I just said hello. As he had shown in his posts, he was kind and respectful and tolerated a total stranger interrupting his journey to wherever that day in the Javitts Center.

Anyway, one of the images I always loved was the one where he is pointing a hose and his dog is jumping into the stream of water with a smile and joy in the eyes. As a dog lover it just seemed the quintessential image of a guy and his dog. If you haven't had a chance to check out his work jump on over to the link and read the story. I'm sorry for your loss Mark.

Jordan's Room

2008-09-05T15:55:00.000-07:00

Life in the house has changed, maybe not as drastically as I thought it would but changed nonetheless. Our daughter left for university a few weeks back and we are in the throes of an empty house. The dogs still look for her when we come home knowing someone is missing. And the bedroom is clean and, while it still looks very similar, is very empty.

I had the Yashica out one day documenting the room knowing it would soon be empty. This is the lived in look and one that continually was a source of frustration. Funny how the tides have turned. Images she has sent us from her dorm room are the complete opposite from this image. At least one side is anyway.

Just another mundane image.

Adian and the cat

2008-09-05T04:20:00.001-07:00

As with my last post, which seems forever ago, I’m still searching for that elusive reason to photograph. For a variety of reasons, work, travel, desire, I’m just not getting what I want in my images. The last few months have seen dismal failures and that hasn’t changed recently.

I’ve been trying to look more inwardly to see what I can photograph that will resonate with me and possibly with others. So far it’s all been rather boring and more than a little frustrating.

But I recently scanned some images from several months ago. I’m just now getting around to looking through them. This is one of them and it’s from a trip to Kentucky earlier this year.

This is my great nephew playing with the cat that hangs around my nephews house. The kids are allergic and I don’t think it wants to come in anyway but it was a cure scene and I had to try and see what I could do with it. It’s shot with Neopan 1600 because that’s what I had in the camera and the light was lower than I thought so it worked out. I like this one but it could have been so much better had I worked it a bit more.

Out Of Practice

2008-08-07T20:54:00.000-07:00

I’m out of practice and it showed this evening.

In and attempt to get out and shoot I watched some of the graphic elements on my way home from the office. I waited for the harsh Southern Californian light to wane a bit, ate some dinner and headed out. I took the Flexbody with me for some practice along with 3 rolls of Delta 100 and a roll of FP4. I forgot my 80mm lens so it was a good thing I had put the 150mm in the bag or it would have been a total bust.

The first issue is that I am wholly unfamiliar with the Flexbody. It takes a sequence too get comfortable with and I am clearly not comfortable. The sequence consists of making sure the lens is cocked and then shut in order to expose the film. You also need to wind the film or you risk a double exposure, or two, or three. I don’t know how many I had but I’m sure it was a few. Maybe it’ll prove to be interesting.

The other tool I left at home was the hex wrench to keep my mounting plate tight on the camera body. It came loose and finally proved to be unusable on the tripod. It worked out OK I suppose because by then I had lost the light. I just wonder how many images will be what I composed because of movement. With the Flexbody I was throwing stuff out of focus and it’s a fine line as it is. So movement will affect composition and then focus.

The other issue, and the one I’m most embarrassed about, is that instead of using spot metering on my meter I was using incident readings. I have no idea how badly exposed these will turn out to be but I have a guess I’m going to be really disappointed with my efforts. I should have known something was wrong when my readings weren’t changing drastically. I shot an entire roll this was before I caught it. Royal PIA and definitely a result of not getting out and shooting. Keith Carter says to just get out and shoot. Artistic blocks won’t work themselves out all on their own. It takes some work and it’s evident I haven’t put any work in to improve my craft.

This was shot with the Flexbody at the San Juan Capistrano Mission. It's one of the almost acceptable images from several rolls of dismal failures.

Tracking Down Inspiration

2008-07-27T15:21:00.000-07:00

My photography has been lacking recently because my most recent attempts have been dismal failures. I’ve been trying to gain some inspiration, shoot through it a bit and see where I can go. I’m coming up blank at the moment. I think the fact that I can’t focus makes it even more difficult.

So here is an image I found while going through some old stuff. It was taken down in Austin while I was walking downtown one evening. I liked the fact the birds were hanging out watching the people on the street. At least that is what it looked like to me.

Early Inspiration

2008-06-07T13:05:00.000-07:00

The Vietnam War was a pivotal event for me. By 1971 my Pop had served 3 tours in Southeast Asia and I had several friends whose fathers were either POW's, MIA or had been killed in action. My Uncle Tommy spent a tour there and I've always wanted to talk to him about it but have never really had the heart to ask. My wife's brother did a tour over there as well and it had a profound effect on the family.

For me the nightly news was a staple and the images that came back from that war made me want to be a photographer. I studied all of the the images, loved looking at “Life” Magazine and couldn't get enough of the photography books that were available at the library. Larry Burrows was a photographer I remember well and I always looked for his byline. For an 11 year old it was amazing for me to see a person doing something I dreamed of with the same name, especially in print.

In April of this year 4 photographers were laid to rest that were lost in Laos. Burrows was one of the four. You can read the story here. Click on the heading of this link to see a video of the images.

Photo OP

2008-05-06T21:16:00.001-07:00

I love reading and hearing about photography. I really love being able to hear photographers talk about their work and what it means to them. Over at NPR Alex Chadwick takes a portion of his Day to Day show and gives photographers a few moments to talk about their work. If you have a few moments check out the work of Harry Benson, Allan Tannembaum and Ashley Gilbertson. They were my favorites. The show is called Photo Op and is worth a few moments of your time.

No More Digital?

2008-04-23T20:15:00.000-07:00

For the first time in 5 years I am without a digital camera. I sold all of my Canon gear last week because it was simply sitting there doing nothing. I did have one last day with it at Jordan's track meet, but other than that it has sit idle for quite some time. What I do with the cash remains to be seen and I may go back to digital or may opt for a medium format or large format system and explore that for awhile. I may also get another body to go along with my M7 and see where that leads. Not real sure at the moment.

After selling it I got a wave of offers for software I probably no longer need. But in looking back on this I became less of a photographer and more of a computer/software expert than I really liked. It also cost quite a bit of cash to stay up with all the stuff, or at least my perception of staying current, was expensive. Plug-ins for Aperture are almost as expensive as the program itself. Nik has come out with new technology that is suppose to be all the rage in tonal and color control. Drop $250 here, $199 there and it all starts to add up. I always knew what my gear cost. Over years of accumulation I had gathered up a lot of cameras and now I'm down to three and I doubt it will go much higher. But digital has brought what seems like a never ending cost structure.

