Category Archives: Street Photography

Philosophy of Street, Street Photography

Surviving The Carnage To Creativity, Pt 2

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It saddens me that I can’t keep a camera on a neckstrap anymore. It’s not that they are all too heavy, even tho they are. It’s a security issue. I mean, carrying a camera that way is like advertising…. look, money on my neck. For the first time in about 50 years, it’s an issue I am totally aware of. I don’t use a camera bag anymore either. The same issue is about advertising. I do, however, use a waist pack and that’s as safe as it can be.

This isn’t about being discreet, it’s just about avoiding confrontation. I live in Philadelphia. This is the birthplace of our American history in many ways. All the good things that this country is founded on, are right here. If you live here, you feel that kinship with our history. It’s embedded in our DNA. If you smoke crack, do dope, meth, fentanyl, or anything like that, then the history that’s embedded in you, is diluted and you become a danger to yourself and others. So these junkies etc, like cameras. Oh, they love them. See, they are relatively small and valuable.

I bring this up because it’s about the carnage of creativity. Things we used to take for granted, are no longer taken for granted. It comes down to this. The joy of life and its reasons for joy is now under attack and being challenged and destroyed. This is a direct effect of politics but not political. I remember when I was teaching, I taught street security. Yes, it was an issue back then, like 80’s and 90’s.

There was a young girl, 19, who wanted to learn to feel ok making photos on the street. She told me she felt like a plain Jane. She was not comfy with herself and thus felt uncomfy doing almost everything. I told her in no uncertain manner, listen, you don’t know yourself, because no one ever does. We are all caught in the box of uncertainty inside ourselves. Therein, lies all the emotions, both good and bad that make us who we are.

To the world, that is not you. To the world, you are who you project. A few weeks later she told me that my lesson was very intuitive. She was making photos on the street. When someone opposed her, she just said, yeah, your right, wouldn’t be a good shot anyway. By saying that and holding her stance, she reversed the energy and power and made it hers. She would be comfy and kinda have control. Not control of the subject, who cares about that? Only politicians. But she was in control of herself.

Sometimes we can help someone over a personal hurdle and in return besides feeling good, learn about ourselves. So, maybe a way to combat the carnage of creativity is to help someone thru it.  ‘

Isn’t that what THE LORD does for all of us?

Photography, Street Photography

Love and Death of the Ricoh GRIIIx

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When I was an admin at the now defunct Ricoh Forum, it was wished by all that Ricoh would make a GR with a 40mm FOV. See, 28mm and 40mm are a perfect pair. That was in the daze of the Ricoh GRD3 & GRD4. Time moved on and the forum was closed. Pavel was a great guy, dedicated to the group, etc. I guess the financial responsibility was too much to bear himself.

Along came the Ricoh GR. It was an experience that brought many to the Ricoh brand. Time passed again and the GRII was released. An amazing camera. It did things with 16mp that other makers couldn’t match. I took a nap and when I woke…(not WOKE, but woke) and then, there,  there it was, the one and only Ricoh GRIII. Now we have a camera that just about kills everything else.

The GRIII never fails to inspire and work with me. But wait my friends, oh yes… there is more than you can imagine or want to.  I was out on the street and Muddy the Ricoh GRIII told me he got an internal message from a Ricoh engineer. The message was about a new, real new Ricoh GRIIIx. This new-fangled camera sees at 40mm. That’s right. After 12 years, Ricoh made the 40mm GRIIIx.

Now, you’ll know me and I am not impulsive at all. When it comes to acquiring a new camera, I might just take a full minute to decide. I know, I know… usually 30 sec.  So I watched all around and then, then on the eBay listings, there it was. I mean the guy had a listing for a new Ricoh GRIIIx and it was ready to ship.  13 seconds later, he thanked me for the buy. He said it would ship in less than a day.  2 daze later, I had the camera. I immediately named the camera, Peter, after my old friend that passed years ago.

