referents and subject matter

March 3, 2023

“…all photographers of stature whom I admire seem to share this fundamental characteristic: a deep and long-lasting respect and love for the subject matter…” ~ David Hurn

iMo, ONE MIS-UNDERSTOOD AND, QUITE POSSIBLY, destructive piece of oft recommended picture making advice is that a picture maker who is looking for his picture making passion should seek out a subject matter that he/she really cares about.

On its face this seems to be a smart thing to do. However, the problem I see with it is that it almost always leads to thinking about “subject matter” as an actual, literal / physical thing-a people, a place, or an object. A picture making alley that leads to an endless stream of pictures of ever popular subject matter; pictures in the making of which techniques and effects, aka: art sauce, are employed in an effort to “see” the same old stuff in a “different” manner from the rest of the literal subject matter focused picture making crowd.

The advice often goes on to state that…

“if images are not rooted in “the thing itself” then…the photographer has not learned anything about the real world.” ~ David Hurn

…to which I would respond that there ain’t all that much to be “learned” about the real world from the viewing of pictures which show us the same old stuff over and over again-stating and re-stating the obvious-no matter how much technique / effects have been applied.

All of that written, if one looks at the advice, re: finding subject matter, with the idea in mind that subject matter does not have to be a tangible, physical thing, then, iMo, you’re heading down the right track. I write that cuz one is then entering the picture making zone wherein one makes pictures in which concept-not the actual, literal referent-is the subject matter.

Consider, for the moment, my pictures.

The concept-my “subject matter” as opposed to my referents-that drives my picture making is my intent to illustrate and illuminate the fact-the undeniable truth to be found in my work-that the quotidian world is awash-when one has a picture making device in hand and the eye to see it-with seemingly random and serendipitous arrangements of virtually any real world objects that, when isolated and captured within a picture maker's framing, are fertile ground for making images with, to my eye and sensibilities (and to that of others), interesting visual energy and form which creates it own sense of beauty.

And, let me add to that-considering the pictures in this entry-that I do not have “a deep and long-lasting respect and love for” egg yokes, greasy water in a pan, or the things in my kitchen dish rack.

Nevertheless, despite my lack of love and respect for the diverse things-the referents-in my pictures, they are an integral element in my pictures inasmuch as…

“…resourceful photographic formalists regard the complexion of the given environment as potentially articulate aesthetic material….they [ed. I] consider the subject and its visual essence as indivisible….[they] perceive real objects and intervening spaces as interanimating segments of a total visual presentation….The resultant image exists simultaneously as a continuous visual plane on which every space and object are interlocking pieces of a carefully constructed jig-saw puzzle and a window through which the viewer can discern navigable space and recognizable subject matter…” ~ Sally Eauclair

The actual real world referents-the unconventional things, beauty wise-in my pictures also contribute to the perplexity / discomfort many have when viewing my pictures (the oft-heard, “I don’t know why I like these pictures, but I do.”)…

“.…many great photographs displaying beauty reveal a sensation of strangeness, not predictability, a kind of shock non-recognition inside the familiar. They are the opposite of cliche.” ~ David Hurn

All of the above written, I believe that “the thing itself” to be seen in a photograph is, quite simply, the photograph itself and, collectively, that which the photograph illustrates and illuminates.

ADDENDUM It should be understood that this entry is not suggesting / implying or otherwise insinuating that it is impossible to make photographs of things considered to be of conventional beauty that also conveys a concept that is beyond the obvious. However, I can write, without a moment’s hesitancy, that it is very easy to be seduced into thinking that a referent’s conventional beauty is all it takes to make a photograph interesting.

6493-95 / single woman ~ behind the scene (instructional)

March 1, 2023

***uncle momo cafe*** ~ Jersey City, NJ (embiggenble)

***wedding reception*** ~ Jersey City, NJ (embiggenble)

I DO NOT OFTEN POST INSTRUCTIONAL aka: how-to, entries but, when I was working on the top picture in this entry, I performed a modification on the image file that I thought might interest my readers.

That single women picture was made without any opportunity for any iPhone settings. There was just enough time to point the iPhone and hit the make-a-picture button. The iPhone was pre-set to the PORTRAIT setting and chose the paper bag as the focus point. The “single woman”, aka: my subject, was not in focus. Not to worry cuz…

…one of the great features of the PORTRAIT setting is the fact that one can change the so-labled f-stop when processing the file. So, when I opened the file on my phone, I set the f-stop to f16 which essentially created an everything-in-focus image file. I copied and saved that image file and went back to the original image file and returned the f-stop to its original setting.

I now had 2 image files, one sharp, one soft focus. It was then a simple procedure-on my desktop machine using Photoshop-to select the “single woman” in the sharp image file and place it on a separate layer in the soft image file. And, voila, I now had the picture that I wanted; sharp referent with soft background. And, as you can see in the finished photograph, I made some modifications-color balance, tonal adjustments (on the single woman), high recovery (the light globes), and the removal of the upper left cyan cast (mixed light, daylight + tungsten)-on some selected areas of the image file and then merged the 2 layers together.

