# 6920-22/ landscape • around the house • common places-things ~ a bug-ike immersion in the quotidian world

all photos ~ (embiggenable)

WHILE READING AN ESSAY IN THE BOOK, FRED HERZOG • MODERN COLOR, I came across an interesting concept:

In 1962m Manny Farber (film critic) distinguished between what he called “termite art” and “white elephant art.”. Termite artists get on with their art with little regard for posterity or critical affirmation. They are “ornery, wasteful, stubbornly self-involved, doing go for-broke-art and not caring what becomes of it.” They have a “bug-like immersion in a small area without point or aim, and, overall, concentrating on nailing down one moment without glamorizing it, but forgetting this accomplishment as soon as it has been passed: the feeling that all is expendable, that it can be chopped up and flung down in a different arrangement without ruin.” On the other hand, “white elephant art” is made in the self-conscious pursuit of transcendent greatness and in the channels where greatness is conventionally noticed. The white elephant artist is likely to “pin the viewer to the wall and slug him with wet towels of artiness and significance.” We need not choose between these two. Great work can be made by either, and history suggests that this is perhaps more true of photography than any other medium.

After reading this, I believe that I am a termite artist and, btw, the wife thinks that I am ornery.

# 6910-15 / around the house • kitchen sink • flora • fauna • landscape ~ same as it ever was

all photos ~ (embgiggenable)

“If a day goes by without my doing something related to photography, it's as though I've neglected something essential to my existence, as though I had forgotten to wake up.” - Richard Avedon

SINCE MY RETURN FROM NEW MEXICO / DENVER, 20 days ago, it was until 3 days ago that I made my first photograph here at home. Oddly enough, it wasn’t until I made the photograph in this entry that I realized that so much time had passed since my last picture making. That realization made it plain that I had, in fact, been feeling “it's as though I've neglected something essential to my existence.” That written, it should be noted that all of those 17 photograph-making-less days were spent doing something related to photography––i.e. processing my travel photographs.

Over past 2 days I have made a couple more photographs and begun to realize what it was that caused the back-to-home photo making lull; apparently, or so it seems, while in New Mexico, my picture making sensitivity intuitively(?) transitioned to the landscape mode. A mode in which shapes, texture, color, line, and tone found in the natural world are very different from the same values in a more urban / domesticated / man-made environment.

I can not write that I was consciously aware of that change but I was most certainly aware of the fact that reverting to the “rules of composition” was not going to be productive in the cause of avoiding making touristy / calendar pictures. It was that thought that got me off on the right foot when, from the get-go, I decided to make photographs from the passenger seat of our rental car.

# 6893-97 / travel • trees • landscape ~ I'm a pointer, you're a pointer, evryone can be a pointer too

all photos ~ (embiggenable)

THIS ENTRY HAS 2 PHOTOGRAPHS MADE IN NEW MEXICO––2 in Santa Fe and 3 photographs made in and around Hemez. The common item–– the cottonwood tree. If one were attempting, by making photographs, to capture / present a sense of place, and that place was in the area of New Mexico I was in, then one would have to include the cottonwood tree in most photographs. And that written, “BINGO” might be declared if a photo also includes an adobe structure.

RE: a sense of place - attempting to convey a sense of pace in a photograph is, iMo, a bit of a questionable endeavor. That’s cuz reducing the representation of a place to; a) a flat-as-a-pancake 2D plane, aka: minus a sense of depth, b) minus a sense of sound, and c) minus a sense of smell is similar to attempting to experience a sense of bourbon by licking the outside of a glass––fine Irish Waterford crystal, of course––of bourbon with a stuffed up nose.

iMo, in point of fact, what you get when you photograph a place is what that place looks like when photographed.

That written, an adroitly produced photograph of a place (or thing / person) can incite in a viewer notions of curiosity / interest and even a desire to experience, in person, that place. A viewer might actually experience a vicarious sensation of some kind––in his/her imagination––from such a photograph. However, I would suggest that the imagined experience is instigated more from the photograph itself rather than from the literally depicted referent* CAVEAT: in the Fine Art world. As John Szarkowski wrote:

“ A photograph produced [ED] … with that quality of formal rigor that identifies a work of art, so that we would be uncertain … how much our pleasure and sense of enlargement had come from the things pointed to and how much from a pattern created by the pointer.”

To wit, the photographs, made by others, that I like and the photographs I strive to make tend to come down on the pleasure and sense of enlargement that comes from a pattern created by the pointer side of Szarkowski’s ledger. Or, in other words, I like to make or view a photograph(s) that is a beautiful object(s), in and of itself; photographs of a referent selected from the quotidian world that is not customarily considered to be beautiful in of itself.

