Monday, April 30, 2012

POKING AROUND FERNBRIDGE AND PHOTOGRAPHY AS ART

RED ON GRAY, FERNBRIDGE, APRIL, 2012

I saw an image that looks a lot like this one the other day that another photographer took. I do not think it was this place, but if it is - sorry! It is not my intention to steal another photographer's idea, but I will admit to being inspired by what I saw. Anyhow, I was at this location to photograph the old station, which I did, but was more inspired by this building. I wonder if when I print this if the sky will come through as well as it does here. I find that the Humboldt sky is often difficult to accurately portray in print. There is usually not enough detail or contrast in the fog to give any texture. I see it here, and to me it looks just about "spot on".

I am pondering the notion of Limitations as it applies to photography. My thesis goes something like this: Why is it considered "bad taste", or "gimmicky" for photographers to make "over-saturated" images? I just recently heard that a photographer, whose work I very much admire, was criticized for using too much saturation in his prints. I get it that if the criticism was because of the personal taste of the critic - that it could be a valid critique. But I ask "would the same critic have felt that way with an oil painter's interpenetration of a similar subject matter"?

I think that there are several types of photography, and they have completely different intended purposes. The documentary style of  photography that one would see in journalism is a valid style, and it is one that I feel should be accurate in how it conveys its message. A journalistic photograph is supposed to represent the truth of the subject in an objective manner. I think it is downright dishonest to present something as being factual that has been altered.

Here is my point about photography as art. I assert that photography that is presented as art, and is intended to be presented as such, should be free of the biases that so often are applied to photographic works.  Just because the title card has the word "photograph" written on it does not mean that the piece "has to meet certain arbitrary aesthetic standards". A work that is an interpretation of a subject regardless of the medium, should be judged as it is, - an image hanging on a wall. I think viewers and critics should let go of first establishing how an image was created, and focus their attention on the piece. I do not think that there is a standard for water color painters that penalizes for "over saturation" so why are photographer's slammed for using strong or unnatural colors?

I of course, acknowledge that a bold pallet in and of itself, will not make a strong image. But I do feel that the artist no matter what medium they use, should feel unrestricted by the rules they learned. Art is about freedom of expression. Art is about discovery. Art is on the leading edge of human creativity. Great artists know the rules, but are not bound by them. There art may lead us to new discoveries, and open our eyes to new possibilities.

Sunday, April 29, 2012

WHITE ON WHITE

HOBBLED, KARZOK, LADAKH, 2008

I realized that I never posted this image on this blog. This horse belongs to a nomad. It likely has been in Tibet, but this particular day it was in the remote village of Karzok. Karzok is in a far corner of Ladakh, and is close to Tibet. I understand that nomads regularly transit back and fourth from Ladakh to Tibet. In this area of the Himalayan mountains lines on a map do not reflect the everyday realities of the people living there.

At first I thought it was cruel to do that to this horse, but then I realized that if it ran away that the people who owned it would be deprived of their means of support.

 

Friday, April 27, 2012

PRINTING FRENZY

AURORA BOREALIS AND THE CYCLONE, EUREKA, 2010

I worked a lot on this and a similar image yesterday and today. I like 'em both. I printed this and the other image of the cyclone. Counting these two, I think I printed something like a dozen images over the course of the past several days. I just finished using up my second roll of Canson Platine paper. I just love how accurately it adheres to the image that I see on the monitor. I sometimes only see a slight dulling of the image when I "soft-proof" the photograph in Lightroom.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

PRIMARY COLORS, ADDITIVE AND SUBTRACTIVE

LAS VEGAS, NEW MEXICO, 2010

I photographed in Las Vegas several times during my stay there in 2010. I first saw Las Vegas while I was on a week-long bicycle tour of the mountain country of New Mexico. I was with a large group, and Las Vegas was the destination of our second day of riding. I knew then that I would return some day with proper camera gear so that I could properly explore the town. I did find that this place was more visually stimulating to me than was Santa Fe.

I keep coming across this photo as a candidate to print and show, but I always seem to brush it aside. I kept telling myself that people would not appreciate it like I do. Then I remembered that I am best off when I trust my vision - even if others may not "get it".