ASIDE I made a couple additional single women photographs while in Jersey City this weekend past. Those 2 photographs were made with my “standard” single women M.O.; making a picture without the woman in question knowing that I was making a picture of her. Which leads to a question, re: the Uncle Momo single women…

She seems to be aware of the fact that I was making a photograph of her. Although, it is possible that she might have thought that I was looking at / reading something on my iPhone. Whatever, the case, it does call into question whether I can, thematically writing, include it in my single women body of work. Gotta thing about that. END ASIDE

#6490-92 / single women • common places • common things ~ ennui

February 27, 2023

***this weekend past in Jersey City, NJ*** ~ (embiggenable)

IT COMES AS NO SURPRISE TO ME TO READ a blog entry-from a dedicated gear head-that expresses a sense of (non-commercial) photo making ennui. It would seem that an equipment fetish is not particularly conducive to the making of good photographs.

While it would me very easy for me to heap a bunch of no-shit-Sherlock on the author, I thought that I would instead-for instructive purposes only-intersperse a few Brooks Jensen quotes-from his Things I’ve Learned About Photography-together with a few excerpts from the blog entry in question:

excerpt: All I can manage to say for the photographic process now is that it gets one out of the house…But without a spark behind the process all the trappings of the craft are mostly rendered meaningless and banal….old duffers like me wandering around with wonderful gear in a vain attempt to re-capture the magic we felt when taking photographs in our youth….

The more gear you carry the less likely you are to make a good photograph. ~ BJ

excerpt:…Almost as though we've all concluded that with the endless torrent of images being constantly shared everywhere that no individual shot or selection of shots matters anymore….I felt a certain sense of futility…Another futile attempt to carve out some sort of alternate viewpoint.

…every photographer who sticks with it long enough arrives at a technical plateau where production of a technically good photograph is relatively easy. It is here that real photography starts and most photographers quit. ~ BJ

Now I am not suggesting that the author is about to give up making non-commercial pictures but, if he were to do so, it would not be much of loss to fine art photo world cuz one should…

Never ask a person who collects cameras if you can see his photographs. ~ BJ

You would never know it by looking at the photographic press [ed. gear focused blogs], but there are an amazing number of creative people engaged in photography who couldn’t care less about equipment but who love photographs. ~ BJ

# 6489 / roadside attractions • flora • common things ~ picture makers just want to have fun

February 23, 2023

AS PART OF MY PORTFOLIO SUBMISSION TO GALLERIES, re: roadside attractions, an artist statement is mandatory. Writing one is always a bit of challenge cuz, if it were allowed, I would write one that stated, I made these pictures cuz I photograph whatever pricks my eye and sensibilities and I like the way they turned out.

However, that would be laughed out of court as inadmissible. So, instead, I am writing, in part, something that reads like this…

…. my eye and sensibilities impel me to make photographs of seemingly haphazard confluences of variegated flora and detritus …. (that) evince a riotous visual energy; an amalgamation of texture, line, shape, color, and value …. intimate landscapes that manifest-both literally (these are pictures of the real world) and metaphorically (the concept behind the work)-the essence of the energy and forces at work in the lives of all living things ….

For me, the challenge in writing an artist statement is to avoid telling viewers how to look at / what to look for in my pictures. I would not worry about this as much if it were possible to not give viewers an opportunity to read an artist statement until after they have viewed the pictures.

That written, I do believe that artist statements are intended to be read by gallery directors so that they can be assured that the work was made by a “serious” artist, not by some guy with camera who is just having fun.

Be that as it may, the statement is still a work in progress. However, I do have a deadline for a submission that is due by next Tuesday.

# 6482-88 / roadside attractions • flora • common places ~ drive by shooting

February 22, 2023

“Anything more than 500 yards from the car just isn’t photogenic.” ~ Edward Weston

DURING THE PAST COUPLE DECADES I HAVE amassed in the neighborhood of 150+ pictures that were made within 20 yards of my car; my car which was pulled over to the side of the road. And, in almost all cases the pictures were made with my feet firmly planted on the edge of the road. Hence, from that picture making M.O. comes the title, roadside attractions.

This practice is the not result of my being lazy or lame. Point of fact, I have ventured far from the road-10-20 miles into the forest / wilderness on foot or in a canoe-spending up to 4-5 nights in the backcountry. Needless to write, I make lots of pictures on those treks.

That written, what pricks my eye and sensibilities along the roadside is the abundance of intimate landscapes brimming with the potential for the making of photographs with a high content of visual energy /complexity. Tangles, thickets, and clusters of bio-diverse, indigenous flora / detritus present a riotously complex visual symphony of color, line, shape, and texture that, when isolated and “organized” within my imposed frame, conspires to give the eye no place to rest.

FYI, years ago, when I began this M.O., my son, the cinemascapist, had labeled this picture making practice my Jackson Pollock picture making state of mind (and eye).

In any event, I am assembling a couple roadside attractions print portfolios, together with a photo book, for submission to galleries. See more roadside attractions pictures in the new gallery on my WORK page.

