i am not a fisherman….if you want to catch a fish, do not go fishing with me… i bring almost as much bad luck to fishing as i do to computers…i did catch a pretty good sized bass once with my grandfather, but that is about it….but, never mind, i do love the thought of fishing….and i live in a place where if the talk is not about surfing, it is about fishing…and i end up staying pretty silent on both…down here on the Outer Banks, my trade is just not in the conversational mix…in New York of course, photographers have some clout, but here, well, if i wanted to talk photography, i would have to take a picture of the locals with a big fish, or riding a big wave…
i do however gravitate towards the 7 fishing piers here, and most often the Avalon Pier….if this pier did not exist, then it would have to be invented…a classic structure from the 50′s which has survived many a storm and not survived many a storm…but, this old pier just keeps getting re-built and is a cultural haven if fishing, pool playing, fuzbol competition and people watching are your game…the latter is my sport of choice…someday i suspect this primo waterfront property will end up covered with time-share condos or whatever, but in the meantime i can go have a beer and watch the waves roll in between rounds of 8-ball…
the beauty of Avalon for me is that it is a total diversion for whatever i am supposed to be seriously doing…i suspect all of you have your Avalon…an escape from the must do activities of your day….a place where nobody really knows what you do, nor cares, and you are only judged by whether they like you or not…well, in the case of Avalon, if you have a big jacked-up pickup truck, that helps, but i just have to go on eye contact and a decent game of pool….
now, i basically have not worn shoes for weeks….but the summer of my content is almost over…..and the timing of the sun working its way towards the south each day pretty much matches my mood to get back to New York…funny, but when i tell the guys down here that i spend lots of time in New York, they really give me a look of sympathy…..and having spent weeks here this summer i am starting to see what they mean…
it is a good thing i had so much leisure time this summer…because now i go full bore into a very busy fall….i receive so many private emails from readers here asking for my schedule, so here is the official dah program…
first order of business will be your Burn gallery shows in New York and Washington (contact for you: Michael Courvoisier)…simultaneously i have my fall workshop schedule starting in San Francisco where i do a short weekend shooting seminar – starting September 25th – with the Momenta folks organizing(see Workshops)……
then comes my annual loft seminar “At Home” in the now historic “kibbutz” where about half the readers here have been at one time or another, and the other half are on their way…we will also do your Burn gallery show right around that time … incidentally, i have our first Burn intern, Vivek Manik, who has come all the way from Calcutta, to give us a hand with the show….Vivek will be a work/study student in the loft class….from now on i will always choose someone from the readership here on Burn to be an intern either in New York or with me on assignment…
after the New York Burn show, i roll back down here to the Outer Banks for my first gathering of photographers at my beach home who want to publish books or work on an essay …we will do hand-made books and discuss and prepare layouts for mainstream books as well….others may just want to shoot instead of make a book…their choice…my darkroom will be set-up…the pigment printer at the ready etc….my Outer Banks beach cottage will become for sure my #1 workshop location, but for very small selective classes…
at the end of October, i roll down to Oaxaca, Mexico for the colorful Day of the Dead class (see work from students last year on workshop link) …. and finally, capping off my month of mentoring, i will join my friends Ira Block and Kris LeBoutillier, both NatGeo photogs, in Bangkok and Phnom Penh in early November…
so anyone wanting to join me with my obviously eclectic lifestyle has a few choices……afterwords i plan to disappear into a magazine assignment….shhhh, secret…. and work only on my book project which is a bit behind…well, i am always a bit behind on book projects……anyway, lots going on…
all this world travel and setting up of exhibit space for your work is hard work , but fun work…but, without Mike, Michelle, and Marie, i just could not make it…Mike Courvoisier makes my collectors prints, will manage the Burn shows, and runs the New York loft workshop … Michelle Smith and Marie Arago run the OBX beach and Mexico workshops respectively …Michelle has produced ad shoots for me which is the test of all production tests…Marie worked for me every day in NYC before she moved to the warmer climes of Miami…. now, all of this has to do with balance….my main mantra…balance…making hard work fun and making fun hard work….or, actually , just getting the most out of life…
ok, enough said…. it is about time to head for Avalon…the wind now is starting to clock around from the northeast…that means good fishing, poor surfing, and winter is coming…
do all of you have your Avalon??? i do recommend creating an Avalon if you do not have one…to catch a fish?? maybe…but, that is not the point…the act of fishing is more important than catching fish…or, at least that is what i tell myself when i am fishing with my camera and it just is not happening…
-david alan harvey
one of my old camera bags goes to the first person who can name the movie that featured this house….
