Other work and rumination

Our local library bought a ton of photography books between 2010 and 2014 or so. Lots of them talk about digital photography like it's a new thing. Library books being free to borrow, I've borrowed most of them. It's to the point where I won't see anything new, that I'm interested in.

There are lots that I'm not interested in. Weddings, for example, as typically done these days. My price for such an affair is $100,000 cash up front with no return under any circumstances, plus, (and this is even more important) duct taping rights to the bridezilla or her mom, or anyone else involved that would make life difficult for a poor innocent photographer.

Now, if two people I know personally, of mature years and sensible outlook, were to happen to be tying the knot through a JP ceremony, in a low key but heartfelt way, and wanted some photos to mark the occasion, I'd probably do that.

I digress. There are other things I'm not interested in photographing, and you do not want to know.

So imagine my surprise when I found 4 different books, all quite recent, none of which I'd read, and one of which happens to be someone I've heard speak and am impressed by.

It's interesting going through photography books and thinking about the photos. Someone went through the process of learning to take good photos, which is harder than you might think. Then they went to the trouble of getting to the place to take the photo, which for some of the photos is an impressive journey by itself, and got a good photo or photos there. And then, perhaps the hardest thing, managed to persuade an editor and publisher to front the money to create a book, and go through the process of getting it printed. (I don't think any of these are self published like a Blurb book.)

So when someone has gone to all that trouble, and all I had to do was pick the book off a shelf and carry it home, it's worth it to take the time and trouble to read and think.

Many of the photos are stunning, of course. They are of places I'm not likely to ever get to, and even if I did get there, the light would be different. Knowing the difference between what my eyes see of a scene, and what my camera sees of the same scene, I can only imagine how it felt to be where the photos were taken.

Some of the photos are just photos, and may have been selected to fill out the pages. Or maybe they are author favourites. I know people roll their eyes at some of my photos that I love.

I haven't read the Kelly book yet, and orbit is for sure one of the places I'll never get to, unless things change more than dramatically. The Northern Light book is stunning! At the least get it from the library, and consider buying it. I could get to those places, if I was willing to spend lots of money, but I doubt I'd get photographs as nice. The storm photos are superb! Not just clouds, but actual landscapes complimented by storms. The people of New York I thought was the weakest one. A few good photos, but mostly just photos of people. Not portraits, though I'm hard pressed to define the difference.

Black and white used to be the thing, the only way to get fine art photos. I've been trying to be more open to this. One of my buddies was recently on a trip to the Drumheller area and came back with a B&W hoodoo photo. Hmmm. I'd recently been there and took several such photos. A couple made it into the blog a few weeks back. A month? More? Whatever. I'm losing track of when things happen. Zoom.

Along the way I was experimenting with different Lightroom settings and found some controls I hadn't known existed. Lightroom is like that, it's full of tiny little things that make things behave one way if set so, and behave differently if set such. That got me sidetracked. There isn't just one B&W profile, there are 17 subtly different ones. Or so they say, I can't tell the difference between some of them. There are also 28 different colour ones. I played with several different photos and the various settings. Zoom! Another day gone.

My original edit of the view leaving the Bleriot Ferry.

A different profile and edit. You might not see much difference. It's perhaps a little lighter, at least on my monitor.

Black and white.

I have to admit, my original edit is my favourite. Yours?

And one of Curtis to reward you for wading through photo technicalities. He was being even more photogenic than usual, but as I was about to click, he got up to come over and get petted. I followed him around a bit, trying to do some portrait shots in odd light.

Deadwood of the Day
Another example of pareidolia?