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One week and I’m off…

By on February 23, 2010 in Uncategorized

I am beginning to feel the tug and draw of the traveling jones.  I fly from JFK next Tuesday, non-stop to Athens and my next great adventure.  I have been reading a lot of photographic philosophy on the Webb’s photo blog and this is all good food for thought.  Things I need to remember–the sudden flow of geometry, the instance of emotional capture in the viewfinder and a need for patience.  I need to wait and see what happens.  I need to relax.  I am pretty hyper.  There has been a lot on my mind lately that does not feel so good, mostly to do with family and their emotions.  Nothing I can do about that except step back and let things happen.

I would like to have at least three new prints to add to the portfolio I am bringing with me.  I have been taking pictures of the interior of my home–bureaus, mantles, doors, windows, clocks…all very intimate and full of humanity.  If I can glean something from them, I will be happy.  Then I can finish packing on Monday night and go to sleep knowing that all is taken care of and well in hand during my absence.

I purchased another digital camera.  I decided to bring my 50D with me so I needed a smaller digital point-and-shoot for street work.  I chose the Canon G11.  It’s a great compliment to the Voigtlander, I feel.  I like that I can shoot in full manual and adjust my shutter and aperture like the Rebel.  I can also adjust the film speed from 80 to 3200ISO.  It fits in the palm of my hand.  Lovely, and not too dear.

More to come…canon_g11_front1JDCM

15 days to go…and packing…

By on February 14, 2010 in Uncategorized

I’ll be back in Greece in just over two weeks, providing the river don’t rise and the airports don’t close.  I have begun to pack, if only to feel my way for this trip, which has some additions to my backpack.  I have some bulky stuff I am bringing, mostly art supplies.  I have not traveled as much in colder weather, even though the high temperature in Athens is currently 65*F.  I am bringing a couple of fleeces and some long-sleeved shirts, which all add to the bulk.  I also have a box of 8.5×11 Hahnemuhle printer paper that is in there, as well as my portfolio.  I have packed my small camera bag, stuffed with vine charcoal, pencils, and so forth for the drawing class.  It’s easier to get that stuff here than in Athens apparently. I will buy film there…Ilford is pretty easy to find.  My camera bag is all set as well.  It has all the electronic stuff I’ll bring and I will be carrying that on the plane.  My only regret is that the bag looks too new…maybe I can wash it so it fades some…that would be good.

JDCM

Greek update…

By on February 3, 2010 in Uncategorized

It is February, the month of my birth, as well as my father.  His birthday is today and he is 82.  I am heading into NYC tomorrow for lunch with him and two of my half-cousins from my grandfather’s first marriage.  They are very nice and we all get along just fine.  I am taking MetroNorth from Wassaic which puts me in to Grand Central.  Then I’ll walk uptown to the restaurant on Broadway and 105th.  Quite a hike, but I can take pictures along the way.  Maybe I’ll get two rolls done but three would be very cool indeed.  I could use some more urban images fro the portfolio.

In regards to that, and Greece, if the river don’t rise I’ll be flying off to Athens in 29 days.  I am very excited and have begun to do some test-packing.  I packed my camera bag once and will do so again until I get the optimal set-up.  I am taking my Canon 50D and the two L-series lenses I have for it.  I am also taking my Voigtlander with the 35mm lens I bought with it and a new 21mm lens that is arriving today.  A light meter, some lead film bags, batteries, etc…all round out the gear.  There is plenty of room for my notebook, documents, a book, pens and pencils, and some other odds-and-ends.  I’ll re-pack the night before I leave, I am sure.

I am going to buy a small refrigerator for my darkroom. This way I can put all my chemistry, paper and film away safely before I leave.  I have looked on-line and I can get a good one for less than $300 new from Lowes.  I can also get one locally from Campbell and Keeler in Millerton for a little more and support a local business.  I think I will do that.  Maybe even today!