I know, I could just say NO. But where's the fun in that? Sitting in front of a computer just isn't as compelling as it once was. And before you tell me I have to do so with film images I know that I do. The difference for me at least is that I work on fewer images and ones that aren't as marginal as my digital work. And before I get irate emails, this is just one man's opinion and experience. Read the header. I'm not saying that film is better. Technically it probably isn't. I certainly can't do some of the things I could do before. But for me this just is simply more fun. And since it should be fun that is the name of the game for me.

Airport Chaos

2008-04-18T09:28:00.000-07:00

Airports are a chaotic chain of events that can often times leave you in the same place. I was in this airport for 6 hours waiting on a flight that seemed like it would never leave. In those instances I'm glad I have my camera with me. It helps to pass the time and allows me to practice “seeing” which I sorely need to do.

I was sitting in a corner watching the people, observing the tantrums, the nonchalance and the resolved all at once. These carts kept coming to drop people off for planes that were going nowhere. It actually started to get quite comical as the people would jump off the cart, race to the gate agent only to find put their flight had either been canceled or delayed. It didn't take long to predict the reactions. I did finally make it to my destination and went through the same routine the following day. And people say I have no patience.

Taken with Fuji Provia 400X.

Kevin German

2008-04-15T15:41:00.000-07:00

No photo on this post. Just a link to Kevin German's blog about his experiences in Vietnam. This particular post, So many in need, made me post. Take a look through his blog to see a guy that has decided to chase his dream and do what it takes to make himself better.

Hotel Chairs

2008-04-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

Another one from my series on the hotels I visit this year. I'm still not sure how this project will work out and I know it's been done before. But it keeps me occupied and allows me to start thinking in terms of a long-term project. I need to get a feel for the images and take a direction that cohesively ties them together. It's also something I'm fairly certain I'll be able to commit an entire year too.

The issue I'm seeing at the moment is that I'm shooting in color and B&W. It's likely that the cohesiveness I want will be broken by this fact alone. I like to go against conventional wisdom when and where I can and this is an experiment as much as it is a learning experience for me. Between the airport images and the hotel images I'm certain something will emerge. I just don't have the foggiest what it will turn out to be at the moment.

Airport Reality

2008-04-08T20:51:00.000-07:00

Travel is increasingly getting more difficult. If you've been in an airport over the last few weeks you know what I mean. On top of the spring break crush there is the little matter of the FAA getting a little too chummy with the airlines. Who needs inspections anyway?

This is an image that mirrors what I feel about traveling these days. It's lonely, long and boring. There really isn't much to say beyond that. I used Fuji Provia 400X. I think I'm starting to get the feel of color film again.

Older Stuff Revisited

2008-04-01T20:14:00.000-07:00

I'm going through older stuff as I reorganize my files and redistribute my hard drive space. I picked up Capture One 4 today but have been playing with it for a few weeks as I test it out based on several recommendations. I've found that some images respond well to Aperture, almost all of my images respond well to DPP from Canon, some of my stuff looks OK in Lightroom and a lot of it looks good in Capture One. (Looking good is a relative term)

I've been shooting a lot with film and black and white but the color film hasn't treated me very well. It really never did even before I switched to digital. So for color I am shooting digital and preparing for a portrait shoot next week. It'll be both in digital and film, most likely with the Yashica Mat 124. I may try the Littman but it will depend on the patience of my sitter.

Anyway, this is an old image from a few years ago when I mistakingly thought it would be OK to drive to Kentucky and back in less than 9 days in an RV. As luck would have it we hit a snow storm in Colorado that closed I-25 north and south as well as I-70 east. We spent a day waiting for the roads to open and this was a result of hanging put in the snow. As you might have guessed we weren't prepared for over a foot of snow considering it was spring break.

Airport Parenting

2008-03-24T19:19:00.000-07:00

When you are delayed at the airport it's an opportunity to watch people, their actions and how they handle situations. I was sitting at this entry way to the regional airlines in Seattle during a delay. I was sitting there wondering what I was going to do. My flight to Boise was delayed - again - and as a result of the delayed flight to Seattle I was beginning to wonder if I would make it at all. I had to be in Boise that evening for an early morning meeting the next day. If I couldn't make it I was going to stay in a hotel in Seattle and head back home when I could get another flight.

During the time I was waiting for information it was a toss up between the regional terminal and the terminal headed home. So I parked myself in an area where I liked the image through the viewfinder and just decided to wait and see what would transpire in front of the camera. This little girl was trying desperatlely to keep up with her dad. He was so engrossed in his phone conversation I wondered if he had forgotten that he had a little one in tow. As they crossed the area I snapped the image and hoped for the best. There were several images but I think this one worked best.

Dogs

2008-03-23T10:30:00.000-07:00

"If you don’t own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life." - Roger Caras

Motel View

2008-03-17T20:28:00.001-07:00

These two images are of the same motel room in Seattle from a trip at the end of January. I usually take the camera with me and it's one of the reasons I bought the Leica. My digital is just too big to fit in the briefcase and schlepp through the airports. As a result, I wasn't carrying a camera and making no images for months at a time.

Business trips, despite thoughts to the contrary, are anything but glamorous. They usually involve long days with little time for photography. Throw in the fact that a lot of times I'm in areas I don't know and it considerably complicates the process. But I want to make images so what to do.

It struck me this year, as I spent every week for the first two months on the road, that a lot of the places I go to are very similar. The hotels look the same as do the airports. The strip malls are basically the same with the store fronts being different but the goods very similar. So I started shooting the airports, hotels and motels of the areas I visit. In scanning the images over the last few days I'm noticing a pattern and working to establish more of a theme to what I'm doing. At the end of the year I plan to put this stuff together and start looking for critiques. I'll go to people I trust and then contact photographers I've either met through this blog or other sites where I respect their work. We'll see how it goes. It's the closest thing to a long-term project I've ever done. I'm planning on shooting color an black and white. I'm not sure that's the best idea for consistency but it's an experiment and I want to see if I can pull something off.

Out Of The Ordinary

2008-03-17T19:01:00.001-07:00

As I've said in previous posts I've been looking for stuff out of the ordinary, practicing looking for stuff that would be visually interesting. Well at least to me anyway.

We were in Vegas for CES earlier this year and met up with some friends that were also there on business. Believe it or not this is the set up in Caesar's Palace at a bar outside the Sports Book. This was the night of the National Championship and we were watching it on antiquated projectors, not color managed in the least and shown on a bare wall that wasn't even white. Frankly I was flabbergasted and made an image. Turns out it is visually interesting to me.

It's HP5 pushed to 1600.

Admirals Club

2008-03-14T08:55:00.000-07:00

I've spent the last couple of weeks recovering from illness. I won't go into details but it was a little scary and it certainly provided much needed rest.

