I love photography projects.  I have started hundreds but finished very few.  I have written about why I like photography projects as a way to delve into a particular aspect of the photo narrative.  But I have never openly admitted my almost universal failure at these.  So here I am, ending 2023 a bit less burdened by my guilt.  The one project that I keep turning to that keeps working is the idea behind "one day in...." the place changed depending where I. am living or where I am traveling to.  But the great thing about these projects is that they are finished ..read more

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash I was speaking to a fellow amateur photographer, who was telling me that they did not take as many pictures as they would have liked in 2023.  They felt that they were not advancing in their photographic journey.  I have long held that you do not have to take a picture to improve your photography. There are many aspects to learning photography, and not everything can be picked up with a camera in hand.  For example I am a better photographer because of my darkroom experience.  I understand how to visualize the final product and the im ..read more

A few weeks ago I made a very quick Instagram Reel in my darkroom.  I enjoyed it a great deal as I can share with family and friends.  The subject is the same, each Reel of mine is a different print I am making. I go through showing the same basic steps and the final product.  It only takes me about 2 minutes longer to make a reel when making a print so all things considered it is rather quick.  I have absolutely no goal beyond sharing what is making me happy. I pick the music rather quickly and don't do any fancy post processing. But it is a fun way to share with family ..read more

Old World Meets New... Man creates technology to solve a problem. The adaptability of man requires them to adjust to the change of circumstance. So, in the end, we are changing our world to adjust to the new technology that was designed to solve a problem in our world. It is the classic definition of the tail wagging the dog. But this is nothing new. Man has been doing this sine our arrival and will continue to do so. Some might even argue that we must continue to do this if we are to survive. Once Pandora's box was opened, and all the evil escaped, man committed atrocities to try to contai ..read more

"lago" 1867 Perhaps one of her most iconic shots. I thought I would spend the next few weeks considering how different photographers approached photography.  I am focusing on the past tense because living photographers are still adapting their art (or should be) so it would be difficult to pull this sort of post mortem analysis from a living photographer. My goal, as with everything on this site, is to see what more I can learn about photography. The first photographer I would like to discuss is Julia Margaret Cameron who is a fascinating photographer of the Victorian period. Just as p ..read more

Photography has changed since 1827 with Niépce. Consider that the art form has gone through plate photography, film photography and now is in digital photography. But beyond the technology used to capture an image, the styles of photography have changed and so have the photographers.  George Eastman made great strides to turn a pastime of the elite into an adventure of the common man. While film photography was never cheap, he made it accessible to many more people. This changed the person behind the lens and their journey, and the art they created was different. For an example consider ..read more

I bought my first digital Leica back in 2016 in London. I got a good price from it with very few actuations and in perfect cosmetic shape. It is the Leica ME.  For those unfamiliar, Leica decided to make a "more affordable" digital camera and created the Leica ME. It is essentially a Leica M9 with a few software changes, a different color paint but still the same Leica quality (both good and bad but that is a story for another time).  I knew a bit about the Leica sensor issue, but since (at the time) Leica was replacing the sensor free of charge I did not worry too much.  I ne ..read more

Photo by Joey Nicotra on Unsplash I study masters of photography much as a young person might look at Marvel Super Heroes.  Each one individually is amazingly powerful, with their own super power and approach to the world around them. But when two of these super heroes come into contact with one another.....wow! Now you have something resembling legendary! I have the notes of just one such encounter.  This involved Eduard Weston and Alfred Stieglitz.  Let me begin by introducing them for those who may now know what these gentlemen were and why they matter to us today... Edwa ..read more

Of all my purchases in cameras, lenses, darkroom equipment and film, nothing brings me the joy of a great photography book.  I have collected well over 70 books, some are good, others are absolutely mesmerizing.  One of my favorite pastimes is getting up early on a Sunday morning, making a hot cup of coffee and sitting back to look over one of the books in my collection. For a few dollars you get untold hours of enjoyment, you are transported to amazing places and meet some of the most interesting people.  But most importantly, I cannot lift a great photography book and not fe ..read more

My purpose built darkroom in Houston. George Eastman, a business man, not an artist, not a scientist but a true capitalist is the person who transformed photography.  Sure we can look at Louis Daguerre or Henry Fox Talbot as the scientist and hobbyists that were the fathers of photography to see an influence.  But if these two men were the fathers, Eastman was the neighborhood bully that transformed photography into what it is today. As a photographer, one question continues to come up. Were the changes ushered in by Eastman good for photography?  Let me explain. "You press ..read more