Black and White Spider Awards

"Blue Diamond" was nominated in the Fashion category in the 5th Annual Black & White Spider Awards.
Black & White Spider Awards is an international competition open to both professional and non-professional photographers.

I was honored to be selected by the highly accredited panel of judges who vote annually on the thousands of images submitted. To be among the other photographers chosen is truly an amazing feeling. I would like to congratulate all the nominees and winners in each category.

Please take a few moments and go to the Black & White Spider Awards website at... http://www.thespiderawards.com/ and check out the awesome calibre of black and white photography... you won't be disappointed!

My plan is to submit images each year to this competition. I find it inspiring to see such great work done by others and it really does make me want to pick up my camera more often and strive to be creative.

Thanks for listening.

Until next time...

-Paul

Comfort and Responsibility

It has been exactly a year since I last posted to my blog. I said to myself many times in that 364 days that I would not go beyond the anniversary date of the last post before posting again. Well... here I am at the 11th hour (minute 59) telling myself that I have been successful in keeping my promise. Why then do I get the feeling that I have somehow shirked my responsibility to myself as well as to those who visit to look and listen? All of us set limits that we think are attainable and that suit the requirement of what is needed. Maybe the limit set for this posting should not have been self-imposed? Maybe I should have considered my followers, my flock, and set a limit that I thought they would be comfortable with? Perhaps I should have been a better "shepherd" and not allowed my flock to wander, unguided into the unknown corners of cyberspace... instead making sure that they were safely within my reach and instilling a sense of caring on my part so that they remained comfortable and secure. Even though I have had many other things to tend to in the past dozen months, I know that I have been delinquent in my duty to you, my followers, and I promise not be as absent in the future. A good shepherd watches over his flock and makes sure that they are not beyond his reach. As I hope to offer more images and words as my responsibility, may you find comfort and pleasure as you visit my website and hopefully with a desire to return often to stay within the fold.

Thanks for listening... and having faith that I would return.

-Paul

Experience - Remember - Imagine

As a young boy, I remember seeing a gun-like object on a shelf in my grandfather's garage. I asked my grandfather what it was and he told me that it was a blowtorch. I then asked him if he could show me how it worked and he replied that it was much too dangerous but he could explain to me how it worked. Through his story-telling I could see from the look on his face that he remembered well his experiences with the blowtorch and the caution and care needed to operate such a tool. He told how it used gasoline as a fuel and how the pressure in the canister was created by repeatedly lifting and pushing down the plunger located at the side of the top of the canister. Above the handle of the blowtorch was a knob which released the pressurized gasoline through the nozzle at the front of the torch. My grandfather explained that it was very tricky and dangerous to operate... to control the flame, once lit, while all the time maintaining the correct pressure in the canister. In telling me about his experience with the blowtorch, I was able to imagine how this mysterious antique had once been used.
This particular blowtorch was used by my grandfather in the 1930's and without his telling of this story, I would not have had the personal touch of a family memory. I could have researched such a device in a library or on the internet, but it would not have had the same meaning to me as when told by my grandfather. Too often, we don't take the time to stop and listen to family stories or to personal experiences told by people from another generation. That "magic" is sometimes lost forever!
I wanted to make sure that my photograph of my grandfather's blowtorch (shown above) had a name that tied the generations together. "Blow at High Dough" seemed very appropriate given the cost of gasoline. In the 1930's when this blowtorch was operational, the price of gasoline was expensive... about 20 cents a gallon. In comparison, within today's economy, that would equate to about $15 a gallon! "Blow at High Dough" may represent the foreshadowing of things to come, or things that were, but experiences are different for each generation and it is important that families and friends share the things remembered and imagine what was, and is yet to be.

Thanks for listening. Until next time...

