Ireland / Scotland #1-4 ~ an endorsement of sorts

Dunes ~ Ireland • click to embiggen

Barbers ~ Scotland • click to embiggen

Sweeny's ~ Ireland • click to embiggen

Amsterdam airport ~ Amsterdam, Northern Holland • click to embiggen

Back home and my internal clock is just about reset to EST. Catching up on work and processing some pictures. Off to Pittsburgh tomorrow through Monday.

FYI, while over on the other side of the pond, I was able to post pictures to Instagram after some down and dirty processing using the PS Express on my iPad. Actually, the processing was not so dirty. For my intended purpose the program/app worked very well. And, indeed, it was very quick and easy. No crashing or other problems, it just worked as advertised.

So, consider this entry an endorsement of sorts. I will continue to use it under similar circumstances - if you haven't visited my hobsonspictures Instagram page, do so in order to verify my endorsement.

civilized ku # 4001 ~ last night n Scotland / headed home

after sundown ~ Pennan, Scotland • click to embiggenStarbucks ~ Amsterdam airport / Amsterdam, North Holland • click to embiggen

The sky and the water gave us a very nice sendoff on our last night's stay in Pennan, Scotland.

Today, Sunday, we're enduring a 15 hour airports/planes trip home. The day started at 5AM in Dublin. Fortunately I have enough technology at hand to get me through- without being bored out of my skull - the 5 hour layover at the Amsterdam airport.

FYI, lots of pictures - down and dirty processing edits - from Ireland and Scotland on my hobsonspictures Instagram page.

civilized ku # 4000 / ku # 1375 ~ Ireland / 2 views + Instagram update

Jaci and Robert ~ Port, Ireland • click to embiggen

view between artist's home and gallery ~ Ardara, Ireland • click to embiggen

No surprise that Ireland is a rich picture making location. I'm trying to avoid making the Irish cliche picture and having some success at it. FYI, I am updating my hobsonspictures Instagram page daily.

fyi ~ Ireland Instagram updates

Plenty of pictures of Irish referents can be viewed on my hobsonspictures Instagram page. Instagram has been easy to use and I will be updating it daily.

civilized ku # 3099 ~ pictures from Ireland and Scotland

washline ~ Au Sable Forks, NY - in the Adirondack PARK • click to embiggen

Leaving the Forks in 2 hours to catch our flight to Dublin from Montreal. As previously mentioned, I will be posting from Ireland and Scotland but not on Squarespace. So, if you want to view the posts, they can be viewed at markhobsonblog.wordpress.com and / or Instagram at hobsonspictures. The wife has decided to take the laptop along so I might post a thing or 2 here on Squarespace. However, since I really don't want to deal with the aggravation using Squarespace posting workarounds while on my trip, Instagram and Wordpress will be my go-to posting place of choice.

civilized ku # 3098 ~ it's all about the little things

window / Sunrise Cafe ~ South Bend, Indiana • click to embiggen

watering bucket reflection ~ Manhattan / NYC, NY • click to embiggen

I'm wrapped up in preparations for our departure tomorrow to Ireland and Scotland. Looking forward to making lots of pictures which I will be posting on my Wordpress and Instagram sites. Tomorrow's entry will have links to both.

civilized ku # 3096-97 + an oldie ~ color and composition

old wall advertisement ~ Whitehall, NY - just outside the Adirondack PARK • click to embiggen
stuff on top of bookcase ~ Au Sable Forks, NY - in the Adirondack PARK • click to embiggen

green door, flood waters and sandbags ~ Au Sable Forks, NY - in the Adirondack PARK • click to embiggen

Yet another one of pictures has been pulled from obscurity in the bowels of my picture library to be featured in an article in Adirondack Life magazine. And much like my previous pictures featured in the magazine - including this International Regional Magazine Awards winning one - this picture (green door, flood waters and sandbags is not a typical Adirondack Pretty Picture. I am especially pleased with a comment from the magazine's Art Director who wrote, "I like the color and composition" because, whatever else my pictures might be 'about', I always try to make pictures which are also 'about' color and composition.

civilized ku # 3090-95 ~ immitation / flattery

looking like Leiter ~MAnhattan / NYC • click to embiggen

During my recent 2 visits to NYC - after acquiring a Saul Leiter book during my first visit - I turned my eye and sensibilities (and camera) to making Leiter-style pictures. Pictures in which the referents and the look paid a certain amount of homage to Leiter's picture making sensibilities. For the record, I was not attempting to emulate precisely Leiter's work but to make pictures - with my unique vision - which would not be mistaken for Leiter's pictures but rather with a resemblance thereto.

But here's the interesting thing - I based my idea on the look of Leiter's work from the reproduction of his work in his Early Color book. After acquiring the 2nd Leiter book (during my 2nd recent visit), Colors, I was rather surprised to discover a significant difference in color and tonal values, re: pictures printed in both books, from one book to the other.

So, the question arose, which reproduction constituted the most accurate representation of the original pictures? Not having had the experience of viewing any of his original prints, I have no frame of reference to make a judgement regarding which book is most accurate.

If I had to make an educated guess, my money's on the Colors book. The color and tonal values in that book are much 'cleaner'. More along the lines of what I would expect from pictures from the era in which they were made. In addition to the cleaner look, there is decidedly more detail in the deep shadow areas of the pictures which leads me to believe that the first book got it wrong.

All of that written, I nevertheless believe that many of my Leiter-like pictures are a reasonable homage to man and his work.