I've gotten a chance to catch up on some scanning and stay out of airports. Most of the scans I did, not surprisingly, were airport and hotel shots. This is one of them.

I'm starting to organize the photos from airports and hotel/motels to see if there is some sort of theme that joins the images together. As I make these images and view them as single images I find myself wondering if they are boring. They may be but I'm starting to see a pattern and since I travel so much images from the travels just seem to present themselves. It also allows me to practice seeing when I get the chance to take a breath on my business travels.

This image is a case in point. In the Admirals Club at the John Wayne Airport I noticed the reflections in the marble table at which I was sitting. I've long tried to make an interesting image of the ceiling. Those curves really appeal to me for some reason but I've never gotten a compelling image. I personally really like this one. I think this is the second roll of transparency film I put through the camera. It's Fuji Provia 400X that I really like but am having trouble scanning it. I still need to experiment more.

One of my new favorite blogs is written by Nick Onken. I really like his work and reading about how he is making it in the industry. Guys like him and Chase Jarvis have such good attitudes about sharing their knowledge and I have a tremendous amount of respect for them both simply because of that. Check out his site.

LFI

2008-02-20T17:36:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I got an email from LFI telling me they wanted to publish my JJ images. It was a surprise and one I wasn't sure about until I saw the pdf sent to me this week. Considering that last time the image was so small - almost to the point of embarrassment - I decided to keep quiet about this one. I didn't want to jinx myself this time. And yes, that's a little superstitious thing I probably shouldn't worry about, but there you are.

So here it is. My daughter had a huge chuckle upon reading the description. Luckily my wife was with me in Palm Springs when I shot this and can verify that I did not, in fact, drop by the local transvestite club. Something lost in the translation between English and German. But the chuckle, or should say outright laughter, from both of the women in my life was pretty priceless and well worth the crap I'll receive once this comes out and my friends see it. The joys of photography...

But this is the shoot that made me switch back to film simply because of the pure enjoyment the photographic process with JJ brought. The digital is still gathering dust for the most part and film goes with me just about everywhere. I have a backlog of film to scan, spot and work. Once I get more than a few days at home all in a roll I may get that done. It's the one drawback to my process at the moment. Because I have to set up a separate scanning station I get behind and need to find time to work the backlog. Leaving the station on the dining room table doesn't work so well for the family. So, the upcoming travel - could there be anymore - will produce more backlog that I'll eventually get around to scanning and posting.

Family Images

2008-02-12T20:32:00.000-08:00

As you might guess, and as with a lot of photographers, family is a known subject and often visited. For me it's much to the delight of some and less so with others. My wife bears it for the most part but views my images of her with the critical eye that I just don't see. Almost all of them are good and if it's messed up it's because of me.

My daughter on the other hand has grown to want very little to do with the camera and it's not pointed her way very often. This is one of my favorites and I post it here putting my life in jeopardy. You live, you learn.

The dogs are also frequent subjects. I choose to believe they delight in being my models. I've written about this before and since they don't talk back they get images made of them on a regular basis. I'll spare you most of the images. I have no idea what any of this has to do with photography except that I am traveling a lot these days and I miss the family. I'm leaving again tomorrow so I post one of them.

I realized as I was writing this post that I didn't include anything but the links to the photographers website yesterday. I was in a hurry and didn't pay attention. Anyway, that image was from a test to see how the lens would handle lens flare. Turns out I like it so I posted it.

Cosmin Bumbut

2008-02-11T16:09:00.000-08:00

Check out the work of Romanian photographer Cosmin Bumbut. I've been a long time admirer of his work and noticed it again today in Issue 17 of Blueeyes Magazine.

Seattle

2008-02-06T11:26:00.000-08:00

Last week saw me in Boise and Seattle traveling to meet customers and kick off plans for the new year. As part of my goals this year I plan to just shoot, not be encumbered with particular ideas on what I'll shoot and to see what I can make out of what I end up with. To do that I made a promise to myself that the camera will go with me on my business trips.

So, I took 3 rolls of Fuji 400X and 3 rolls of Ilford HP5. The goal was to use up all 6 rolls of film with no limitations. I failed miserably. I just couldn't do it. No matter what I did during this trip I just couldn't see images and being in work mode while traveling probably didn't help. I did shoot some stuff and I have a couple of images I like that will eventually make their way here, but I'm not wired to shoot that way and I think it added a new set of pressures on me that affected my ability to see.

What I did find was that when I slowed down I was able to see some things that might prove interesting if I just shoot it all the way through. So I did. I got the film back just before I left for this trip and I went through some of it last night and there were a couple of surprises which generated ideas for projects. I'll see where it goes but I think I'll end up with something by December I'll be proud of. As noted in my last post I just need to follow through and shoot.

This is an image from a trip to Seattle several years ago. I don't own the Mamiya 7 it was made with any longer and boy do I miss that camera and the huge negatives. And like the camera this building no longer exists. It's been transformed into a Starbuck's (I think) or it's been torn down. I couldn't really tell. It's located close the to REI I like to go to and provides a way for me to get to the waterfront. It's a shame it's gone but I now have an image of Seattle that no longer exists. Is that cool or sad? Ask me in 50 years.

Mundane II

2008-02-05T17:07:00.000-08:00

As I sat in the lobby of a customer today that blew me off, I wrote some thoughts on the United States political process. It's Super Tuesday here in the US and that means that we are closer to finding out who the republican candidate will be, and will not be any closer to knowing who the democratic candidate will be. Its a complicated process.

Anyway, considering my mood from the treatment at the hands of this particular customer, I've reread the comments and decided against posting them. This isn't a political blog and my thoughts are pretty much irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. So I post another mundane image.

This one was made in Cambridge outside the window of the bookstore I frequent when I go there. The light was nice but the scan was a little muddy. It's illustrative of the merged processes in photography these days. I don't think I could have made a good print of this in the darkroom due to my limited printing skills. I don't know if a master printer would have been able to do so. But the print from the scan on rag paper looks incredibly good. I like the image.

As an aside, I have a general question. How are people framing images that are the 3:2 format ratio? This image, as an example, would be cropped in an 8x10 standard mat. Why do mats come in formats that don't reflect that majority of the images made? I don't like to crop and do my best to frame the image in camera both digitally and on film. I want to see the whole image when I frame it. How do others go about this? Do you use custom mats, and if so, what are the dimensions for a 16x20 frame for instance? Any thoughts are welcome.

