Tag Archives | black and white photography

Milos, day 6…

By John on June 12, 2014 in 35 mm photography, beauty, biking, craft, Cyclades stone walls, Cycladic stone walls, Greece, hiking in the Cyclades, mountain biking in Greece, Paros, quiet islands, rangefinder camera, skill and craft, spiritual journey, stone walls, working

–I had forgotten how posh Milos can be. It is easy to avoid if one so chooses.

–From the top of Prophitas Ilias (748 m) the view is spectacular. Even on a hazy day like today, the archipelago was in full view. Kimolos, Polyagios, Santorini, Sifnos, Serifos, Folegandros, Paros. This was all around me. Far to the south I could make out a faint, long shape: Crete.

–The FIAT Panda is, perhaps, the finest car in its class ever made. A real gaidaros…a real donkey. I have mentioned this in other posts already. A big ‘thank you’ to Niko’s Rental in Adamas for allowing me to change my rental agreement not once, but twice.

–I have purchased my ferry ticket back to Paros on the ‘Aqua Jewel’, leaving Sunday evening at 18:00 hrs. This leaves me with almost three full days left for my biking, hiking, swimming and photography. Not always in that order.

–Yesterday I had just finished up an arduous 10km hike, ending up at a lovely beach on the west coast. As I lay on the sand I suddenly realized I did not know what day of the week it was. I had to laugh.

–The last time I was here ( June 2012) I only spent 3 days. Being here so long has allowed me to really get into Milos. I have discovered that despite the heavy mining and cosmopolitan aspects, it is as rugged and wild as they come. Wild goats still scamper up and down the rocky crags.

–Tomorrow is a photography day. My goal is to finish one roll of AGFA in my Voigtlander and start another. Easy-peasy. Rocks and wood.

–JDCM

Happy May…and some thoughts on photography…

By John on May 2, 2014 in 4×5 photography, beauty, craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, Paros Portraits, portraiture, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

–May is here. The sun is shining, the tourists are few. The winds are from the south, north, east and west. It is lovely here on Paros.

–My darkroom work is progressing nicely. I have been printing my Weather/Texture 35mm images on a regular basis and am finding great joy in the consistency of this portfolio. I have also been keeping up with my 4×5 portrait work and recently photographed a young artist who is visiting our fair isle. I made 12 exposures, of varying depths-of-field. I’ll develop them this weekend. Paros Portraits, Part II moves at its own pace…

–Recently a close friend gave me a lovely gift: Richard Avedon’s Woman in the Mirror . The images reminded me to look a little deeper into this photographer’s life. I have always been impressed by his work. I admire those who labor at what they love and have paid their dues, either through hard work, hard times, or both. Avedon was a skilled craftsman who supported himself and his family through commercial photography. While I never met the man, I get the feeling that while he became famous in his own time, he maintained his humility.

Avedon said that “I never wanted to be called an artist. I wanted to be called a photographer.”

…also “sometimes I think all my pictures are just pictures of me.”

He also believed that “a photographic portrait is a picture of someone who knows he is being photographed, and what he does with this knowledge is as much a part of the photograph as what he’s wearing or how he looks.”

–Dig it.

–JDCM

April upon us…

By John on April 7, 2014 in 35 mm photography, beauty, biking, black and white portraiture, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, Paros Portraits, skill and craft, spiritual journey, spring in the Aegean, working

–I have heard from folks in the US that their weather has finally turned spring-like and the snows have ended. It has been a difficult season for them and they need to put away their shovels and plows.

—Slow Art Day is coming up. I will be gathering with some friends at a local museum here on Paros and participate. I was reminded this morning that the average museum visitor spends between 5 and 30 seconds looking at a piece of art and that time is usually when they read the tag on the wall. During this day we will look at 5 pieces, for 15 minutes each. Then we will reconvene and discuss what we saw, how we felt, etc…I am looking forward to it. Too many cultural institutions treat their space like a shopping mall. MoMA in New York is one of them. I think I have blogged about this already.

–When I first visited Paros in 2006 as a tourist, I came specifically to see their museum. It has one of the finest collections of Greek art in Europe. It only cost me 2 Euros to get in. It still costs 2 Euros. I was here for two days and visited twice.

