So I’m on the couch watching CNN and I hear a ruckus upstairs. I start to walk up the steps and it becomes obvious that the noise is coming from the office or back bedroom. So, slowly I walk down the hallway, being very careful so the cameras that are sleeping don’t wake up. Quietly I walk into the office and there, there on the 1st shelf, there on the 1st shelf all by his lonesome is Andre’ the Fuji X100s dancing. Not a slow dance either. Ya’s gotta trust me here. If’n ya’s never saw a camera dance, well, Andre’ the Fuji X100s is dancing kinda like Disco. Oh, yes, don’t you laff at me, just because my camera dances and yours doesn’t, well, that there is your problem.

So I took the headphones off of Andre’ and as it turns out he was listening to Donna Summer. I figured, I ain’t saying nuttin, he gotz class. As I am bent over, Andre’ shoots a lasso of the Luigi Neck Strap at me and it goes right around my neck. I take this to be a subtle action that means he wants to go out. So I figure, any camera that can dance to Donna Summer, turn on the iPad and use headphones, find Donna Summer, throw a lasso of Luigi neck strap and get it right around my neck, well, he’s bad ass and I don’t mind being on the street with him.

Don’t forget my friends, he never woke any other camera up. That’s a feat in itself. 

Andre’ says it’s raining and maybe we should call off the shoot. Well, at this point, I felt like the hero Andre’ thinks I am. I said, look my friend, there exist a beauty in the human condition under diversity that one should go to and not run from. Andre’ the Fuji X100s looks at me and says, look kid, your a nice guy, smoked toooo much funny shit when you were a kid but all in all, your ok. What does all this have to do with being in the rain?

Ya know, he had me stumped for sure, I couldn’t answer him so I made that face like… I’ll pull your battery out sucker…. sometimes ya have to just find a natural compromise with life and it’s inhabitants. I decide and Andre’ lets me decide to just be in the beauty of the rain and to just feel our way around. I don’t mind Andre’ feeling things hanging around my neck but if he’s in my pocket, I don’t want him feeling anything down there.

So we are in this really nice natural just wanna see and make photos of what we see mode. No expectations, preconceptions, wants, rules, suggestions, ideas, anything but just seeing.

Now I gotta tell ya, lets keep this between you and me. Andre’ the Fuji X100s is a great camera and a great friend. We have good conversations and everything. The thing is, When we are out working, he’s very quiet. Most he will do is let me have control and he usually set’s the ISO,. That’s it. So I think he figures by being this way, if the photos aren’t that good, it’s my fault and not his. Some friend huh?

So, when I teach a class there is always someone that ask me if I talk to my camera. Well, I say, what are you crazy, cameras can’t talk. Sheeeesh, we use mental telepathy to communicate. If they get that, they have a good shot at being a human being with a camera. If not, they will struggle their entire life looking for what they can never find.

So I had Andre’ hanging around my neck. I have my left hand covering his top and like a cover over the lens. Then my right hand can raise him to my eye and he stays kinda dry. I mean I didn’t get a drop of water on the lens all day. I made a lot of photos, well for me it’s a lot but I posted just a few cause that’s what I did.

Tomorrow if you remind me I’ll show you what I did to my thumb grip. It’s a great idea and I been using it like this for a while….

no  no……. ya gotta wait till tomorrow… till then

…. be blessed on your journey……………………………………………………………………..