To my eye and sensibilities, that is the magic and the beauty of the medium of photography and its apparatus.

* that written, nevertheless, the form––aka: pattern––and the literally depicted referent are inexorably linked.

# 6981-85 / landscape • (un)common things • places ~ along for the ride

all photos (embiggenable)

FLIGHT TO DENVER, RENT A CAR, DRIVE 6.5 Hours TO Hemez, New Mexico. Knowing that there would be some spectacular scenery along the way, I let the wife drive so I could make pictures from the passenger seat. A good decision as it turned out cuz I made enough from-the-car photographs to make a small book. Not that I did not get out of the car to make a photograph or two (or more)––the mural in the middle of nowhere as an example.

That written, I am always somewhat conflicted when making photographs during our travels. That’s cuz, when traveling it is inevitable that one sees something new / never seen before. The temptation, picture making wise, is to focus on those things but, as previously written, I really don’t like to feature things in my photographs. In other words, I do not want to return from a trip with a bunch of typical touristy pictures.

That written, the tool I employ to avoid making touristy pictures is quite simple––I remain true to my vision, aka: the way I see the world. That is, I see something and I photograph it the way I encounter / see it. Works almost every time.

More photographs to come.

# 6974-76 / kitchen sink • flora • landscape ~ they're not as sharp as they think they are

all photos (embiggenable)

“I’m always amused by the idea that certain people have about technique, which translate into an immoderate taste for the sharpness of the image. It is a passion for detail, for perfection, or do they hope to get closer to reality with this trompe I’oeil? They are, by the way, as far away from the real issues as other generations of photographers were when they obscured their subject in soft-focus effects.” ~ Henri Cartier-Bresson

REGULAR FOLLOWERS OF THIS BLOG HAVE PROBABLY noticed there have been more entries posted than is usual. That is most likely do to my new proclivity for using quotes to introduce one topic or another. FYI, as mentioned previously, I have collected quite a number of quotes from the interweb and from photo book––monographs––intros / prefaces / reviews. They act as a kinda instigator for entry topics, so much so that rarely have words poured from my penny pencil with such feverish fluidity.

Be that as it may, today’s topic was not instigated by the above HBC quote––I dug that out after I encountered the real instigator; today’s entry on T.O.P. in which M. Johnston made know his opinion, re: too much sharpness, resolution, micro contrast, et al known, i.e. he, like my own self, don’t like it at all.

Having written on the topic numerous times, I am disinclined to do so again. However, as an addendum to my previous thoughts on the subject, let me add this idea; the addiction to sharpness / resolution to-the-max is just one of many picture making afflictions embraced by those who are “as far away from the real issues” as possible. Just like the band Spinal Tap, who play their music with their amp volumes set to “11”, these dreck-conian picture makers have never seen a slider––hue & saturation, sharpness, vibrance, et al––that they don’t set to “11”. They often refer to that proclivity as “being creative”. Ha. Enough written on the topic.

FYI, one possible reason I have posted more often than usual is that the wife and I are headed to New Mexico tomorrow for some R’nR. Staying for a few days in a modest Pueblo-style, hot spring resort. Then on to Santa Fe for 2 days and a night for some luscious food and some culture. Followed by a visit to Denver to visit with some friends and family. That being so, I kinda think I’ve been cramming in a bunch of thoughts on some virtual paper before heading out.

In any event, I will post while I’m away although it might be more pictures than words.

BTW, writing about sharpness, the picture with the budding maple tree was made through a back porch screen. A “diffusion” filter, if you will. I didn’t have any other choice of making that picture from the same vantage point without involving a step ladder. iMo, it gets the point across quite effectively without any sharpness to-the-max.

# 6984-89 / landscape • roadside • (un)common thing ~ Spring sweetness

On the boil in the sugar house ~ It takes 40 gallons of maple sap to make 1 gallon of maple syrup. all photos (embiggenable)

“I've worked out of a series of no's. No to exquisite light, no to apparent compositions, no to the seduction of poses or narrative.” ~ Richard Avedon

THE THING ABOUT SPRING HERE IN THE ADIRONDACKS is mist, fog, and raging water.

Of added Spring time interest is the very short weather window for maple syrup making. There are quite a number of so-called sugar houses doting the landscape. FYI, a sugar house is a small shack-like structure where maple sap is boiled down to produce the correct density for maple syrup. Standing in a sugar house during the boil feels / smells like you have coated the inside of your nose with, well… maple syrup. And, tasting the syrup straight out of the boil is a taste sensation that is simply amazing.

