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Samsung NX1: Modus Augmentation

Long time friend, and sage photo editor Jeff Divine, once put this question to me after pouring over a seasonal submission of imagery. Pages of 35 MM slides encased in Vis a File plastic sleeves, were stacked on his light table. “Don’t you ever shoot anything besides golden hour?” “Not if I can help it, Jeff.” (He looked at me quizicaly) The edit session gave me a reason and motivation to examine my method of operation in creation of my work. (Good editors are like that) Eventually this led to a higher (and narrower) degree of focus. That modus, which

Beyond Local: A Film Maker’s Request

I reside in the quirky town of Ventura California, which is located approx 50 minutes drive up coast from Los Angeles, and approx 30 minutes drive down coast, from Santa Barbara. If you do not know much about the place, you may not pull off the freeway. Why would you? (There are a lot of reasons to do so, actually) One of my friends and colleagues, a young Brooks Institute of Photography graduate (read that: saddled with a large student loan) has been spending her time shooting and filming the music scene around California, and more particularly in our funny

Christmas Sonnet

This Song from John Lennon resonates with me. But not for the reasons one may at first surmise. For me the challenge is contained in the lyrics “So what have you done?” Doing, going, is what matters. A young woman making her way up the stairs of a very old Catholic Church in the cold of a Milwaukee Wisconsin night, tripped. It was Christmas Eve. She had been on her way to Midnight Mass, as was the tradition for many Catholics of the time. I was born sometime around 6 am the next morning. People always ask me if I

The Big Nevermind

The City of Ventura is my home. I have owned a house and various other properties and leases here for 30 years. Communities are pretty simple really. Generally they are composed of diverse components, all assembled in a willingness to live and work in a place that they find desirable. The willingness to contribute, is directly proportional to establishing a sense of forward motion. Effect must equal cause. Benefit is weighed against cost. So onward the ship sails with all of us aboard, planning, building, laughing, crying, fighting, healing, birthing, living, dying: together. For any of this to occur, the

Stand Up

Shawn Alladio of K38 Rescue, has composed something beautiful for our warriors, and it also applies to those of you who seek to implement change. Shawn trains these men. She understands cost and expense, better than anybody I have met. She has told me repeatedly over the years, that for every valid action, every effort, you must be willing to give something up. Having seen her live this, I get it. Not many people I know enjoy being the one standing there, fist raised to an adversary, drawing the line and shouting : You will not do this. I know

Song of the Chumash

We just finished the Ventura Artwalk 2010, in my little town. The entire Downtown of Ventura California was turned into a living canvas for forty eight hours. The event was a benchmark of sorts. benchmark |ˈben ch ˌmärk| noun 1 a standard or point of reference against which things may be compared or assessed : [as adj. ] a benchmark case. 2 a surveyor’s mark cut in a wall, pillar, or building and used as a reference point in measuring altitudes. How did this happen? Not overnight. It was the result of seed sowing by a huge number of artists,

Flaming Arrow

In my travels and also in my work here in the US, I often have projects and events thrown at me, or that I simply stumble across. Some I embrace, some I do not. Behind each of these somewhere is a person holding a bow. They have started a fire. They do this with a flaming arrow. I have a friend here who works for the Ventura Visitors Bureau. Her name is Kathleen Fitzgerald. Her bedroom name (the name we all use for her in private) is Firestarter. What she does is identify the need, come up with a potential

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