Nights in Rodanthe…
Nights in Rodanthe?
Darn Adam beat me by one minute
Oh well, I’m in 3rd place. Good thing I already have one of your bags :))
Nights in Rodanthe.
Never saw the film but Chris Bickford showed and wrote about this house in one of his essays that was published recently.
My “Avalon” also has a pier but instead of the ocean it’s on Lake St. Clair, a body of water connecting two of the Great Lakes. I’m on the Michigan side of the lake but can see Ontario if I look to the southwest (Yes, Canada is south of Detroit!). It is small compared to its neighbors, Lake Huron and Lake Erie, but large enough that, looking straight across, you can’t see the other side. A horizon of water and sky “peopled” by Canadian Geese, seagulls, ducks and the occasional blue heron. And fisherfolk in all kinds of weather, even ice fishing when the lake freezes over. This treasure is just two blocks from my house so I scoot down there summer, fall, winter and spring. This summer I’ve been down to the water at least once a day, and even when the weather turns, that’s where I go to soothe my soul. What a gift!
Patricia
ADAM..
ok, you got the bag…unless you want to be a gentleman and give it to Valery??? how is THAT for putting you on the spot?? laughing….
bad movie…it looked like Richard Gere and Diane Lane hated each other off camera….
CATHY…
yes, i am in Bickford’s territory (with his permission), but i did not see his post on this house…it just happens to be one of the most popular surf spots by sheer coincidence of shifting sands…
PATRICIA…
too bad i missed that part of your neighborhood when i visited…i knew by the map where you were, but never saw the water while in your hood….next time….that is, if i can get an invitation back…
cheers, david
David,
‘Burn’ might actually be my Avalon…I come here enough…
Colchester, Ontario, is a small village about a half hour from where I live. It is one of the few areas around that has actual elevation – Windsor/Essex County is as flat as the prairies – and a shoreline. I go there more frequently just to watch the waves from a certain height. Recently I discovered there are wineries nearby. I like wine so now I’m developing a ‘wine makers’ photo idea. Which is strange as I fancy myself a ‘hard core’ photojournalist whose last decade of work has been doing ‘dramatic work in the heart of Africa’. Why in the world would I do a wine making essay in boring Essex County? I’ll find out soon enough…
Doug
my Avalon….
in the arms of my wife….
and my son nearby…
hugs
running (for real)
b
I am not seeing a house in that photo . . .
PRESTON…
me neither….
I like Richard Gere, I love Diane lane.
I HATED THAT MOVIE. “Message in a Bottle” all over again…. another “uplifting movie”
Did I mention that movie sucked?
DAVID
Didn’t know you were a pool player…. hmmm, 8-ball? I think I have played that once or twice…. (grin)
Maybe you and I need to set up a little mentor exchange program between the two of us?
Now my turn at a photo critique… That house shot… Not bad, but a bit more depth in the layering would have made it spectacular. I am thinking getting in a bit CLOSER on the girl… MUCH closer. Then the surfers in the next layer then the house.
Remember… “If your pictures are not good enough, you are not CLOSE enough! HA!
PETE…
i am not much of a pool player most of the time…some games are better than others…Courvoisier and i did beat Anton and Mike Young after Look3 in a rambling playoff series…or, that is how Mike C. and i remember it anyway…
you are right on the photo critique…prudence however got in my way, since i did not know the woman in the foreground and there are beach RULES for just moving in too far, too fast…ironically, and coincidentally, i did meet this woman while getting my car fixed at the local garage a week later…so, next time i will make the proper shot….
cheers, david
My ‘Avalon’? When I’m in Vancouver, it’s Lonsdale Quay on the North Shore, terminal for the Sea Bus and site of a great multi-ethnic food court and fresh produce fruit-vegetable-fish-meat-bakery market. Along with the North Shore locals and commuters, tourists from all over Canada and all over the Pacific Rim come here for the casual outdoor dining and fabulous view of the harbor traffic and the skyscrapers of downtown in the distance. I can hear and practice all of the nine languages I’ve studied off and on, and try to identify the ones I haven’t.
