Ladakh Flood

Lamo, Tenzin Angmo, and Thupten in Their Home Before the Flood

I just got off of the phone with Thupten in Ladakh. He and his family are all alive, but bruised and battered. They were awakened at one in the morning by the sound of the flood washing down at them. They ran from the house in just their underwear as it and all their belongings were swept away. They lost everything. They are currently recovering from their bruises and cuts while living in a tent.

Shops Like This are Gone

The two things that they have going for them is that Thupten thinks he will be able to access his bank account (we can deposit money there because we use it to pay for Tenzin Angmo's school expenses), and we can ship items to Lamo's sister at the college in Leh. I will also accept donations. I don't know what is the best way to help them. I don't know how long it will take to get items to them, and I don't know what they will be able to purchase there. That is why I am taking this on two fronts: cash and goods.


I am trying to raise money to send to them, and am now offering any photograph (except for the edition prints at Gallery Chartreuse) for $100.00 matted or $150.00 framed for 12"x18" images in 18"x24" mats. All proceeds will go to either their bank account or for the purchase and shipping of clothing and other essentials. I have about a dozen framed pieces here, and more that are matted. I will make a special album on Face Book with many of  the offerings.

Tenzin's Grandmother and Tenzin at Thiksey

Print Sale for Ladakh Releif

Here are examples of some of the prints that I will custom print in an effort to raise funds for Thupten's family. I am offering these at an image size of 12.5" x 18.5" mounted and matted at 18" x 24" for $100.00 each plus shipping.

Alchi

Matho Gompa

Spituk

Thousand Stupas B&W

Thousand Stupas

Thiksey

Thiksey

Nubra Valley

I do have more to offer for this purpose. Please contact me for more information.

IT NEVER RAINS IN LADAKH

Tenzin Angmo


I found out this morning that there was severe flooding in Ladakh. You may know that I visited Ladakh two years ago. I stayed with Thupten Sopa and his family in Cholomsar near Leh, the main city in Ladakh.

Tom and Thupten at Stakna Gompa

View from their roof

Tenzin's School on the Indus River is probably flooded.

I ask for your prayers for the people of Ladakh. They are one of the last strongholds of Tibetan Buddhism, and the town of Cholomsar is a primary refugee area for people from Tibet.

I was unable to contact anyone in Ladakh, and don't know of my friend's situation. I do know that his home does not have a water-proof roof, and is right next to a "dry" wash. When I was there Thupten told me that "it never rains in Ladakh". Well it did while I was there, and it did so yesterday with a vengeance.

I am pledging the proceeds from sales of my series "Ladakh Meditation" toward relief for the Sopa family. Please contact me directly or through Gallery Chartreuse if you feel compelled to own a print. I am open to more creative pricing on these prints.

Please feel free to contact me at thomasbethune@sbcglobal.net You can see examples of the works at www.galleychartreuse.com or at www.thomasbethunephotography.com

Jullay, Tom

The Tao of Smoochie Skin

SMOOCHIE SKIN APRIL 2010

In yesterday's blog entry I posted that I rephotographed "Smoochie Skin" (a small shop on Ninth Street just off of the plaza in Arcata). I first photographed it April 7th of this year. That was the first time that I ever knew of its existence. I was drawn to its small size, and pleasant colors in the early morning light of that Spring morning.

Yesterday while photographing on Ninth Street, I noticed that the sign was gone and that the shop was empty, and likely closed for good. That got me wondering. Who were the players involved, and for how long did Smoochie Skin exist?

I did a search for it on the Internet, but came away empty-handed. That helped to increase my curiosity about this little shop. I don't really know why I am interested in this story. I doubt that I would ever have gone into the store unless I was searching for something to buy for a present, and then I would have had to have known that the store ever existed.

This is an example of why I like the project that I am working on - documenting the store fronts of our small city. I am sure that most of us will live long and fulfilled lives without having ever known what happened to Smoochie Skin. I think that this story could represent some of our lives. Some of us make a big splash, and others just come and go.

Anyhow, I am grateful for this opportunity to learn, and to digest the lesson that Smoochie Skin has for me - once I find out what that lesson is.

THE TOMB OF SMOOCHIE SKIN AUGUST 2010

The Arcata Project

I hit the streets of Arcata again this morning to continue photographing the early morning city scenes. It was overcast, drippy, and dark. The light sources were the street and store lights, and a small, but ever increasing amount of ambient sky light. This mix of lighting created a unique pallet of color that I think typifies the Arcata mornings.

I started with longer shots, but it did not take me long to go in closer on some of the subjects. I am quite pleased with this shot. It makes me think of the Laurie Anderson song "The Day The Devil Comes To Get You".