Mundane

2008-02-01T14:58:00.001-08:00

Over the last several months I've made sure that I've had the camera with me a lot more than usual. If I don't have it I certainly cannot make images. When I see interesting light I try to see if I can make an interesting image to match. The stuff can be pretty mundane at times but I've found that the time that I take to get stuff processed provides a little space. In a recent article in PDN, Steve McCurry talks about the fact that he has images from as long as 15 years ago that he hasn't edited. Garry Winogrand said in an interview in the 1980's that he waited a year to process his film to give himself enough space to have forgotten the making of the image. They are both photographers I admire so maybe it's not so bad that I don't get instant gratification. It'll be interesting to see how I view these images in a few years.

Over time I wonder if any of this stuff will amount to much or build up into a body of work. I was recently encouraged when I read about an older gentleman getting a show at 65 years of age. At this point I think it's about sticking to it and making images. Over time I believe a style will emerge and it'll be based on what interests me and little else. I'm not too old to change but I am too old to change simply for the sake of change. If it isn't important it'll be a waste of energy and that is something I don't want to waste at all.

Blue

2008-01-24T13:47:00.001-08:00

I'm all over the place these days with my photography. Maybe that's why I never seem to get anywhere.

As an example here is an image taken with a Holga I've had for a number of years. I have a bunch of expired Kodak 100VS laying around and thought what the heck. The lights nice, the sky is really blue and I don't want to work anyway. It was taken one afternoon back in November, but as with all of my projects it was delayed until I got the desire to scan for several days in a row. I'm caught up now on the scans but have several rolls of exposed film sitting on my desk... big surprise!

Anyway I've been given some thought on where I want this photography stuff to go and to see if I can stick with anything for as long as one year - one type of film for instance or one camera - something that will force me to focus a bit. I don't think I'll limit myself beyond B&W or color but I've got an idea. Not that anyone gives a rats behind what I plan to do but some of you may have an idea of what I'm talking about.

I'll probably kick it off in the next two weeks and it's inspired by a photographer I really respect. We'll see what happens.

Taxi

2008-01-21T10:26:00.000-08:00

I spend too much time in taxis, and as such, I usually think I can make a decent image. This particular taxi driver engaged in a conversation because I had the camera out on this trip to the office in Cambridge. So I snapped a few. It's really an attempt by myself to get over photographing people I don't know and engaging with them in order to get a good image.

I meet a lot of people during the day, especially on my travels abroad. I'm not the most outgoing person, but my shell is a little less thick these days and I find myself in conversations simply by opening up just a bit. In a taxi cab it beats the silence.

Making images of people, total strangers, is nothing new. A lot of photographers do it today and have done it throughout the history of photography. I personally struggle with pointing a camera towards strangers, especially in the social environment we finds ourselves in today. But I find myself increasingly drawn to my images of people and the enjoyment I get out of it. Landscape isn't for me no matter how much I try. It's solitary, and while that would have worked for me years ago, I don't find the enjoyment in it today. Not to mention that there are so many people so much better.

Environmental images of places I've been holds appeal, but I don't get the time I would like while on the business trips to really engage with a place. So it's people I turn too, or at least, turn to in my head as I make images during the day without the camera. But there's the rub. Asking is hard so I shy away and don't do it.

So, back to this image. It's woefully inadequate in producing an image of a person. But what drew me to get the camera in my hand was the conversation with the driver and the ornaments hanging from the mirror. We'll see what happens in 2008 as I try to get out of the shell a little more and make images of the people I meet along the way.

Happy New Year

2007-12-30T10:34:00.001-08:00

The new year is upon us. I've heard many times that as you get older the years pass much more quickly. This is the year for me that I really believe this to be true. It's been a hectic year from a job standpoint and from a photography standpoint I think it's been pretty hectic as well.

I moved much more towards film this year and found photography enjoyable again. Some of my all time favorite images were made this year and I really believe it's because I approached photography so differently. I spent a lot less time in front of the computer. I really enjoyed picking up the film from the lab and enjoyed exploring new cameras and finding the fun again.

This year I also found a lot of sites that I enjoy going to on a regular basis. There are those that I am sure many have already heard about like Chase Jarvis, 2point8 and Joe Riefer - Words. I've either highlighted these before or linked to them in some fashion. But there are a few I want to highlight going into the new year.

The first one is Scott Dickerson out of Alaska. He shoots in some crazy conditions and surfs in the winter swell that evidently hits the Alaskan coast. Who knew! Check out his site for some enjoyable images of the Alaskan life.

I love to see images from around the world. Tewfic El-Sawy runs The Travel Photographer blog. He finds new and wonderful photojournalism images along with travel photographers from around the world. He is doing such a service to the community in posting these sites and I can't begin to imagine how I would find these sites without this blog.

Jeff Singer is a photographer in San Francisco. I love his images and his writing. It's definitely worth checking out.

I doubt if there is anyone that reads this blog (other than family) that hasn't heard about the Strobist. This guy has taken the lighting with flash thing to the masses and has probably single handily helped to improve the quality of images on flickr. If you haven't checked him out, and you want to learn how to use strobes off camera, it's well worth the read of his Lighting 101 course.

And finally I'd like to point you to David Tejada. He's a photographer out in Colorado that puts videos together to show what it's like on his shoots. I'm sure it's very time consuming and certainly a time sink. But, in the spirit of Chase Jarvis and the Strobist, he shares his knowledge willingly with the community.

To everyone that reads this blog; Thank You for coming by this year. It's very much appreciated and I hope you come back in 2008. Have a Happy and Safe New Year!

Stay Another Day

2007-12-28T20:50:00.000-08:00

There is no image today. Just a link to a David Alan Harvey entry.

As photographers I suppose it's sometimes innate that we want to document the lives of those around us. I know that it does for me and it's usually at the expense of those around me and those I love. It's much more personal.

If you aren't a photographer it may be difficult to understand this need to impede upon the personal, private and intimate moments that are difficult to share. But it's my belief that in the passage of time those images will represent memories, that in retrospect will be sentimental, heartfelt, and in some cases, necessary.

I struggle with this in my own family... with my own images. How much should I photograph? How far should I go? Difficult and unanswered questions.

Airport

2007-12-22T11:16:00.001-08:00

Airport

I spend too much time in airports. This year, on a variety of airlines, I traveled about 130,000 miles. There were 8 trips to the UK, countless trips up to the Bay Area, a couple to Idaho and several to Seattle. I know some people that travel more than that but I don't know how they do it.

I received Gary Winograd's book “Arrivals & Departures” this year as a gift, and considering how much time I spend in airports, I was inspired to try it myself. His airport photographs span a 25 year period. I've got a long way to go, and frankly, will never reach that milestone. But what I did gather from looking at the Winograph monograph was that he photographed everything. I read somewhere that he had over 6000 rolls of film undeveloped at his death in 1984. He was famous for photographing everything, and yet, once he exposed the film it seems that he would wait a year to view the images. I wait but it's mostly a matter of time and convenience for me.

