To the side of the house of relations, this grows:
Frond
I love California – I think colors are brighter there. Maybe it’s just that area, though – near Carlsbad and Oceanside. Nothing too remarkable about this image, other than I really like how the greens & blues offset each other.
We just returned from another trip down south. Visiting relatives this time.
Grampa, eating
My grandfather has been recovering for just over a year from a nasty car crash – shattered hip, concussion, and a whole bunch of ailments. He’ll probably never walk again without a walker, but the fact that he’s alive after this (at 89!) is pretty amazing.
His hands aren’t as strong as they used to be, but they’re not frail. Just thinner, and only the slightest hint of a tremor. Though the meal we shared with him was plain, bagel and avocado, he enjoyed it greatly.
Alternate title: a post in passing.
Just returned from a trip up north, to Fairbanks. Snapped this out the car window on the road home:
Clouds on the Way Home
Photo note: single shot, through the window, post-processed to remove phone lines & applied a Kodachrome 64 filter (Nik’s Color Efex).
More about the trip can be read about here and here (pardon, they’re personal links). Don’t forget about the Downhill Stream of Consciousness, either: pics from the road are there.
I think I have a bit of a man-crush on Jay Maisel. Seems everything that comes from him is golden – I’m like a schoolgirl with a crush, hanging on his every word.
Stop thinking that, you perv. Totally out of professional respect (or, as the kids say, “no homo”).
He’s in the news these days for beating up a poor guy who accidentally borrowed one of his images (turn on you sarcasm detector, dude. Best summary: read TOP – I side with Ctein on this ‘un). But as this brouhaha builds up, he posts a beautiful retrospective of his daughter.
Something that caught my eye early on was a comment of his daughter’s from when she was 17:
These photos are not cropped, retouched, or altered. None are artificially lit or set up. At this point, I am more concerned with observation than with creation. This series is an attempt to show how the act of looking can totally redefine objects and moments in everyday life.
What a mature point of view! This is a perspective that takes self confidence and wisdom. Shoot, I’m not even close to that point yet, much less most photographers I’ve met.
Be sure to check out his images of his daughter as she grew up. This is exactly why I got into photography in the first place.
Cream in my Coffee
Reflecting back, I’m noticing that I seem drawn to taking pictures of my coffee. I’m sure I could dig in deep and psycoanalyze the reasons, but in the end I think it’s one of my main joys in life. I’ll pass on the booze, the rich and sweet foods, the travel – so long as I can have a leisurely cup of coffee, I’m in heaven.
The caption image to the right is doubtlessly my signature coffee image. Stolen worldwide and still driving most traffic to my Flickr stream. Earlier last week you might have seen another cup of coffee. Saturday morning, it was this:
Latte, technically
It’s interesting that the only fully successful image (in my mind) is my first. I really like the last image, but it’s really a portrait of a cup, not coffee. I suppose this
really requires more thought…
Longest days of the year right now – I love the non-stop sunlight! I didn’t always, but nowadays it’s energizing – I’m more active, need less sleep, getting more done.
Last weekend folks in Anchorage’s downtown district had a twelve hour (noon to midnight) solstice festival. Not bad for such a small town - and some of the newer shops down there are downright respectable! (disclaimer: it has been many years since I’ve stepped foot down there – I’m no fan of crowds).
For me, this meant a chance to let my daughter play a bit, and to work on my street photography, such as it was. Not very successfull by anyone’s standards. Below: one of my favorites
Balloons on the solstice
Graffiti found on the side of a building in a downtown Anchorage park. Originally posted on my Downhill Stream of Conciousness tumblr blog.
Graffiti, downtown Anchorage
Nothing special to this, it’s just something I want to reflect on. As graffiti-based art, I think it’s rather beautiful. But I don’t think I captured anything in the image other than “it was here & I saw it.” I didn’t even capture it in its environment.
What would you do with this?
From this morning:
Mug and a spiderweb
The setup: my daughter woke me up early, and insisted on a fresh-grilled hot dog for breakfast. I’m cool with that – I mean, we only have certified parve hot dogs* (all beef), so we consider it kosher to have them at any time.
Yes, that pun was deliberate.
So I go out, and see a deliciously sunny morning. Ran for the 80-400mm lens & looked around for interesting things while the grill warmed up, then while the hot dog roasted. One of the first things I noticed: the spiderweb, which isn’t that sharp here. It was kinda insignificant, unless against a dark background. But when I placed the mug next to it, I noticed a wonderful reflection of light coming off of our home. Yes, I was using the side of our home as a reflector.
And I thought that was cool enough to post in its own right.
Another thing that I liked about this: when thinking about Jay Maisel’s philosophy of watching the edges, I felt that I pulled this one off just a bit better than I have in the past. It’s like I’m on the very edge of understanding how to put these together without adding in distracting elements.
And that feels pretty damned good.
* Hebrew National, in case you care.
I’ve been watching Another Day with Jay Maisel on Kelby Training. As usual, I find Jay’s viewpoints inspiring and refreshing.
I’m a bit distracted, though: it seems that they (Kelby Training) made a deliberate decision to film the video in black and white. I’m a fan of B&W, so don’t get me wrong – but this?
Black and White screenshot
It feels like a eulogy.
With so many friends passing away (another just late last week), I hate thinking about what this implies. Oh, and I do get it: they’re making a contrast between the talk & the images created (which are gorgeous, and full color). But the melancholy that the video evokes is, to my mind, palpable.
Referring to yesterday’s posted image, how about a sunrise through a filthy window?
Dirty sunrise
Originally posted on my Tumblr blog. You might want to check it out if you haven’t seen it in a while. I have been sporadically posting cell phone shots there. In some cases (like the dirty sunrise posted here), I like them better than my higher-quality ones.
Even if they tend towards the hipster side.