Below is a new image.  I used Efke (ADOX) CHS 100 with my Voigtlander R4M.  For printing I used Edwal Platinum II for the soup on Fotokemika paper at f/16 for about 3 1/2 minutes.

rhinecliff-station-2

Soon to Greece–and darkroom updates…

By on January 17, 2010 in Uncategorized

I’m off to Greece in 44 days and I am very excited.  My portfolio is almost done, but I am thinking of adding some written work as well, i.e. a list of all the developers, paper, etc…which I have been using and the unique qualities of each as they have interacted.  A journal of sorts, I suppose, but less oriented towards a daily routine than more of a summation of activities and my overall feelings.  It shouldn’t take that long to do.  I can include it in the portfolio.

I have discovered that the old flash unit that I bought in 1992 (Achiever 260T) still works great on my Canon AE-1.  The really cool news is that also works on the Canon QL17 GIII from 1973 and my new Voigtlander R4M.  This is a real plus.  The unit is lightweight, simple to use, and delivers consistent and predictable results.

I have also purchased, new, a light set-up for my Canon 50D, for use this summer at weddings.  It was a kit with a Canon Speedlite 580 EX II, a frame for holding it, external cords and some Gary Fong diffuser attachments–for about $600.  Worth it.  I’ll pay for it with 4 wedding shoots this summer.  It’s a real beast.  I’ll post a picture next week.  It also happens to work great.  It’s a good idea to get the flash as far from the lens as possible to avoid bleed.

That’s all for now…

JDCM

Photography update…

By on December 30, 2009 in Uncategorized
"Farm #5, Window #2"

"Farm #5, Window #2"

In a little over two months I head back to Greece, this time for school and not just travel.  I am pretty nervous but I have certain confidence that reminds me that if I keep on doing what I have been doing for the past few years everything will work out better than I could hope for.

A close friend in Millerton has also contributed to my darkroom gear.  Stephanie Stanton is a wonderful photographer who is highly skilled and currently making her living as a photographer.  She offered a trade for the gear she gave me: that I be her wedding photographer next September.  Of course I said yes, and will work on the inexpensive side since A) She and her partner do not have a lot of dough and, B) she is also offering me a chance to work as her assistant throughout the summer at weddings.  This will give me a large amount of experience and possibly open some doors for my own career.

My small portfolio for the Greek school is expanding.  I have been trying to print at least 5-6 pieces each week, if not more.  I have about 24 images so far and want to bring 48.  I am choosing different subjects and examining qualities of light, shadow and and textures.  For the next week or so I am working exclusively on my series “Farm” .  It is self-explanatory.  The point, however, is to remove agricultural elements from their traditional spaces to show qualities of time and aging of organic compounds that have been artificially constructed, i.e. old barns, rusting metal, etc…In b/w the tones can be rich and deep.  There are also some landscapes as a way of depicting the space around us and the distances (time as well) ahead and behind.  I have added a new image that I developed last night.  It is called “Farm #5–Window #2” .  I used Kodak Tri-X 400 on a cloudy day.  For the darkroom I had some glossy Ilford Multi-grade IV fiber paper developed in Dektol.  I like it.  Nice textures.

JDCM

Some recent work…

By on December 9, 2009 in Uncategorized

wateringcanscanHere are some scans of some of the dark room activity I have been involved with.  Both images were taken with a Canon QL17 GIII with FomaPan ISO 200 b/w film.  One is from the Dalmatian city of Trogir while the other is from the island of Paros.  Both are on Fotokemika Grade 3 paper and were developed using Ilford PQ Universal for the paper work.  I think I used D-76 for the film development, but it was last summer and I don’t remember.

trogirguitaristscan

I like the deep contrast and the odd quality of the camera itself.  The edges are soft, slightly vignetted, which gives the image an older look.

I hope to spend the next week in the darkroom.  I really want to start going through older negatives as well as more recent work and printing some stuff.  I have enough paper and chemistry and I have the time.

JDCM

Darkroom work–The New Project

By on December 8, 2009 in Uncategorized

I am very excited about my upcoming academic experience.  It’s not as if I haven’t been to Greece every year for the past six–a fact I do not take for granted.  It’s just that this marks a change for me, yet again. This has a real purpose for my art and distances me even more from those who would call me a dilettante. I feel that although I will not buckle under trends in photography it is vital that I learn from others, whether it is Alex and Rebecca Webb, Mary Ellen Mark, Carol Yeager or any other mentor.  My father considered Wright Morris a mentor as well as Stanley Kunitz and so he built deep long-lasting friendships with both men. I have built a friendship with Carol Yeager and I hope to do so with others that cross my path.  Unfortunately I think some of them feel that maybe I am trying to ride on their coattails.