The camera is essentially set up the same as the GRIII. I went for a walk a bout the next day and well, it was nice but I was like…what have you done for me lately? Peter the Ricoh GRIIIx told me, look shooter, I am the new guy. I don’t appreciate you putting pressure on me to perform until we bond. I agreed and quietly apologized. The next day we go out again. I must say… the GRIII is one of my lifesaver cameras. I mean, when I am in a stalemate with life, I take the GRIII out and it saves me and revitalizes my vision.

That being said, I felt the GRIIIx can’t do that. Maybe, because my mind is trained to see 28mm and then Peter makes me see 40mm. Old habits are hard to break. I’m too old to want to do any of that. I waited maybe 12 years for this 40mm Ricoh and now that I have it, I don’t like it. It’s not the 40mm either. My M43 cameras love that Lumix 20mm 1.7.  The GRIIIx is a fine camera but not for me. I suppose I need to sell it off. I rather swap out and get something new.

awww, no worries, I have more tales of life and death of my cameras, soon

 

Philosophy of Street, Street Photography

Covid 19 … Embracing Our History … and It’s Variations Thru Time

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My idea when I go out to work is to think about the present and generate new ideas. Of course life enters rather quickly and all goes to pot. I suppose we have memories and we store them someplace but they are always active and effect the present. I think it was Dorothea Kehaya that said, “See things as if your seeing them for the first time”. I’m not saying she coined the phrase but I heard it from her ages ago. I find that an impossible task. I mean memories and info are pollutants. No matter what I do I can’t get them out of my head and heart. This unfortunately goes for my exes too. laffs. So many say to see things as if for the first time. I firmly believe this is  destructive to think and feel. that way.  I try to see the world in a frame, I mean I see the image frame and then get placement of the subject matter to where it feels right. I know that many times over 50 years, I have seen something many different ways but the memory of the last image of it pollutes the present moment.


The interesting thing is …. since the dawn of all time, the very first cave man photographer, no 1 second ever is repeated in the same way. Maybe,  just maybe, this means that time is a measuring device that reminds us of the all important Being In the Moment. Only shooters can ever be aware of the moment.

So instead of doing battle with our past images, perhaps we should embrace those moments and if they seem to present themselves in the here and now of the moment, they aren’t really. Maybe they are guides that we have established and set for our work.

The connection as I see it is the eye, mind and heart. Ideally, all three elements come together at the precise moment of exposure. This is a known fact among shooters…but, what about the start of seeing the image. How does that actually work? I call it a trigger mechanism. I get walking and my camera is in my hand and I’m kinda tuned in a place where I am letting the world seep in my mind. Then, all the sudden something or someone strikes a chord. My juices get flowing and my sensitivities and sensibilities are activated. I start to breathe and feel a new photo coming. The trigger is what stimulates the creative process. The camera gets ready and i start framing,,,, there are thoughts and opinions on framing.

It becomes a travesty to ignore or attempt to erase history. In photography, history lends direction either from the past or implied to the future. Looking for the next photo may or may not be an easy task but it certainly should be attainable by all in pursuit of it.  Our internal vision and our external vision needs to be awake and excited and connected whenever we work. What happens when a dry spell knocks on the door? Well, that’s an issue most of us have to deal with. Having a defined history of our work, allows us to research it and bring the gist of it to our present and help shape our future.

I know this seems like non photography but it’s all about your photography. Your living this regardless of your awareness of it or not. Making photos is personal only if we adopt and apply a perspective that is our own. Mind you, it’s impossible but we strive to work that way. There are 3 aspects of time that we need observe. The past, or history, the present that is history in the making  and the future that is to become history.

When we look at our archive of photos, we are seeing our history. These footprints pave the way for the future and we should not discount the life of these photos. Maybe many will say, seeing your history will make you repeat it over and over. That is pure rubbish. There are few places on the planet that are vacant of history. In photography, like it or not, we are treading on someone’s history all the time. Nothing wrong with that at all.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

So, how to relate this too our photography and make sense of it. For a long time I was working in series or groups of photos. I mean relative consciousness of the images. I would strive to make photos that fit together with others to be something more that the single frame. Long ago before my mind was even alive, I read a book on Gestalt Psychology.  It taught me that all the parts are greater then the whole. This idea has perplexed me for decades.