I think the splash of blue at the lower left is essential to the success of this image. That is a lesson I learned from looking at a Curtis Otto painting recently.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

PASTELS

A SIMPLE STUDY FROM A SIMPLE ARTIST

Yes, I used the "A" word to describe myself. To be more precise, I consider myself to be a "visual artist". I produce two dimensional images on paper. I use a camera, and a computer - so what! My images, for the most part, are the result of deliberate study and lots of work. I grant that I do also take and make photographs, but I strongly feel that there are distinct differences between the type of work we normally consider to be photography and that of art. I am positive that the arguments either way could continue forever.

Here is how I break it down for my work. If the image reveals something about the subject that transcends the norm, that it perhaps reveals an essence had not yet been exposed, and it is well crafted, it could be art. If the image is a documentary recording of an event, structure, or that of a naturally occurring scene, it likely is more of a traditional photograph. It could be "artfully" processed, but it is a photograph.

Monday, April 23, 2012

EUREKA, FOG, AND THE CARSON MANSION

SECOND STREET VIEW OF THE CARSON MANSION, 2011

Most tourists know that Eureka has a foggy environment, and many of them take photographs of the Carson Mansion. I just never got around to photographing the place since taking up digital photography. I recall taking a shot or two with my four-by-five back in the day, but I do not think I ever printed any photographs of the mansion.

I think this composition captures some of the essence of both Eureka and the Carson Mansion. I just printed it, and I think the print succeeds.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

I DON'T DO SUNSETS!

A STUDY IN WARM HUES, ARCATA MARSH 2011

OK, I suppose that I do take some sunsets. I have to say, that I seldom think about making sunset photographs. That said, if I am out there and the colors and the scene combine into a potential image, I am going to use my camera and my skill set to see if I can capture and interpret the magic of the moment. I think with this image that I did just that.

I am going through my catalogue of photos so that I can determine which direction I wish to go with a couple of upcoming shows. I think my "style" centers on my studies of buildings and structures. I am not sure how my style transfers over to my landscape work, but I hope that photographs such as this one are valid.

Friday, April 20, 2012

THOUGHTS ON PHOTOGRAPHY AS ART

THE COMMERCIAL BUILDING, EUREKA, 2010

I started to write an essay, but I caught myself before getting very far along with my thesis. Instead of writing about it in the third-person, I will make my points here directly as I think and feel them.

This photograph of this building is one that I am proud to have made. I was able to create it in part because I have a magic lens, and that I know how to use some of its capabilities. Another reason why it works is that I knew how to bring out the elements of reflected light in a manner that allowed for me to "paint" the colors in the manner that I see.

I think that I use the computer and its associated software to help create something that is both a documentary photograph and a piece of art. My composition is simple and straightforward. There is nothing in the composition that is a gimmick.

I realize that many of my building photographs are of this basic composition. They are straight-on, simple, yet they carry an element of the building's soul.

That, at least, is what I think. Perhaps you think I am full of "it" or of myself. Regardless, I am doing exactly what I love to do, and in the manner in which I love to do it.

Thanks for allowing me to share this bit of my process.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

A DIFFERENT VIEW

CONVERGING LINES AT THE LOST COAST BREWERY

I am seriously considering printing this image, but I am plagued with the indecision that comes from my thinking about what others will think of it. I keep working to shed myself of the need for approval from others, but I still have not shaken it all off.

I found out yesterday, that neither of my entries in the latest RAA show made it past the juror. This is the second show in a row where I did not have an accepted entry. I am bothered less by this than I was the last couple of times. I have been accepted enough times and have received enough awards  to realize that I am a competent artist, and I think I am making headway on accepting the outcomes of these juried shows.

Part of the whole issue for me is that I am competitive. There I said it! I own it. I embrace it. I release it. I think it is in some ways healthy to be competitive, but I now know that my competitive nature is no longer helpful in making me a better artist.

I am working hard on celebrating the success of other artists. I am working on understanding that my artistic expressions are relevant, sophisticated and successful as works of art. I accept too, that not everyone is going to see and feel the message that is conveyed in my prints. I accept that that is perfectly fine and dandy, and that the judgement of others is not a validation nor a rejection of my worth as an artist or as a person.

It is a two-way street. In the past when I won awards I would become all puffed up. I was elated, and riding on a cloud. Then along would come the down-side. I would not make a sell, or I would not make the cut from a juried show, and I would get the blues. It has become predictable for me. Get a prize, become elated, get rejected, and come down.