Paul

Perception and Interpretation

Sometimes it is a good thing to not understand exactly what we see. When there is no question, when it is totally clear what we are looking at, there is no sense of adventure and no challenge to decipher the mystery in front of us. If we are told that "we can't see the bush for the trees" or that "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder", does this mean that there is more than one answer for what we see and that there is no definitive answer? The answer must then lie with the creator... or perhaps the purpose of the piece is to spark the imagination of the viewer so that the creator can enjoy the uninhibited analysis of their work and revel in the varied feedback from those who think they have "the" answer. If we were to travel the easy road, live the simple life, be comfortable and content and be satisfied with whatever we were given, then the world would be a pretty boring place to live. To expand outside our comfort zone is when we realize that what we have to say- verbally and visually- appeals to others in a way that does not compare to moderation. We need to pose questions, discuss the variations and possibilities, so that we realize that life, like art, is not simple and straight forward. We should need and want the interaction so that our perception and interpretation is not the result of a simple presentation or gift, but the result of complex analysis of what this offering really means to us. Do not be easily satisfied... is there a question behind the question?
Who is "Missing Alice Liddell"? (shown above)

Thanks for listening. Until next time...

Paul


Scav-net Clue #4: (Within Google) - Don't go to the Charles Lutwidge Dodgson location, but instead go to his A.K.A. "____s ______l Photography Page". Find the most prominent New Jersey university collection (Series II) and click to enlarge the 21st thumbnail to discover the person who was the inspiration for his most famous character. The black and white version shown (made in 1858) of this celebrated study was sold at auction for $253,140.

(linger & revel!)


Note: To understand what "Scav-net Clues" are about, see the previous Blog posting under Communication.

Answer (in reverse): ("dnalrednowniecila"foecila)llorracsiwelyblleddil.pecila"diam-raggebeht"

Depth of Field

In photography the term "depth of field" helps to define how much of the picture is in focus. The higher the F-stop number, the greater the depth of field to the point where everything in the picture is in focus. Most of the celebrated landscape photographers use depth of field to this extreme with the premeditated burden of acquiring the most amazing composition possible. If they choose to show everything to the judgemental, and hopefully appreciative eye, then they have to be organized, original, thought provoking, pristine, dynamic, and present a presence that says "this is mine" and are ready to defend it.
Those who shoot with a smaller F-stop number and therefore a shorter depth of field, do so with a specific point of view within the framework. They still have to be aware of composition, but from the beginning they control your movement, or lack of it, inside the boundaries of the photo. Portrait and Still Life photographers capture your attention within this narrow depth of field that is surrounded by the peripheral blur.
Whether the depth of field is large or small, the photographer uses this technique to offer his/her artwork to you in the most appealing way.
In life, those who choose a large "depth of field" are usually open to discussion about any and all things. They are well read and have a variety of interests. In life, those who choose a small "depth of field" are usually well versed in certain topics and know those topics extremely well - they are specialists... straight to the point and very sure of themselves.
We should consider ourselves fortunate to live in a world that allows us to express our views (our art) in different ways. Those who appreciate and understand this freedom, are definitely blessed with a true "depth of field".

Thanks for listening...Until next time...

Paul



Scav-net Clue #3: (Within Google) - Go to the gallery named after the singular card with the highest value. Prodeed past the Peace sign until you get to the 28th Exhibitionist listed. Continue to the 77th image and you will discover a phrase (the name) that explains why Billy might think that life is not fair.



(linger & revel!)

Note: To understand what "Scav-net Clues" are about, see the previous Blog posting under Communication.
Answer (in reverse): (redirysaeniyllib)reppohsinnedybdradnatselbuod

Famous War Photographer's Negatives Found

"Thousands of negatives of photographs taken by Robert Capa during the Spanish Civil War, long thought to be lost forever, have resurfaced. A pioneer of modern war photography, Robert Capa fled Europe for America in 1939, leaving behind the contents of his Paris darkroom." Read more...

How Camera Lenses Are Made

Interested in the technology behind the art? I found this interesting video on YouTube on how camera lenses are made.