I always liked to take things apart and analyze them and see what and why things tick. Well I got to thinking in later years and understood the the parts of the sum have an intrinsic value on each part that the whole may encompass but shadow over due to the mass collection of the parts.

In photography, we can not escape history. More importantly, we can never nor should we try to erase the history of others. The path we travel with our camera can be guided if not directed by what has been done before. If we embrace the history of ours and others, we give birth to the present and the future. Now with lockdowns and eases of them, we can not be lost. The struggle to create and FEEL again is reborn. We can unleash an energy inside us craving to make photos.

We are at a point of rebirth and it’s gonna be special but only because we love the history of Mother Light and all she grants us and has granted our fellow shooters across time.

 

 

 

 

Inspired Eye, Philosophy of Street, Street Photography

Covid-19 … Exploring The Control In Our Photography

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Well, COVID is a spirit and creative killer. When this started, I was told maybe 2 months back to normal. That came and went. No-fault of anyone and this is not a political post by any means. Maybe it’s about control. Not political, racial or anything else. It’s about the control of the mind and the heart. Why is this important?  Well, ya asked so I will tell my feelings about this.

Seems like long ago I breathed a freedom that engulfed my essence. It was a fine breathing I tellya. Pure creative energy entered me and filled me and gave me life.  Oh, don’t get it wrong. I still breathe but thru an N95.

There are so many elements that want to control us. What really matters is how we respond and hold stance during all this. Then, then enters Mother Light. She provides inspiration for photography more than anyone or anything else in life. One of the interrupters of inspiration is control. We as shooters are accountable for the control or lack of it in our work. I’m not talking about our lives because our lives is our work. It’s one and the same.


If you know anything about the 60’s, you might remember a Doctor. His name was Dr. Timothy Leary. Anyway, he invented a medicine that made ya feel like there was no control, no control in the universe. There was a feeling of separation of reality and your essence. Well, I don’t really have any experience with that sorta stuff. I wouldn’t know how all that effected photography, after all I am a kinda sorta maybe stand up guy.  I am and I dang sure don’t need anyone to cover me or help.

Back to mission control. I found thru life that if we stop trying to get control, we actually get control. Well, for example. I can’t really go to a camera store, not in the physical sense, and not find a camera that I absolutely must have.

 

Sometimes I might be a little crazy. it’s true. My shrink at the VA will confirm. My doc always ask questions and expects me to answer. So he asked me if I ever talk to myself.  I said, Doc, it’s ok to talk with yourself. It’s even ok to answer yourself as long as you know it’s you doing the talking and answering. If you think it’s someone else talking and answering, then ya have a problem and you get a new patient.

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So I started to groove on the control thing. I wanted to explore this but only thru photography. We have cameras, lenses, processing things all sorts of things to aid my struggle for control. I started to realize that photos are the prime example of control. In a photo wee can see the elements and graphics and even emotions and the struggle for that control. Framing, tones, color, shapes. tonal values. subject matter etc all in focus and a direct result of control.

I stated at the onset of this, when we stop trying to get control, we actually get control. If our photos are a direct visual reflection of control… what happens if we stop trying to control our photography?

I’ll be back shortly and continue …

Dreamcatcher, Philosophy of Street, Street Photography

Covid 19 … History Of The World … Pt2

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screech….boom ….clang….

Hey all, that’s shooters magic time machine and I just returned from the history inside my tired mind. Man Caves are very supportive of photography. See, when we delve into the creative side of ourselves, we need a place to breathe and let us get inspired.  See, it is said that negative only supports negative energy. Positive energy supports everything and has the power to fuel negative energy to either neutralize it or guide it to the positive side.

