In My Back Pocket – Photography

Category: Lookback Photos – One Year Ago

Rainbow Re-edit

July 29th, 2015

Wind Turbines and Rainbow – Oahu 1

Plantation Fire – Haleiwa, Oahu

Wind Turbines and Rainbow – Oahu 5

Wind Turbines and Rainbow – Oahu 4

Wind Turbines and Rainbow – Oahu 3

Two summers ago, my wife, daughter and I enjoyed two weeks on Oahu. We rented a car, a Ford Fusion, for the time and used it to take us on day trips exploring Oahu. In the second week we returned for perhaps the fourth time to Haleiwa, part of Oahu’s North Shore. Exploring, shopping and photo gathering were elements of that day. We’d each finished an ice cream cone and were buying t-shirts for my son when sirens of fire engines moved through town – one, then, five minutes later another.

To the north, a plantation, perhaps a mile away was burning and dark black smoke was billowing in the air.

When traffic had returned to its steady flow we got into the car with the intention of returning to Honolulu for the evening. Traffic had slowed, returning to an ambling pace. As we headed away from Haleiwa the idea to see the site of the fire attracted my curiosity. I took a right from the main road and followed a one-lane backroad toward the fire. I thought better of it; the backroad to the plantation was narrow and blocking traffic would be a problem.

I stopped our vehicle, got out and looked back over my right shoulder to see these wind turbines with a rainbow coming down in the midst of them – an opportunity for a photograph had presented itself. I attached my 70-200mm lens to my Canon 60D, zoomed in and captured these images. I posted the image on this blog maybe eighteen months ago, an image edited on my laptop while waiting for clothes to dry in the laundry room of the Marriott Hotel in Honolulu. The original posted is the third image above. Yesterday, I explored this sequence of images and found a few others to share. My thanks to Mark Kurtz for drawing my attention back to these images.

Listening to – Parov Stelar’s ‘Room Service,’ Nitin Sawhney’s ‘Firmament,’ the Gotan Project’s ‘Santa Maria (Del Buen Ayre)’ and Quantic & Tempo’s ‘Sabor.’

Quote to Consider – “In photography there are no shadows that cannot be illuminated.” – August Sander
Above the Pave

February 15th, 2015

La Crete – The Pave

Twin Lakes – Slough

The week has presented opportunity to work with Adobe Photoshop CS6 with High Dynamic Range (HDR) images – side-lit clouds in sunset’s golden hour present colour, light and shadow in interesting ways; I’m re-editing two sets of bracketed images for High Dynamic Range work. ‘The Pave’ is a term used by La Crete Mennonites to refer to a seven mile stretch of narrow-shouldered highway that becomes the last portion of road in my October drive from High Level to La Crete. In this image clouds billow in a rhythm, catching colour above ‘the pave’ moments before the sun descends below the horizon. The work in this photo was that of tearing myself away from the impending meeting to capture this colourful image … I would be late. The second image was part of a return drive from Grande Prairie from this past fall, undulating clouds reflected within slough water. In both, I’ve been working with Adobe Bridge and then with the automated function in Adobe Photoshop CS6 to merge bracketed photos into a single HDR image.

I have also been exploring the messages of authors, Courtney Martin (her book, ‘Do It Anyway’) and Parker J. Palmer (his book, ‘The Courage To Teach’), this week. Courtney’s book looks at core elements of resilience and advocacy … sort of ‘The Freedom Writers’ meets the real world in extraordinary and exemplary ways. Parker’s book considers teaching from many facets, one being the inner teacher within the student that the teacher needs to connect with in order to bring about learning. The book is crammed with teaching truth. I am about half-way through and will be moving through it a second time.

Listening to – Dan Mangan & Jesse Zubot’s ‘Cumulonimbus (Newport, ’63),’ Nick Laird-Clowes’ ‘Golborne Road’ and Arvo Part’s ‘Speigel im Spiegel.’

Quote to Inspire – ‘Beauty can be seen in all things, seeing and composing the beauty is what separates the snapshot from the photograph.’ – Matt Hardy
Its Next Turn

January 4th, 2015

Sunset Cloudburst – Valleyview, Alberta – Canada

Vermillion Lakes – Banff, Alberta – Canada

2015 is here. It has arrived. Christmas has come and been, presents have been shared and received, family has been enjoyed, rest has been had. An emphasis on creating images has been more absent during this time.

