SixBySeven

This site has MOVED!!

2008-02-23T15:18:00.001-05:00

Please visit the new site at http://www.sixbyseven.ca

Thank you for visiting this site, but I will no longer be posting here.

THIS SITE IS MOVING!!!

2008-02-16T23:02:00.003-05:00

I have not gone away... I have been busy building a whole new site on a server of my own... stay tuned over the next couple of weeks to get a look.

Here is the new logo:

Check in soon!!!

Self Portrait

2007-12-16T21:19:00.000-05:00

Here I am... thank god for self-timers. The camera in my hand is another medium format camera that I am trying out. It is a Zeiss Ikonta, from 1952 and takes 120 film for huge film frames that are 6 x 9 Cm. That is like 145 megapixels!!

I have been spending so much time shooting portraits for other people and I can't post them without their permission either, so my postings have been "light". I hope to have some new stuff up here during the Christmas break!!

Portraits

2007-11-25T10:53:00.000-05:00

Trying to practice my portrait work.... I think the black dogs on a black background needs to be re-thought.

Autumn Finally Arrives

2007-10-28T12:01:00.000-04:00

In a two week period the weather went from abnormally sunny and 26 degrees C to the cold, wet weather that autumn normally brings. The weather was so warm... The leaves never hit peak color.

What is to become of the weather in the future?

More ZIMSCULPT

2007-10-07T19:44:00.000-04:00

A lot of people are asking for more shots of the sculptures.... here you go:

Scenes From Africa.

2007-09-29T22:58:00.000-04:00

It is sunny and 23 degrees C here in Hamilton, and it has been like that for a week. I thought we would check out the ZIMSCULPT exhibit at the Royal Botanical gardens. ZIMSCULPT is a Sculpture exhibit from Zimbabwe, Africa.

There are over 300 sculptures set up throughout the gardens.

The stone the artists use is a lot like soap stone, and comes in various colours.

Each sculpture tells a different story, or depicts ancient African mythology.

Some of the artists also demonstrated their carving techniques.

They were also selling most of the sculptures..... The Price?

Anywhere from $1000 to $12000 ... Yikes!

Failure

2007-09-16T14:11:00.001-04:00

Failure is an important function in life. In my case, failure is an ongoing process that pops its ugly head in and out every once in a while.
It is only because I keep trying, sometimes relentlessly that I begin to learn, and thus end up succeeding the next time. Take the photo below.

Yea, it is a light bulb. However, it is one of 9 that were sacrificed to get this one shot (I replaced everything in the house with compact fluorescent bulbs. Hummm, what to do with the old bulbs??). And it is still not a great shot. I have seen photos like this one that were perfectly in focus, very sharp and the entire bulb was in the photo. And I was shooting at 5 frames per second, with 1000 watts of light.

It is not the equipment..... It is a setback. It is like a lot of things in life, we can't always get want we want.

But the good news?

My music server is back, heating my garage and supplying music once again.

The Big Bus

2007-09-04T21:18:00.000-04:00

I left you last week on the streets of Toronto. Remember the "Rat Pack" from the 1960s... Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Peter Lawford, Dean Martin, and Joey Bishop?

One thing stands out about the "Rat Pack"... they were cool!

For Cam and Amanda's wedding, I could not derive a theme... until I got the films back from a new medium format camera I was using.... then it hit me.....We are going to ride on a big bus with the "Rat Pack of the 2000s"...

Ok, so we are at the church, and we go outside....

Now Cam and Amanda did not have a limo.....

They had a big, big bus.... it was like driving around in a lounge at the airport....

It had a kitchenette, bathroom, satellite TV, Satellite radio, Satellite guided, radio tripping bus driver... I mean, it was a big, big cool bus.

Everyone on the bus just looked cool...

Or they looked like attractive cool stars.....

The pack posing outside a church... just looked cool.

Hell, walking down the street.... they just looked cool

Even the kid who started the bus ride.... looked cool.

I love black and white film.... it too, is cool.

See you next week for part three .....

Another Year, Another Wedding

2007-08-20T19:38:00.000-04:00

This is Amanda.......

Remember last year, and Samantha and Brian's wedding? For the seven or eight of you who read this blog it is here.

This year another friend, Cam, got married to Amanda. They also had two VPPs shooting their wedding photos, and I spent sometime shooting "nice" shots with the two VPPs.

