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TOOK A FERRY RIDE YESTERDAY ACROSS THE 13TH LARGEST lake in the USofA–Lake Champlain-107 miles long, 14 miles at its widest–and purchased a new car. Didn’t mean to buy a new car, it was just kinda a spontaneous happenstance. In any event, all 3 of our cars are now sport-oriented–aka: so-called “drivers” vehicles–turbos.
Today is my birthday so this entry is on the brief side. I’ll be back in the more wordy mode in a few days.
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had dinner and breakfast at Chef Darrel’s Diner
stopped at a local farm to get some protein for a cookout
WE TOOK A SHORT DRIVE TO BLUE MOUNTAIN LAKE on Saturday for the opening of the Adirondack Lakes Art Center’s new facility–I have had 2 solo exhibitions at the old facility, Stayed overnight in one of their visiting artists cabins–that’s the wife posing on the steps of the cabin. The Center was running the No Octane Regatta-classic Adirondack boats-on the lake on Saturday.
A lot of my photography that is on the walls of our house are 4-picture composites of our various trips and travels like the one pictured in this entry. All of the pictures are presented as “snapshots”. That’s cuz that’s what you do–take snapshots– when you travel.
I also order 4x4 prints of most of the pictures–again, converted to “snapshots”–that I make when traveling and throw them in a box for safe keeping. These are the pictures that are most likely to survive after my passing from the planet. FYI, the template I use for the snapshot border is from a family snapshot of my grandparents.
cover photo -The World At My Feet ~ all photos (embiggenable)
11 YEARS AGO I MADE POD PHOTO book titled The World At My Feet. In hindsight that title was a bit of a misnomer inasmuch as, while my picture making gaze was cast downward, neither my feet nor the ground / floor were integral to the photographs (with 2 exceptions). Retrospect suggests that a more appropriate title should been something like Looking Down, or, Eye Contact Down, or, Downward Gaze.
In any event, during the 11 years since the making of that photo book, I have made hundreds of downward gazing photographs, to include the 5 in this entry which were made over the last 2 days. And then there is the Eyes Downcast gallery on my work which, FYI, has not been updated for a few years. Update coming soon.
To be certain, I have never considered the photographs resulting from my downward gaze M.O. to be a body of work. However, I do believe that now is the time to round up the best of the bunch and make another photo book.
BONUS CONTENT:
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A TRIP TO NYC IS IN MY VERY NEAR future for the sole purpose of seeing the North American premiere of Constellation, the most comprehensive presentation–454 prints–of work by Diane Arbus. I must admit that I feel that viewing 454 prints replete with Diane Arbus subject content is an intimidating proposition. It might just require a 2-day viewing experience; day 1–a comprehensive walk-through to get a grasp of the scope and tenor of the collection, and, day 2–spend time engaging with some of the more captivating photographs. In any event, it should very interesting.
FYI, over the years I have made a few–very few–Arbus-like photographs. Strangely enough, most are of children. While my photos do not have the Arbus strange weirdness vibe, they are a bit on the quirky side.
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“Some people are still unaware that reality contains unparalleled beauties. The fantastic and unexpected, the ever-changing and renewing is nowhere so exemplified as in real life itself.” ~ Berenice Abbott
OVER 5 DAYS, LAST WEDS.>SUNDAY, IT RAINED A lot. I took the ferry to Vermont for service for one of our cars and killed time in a Panera Bread. Next day I played golf along Lake Champlain on a Canadian wildfire smokey day. Saturday there was a motorcycle rally in my home town and then it was off to Saratoga Springs for the running of the Belmont Stakes-2nd leg of the race for the Triple Crowd, a fitting appointment to have my irons re-shafted, and to hear our son-in-law’s band. Sunday was a quiet, sunny day at home.
FYI, I have made a few photo books that fall under x-number-of-days titles, i.e. like the title of this entry. Making such a photo book happens when I have had a number of consecutive days of intensive picture making for one reason or another–or, at times, for no reason at all. When I show the books around, viewers are usually rather intrigued by them inasmuch as they are rather fascinated by their interest and attraction to seemingly mundane picture matter.
That written, viewers almost always find a picture or two that really hold their attention and I am often surprised by their selections. I have even has requests a copy of some of the books. The most common comment I hear about their selection(s) is “I never would have thought to take a picture of that” and I must confess that that reaction gives me a great deal of pleasure.
RE: Abbott’s quote …. I would amend it to read that real life provides opportunities to make fantastic, unexpected and beautiful photographs. That cuz, real life does not always present us with unparalleled beauty. And, to my eye and sensibilities, the magic of photography is its ability to transmute the commonplace into something else, i.e. a beautiful–or at least interesting–print.