–I continue my own printing in the darkroom. I am doing well. Although I may have made some strict goals at the outset, I have relaxed those boundaries. I seem to be falling within them anyway. Tomorrow I hope to expose some 4x5s.

–I competed in my second Parian sports event the other day. It was the Paros Diathalon, held out at Molos Beach and the village of Marmara. It consisted of a 7km run and then a 12km mountain bike. My teammate Margaret ran and then I biked. I had a great time and, once again, felt at home within that diverse community. I will post some images on my Flickr site. I am waiting to hear from people who have pictures of me. Our total time was 63min, 55sec. I think we placed 5th or 6th in the ‘Teams’ category.

–In a couple of weeks I have a break from work. I might stick around, I might take off. I might do both. Load up the panniers and go…

–JDCM

Mid-March, Paros, 2014…

By John on March 16, 2014 in 35 mm photography, 4×5 photography, beauty, biking, black and white portraiture, craft, darkroom work, Greece, mountain biking in Greece, Paros, Paros Portraits, portraiture, rangefinder camera, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spiritual journey, spring in the Aegean, working

–Yesterday was the Ides of March. I made it through unscathed. Et tu…?

–The day before, march 14th, was my mother’s 90th birthday. She made it as well. 90 years…

–What has she been witness to since 1924! Well, almost everything worth talking about. Plus, she has raised three children and set them on their respective paths. One is a professor at a large University. Another is an artist living on a small island. The third is…well, that’s me. Funny. It feels like we three have all found our own islands we call home. Her love has been unconditional and generous. She may, at times, worry about our sanities, but she has always been there, no strings attached. She has never asked for proof of good will. If I have had any regrets or guilt, they have been my own and are non-transferable. Kind of like airplane tickets.

–Today I went to a mountain bike race in the hill town of Kostas. I could have raced it myself, but opted out so I could photograph instead. I brought my big Canon 5D MKII, my 35mm Voigtlander and my Wista 4×5. I packed up 16 pieces of Kodak TPX 320 and had some old-time fun with large-format sports photography. I am eager to see how they come out. While I waited along the dirt road for the pack to appear, I was suddenly struck by the knowledge that this is how it was always done, for almost a century. Photographers standing on the side of the road with their tripods and 8x10s/4x5s/etc…waiting for the runner/horse/bicycle/car/locomotive to come barreling down the track and trying to catch the moment. It’s not easy. I was thankful for my knowledge of depth-of-field so all I had to do was whip the film packs in-and-out of the back of the camera. I was loading, exposing, sliding the cover back on, unloading, and tossing the exposed film pack on the grassy ground. 15 exposures later (one dud) I was done. I finished up a roll of EFKE 100 35mm in the Voigtlander, made a few digital snaps of the closing events, and called it a day.

–I have been lining up some new subjects for continued portraiture. I figure that if I can practice diligence, I will have a large enough portfolio to begin printing next autumn. I continue to pray to the gods of photography for deliverance of a 4×5 enlarger.

–Spring seems to have arrived. The light has been superb. What else is there to say?

-JDCM

Photography and other works…

By John on February 25, 2014 in 120 film, 35 mm photography, 4×5 photography, beauty, biking, black and white portraiture, craft, darkroom work, Greece, mountain biking in Greece, Paroikia, Paros, Paros Portraits, portraiture, skill and craft, spiritual journey, spring in the Aegean

–I haven’t spoken much about my photography lately, not since my Paros Portrait exhibition in August 2013. Although I have shot and developed plenty of film, I haven’t been printing. This has changed in the past couple of weeks.

–I am continuing my 4×5 portrait work and will do so at least for another year. This as a larger arc beneath which I conceive and work on several other projects.

— I am thinking of a 35mm collection of textural pieces. By “textural” I mean close up images of worn wood, rusted and tarnished metals, peeling paint. These images tell of time and of the elements. My eye falls into the deepest crack in the wood, the darkest keyhole, into the tiniest shadow beneath a curling leaf of old paint. I want to go there. I want to set up shop. This new portfolio will be small, only 12 pieces. I will begin during the first week of March and finish on the last week of May. That is 12 weeks, or close enough.