But Cam and Amanda also had an idea for some type of Guerrilla photography, whereby we shoot at any opportunity, and we include the general public in the action.

Like near the Airport....

Or waiting at a street car stop....

Or stopping a street car in the middle of downtown Toronto....

Or running down the street........

Or just stopping in the street....

Next week, the further adventures of Cam and Amanda... and the "Big Bus"

Taking a Break

2007-08-03T20:05:00.000-04:00

I have not posted much over the summer. It is not that I have not shot anything, the fact is I have.
I have just not had time to get them up on the blog.
The real fact is... I have too many projects on the go, and I need to finish things off before the fall.

My daughter Rebecca has also been shooting with me. So this time, I am going to post one of her shots from Hamilton harbor.

Rebecca Murray, June 2007

I will post again in September.

Cottage Time, and the Return of Summer

2007-05-26T18:16:00.000-04:00

Ontario weather is just kooky. 350 kilometers north of my house in Hamilton, lies the cottage. I rarely go up north in May, due to the fact that it is about three weeks behind Hamilton, weather-wise. It is cold, and damp. I also rarely venture north in may due to the dreaded black fly.

"The Black flies, the little Black flies"
" Always the black fly no matter where you go"
" I'll die with the black fly a Pickin' my bones"
"In North Ontario, In North Ontario"
-Wade Hemsworth,.

The Black fly is about the size of a grape seed. But they don't come in ones and twos..... they come by the hundreds.... sometimes thousands... Oh yea.... THEY BITE!!! And they are always around, everywhere..... for about three weeks. Then like magic...... POOF...... they are gone until next spring. That, is the only downside the spring in the North country.

The upside? Trilliums!

The trillium is a wild perennial flower the grows across Ontario. In fact, it is the provincial flower. I have seen a lot of trilliums......

The Trillium

This year... there were millions of them. As far back into the woods you could see them. Everywhere. White, Pink, Purple, Violet..... millions of them. Along every road, highway, and forest.

More Trilliums

The other upsides...... the shear beauty of a forest and a lake on a spring evening.

Manitouwabing Sunset in HDR

See ya in a few weeks.

Fun with Film

2007-05-12T21:45:00.000-04:00

Wow... a month has gone by.

I was down at the docks last weekend shooting with film because I am working on a black and white assignment for the club. There are all sorts of interesting objects and subjects down near the lake.....

HMCS Hieda

Boats at the Royal Hamilton Yacht Club

The Steam Museum

Water Playground near Pier 4

Oh... Alright.... Here is a color image done utilizing what is called "North Light"..

The Answers

2007-04-12T19:40:00.000-04:00

I thought I would post these now....
(because everyone is bugging me)

The format for the answers is:
Photo = Camera, So....

A=2
B=7
C=5 (yup, a cheap 2mp digital camera... on a tripod)
D=3 (An even cheaper point & shoot but with a great macro lens)
E=1
F=6
G=8
H=4

So, don't worry about the camera....... savor the moments!

Match Game

2007-04-07T14:40:00.000-04:00

Someone at work came up to me and said that they really like a couple of my photos, and that I must have a really expensive camera in order to "take such good pictures". Well truth be told, I have a lot of really nice cameras, but only one is worth a bit of money if it were new. Most of the cameras I have are several years old, and many of them can be had on Ebay for under $200. In fact I have only 1 new camera, the average age of all my other cameras are 18 years old, and the oldest camera I use is now 30 years old. One person who used a Canon G5 digital camera (point and shoot) even accused me of "Cheating" when they saw my Nikon D200. What the hell the person meant by "cheating" I don't know.... I did not want to prompt for clarification....

The point here is that it is not the camera that makes the photo.... it is the moment that makes the photo. All cameras work basically the same, and Canon is not better than Nikon and Digital is not better than film.... or visa-versa. You choose cameras like you would choose a power tool, a car, or a dish washer. You look for features that meet your needs and then you compare prices.

Since I started this blog, there were only a few times that I ever stated which particular camera was used to make the photo with....In fact, I bet many people out there may have thought I was either strictly using digital, or still shooting film. The real fact is, I use both and I don't think anyone could tell. So let's play a game.... a match game where I post a set of photos and you the reader, try to pick the camera that I made the photo with. Oh yea... music... hummm, how about: DOWNLOAD: Waltz for Stan. By Stan Getz (from the album Apasionado).

