garden mascot

In an attempt to keep the bunnies from devouring my new garden, I borrowed a fake owl that would surely scare them away. I sat him next to the spinach, looking menacing with his huge yellow eyes and angry eyebrows. But the next day I looked out my kitchen window to see a large rabbit sitting right next to the owl and gnawing on some green bean seedlings, likely chuckling at my ridiculous attempt to frighten him. But despite the owl's failure to do his duties, he stays put in the garden. I've grown a bit attached to him, I think. So instead he serves as a photo subject, backed by a healthy crop of black-eyed susans that match his eyes beautifully.

This is my first attempt at a real vegetable garden and surprisingly, it seems to be going well so far. What's growing in your garden? Please share your photos with us!

up close

Meet Ben.  

Some of you may 'know' my little boy already. We spend day and night together. My husband says we are joined at the hip. 

He's the cutest little guy.... so gentle and loving... sweet and full of character. There's just so much to love about Ben.

Today I pulled out my macro lens... it's been awhile! I've missed it! As I was taking close-ups of all the pretty flowers in our yard, Ben was right there with me .... I just had to take his pic. His beautiful golden lashes make me swoon. I mean...seriously... are they not just the cutest?

Today,  get in a little 'closer' to something (or someone) you love and share with us. I'd love to see.

p.s. I'm running a little 'up-close give away' at the Café.  Stop by and share your up-close photos for a chance to win a few prizes......  

The Six Questions featuring Jesse Freidin

Photographer Jesse Freidin isn't just your average shutter brother. In fact, he's top dog. Literally. Jesse's unique style of dog photography has earned him critical acclaim and the praises of photography buffs and dog lovers everywhere. I mean, what's not to love? From his Doggie Gaga project to his latest photo workshop with the Impossible Project, Jesse is full of great ideas and awesome images!

We are thrilled to have him here answering our Six Questions. In Jesse's case, he opted to answer a few more for us. What guy! 

1. What's the story behind this photo?

This is one of my favorite images from my current Impossible Dog Series, which is created completely on The Impossible Project’s new instant films. I walk my own dog down this stair case every day on the way to the dog park, and have been dying for an excuse to photograph there- the light and texture is dreamy.

2. What was it that lit your photography spark? Do you remember a particular camera, course, person, roll of film?

I’ve been enthralled with creating instant images since I was little- borrowing my parent’s Polaroid and secretly wasting their film when they weren’t looking. But it wasn’t until I bought my first beat up old Polaroid Land Camera during my first year of college that my brain totally exploded. I remember peeling that first black/white peel-apart Polaroid and feeling my heart literally skip a beat. I had created something with this temperamental plastic camera that perfectly matched the image in my head. And it was beautiful and imperfect. From that second forward nothing has brought me more extreme joy than photographing. It is a need. It is a creative addiction.

3. What's your photo philosophy? Does it reflect your life philosophy?

A good question… Though I’m known for my work with animals, I do a fair amount of human portrait work (mostly for my personal portfolio) on the side. Yet my approach is always the same- there needs to be a connection between you and your subject, and within that connection there needs to be a string of emotion. In my head, that emotional string (it looks like red yarn in my mind… don’t ask why) connects the heart/mind of the photographer, runs through the camera, and attaches to the heart/mind of the subject. The photographer needs to open himself up to the experience of the image in order to create an authentic photograph. I’d like to say that this is how I live my everyday life as well, but it always seems easier to do when I have a camera in front of my face.

4. Where do you look for inspiration?

I feel inspired by watching people connect with their animal companions, and I feel inspired standing in the middle of a field in the middle of nowhere. I love taking myself to museums and wandering around, and building my photography book collection. I get a lot of inspiration from other photographers, musicians, film makers who push the limits of their field.

5. What would you say is one of your 'signature' editing tricks, themes or

style? What do you think makes an image recognizable and uniquely yours?

I use a 1970s Hasselblad, black/white 120 film, hand process all my negatives, print all my photographs by hand in my darkroom, cut all my own archival matts and frames, and make sure each piece that leaves the studio is signed and perfect. Start to finish I am creating my prints with my hands, and staying true to the craft of traditional photography. I guess I’m just stubborn, but I want to create the most intensely beautiful photographs I possibly can for my clients. And to me- a warmly printed photograph on the highest quality fiber based paper is the epitome of magical. I think I’m one of the last photographers using this method on the West Coast- maybe the country. I’ll continue printing this way until I cannot get supplies. Or pass out from chemistry inhalation. Whichever comes first.

