The Kiss of Innocence

The Kiss

I really like this photograph for many reasons. First of course, is that the subjects are my grandchildren John and his cousin Laurin. The second reason is that I think it is a fairly good image. The third reason that I like this photograph is that I can tell that John is blissfully receiving the affection.  I think that this embrace is one wherein the recipient of the kiss is feeling for perhaps the first time the affection of someone other than his immediate family.

I am reminded of the time when I was eight years old, and my next door neighbor, a girl named Debbie, held my head on her lap. I felt like I was hypnotized, and I did not dare move for fear that I would break the spell that held me in that lap. It was a new sensation for me, and it was one of the defining moments of childhood innocence for me.

I really don't know what these two were experiencing, but I cannot help but feel that they have a special bond. I know it sure makes me happy to be a grandfather and a photographer.

Seeing in Black and White

Pilings at the Arcata Marsh

I was selecting some photographs to enter in a show, and came across this image. I think I took it in late December. I processed it in color, but decided to look at it in black and white. I liked the mood that doing so created, and decided to print it.  It was fun to process the image after the conversion in Lightroom. There are many more options available for my processing in the digital darkroom than what I had in the wet lab. I think that I now can develop the image to my vision more so than ever before. This allows more room for me to interpret the image to that of my vision.

I think I let go of my black and white eyesight somewhere around 1994, and focused on color ever since. Now it is all falling back into place. I am recognizing that there is a very important place for black and white photography in my portfolio. I intend to do more.

Pilings at the Arcata Marsh December 2010

Say I Am You

Ganesha

I worked with local musician and storyteller, Seabury Gould on  a video project to promote his new CD Let that musician finish this poem, Poetry of Rumi. It was a fun project to do. We shot two videos at Prairie Creek State Park, and the location was right at the base of a wonderful grove of trees that I like to call the "elephant trees".  This was fun in that we were able to record Fortune's Wheel on location. I think we got away with doing a live recording because there was little to no wind, and very few other people. We would have had more difficulty during the summer season. For Say That I Am You we played a boom box, and Seabury lip-synced the words. For the flute he actually played along with the CD. That was really fun because the sound of the flute carried around the meadow, and I think a few other folks were treated to the sounds of the flute as it floated across the meadow.

Here is a link to my YouTube site and to these videos.
http://www.youtube.com/user/thomasbethune?feature=mhum

Surf's Up

Surf Breaking on the North Jetty (click on image for larger view)

I forgot about this photo until the other day when I was looking through the computer for photos of surf breaking on rocks (I am working on  a music video for a friend, and needed something like this shot for the project).

Lisa saw it and urged me to print it. I took this last March when Marc Chaton and I were out photographing the North Jetty. I was still using the Sony R1 in those days.

It does look really nice as a print too.

Low Winter Ambitions

The Arcata Creamery Building 2011

This has been a slow time for me. I am getting out and doing some photography, but not as often as I normally do. Perhaps the very rainy weather in December cooled my ambitions, but now that there are more clear days I would think that I would be getting out there.

Blue Sky

I took this photograph about two weeks ago. I just got to playing with it in Lightroom. I stumbled on a method of removing the color (blue) from the sky to achieve a color-on-black and white look. I really am drawn to the sky, and I think the gray works.

I have been printing, and I framed several new pieces recently. I think I have a couple of shows coming up soon, and I will post information about them here and on Face Book when I have the dates.

Sneaker Waves

Surf Number One

All day yesterday as I was photographing, I used the tripod. I almost always do. I think I really got started with the tripod while using my old Korona four-by-five. My serious and thoughtful style pretty much requires that I do so. Sometimes I just cut loose, and go hand-held. That is what I did yesterday as I decided to chase the surf. Well the surf chased me, and I barely got away from one wave. I really had to run as fast as I can to protect my shoes and maybe my camera from a salt water dousing.

This photograph is of the next wave. I am presenting it in two perspectives. The more pastel looking image is as it came from the camera, and the other was worked by me in Lightroom.  Thoughts?

Surf Number Two

A Beautiful Place to Live

Stone Lagoon at Sunset

I went photographing with my buddy Marc Chaton today. We photographed at Prairie Creek and at Stone Lagoon. I think Marc got some really nice shots of some mushrooms. I spent more time on Elephant Tree, and will review the photographs to see if I have any keepers. I do kind of like this landscape. I wish I would have made a panorama of it though (that gives me an opportunity to go there again).

Printing Photographs

Third Eye, Arcata 2010

I did some printing yesterday and today. I am inspired to print images with the goal in mind of producing an exhibit. I think that the images that I have been taking of buildings in Arcata have a certain essence of spirit. I think that this and other images reveal some of the magic that is hidden in plain sight.

At the Alibi, Arcata 2010

Reserved

Reserved Number One, Eureka, November 14, 2010

I went out to Eureka this morning to catch the rising sun's light on the city. Well it did shine on Arcata, but not Eureka. Rather than chase the light, I just started working. I took many of my "normal" building portraits, and slowly got into the flow. I was photographing the Commercial Building when I saw these images. These are my favorite three of this series I will call Reserved.

Reserved Number Two, Eureka, November 14, 2010

 I was talking with my buddy Marc awhile back about the value of receiving some feedback about our images. I think that I don't always pick the best of the litter when I review my images. I would love it if someone would pick their favorite from these and others that I post.

I have not figured out how to enable the blogging software to allow me to post higher resolution images on my blog. These images, as posted are not much more than thumbnails.

Reserved Number Three, Eureka, November 14, 2010

Gas Pumps

Pioneer Village, Bakersfield 2010

I cannot really explain why I like to take pictures of what I do, and I realize that my images are not always ones that everyone will appreciate. I don't try to exhibit a style - I just do what I do. I have the freedom to do just that. I always appreciate it when someone lets me know that they like my photographs, but I am not compelled to make images that will generate praise.

Pioneer Village, Bakersfield, 2010. I first photographed this scene about 1972.

Here it is in B & W. I originally shot it in Plus X.

Post Processing

Eucalyptus Trees Between Arcata and Eureka Veteran's Day 2010

I find that I need to spend some time "living" with images after I load them into the computer before I can even realize which ones I will print. My process of image selection is similar to what it was when I used film. Only there needn't be much of a time lag for me to see the "negatives".

When I first looked at this image the other day, I immediately posted it to this blog as it came from the camera. The next day I looked at it some more, and realized that the image did not fully convey what I saw when I took it. It still does not.  What it now conveys is what I interpreted the image to be. Not what the camera saw, and not exactly what I wanted to see, but an interpretation of all the above. Anyhow, this image makes me happy. Compare it to how it looked the other day.

Midway

The Midway Drive In Theater

The last time I photographed the Midway's screen was about thirty years ago. It is amazing to me that this screen is still standing. The "Y" is pretty well gone from "Midway", but otherwise it seems the same to me. My previous work was done in black and white. I painted one of my prints with photo oils. I think I have a slide of it somewhere.

I just watched a documentary on Ansel Adams. It was well done, and I learned a lot about him and myself. It seems that by the time he was my age he had slowed down, and did not have the drive of his youth. One of the people interviewed thought that his earlier work was his best.

I hope this is not true for me. I know that I am slower then I used to be, but I like to think that I still have the vision, and that my maturity will permeate my images like a nice marinade.

Midway Sunset