Here are the photos (you can click on them to make them bigger)

(A) Heading Home

(B) Making Plans

(C) Parry Sound Sunset

(D) Becks

(E) Becky

(F) Christmas

(G) Hamilton Evening

(H) Daffodil

And here are the cameras:

(1) Yashica Mat 124 G. Medium Format film 6x6cm (1977)
This camera is completely mechanical, with manual focus, aperture, and shutter but has a basic needle-type light meter.

(2) Mamiya RB67 Pro-s. Medium Format film 6x7cm (1994)
This camera is a mechanical professional grade medium format camera, and completely manual in operation... there is not even a built-in light meter!

(3) Nikon Zoom 90 (2001)
This camera is a 35mm film point and shoot, and great for "snap-shots".

(4) Canon A1. 35mm film (1986)
This camera is electro-mechanical with manual focus and electronic exposure and shutter control.

(5) Canon Powershot A60. A 2 Mega-pixel Digital point and shoot (2004)
This camera is completely automatic digital.

(6) Nikon D200. Digital SLR (2006)
This camera is a professional grade 10 Mega-pixel SLR Camera .

(7) Nikon F3. 35mm film (1991)
This camera is electro-mechanical with manual focus and electronic exposure and shutter controls. it was Nikon's last professional grade manual focus SLR.

(8) Nikon FM2n. 35mm film (1984)
This camera is completely mechanical with a manual focus and basic light meter.

I will post the answers next week...........

Niagara Falls...Slowly I turn, Step by step, I walked up to...

2007-03-11T12:46:00.000-04:00

I needed some shots to submit for a club assignment on "Ice". Since it is just past the peak of Winter, visitors to Niagara Falls get to see the falls under "Maximum Ice Conditions". It is only a 45 min drive from my house... and this time of year, it is almost like a ghost town. In keeping with the theme, we need a song about Ice... Ice Cube, Ice-T... no, how about something like an "Ice Age", like a caveman.... hey, like the Geico Caveman advertisements. DOWNLOAD: Remind Me. By Royksopp

Many people don't know that Niagara Falls is not the name of the waterfalls. It is derived from the old town of Niagara, that now straddles the border. Namely Niagara Falls, New York, USA and Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. The falls once known as "The Falls at Niagara, are now called "American Falls" at Niagara Falls N.Y. and "Horseshoe Falls" at Niagara Falls Ontario. Just to the left of American Falls is a thin thing called "Bridal Veil Falls"... but it is covered over with ice this time of year.

HDR (High Dynamic Range) photo of the American Falls from the N.E.

As we walked up toward Horseshoe falls I took another of the American Falls. For those that are unfamiliar with this place, just across the river and ice is the U.S.A. Which means that Canada gets the best view of the falls.

I think it is funny that Canada provides the lights for both countries. The reason the light beams are so prevalent in the photo..... the shear volume of water spray in the air from nearby Horseshoe Falls.

Horseshoe Falls

Behind the mist and spray which got us fairly wet, I took this shot of Horseshoe Falls in a 90 Second exposure. This photo does not give the shear size justice, so for my friends from Europe and Japan, Horseshoe Falls is 800 Meters Wide, and 55 Meters high, but dumps 186,000 cubic meters of water over it's edge every minute.

The foot of Clifton Hill.

When I was a kid, other than the view of the falls, Clifton Hill was the place to go. A short walk from the Falls is a place where you can find amusements of all sorts, from scary "Fun houses", to rides, Wax museums, theaters, bars and Freak shows. Today Clifton Hill runs for several kilometers of various entertainment facilities. Oh yea... it is all built on a long, gradual hill.

The New Fallsview Casino

Today, the Casino is the big entertainment facility at the falls..... most likely why there was nobody looking at the falls on this clear March evening.... they were inside one of the two casinos at Niagara Falls.

One Winter Day

2007-02-18T20:07:00.000-05:00

I decided to head out and check out the activities around my city. The big Lake, Lake Ontario, never freezes over... it is simply too large a body of water to freeze in the short frozen part of our winters. Burlington Bay though, is another story. It freezes over in January, and February every year.

Ok.... the steel mills detract from the wonderful view.... But you get the idea.

Out in the woods, deep snows make for a treacherous hike in the woods. Most of the animals are in the later stages of hibernation, and the summer birds have flown south for the warmer waters....