Anyway, this is one of the few images I like. As a standalone image it means little but over time it might fit into a cohesive body of work. Who knows?

Jay Maisel

2007-12-13T09:28:00.001-08:00

I got a chance to hear Jay Maisel speak at the Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego on Tuesday evening. I've seen him speak once before and he's quite engaging. His photography is something that I gain inspiration from and I would say he is one of my influencers.

Before the presentation started I had a chance to go through the current exhibit. Several things stood out. Most of the prints were either traditional silver gelatin prints or chromogenic prints. There was one print that was a combination of MIS and Lysonic prints on tissue paper in a wax encaustic. It was translucent and I enjoyed seeing that particular print. It was done by Mike and Doug Starn.

There was a couple of prints by Alec Soth. The prints were 20x30 I would say (I didn't make a notation of the size) and were full of detail. I'm sure I've seen a print made from an 8x10 negative at some point in my life but I don't recall. This was just cool to see.

Michael Kenna had 4 prints hanging and his silver gelatin prints were something to see. They were sepia toned and work from the late 1990's. I love his work so it was a real treat to see some images first hand. There was other work there but frankly, even with my notes, none of it really stands out in my mind two days later.

Mr. Maisel spoke about light, color and gesture. He showed a lot of work. It was encouraging to see how much work he showed. Some of it I'm sure wouldn't normally be seen but he used images as examples of particular points he wanted to make. Most of these images were important images to him. I got the feeling that was how he selected what he showed. That was encouraging to me because it seems to be the way I select images.

If you've ever heard him speak, attended a workshop or seen some of the stuff he's done on the net for his sponsors, you've probably heard him talk about “visual pushups.” He talked about this a bit but the essence of his message was to have fun and always carry your camera. As he said, and I'm paraphrasing here; If I have my camera I don't have to go out and shoot.

He also talks about not having preconceived notions about what you want to accomplish when you do go out. He showed several examples of this along with telling stories behind some of the selected images. I'm a sucker for the story behind the image and I usually find them fascinating. Mr. Maisel has a very engaging personality and is very entertaining. It works very well in my opinion and made for a good evening of photography.

This is an image from Palm Springs as I walked back from a day doing something I can't recall. I had seen the image the night before but didn't have a camera with me. I had it with me the next day when we walked past the store front. I think it's Portra 160VC but can't remember. By the way, I heard the other day that this film is being discontinued. Another Kodak film bites the dust.

Pop's Shop

2007-12-02T17:03:00.000-08:00

A couple of years ago we went back to Kentucky to visit my family. Every time I go I think I will do some grand family documentary project and every time I fail. On this particular trip I headed out to Pop's shop to see what I could see and try to make a record.

This is Pop's toolbox from his 20 year stint in the Air Force. As a kid it was pretty well known that my brother and I should stay out of the tool box. As boys will do, we seemed to find reasons to get into the tool box despite the rules. I saw the toolbox and it immediately brought back a flood of memories. I'm not the most mechanically inclined; that was the realm of my father and brother. But it did bring back memories as a kid of getting the tool box out to set up my first darkroom, build a few sets and it's usefulness for some of my early photographic experiments.

This was shot digitally and converted in Photoshop to B&W. I toned it a bit as well to give me a feel of the nostalgia that I felt as I roamed the shop.

Yannis Kontos

2007-11-23T20:40:00.000-08:00

Over on the European Canon Pro site there is an article about some of the lenses various photojournalists use. One of the photographers is a young Greek photographer. He has a wonderfully designed website but it's the images that I really enjoyed. There are other photographers that are mentioned, some I had heard of and others I hadn't, but the images from Yannis Kontos were a joy to go through. His images, from all over the world, at times intense are also compelling and thoughtful in their approach. Check him out if you have some time.

This is another image from the Palm Springs Photo Festival. Taken digitally I really had a hard time with the highlights. With my Canon I just always seem to have problems and I think it's my technique. I've tried different approaches but these strong backlit scenes seem to give the most trouble. If you have any thoughts, tips or suggestions I'd love the hear them.

I've also been comparing the different RAW converters I have access to these days. I like Aperture but it's slow on my system. Some of the conversions are really spot on and I like the way it organizes my images. Lightroom has some advantages in the processing department but I hate the UI and the organization doesn't seem to meld very well with the way I work. I also like Canon's DPP and will use it from time to time. It has problems with skin tones though turning them an awful red and produces banding in the transitions from light to dark. I added some memory to my system to see if that will help and as a result will most likely stick with Aperture for the quick edit and the organizational capabilities. For those images that need critical work I'll try different ways of converting them until I get what I want. I may even combine images at times in an effort to take advantage of the strengths of the conversions from the various programs.

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-21T15:44:00.001-08:00

Mission Window

A quick one from the San Juan Capistrano Mission. Shot digitally and cropped square. I'm trying to get over my inability to crop an image but I don't know if it's working.

To everyone in the US I hope you have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving. For those of you not in the US I'll have more next week.

Palm Springs FD Training

2007-11-20T08:48:00.001-08:00

Palm Springs FD Training

Most of this year I've spent shooting film but I have broken out the digital from time to time. The problem has been I just didn't want to go through the process of processing the images in either Lightroom or Aperture. Work has been hectic and a royal pain in the butt lately and I needed some dead time tonight and got bored with the football game. So I fired up the computer and started going through old images I haven't done anything with. I started playing with Lightroom and some of the processing capabilities of the porgram and then went into Photoshop to see what I could do.

This is an image I made while at the Palm Springs Photo Festival earlier this year. It was hotter than hades and this guy was training; something new guys do everyday they are on duty for an entire year. He had just finished hauling a 50 foot hose several times to get water on a specific area designated by his trainer. The turn out gear weighs something like 80 pounds, and I don't know how much the hose weighs, but he was physically drained afterwards and this is where I caught him. He told me he had already drank about 3 gallons of water that morning.

I still have a ton of film to scan, but with Thanksgiving coming up and guests coming over, I don't want to set up the scanning station. It will most likely be a marathon scanning effort concluded towards the end of the year as my travel dies down. I've got one more trip to the UK planned for the year and then I'm done until the second week of January.

Sun Drenched Weeds

2007-11-19T21:38:00.001-08:00

_T1J9091

Messing around a few months ago I went to the track with Jordan to watch her practice jumping hurdles. I took the camera, but since she was adamantly against me focusing on her I walked around the track. These really aren't my forte but the light as amazing and I thought I'd experiment a bit.

Taken with the 24mm f1.4L and Canon 1D Mk11 and processed in Lightroom 1.3.