The time has offered the chance to explore/research the photography of others and Google Circles has been a key venue for doing so. It has been an excellent venue for sharing images. What I am impressed by is the speed and rapidity by which new images are added to one’s home stream. And, it is entirely too easy to reach out and access the camaraderie of other photographers and genres of photography that you or I define. Google Circles is a marvelous means of gathering inspiration for photography by way of witnessing what others manage to create – ideas for what I or anyone might try are right there, in front of you. With Google Circles it has been necessary to pare down distracting and unintended kinds of images; but, it can be done in an easy way that can serve your photographic interests. What I did not anticipate was that it would surface significant interests for next steps in photography.

What this exploration has also surfaced is that good photographers are always in touch with their world; they are familiar with current affairs; they have a good sense of what’s going on in terms of the Arts; they are current with literature and the intentions behind such narrative. They are in step and in sync with their world. And, they create images with intention.

So, this blog, takes its next turn. What will I photograph next? What skills will I aim to grow? What influences will I find in this next year? These are likely your questions too. Good! Let’s see what images we can bring into being.

Gratitude – thank you, to all who have been a part of these three years of ‘In My Back Pocket – Photography;’ thank you for your interest and encouragement; thank you for those times when you’ve steered me to a next idea or skill; thank you for the camaraderie (or, perhaps better stated, solidarity) associated with a common pursuit. It ‘all’ counts and I am grateful.

The images presented here are some fun with black and white and selective colorization, images from this summer’s travels.

Listening to – Chopin’s Nocturne No. 14 in F Sharp minor, Opus 9, No. 1; a recording by Amir Katz.

Quote to Consider – “The best images are the ones that retain their strength and impact over the years, regardless of the number of times they are viewed.” – Anne Geddes
Summer Colour & Warmth

December 26th, 2013

Field Green – Near Greencourt, Alberta

Our Boxing Day is overcast. Snow falls (four inches worth), family sleeps late – the television has had its share of use and all have been able to settle and rest. Coffee and tea warm us. Outside is winter’s cold, an entity that almost requires a northern household to have a fire place to throw off a dry, substantial heat (one day, perhaps) or in-floor heating, at least. Our day is quiet, moving me to recall summer’s colour and warmth, a time when it is easier for an object in motion to stay in motion – a very different time of year. Loreena McKennitt has an album for a day such as this, ‘Music to Drive the Cold Winter Away,’ a Christmas gift from my brother several years back.

Listening to – Ed Sheeran’s ‘The a Team;’ my daughter received sheet music to this song; I’ve had a go at fretting chords and then doing so with the actual song, finding nuance in how it’s played.

“Photography makes us feel that the world is more available than it really is.” – Susan Sontag, ‘On Photography’
Storehouse Timbers

December 26th, 2013

Storehouse – St Louis Catholic Mission – Buttertown, Alberta 1

Storehouse – St Louis Catholic Mission – Buttertown, Alberta 2

Storehouse – St Louis Catholic Mission – Buttertown, Alberta 3

Storehouse – St Louis Catholic Mission – Buttertown, Alberta 4

A spring thaw in the early nineteen-hundreds saw several Fort Vermilion area farms flooded. In one instance a farm building washed out, the movement of the water weakening its foundation enough to topple the structure. Timber for that building floated downstream on the Boyer River becoming snagged at a turn in the river as it passed the St. Louis Catholic Mission in Buttertown. Those timbers were pulled from the river and after a time were used to build this storehouse for the mission. The photo was created in May, 2013. Last Saturday night, the image became editing focal point as I showed my son how Lightroom 5 and NiK Software can be used – four versions were produced, some following his eye’s lead.

Listening to – Coldplay’s ‘Yellow,’ a song I worked through after all had gone to bed last night; the piano work is more difficult than the fretwork; the resonance and dissonance found in the chords and alternate tuning are captivating.

Quote to Consider – “Photographs, which cannot themselves explain anything, are inexhaustible invitations to deduction, speculation, and fantasy.” – Susan Sontag, ‘On Photography’
Remnant Population

October 11th, 2013

47 Ford Tow Truck – McLure, BC

Farm Buildings – Valleyview, Alberta 1

Field, Combine & Buildings – Nampa, Alberta 1

Harvestor Silos – Rimbey, Alberta 1

Harvestor Silos – Rimbey, Alberta 2

Hay Harvest – Keg River, Alberta

Morning Colours – Keg River, Alberta 1

Morning Colours – Keg River, Alberta 2

Summer Cloudwork – Greencourt, Alberta

Telus Tower – Edmonton, Alberta

Remnants of spring, summer and autumn, a cluster of HDR photos populate my photo folder. Farm buildings, fields ripe with grain ready for harvest, trees with autumn leaves desaturating from green toward bright yellows and reds, summer cloudwork and a final shot of Edmonton in green July splendor – all are HDR shots. The 1947 Ford Tow Truck and a cousin’s farm feature visually in this blog post.