Ok... just not here! While people utilize the smaller bays and inlets for winter sport, the damn geese decide that the clearing on the ice makes for a great landing zone.. no doubt someone is feeding them too!

Oh look.... did I say that animals should be in the later stages of hibernation? Apparently this little guy did not get the memo.... He most likely watched Al Gore's film on Global Warming...

Out on the bay, folks are skating, skiing and .........

Ok... this is the coolest thing I saw out on the bay.

The dudes (and a dudette) had these huge para-foil kites and when combined with a snowboard, made for some serious high speed runs down the bay..... Sometimes the "pilots" even caught some airtime!

Just another Sunday in Hamilton....... gotta get me one of those kite thingys....

Big Snow

2007-02-14T15:32:00.000-05:00

You wake up early in the morning........ your car is buried under a meter of snow. We usually get a major snow storm every year.... and usually marks the end of winter! This is my neighbors car.... I still had to find mine.

This snow storm dumped almost 70 Cm of snow in just under 30 hours time. I hope the roof is strong.....

You don't dare go anywhere until the plows have cleared off the side streets... the main roads are cleared first.... but you still have to wait until they visit your street.... sometimes that can take several hours..... after the snow has stopped falling.

In the meantime..... while you wait ....... you can at least admire the natural beauty and drink warm cups of coffee.

But then you still have to dig out your own damn car....... I can't wait until next week as all of this will be gone.

Winter Sets In

2007-01-21T15:21:00.000-05:00

As winter sets in, I am reminded of spring from the photographs found on the blogs of my friends.....

I will add to the thought process.....

After Christmas... I want the ice and snow gone.... and spring to come..

My Wishes to you all.....

2006-12-23T13:35:00.000-05:00

I Built a City

2006-12-03T13:59:00.000-05:00

I decided to build a city that would be located by a lake, and reach into the sky. We could drive around my city, at night and listen to music:
DOWNLOAD: Driver. By The Teddy Bears

At night my city would reflect its lights across the water.

Or.. we could rent a helicopter and fly over it at night... see all of the lights.

In the evening, we could sit out in the lake and take in the sunset.

This is my city.... That's correct, my city is just made from staples, a mirror and colored lights.

But if I add some additional color effects... I kinda want to visit for just on night.

Wanna come for a drive?

I bought a new Camera

2006-11-12T18:46:00.000-05:00

Ok... after processing film through the scanner, I noticed that my work flow is not quick. Especially with Sam's wedding, and Thanksgiving (where I lost a complete roll of film due to the camera being setup wrong)
The Film workflow:
Compose->Shoot->Send To lab-> wait->get films back-> review-> scan-> adjust-> upload.

A couple of weeks ago... I went a little kooky. You know.... Shit happened, life got all screwed up and I could not figure out why.... The cure for this???

You go shopping..... and you buy something! Sometimes... you buy something BIG!

I did it... I went out, and bought a high-end digital camera... The shots below are from the new camera.

High-end is a funny term..... even though it is still a Nikon, the lenses they make for these things don't allow super close photos. But.. since it is a high-end Nikon, it will allow me to use all my high-end lenses from my film cameras. That's right... I still use the damn thing set in "Manual" mode to get the best shots.

I will still shoot film, especially medium format. But a lot of the quick stuff I need, they will most likely be digital.

The Digital workflow:
Compose->Shoot->review->adjust-> upload.

Toast, and Things of the Simple Life.

2006-10-19T21:15:00.000-04:00

I love the smell of toast... something from my childhood, possibly those many hours as a kid watching Saturday morning cartoons... and eating toast and jam. What is it about specific smells, or music that can evoke long forgotten memories. Many such memory flashbacks are of simple things in life, like toast.

I have always been a fan of Steely Dan for years. So many of their songs played parts in burning special memories into my brain. Playing the songs keeps providing me with just as many images that I have remembered. Here is one of my favorate.. I was playing this on the MP3 player when I took these photos. DOWNLOAD Dr. Wu.

This week I experiment with what is known as "Camera Painting"

Camera painting is simple, set the shutter to a small f-stop like f22 and set the exposure time to a large 2 seconds. Then move the camera in a motion that paints the scene.........

Autumn #1

Fall has the special smell too. After the first couple of days past labour day, the leaves give every child their first hint for the start of the school year.

Autumn # 2

Autumn #3

Finally as frost sets in, the smell starts me thinking about Christmas, family and the long nights ahead.