Sorry.  I have to do my own work and follow my own eye.  So I will continue to plod along and do my own work, all the while picking up tips from those who have come before.  I cannot take other peoples’ pictures, nor do I want to.

I am building a small portfolio of darkroom work to take with me to Greece. Different papers, developers, subjects, etc…All carefully notated.  I want to use this to show the instructors and see if I can get into the Advanced B/W Silver course, which is one-on-one.  What I really want to do is work in platinum…The more I think about it, the more I do not want to take the digital class.  I am thinking Beginning Drawing, Poetry and Advanced Darkroom.  Nice combo I think.

Tomorrow…some scans of recent darkroom work from the new project.

JDCM

Some news on the front…

By on November 11, 2009 in Uncategorized

…and a photograph or two.

I have been accepted to the Aegean Center for the Fine Arts for the spring 2010 semester.  This is quite an honor and it will be an exhilarating and difficult three months, effectively finishing my BA in style.  To celebrate this occasion, I have purchased a new film rangefinder, a Voigtlander R4M with a 35mm lens.  This is a significant upgrade from the little Canon QL17 I have been using for a while.  I leave for Greece at the beginning of March and will return at the beginning of June.

I have also set up a full darkroom in the house.  I have a large extra room with an adjoining bathroom that I have blacked out with curtains–very dark indeed.  I have great new, used Metro-shelf worktables.  My good friend Bruce has sold me his Beseler 23C Series II enlarger with two lenses (50mm and 80mm) plus some other gear for about $100.  A real deal, IMHO.  I have been developing some film, but this weekend I will have all the supplies and stuff I need to start working with paper again.  Now I do not have to drive to use the darkroom, nor sit in a cold barn, or have my good friend Carol pay for heat when she doesn’t need to.  It’s a good thing all around.

Last week there was truck fire in the nearby town of Millerton, NY.  Serendipity was on my side and I was able to capture some dramatic shots.  Here is one them.  I will post another tomorrow.  I offered them to the local papers but they declined, using there own images instead.  Oh well.  Their loss.  The editor asked for me to stay in touch with anything I might have.  Right.  Not a chance.  This is not the first time they have given me the Bum’s Rush.

I went to Alex and Rebecca Norris Webb’s opening in NYC last week.  It was a lovely show and left me wanting more.  The Ricco Maresca Gallery highlighted their new, collaborative, book (a first for them) on Cuba called “Violet Isle.”  I was able to spend the day walking the streets of Manhattan, visiting museums, and practicing the craft.  A wonderful day.

JDCM

PS…Yes, I saw the Frank  and  Meyerowitz shows…Boffo!

Truck fire, Millerton, NY. November 2009

Truck fire, Millerton, NY. November 2009

Searching for Robert Frank…

By on October 4, 2009 in Uncategorized

I have just returned from a visit with my sister and her husband just outside Boston.  While I was there we were all able to meet up with my father at a bookstore in Cambridge where he and his wife gave a reading of some of their new work.  I took a couple of pictures, but felt very uncomfortable doing so.  After refection I discovered it wasn’t the act, but rather the subject.  There was nothing spontaneous and the observing seemed to draw the attention of my father, something I didn’t want.  In fact, he pointed it out to the small audience at one point–very off-putting. Our relationship is difficult.  His own narcissism has progressed as he has aged and he either contradicts what I say or disregards it.  If I think of him as an old man with difficulties and not my father I have a better relationship.

The Robert Frank show is up at the Metropolitan in NYC.  I have plans to go in later this month…I think on the 21st.  I hope to spend the day looking through the viewfinder and trying not to try too hard.  I’m lucky that I am an avid walker…The soles of my shoes are well worn.  I’ll stay out of the park: too much wide open space.

JDCM