Listening to – U2’s ‘Always,’ David Gray’s ‘As I’m Leaving,’ Ryan Adams’ ‘Hallelujah,’ Mazzy Star’s ‘Into Dust,’ Snow Patrol’s ‘Life Boats,’ The Perishers’ ‘Trouble Sleeping’ and U2’s ‘Last Night On Earth.’

Quote to Inspire – “There is nothing as mysterious as a fact clearly described. I photograph to see what something will look like photographed.” – Garry Winogrand
Buttertown Storehouse

October 9th, 2013

Storehouse, St. Louis Mission – Buttertown, Fort Vermilion, Ab 1

Storehouse, St. Louis Mission – Buttertown, Fort Vermilion, Ab 2

The northern lights were out this morning in my pre-dawn walk around High Level – ice crystals are in the air; with last night’s heavy billowing clouds we’re nearing our first snowfall. Here, an image contains two end-points of high dynamic range editing; curiously, I’m liking the colour (tinted) version of the old, old store house at the St. Louis Roman Catholic mission in Buttertown – Fort Vermilion, Alberta. The image has me thinking to former priest, John O’Donohue and different parts of four lectures he’s presented and a journaling exercise he has people work through. The first question to work from is to articulate the seven things that are controlling ideas/elements in your Life – premises upon which your Life is founded.

Listening to – an investigation of the ‘Primitives,’ a group recommended with the ‘iambead.com’ photoblog; ‘Crash’ is the first tune I come across. Then it’s ‘All the Way Down’ and ‘Earth Thing.’

Quote to Inspire – “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you aren’t close enough” – Robert Capa
Mountainous Depth

October 9th, 2013

Valley – McLure, British Columbia 1

Valley – McLure, British Columbia 2

Valley – McLure, British Columbia 3

Valley – McLure, British Columbia 4

Valley – McLure, British Columbia 5

Valley – McLure, British Columbia 6

This high dynamic range image is a final outlook over the valley that leads north and east into McLure, British Columbia. Depth within the image is created overlapping elements within the composition, the mountain forming the background is overlapped by the central mountain, then the mountain on the left (middle ground) and finally the mountain on the right (closest – foreground). The train track leads the eye into the photo and you explore your way from foreground to background. Colouration versus black and white in the images also helps accentuate depth.

Listening to – U2’s ‘Vertigo’ and ‘Miracle Drug’.

Quote to Inspire – “I have to shoot three cassettes of film a day, even when not ‘photographing’, in order to keep the eye in practice.” – Josef Koudelka
Edit – To Understand

June 12th, 2013

Metal Geometry – Lac St. Anne, Alberta

A look back edit this morning, time looking to understand the appeal of this image. Again, more metal geometry attracts in the patterned strength of linear lines, the shadow play in degrees of light and shape and the trestle’s placement within context – linearity, water and foliage.

Listening to – Maroon 5’s ‘Lucky Strike,’ Roisin Murphy’s ‘Night of the Dancing Flame’ and Wang Chung’s ‘To Live and Die in L.A..’ Then it’s one of those intriguing songs of observation from all those years ago with Stocki’s ‘Rhythm and Soul’ broadcast on BBC Radio Ulster, a song to recommend – Peter Himmelman’s ‘Impermanent Things.’ Next, it’s Jane Siberry and K.D. Lang with ‘Calling All Angels.’ Finally, it’s a song from Ray Lamontagne & the Pariah Dogs that fits any of us at the end of our teaching year – ‘For the Summer.’

Quote to Inspire – “Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.” – Ansel Adams
Furthering Edit

June 11th, 2013

Sangudo Truck – Sangudo, Alberta

With each edit of a photo, not always, but often the editing takes you further in visually understanding the image narrative. In this photo, desaturation and tinting has drawn highlight to the curve of metal shrouding the engine where the shroud meets the black curve of the fender flare on each side (behind each headlamp). On the left the shroud retains perpendicularity where the right shroud has been opened more frequently, perhaps hastily leaving a bend. Use is indicated and the truck’s driver within situation did that – the image has narrative.

Listening to – Tyler Bates’ ‘Pamplona,’ Michael Andrews & Gary Jules’ ‘Mad World,’ and Samuel L. Jackson’s ‘Alice Mae’.

Quote to Inspire – “All the technique in the world doesn’t compensate for the inability to notice.” – Elliott Erwitt