It does seem odd, almost scary - how the various pagan rites co-exist with the modern one-God does it all world. At any rate, philosophy aside - I plan to be at what is probably the most poorly photographed event in New York on Monday.
Went last year - for the first time - and did okay - but what a crush on 6th avenue. Someone passed out in a Blimpies. Two women with baby carriages got into a bumper car rumble. That night, I came home with nightmares. I never liked this so-called holiday. Don't really want to see everyone's dark fantasy on parade. But I go anyway. I stop to gawk at car crashes also. Can you remember when this was a kid's holiday. Not in New York it ain't.
So you've got yer Mermaids Day Parade - fertility and life-affirming (beautiful women) and your Halloween Parade where the dead spirits get their chance to prance about. Boo! The real world is still scarier.
That was one of the main reasons for trying to nail down the ASA 1600 film / developer combo.
I'm going to spend this weekend getting the rest of the orders packaged and ready to ship; and try and clear the decks. Look out below - there's a whole lot of weird gents approaching.
10/29/2005
10/28/2005
Matt Weber - Shot of Dave
Matt Weber photographs me as I photograph the woman across the way. One of the few recent pictures of myself that I like. One thing I'll tell you - watching Matt shoot - he is damn quick. Thanks Matt.
* * *
I was accepted into a number of affiliate ad programs. The question I pose to you is: what kind of things are photogaphers interested in. Does it all have to be photography related? How boring. Would you like to see ads for iPods? Or gift flowers? Teddy Bears from Vermont? I think that Tylenol would be a big hit.
Blown Apart
I was waiting for my buttered bagel and coffee in the local deli and chatting with the owner who is from Mexico. The conversation had started innocently enough with my complaint that baseball was over and there was nothing left to watch. It took a turn when Rojo told me that I could start watching more political stuff instead. That what was going on in D.C. was like the World Series and he had his radio on all day listening for indictments. And that led to the war in Iraq and he became angry. "What the hell are we doing over there anyway? It doesn't make sense."
He talked about kids he knew who came from Mexico and joined the army to make a better life for themselves. And he insisted, "it was not only for themselves - but they wanted to give something back to their new country. Some of the came with forged green cards just to get in. " Then a long pause, and he continues, "and some of them ended up giving an arm or a leg." He looked angry when he said it.
It was at that point - thinking of this kid from Mexico who had traveled from their home to serve America and who was mutilated - that I had to leave the store because I felt like crying. Very unusual feeling for me. I'm not even sure I cried at my own mothers funeral. And here I am in the deli with tears welling up.
Something in the look he had in his eyes that gave me an overpowering feeling of grief. I took my coffee and bagel and wished him and his wife a good day. I could tell that they saw how sad I was becoming and I had to get out of there.
He talked about kids he knew who came from Mexico and joined the army to make a better life for themselves. And he insisted, "it was not only for themselves - but they wanted to give something back to their new country. Some of the came with forged green cards just to get in. " Then a long pause, and he continues, "and some of them ended up giving an arm or a leg." He looked angry when he said it.
It was at that point - thinking of this kid from Mexico who had traveled from their home to serve America and who was mutilated - that I had to leave the store because I felt like crying. Very unusual feeling for me. I'm not even sure I cried at my own mothers funeral. And here I am in the deli with tears welling up.
Something in the look he had in his eyes that gave me an overpowering feeling of grief. I took my coffee and bagel and wished him and his wife a good day. I could tell that they saw how sad I was becoming and I had to get out of there.
10/27/2005
WTC VIEWING
No. 1
No. 2
No. 3
I spent an hour or so photographing visitors to where the WTC once stood on October, 22, 2002. I'm going to post a few of them in this section.
Moon Over 2nd Avenue
Moon Over 2nd Avenue
Tri-X @ 1600
* * *
Finally got through printing the first 30 separate 5 x 7 images for orders. Should go out tomorrow. I still have some other ideas for the forum - but will let it stand on its own two feet for a while. I think the last name I came up with was Cafe Photography or something like that - but that's pretty lame. Very open to suggestions. Very.
10/26/2005
Untitled, New York 2003
What would be a cute and silly title for this: SEE FORUM FOR MORE
I was going to call it either Asleep at the Switch or Gatekeeper
Forum Additions
I enabled e-mail notification, either for specific posts, or for particular categories to the forum.
You can find the instructions in the FAQ section of the forum.
You can find the instructions in the FAQ section of the forum.
10/25/2005
Kertesz Exhibit
Went with two photographers to the Andre Kertesz exhibit at the International Center for Photography (ICP) and there they were - prints I had seen in my Kertesz book, only many of them were contact printed from what looked like a film that was only slightly larger than 35mm.
And how they were mounted, with at least 8-ply overmats, on what appeared to be 11 x 14 mat. In other words, you approached the postage-sized image, bent at the waist - and looked.
I mean - I like small images, say 5 x 7 inches, even some nice contact from a 4 x 5 inch negative, but this was teeny-tiny.
