Pure Photo Beauty

I will never have a darkroom in my house, yet the idea that I could is still magical. My computer and color printer are my darkroom and it makes me just a little sad when I think about processing in the "soup."

Christmas 2010

Sometimes the people in our lives mean more to us than we realize.

This year I built a garden; I had to build a raised garden as the soil in my yard was not good for planting. A friend helped me retrieve lumber, more friends helped me build the frames, and a neighbor helped me move the garden beds into place. I had enough soil to fill one bed, but another friend, who had drifted out of my life, drifted back in long enough to see that I needed help and brought me two truck loads of compost to fill the other garden beds... shortly there after that friend passed away. I miss my friend, but I also know that there are many wonderful people who are a part of my life and for me my garden is a growing symbol of that.

A Little Photographer Amusement

I received this in an e-mail... a few years ago and found it again while cleaning out my inbox. Despite the questionable validity of this it needs to be shared! Enjoy.

This is a case of a photographer photographing another photographer. The following pictures were taken by Hans van de Vorst from the Netherlands at the Grand Canyon, Arizona. The descriptions are his own. The identity of the photographer in the photos in unknown.

I was simply stunned seeing this guy standing on this solitary rock in the Grand Canyon. The canyon's depth is 900 meters here. The rock on the right is next to the canyon and safe. Watching this guy on his thong sandals, with a camera and a tripod I asked myself 3 questions:

1. How did he climb that rock?

2. Why not take that sunset picture from that rock to the right, which is perfectly safe?

3. How will he get back?

After the sun set behind the canyon's horizon he packed his things (having only one hand avaiable) and prepared himself for the jump.

This took about 2 minutes. At that point he had the full attention of the crowd.

This is the point of no return.

After that, he jumped wearing his thong sandals...

Now you can see that the adjacent rock is higher so he tried to land lower, which is quite steep and tried to use his one hand to grab the rock.

We've come to the end of the story. Look carefully at the photographer. He has a camera, a tripod, and also a plastic bag, all on his shoulder or in his left hand. Only his right hand is available to grab the rock and the weight of his stuff is a problem. He lands low on his flip flops, both his right hand and the right foot slip away... At that moment I take this shot. He pushes his body against the rock. He waits for a few seconds, throws his stuff on the rock, climbs and walks away... presumable to a bathroom to change his shorts.

Show Opening on Friday!

Yes, it's true, I'm faculty now, no longer a grad.

78 Photography Rules for Complete Idiots

Taken from: 78 Photography Rules for Complete Idiots

Perhaps I should incorporate some of these into my curriculum!

Some of my favorites:


I have a student who does this ALL THE TIME, she's great, don't get me wrong. I think I've shown her the light though!



But what if I don't have a 4x5 camera? Just kidding, OF COURSE I have a 4x5 camera!



Oh come on now, everyone likes pictures when they have funky looks on their faces!



How very true... and deep...



KITTY!



There's almost ALWAYS that problem with digital... better stick with film! ;-)



Well, if it's about the Henry Cartier-Bresson and the Decisive Moment it's gotta be good!



Remember, the reflective meter reads 18% gray! Over expose by 2 stops and you'll be fine! My students groan every time I say this, but at least they remember!



I keep saying, "Vantage, vantage, vantage!"



As one of my students said while I was in grad school,"The meter shows you the way."



...or let's just stay away from flowers all together...



Oh come on! Now they are just taking the fun out of editing images!



With my photographer's eye and my extensive experience with color balance I would have to call that color Magenta, NOT Purple!


For all 78: 78 Photography Rules for Complete Idiots

Film: The Real RAW

Taken from a link a former photo student of mine sent me! Need I say more!
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/real-raw.htm

He brings up some good points, I don't agree with everything he is saying, but I couldn't resist from posting it!

Yeh for Film! (Which is what I write on my envelopes every time I drop film off at the professional lab for processing - yes, I am a photo geek, I know).


A digital raw file is not an original image.

A digital camera's raw file has already sampled and quantized the image, which loses information, while film retains the original image to be retrieved at any time in the future.