Luis Sinco & James Blake Miller

2007-11-16T11:10:00.000-08:00

Anyone that has read through this blog knows I love photojournalism. And being the son of a veteran, and a vet myself, I have an affinity for the men and women of the armed forces. Couple that with the fact that this story is about a kid from Kentucky and I'm hooked. It's the story of how one photograph brought two people together and how the making of the image impacted their lives. I don't know Luis Sinco personally but I think he did the right thing by helping James Blake Miller and in doing so may help a lot of other veterans in the process. This is story about much more than the two men represented.

The Marlboro Marine

My Favorite Image of Lily

2007-11-14T15:01:00.001-08:00

Lily

I need a TiVO box for my brain. Last night I had a couple trains of thought going that I simply cannot recreate today.

The information, while half awake, seemed to be coming from apparently disjointed fragments collectively joined together to form the thoughts. In other words, it was coming from all sorts of places in my consciousness, or should I say semi-consciouness, coalescing in a coherent thought process culminating in an actual point. It was almost like a conversation addressing something that I know was bothering me.

I can remember some of the conversation. But the jest of the thoughts escape me, and when I try to get them down on paper I find the thoughts just spiral down without structure. And the point I wanted to make no longer seems to matter. Maybe it never did.

On to photography. This is my favorite image of Lily and it will most likely become one of my all time favorite images that I have produced. It just works for me and I can't really tell you why. There are times when I don't even try to figure it out and this image is one of those. I accept it for what it is to me and that's an image that I really like and have printed several times. I'll frame this one large for the house.

On another note, I finally saw a copy of the LFI I had been hoping to see. The image is small; I mean really small and to say I've been published seems to be a stretch. It's a little embarrassing to tell the truth. However, something good did come out of it. The image will be framed and on display at the “Leica Day” Camera West in Mission Viejo hosts on Saturday. This is the first time I've had an image put on public display and that is exciting.

Aidan

2007-11-11T17:43:00.001-08:00

Adian

I'm back in the US after a week long trip to the UK. Once again I took a camera and once again work prevented me from getting it out of the bag.

So, here is another image from the family project. (I don't know why I keep referring to it as a project. It really wasn't.)

This is Aidan and he bears a striking resemblance, at least to my eye, of images of my brother at the same age. He was eating and I interrupted the snack of chips and cheese to make this image. I really should keep better notes when I do stuff like this because now I can't remember if he was happy to pose or annoyed that I stopped him in mid bite. What is particularly funny to me is the thought of these images being seen later in life and the kids, all of them, wondering what I was doing and why I was taking pictures at that particular time. I have another one of LIly with chocolate all over her face. I'll post it tomorrow.

I've got a lot of stuff to catch up on and the scanning station while be broken out this week. I'm also looking forward to buying the latest issue of LFI because I think I will have an image in it. I just hope it's big enough in the publication to say I've been published.

Jackson

2007-10-29T11:06:00.001-07:00

Jackson

The family portrait project didn't go as planned for a number of reasons. On the day this image was made, Kentucky was in a prolonged hot spell that made me wonder why, once again, I choose July as the month to visit. The air was thick with moisture and there was no way to cool off. The only people that wanted to be outside were the kids but with most large gatherings the house is almost always too confining. So we headed out.

Kids don't seem to mind that the air causes their hair to stick to their heads. Adults, on the other hand, are very adamant about not allowing an image to be made once they deem themselves a disheveled wreck. I had been following the kids around with a Polaroid camera for awhile - no Type 55 could be processed in the heat - and by the point I got the Yashica out I think they were tired of the crazy guy with the camera. With these kids that's an accomplishment. But they allowed me some last images and this is one of them.

This is Jackson and he's the oldest of the four children from my nephew Zack and his wife Christy. He's a bit of a ham and loves the camera. This is one of the rare images I have of him where he is showing a more serious side. Or maybe it's a, “Can we please get this over with” side.

Lily

2007-10-28T08:51:00.001-07:00

Lilly

This is Lilly, my great niece in Kentucky. When my family and I took a road trip back to Kentucky this year I wanted to document it and do a family portrait project. The project really didn't come together for me as well as I would have liked. But I did get some good images of my nephew's 4 children. This is one of several of Lily that I really like. When she grows older I'm not sure she'll like it but I think it doe capture a little bit of her personality. She's a firecracker and so full of life and energy. She has to be considering she's surrounded by 3 brothers.

It ws taken with the Yashica Mat 124 and Delta 100.

Old Images

2007-10-17T16:03:00.001-07:00

Kali

I'm trying to redesign my website, and in the process, going through old images and getting them ready. It's painfully obvious I have no photographic direction. I'm all over the place with different cameras, different film... digital, color, black and white... There are toy cameras in the mix, old converted cameras and a hodge podge of stuff once owned and since sold off.

I've been looking at a lot of photography lately looking for inspiration, ideas, a sense of whether my eclectic collection is wrong or OK. I'm still not sure. It seems that most people are advised to stick with one certain type of photography and go from there. Unfortunately I can't concentrate on something that long. I like trying out new ideas and I usually end up chasing some dreamt up notion I've conjured up.

This is an old image taken several years ago during a phase when portraits were what really interested me. They still do and it's driven by the human interaction that, as I grow older, seems more important. But posed stuff seems to be much more difficult for me. I find that as I loosen up, the person in front of my lens does the same. The problem is getting me to loosen up. It took me a few hours to loosen up in this shoot. Fortunately she was really good and made my job easy.

There is another image of Jordan over at flickr where we laughed and joked around. She's my daughter so that was easy but it worked. Going through old images can be rewarding and painful at the same time. I certainly learned something today. I just need to figure out the lesson.

Garrison Beau Scott

2007-10-08T14:33:00.000-07:00

I have a tendency to stay with the same stuff for awhile. My choices of places to view on the web are no exception and I find myself perusing the same old sites every day. I recently ran across a couple of sites that I've enjoyed and posted new links over to the right. Check them out under Film Images if you find yourself so inclined.

One site I came across was a blog by Garrison Beau Scott. It was an entertaining couple of hours last night as the football game was on. The game was OK but reading through the entries kept me entertained. You can see more work here.

On a side note, and I hope I don't jinx myself, the image you see here may be published. I received an email from a magazine I pick up from time to time saying they would like to publish the image. To make sure I won't jinx myself, I'll keep the publication to myself until I know something. I received several emails for the files, submitted the images and since then I haven't heard anything. I'm not certain what that means but I remain hopeful that it will get published.

Polaroid Flags

2007-10-05T22:47:00.001-07:00

As usual time passes by and work gets in the way of photography. I've been printing images lately in order to put up some new images up in the house. This is one of them.