Frost

I am off to make some toast... it has been a long time since I smeared my mother's home made jam on a peice of toast... simple things are most often the best things.

Back to the Studio

2006-10-13T18:20:00.000-04:00

I got my films back.. I built a new studio lighting rig with various spots, fixtures and coloured filters... To celebrate here is a tune from what is arguably one of the greatest Jazz albums ever written.. DOWNLOAD: "A Love Supreme" By John Coltrane.

The hand... it molds, it moves, it creates. Its soft touch is felt as it gently slides down the smooth surfaces of objects in comes in play with....

The sun... it warms, it feeds, it gives us life energy. Its glow in the early morning or late evening can elicit emotion that nurtures the soul.

The cup... is made by the hand, baked by the sun, and can hold dreams of desire or nightmares of sorrow.

The fruit... is fed by the sun, sowed by the hand, and contained in the cup. Its taste can please the soul and tempt the heart.

hey.. the poetry sucks but the music is great!!!

See ya next week.

Thanksgiving

2006-10-04T20:10:00.000-04:00

I normally like this time of year.. it is my favorate time... it means change!

First we need music.. some Jazz...
DOWNLOAD: "So What" By Miles Davis.
Now, pull up a chair.. we are back at my cottage... in the north woods.. on the lake... the Stereo is playing....

Thanksgiving in Canada is a fall festival.. the kind they have pretty much everywhere to celebrate the harvest and give thanks. ... I only need to look at the scenery, listen to Mr. Davis.. have some good friends, good wine, good food..... hell man! Why not give thanks!

I am doing the 330Km trek Friday... up to the cottage with family and friends... I'll be back Sunday... I really wish everyone happy harvest time... and I wish you where with me.

Sam's Wedding... The Actual Truth. Part 3 of 3

2006-10-01T11:55:00.000-04:00

This is a Bride:
And this is a Groom:
And this is the Brides Mom and the lady who fell down the stairs:
And this is a Bride:

This lady is into Satan worship

These three guys own and operate a shrimping boat....

None of these fine people where actually at Sam's wedding reception, but they were enjoying their own wedding receptions at the same place as Sam.... Why... What were you thinking?

And it was important.. Because in introduces today's music... which is from an Acadian musician who lives in Hamilton... In the music you can here the basis for the Zydeco they might play on a shrimping boat. DOWNLOAD: "Trinques L’amourettes" By Scantily Plaid.

I started this whole thing with a nice photo of Sam.. I am going to end it that way too... So here is Sam's parents... What do you think they are thinking? Their daughter is getting married!!!

I mean I have a daughter too... but I am buying her intended Groom a ladder...

This is the inside of the church....

Here is a wide shot of everyone waiting... we do alot of that a weddings don't we... we wait for the previous wedding to end so we get a seat, we wait for the ushers, we wait for the bride, we wait for the religious services to be over, we wait for the preist, the photographer, the church to clear... hell we even wait for the bartender

For this shot I wanted the Bride, her Mom, and Her Dad to be small in the photo and give it a feeling of being overwhelmed at the whole thing..

And finally...... Mr and Mrs Muscat

The last song is fitting.... It is by Tangerine Dream DOWNLOAD: "Dolphin Dance" .

The End.... The Middle.... The Beginning... Your choice. We all live on this planet in our own realities....

Sam's Wedding... A further extension of truth. Part 2 of 3

2006-09-21T18:47:00.000-04:00

Ok.. this week I want everybody to get the song for this post..... it is essential to this week's theme. It is by Dave Brubeck... DOWNLOAD: "Take Five"

We last left Sam's wedding looking like this.... A full-blown Hollywood party was underway. Dancing, Drinking..... people just having fun.
Kinda looks like something from an old James Cagney.. or Humphrey Bogart film..

Hey just for fun... let's pick on the guests this week....... Suppose we were photographing famous detectives back in the 1940's or 1950's....

Wow... "Ok.. copper.. I surrender"

Or maybe..... There are cheap black & white photos of people doing things they shouldn't, like being drunk in public or committing unsociable acts...

yeah right, ......at a wedding?

I'll bet that some of the guests are actual private eyes.... yea, they wear their private eye smile, and dress in their detective style clothes and...

they are even accompanied by their beautiful detective type girlfriends.

Sometimes an actual crime is about to be committed....

