seen and noted

Bobcat ~ Mt. Van Hovenberg bobsled track • click to embiggenI did not make this picture.

A day or two ago, this bobcat was spotted at the Olympic bobsled track at Mt. Van Hovenberg (about halfway between my house and Lake Placid). He/she is one big cat - note the paws relative to the tire tracks.

ku # 615-617 ~ kids today

Bog River sandbank and ledge • click to embiggenOn the recent entry, man & nature # 188 ~ incredible, simply incredible, "Tracy" (no link) asked:

Has Hugo got a camera yet? looking forward to his pov

2 years ago, I gave Hugo a camera for Xmas. His dad, The Cinemascapist, has been less than consistent in making sure the battery is charged and in putting it in his hands on a regular basis. Shame on dad.

Nevertheless, Hugo has a rather incredible visual sense and sensitivity so when he's with me and the wife, he asks to use one of my cameras on a fairly regular basis and, at times, the result can be quite freaky.

That said, today's Bog River sandbank and ledge picture is a case in point. On a recent multi-day canoe trip, I was busy picturing away on a sandbank when Hugo approached and asked to use a camera. I complied, stepped aside, and one of the pictures in this triptych is by/from the eye of Hugo.

Anyone want to make a guess as to which one? If you do, please let me/us know the reason(s) for your choice.

man & nature # 185 ~ meet Michael Gordon

Pushing the seaplane off the beach • click to embiggenLate Sunday night I had a nice surprise - an email from Michael Gordon, a California-based photographer of my (internet) acquaintance. He was on his way to Lake Placid for some hiking, canoeing, and picture making.

I've never meet Michael in realtime but over the years we have exchanged a number of emails on various things photography-wise. He seemed liked a nice enough fellow and he is certainly a very accomplished picture maker so I was quite eager to get together with him.

Consequently, we met yesterday evening - he was between the hiking and canoeing parts of his visit - and it was a delightful and entertaining time. We barely talked about picture making, had a lot of beer, a little liquor, and generally shot-the-shit about the Adirondacks (his first trip) and life in general.

Michael assured me that a folio of his work would be on its way to me soon at which point I will have to reciprocate by printing a folio of my work - something I have been considering since I received one from Anil Rao.

FYI, Michael conducts a fair number of photo workshops out West and his speciality, although not exclusively, is large-format picture making. After meeting Michael I would not hesitate for NY moment to recommend him to anyone looking to attend a landscape / nature photography workshop.

BTW, today's picture was made by the wife, processing by me.

folios

Rocks & Stones ~ Anil Rao • click to embiggenI haven't posted an entry under the photography of others category in quite a while. That's due in large part to the fact that I haven't been cruising the net looking for stuff in a while. That's because there is so much crap to wade through in order to find some good stuff.

However, one solution that landed on my front porch (via UPS) in a big cardboard box is an idea that I would love to have continue. In that box was a beautiful folio of pictures from long-time Landscapist follower, Anil Rao.

It's appearance on my porch was not a surprise although it was an eagerly anticipated one. Anil had sent me an email offer for the folio which was very generous - basically, it said, "Would you like a free custom made folio of some of my pictures?" Although, it must be said (and I am quite pleased to say) that Anil was making this offer "as a gift and a big-thank you for all the insightful thoughts and encouragement you have provided over the last serveral years."

Anil also stated his reason for making a folio - he wanted a way to showcase his work but didn't think that he was ready to make a book.

That folio itself is quite beautiful. The presentation is simple and elegant. The pictures are printed with Epson Ultrachrome Inks on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag paper and their appearance can only be described as exquisite. Each picture has a title accompanied by picture location and creation date.

Included in the folio is a title sheet, an introduction / artist statement sheet, 10 of Anil's Stone & Rocks prints, and an end sheet with copyright, tech specs, and other info. The overall impression is that of high quality, care, and professionalism.