6. What aspect of your photography are you constantly working on, trying to improve?

I’m not much of a gear-head, and never know what the newest lens is or who has the best pixelthings. But I’m always striving to learn from other experienced photographers, go to seminars or exhibits, and learn how to continue to stay dynamic. Also, I wish I was better at talking while photographing. But that one’s hard to practice.

 
7. If you could go anywhere in the world for an epic, week long photo excursion all by your luxuriously unhurried self - regardless of money, time or childcare issues - where would you go and why?

I drove across Rt. 66 years ago when I moved from the East Coast to California. I’d give anything to do that trip again, with 37 cameras in town. The desolation and color and space and light was just so inspiring.

8. Are there women out there that you consider your shutter sisters? Who, and why?

Annie Leibovitz and Diane Arbus are two of my top favorite photographers, and always have been. I think they are spiritual ‘shutter sisters.’ I could maybe be their ‘shutter brother.’

To learn more about Jesse and his work, visit his website and for more info about The Impossible Dog Portrait workshop at The Impossible Project Space in NY, check out this blog post. Rumor has it he has only a few spots left so if you want to attend be sure to sign up right away.

Let's give a big sisterly nod to Jesse, his imagery and the love of our creature companions by sharing our pet portraits today! Woof!

beach party

Ben and I stumbled on this party at our local beach today..... 

As you can see, true beach weather has not yet arrived. Our feathered friends have the place all to themselves, and they seem to be loving every minute of it. It's hard to see the variety of 'folks' at the gathering...but there was a duck, a few geese, a gull and another fella I can't quite identify.  

Ben and I walk the trail from town, that leads to this very spot, each day.... it's certainly not a sandy ocean beach, but we sure do LOVE it.

Today share a little glimpse into your world....  the beach, the trail, the back yard.... wherever you may find a little inspiration and sunshine. We'd love to see it. 

Wait

I have been lying on the sand for 30 minutes, my eyes glued to the camera. My bones ache. My skin itches. My fingers are numb. I am starting to get cold. I am waiting. I am waiting for my subject to move. I am waiting for my shot. Most of the time, the shot never happens and those 30 minutes are added to the previous hours of waiting. 

The subject moves the wrong way. The background is not right. The light is not right. I wait for 30 minutes without a pause, and the second I break my stare, it is when it happens. Nature photography is all about waiting.

In the course of their lifetime, a person will spend approximately 3 to 5 years waiting; 35,000 hours motionless, expecting a desired outcome. We wait for the perfect moment. For the right woman, for the right man. We wait for the right conditions.  We wait for the rain to stop, for the sun to come out. We wait for the bus, for the train, for the subway. We wait in traffic, at the bank, at the grocery store. We wait on the phone. We wait for a phone call. We wait for people. People wait for us. We wait for salvation, for forgiveness. We wait for the show to begin, for the commercials to end. We wait for dinner to be ready. We wait for a package to be delivered. We wait for inspiration to come. We wait behind the camera for the perfect shot.

Francois Rabelais said: “Everything comes in time to those who can wait.” While Abraham Lincoln believed that “Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustles.” Lenny Kravtiz has always waited for inspiration to write his music. Sean Lennon instead writes everyday convinced that inspiration comes with practice. Alexandre Dumas wrote that “ All human wisdom is summed up in two words: wait and hope.”  At the opposite, W.M. Lewis said that “The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it.”

Nothing would ever be accomplished if we just waited for things to happen. But again, nothing would ever be accomplished if we were not able to wait until completion. Some don’t wait to start, but have trouble finishing. Others can’t seem to find the will to start, but once they do, they will finish what they have started even if they have to wait a lifetime to see the results. You can’t wait for the right conditions. You can’t wait for things to come to you. But you must be able to wait for the unique to manifest. And when it does, all those minutes, all those hours, all those years waiting, suddenly are worth the wait.

...........

Image and words courtesy of Shutter Brother Daniel Fox. You can find out more about Daniel and check out the amazing things he is doing through The Wild Image Project.