That is what I am releasing. I do not need the ups nor the downs. I do not have those extremes in any other aspect of my life, so why should I accept them when it comes to my creations?

This is the primary reason why I write this blog. I do it so that I may have some witnesses to my process. I am working hard to release myself from this egoic attachment that is tied to my self-worth. I want to be free of my need for you to like my photographs. They make me happy, and that should be sufficient. I still appreciate feedback. I value the critiques that we do at the camera club. That input is mostly helpful, especially when it comes to technical advise or observations.

Aesthetics - I trust my eye.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

BACK TO THE MARSH

EVENING LIGHT AT THE MARSH

This is not something I normally would post here, but there was a reason why I took it - I liked what I saw. I am offering the fact that I do not always have landscape shots in mind, and that I sometimes am drawn to what may not be considered "statements". Perhaps this little bouquet just deserves to be seen by others as I see it.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

THE ONE I FINALLY PRINTED

THIS IS THE VERSION I DECIDED TO PRINT

The print turned out to be 17"x 47". I printed it on matte paper, and it looks pretty darn good to me. You can see that I decided to remove the street lamp and pole (see yesterday's posting). I probably could have done a little bit better job of it, but I doubt that many folks would even know I did it unless they read this blog.  

I made another version where I removed the VA clinic van and building from the right edge of this image. I think it looks too contrived.

VERSION SANS THE BACKGROUND

I am not going to pretend that this is fine art. It is a documentary photograph. Even as such, this photograph likely does not meet the standards for historical imagery. Those are very rigid and exacting government standards, but to be able to make this image makes me happy.

Monday, April 16, 2012

IF FOR NO REASON OTHER THAN "I CAN"

THE EUREKA INN, APRIL 2012

I kept my promise, and did some work in Photoshop. This is a composite of four - make that five photographs. The main image is comprised of four images taken with the 17mm PC lens. I "shifted" the lens from right to left while leaving the camera locked in one position. Only the lens moved. In some ways this feature of this lens makes it a very good panorama lens. It does have limits, but I was able to photograph an entire city block without moving the camera. By-the-way, the fifth frame that I used was for the street light. Because it was located at the upper corner of the shot it was very distorted. I had to clone the lamp head from another photo that was taken with another lens.

THE LEFT-HAND IMAGE WITH THE DISTORTED LAMP

I realize that I could do a better job on the lamp, but who would have even noticed that something was not quite right aside from a utility worker. I also thought about cloning out the lamp and pole, but I have not yet felt that as a strong compulsion. As I mentioned yesterday, there was one automobile in the street in front of the inn. Fortunately, it was located just off the right edge of the photograph. 

Sunday, April 15, 2012

EVENING IN EUREKA

BENCHES ON G STREET, EUREKA, APRIL 2012

I do not have much to say about this image other than I was compelled to take it. I do think there are some nice geometric elements to the composition. I took several other compositions of these subjects, but I think this best fulfills my vision.

I photographed The Eureka Inn tonight. There was only one vehicle in front of it, and I was able to work around it. I used the 17mm PC lens to "shift" my way through a panorama of the inn. I did that by rotating the lens 90 degrees in its holder so that the rise becomes the shift. That allowed me to start my series of three shots with the lens shifted all the way to the right edge of the subject. I took that shot, shifted the lens to its mid point, took the next shot, and shifted all the way to the left where I got the shot of the left third of the inn.

I will attempt to stitch the shots in Photoshop. I never had much luck stitching, but I suppose it is time for me to learn how to get it right. I will post the shots as I work them.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

AN INTROSPECTIVE LOOK AT SELF*

*OR THE MANY FACES OF SELF

Last month I shared my first attempt at a self-portrait. I received some helpful advice on how it could have been more effective. So I decided to make another attempt at it, and here is one of the results.