# 6479-81 / picture windows • common places • common things ~ a window of opportunity

February 21, 2023

THERE IS A WINDOW IN A TINY WINE STORE (350 sq ft?) in a tiny Adirondack hamlet (pop. 690) that the wife and I visit once a month-it’s a 90 minute drive from our house-to pickup our monthly wine club selections. I have recently begun making pictures featuring the window and its view.

The view out the window ain’t much special, except..….iMo, I think it is rather extraordinary inasmuch as, depending upon the time of day, season, quality of light, weather, et al, it presents an ever changing tableau for picture making opportunities. Opportunities that I would love to more fully explore if I can just figure out the logistics.

I would need to make at least 12 pictures in order to consider it as a body of work. Although, who knows? At that point it might not seem worth exploring any further.

# 6469-78 / people • places • things ~ instant satisfaction

February 17, 2023

***me on a hot day photo shoot*** ~ (embiggenable)
**all pictures embiggenable**

IF, AT THE TIME OF MY ENTRY INTO THE picture making life, the Photo Gods had called me aside and declared that I could proceed but only if I limited my picture making to Polaroid materials, I probably would have declined and stuck to sketching. However, if the Gods had set forth the same condition in 1972-the year the SX-70 camera / Time Zero film was introduced-I would have been happy to agree.

That written, lest you think that I would have been stuck with just the SX-70 camera and film, the fact was that, by 1972, I had Polaroid film backs for all of my “real” cameras-35mm, 120, 4x5, and (by 1973) 8x10 cameras. ASIDE the 4x5 Polaroid Type 55 film produced a seriously nice 4x5 instant BW print and a best-I-ever-used 4x5 negative. END ASIDE

My use of Polaroid professional films was primarily for my commercial picture making activities. Even though I did use the SX-70 / Time Zero tandem to make pictures for commercial clients, they were my go-to picture making tools for my personal picture making pursuits. And, using it as such was a pure joy. Especially due to the fact that passing around an actual print just moments after the picture was made is surefire crowd-pleaser if ever there was one. The SX-70 camera is the most fun camera I ever owned.

While I am on the subject of Polaroid, I can honestly write that if those same Photo Gods were to limit me to owning only 1 photo book-a book of pictures, not writing-that book would be THE POLAROID BOOK ~ Selections from the Polaroid Collection of Photography.

The Polaroid Collection of Photography is comprised of over 23,000 Polaroid pictures from over 2,000 photographers. The book features approximately 300 pictures made with a wide variety of Polaroid cameras and film. Each picture is accompanied by the artist’s name. The book Index has small icons of each picture with artist name, picture title, date made, and film type. The reproduction and production values are outstanding.

My only-one-photo-book-stranded-on-a-desert-island choice of this book is based upon the fact that; 1) the photos display a wide-ranging approach, aka: vision wise, employed in the making of pictures, 2) most of the pictures could be labeled as straight photography, 3) there is not a single word of art-speak anywhere to be read, and, 4) I could view the pictures in this book in a 1-picture-day manner until the end of time and never, ever come close to being bored.

The book is highly recommended and for those who might need (picture making wise) a kick in the butt, a knock upside the head, or a broom to clear out the cobwebs.

# 6465-68 / windshields • hockey ~ and now for something completely different

February 13, 2023

***he’s a Vermont Lumberjack and he’s OK*** ~ (embiggenable)

***waiting in line for the ferry*** ~ (embiggenable)

***sunset as viewed from on the ferry*** ~ (embiggenable)

I BEGAN MY µ4/3 LIFE WITH THE PURCHASE OF an Olympus E-3 DSLR - pre-mirrorless era. After moving on to Olympus mirrorless cameras, I used the E-3 as a prop inasmuch as, when making pictures for commercial assignments, I had it around on shoots to validate to the client the idea-image wise (in the personal image sense)-that I was a professional photographer. In other words, pay no attention to those little amateur looking cameras which, of course, were making much better image files than the big impressive looking camera.

That written, this weekend past, I was tasked with making pictures of my hockey-playing (Juniors in the Eastern Hockey League) grandson (FYi, he’s playing his way up the ladder to college hockey). So, out comes the E-3, emerging from its current state as a paperweight, cuz it is, together with my 50-200 f2.8 lens (e10-400mm), my best tool for hockey action picture making. It has been so long since I have used the camera, that I had to almost relearn how to use it. Not to mention the time spent finding all the pieces - batteries, charger, cards, camera strap, et al.

In any event, one of the challenges of making reasonably sharp hockey action pictures is the problem, at ice level, of shooting through glass. That is, “glass” which is actually well scratched and marred plexiglass. Fortunately, a tele lens focused on a referent well away from the glass helps diminish, but not eliminate, the scratches and mars but, nevertheless, you are still shooting through what might be labeled as a pretty thick diffusion filter.

My grandson’s team, the Vermont Lumberjacks’-hence the spiffy red checked, flannel pajama -looking uniform-home rink is in Vermont and it requires a ferry ride across Lake Champlain to see a game. Last evening, on our ferry ride home, the wife and I were treated to very nice sunset which was very different from our midnight-a pitch black, cloudless sky before moonrise-ferry ride home after Saturday night’s game.