So, in todays times and real estate market, it’s dang near impossible to secure a man cave. Oh, they are around but they have wifi, massaging chairs and Fancy Dancy beds that vibrate when ya get on it. Alright, I’m 71 but dang it, if yo need an auto vibrate when your on the bed with your lady or anyone, it’s a problem. I’ll be just fine making my own natural vibrations, with some one or alone, I’m a natural vibrator…hmmmm.

So this is all really about the source and feeding of inspiration.  What we need to pay attention to it the Inverse Square Law. I’ll give a few examples to illustrate the idea.  This is about being married. So, the more things you do for your wife, the less things she tells you to do. The less things you do for her, the more she has for you to do.

If a man cave has all the fine things for comfort, chances are you will be comfy but not very productive.  Your mind is occupied with the pleasures in front of you. So, lets move our man cave away and get it inside our mind. We will leave the window open for the heart to be in touch. nothing exist in the man cave but feelings and thoughts and that will inspire you. The less clutter in our mind, the more freedom to manufacture the creative juices.

The key issue has become, how to get re-inspired and creative and productive. There are three things we have the option of doing. Maintaining apathy, surrendering or struggle to survive.  We are accountable for our choice and we can’t blame it on anyone but ourselves. My choice is the struggle to survive and continue. For me that means, eliminate the opposition to my creativity. It’s like having a filtration system that is adjustable for input. I am not a sports fan and I don’t drink alcohol. All that means is, easy to sit back, drink and become apathetic. Not everyone tho, I’m talking me.

We need input like the news but a filtered amount. That does inspire us some as it’s life the way they want us to see and live it.  One way to get inspiration is to buy new cameras. It cost money and the magic can wear off quickly. So I came up with this crazy solution. I mean it’s so crazy it just might work. You’ ins may think I’m crazy but I choose to use my cameras. The hard part is to find photos in a semi controlled environment with a lack of strong inspiration. I suppose it’s time for me to post my formula for inspiration and love of making photos.

Remember we talked about the Inverse Square Law? Well, here is a practical  application. This is about discipline. let’s work the discipline/freedom method. This is a 5-7 day experiment, not an exercise. This is not a take photo project, it is a make photo project.

Day 1. Make 5 photos. Not 4 and not 6. No sequences either.  Each photo should be worthy of your love of what you do with a camera.

Day 2. Make 4 photos, not 3 and not 5. Once again, work to make each a photo worthy or you.

Day 3.  Make 3 photos as the daze B4.

Day 4 make 2 photos and be decisive. Pay attention the the energy that is being created.

Day 5. Make 1 photo. The hardest day of your life.. On this magical day, the photo you make shall be a representation of all that you are and hope to become.

Day 6 & 7 are the same energy as Day 5.

Each day process the photos to your liking. I mean to the point that you sit back and are amazed that you even made the photo.  Make all the variations you please but only 1 final photo.

If you make a variation on this experiment, it will  fail. I was roped into teaching workshops years ago. It was film daze and interesting. We as a group would meet and discuss things. The shared thoughts and energy was remarkable. Today with the net, we have the opportunity to share with others worlds away.

Any questions, answers or ideas, I’m open. If ya need help with the experiment, feel free to let me know and we can skype or something. Mayme it seems like a mundane or superficial experiment but it’s certainly is not. Igf ya ask where and how I come off with this, well it’s a gift. For me life is a gift and I never question it. So the answer is, we are all accountable for each other. Pass it along and I’ss be back in a few daze.

Dreamcatcher, Inspired Eye, Philosophy of Street, Street Photography

Covid 19 … History Of The World … Pt1

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There’s a stillness in the air. I am told if and when that happens, to be grateful that little or nothing is going on. Just relax and let the still waters take you. Y’all know me. I ain’t no huckleberry. I don’t usually take the path of least resistance. Not that I do battle with life every day but I don’t surrender to it either. I know there are many Zen followers out there and many tell me to just go with the flow. I always ask, go where, tell me huh?

