Flowing Through the Day

 Camera with me, first groan of day, a look at nothing but sleep and blur without glasses.  This is where it begins. Some days are remarkably the same.  Others remarkably different.  I've made this photograph before with much the same thoughts.

As the day fades I see reminders of things past.  And people.  Tom once in the news.  Worked with his father Bill.  It was a long time ago.  The camera keeps me asking, "Where did the days go?".

So far, no answers.

Spring in New York

Warm weather returned to New York this week. I had a chance to just sit and watch people---an activity far more interesting than any television program or film. These two images felt right in black and white, throwbacks/homages to "real" street photography.

While these two bloom with spring color. And it made me wonder, why do we tend to change the color of our attire with the seasons?

Amy

Compared to a decade ago, Amy is much more cooperative when being photographed. 

Reflecting Emotion

Finding these lonely crosses, icons of loss for some anonymous family or loved one, leaves me with a sinking feeling.  Placed at the summit cross of Jacks Mountain adds a sweeping perspective of the world and reflects the notion of how small we all are in the world.  

Even in the bright sun there's a heaviness to this.

A similar feeling found me when I peered into the sky on a rainy day.  And I felt that same sense of insignificance.  Not sure anyone else does and am not sure why I'm drawn that direction.

Suppose I'll keep photographing until I answer the question.  Maybe I never will.

New York City

Human embrace in the City of New York. 

While NYC does have its romantic side, it's not the first thing that comes to mind when I think of a day in the city. There is "closeness," but that's due to the number of human beings in one small area. For me, these two scenes, one spontaneous the other staged, play with ideas of love, closeness, and "the romantic." 

With the couple on the subway, I find a genuine emotion shown in their embrace---they are comforting each other, and neither seem to care that they are in a public place.

The wedding couple in Grand Central Station became a spectacle, and their pose seemed to be just that, a performance for the public. I can imagine that the photos shot by their wedding photographer present a "romantic" scene---perhaps it is where the two met. Maybe they are trying to say their love withstands the chaos and confusion of daily life (another overly romanticized idea).

Color, Words

Words, as I wander through life with the camera, tend to leap at me. The color red---in bold and subtle forms---can punctuate a scene I might not otherwise pay attention to. In these three images, the words and color are part of the history of these places; it is the history---the human hand---of each scene that I find most interesting.
Faded purple curtains, an ill-framed door, empty propane tank, and an "island" walled with chain-link fencing get me thinking about the owners, employees, and patrons of these sites. But the greatest puzzle to me is the "Afro-Blue . . ." inscription found next to railroad tracks in the small town of Beacon, NY. Along with the artwork, are these railroad "hobo" messages or the work of a local poet? And that, to me, is the wonderful thing about photography---it never gives you the absolute truth.

Digital Black and White

 As soon as I move into personal work I return to the black and white interpretation.  Not sure if it's a comfort zone, a resistance to the more complex decisions required to work in color, or if I simply see the world in black and white terms.

I have little reference to black and white in the digital realm and probably won't until I begin making prints on my Epson SureColor P800 printer.  I've not succeeded in climbing out of the urn of inertia yet.

I made this photograph under a heavy sky and was impressed at how textured and overbearing the sky felt without bringing any sort of invasive weather.  Just seemed like God was painting.

I return, over and over, to these isolated landscapes.  I continue to sense freedom in them.  Not so much physical but mental as the noise of modern life gives way to some space for thought.  Looking at this picture I see no cares or concerns -- just a feeling of not being commanded to perform.

Did not make it into the chemical darkroom yet.  I did expose several frames of Ilford HP5 today with the Hasselblad.  This scene as well.  Hopefully something will stir me to process film.

Black and White Views

More and more I find myself drawn back toward black and white images.  The simplicity of not having to deal with color seems to be more closely aligned to how I see, or process things personally.
These images were made while casually looking -- the first during a walk with the dogs in the garden and the second while riding the Vespa.

Not sure what to make of either of them aside from sensing a connection between what I saw and how I feel looking at them now.  That's something right?

A Well-Tagged Warning
I found these signs along a foot path and was unclear what danger was around. Territorial warnings trump the original message. They made me think of madness---the madness of the group rather than the one, "Helter Skelter." But, there's an element of time as well, as if each sign is a record of human activity. The signatures and words cover not only the face of the sign but each other as well. The original intention of the signs is lost. They live on in service of the people who have signed them.