On top of that - I seem to have some juvenile streak in me that finds all these people gaping at images in this (to me sterile) environment - silly. Large museum and gallery space always does that to me.
How I would like to see people walking by with their pets; maybe cotton candy given out to the kids. I confess that this is my own fatal flaw and it takes a lot in a photograph to grab my attention. I did have that experience once at a Brett Weston exhibit - a sense of awe. But it is rare for me.
Possibly it's some sort of "class" thing since I get the giggles quite often if I go to the opera, or eat in a fancy restaurant. I always wish the Marx Brothers would come traipsing through knocking over plates nouveau cuisine on them. They should have made a movie called, A Night at the Museum, although they came close in an early movie where a famous painting is stolen in a mansion.
This inability to be appreciative at the gallery is part of the same impulse that draws me to photograph in such places.
I do not have the same problem with viewing paintings in such a space; though it does crop up once in a while and I can't help myself:
Afterwards we sat at a coffee shop and chatted, mostly about things photographic - and that was more fun. A woman across the way fascinated me and I probably took about ten shots of her sitting alone at a small table - but very animated expressive face.
There must be something mildly absurb about a photographer who doesn't really enjoy looking at photographs. My own house is pretty bare as far as photographs on the wall go. The part that I like is "the capture." That is what interests me and what is the most fun. And - I've said this ad nauseum in the blog but I believe that is a hunting instinct that has no other outlet. Even the word that is used in digital: capture suggests a hunting experience.
So now here you are where the other side of the hunt has been completed. The big institution has collected these trophies and hung them like lifeless heads on a bare white wall in the modern version of gilded frames which is to say non-obtrusive. I'd like to see some of these images in big ornate, carved wooden frames (see painting above).
And how they were mounted, with at least 8-ply overmats, on what appeared to be 11 x 14 mat. In other words, you approached the postage-sized image, bent at the waist - and looked.
I mean - I like small images, say 5 x 7 inches, even some nice contact from a 4 x 5 inch negative, but this was teeny-tiny.
On top of that - I seem to have some juvenile streak in me that finds all these people gaping at images in this (to me sterile) environment - silly. Large museum and gallery space always does that to me.
How I would like to see people walking by with their pets; maybe cotton candy given out to the kids. I confess that this is my own fatal flaw and it takes a lot in a photograph to grab my attention. I did have that experience once at a Brett Weston exhibit - a sense of awe. But it is rare for me.
Possibly it's some sort of "class" thing since I get the giggles quite often if I go to the opera, or eat in a fancy restaurant. I always wish the Marx Brothers would come traipsing through knocking over plates nouveau cuisine on them. They should have made a movie called, A Night at the Museum, although they came close in an early movie where a famous painting is stolen in a mansion.
This inability to be appreciative at the gallery is part of the same impulse that draws me to photograph in such places.
I do not have the same problem with viewing paintings in such a space; though it does crop up once in a while and I can't help myself:
Afterwards we sat at a coffee shop and chatted, mostly about things photographic - and that was more fun. A woman across the way fascinated me and I probably took about ten shots of her sitting alone at a small table - but very animated expressive face.
There must be something mildly absurb about a photographer who doesn't really enjoy looking at photographs. My own house is pretty bare as far as photographs on the wall go. The part that I like is "the capture." That is what interests me and what is the most fun. And - I've said this ad nauseum in the blog but I believe that is a hunting instinct that has no other outlet. Even the word that is used in digital: capture suggests a hunting experience.
So now here you are where the other side of the hunt has been completed. The big institution has collected these trophies and hung them like lifeless heads on a bare white wall in the modern version of gilded frames which is to say non-obtrusive. I'd like to see some of these images in big ornate, carved wooden frames (see painting above).
Live Well
Ouch. I don't like this. I'm starting to get mail from Senior Villages.
The brochures are filled with happy-looking old people. Is that me in one of the pictures?
Some of the copy scares me:
"Each spacious, private apartment is designed for the safety, ease and enjoyment of our residents. We feature senior-friendly bathrooms..."
"Our affiliation with H*** Hospital can make the transition from independent living to our continuum of care should your needs increase..."
And then I turn to another piece of junk mail - and lo and behold - it's from a cemetery.
Man - I think I'm a goner.
I have not minded getting old - but I certainly don't want to be surrounded by other old folks. I think I need a mix of kids and very ancient people around me. Certainly not my contemporaries.
Anyway - I need to check on when the crazy New York Halloween parade is. That was one of the reasons I was experimenting with pushing Tri-x.
The brochures are filled with happy-looking old people. Is that me in one of the pictures?
Some of the copy scares me:
"Each spacious, private apartment is designed for the safety, ease and enjoyment of our residents. We feature senior-friendly bathrooms..."
"Our affiliation with H*** Hospital can make the transition from independent living to our continuum of care should your needs increase..."