IMO, the folio is missing but one important touch - archival tissue interleaving between the prints. Archival tissue along with a pair of protective gloves would go a long way in protecting the fragile and easy to smudge print surfaces during both storage and handling. This is especially true in light of the uncoated rag matte paper that Anil has chosen to print on.

Add those 2 times to the mix and you have a print presentation that is completely ready to go.

That said, there is one other issue to consider - how does one view the prints? Do you settle onto a comfortable chair and view it sort of like you would a book - flipping through the prints and turning them over like pages? Do you sit at a table and take them out of the case? Or do you frame a few of your favorites and hang them on a wall?

I bring this issue up for 2 reasons - 1) it seems a shame to keep these pictures "hidden" in a box (albeit a very nice box), and, 2) I have been wrestling with the how-to-display-prints-on-a-wall-without-breaking-the-bank issue for a while. More so since the arrival of my wide-format printer.

One solution that has come to mind is to order up 3-4 medium and 3-4 large frames with glass and backing without any paper seal on the back. By also ordering a dozen uncut matte boards for each size frames, I could easily rotate prints in the frames for viewing. FYI, I like to display prints on the surface of matte board with the print edges showing - no "window" matting. But even this method would run into $1,500 or more - $3,000 or more with Museum Glass.

The other option that I am considering is to hang prints without frames or mounting of any kind. I started doing this (with 24×24 inch prints) a few months ago on the bedroom wall above our bed by just using pushpins on all four corners. It works but it is not the most elegant solution and I wouldn't ever dream of using pushpins on Anil's prints.

So, what I am thinking of at the moment is to make /purchase some picture ledges on which I can place heavyweight acid-free foam board backing with prints affixed (with an archival tape hinge on the print back near the top). In the case of my 24×24 inch prints, I would tape hinge them on 30×30 foam board. To 'dress it up" I will most likely cover the front of the foam board with a white matte surface art paper (edge to edge).

This system will allow me to rotate prints at will (mine and those from others - hint, hint) with a minimum of fuss and muss.

In any event, I wish to express my heart-felt thanks and deep appreciation to Anil for his kind thoughts, consideration, and generosity. The folio is an absolute delight to behold and, one way or another, some of these prints will make their way onto my walls.

And, it is well worth noting that Anil has made this folio available to the public for the amazingly low price of $ 125.00 US. In case you can't do the math, that's only $12.50 US per print - an incredible bargain by any standard. Especially so considering not only the quality of the prints themselves, but also the quality of Anil's pictures (vision). Anil can be contacted through his website

BTW, I am very open to any like-minded similar expressions of thanks.

omg

They're not exactly Certain Places or Microwave Eruptus but ... • click to embiggenOMG. Most out there are familiar with the adage regarding the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Well, yesterday PM, as I was processing pictures from this past weekend, my plan was to post a couple of them this AM for your viewing pleasure. But, first thing this AM, my brain was unexpectedly fried once again. It was another of those mind-blowing experiences - much like the effect of having your head struck by a dumdum bullet - that really messes you up.

The incident deals with 2 primary concepts:

1. Everybody has a twin somewhere on the planet.

2. Everything that can be pictured has been pictured.

Regarding concept # 1, there have been several instances in my life where I have mistaken for someone else based upon my physical appearance. There have also been times when someone who "thinks just like me" has touched my life. But ...

Regarding concept # 2. ... seldom, if ever, have I experienced any close encounters of the the photography kind - someone who thinks and acts just like me, photography-wise. That is to say, someone who pictures the things that I picture in a manner very similar to how (and why) I picture them.

That is, until this AM when I discovered - thanks to Miguel Garcia-Guzman on his blog, [EV +/-] Exposure Compensation ~ of photography and photographers - the work of Catharine Stebbins.

I posted the 2 pictures on this entry as examples of my 2 bodies of work - ku, landscapes of the natural world and decay - that are remarkably similar to Stebbins' 2 bodies of work - CERTAIN PLACES and MICROWAVE ERUPTUS.

