On Saturday, October 15, 2016 The Race of Gentlemen made its West Coast debut on Pismo Beach in California. After many, many months of drought, mother nature decided that it was the perfect time for a good storm to make its journey down the west coast…
Read MoreLearning to see – the journey continues...
In my ever continuing quest to be a better photographer I study the works of other artists to see what I can learn from them. One of the artists I have been studying recently is Edward Weston. He has a very well known photograph of a pepper that is quite beautiful. While I never intend to copy another artists work I sometimes will shoot something very similar as an exercise to "see" the light, subject matter and approach that they used to make one of their well know images.
This, while nowhere near as memorable or beautiful as the Weston pepper is one of the test shots made in my learning process. I like it–and I don't. The light is nice. The curves are interesting but it is still a complete derivative of a previously made photograph. But, I can take this knowledge, experience and approach and add it to my knowledge base for anything else I shoot in the future. I love to learn.
Hot Rod Reunion 2014 – A closer look
The famed photographer Robert Capa once said, “If your photographs aren't good enough, you're not close enough.” In 2014 as I was photographing the annual Hot Rod Reunion at Famoso Raceway I was trying to find new ways to dig deeper into this beautiful event and see if I could find things that I hadn’t really see before.
There are hundreds of photographers that shoot this event every year which is fantastic as there is just so much to see. There are so many ways of looking at it as well, from the cars to the drag strip to the famous personalities to the pits to the huge amount of people and so on and so on. I’ve been photographing this event since 2011 and I am really working to find ways of seeing and capturing it so that people who couldn’t see it have a chance to experience a little taste of it through my lens. I don’t simply want to document the event. I want the people who see my photographs to get a little taste of the feel, the sound and the emotion of the day. Obviously this isn’t really possible through a single photograph but perhaps in seeing the images as a story, an inside peek and a bit of imagination more can be taken than just the obvious immediate subject. I haven’t achieved this yet but I will be working over the upcoming years to build as much of a story and a look at the beauty of the cars, the drivers and crews and a perspective of the event as possible .
I will be adding to this story and these images as time goes by. I’ll be looking at different facets and perspectives of the event and sharing them as I have time to really give it the focus it deserves. But for now I will kick this off with a small series of 20 images.
Just one of the super cool things that is still possible at the Hot Rod Reunion is just how close you can get to the cars, drivers and pits. You get to see, up close and personal, the crews working on these incredible machines in the pits. You smell the spent racing fuel as the cars warm their tires before launch and you see the cars cued up in a long line as they await their turn to blast down the track on a hot summer day.
When I say hot, I mean days that can be easily 90+ in the shade. And there sit, in full racing gear, drivers waiting to run these cars as fast as possible down a track located in a valley of orange groves. It is a beautiful thing to watch. But before the cars have their few seconds of glory – they wait.
As the majority of the crowd is watching the main event from the stands I love to wander through the waiting cars and drivers. I often wonder what the drivers are thinking. Are they nervous? Is there some kind of pre-race ritual that they go through every time? Are they distracted by people like me walking around observing?
On a whim I decided to spend some time walking down the rows and make photographs of drivers. Now that day I was using a Mamiya C330 twin lens reflex camera and shooting film that expired sometime in the late 80’s. This means that I can’t just run up snap a picture and keep moving. I have to measure the light, set the aperture and shutter speed, compose, focus and then I can click the shutter. I also don’t hold this camera up to my face and shoot but instead you look down at the ground glass from the top of the camera to make the image. This process alone often helps me capture a better image because the camera seems to make people curious. While I only photographed a very few of the drivers it was a really interesting experience. The drivers were all gracious, some even giving a thumbs-up, and it was a little peek inside a world I have never experienced personally. Thank you to each one of the drivers who were kind enough to oblige my interest.
Check back again and I will be continuing this series, and more, here on the blog. To find our more or to purchase a print of any of the images tap the CONTACT button at the top of the page.
Growing in my perspectives
So many times I feel like things just look so much better on the ground glass than they do when I see the actual images. This photograph was made while I was on a weekend shoot with a group of large format friends. I shot a few sheets of LF but as I am not a great landscape shooter I also brought the Hasselblad and tried to see things besides just the incredible views all around in the Alabama Hills in California (confusing, I know).
After spending the day wandering around and experiencing such grandiose beauty I was sitting at camp wondering why I was sitting on my butt when there was so much to see. I grabbed the Hasselblad and started walking around close to the campsite and came across this bush. It looked a bit sad but the more I looked at it I came to see this proud but tired piece of nature standing strong against the elements and I had to try to make a photograph. After about 5 different positions on the tripod I came to this composition and it looked like magic on the ground glass. I almost didn't make the photograph because it was so beautiful on the ground glass I knew that I was going to be disappointed in the final image. Well, I made the exposure anyway and I'm glad I did. For some reason this image moves me and I can't explain why and that is why I love it.
Influences
This year I want to expand my visual vocabulary and my way of seeing. While I was in Europe this year and with that in mind I worked to try to see things differently keeping in mind images from the past that have moved me. This is an obvious homage to a famous image and while similar I feel that it is strong enough on its own to share. As I make images influenced by others I will continue exploring until I find my own true voice.
Birdhouse
I used to be your birdhouse.
I could coax you out from your seat in the treetops
from behind the camouflaging greens
and watch you edge out shyly with the wind ruffling your blush feathers.
You'd cling to me when the spring showers started falling
and I could keep you safe and dry, I could always do that.
I'd be there to hear your youthful songs, and I'd whisper back in a language just we knew
and then I'd hug you goodbye and watch you step precariously from my perch,
flapping in the wind, unsure, unaccustomed.
and I'd be there for you the next day and the next
because I thought you'd still need me.
I never thought I'd see you, the point of a flying V
soaring with your head held high,
not even glancing down at
my tired wooden walls
and faded empty perch.
~ ArielIa (http://hellopoetry.com/poem/737162/your-birdhouse/)
Rolleiflex 2.8f + Kodak Tri-X + XTOL 1:1
Portrait of my wife
To me, a great portrait tells a story. It gives an honest glimpse into the person participating. It is also said that a photograph is a reflection of the photographer and how they see the world. The actual answer I am not sure, but a successful portrait makes me imagine something, whether real or perceived.
This portrait, to me, shows a strength, a quiet confidence and a willingness to see reality with all it's "flaws" while standing in the confidence of character. Imperfectly perfect.
The beginning
I make photographs because that is how I see the world. I see and remember moments, instants, snapshots. I make photographs because I have to. This is not optional. I photograph, therefore I exist. Weird.