I made it over to G Street, and to the Arcata Theater. I did some portrait shots of the theater before going in closer. I worked with the composition of the doors, but did not realize that there was more to be extracted from the scene until I got home to edit the photographs. I found a crop that I love, and I will go back soon to retake the tighter shots, but for now here it is.

This is another reason why I love the new camera. This shot is a very small part of the original shot (about 1/3). I still believe in getting the full frame for edition printing, but this would do in a pinch.

On Ninth Street I revisited "Smoochie Skin". I see that the building is now vacant, and I assume that Smoochie Skin is history (I do hope the people involved are doing well). I took some shots of the Arcata Fire Station and some more business on the south side of the plaza.

It was a quiet morning on the plaza today. A semi truck making deliveries to Brio, some travelers taking the Amtrak Bus out of town, a few parked cars, and not much else - just some old guy with his camera and tripod trying to be creative.

Sunny Beaches: That's Fun

For the last two weeks my photography has been mostly focused on Alexis and Sydney. In fact, almost all of my energy has been devoted to them. I find that I am "always on". They have me wrapped around their fingers, and they know how to charm, and cajole me to achieve their individual and collective wishes.

Not that I am complaining, but it is work. I know that they are having a really great time, and that soon the bliss of childhood may be gone for them as the pressures to conform increase. For now they are still relatively free to be free as they lose themselves in play and activities.

Maybe I am envious. I wonder how can these beings have the freedom to go so easily to that state of bliss. Why do I have to sit, chant, pray, meditate, pray to achieve moments of that "Oneness"?

I answer that question with a prayer of thanksgiving as I am reminded of what the great teacher said "that we are to enter the Kingdom of heaven as children". 

Here are my teachers.

THE CAMERA

Redwood Acres Fair, June 2010

I just read a column by John Driscoll in the local newspaper the Times Standard. The theme was about hunting, hunters and technology. What I got from my read was that some hunter's needs to keep up with the latest gear and technology can, and often does usurp the essence and purity of their sport.


I know that it is true for photographers that we often get caught up in camera and gear shopping. It has always been so, but is very marked now in the ever-changing digital age.


For about twenty years I used an antique, and very flimsy Korona 4x5 view camera. The camera was wooden (maybe rosewood) with leather bellows. It had an extension rail, and would rack out a very long way. The lens was an Ektar 203mm f7.7 that had lots of coverage for all the camera's movements. The extreme movements that this camera was capable of allowed for me to take architectural and landscape shots that had correct perspectives. This camera was always attached to a heavy-duty tripod, and I don't think I ever took a hand-held shot with it. While using this camera I was almost always slow and deliberate in my compositions. The primary advantage of this old camera was that the negatives were a joy to print, and they were full of detail.


Sometime in the late eighties I bought a Mamiya 645 Super roll film camera. The negatives were considerably smaller than the 4x5, but the camera, with its detachable film backs, was more convent to use. Those backs (one for color and the other for B&W) were good for fifteen shots each. The quality of the images from this system were quite good. I often "hand-held" this camera, and because of the waist-level viewfinder, I became more creative and spontaneous with my compositions. The Mamiya however, did not allow for the use of swings and tilts like the Korona, and there were occasions where I really missed the ability to correct the perspective. The images from this camera did not have as much detail as the 4x5, but they were still very nice. I had two lenses and I mostly used the wide angle 45mm Mamiya which was superb for landscapes.


These were my main cameras from the mid seventies through the nineties. I always had a 35mm camera as well, and usually carried it in addition to the other systems. I don't know how many thousands of negatives and slides that I took in 35mm, but there are quite a few.


I really embraced digital photography in 2006 when I bought the Sony R1. I rediscovered the joy of shooting with this wonderful camera. I think the thing I most liked about using the Sony was that it felt like the Mamiya. The Sony has a very flexible LCD screen, and I often flipped it so that it was on top of the camera. In this position the camera operated like waist-level camera. This enabled me to get shots from a low perspective, and it also rotated so that I could get shots while holding the camera above my head. I must mention that the lens was downright superb. A 24-120 mm equivalent piece of glass that was really clean at all focal lengths. The camera was totally quiet. I took shots inside monasteries, and never did I intrude with a noisy shutter.


Ah, the shortcomings of the Sony: noise at anything above ISO 400, and no image stabilization. I never could figure out why the camera did not incorporate IS, but it did not. Because of this I often used the camera with a tripod, and this, at times, slowed down my spontaneity.


I will editorialize a bit and give my opinion about what I think Sony could have done to upgrade this camera. I think that the R1 with its great lens and rotating LCD was a great design. If Sony would have produced a R2 with the same lens, an upgraded LCD (that rotated the same), increased the resolution to at least 15mp, added IS and video they would have a very appealing camera, but they did not. I don't know why Sony dropped the design. I know that the R1 had some less than stellar reviews. It seems that some reviewers did not like the LCD's flexibility, and the camera's lack of an optical viewfinder. Anyhow, I would have bought the R2 that I described above if Sony would have made it - but they did not.