It was taken in Santa Monica on the Litton and Polaroid Type 55. So far the images I have printed have been film. I'm not sure why that is but I seem to like those images better. I wonder if it might be because I enjoy the process with the film cameras more? Technically these images aren't any better. In fact, the grain that shows up in the scans from the 35 mm film prevent me from printing really large prints. I think that is a reflection of my scanning skills more than anything else. But I seem to pay more attention with the film and maybe that's why the images are better.

I'm hopeful that I'll have some more images up in the coming weeks. Work seems to be slowing down a bit but it's probably an illusion and wishful thinking.

More later....

Cambridge Arrow

2007-08-24T00:52:00.000-07:00

Here's another Fee inspired image.

I've finally gotten through some of the backlog of images from the last several months. I still have a few rolls to scan plus develop but should be caught up soon.

This is an image from a trip earlier this year to the UK. Because a flight fare was ridiculously priced I was semi forced to stay over on a Saturday and tried to make the best of it. Earlier images from a “Rocky Horror Picture” showing were the result but there are a few others that didn't get developed at the same time. This is one of them.

The rangefinder just lets me see differently and so far, I like how I am reacting with the camera. This image is a case in point.

I saw this arrow on the road. The contrast of the asphalt against the arrow was striking to me and I composed the frame. I only took one frame but because I could see what I wanted in the viewfinder, and because I was taking my time, I really only needed one frame. When I saw it on the contact sheet I immediately circled it and knew I had gotten what I wanted.

It's HP5 rated at 320.

Dark Images

2007-08-21T05:22:00.000-07:00

2 minutes while here in Cambridge for a quick update.

About a year ago I came upon a photographer that really resonated with me. The work I saw was dark and foreboding but stuck with me and started me looking for images where I wouldn't have before. Sadly, James Fee passed away this year but left a body of work I've gone back too for inspiration.

There is something about the work I really connected with and found lacking in my own work. Shooting with film in this fashion has produced my fair share of attempts but only a few have worked and this is one of those. It was taken in Kentucky during a full moon as I left my parents house while visiting in July. This is an old water tower in my home town and it's been there forever. It's in a state of disrepair these days having been replaced many years ago but it still means home to me in many ways. It served as a significant landmark for the years when we would return during the summer to visit my grandparents. When we moved back home once Pop retired from the Air Force the water tower was a reflection of the tiny town we moved too.

It still is. The town is a shell of what it once was and if I drive up the hill to see the tower I wonder how it manages to stay upright. Somehow it does and probably will for many years to come. If it's ever torn down home won't be the same and the landscape of the town would be forever altered. I think the town would quickly cease to exist as well.

Getting In

2007-08-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

Over at SportsShooter there is and article that any photojournalistic photographer should read. It's about getting in and telling the story. It's a compelling read so check it out.

No photographs today because all of the stuff I've recently shot has been family and dogs. And I also just haven't had the time to get everything scanned. This month has been nuts and I expect it will continue to be so as I head to Cambridge next week. I hope to get some backlog of articles written (can I really call this “articles”) while on the trip to, and from, the UK.

Nalu

2007-08-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

Nalu came to us after being dropped of by the side of the road along with 3 litter mates. She might have been 6 weeks old but I think she was younger than that. We think, and I emphasize think, that she is a Vizsla and Lab mix but we aren't sure. Whatever she is, she's a love.

I've spoiled her and am constantly reminded of this by both Diane and Jordan. Nalu reminds me of it to when she crawls up into my lap and sinks in for a little nap. I'm getting older and softer. What can I say.

Along with Soli, she becomes a model when I feel the need to pick up the camera. Photographing a black dog has challenged my exposure skills at times but the move back to film has helped, although this was taken with the digital and 24mm and converted to B&W in PS. I really was trying some different compositions and liked this one the best. It's the last dog image.

Soli

2007-07-30T14:57:00.000-07:00

I'll admit that images of dogs get to be redundant, irrelevant and too plentiful. If you have ever looked at any photographers image box you'll see there will usually be a plentiful amount of images of the 4 legged “child.”

As I wrote the piece for the post on photographing the ones you love, I noticed that I have a hard drive full of images of our two dogs Soli and Nalu. They are great models. They don't complain (although my daughter begs to differ with that statement) and they pose rather happily. At least I like to think so. They are unconditional models as much as they unconditionally love.

Soli is the stand in when I get a new piece of gear, want to test out a new technique or see light that I think is amazing. She is a “people” dog, preferring humans to other dogs I think because somehow she has become confused on her status in the animal kingdom. If she could talk, I am sure she would say that there has been a horrible mistake. She really isn't an animal but a human trapped in the wrong body. She may even give some credence to reincarnation. (Pop, don't worry too much.)

She's a joy to have around the house and I'm glad she's a willing model. This is her and her “ball” before we finally had to throw it away.

Jean Gaumy

2007-07-27T21:27:00.000-07:00

No image today.

One of my favorites books is called "Men At Sea" here in the US. It's called "Plien Mer" in France where it was orginally published. The photographer is Jean Gaumy and you should check out his images over at Magnum.

Seagull

2007-07-26T22:29:00.001-07:00

Seagull

OK, this probably isn’t that great of a photograph. There is just something about seagulls that I always seem to try and make an image of. It’s similar to the flag issue I wrote about a few posts back. Anyway, it was taken down at the Santa Monica Pier in one of the first outings with the film camera earlier this year.

The other image is from the same day (notice the seagull). On that particular day I had both cameras with me. No matter how I tried I couldn’t keep the highlights from blowing out. Maybe it’s just my lack of ability. Maybe it’s the camera. I don’t know. What I do know is that I was stunned by the lack of detail in the digital images and the amount of detail in the film images. I’m not trying to start a debate on the film versus digital thing just making an observation that was a little surprising to me at that point in time.

Santa Monica Mime

Photographing The Ones You Love

2007-07-20T13:22:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to explain this to myself and to the others in my family that wonder why I carry the camera. I can't explain it any better so instead of my words look here for why I, and others like me, do it. Gray Matters: Photograph Everyone You Love

Missy

2007-07-18T20:47:00.001-07:00

I’m a sucker for dogs. Especially for dogs that are skittish and scared. This is Missy. She’s an odd mix of Australian Shepherd and dachshund. She didn’t want anything to do with a guy with a camera in his face. The nice lady that owned her asked me to try and get some images and she held her hand down to try and calm her. I’m also a sucker for charming older women with said dog.

Missy doesn’t live at the home. She comes to visit her owner, hang out and make everyone feel better. She stays at the home of her owners daughter because her owner doesn’t want to get up in the middle of the night. I told her about my dogs and their propensity to get up in the middle of the night. She informed me that they had trained me well. My wife would agree.