I'm consistently amused by innocent hobbyists who go through the aggravation of shooting digital camera raw files just to get what they think is marginally better technical quality, or the ability to go back and do it right a second time, but who completely forget that if you're willing to shell out this extra effort, you could shoot film and get better results today, and even better results tomorrow.

Film is the original raw, and holds far more information than any digital file from a camera sensor.

20 years from now we can re-scan our film and get 2029-level image quality.

The Wizard of Oz was shot on film in 1939. Today it looks great on Blu-Ray High-Definition DVD.

All we had was radio in in 1939, so how did they know how to make High-Definition DVDs back then? They didn't, but by having the forethought to shoot on film, they knew they always could scan the original raw film images with better equipment in the future. This way we always get results which are to modern standards, regardless of when something was shot.

With film, we always have our original images.

With digital raw files, your images are forever locked into technology that was probably already obsolete as you shot them.

Digital raw files are not the original image. Digital camera raw files are merely approximations of the image before it hit the sensor.

At best, digital raw files are a close approximation of what came out of a sensor, not what went in. Digital raw files have already folded, spindled and mutilated the original image with the limitations of that era's technology. Digital camera raw files have already limited the original image in at least three different ways.

Film capture gives you at least three more degrees of freedom in extracting your image than digital camera raw files do.

Archiving film always allows you direct access to your original living, breathing live images at any time in the future.

If you demand the best quality for serious subjects, and don't mind investing a lot of time to get it, then step all the way up to film.

Maybe the Best Cake Ever!

Compliments of a photographer friend!

A Minne Photo Show

http://www.fallon.com/minnephotoshow/

Photographing with Film

Sad but true...

And to give credit where credit is due I stole this image from Steve Stenzel's Triatholon blog.
http://iwannagetphysical.blogspot.com/
He said he wouldn't mind... really!

MCP Died Today...

Photographers, artists, and others received this e-mail yesterday:

Friends,

It is with regret that we must inform you that Minnesota Center for Photography is discontinuing business operations at the close of business on July 31st. Over the past six months we have unsuccessfully attempted to adjust our budget and raise additional funds to pay down debt and fund continuing operations.

The Board made this decision with reluctance and after attempting whatever we could do to permit the survival of MCP.

On behalf of the many stakeholders in Minnesota Center For Photography, we thank you for your continuing interest and support of MCP’s mission over the years.

Very truly yours,

Chuck Koosmann, Co-Chair
Mark L. Wilson, Co-Chair

MCP's mission: To support and promote the creation and appreciation of photographic arts.


I can't believe the Minnesota Center for Photography is gone! It has been such a great photo presence in the cities! I had my first solo show in the Minnesota Project gallery there in 2005. Such memories. It's too bad.

The First of April

There are several inches of heavy wet snow on the ground and I just put in motion my first real April Fools Joke! It involved an altered photograph from 2001 that was scanned on a flat bed scanner...



and twenty-one computers.

It is the "Crazy Steve Dodging Tool" from the CVA darkroom. It was made long ago when Steve was still a student and of course his photo is at the end of a wire so it is an actual dodging tool! Steve, a college professor now, teaches a class in the same computer lab right before I do. I put that picture on the desktop of every single computer in his classroom.

I will never have a chance like this again! And based what he puts on his athletic blog, and that he knows his students read it, I think the results will be well taken. This is also a good test to see if he reads my blog! Hi Steve!

Photo Illustrator

Early this year I had a show at the Concordia College Gallery with my night photographs in it. Well, some key people at the MN Historical Society Press heard about me by a fellow grad who did some projects with them. They liked my night photos and asked me to photograph a movie theater for a book jacket. So my endeavor with pleasing clients begins. I just got my copy of the book yesterday.

Here's the beautiful image I made of the Heights Theater one crisp Friday evening in March.


Here's the actual book jacket cover. They really de-saturated my image, but I can live with it... I really have no choice!