Besides all that… when someone asks me my advice about this I always say… pick up your damn camera and get to work. I get kinda freaked out if I go too long without making photos. I think it’s a matter of surrendering. Harry Callahan told me as we were talking and making a portrait of him…when you feel it all slipping away and you feel like all is being lost, that’s when you stand tall and fight with life.

I am very unstable about stability. What I think I mean is … we need to have a stable stance thru life. Maybe we sway in the winds of life but like a strong old oak tree, we go with it and after the storm, we are still standing.  So, the reason the tree still stands is because it has the balls to carry on and the roots as a base for stability.

How does that apply to us? Well from my perspective and it’s usually 35mm, it gives us a path to find our balls and roots, I can only honestly talk about my life so I will. Odds are some parts of what I express, you may feel also. There is a law in physics that states,” For every action, there is a reaction”.  There is no reaction without an action. Remember that a reaction may in itself become an action.

Example: I order a camera from Amazon, an action. They deliver next day and Tanya gets the package at the door because I am not capable of cleaning the covid19 enemies from the package. She opens the package, looks and sees a new camera. What is this? Reaction procedure starts.  Let’s jump back in time and see where this all comes from.

See, the very first married couple on the planet were actually a wee bit different than how history describes.  Adan and Eve they got right. It’s all wrong from there. Eve was cooking soup for lunch and Adam went for a walk amongst the animals. Remember, there’s no other humans invented yet. So Adam went into the local cave hangout and turned on the TV to watch the animal kingdom. He popped open a cold beer and sat back and then…. a lion came in and said, Adam, Eve is coming this way.  Adam started to leave the Man Cave but a woman elephant named Esmeralda blocked the entrance. Adam was caught with his pants down and he didn’t even have pants cause Eve didn’t sew them yet. Well, Esmeralda the elephant moved away and the light of day spilled into the Man Cave and Eve was in the light. She had something in her hand and approached Adam.

Ya know how they told us that the cave men used to have a big club and they hit a women on the head and take her home and have their way with her.  What a load of crap that is. See, Eve came to Adam in the Man Cave and then whacked him on the head with a big club that they tell us men have. As Adam lay o the floor n dream land, Eve straightened up the Man Cave and told the men animals, I’m taking him home and he’s gonna do the dishes if I can figure out what that means. She made a look on her face that made the men animals cower and become kind of submissive and quiet.  As Eve was leaving the Man Cave pulling Adam by the hair .. the man lion said. Ma’am, can we keep this between us, my wife is Queen of the jungle and we don’t even have a jungle yet. I don’t like upsetting her cause she roars and everyone knows I’m in trouble. it don’t look good to the guys if i get roared at. Eve smirked, yeah sure.

Why am I writing this? because I am tired of the lies from the media. Here, is the truth of the matter as I believe it.   I will post again within 2 days.

 

 

 

Dreamcatcher, Street Photography

COVID-19 … Acquired vs Intuitive Knowledge

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… I know, it’s kinda a sick thing to say that there’s anything good about the virus. But there is I tellya…it might not be a pretty picture, but it’s still a picture. As photographers, we know about photographs but pictures,  ah,  a different thing altogether.  

Time is the measure of life. It’s also the measure of relaxation, not that I understand that. To be honest, I don’t care a bit about COVID for me but I am protective of others, so I wear a mask. Besides, Tanya will beat my ass if I don’t wear one.  So I have never been known to be a patient man. Like, when I get a camera, I charge the battery and hit the street. I figure things out as I go.

For me, there are 2 ways to Grok something. The first is acquired. Like you read a manual or follow a recipe, maybe watch a video to learn, go to a class, there are many ways to acquire knowledge.

The other is intuitive assimilation.  This means that you use a little known part of the body ion conjunction with another. The mind and the heart work together to get an understanding of the situation. If you get a camera and just take it out and start using and learning it, that’s intuitive assimilation.

The key to this is, application and that’s the main issue at hand.  I find I can read a manual many times and never really get in my brain what I am reading and supposedly learning. The application doesn’t work for me so well. I read and read and go over it many times and then take the camera out and low and behold, I need to check the manual in my phone. This works for many many ppl, unfortunately, not my cup of tea.

