Terrance Was a Little Low

A smile to make you smile

A Little Bit Harder Now

Sofia by akimuby hi https://flic.kr/p/2kSfKdt

Never work but not always play either by Zeb Andrews Many years ago now I made the conscious decision to stop "taking" photos and instead started "making" photos. In subtle ways I think this choice has played an important role in my growth as a photographer and helped steer how I look at and think about my photography. In that vein, I think I am going to make a new decision regarding how I think/talk about my photography. I am no longer going to call it "work". It just isn't at all accurate. My photography is never work. Sometimes it takes effort or dedication or perseverance but it isn't work. Often there is sweat and sometimes blood involved but it still isn't work. Photography outings may leave me exhausted physically but not in the same way work can. Nor do I look at it as work in the business sense. Sure I market or license or sell the occasional image, but I could scarcely have less interest in doing so. It is not my day job... or even my night job. I try to get out of my own way when opportunities come to me, but given the choice between "building my business" or spending a Sunday out waiting on a 10 minute exposure to finish while watching clouds drift across the sky and listening to the breeze blow the tree branches over my head... well, I'll be somewhere out there 10 times out of 10. So why do I call what I do work then? Largely because it has never occurred to me to think about the use of that word before now. And if it isn't work, then what is it? I am not really sure. Often it is a form of play. Sometimes it is an affirmation. While at other times it is a way to be alive. It is definitely passion and it is also curiosity. It is about beauty and wonder. It can be any of those things but also more, or other. But I know it is not work. I gotta stop calling it that. And there is no harm in simply calling it photography. It is that, without a doubt. Calling it photography is certainly more accurate for me than calling it work. So you might ask, why does it matter? Well, "matters" works on a scale. There are big things that matter a lot and then there are little things that matter a little, and of course there are all sorts of in between. I cannot tell you that this will matter all that much, but it feels a bit more right. And just as when I stopped taking photos, it may require some time before I can really sense how such a minor realignment in speech and thought will play out. And beside, many grand tapestries are woven of very small threads so even if this is but a small thread it plays a role in a much larger picture which is my life as a photographer. And that to me definitely matters. Anyway, just some thoughts to share that occurred to me on my lunch break today. Been carrying these around for the past several hours now and had to set them down somewhere. This caption seemed as good a spot as any. Horseman SW612 Kodak Portra 160 https://flic.kr/p/2kSfPKp

Photography: The Unisphere: Or Around and Under the world . . . in 8.5 Minutes

Photography: The Unisphere: Or Around and Under the world . . . in 8.5 Minutes @nycparks @AllianceForFMCP @FMCP_NYC

Photography: The Unisphere: Or Around and Under the world . . . in 8.5 Minutes After stoping at Clem’s for a few drinks, there was a last minute, late night stop at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park for some shots of the Unisphere. Honestly, despite the fact that I live about 15 minutes down the street from the park, I’ve never been in it late at night. (Of course, as I got older, I spent most of my…

View On WordPress

TOU・JIN・BO

TOU・JIN・BO

TOU・JIN・BO

PXL_20210222_165129940 by raumark_pfsoe https://flic.kr/p/2kEvqrB

Bonnie’s Last Gift: Never Used

My former life…

Harlech, Gwynedd, Wales (flickr)

Pavilion

JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi is pictured during a spacewalk by NASA Johnson https://flic.kr/p/2kJZZJ1