To further my commercial endeavors the Rake magazine found this photo on my MN Artists.org account and asked me if they could acquire licensing for it for their October issue. I don't think the story it was paired with is perfect for the photo, but the image quality in the magazine was good, and they are very good about giving me art credit and my web address is in the magazine spine, so great! And yes, my web site is up, but I haven't officially told people it's launched because it's not finished yet, yet being the key word!


"In the Case of an Emergency" 2005

A New Story At Last!

I have not been the most... consistent blogger as of late. That's what being in the last year of grad school does to a person. Don't get me wrong, I love every minute of it, but my posts will continue to be sparse until I am done!

Anyway, there is another photo story that happened to me over Labor Day weekend that I need to share.

I was, yet again, coming back from the cabin and around the same area on 95 where I photographed the lawn chairs and couch in front of the pink house (see previous post). This time I was driving with a friend and stopped to photograph a whole cut
through the trees to make room for power lines.



Well, my friend waited in the car while I pulled out my new and improved Victoria Jean, who has a fancy new bellows that don't leak light, but I digress. There was a house back a ways behind a fence and I was standing in front of it pointing my camera in the opposite direction. I was out setting up the camera and 6 or 7 minutes later an older man rode up on a four-wheeler. Now this was odd because he was wearing nothing but a pair of shorts (no shoes no shirt, etc) and had an ace bandage covering the entire shin of one of his legs. He pulled up right next to me and asked what I was doing.

I told him, "I'm just taking a picture of the trees over there, is that okay?"

He said, "Sure, and anyway my property doesn't start until the fence over there." while pointing to the fence.

Well, this was completely the opposite of the lady who approached me on the last trip, but I was pointing the camera in the area of her house as well. At any rate this guy kept talking to me, and I have to say I was glad my friend was in the car watching me. He continued, "You know there's a balled eagle who sits on a telephone right over there," pointing to a telephone pole, "He comes around at 4:30 every day. If you want to see him all you have to do is wait around for a half hour or so."

We made some other small talk then he backed his four-wheeler up and drove home. Weird.

I made my photographs and as I was packing up some people who were up at the cabin with me happened to drive by and stopped to say hi. Then minutes later another car of friends stopped. Who else would be pulled over at the side of the road with a camera and tripod besides Caroline!

Good times...

More Adventures with Making Photographs

I was on my way home from a cabin up north; I of course, had my Victoria Jean look-alike with me (as the real Victoria Jean's bellows are still being repaired), and was pulling over from time-to-time to make a photograph if something struck my fancy.

As I was driving along 95 (north western MN, in the middle-of-no-where) some ambulances and police cars zoomed past me, sirens blaring and I could see an accident about 1/2 mile up the road. At this point I noticed a row of lawn chairs lined up near the end of a driveway with an upholstered couch and chair lined up next to them. My bonus is that they were in front of a pink trailer home... beautiful. So I figured I'd let the accident clear, turned around and parked near the end of the driveway and whipped out my tripod and 4x5. I positioned myself at the side of the driveway, near the road so I was technically still on public property. I had been there maybe 5 minutes setting up the shot when a woman came up to me, sounding agitated saying, "What are you doing taking a picture of my house!"... Then she got distracted as a helicopter flew overhead to the accident just down the road where the emergency vehicle lights could be seen quite well. The woman's tone in her voice changed to curiosity and she continued, "What's going on down there? Did you come from that direction? What happened?"

I waited as she looked down the road as the helicopter landed. When she turned back towards me I shook her hand and told her my name and that "I'm a student at the University of Minnesota and I'm actually taking a picture of the lawn chairs at the end of your driveway, not your house. I thought that if I was in the ditch it would be okay, but if you'd rather I not take the picture I'll leave."

Still slightly distracted from the accident down the road she absent-mindedly said, "Oh, no, that's okay."

I said thanks and she walked into the house while her husband stood on the other side of their yard and watched the accident until I left. I made one exposure... it's not as good as I hoped, but the story is priceless.



On the down side when I was done taking the picture the road I was trying to drive home on was completely shut down because of the accident. I found a way around it and still got back to the U in time to teach class, but found out later four people had died in that accident. Alas.