I took a ten second exposure and my granddaughter held the strobing flashlight on my face. I attempted to show several different emotions and moods. I shared the print of this today at camera club, and it created quite a discussion - overall a positive critique.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

THE MASONIC BUILDING IN EUREKA

VERN'S, EUREKA, 2012

I normally photograph buildings straight-on, but for some reason decided that this works in this instance. I used the 17mm PC lens even though it tends to distort and exaggerate the closer edges of buildings from this angle. I think because I was far enough away that this is not too strong of an affect. I really like the manner in which the colors of the photograph work together. I did spend considerable time working with the courthouse lawn on the left edge of the photograph.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

THE EUREKA FEDERAL COURTHOUSE BUILDING

UNITED STATES POST OFFICE AND COURT HOUSE, EUREKA, 2012

I think all-in-all, that I got at least half a dozen keepers from my outing last week. I really appreciate the fact that the streets were wet, creating reflections of the sky in most of this series. This photograph does not include the same level of "guardians" as some of my other images unless one counts the newspaper racks out front and the solo raven. Perhaps one may read something into the fact that this building stands so clearly alone and solid.

This is another image that I spent a lot of time working on the fine details in Lightroom. I am becoming very comfortable with that program, and am appreciating more and more the improvements in localized controls that it features.

Monday, April 9, 2012

GUARDIAN METERS

MORNING AT THE AVALON

I do not have the intention of having parking meters in all my photographs. The idea of a conceptual art series/theme is not what I am after. That said, I do like this little sub-series of my Eureka theme. As I mentioned yesterday, I do not go looking for specific compositions. I usually have some building in mind when I start photographing. For months I started my mornings at or near the Lloyd Building, and then I would venture in ever widening circles as I explored the business district of town. I think I favor buildings like this one that have not been remodeled. There usually are things about the original architecture that draws my attention to a specific building.

I spent a lot of time on this image in post production processing in Lightroom. My process is not all that different from the days where I used photo oil paints on black and white prints. It is all in the details, and I find that to be my truth with my current process. 

Sunday, April 8, 2012

SWEET DREAMS

SWEET DREAMS AT THE EUREKA THEATER

I sometimes think that I would like to own a boom truck. If I had one I would see if I could park out front of some of these buildings and lift myself up about thirty feet. I think I could get some really different perspectives. There are dozens of buildings that I would like to photograph from a higher vantage point, and this is one of them. Perhaps I will get on the roof of the RAA Gallery some bright morning to see how the theater looks from there.

I missed Arts Alive last night. I imagine it was a fun event. This was the first time in a long while that I did not have an art opening somewhere (I suppose I can call my little space in the basement of the Morris Graves Museum of Art an exhibit, and that last night was the opening). Anyhow, I think that the show at the Eureka may have been interesting and fun. It is encouraging to realize all the activity that is now happening on the six-hundred block of F Street.

Saturday, April 7, 2012

MORE EUREKA MORNING MAGIC

SILENT SENTRIES

I am starting to see a pattern in my current vision. I was not thinking that I needed to continue finding compositions that include parking meters - it just happens that way. As I look at these images from Thursday morning, I am again realizing that when I get in the "groove" while photographing, that it just starts to flow. To paraphrase Minor White "something else enters into the process" - a third aspect that is created by the subject, and the photographer. As I photograph, my busy mind becomes quiet, and the camera becomes a window to a vision that eludes my normal vision.

I realize that this "extrasensory" element of my art making is capable of transcending time and space. What I mean is that as I work the image in my digital darkroom I come back into a sort of time warp that allows for the magic and mood of the time and place of the photograph to come back into my awareness. I sense too, that the developing process allows for further statements from the subject. It is as if the subject has more to say, and that it is my job to open up a line of communication that allows for that to happen.

Friday, April 6, 2012

MY NEWEST PRINT

AVALON, EUREKA, APRIL 5, 2012

I was not looking to photograph this scene yesterday. I was on my way to check out the lighting at the Carson Block Building when I saw the lighting here. I did a lot of post production work in this image, and I liked it enough that I was compelled to print it. The print looks very similar to this, and is IMHO rich and compelling.

I really appreciate the soft-proofing feature in Lightroom 4. It made my decision as to which paper to use.

I have some images on display downstairs in the Morris Graves Museum of Art. Please stop by and take a look during Arts Alive tomorrow, Saturday, April 7th.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

EUREKA MORNING PHOTOGRAPHY

THE EUREKA THEATER


I went to Eureka this morning. I was thinking that there was the possibility of my experiencing an actual sunrise. That is what I found along with some pretty nice lighting. I mostly worked between Sixth and F Streets to Third and H.

I have not worked this image at all, and will do so later.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

SHOT OF THE DAY

SLOUGH  
I thought I would share this image. I have not done much with it. I took it this afternoon on private property (I was invited).