–The soft focus work of Julia Margaret Cameron has also inspired me, especially after seeing a small exhibit last December in America. I will work on something along those lines. Still lives and medium format feels like the right way to go. I will need to go shopping for the right kinds of vases and props. This will give me a chance to pick up some new crockery for my own kitchen as well–plates and bowls and such.

–More biking, of course. The weather just cries “get outside…move your muscles…” The other day I rode to Marathi, then headed north overland, then northeast, bushwhacking until I was able to make it to a small farm road that led me to a large monastery just outside of Paroikia. From there I headed back north, across the road. Somewhere in there I punctured my rear tire, so I stopped and changed the tube. Then I headed back home. Clear paths? Hmmm…That’s subjective. Click the thumbnails to enlarge…

–JDCM

If there is a path there, I worked for it. Unrideable, of course. I pushed the bike.

10 minutes of quick repairs and I was back on the road.

Pinch me…

By John on January 17, 2014 in Athens Greece, beauty, craft, Greece, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, rangefinder camera, skill and craft, spiritual journey, spring in the Aegean, Uncategorized, working

–They say our reality is Krishna’s dream while he sleeps on a lotus flower.

–It seems like a dream. I woke up a few minutes ago, startled and disorientated. Jet lag. I am in Athens. I walked out onto the small balcony of my hotel room overlooking the street. It is quiet at 04:00. The city sleeps, breathing slowly. Two days ago I was in America, visiting family and friends. I am in a different world.

–In America I ate hot dogs, apple pie, toasted peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, beef jerky. There have been excellent sit-down meals too. Very American food. I have been able to stave off the calories at the gym.

–There was lots of snow there, and rain, and frigid cold. It was lovely. There was an abundance of water. On the little island I call home water can be scarce. We use less. Long showers are a luxury. I luxuriated.

–On the Massachusetts Turnpike I drove through the kind of rain, wind and fog that made it seem as if I was driving underwater, surrounded by a screaming mass of tractor trailers and SUVs all moving at 80 mph. I had little choice but to keep up. Every light on my little car was switched on so people would see me.

–Photography during the winter allows for simplicity. Sticks, snow, shadow, light.

–So I am back in Greece. Last night I ate yigandes, patzaria, and briam for dinner. Greek food.

–I am back in Greece. I have a few days here in Athens then I hop the ferry back to Paros. What is waiting for me there?

–I was thinking of taking pictures of metro stations. I need a new header image before I post this entry. I’ll use one of those.

–Life is like a dream. Row, row, row your boat…

JDCM

Session end approaches, etc…

By John on November 24, 2013 in autumn, beauty, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, Paros Portraits, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spiritual journey, Thanksgiving, Uncategorized

I have a lot on my mind these days and it feels difficult to try to sort it all out. Thoughts meander…

My most recent post was in the form of notes. I think I will keep it that way for today as well.

–The session here at the Aegean Center is almost finished. This week is the final full week of work. It is also American Thanksgiving and Chanukkah. Lots to do (food, work, art) and I imagine emotions are running high for those younger students who have never been away from home on these holidays. We will have a big pot-luck feast on Friday evening, since Thursday is a work day. We supply the side dishes. JP supplies the turkeys and gravy. I am making roasted butternut squash.

–The students who are working in the darkroom are making some interesting work.

–I have been able to noodle about with my own work, but nothing really substantial. I have tried some portrait work with minor success. Siga-siga. If one were to ask how I think I am doing these days, the answer would have to be divided into three parts: personal, artistic and academic. Personally I am doing alright. I am building solid social bridges to people in the community who have little to do with the school or the arts. I am biking a lot and feeling good about that that. Artistically I am, as I said, noodling around. I am letting the students have the lion’s share of the darkroom time. The third aspect is etsy-ketsy. I do what I can.

–Am I an artist-in-residence or faculty? I have no idea anymore. I have worked to define these boundaries within the small community in which I labor. I can only guess that I receive unknown support and back-up from those I respect.

–I am opening a Flickr site and will post photos there, images that never made it here and other things. Mostly travel stuff. I’ll add a tab to the website next time I post. Until then I have added an autumnal image: olive oil fresh from the press. Yes, it really is that green.

Happy Thanksgiving!

–JDCM

Fresh olive oil from the olive press at Kamari.