This is Sam's new boss and his wife.... now suspiciously....they left the party right after eating diner... no goodbye, no farewell, nothing! ....I never even got to dance with his wife.... Nor did I get to harass them much.. But her face is saying two things... either something about the guy taking photos is an asshole, so let's leave or..

"you wait 5 minutes... till that "Chicken Kiev" takes effect hubby dear..."

Hey guys..

This is Katie...... I have tons of photos of Katie... in every damn one she has a drink in her hand....

Now Katie is very attractive and photographs very well.... even with a drink in her hand.. but I wanted to make her more than just a cheap black & white image... and go back to the glamour of Hollywood for just a moment.....

The 2006 Best Actress Award Winner.....

"Way to go Katie.... let me buy you a drink".

Notice that I used color...... ewwww, aahhhh. The photo is an obvious fake and you can tell.. but what if I take someone who is very likable... someone like Brian's brother Leo....

Well damned if he isn't a dashing fellow!! Very charming indeed...
But given the right circumstances......

"Waaaassss Uppppp"

Ok.. I have to ...No... I want to be nice... for just a moment. Because we take time in our presentation to pay homage to... Sam's Mom.

If you look closely at Glennis you see Samantha......

Right... homage over....... This is Baylee... Sam's nephew and a highly active "little person" ... what's more he is a professional Hollywood dancer.....
Photos don't lie.... do they?

See ya next week..... oh yea.. please leave your comments below <- This line

Sam's Wedding... an essay on reality (Part 1 of 3)

2006-09-14T17:55:00.000-04:00

I'm not much for marriage... I tried it once and it broke. But don't let me stop you .... everybody aught to try it at least once, because no two are really the same. That whole "Wedding" part though... Man... I love weddings... hey we all do, especially if the food and drinks are free... well not quite free... they generally cost me the price of a high-end toaster... Hey, admit it ... some of you did not even go to the church, just the diner (Remember...I have photos).

Canadian weddings are all pretty much the same... ok, minor differences in getting the "Principle couple" to kiss, but the goal is the same.... the pomp and cerimony are relatively standard fare.... Everybody has and Aunt or an Uncle that dance to a beat that has is far different than the song the DJ is playing..... and people like me, stay though the entire thing and consume far too much alcohol... and do things that someone with a camera might capture....

This is my friend Sam...

I never thought about her as being "beautiful" before... she was a buddy, a pal and someone you would work with and then go party with her and her friends for hours. But after seeing her dressed up I must admit, she is probably the most beautiful bride I have ever seen.

Now Sam and her new playmate/husband Brian.. who is the most beautiful groom the teenage girls in my house, have ever seen... had "Real" photos done by a very professional photographer (hence forth know as a VPP).

I'm just not much into pre-positioned, "pretty" photos that we get from a VPP.... don't get me wrong, I'm sure every VPP can be creative and do some great stuff that I would bow down too...And the VPP gets paid BFB to take photos... I'm lucky if I get invited to the event.

This blog is about experimentation... and I wanted to do something different with the photos I took at Sam & Brian's wedding. Imagine if the wedding was on July 22, 1957 instead of August 12, 2006.. would you know the difference?

Think again......

Somewhat of a different reality isn't it...
Hey, you know what?... this page needs a song..... yea, we need a song to go along with our reality trip.... DOWNLOAD: "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" this is done by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole..... Oh yea, like you actually pronunciated that name!

I like the 40's and 50's photos .. black and whites.... tons of grain... Shots taken by a guy with a camera the size of a compact car. What if Sam and Brian were the A-List, hot Hollywood couple........

"Hey, I didn't know those two got married........"

I was trying out some film with an ISO rating of 3200... the stuff is really shitty and has little use other than to get shots without bothering folks with a blinding flash (sorry to the lady who got blinded on the stairs, I hope the stiches don't scar). After getting the negatives back, I noticed that the shots look like they were taken off of an old 1950's style, black&white TV...

How do we know they were not.....

"Hi, there.. Tony Falconi here, and welcome to Dancing with my Aunty and Uncle"

"Our contestants are all waiting for the music to start"

"Oh boy!.. look at them go... One or two seem to be falling off the beat"

"Wow, I think we have our winner here folks"!