ASIDE Don’t know what will happen with the price of maple syrup this year cuz, thanks t-RUMP, most of the maple syrup in the US of A that originates in Canada will be hit with tariffs. The current price for pure maple syrup here in our neck of the maple tree woods is $34.95 / quart (32oz.) END SIDE

# 6942-45 / common places • landscape-urban / nature • kitchen life ~ throw out the rule book

pinhole photo ~ all photos (embigenable)

IN THE LAST ENTRY WHEREIN I INTRODUCED THE idea of reducing the whole of the medium and its apparatus to a concise paragraph, there are 2 phrases–a rhythm in the world of real things / a precise organization of forms–which are commonly referred to as composition; a topic which has launched thousands of zillion word ships in an effect to codify / understand / “master” it. That written, here’s an example of an attempt to reduce the topic to a concise paragraph:

“In a photograph, composition is the result of a simultaneous coalition, the organic coordination of elements seen by the eye. One does not add composition as though it were an afterthought superimposed on the basic subject material, since it is impossible to separate content from form…. one composes a picture in very nearly the same amount of time it takes to click the shutter, at the speed of a reflex action….. Composition must have its own inevitability about it.” HC-B

Once again–just like the HB-C quotes in the last entry–this notion, re: the idea of composition, makes perfect sense to me. And, once again (again), that’s cuz, when making pictures, what pricks my eye (and sensibilities), aka: what I actually see, is a rhythm / organization of forms as it exists in the world of real things. Which is another manner of writing that the content of my photographs and the form visible therein are one and same.

Consequently, I never give a thought to composition–iMo, a bourgeoisie concept if ever there was one–when making a photograph. That’s cuz the visual rhythm / organization to be seen in my photographs is the inevitable result of my vision, literally and figuratively.Ya know, how I actually see the world.

ASIDE FYI, the fact that my vision is organically attuned to rhythm and form explains another fact; I rarely, if ever, “work” a scene–95.8% of the time-leaving aside a few exposure brackets–it’s one and done. END OF ASIDE

And now, a bit of speculation and going out on a limb – I suspect that most of the medium’s “greats” approach the practice of composition in the same–or a reasonably close–manner as HB-C describes. That is to write, they trust what their eyes tell them and then photograph what they see. I believe that to be true whether they carry around a 35mm rangefinder camera with preset shutter speed / focus and aperture and a reflex-action attitude, or, whether they expend a great deal of effort to haul around an 8x10 view camera / film holders / light meter / tripod /et al and a very methodical attitude. In effect both are point and shoot picture makers inasmuch as they point their camera at what they see and make a picture.

With speculation taken care of let me climb a tree and hope the limb holds sure and true –I believe–no speculation about it in my mind–that the ability to compose a picture in very nearly the same amount of time it takes to click the shutter is nigh unto impossible to teach or learn. That is cuz it is not a technique nor a theory that can be plotted out in a book but rather a native recognition–some might say an intuitive feeling–that the visual organization / rhythm you have imposed on your subject utilizing your POV and framing, when viewed on your picture making device’s viewfinder / ground glass / screen, just plain and simple, flat-out looks and feels “right”.

And in the end, lo and behold, there is not a single rule of composition to be seen anywhere on the surface of your print.

# 6935-37 / common places-things • kitchen life ~ OT but with OnT pictures

all photos (embiggenable)

OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS OUR WINTERS HAVE been rather erratic, weather wise. It comes and goes in cycles; light snow–2-3 inches–followed by balmy temps and the snow melts down to bare ground. Throw in a little freezing rain here and there and it gets downright odd for this time of year. This is quite a different scenario from 12-15 years ago (and before) when it was quite common to be buried under 60 inches of snow even in the month of March.

That written, I live in a tiny area in the Adirondack Mountains known in some quarters as The Banana Belt. That moniker derives from the fact that, quite often during winter, our little hamlet is much warmer–with less snow–than the village of Lake Placid which is only 25 miles away, albeit 1600-1700 feet higher in elevation. Travel another 6 miles beyond Lake Placid to the village of Saranac Lake and, more often than not, on many winter days it records the lowest temp on planet earth.

And, writing, re: cold temps and odd scenarios, yesterday’s pre-dawn temp here in The Forks was -12˚F. Today’s noon-time temp is 40˙F. That’s a 52˚ change in temp in 18 hours. There was a dusting of snow on top of 2-3 inches on the ground yesterday but, true to form, it’s all melting away today.

All of this is part of so-called weather weirding, a product of planet warming. But, I’m not worried inasmuch as I am certain that our Destructor-In-Chief will come to the rescue by burning more fossil fuels. Everything will be great once again. Not to worry, and, the price of eggs will go down.