We all spend more time dreaming than doing, but dreaming is an important part of our lives. It is how we develop our ideas and creative thoughts that turn into special days. We all deal with the mundane aspects of life where it seems we constantly repeat the same uneventful things day after day. Dreaming lets us think beyond our current state and helps us make plans for future. I made this image this week at sunrise on a foggy morning. It is at a lake nearby that has numerous cypress trees surrounded by water. This image represents a dream I had over a year ago of being able to photograph these trees from the water. My dream led me to pursuing the right equipment and knowledge to access the locations I desired to be in. The process of fulfilling a dream can have it's ups and downs with setbacks and discouragements. But that is an important part of reaching your dream. Nothing is worth obtaining if it is easy, nor should it be.

Special Days

April 16, 2016

Photography tip

February 27, 2016

I recently had the misfortune of dropping and breaking my very expensive -16 neutral density filter while trying to screw in on my camera lens. The new filters have a very thin profile which makes them difficult to handle without running the risk of dropping. In this short video I show you how I now put on and take off a filter from my lens. Hopefully this small tip my help you when working with glass filters.

Scanning film negatives

February 16, 2016

I have many black and white negatives that I had made during my darkroom days. Most of my work back then was done with a Linhof 4x5 view camera using Kodak films. Tri-x was one film I enjoyed because of it's exposure latitude and the way I could easily manipulate it. When Tmax films came along it was a challenge at first to know how to use and process the film. Tmax was revolutionary because of the grain structure and the very fine detail it could record. It was a film that needed a strict processing procedure, and I used a calibrated Jobo processor to do all of my development. The time and temperature was extremely critical to getting satisfactory and repeatable results with Tmax. Recently I have been scanning a few of my old negatives to use on my web site. I have an Epson V750 flatbed scanner and use a fluid mount scanning procedure. The results are alright for web images but when compared to my finished fine gelatin silver prints they can not compare. Certainly there are better quality scanning devices such as a drum scanner. Someday I may use a custom lab to make a high end scan of some of my favorite negatives to see if I could print them to my satisfaction. The above image, called Roger, is one I made with Tmax-100 film and scanned with my flatbed scanner.

Buckskin Gulch

February 14, 2016

In Northern Arizona near the Utah border is a wilderness area that I love to hike called Paria Canyon. There are wonderful canyons and river beds to explore and one of my favorites is Buckskin Gulch. It is a long canyon that extends nearly 28 miles from one end to the other. I have never hiked the entire canyon but hope to someday. This canyon has narrow slots with high walls towering a hundred feet or more overhead. It is always advisable to check the weather forecast before going into these remote locations. A sudden storm can drop a lot of rain in the mountains and all of that water will be draining down and out of these isolated canyons. You can see in this image the log that is wedged between the canyon walls and can imagine the force of water that flowed down through this canyon at one time. My rule for hiking into these locations is to keep track of time to know when to turn around and head back. It is important to keep in mind that a four hour hike in equals a four hour hike back out. It is easy to get infatuated with the magnificent surroundings and lose track of time and your energy. The Southwest offers some great opportunities to explore some remote and rugged landscapes, and with a little research and planning you can enjoy some scenic wilderness.

Technical notes: I made this image with a 4x5 view camera using Kodak TMax 100 film. I scanned the negative using a fluid mount process on a Epson V750 flatbed scanner.

Photographing from a kayak

February 02, 2016

I had a chance to get out on the water this past week end and do a little photography. Typically it can be windy here in Florida in the wintertime, so when I saw a calm day I immediately got my kayak out on the water. We recently purchased new kayaks and decided to buy the sit on top style over the sit in style we had. The new ones are easier to get in and out of, but as I found out, much easier to flip than our old units. I was out a few weeks ago by myself and managed to flip it twice. Once when I reached for something behind me and again trying to gather up my stuff floating in the lake in my water tight bag. Luckily for me I didn't have any camera equipment out, and the alligator I just passed didn't make a meal out of me. After this experience I decided that I needed to make my kayak flip proof so I can photograph without a concern of losing my equipment and not have to swim with the alligators. I spent the next couple of weeks engineering outriggers that are fully adjustable to put on the kayak. This week was the first time out with them installed and they worked perfectly. Now the kayak feels much more stable and I can focus more on making photographs and less on flipping over.

Welcome

January 21, 2016

Welcome to my new web site. I have neglected to construct a new site for the past few years because of traveling full time in a motorhome, but finally I found some time to get this site built . I plan on sharing some of my photographs and photography experiences I have had over the years. My background with photography started in the mid 60's back in high school and still keeps me busy today. Most of my work has been done with a large format camera using black and white film. It has been five years now that I made to switch to go completely to the digital format and have enjoyed the process. I look forward to hearing back from you on some topics that I might bring up. As photographers we share a common bond for things of beauty and a sense of mystery that can be found in nature.