Now I did not mean to slam the VPP. Most VPP's are butt ugly.. that's why we pay them to take our photos, and we don't shoot theirs. In this case though the VPP was attractive... had a great smile... ooopss, was that my finger that hit the shutter button?... sorry. But this page can also change things around a little.... change perceptions, change realities.... I wasn't shooting a VPP at a wedding.... No, No, No my friends... I was back in the Sixties.........

VPP Lisa Drenters

See ya next week!

Oh, please leave your comments right below this line!!

A Night, A Bar, A Couple of Tunes

2006-09-08T21:29:00.000-04:00

I love a good tavern. I love the smell of the drinks and the smoke.. all mixed in with the various food being served along the front of the bar. Given the right setting, mixture of people and music.... a feeling of tranquility slowly comes accross anyone sitting back after a few drinks... and just observing the detail.

How do you explain what it feels like, what it sounds like, and what it looks like? To do this.. I slowed up a camera to mimic the effect of alcohol on my concience... things get slowed down... throw on the music of The Counting Crows DOWNLOAD: "Perfect Blue Buildings" ... and now you can hear what it is like.

You wander around .. not paying attention to the action directly.. but you notice the less subtle stuff.. the noise in the background... that is what has your focus. You notice that when new people come in they are immediately greeted by those they know, the voices adjust in volume as each person competes to be heard.. It all piles up in the background.....

You wander aimlessly, without a specific purpose...

You may need to move, weave or fumble around various people as you try to find a place to stop, and get another drink... you want to examine the place more closely.... from a more stable position...

You find a nice spot and you look around and notice small collections... where the interaction includes each person in the group. Their body posture takes on the same relaxed atmosphere of the place... you decide to look around some more...

The alcohol mixed with the environment makes you and those around you feel totally relaxed....

You consume a couple more drinks, and join in on the conversation...

For any number of reasons, it does not hold your interest long and accross the room you find anoher invitaion to join...

The alcohol is taking its desired effects and you realize that the focus was on the consumption, and you need to make room for more... you head out again.. on a different search... you may try talking along the way.. but something inside you reminds you to complete the search.

You then find the prize....

...and return back to the same cycle.

Back... and going back.. to play some Bach

2006-08-29T21:53:00.000-04:00

Oh to write and play a sonnet.. to the one who has my heart.
I am again, going back to Parry Sound. (Studio shot, Nikon F3, Provia RHP III)

On Vacation

2006-08-16T18:16:00.000-04:00

I will be back up at the cottage (in Parry Sound) for the next week. This photo is an example of what I will actually look at over then next several days.

Ich werde an Sie denken! (Nikon F3, Fuji Velvia).

I Only Shoot Film..... Honest!

2006-08-10T11:55:00.000-04:00

People often ask why I shoot film, and don't move to the world of digital. Well, I can get top notch, professional equipment... dirt cheap on ebay! You would need thousands to replace everything that I picked up for a few bucks.

But I did buy a good film scanner, and I have numerous computers thoughout my house. The above was shot with the Nikon F3, and Kodak E100-VS. I then scanned in the image and used photoshop to increasde the colour saturation, and utilized the drybrush filter ("Pipes", July 2006). So there.... a "digital" shot!

Around the House

2006-08-03T20:02:00.000-04:00

This is some stuff made in my so-called "Studio" (a small table with cloth or paper backgrounds)

Making Plans (Nikon F3, Fuji Provia RHP III)

Circuits (Canon A1, Fuji Provia RHP III)

Buttons in Black & White (Nikon FM2n, Ilford Delta 100)

Glass in Black & White (Nikon FM2n, Ilford Delta 100)

Around Hamilton, Ontario

2006-07-20T22:47:00.001-04:00

Stoney Creek Falls (Canon A1, Fuji Velvia, Linear Polarizer)

Fire in the Skies (Nikon F3, Fuji Velvia, Linear Polarizer)

Autumn Walk(Nikon F3, Fuji Velvia)

Winter on the Escarpment (Canon A1, Ilford Pan F, Red Filter)

Photos Around Parry Sound

2006-07-19T21:08:00.000-04:00

Fallen Cedar

(Nikon F3, f16@1/30, Fuji Velvia)

Night Veil
(Nikon F3, f16@2Sec, Fuji Velvia)

Lillies in the Moonlight
(Nikon F3, f22@4Sec, Fuji Velvia)

Manitouwabing Sunset

(Nikon F3, f22@3Sec, Fuji Velvia)