A stop in Athens and a return to Paros…

By John on October 1, 2013 in Athens Greece, autumn, beauty, darkroom work, Greece, Paroikia, Paros, working

Last week I made my way to Athens, meeting up with the Aegean Center students and teachers fresh from their September sojourn in Italy. I was very nervous, not having met any of the new students yet and feeling as if I was under a microscope. Perhaps I was the one with the microscope, I am not sure, but that is how I felt. Anyway…

The 24 students all arrived safely and we made our way via motor-coach to the hotel in the Monastiraki area of town. The Hotel Attalos sits just below the Acropolis of the Parthenon and close to some of the best museums and archeological destinations in the world. The next three days were spent visiting these sites and listening to Jeffrey Carson’s excellent orations on history, culture and art. The Parthenon, the Parthenon Museum and the National Archeological Museum were our group destinations, but afterwards the students enjoyed enough free time to visit other places, shop and eat some excellent Greek food. On Saturday morning we all awoke very early for another short bus ride to the Port of Pireaus, boarded the Blue Star Naxos and made our way back home, back to Paros and the Aegean Center for the Fine Arts studios and labs.

The classes began yesterday and I have several students in the darkroom. Some have no experience whatsoever while there are others with some darkroom history behind them. It is a vibrant and excited group. They are also taking other courses so in order to meet with them it must always be after all their other commitments, later in the evening and never all at once. This will make necessary demonstrations (film and paper developing, for instance) difficult to arrange. I will work with what I am given and be grateful.

I have added a couple of images from the Athens segment of the art history tour…

JDCM

At the Parthenon, September 2013

At the National Archeological Museum

Windy Monday…

By John on September 9, 2013 in autumn, beauty, black and white portraiture, craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paroikia, Paros, Paros Portraits, portraiture, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spiritual journey, working

The sun was brilliant today and the Meltemi had a decidedly autumnal feel. It has howled all day, and continues the howl through the tangle of electrical lines crisscrossing the small section of Paroikia I call home. The cypress trees whip back and forth and Bougainvillea blossoms, free from their thorny moorings, sail their over-saturated colors into my small apartment.

It is Monday, September 9, 2013 and I have taken down my exhibit. I have enjoyed the three-week long event. I think of my images differently than when I hung them. What was once ‘Giorgos and Giorgos‘ I refer to as ‘Don Quixote and Sancho Panza‘; ‘Erin‘ is now ‘The Vermeer Photograph’; ‘Angelika‘ I think of as ‘The Abstract Realist.’ Things change, the Earth tilts and wobbles, the days shorten, the air cools and we slide into bright autumn. I can almost smell the rain, but I know that is just an illusion.

Now I am filled with melancholia, ennui, a sense of emptiness. As I write this at Mikro Kafe I realize that in an hour there will be no need for me to open up the Aegean Center, turn on the lights and arrange the easeled sign outside on the marble steps. All of that is past. My portraits are safely in their crate, currently a large piece of furniture in my flat. The sign, too, is there, tucked behind a bookcase.

I have little choice but to get back to work. That is the best way to shake off these ghosts.

JDCM

The reward of September…

By John on September 4, 2013 in autumn, beauty, black and white portraiture, craft, Greece, Paroikia, Paros, Paros Portraits, quiet islands, skill and craft, Uncategorized, working

Blue Menu #1

August is past and July is a memory. The streets of Paroikia are no longer mobbed with summer tourists. The groups of families have departed, returning to their homes. The weather is lovely,warm and sunny–breezy and cooler at night. The beaches are quiet, all but deserted. The wind is from the north, about Force 5, gusting to 6, which is about 33 to 38 km. This made for a nice headwind as I rode my usual 11.5 km out to a beach on the northern part of the island today. I was alone for a solid hour until a couple walked onto the sand. I swam, read my book, and left in no particular hurry. I had a tailwind all the way back to town.

I am still very pleased with my exhibit. I take it down in a few days and put it away. It has been a good run. I have had excellent conversations with other photographers about the craft as well as people wanting to know more about the Aegean Center. I feel my work spoke for itself.

So for all of our industry and patience during the summer months, those of us on Paros are presented with the reward of September.

JDCM

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