What this leads to is that last month I finally bought a new camera. My choice was made almost entirely on the lens that I intend to buy soon. I am trading the flexibility of the Sony R1/Mamiya 645 for some of the movements and resolution of the Korona. I bought a Canon 5d Mark II. I chose this camera because Canon makes two suburb tilt/shift lenses. These lenses and this camera (with its 21megapixiles) will allow me to make architectural and landscape shots with most of the advantages of the view camera, and the convenience of a 35mm camera. There are shots that the lenses will allow that none of previously mentioned systems could. I will soon acquire one of the TS lenses and share my discoveries here.


I have just started using the Canon, and I do miss the Sony's LCD, but for 95% of my shots this camera with its 24-105mm image-stabilized lens is really impressing me. I do believe that in this day and age, that technology does have its place, but that nothing will ever replace the need to just go out and take photographs.  I know that for me it is too easy to spend excessive amounts of time doing the  "shopping" part of the craft.

Web Site Update

I think we have just about finished updating the web site. It looks much better, and includes examples of most of my current work. I owe a big debt of gratitude to Ellen Briggs for all of her fine work on the site.

It is my intent to use the blog space to share the ongoing works before they are posted on the web site.

This morning I seized an opportunity to "grab" this shot. It is of the Arcata Scrap and Salvage which is right across from the Arcata Marsh. I was on my way to the auto mechanic's  when I saw this shot. So when I finished my business with the mechanic, I walked back to grab this and several other shots. This was a one-time shot, as the carts were moved by this afternoon.

Arcata Scrap and Salvage, July 2010

Thanks for looking.

http://www.thomasbethunephotography.com/

Feedback

I truly feed on the feedback that I receive on my images. I do admit that some of what I experience is egoic - after all I am human. But (thankfully) the greater sense that I get is that of knowing that others experience in their own way some of the same things that I realized during the photographic experience.

The Arcata and Eureka Projects

I started working on documenting the cities of Eureka and Arcata in 2009 by recommencing my photographic work on the NorthCoast Railroad. Previously, I photographed the railroad on and off from 1980 through about 1995 with film.

In January of this year I started taking photographs (portraits) of the storefronts and businesses of downtown Arcata.

I almost always take the images in the pre-dawn and sunrise hours. I have been following the sunrise's ever changing angle as it strikes the faces of my subjects. I very recently started working in downtown Eureka. There are images that I have noted for years, and am now going about capturing.

                               The Arcata Car Wash, Arcata 2010

These morning ventures are my primary link to the magic that was created in Santa Fe. I am also experiencing great joy by hosting our two granddaughters, Sydney and Alexis. They are very nice company, and are quite entertaining.

Alexis and Sydney at Wedding Rock, Patrick's Point State Park

Here is a shot that Sydney took completely on her own.

Time to Go

This is the last day of this retreat. In many ways it is already over. I am gathering my things, doing laundry, and I have started to pack. I have some travel arrangements to make and other such busy things to do.

I note that I am still present. I have not started to think about what I will do when I get home. I am reinforcing the thoughts that I will remember to stay present when I resume my “normal” life.

I have many reasons to be grateful for this entire experience. Yesterday I worked in the gallery, and I received some very positive and genuine feedback on my images. I accepted the praise, and realize that it did not go to my head, but I do realize that I am fed from feedback.

I acknowledge that the act of photographing is the first element in my work. The second aspect is the filing, sorting, processing and printing of the selected pieces. The third component is the framing and hanging of individual photographs that I combine with other pieces to create a theme. The next element of the photographic experience occurs when someone views the show, and they realize their own connection with either the entire body of work or with some of the individual photographs. The culmination of my photographic experience occurs whenever I receive feedback about the work. I receive the feedback either directly or from the knowledge that someone decided to purchase a piece. This feedback somehow validates the work, and becomes fulfilling for me.

I have noticed that over the past few years that my ego is less involved in the need for feedback. I am unsure as to when and where the ego was subdued because it has been a slow transition. The process may not be complete – I know better than to tempt an egoic uprising. I am confident nonetheless, that I have made some genuine progress toward that end.

And that is what I am so grateful for regarding the past three weeks.  It has been about photographing, and that has led to the practice being in the state of Being. What joy!

Passages

A passage way reveals itself

Dare I enter?

The mystery intrigues

The uncertainty brings fear

  

Should I embrace the unknown?

Or just pass this door?

I turn back

But I feel the pull

To pass this door is to be safe

Sure in the known

If I pass

Will I wonder

What was waiting for me?

Perhaps I will never know

I pause and listen

Inside a small voice beckons

With faith

I turn back toward the light

I leave fear at the threshold

And step through in peace