And then I turn to another piece of junk mail - and lo and behold - it's from a cemetery.
Man - I think I'm a goner.
I have not minded getting old - but I certainly don't want to be surrounded by other old folks. I think I need a mix of kids and very ancient people around me. Certainly not my contemporaries.
Anyway - I need to check on when the crazy New York Halloween parade is. That was one of the reasons I was experimenting with pushing Tri-x.
10/24/2005
Forum Credit
I would just like to give credit to Bruce Corkhill in England who wrote the Web Wiz Forum software that I'm using. I was able to load it on the Windows Server (yes Windows) and have the barebones running in about an hour. I already had a SQL database on the server that I use for my lame - but functional - cart.
To run it on one server without ads (the one ad that appears on the home page is mine) - can cost as little as $50 or if you want a whole bunch of other functionality: $190. I went for the whole package, but haven't added any of them yet.
I think it is in good enough shape that I can leave it alone for a while and see what happens. I just got the CDs of the Best of the Allman Brothers Band and have loaded it up on the Nano. I haven't heard Whippin' Post in a long time.
Well - there I go again - digressing. Start with a programmer in England and move to the Allman Brothers.
That should make for fascinating reading. Allman Brothers were really big in my dorm room at college. My roommate - Ricky - would get good and stoned and turn on Whippin' Post real loud, play slide air guitar and grimace like mad. I get an alumni news thing once a year and the last time I looked he was a lawyer practicing in Utah.
To run it on one server without ads (the one ad that appears on the home page is mine) - can cost as little as $50 or if you want a whole bunch of other functionality: $190. I went for the whole package, but haven't added any of them yet.
I think it is in good enough shape that I can leave it alone for a while and see what happens. I just got the CDs of the Best of the Allman Brothers Band and have loaded it up on the Nano. I haven't heard Whippin' Post in a long time.
Well - there I go again - digressing. Start with a programmer in England and move to the Allman Brothers.
That should make for fascinating reading. Allman Brothers were really big in my dorm room at college. My roommate - Ricky - would get good and stoned and turn on Whippin' Post real loud, play slide air guitar and grimace like mad. I get an alumni news thing once a year and the last time I looked he was a lawyer practicing in Utah.
More About the Forum
My biggest issue with photography forums - or what I'm concerned with - is that they tend to deteriorate into flame wars, back and forth crap about who's equipment is better, rumors, trolls, and just generally weird stuff (unless they're moderated).
Problem with moderating is that it is time consuming.
I'm thinking of some sort of approval threshold for being able to post. There would be a section where you'd fill out a post that has a link to your b&w images. I don't think they have to be particularly good - but they have to show some degree of sophistication in order to post.
Personally, I don't care about cursing - I curse all the time - but I don't want members calling each other names either - unless it's done with some wit. In other words, if you want to call yourself an idiot - I'm fine with that. If you want to grumble - fine.
But before you call another member a &^!* - you would need to take a deep breath, imagine that you are sitting in a bar with the other member who is bigger and stronger than you - and that you've both only had one or two beers. Now you need to look the other guy in the face and before your invective - ask yourself: Do you feel lucky? Well do you ya, punk.
At any rate - I'll spend a day working on it today and see how it goes.
I'm completely open to other ideas about how to manage the content of the forum.
THE BETA FORUM
Problem with moderating is that it is time consuming.
I'm thinking of some sort of approval threshold for being able to post. There would be a section where you'd fill out a post that has a link to your b&w images. I don't think they have to be particularly good - but they have to show some degree of sophistication in order to post.
Personally, I don't care about cursing - I curse all the time - but I don't want members calling each other names either - unless it's done with some wit. In other words, if you want to call yourself an idiot - I'm fine with that. If you want to grumble - fine.
But before you call another member a &^!* - you would need to take a deep breath, imagine that you are sitting in a bar with the other member who is bigger and stronger than you - and that you've both only had one or two beers. Now you need to look the other guy in the face and before your invective - ask yourself: Do you feel lucky? Well do you ya, punk.
At any rate - I'll spend a day working on it today and see how it goes.
I'm completely open to other ideas about how to manage the content of the forum.
THE BETA FORUM
10/23/2005
Motorcycle and Tri-x
Results of Tri-x @ 1600 (above) / Microphen / 16 minutes / stock / 68F are fascinating. The film seems great for night city shots and low-light situations. More contrasty (not all like this shot), but grain much less pronounced (much less!) than with TMZ and any formula I've used with it.
During the day, the tri-x @1600 / Microphen combination is just okay - or to put it another way too contrasty.
But - I really wanted the speed for low-light situations - so thank you Markus - DigitalTruth.com and anyone else who wants thanks.
I've got my two film speeds from the same film - though with two different developers.
Oh - the shot above - without the headlights of a passing car - would have been pure black. So I stood in the rain waiting for the right beams of light - and pre-focused - and pre-metered - and took this one shot with the 50mm at f2.0.
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