Other than the similarity of our subject matter - much of my ku work is of the messy chaos / complexity of the natural world, and, all of my decay is of food gone awry - and the similarity of our picturing approach - somewhat less than idealized and conventionally seen views of the natural world, and, plated food pictured from above using natural light (mine from a window, her's from a door) on the same background (mine a countertop, her's a floor) - what strikes me as incredibly odd / interesting / downright eerie is that both of our Artist Statements are remarkably similar.

Regarding her CERTAIN PLACES work, Stebbins writes:

The right place drives the tedium from my mind and sends me racing into a world of imagination and possibility ... [T]hese are portraits of the evocative feelings and emotions that overcome me; an invitation to go where the past coexists with the present, uncertainty mingles with anticipation, and the familiar delivers the unexpected.

Intuition and memory profoundly shaped my experience of place. The genesis of this series began on childhood vacations, as my family crisscrossed the west in our station wagon on long summer vacations. The view through the backseat window became my portal into a world of imagination and possibility ....

Her compete statement is HERE

Regarding my Adirondack Dream Memories I have stated:

For me, memories are like dreams. They tickle, tease, and sometimes taunt my conscious self with slippery remembrances that can't be fully owned. Tangled hints of experience and feelings past swirl and ferment in a cauldron of haunting visions that, however vague, are indelibly etched on a virtual fabric tinted with the bittersweet wash of ambiguity and the quest to understand.

As I grope furtively and photographically through the fields of genius in the details, I feel like a stranger in a strange land where my photographs seem more like jamais vu glimpses of lost connections to something intuitively known rather than documents of fully conscious waking experieinces.

My compete statement is HERE

One of Stebbins' reasons for her MICRoWAVE ERUPTUS work - "Something about a splatter of tomato sauce, and burnt edged bubbles in a pool of melted cheese called out "photograph me!" - is also remarkably similar to my reason about decay - it has always called out to me.

Now, it should be stated that I am not stating that our work or our statements are identical but the similarities are, indeed, very remarkable - especially so considering that there are not just 1, but 2 bodies of work that are so similar.

This just whole thing just tends to freak me out. Feel free to draw your own conclusions.

civilized ku # 148 ~ is it real or is it Memorex?

Hugo pictures Lily and Lily returns the favor • click to embiggenOn our holiday trip to New Jersey, Hugo made a paradigm-changing discovery about pictures. To be precise, moving pictures and, in particular, moving pictures as viewed on a television screen but, nevertheless, certainly one that is applicable to still pictures as well.

As mentioned, we (8 of us) interrupted our journey to south Jersey with a 4 hour stop in Newark, NJ to see a professional hockey game - the Pittsburgh Penguins vs the New Jersey Devils. It was a significant event for Hugo for 3 reasons - 2 eagerly anticipated reasons and 1 totally unexpected. The first 2 reasons were, simply enough; 1) his first in-person NHL hockey game, and, 2) his "date" with Lily at that hockey game. Both reasons were eagerly anticipated, especially the date part (have I mentioned that he is 4 going on 16?).

Unanticipated reason #3 came as a big surprise to me and to Hugo - Hugo has viewed countless Penguins games on television. He is well aware of players and stars like Sid-the-Kid and the Candy Man. His personal favorite is former Penguin Gary Roberts. We don't know why that is, it just is.

So, when we arrived in the arena, the teams were still on the ice for their pre-game warmups. While the wife was standing in line for refreshments, I took Hugo into the arena to see the whole deal - lots of people, the jumbotron, lighting effects and all of the general hoopla that is a pro-sporting event here in the good ole US of A.

As he was taking it all in, I pointed out Sid-the-Kid and the Candy Man down on the ice, whereupon he looked and looked and looked some more at them, especially so at Sid-the-Kid. His gaze was intense and I could almost hear the gears and bells and whistles sounding in his head. After a few minutes of looking and thinking, he turned to me and said,

"I didn't know Sid-the-Kid was real.", and, a little later, "I didn't even know Roberts was real."