When I’m stuck at home in Bellingham, my ‘Avalon’ becomes the main campus center at Western Washington University, with a classic big tree-lined grassy quad, a decent library, a stunning view from the terrace overlooking Bellingham Bay and the city far below, a Performing Arts Center, an OK student cafe, ATM machines, and a mini-post office with very short lines. A brisk walk or a short bus ride from where I live.
Wow I just saw it. That’s a Chica. Whoa, that’s some slick work.
Sorry… it just came out.
really, DAH –
sorry if this is male-centric but ladies, you can’t blame us — it’s your fault dah — yow — what house indeed?
David;
My Avalon is wherever I happen to be shooting personal work with my camera. Now that probably sounds weird, so let me explain. As I’ve mentioned before I’ve spent most of my working life in a supermarket, which by the end I absolutely hated.
When I have my camera in my hand and shooting (esp the youth project) I feel as though I’ve escaped a “past life” where I never really fitted or felt comfortable.
Cheers
/\ :o)
man, the number of surfers on that wave.. what a place..
avalon is the open road, places unseen, people unmet, wonder awaits
and then, avalon is home
100mm? zoom? say it ain’t so shoeless ;-))
Boy… that’s a term I haven’t heard in a long long while…. “jacked-up.” What does it say about me that I even know what “jacked-up” pickup truck is? Heh!
I can’t believe they were able to do a full frame digital Leica. I just got my M8.2 in April. . . how to sell it towards paying for an M9??? There are no real labs here in Bucharest, so a digital Leica is key. . .
David
How good to see yours photos here on burn. I miss it. I wish more… but I know… I know :)
Sorry I am little off last time. I am busy. No time to read, no time to think. And will be even worst.
peace and good luck
Let the force be with you
I am going to bed, next to my Avalon
Is there a house in that photo? Where?
Oh, somebody made that joke already.
Working toward ArtPrize… I’m one of those Americans opens September 23rd, reception the 24th here in Grand Rapids, MI. I’m a wreck in need of funding… seeking Harvey’s serendipity!!
http://www.humanfiles.com/welcome/truck-for-sale/
“There are no real labs here in Bucharest, so a digital Leica is key. . .”
now, there is a leap of logic :o)
Davin has taken up as the resident gear monkey of Bucharest…… all show with no show
David, What a surprise. I didn’t know you hung out at Avalon Pier. No wonder we haven’t seen you in over a week. My Avalon is on Hatteras Island. If you don’t believe me, check my blog.
http://photoblog.michaelhalminski.com/
Mike
David Bowen: no leap of logic: people are paranoid of photographers here. Photographing with my Canon is like using a weapon. Passersby fixate on it hanging on my shoulder. A Leica digital is compact and can shoot RAW rapidly. No current digital point and shoot allows for this. I dare others to come here to Bucharest and try shooting on the street with an SLR and see how that goes for you!
Imants: oh thanks alot ‘all show with no show’. I am just getting down to things on the computer with like the equivalent of 400 roles of film as digital files on my hard drive to start going through. Most of what I have shot in the past few years has never sen the light of day. I aim to change that.
Davin you are label fixated, porsche dreaming, best leica …..no need for all that fixation. people shoot DSLR in more hostile environments without a problem
DAVID
You have an open invite to share my Avalon here in the grand state of Michigan! Fresh-ground coffee waiting for you in the freezer and I think we’ve even got a couple Corollas hanging around from your last visit…
ALL
Y’all come too. The more the merrier ;=)
Patricia
DAH — I’ll risk coming across as a cad and take the bag. ;-) Sorry Valery…
Imants, war with a fixer is different. . . again come here and see for yourself :) I am serious. It is all due to Ceausescu and the oppression and paranoia of the secret police. Yes, you can use an SLR in normal European countries without problems. Not so here. I can only report my own experience, but I have routinely been harassed on the street.
David,
I’ve sent an e-mail, again.
Your today’s photo makes me very fresh and aspiring.
I love sea-smells very much… deep breath… :)))
Thank you.