Operation

After finding the one place in town who would repair 4x5 bellows (yeh for North West Camera Repair in White Bear Lake) and discovering that the cost is a bit high I went at my leaks with some black tape. As I was taping away I discovered all sorts of leaks EVERYWHERE! It's like my bellows decided to spontaneously crack open! I tried to think if I left her in the car or put some other kind of stress on her that would cause such trouble all at once, but I can't think of anything that I did that would have done that!

So at every crease in the peaks and valleys on the bellows is a leak. For now it's fine... but rather precarious in my opinion. I'm still afraid to shoot with her... I might just bite the bullet. I do love NW Camera, and they have been very good to me so I wouldn't feel so bad giving them my money as long as poor Victoria Jean is okay and the bellows last another 30 years, hopefully film will last that long...

Oh Tragic Day!

What is a photographer’s worst nightmare when out photographing with you 4x5 camera? It’s taking the lens off and looking into the bellows to see sunlight streaming in through several small holes! EEEK! I just had some film processed and had some strange flares on a couple of the photos, I discounted it for a flare from the lens, but alas, not the case. Victoria Jean (my 4x5) is older than I am; I rescued her from eBay a year and a half ago and has worked flawlessly until now. Well, off to find a new bellows… hopefully they still make them!

I photograph with her constantly, but the saving grace to this situation was that when I discovered this problem I was within one block of my work, CVA, and we have lots of cameras there, so I was able to borrow one and make the photograph anyway. I do love CVA!


The poor Victoria Jean with the leaky bellows in my studio. You'd never know she was broken by just looking at her. Sigh...

How strange is it...

Earlier this week, in the beginning photography class I teach at the U, I had individual conferences with each of my students about their final projects. One of the students came ready to go with sketches and ideas galore! I was impressed. Anyway, one of the sketches involved an idea that he started in an earlier assignment with a shadow on the wall of someone holding their hands as if it was a bird. Then he was going to have a dead bird on a table underneath that shadow. Along with the idea he mentioned that he had no idea where he would get a dead bird. Me, well I said that my parents happen to have a dead bird in their freezer that I could possibly aquire for him if he wanted it. He was actually pretty interested, but a little weirded out at the same time.

Is that strange? That someone would have a dead bird in their freezer that is?

My mom found it outside about a week ago and put it in the freezer hoping to give it to the nature center near by so they could study it, dissect it, stuff it, or do whatever with it. Otherwise, someday it will get buried in the woods, or used for a photo project. We'll see what happens...

Isis, etc.

Isis Lula Winnifred Elph seems to be the new name of my camera (if I have 2 middle names so can she). She is a great camera although I'm still getting to know her. I made this photograph with her this weekensd as prep before I came back with my 4x5 (Victoria Jean). As I was going for my big camera a park worker was driving around moving picnic tables. I got back before he moved these though!

A new Winny?

My dear little digital Elph, (my only digital camera) who went by the name Winnifred Beatrice, who posed with me for the photo I have with this blog ( just to the right) has retired. She is too old and her poor parts do not work the way they used to, so I retired her... sigh. We had some good times though and she came everywhere with me. A moment of silence...


I now have a new 7.1 mega pixel Elph (3.1 mega pixels more than Winny had and cost the same as she did 2 years ago). Anyway she's pretty slick, but is she Winifred Beatrice II or someone completely new? She does have some trendy eye makeup going on (as they did not have the all silver version). I'm not sure I can name her Winny, although it would be a shame for the name to die with the camera, alas.

Any name suggestions?

Words of Wisdom from Menards

I got a Menards several-page add in the mail the other day. It's strange as I do shop there but do not hold a Menards credit card or anything else that would prompt me to be on their mailing list, but that's okay. So I read the add, not looking at the products but rather reading the strange little quotes they have printed in super small type at the bottom of every page. Has anyone noticed that before or is it just me? Anyway one of the quotes was:

"No place is boring, if you’ve had a good night's sleep and have a pocket full of unexposed film."

It warms my heart to hear film rather than digital camera, but that's a ramble for another time.