The intuitive acquired knowledge procedures. I remember many lifetimes ago when I was 12yo. I went to work with my Grandfather installing a hardwood floor. He was using a Cavanough nailing machine. He told me to go easy and any nails that we did not set, to use a punch and hammer to set them. He told me over and over to pay attention and be careful. Well, at 12, I didn’t understand what the meant but I soon learned. I was setting nails and for a fraction of a second, on the downswing of the hammer stroke, I turned my head. I let out a scream that woke the dead. My thumb was pulsing in pain like I never experienced. Pop came to me and hugged me and took me to the car and did first aid in a manly way. I didn’t cry but I used a word Pop used when he was mad. I yelled out F*CK very loud. He laffed. He put Peroxide on my thumb and wrapped a few band-aids on it.

I learned a few lessons that day. He told me the hammer was named Jack, after his brother. He told me that Jack was obedient and if you want him to smash your thumb, he will without feeling on his part. Pop told me that no matter how many times he told me to be careful, I didn’t learn. Just one smash of the thumb and for the rest of your life, you will pay attention to Jack the hammer.

So this is a prime example of Intuitive Acquired Knowledge. When I get a camera, I take it out right away after charging the battery. I set the date and time and Raw & jpeg and other things that are common denominators between cameras.  The thing is, what I learn with this camera, even at my age, I never forget regardless of what another camera I may be using. Pick one up and in seconds, all is clear. It amazes me cause I can’t remember the password for my websites, can’t remember things that happened a few hours ago. I pick up a camera I haven’t used in months and in a few seconds, ready to roll.

They say the mind is a terrible thing to waste. I ain’t wasting mine just watching parts of it slip away…….

 

Fujifilm, Street Photography

COVID-19 … The Re-Birth of the Fuji X100V

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This story is not for the faint of heart. Please heed this warning.

It was a day of camera infamy. I was ut making photos with my dearest friend, Andre’ the Leica M9. He was hanging around my neck. My Doctors at the VA told me to be careful not to gain too much weight. So, it seemed to me that Andre’ the Leica M9 put weight on. He seemed heavy on me.  I know he has a LIGHT appetite but nonetheless seemed heavy. So, I took him off the neck and put him in my right hand and wrapped the strap around my wrist. We moved on our way and continues looking for the lost photos we set out to find.

It’s usually an enjoyable experience that I have had over 50 years with a Leica. Cameras know when you are at a point of detachment and the time together is coming to an end. Andre’ the Leica M9 is no exception and we worked perhaps for the last time on the streets together.

I feared not having him with me but something happened that I can’t explain.  I was loving the Fuji X100V but the release was always erratic for me. I decided tho sell it on eBay a few months ago. I used the term IT because IT let me down many times and I can’t bond to IT. COVID19 has taught me a few things and one it to slow down and think things out. I waited for the right moment to list the FujiX100V. The time came and I set up to make photos to make an ad.

 

Then the Angel that works for Mother Light, shined her light into me head. She said to me, shooter, it’s very dark and empty in your head. I shine my light in there and only a few things reflect back to me.  I smiled at the Angel and told her, if you were naked, many things would be in my poor head. She didn’t laff and said one more smart ass remark and you’ll be eating out of Barsik the Cat’s food bowl. So, the Angel told me to try the X100V again before making any decisions. She looked around to make sure no one was with us. I wondered, what’s she thinking? Then the Angel that works for mother light took my right hand and kissed it. I felt a tingle, well all over ya know. 70yo and a young Angel kiss my hand…. She said The X100V needs to be named Andre’. Get it!  Then she turned to fly out the window to home with Mother Light. She said, Shooter, I will always be with you in your head causee ain’t much else in there. Your a sexi old shooter.  Well, I mean, I kinda felt some kinda special and decided to just sit for a moment. Smiles all over my body. Parts that I can’t write about. They be really smiling and stuff.