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APOLOGIES FOR NOT POSTING RECENTLY. ALTHOUGH I HAVE PLENTY OF photos to publish I really have not had much on my mind, photography wise, to say. There’s that, but also it should not go without mentioning that I was pretty wrapped up processing photos––110 to be exact–– from my recent travels. That written, I’m back in the saddle and ready to go.
During my recent travels to New Mexico I serendipitously encountered a few items of interest, 2 of which are photo related, 1 of which is, well, kinda weirdly mysterious(?) / mystical(?) / or, maybe just oddly coincidental….
ITEM #1 …. while visiting Bandelier National Monument, I purchased a Smokey Bear building kit––sorta like a LEGO kit but with a zillion excruciatingly tiny pieces––cuz I like to construct LEGO kits, not cuz I am enamored of Smokey Bear, per se (albeit that he is the “mascot” of the National Park Service). Being a instant gratification kinda guy, I built Smokey a day later while in our hotel in Santa Fe.
It was not until a day ago that I learned the actual Smoky Bear (a cub)––severely burned––was rescued from a forest fire in New Mexico. He was then taken to Santa Fe were he was nursed back to health and then transferred to the Smithsonian in Washington, DC where he was given a permanent home in the National Zoological Park with the stipulation that his life be dedicated to fire prevention and wildlife conservation.
That written (and call me weird if you like), but I do find it kinda weird that I rescued a disembodied (fragmented?) Smokey Bear effigy languishing in a New Mexico National Park gift shop and took it (him) to Santa Fe where I restored it (him) to life-unlike Humpty Dumpty, I made Smoky whole again. He was transported to Au Sable Forks, NY where I gave him a permanent home. I ask you, cosmic or what?
ITEM #2 (not an actual thing) …. A part of the desire to return to Santa Fe was that during our previous visit, we were not able to visit the Georgia O’Keeffe museum cuz it is by reservation only and is often booked full well in advance. So informed, we were able to book a reservation well in advance. Hence, I learned a few interesting facts about O’Keeffe….
O’Keeffe was “discovered” by Alfred Stieglitz. At first she was his lover but then his wife. It should come as no surprise that, being married to Stieglitz, she often found herself in the company of––even occasionally traveling with––notable photographers- Adams, Porter, Strand, Webb and others. Stieglitz created 350 photographs––formal studies––of O’Keeffe. Starting in 1940, after Stieglitz’ death, O’Keeffe began in earnest to pursue making photographs––with a Leica and a Polaroid––of the Southwest. She has had several exhibitions of her photos, including Georgia O’Keeffe, Photographer at the Museum of Fine Arts (Houston).
In the triptych above is one of O’Keeffe’s photos of her favorite door, a photo of her and Stieglitz at the Stieglitz family property in Lake George, NY (about 40 as-the-crow-flies miles from my house) where they spent many summers and where Stieglitz made most of his Equivalents photographs, and a photo of O’Keeffe out and about photographing with her Leica––which was on display in the glass case by the mural.
ITEM #3 …. In the O’Keeffe Museum gift shop I purchased a book, Stand in the Light ~ NATIVE VOICES illuminated by EDWARD S. CURTIS. While I was casually aware of the work of ECS, I was woefully ignorant of both the volume of the work and the dedication extended to create it.
Between 1900 and 1927 Curtis visited 80 different tribes, made 40,000 photographs, recorded songs and stories, interviewed famous tribal leaders and managed to produce and publish 29 volumes of The North American Indian. He did all this while exhausting his personal funds, losing his studio, his wife divorcing him, and being forced into bankruptcy.
Don’t know if that was extreme dedication to an endeavor or a form of obsessive insanity but, as it states on the book’s back cover:
……In a perfect partnership, the songs, prayers, and philosophies of eight American Indian tribes are paired with select historical photos––taken by the incomparable Edward S. Curtis––of the people who lived them. This carefully curated collection is an inspirational and educational journey of respect for their culture, ideals and images.
The portraits in this book are simply stunning in their straightforward honesty and gaze. iMo, Curtis is not only at the top of his game but also at the top of the game. If there is a better portrait photographer in the entire history of the medium, I am stumped as to who that might be.
Highly recommended.
Santa FE, New Mexico ~ all photos (embiggenable)
Chicago, Illinois
Denver, Colorado
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Jemez, New Mexico
Trinidad, Colorado
Trinidad, Colorado
“Consulting the rules of composition before taking a photograph is like consulting the laws of gravity before going for a walk. / Composition is the strongest way of seeing.” / Following rules of composition can only lead to a tedious repetition of pictorial clichés.”~ Edward Weston
IF I WERE TO BE GIVEN THE AUTHORITY TO eradicate a word from the photography lexicon, that word would “composition”. If I were asked to give a rationale for that act, I would quote Ansel Adams’ idea that:
“There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.”
