The Gift of Meeting People, The Gift of Photography

Like I said a couple posts ago, the more you go out, the more people you meet. This time I went out to McIntosh Lake with a roll of Ilford HP5 in a Rolleiflex 3.5F to see who I'd find. I always start on the promenade--that's what I call the sidewalk that wraps around the...

Portrait Stories on 8×10 Film by the Muse’s Design

Sometimes I just feel like the writer taking dictation from the muse. As a portrait photographer making portraits of people I meet in public, I think of all the people I've photographed, and how little control I have over who I meet, who I approach, who says yes, who says no, who becomes a part...

My Satisfaction = Photographing Folks Where I Find Them

A photographer friend recently sent me a video link to a talk by a photographer named Adrian discussing photography and his expectation to fail, concluding disappointment was just a part of the process. In the notes of the video titled, The Curse of the Photographer, he wrote, "Photographers might be destined to permanently feel dissatisfied....

Documenting America’s Decline Circa 2022

Waking up to the NY Times headline, Supreme Court Ruling Overturns Roe v. Wade After Nearly 50 Years, I saw how a divided America is moving backwards by taking away women's rights and maybe losing the last vestiges of the dream of being the greatest. Because right now, we're not. Not even close. Come on....

Grandma’s Gone With No Portraits To Remember Her By, Just Like in 1890.

I was talking to a woman at a yard sale last weekend and she said the reason she had so many photo frames for sale for 25-50 cents each, is because none of her children or grandchildren want the family photographs—she's moving to a smaller house and thought they'd want to have them. Wrong! She...

200 Photos To Give Away

LaVern Johnson passed away. She was in her early 90s and was the town matriarch of Lyons Colorado. The town held a memorial service in a park that was named for her a few years ago. Since her passing, I had been posting photographs online of her that I made over the years because I...

If Only There Were a Way…

...to make the picture a little wider to get both children into Dad's birthday video. If only! Maybe the next iPhone will have that feature. They have the best engineers working for them. There has to be a way, no?

Frank’s Photo Books Are a Great Idea and a Tremendous Way to Share Our Work

A photographer I follow who posts online, Frank Solle, offered to send me a copy of his latest book, Travels in Utah. It's a booklet you might say, it's only 32 pages, and I said yes, of course. I'm always interested in what other photographers are doing. His book came in the mail and I...

Gimme Something Real

I wonder if social media isn't actually a menace to both photography and society. Right now, there are so many people addicted to their devices, and the research shows that the LIKE button makes many people feel more inadequate than good. The constant barrage of content ends up making people depressed as they find themselves...

Always the Rolleiflex for an Introduction

I've used a lot of different cameras and of them all, I'd say the Rolleiflex is the one that helps me meet the most people. This trio of photos tells a story. This is Juneau, the dog I was taking care of for three days last week. This is the owner of a cafe in...