single woman # 13 ~ wanter at work

In a restaurant ~ NYC, NY • click to embiggenColin Griffiths stated/asked:

I've just spent a year using the 20mm Panasonic lens more than any other lens I own and love the results it's given me, not just for the quality of prints I can produce, but rather because I've just found that a prime lens has had a liberating effect whilst I'm out and about. I would be interested to understand why you desire this new lens so much. Is it because you believe it will produce better resolution, or because you can reduce DOF or it's more suitable for low light conditions, or for some other reason?

Like Colin (whose pictures I admire), I too have been using the 20mm f1.7 Lumix lens for the past year a or so. Unlike Colin, I have been using it almost exclusively in the making of pictures for my ku and other bodies of work. It is a wonderful lens (primes rule!) and it is possible, in a much more restricted world, I could live with it, and it alone, for all of my personal "art" picture making.

However, there are times - my single women series as an example - when I could put a lens like the new µ4/3 Leica Summilux 25mm f1.4 lens to good use. In the single woman work, the extra light gathering capability, the decreased DOF, and the ability to picture from a slightly greater distant from the subject would very desirable and greatly appreciated. And, believe it or not, I do make pictures of family and friends and the lens would make a better portrait tool than than the 20mm Lumix.

In any event, those are the reasons I want one. Whether I actually get one ....

single woman # 12 ~ it actually was rainin' outdoors

Single woman ~ Philadelphia, PA • click to embiggen

you better come on
in my kitchen
babe it's goin' to be rainin' outdoors ~ Robert Johnson

single woman # 11 ~ my kinda single woman

Rare sighting ~ B&H - NYC, NY • click to embiggenA woman bearing Olympus gifts, that is. However, a woman bearing anything behind the counter at B&H is indeed a very rare sighting.

BTW, did you know B&H has 1600 employees? Kind of staggering when you think about it.

single woman # 10 ~ standing in the safety zone*

Large earring ~ Philadelphia, PA • click to embiggenIn the entry single woman # 9, Sven W (no link provided) wrote:

Did you sneak make this image surreptitiously or were you talking with her beforehand? She appears to reading the screen on her cell very intently, so perhaps you could sneak a [short] telephoto shot.

Even though this question/comment was made, re: single woman # 9, it could apply to all of my single woman pictures.

Like today's single woman picture, all of my single woman pictures are made surreptitiously (sounds much better than "sneak", don't you think?). That MO is strictly enforced when it comes to making such pictures - I want the object of my eye/camera's gaze to be pictured in situ in an as unaffected manner as possible. That is to say, I most definitely do not want to picture a single woman in a posed or a self-consciously aware state.

If I were to use a "[short] telephoto" lens, getting the desired "shot" would be a much easier proposition than it is with the [long] wide-angle lens - 4/3rd 20mm lens (40mm, 35mm equiv.) - I am using. That lens typically puts me within a 4 ft. reach of my subject which, being a 6'3" / 235lb person, does not exactly allow me to be invisible. Consequently, I must use the hustle and bustle of a crowded environment / event to mask my picturing intentions - a time-honored street photography MO.

In any event, and to this point in the single woman picturing proceedings, the technique seems to be working. While I can not definitively state that none of my subjects - the texting single woman included, were aware of my presence and/or intentions, I can state that, if they were aware, they did not alter the "natural" attitude / behavior they were exhibiting when I first singled them out as a target for my picturing endeavors.

BTW & FYI, as I continue in my picturing pursuit of single woman, I fully expect that, without warning, me and my camera will get whacked upside the head with a purse at some point along the way.

*Standing in the Safety Zone is one of my favorite Fairfield Four songs and albums. I have been very privileged to hear these guys in person (in very small venues) a couple times. They are simply amazing and, when experienced as one of only a few white people in an audience comprised of predominately black women, it is an incredibly intense immersion (pun intended) into the southern (US) submersion baptism / tent revival meeting / black baptist church tradition.

FYI, the vinyl version of the Standing in the Safety Zone album is considered to be one of best ever recordings of the human voice. I have the CD and when heard through a hi-end system - my system has over $2K of wire alone - the soundstage and audial presence are spine-tingling / hair-raising.

In any event, you can listen to Standing in the Safety Zone - the album and the song - HERE. Take the time to click through to the FREE (no personal info required) listening. If you don't want to listen to the entire album, listen to tracks 6, 7 (Standing in the Safety Zone), & 8.

single woman # 9 ~ she's not where she appears to be

Texting ~ Center City - Philadelphia, PA • click to embiggen

single women # 8 ~ Hobson + ....

Buying a new cell phone ~ Plattsburgh, NY • click to embiggenAs the single women series builds some mass, it has occurred to me that a companion single men series would be a nice fit.

However, the problem is I truly believe that making pictures of single men is beyond my ability to pull off. The thing is, I don't know how to look at single men. Not that it would make uncomfortable in any way, it's just that I don't think I know what to look for or, in other words, how to see men.

IMO, seeing men might well be handled better by, you guessed it, a woman. Nothing sexist about it. I just think pictures, made by a woman, of single men would better compliment my pictures of single woman which are, of course, made by a man. So, as you may have guessed by now, I am casting my net for a female picture maker who would be interested in pursuing the subject in conjunction with my endeavors.

For quite a few years, picture makers have been teaming up to make pictures. Most often, pictures that are made by both individuals acting together to produce each single picture in a body of work, as opposed to what I am suggesting - each team member making their own pictures which would eventually be exhibited together. Even though the pictures would be exhibited together, there is no problem with the picture making styles of each picture maker being radically different from one another.

All of that said, are there any interested female picture makers out there who might be interested in such a project? If not, does anyone out there know of any female picture makers who might be interested? If not, will anyone out there with the means - a blog, website, camera club newsletter, etc. - be willing to help me get the word out.

BYW, the female picture maker can be located anywhere on planet earth. At least, that is, as long as there is a readily available supply of single men.

Update on Friday, February 18, 2011 at 05:29PM by gravitas et nugalis

Featured Comment: Larry asked/wrote: "How does this inability fit into your sense of "place"? There seems to be a gap here.

my response: Larry - I don't understand, re: the "gap" you are questioning. If you give me a bit more direction to go on, I'll do my best to give an answer.

single women # 7 ~ red hair waitress

Waitress / Black Iron Burger Shop ~ 540 E 5th St. - NYC • click to embiggen

single women # 6 ~ waiting / window light

Waiting / Country Bear Diner & Bakery ~ Wilmington, NY - in the Adirondack PARK • click to embiggen