So as the Angel Child of Mother Light told me, I picked up the Fuji X100V. I touched it all over, nit shape, sweet buttons, and a feel of feminity. What! Wait, I named this camera after m,y friend Walt. How can this be? Then I closed my eyes, my fingers felt every mm of the Fuji X100V.

I thought about the feminity of the camera and I was perplexed. Then, … then my finger touched the release. I was ready for the worst experience in human recorded history, the continuing failure of the FujiX100V./I pressed it down. A single shot. My heart was racing, blood flowing to the very tip of my finger. I could feel it pulsing and I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I prayed for the Angel Child of Mother Light to help me. I was in a stat between keep and sell. Then I got an incoming message and it said, ” Shooter, use the force Shooter”. If you name a camera wrong,  it will never work properly.

She was in my head and heart at this very instant and I asked….Angel Child…. what is thy name?  She said, I am the Angel Child of Mother Light and for you, my name is Sara.

So I figured that my Fuji X100V is named Sara. Sara the Angel Child of Mother Light did magic on my Fuji X100v. Now, it works perfectly and the only explanation is that Sara, did magic to my camera, my eye, and my heart.

Still ain’t a whole lot going on in my head but I plan on exploring it all the time and posting my results.  So the continuing saga of shooter the Philly photographer and Sara the Fuji X100V continues.

 

Inspired Eye, Street Photography

COVID-19 … Discover and Re – Discovering My Vision

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The more things change, the more they stay the same.

It’s true I tellya. Many years ago, I was hanging out with Jeff K. He was a good influence on me. A very focused guy and ties to the Phila Museum of Art. He knew Michael Hoffman and Paul Strand. Jeff had photos of both of them and many of Strand that he made. I just loved looking at them. He never once bragged about anything but just told stories about the photos. I can’t repeat them because I feel they were very personal and Jeff shared them with me that way. But I can say that Michael was like a son to Paul Strand.

I mentioned this for a reason. I had been a serious photographer for about 20 years prior to meeting Jeff. I was no novice and very dedicated to my life’s work. He asked me to bring photos for him to look at. He felt if we are to be friends, he wants to know about what I do and feel with my work. This is what many call an analog experience.  So, we met again about a week later and I brought a box of prints to show him. I just piled many in a box and handed it to him.

We sat on a sofa and he started to drop prints on the floor in front of us. He was grouping the photos and I got kinda squeamish. See, years before my 2 friends named Paul, yes both, got on me about being loose and not so organized. I did that for a number of years. I suppose it did offer some kind of freedom and perhaps I needed that. This was different and I felt the change on the horizon.

I trusted Jeff because we were rapidly becoming friends and he had the knowledge I never had. I felt that we filled a void in each other. He with his education and knowledge and my working from the heart. S, these groups started to grow and the box was getting emptier and emptier. Jeff laid out about 30 prints on the floor that were mostly legs and or shadows. It was easy for me to see but I was blind to the idea that there were different series of photos even tho there was a connection.

He coined the term “Gambe’ Game”. I liked the word Gambe’ after he told me what it meant. The game was kinda repulsive to me. I told him, I don’t play games. Jeff said, when you are working a series, it’s like a game, like scrabble. you’re looking for missing parts. I started to awaken to the ideas he was presenting to me. Then he asked me to group the rest of the photos. I was very eager to do that.

I felt for over 20 years that I was not doing things the right way. Both Paul’s put me on a course and it’s good but like a sailor on the sea of life, without the stars above, you’re lost. Your lost even tho you are going someplace. It’s how I felt until this moment. I felt then that the stars were guiding me. They were my stars and like beacons that shined bright to my heart. By becoming fully aware of the variables that were my images, I was liberated and had a sense of well being. I met with Jeff a number of times and then time passed and so did our friendship. The lessons learned are the lessons one needs to pass on.

I’m publishing this short of finished because I need to see WP is being nice. If it is, in a few days I will continue rambling.

For everyone’s info and safety, this post was written wearing an N95 mask.