As an adjunct to my Composition Eradication Decree, I would also create a special space in the fiery after/underworld for anyone who would try to reintroduce the composition concept with the visual aid of a photographic print with lines / arrows, aka: diagrams, drawn all over the surface of the print in an attempt to demonstrate how “good” composition “works.”
Or, maybe it would just be easier to give them all Red Rider BB guns and hope they will shoot their eye out. That’d fix ‘em up plenty good.
ASIDE if ya wanna get fixed up plenty good, Trinidad, Colorado is a good place to get a “fix”. Right there on Main Street––easy off, easy on, Interstate 25––is a well stocked liquor store and a cannabis dispensary right next to each other. Both were open early Sunday morning––serving your intoxicant needs on the lord’s day of rest––when we stopped in Trinidad looking for a grocery store during our drive to Jemez, New Mexico. END ASIDE
all photos (embiggenable) ancient Pueblo cliff cave dwelling
“Of all the world’s photographers, the lowliest and least honored is the simple householder…. His knowledge of photography is about that of your average chipmunk. …. Emulsion speeds, f-stops, meter readings, shutter speeds have absolutely no meaning to him, except as a language he hears spoken when, by mistake, he wanders into a real camera store to buy film instead of his usual drugstore …. He lugs his primitive equipment with him on vacation trips …. His product is almost always people- or possession-oriented. It rarely occurs to such a photographer to take a picture of something, say a Venetian fountain, without a loved one standing directly in front of it and smiling into the lens.” ~ Jean Shepherd
PURSUANT TO MY LAST ENTRY (re: nix on touristy pictures) I CAN ATTEST THAT when making photographs while traveling that include the presence of the wife, I have successfully avoided making pictures that the lowliest and least honored simple householder might make while making a picture of his/her loved one standing in front of something and smiling into the lens.
My intent when making such photographs of the wife during our travels is to simply capture a slice of life––her doing her thing while I am doing mine. The photographs are not about her, per se, but rather about her being there, engaged in the moment.
On the flip side, when the wife takes a picture of me, it is usually at my request. That request is most always accompanied by “instructions” from me that she just picture me doing what I am doing and to include something that gives context to where we are. That written, she usually gets it “right”.
That success just might be due to the fact that, by living with me, she does know more about photography than the average chipmunk.
“John Szarkowski has used the expression “nominal subject matter”. I think that’s perfect for my behavior here. I am not interest in gas stations or anything about gas stations. This happens to be an excuse for seeing.… I don’t care if it was about a gas station or if this is a rubber raft or if this is a crappy little house. That’s not my subject! The gas station isn’t my subject. It’s an excuse for a place to make a photograph”….
…. “I take a picture of the subject and its context––the subject as it stands with everything else…. I’m trying to make an atonal photograph where everything is as important as everything else…. I think it’s possible to make a photograph in which the photographer lays back enough so the viewer comes into the photograph and has a chance to perceive the thing on his own terms, instead of only seeing what the photographer has hooked him to see. I think one of the reasons I’m using the 8x10 camera is that I felt I could work with the large camera and make photographs in which the subject was everything in the frame.” ~ Joel Meyerowitz
I RECENTLY WROTE THAT I DO NOT TITLE MY photographs onaccounta I do not wish to call attention to the literally depicted referent in my pictures cuz my pictures are rarely “about” the literally pictured referent. As an adjunct to that practice, at an exhibit of my photographs I have always wished for red velvet ropes strung 3-4 feet in front the gallery walls to prevent viewers from sticking their noses where they don’t belong––that is, so close to a picture that they can not see the print in its entirety. That’s cuz seeing the print in the all together is the only way in which a viewer can actually see what my pictures are about.
My “excuse” for making a photograph is the potential I see in isolated––by means of framing––sections of the quotidian world to create visually interesting form; form that results from the fact that everything within my frame is as important as everything else within the frame. In other words, creating visually interesting form is my subject, aka: what my photographs are about. It is not about the literally depicted things in my photographs.
FYI, if I were to title any of the above photographs, the titles might be something like; my son wearing a new hat, or, my grandson eating lunch at the Statue of Liberty, or, my daughter and her cousins reading on the beach. However, for the life on me, I just can not imagine how those titles would improve, in any manner, a viewer’s reaction to / appreciation of / understanding of the pictures. In fact, iMo, the titles might very well lead a viewer to think that that information had something to do with why I made the pictures which, in fact, had absolutely nothing––nada, zero, zip––to do with why I made the pictures.