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Holy Water: A Christmas History

Christmas began for me around 6 am on Dec 25th in 1955, when I was born. My Mother had been on her way to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve in Milwaukee Wisconsin. She had stumbled on the steps leading up to the church and labor began. I like to think it was me who pushed her. That somehow, I knew Christmas and I, we would need to become acquainted. “Let me out!” I can imagine the look on my Mom’s face as she realized she would not be in church that day, Catholicism being what it was at that

The Here and Now of Creativity

There is very key thing which has literally made my career, and caused me to flourish in some pretty dangerous situations. In yet another deep Facebook conversation, this time with an old friend and colleague named Brent Schlea, we covered it. Focus. Or possibly more to the point: Hyperfocus. What that means basically, is being so in the moment, that you see and feel and experience time, Spirit, Soul and Body. For an Artist, that can be a fantastic tool. There is that proposition that humans only use a small percentage of our brain’s computing power. I see it

Three

The third in a series on Loves. Surfers. Yes, those who ride weather, water and wave. I love them. The rapid thunk thunk thunk of footsteps atop the wooden stairs that led up to the flat I had rented that morning at Currumbin Beach, Queensland, jolted me out of my jetlag induced reverie. I had been in Australia for less than 12 hours and had somehow managed to get from Sydney to Coolongatta and into a flat with a rental car in that time. Not bad, but I was tired. It was the second leg of the 1978- 1979 Pro

Two

This is the second installment in this series on many loves. It is about Surfing. Not many people know exactly why they surf. It just is what they do. Surfing gives a lot to the participant. It often gets to the point of seeming to be a greedy avocation. The more you get, the better you become at it, the more that it drives you. I have surfed all of my life. My Dad tossed me in a pool at 4. I swam. He then taught me to bodysurf. I never looked back. Only forward. It is still that way

Non Artistic Interpretation

It was only a year or two ago, when I realized that I am an “artist”. At a very young age I painted. My Father and Uncle were both painters. So as any child would, I simply took for granted that painting and drawing were normal endeavors. At 12 I had learned Photography and studied Philosophy. It was what was going on around me, and being inquisitive, I learned. So does a bird realize it is a bird? Of course, flying would not be so special to him. But to someone without wings, oh to soar! I had a request

Modus: Light and Water

“How many shots did it take to acquire this one?” It is a good question. I hear it a lot. Here is how it works… Learn your craft. Buy the right camera and lens setup. Build-acquire the housing. Figure out optics in water. Watch weather. Select a swell, tide, surf break, weather pattern with the correct potential combination. Wake at 4 am, Prep your gear. Have a little coffee, but not too much because you do not want to pee in your wetsuit during morning feeding hour, and sharks feel the charge from your camera body and sometimes come for

Swell 3

Just when we all thought we were safe and no more responsibilities would be shirked, the life of the California based surf community turned on it’s axis from the arrival of swell three of the 2009-2010 El Nino Season. The storm which spawned our most recent pulse, began in similar fashion to the prior. It was another early season storm. It began life as a series of somewhat unimpressive low pressures, which were all affected by a series of high pressures. The storm initiated at a latitude that gave it an ideal fetch angle for a 290 degree WNW swell

Rinse and Repeat

I have had to watch weather a bit more closely than I usually would this season, because Garrett MacNamara, K38 Rescue, and a few other pals of mine are involved in big wave events and have sort of sucked me into the preparation that goes into being in the right place on the right day. We are in the midst of an El Nino season. No doubt about that now. So when the murmers about a potential swell maker began to filter through, I forced myself to take a close look at available weather telemetry and began my process of

A Fall Fantasy

Nothing deep to share. Or is there? The past weeks have allowed me a lot of time and effort to delve into what many consider to be my forte, which is shooting surfing, nature, beach culture and lifestyle. So this blog is devoted to showing a few of the sights seen this last several weeks of Fall. It is a teensy sampling of over 1200 final images collected. The culmination of a huge number of commercial, editorial and personal interest projects. Thanks to the beautiful place that I live in, and all my wonderful friends, commercial clients and publications for

My Agenda

The blog to do list waxes long and there is so much to communicate. But at the top of my list is a chain of creative people. Artists, writers, film makers, dancers, musicians, photographers and business owners, whose work and bright glow I hope to share. It will need to be fun, inspiring and encouraging, because that is who and what they all are. Also: Making a fiscal way in Photography An examination of technology and how it affects man. Technology and Green. A look at Canon’s new 5D Mark 2 and what may be the most amazing imaging tool

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