Santa Monica Flag

2007-07-13T16:50:00.001-07:00

Santa Monica Flag

I spent some time at the Santa Monica Pier earlier this year. This is one of the images from that day. On Sunday the Arlington West Memorial is set up at sunrise and taken down just before sunrise. It’s surrounded by flags.

I don’t know why I am fascinated by flags flowing in the wind. I just am. Every time I see one, whether I have a camera or not, I think about making an image. There a dozens if images in my folders and on my hard-drives of flags but they seldom look good. This one of the exceptions, at least in my eyes it is.

It’s another film image, Delta 100, processed in dr5 neutral developer.

JJ

2007-07-11T10:33:00.001-07:00

JJ II

This is an image from the workshop in May with Colin Finlay. JJ is a cast member at the Copy Katz Lounge in Palm Springs. It’s a cabaret style entertainment with impersonators putting a pretty good show. I wasn’t sure it would be something I would enjoy, but it was an experience that I most likely would not have taken part in had it not been part of the workshop.

JJ was a very willing subject and workshops like this are always a little difficult. There were 9 other photographers there that day and getting an image without them in the frame was a challenge. It did make me work harder but I also had to work harder because I didn’t have a digital camera to use as a crutch. It’s amazing how many bad habits I’ve developed using digital. I’ve made this a direct link to flickr in order to allow viewing of more images from the day.

Capt Dave

2007-07-10T09:21:00.001-07:00

Capt Dave

The heat in the southwest, in fact throughout the country, has put guys and gals like Captain Dave in jeopardy. I had the honor of going to the Palm Springs Fire Department to witness some training and document the day. This is a portrait of a firefighter that puts his life on the line on a daily basis. I don’t know where Dave is today but I’m sure he’s out there in the heat, beating back the flames and protecting the communities.

This was taken with the Canon and one of the few times in 2007 I’ve actually used digital. It was processed in Lightroom, which I have yet to purchase, but with the release of 1.1 I expect to get it soon.

Seattle

2007-06-24T21:42:00.000-07:00

I may have posted these images before; probably did. But in getting this backlog of images scanned I actually got to work with the images instead of using a poorly shot transparency on a light box. There isn’t much to say. They were taken late last year - before I sold the Mamiya 7 - the last time I was in Seattle and I just love Seattle. The film was HP5 at 1600 processed in Developer 1 at dr5.

In getting a chance to work with the film images from the last year or so I’ve found how much I really enjoy the process of shooting. Getting the scanning system up and running, albeit cumbersome, I at least get to see some images I haven't been able to really work with. It’s also making me miss the larger negatives of the Mamiya. I guess I’ll have to start shooting the Littman more often.

My recent images have been off on exposure lately and I haven’t been able to figure the cause. Today I did. I use a Sekonic 508 I’ve had for years. Apparently I’ve been too trusting in it’s ability. I found today that it was an entire stop off over exposing on a regular basis. I’ve dialed in the adjustment but will most likely need to send it in for calibration sometime in the near future. I wonder how much that will cost? It’s always something.

Letters

2007-06-12T10:29:00.000-07:00

There are times when writing for this blog finds me at a loss for words. This is one of those times.

I found a solution to my scanning problem and spent the last couple of weeks scanning a backlog of images. This is the first one that I’m posting here.

At best I’m a difficult person to live with: moody, closed off, demanding and a few other things that come to mind. Somehow I was blessed with a woman that found a way, and continues to find a way, to get through the stuff I throw around. I’m not sure what I did to deserve her but I’m glad she came my way. She’s probably one of the only people that actually looks at this blog and I know what words do for her. She calls them “Larry Letters” and I don’t write them often enough.

I picked this image because her eyes show she’s playful and because there is a happiness here that I rarely catch with the camera. Her father was a photographer; she knows the drill, but I never seem to just catch her at a moment when she is relaxed. This is one of those and one of my favorites.

Sign Of The Times

2007-06-05T22:02:00.001-07:00

Here’s a sign of the times. This guy saw me making images and posed a couple of times. I actually didn’t push the shutter on those, not because he posed, but because a car pulled up behind him. But after this particular image he stumbled over to me in his high heels and asked to see the back of the camera. He was very polite but I told him it was film. He looked at me incredulously and asked, in all seriousness, if I was a Luddite. I told him, in fact, I was no such thing but this just happened to be the camera I had with me at the moment. He stared for a second or two, said OK and went to find a more progressive photographer.

"Rocky Horror" Lives

2007-05-28T21:12:00.000-07:00

I spent a week in Cambridge on business recently. As it turned out I had a Saturday night stay over rate that prevented me form coming early even though the meetings were completed. So I spent a day roaming the village of 100,000 people carrying the camera and seeing what I could see.

I’ve been to Cambridge several times but I rarely get a chance to see outside the area between my hotel and office. This free day let me get outside the normal areas and see something of the town. It was enjoyable and it makes me wish we lived in a more pedestrian friendly city. I really enjoyed relaxing by sitting in the cafe’s and watching the people go about their Saturday chores.

On my way back to the hotel later in the evening I passed the Corn Exchange which is an older building that houses a theater. As I walked up the block, I noticed a large crowd and decided to check it out. There were several scantily clad hairy men milling about and it took me a moment to realize what was going on. Apparently the “Rocky Horror Picture Show” lives.

There was a line of photographers against the wall opposite of the main entrance. I only had the 50mm with me (only lens for this particular camera) so I couldn’t stay there and get any decent images. So I just jumped into the fray. I hope I didn’t piss anyone off but the “cast” seemed to enjoy it so I stuck around. I got a few images I like and this is one of them. This guys buddy was posing with a couple of the characters from the film. He asked me after he shot this if I got his best side. He was rather funny and seemed to enjoy the fact that he was the subject instead of the others.

It took me a little while to get comfortable getting as close as I needed but I eventually did and the few images I like are better for it. Now I need to get a 35mm and get even closer.

Grip

2007-05-24T15:49:00.002-07:00

This is from another Father/Daughter day at the gym. Jordan loves to climb and I love it as well although she makes me look like the out of shape guy that I am. She’s very good, and as she continues to get stronger she’ll just get better. So I took the opportunity to shoot some images while she was climbing a couple of weeks ago. I really enjoyed doing this although I’m not sure Jordan did. I think it gets a little old being the subject of so much photography but, in her sweet way, she indulges me and lets me keep trying.

As I went through these I started sequencing them according to what I had learned from Colin in the workshop. It was a good exercise in putting something that flowed in a logical way. I don’t know if I got it right but I do like how they turned out. I also purposely shot that day with an idea in mind instead of my usually random and disjointed way. It was prompted in some way by recognizing Jordan’s wish to not show her face. It made me think more, find a way to get what I wanted and still meet her requirement. I think it worked out pretty well.