As I sit here looking across the backyard at the edge of the wild, I know that if I walked closer and closer, pulled out my magnifying glass or microscope, that with every step along the way I would reveal more and smaller detail. In a photograph, however, if we get too close and magnify too much our image dissolves into ink dots or grains of silver. In photography there is no detail, there's only the illusion of detail.
Aug 7
2 min
I'm an old print guy from way back. I love the physicality of prints. I love the experience of handling a print up close, the texture of the paper, the smell of ink. That said, I often find I prefer the dynamic range and vibrance of my images on screen. The mistake I routinely make is trying to make my prints look what I see on my screen.
Aug 6
2 min
From time to time we all have a chance to show our work. Praise is nice to receive, but it's even more valuable pay attention to the reactions you get from the work. Each viewer will tell you something if you just pay attention to their body language as well as their comments.
Aug 5
2 min
I was recently asked if I sell my original prints. In particular, this individual specified that they didn't want a reproduction, but rather they collect only original prints. It's been a while since I talked about this, so it may be a new idea to some of you. Here's what I said back on September 21, 2019 in my Here's a Thought comment of that day.
Aug 4
12 min
Time moves on and what was once popular becomes almost forgotten. Try today to find a big band music radio station. History is preserved by a few, and a tenuous thread it is that links us to the past. As a contemporary photographer, I feel an obligation, a compulsion, a duty to keep the work of our predecessors alive, at least in my heart
Aug 3
2 min
I would have never guessed that a huge barrier to my creativity would be as simple as finding the image I remember taking in the haystack that is my Lightroom catalog. It's worse than finding a needle in that haystack, it's searching for one specific needle in a haystack of needles. The best advice I've heard about this challenge is to assess how your own memory works and build your organization to fit your brain.
Aug 2
2 min
The digital divide has created a dichotomy I've never heard discussed. That dichotomy is a generational one, I think. Those of us from the previous generation found photography mostly in books, and occasionally in original prints. Today, most of us see images digitally and even more rarely in original prints. (Fewer galleries, etc.) I wonder how much of this is the result of phenomenal image fidelity in books and digital displays?
Aug 1
2 min
The Internet — indeed, the WORLD — is filled with creative types who all want to show you how they do it, whatever "it" is. Me included, I confess. The problem persists, however, that your path is your path and can only be revealed by you. Techniques can be taught, but creativity must be discovered, nurtured, searched for, allowed by you, for you.
Jul 31
2 min
We are supposedly taking trillions of pictures now according to experts who calculate such things. If we eliminate selfies from that count, I suspect the remaining images would total about six. I exaggerate to make a humorous point. Seriously, there'd be about eight. This tsunami of selfies exhibits a cultural narcissism that is breathtaking. I'm slightly frightened by the long-term implications of all these selfies. It seems to me the photography's greatest gift to humanity is its ability to concentrate our attention on others and the fascinating world we inhabit.
Jul 30
2 min
I've made no secret that there are half a dozen master photographers whose work simply doesn't connect with me. Bill Brandt, Garry Winogrand, and Joel-Peter Witkin come to mind. Rather than ignore them, I found it very useful to spend time with their work exploring my disconnect. It's one thing to reflexively like work, but studying the work we don't like has an uncanny ability to clarify why we like what we do.
Jul 29
2 min