Just like that, his view of the world changed in an instant. And, just like that, my view of what's the most important thing that he can learn for his future life - that is his ability, in a media saturated world, to distinguish real from the imagined - also changed in an instant. Sure, sure, reading, 'riting, and 'rithmetic are much needed tools for survival but, if you really think about it, when it comes to distinguishing between need and desire in a media world saturated with pictures (both moving and still) that are solely intended to seduce and excite the lust to consume, a basic understanding of what's real and what's fanciful is a very important skill to have.

A skill that most people seem to have ignored or never have possessed in the first place.

That is why, Hugo and I are about to embark upon a concentrated program of both picturing and picture viewing. Nothing real "heavy", just what seems to come naturally to him - he does seem to genuinely like to both make and look at pictures. and that's a language that I would very much like him to learn right along side the language of the written word that he is currently starting to learn.

Not to mention, I really like how kids see their world.
Hugo and Lily • click to embiggenIt is definitely quite different from the way adults see their world. IMO, that is is especially true when they picture each other. I believe that is so because when picturing each other, they relate to each other kid-to-kid as opposed to when an adult pictures them and they relate kid-to-adult.

I submit as evidence of my kid-to-kid vs kid-to-adult theory, the pictures that accompany this entry - the 2 kid-to-kid pictures above and my kid-to-adult picture on the left. IMO and to my eye and sensibilities, there is a sense of ease and directness as well as a far less posed quality that is very apparent in the kid-to-kid pictures than that which is captured in the kid-to-adult picture.

Call me crazy, but I am acutely aware - from viewing the pictures - of the fact that Lily and Hugo were sharing a very different picture making dynamic with each other from that which they were together sharing with me. Each gave to the other as part of the picturing act something that was quite different from that which they gave to me.

Both Hugo and Lily engaged in chimping after they made their respective pictures but neither have seen a print of their efforts. I will be especially eager to watch Hugo view his picture of Lily when he visits on New Year's day.

I really wonder what it is he will judge to be real.

It was 60 years ago today ...

Thanksgiving, 1948 • click to embiggenMy grandfather was an avid amateur photographer. Oddly enough, something I never knew until after his death.

Gooble, gobble, gooble

Happy turkey day • click to embiggenJust as I was starting to rummage around for an appropriate picture for this entry, I got an email ping and, lo and behold, Aaron sent me the above picture.

He had called early in the day, in a stunning display of wilderness naiveté, to ask if I knew of a place where he could picture some wild turkeys for a Thanksgiving Cinemascape. He came to the right place in as much as I could direct him to several locations where I regularly encounter wild turkeys. Unfortunately for him though, I could not actually arrange for wild turkeys to be there when he was.

Nevertheless, it appears that he found a bird.

That said, I would very much like to vigorously second the sentiment that the wife expressed earlier on today's selling cat shit to dogs entry. A sentiment that I had intended to express in any event but it does appear that great minds think alike. She wrote:

One of the things I am thankful for is that the Husband has this online community of people who care like he does how binary code looks.

Of the many blessing for which I will give thanks tomorrow, this "online community" is certainly one. I appreciate very much, in more ways than you might imagine, all of the comments, feedback, and what I consider to be friendship which has been extended to me from all of you.

I have been lucky to meet a few of you in person. I hope to be able to do so with more of you (anybody interested in some sort of multi-day Landscapist picnic at some point in the future?), either in your travels or mine. Don't be like Andy Ilachinski and be within a couple miles of my house and not give me a holler. (Just kidding Andy). Hey, they make more beer here than they know what to do with.

In any event, for those who celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow, a heartfelt Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. And, for those who don't, I'll be thanking my lucky stars for each and everyone of you.