Kyunghee
davin
might well come visit you .. any good music festivals?
looking at your blog – the street photos you have shown almost exclusively feature women, and some are pretty in-your-face.. bearing in mind that people tend to watch us when we work, could there be something in your technique which is bringing trouble, more than you tools?
having shot in E. europe since 1991.. with big ol clunky machines.. i’ve rarely had trouble..
d
the link i’m refering to – http://nordichigh.wordpress.com/2009/08/28/new-project-bucharest-20-years-later/
i like your rural work, and well done for the photoshelter featured image.
When I was a teenager there was a pier near Galveston that was pretty much what you picture and describe. It was a very long pier. A friend and I would go there (he had a car) and fish all night, smoke cigarettes and listen to the Beatles on a little transistor pocket radio. Never forget the smells and the sound of those AM radio stations fading in and out on the night air.
Great memories. Thanks for posting the photo!
DAH,
The movie is “Nights In Rodanthe”. And the lady in the red t-shirt is my aunt. I want DAH bag.
PS I haven’t seen the movie
Adam,
Chivalry is dead, but I guess you did win it fair and square. Thanks anyway David :-)
DAVID
I just wanted to agree with what you posted to Patricia on Stray Cat.
“photographers should of course be aware of all of the “facts”, yet i do not think every single fact requires an accompanying photograph…the very best photographs do what words can never do and the very best words do what photographs can never do…”
Excellent comments about editing.
I think it may be interesting to post a set of images and have everyone discuss editing the set. An online editing class if you will.
DAH , My Avalon
http://www.glenncampbellspictures.com/#/Projects/On%20The%20Road/1
DAH
“I went out with nothing
nothing but the thought of you
I went wandering”
Jonny Cash
my AVALON?!?
catalina island…
of course….
xox
***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDX_rjHE-x8&feature=related
avalon
roxy music
First thing… Exceptional speech! (’nuff said.)
Also, my Avalon… a little coffee cart in a shopping parking lot in Mill Valley CA. David, you must try and find it when you’re out there. There’s an Ethiopian blend that just kills! I know you would appreciate it.
Finally, let me know your DC dates. Must have a beer or 3 or 4… !
Cheers.
ALL
You can watch President Obama’s speech on Health Care Reform that he gave tonight to a joint session of Congress by clicking on this link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/32766830#32766830
What Obama had to say resonates strongly with the American Nightmare Michael McElroy shows and writes about in his essay. As he said, “I am not the first president to take up this cause, but I am determined to be the last.” May it be so!
PPatricia
Well that’s good news Patricia. I wish him success with it – not only for the sake of Americans but the trend in Australia in recent times has been towards the Americanisation of our health care system and I hate that. Not because its American but because the system is so bad and it is sucking funds out of the public system. I will go read the speech soon. Thanks for the link.
The word Avalon means nothing to me. I live in Paradise. This morning I went for a drive to town and as we rolled along the coast road with a gorgeous calm azure sea on my right, my companion and I noted what a beautiful day it was and how lucky we were to live here. For me its more luck than anything since i was brought here to grow up when I was just a toddler. On the way to town, we crossed a bridge where one can regularly see a saltwater crocodile sunning itself on the mudflats and a few fisherman standing on an old bridge hoping to catch dinner. At the end of the day we go down to the beach and stroll 1.5km of sand with nothing but she-oaks and the odd coconut palm on the left on the way North and with blue hills in the distance. When we turn round we amble towards a green pyramid shaped hill, and observe the puffy clouds drifting over. Our crazy dog likes to dig holes for crabs or carry a log the length of the beach which amuses all who see her. Often times we stop to exchange greetings and gossip with other locals.
I am very lucky. But to make life exciting, I need to leave paradise from time to time and head into the less than perfect world where everyone else lives and where shit happens and where there is something interesting to photograph.
Oh Andrea, thank you SO MUCH for taking me with you to Paradise! Your description captures all my senses and makes me love life even more than I already do.
Patricia
Actually I like your series of pretty girls Davin. And “onya” for doing it in colour. But your series and what you say in general reminds me of a job I had once. One day the boss wanted me to type up a job applicant assessment form. Every second question was to do with the appearance of the applicant. Like you, my hoary old boss was fixated on something that he obviously wasn’t getting and didn’t look like getting any time soon but was desperate for. I suggest that your pictures say a lot more about you than about the place and people you are photographing. Nothing wrong with that I guess but I wonder if you are aware of it?