739 thoughts on “october moonlight”

  1. Ehm, Mr. Marovich, I beg pardon, but in the Italian version of Entreprise, or Star Trek, they call him Dottor Spock ;)

  2. David, I assure you that over here nobody is first in line to open the gallery the day after an opening. We should have learnt a long time ago not to take our guests out for the night after closing down the party already quite late. The worst I can remember was with Jocelyn Bain Hogg until very late at night. What a hangover we all had.

  3. Always, at such moments, I am somewhere else. Which is okay. I don’t mind at all. But one brief day… one brief day in the future… present with you and your young emergents in New York City…

  4. This photo is like a tattoo..

    “My physique is the biography in the way. It’s similar to what sailors used to do, where each permanent skin stain meant something, the specific time in your hold up when we have the symbol upon yourself, either we do it yourself with the blade or with the veteran permanent skin stain artist”.

  5. Tattoos for me are like photographs … They represent a specific event, scar, time…
    For others is like paintings.. Something very artistic (that simply looks good in their living room), regardless if they understand it or not.. It simply looks good..
    Decoration ..
    But Not for me.. For me tats are simply scars.. And scars are not always that good looking…

  6. Folks,

    Anton and I have done some work on the burn server – hopefully invisible.
    Please, if you find any irregularities, let us know.

    Thanks,
    Haik

  7. hey, that was quick.. Speedy Gonzales at work ;)

    hovering over the ABOUT and the SUPPORT links I get the html, the others look fine..

  8. EVA

    That must make the show a bit confusing since the doctor on the ship is McCoy. Is this just an Italian translation of the American show, or a completely new Italian version?

  9. Pete, argh. Now I have to rent the movie. Not talking about the TV series, never seen the episodes, but the 1979 movie.. and am not sure if he’s called signor Spock or dottor Spock…

    Anyway, it’s just the translation, not a different movie or show… more generally speaking a doctor in medicine over here is simply called ‘Dottore’, without the surname, if you talk with him.. so it could be that Dr. McCoy is called just that, Dottore, and no confusion is made, but as said, don’t really remember…

  10. I think I mentioned awhile back that I bough Bruce Davidson’s life work opus “Outside Inside,” all 23 pounds and 834 photos of it. I just gotta say, it’s one of the best investments I’ve ever made. Not in the investment to make money sense, but an intellectual/aesthetic investment, a thing from which I can alternatively learn or simply sit back in wonder and appreciate its depth and formidable beauty. Just an incredible piece of work. Words cannot do it justice. It’s a multi-sensory thing. Not only must it be seen. It must be felt and smelt as well.

    I’m a horrible person when it comes to anniversaries. I forget my wedding anniversary pretty much every year and my father’s birthday as well. It’s not that I don’t love my wife and father, it’s just that I love them all the time and at heart simply do not recognize the need for special days. As I began contemplating this comment, I realized that the first anniversary of my discovery of burn magazine had recently passed and if anything ever deserved a little celebration, even if it’s just a nod and a wink and a glass of beer, well, burn has been very good for me and it merits a salute in some form. I learn so much from my experiences here. And beyond the obvious benefits we all get from David’s photo advice. I in no way mean to belittle it, but I came here with a very similar sensibility, both through education and personal experience, so I haven’t learned all that much in that respect, though I’ve certainly gained from a hefty amount of nuance that’s deepened and rounded out my previously held convictions, making me a better person as well as a better photographer. But mostly I’ve learned through observing and analyzing the photos presented here on burn and from the commentary, both my own and that of others. I spend a lot of time contemplating the essays and single photos and links people provide and individual websites linked to names I respect. Perhaps unfortunately, I am typically a critical sort, my attention drawn to that which is wrong before seeing that which is right, and know that a lot of people don’t appreciate the sharing of my thoughts. I try, try real hard, though with mixed results, granted, to be constructive, which is much less the case when I critique my own work. You can believe me on this, that I take a much harsher view when it’s directed at my own stuff. No sugar coating whatsoever. No looking for positives, nor cushioning the blow. That’s a long winded way of saying that I learn a lot by critiquing other’s work. Every insight I get about what’s wrong with someone else’s photographs. or more often how they could be better, I apply to my own. And thus, I learn. Hopefully. I certainly try. Without burn, I’d be way behind where I’m at now. No question.

    But while it’s great to acquire deeper knowledge about things I already know, it’s also not unusual in my experience here to learn about things I never contemplated. For example, before finding this place it never occurred to me that things such as photo books and actual prints were things deserving of any kind of reverence. So at this point, I want to thank John Gladdy. His incredibly well argued defense of the tactile aspect of photography has been a terrific influence. The intense nature of his feelings on the subject caused me to intellectually accept what he had to say, but it took some time before I realized the truth of it emotionally, not only from my own experience touching great photography, but from witnessing others feel the revelation. And about photo books, I have to thank David. When he realized I was talking about Salgado’s recent work with no knowledge of his history, he assigned me the task of understanding Salgado. I spent many hours at the New York Public Library going through all of his books and it was more than a revelation, it was many revelations. It was during those many hours that I got my first intimation of the tactile importance of great photography. Unfortunately, however, I can be a bit thick and didn’t appreciate it to the extent that I should. It was only when Bruce Davidson’s opus arrived in the mail that I really got it. I constantly find myself running my hands over the pages and taking deep breaths to fully comprehend the magic in those photos. Now I’m looking forward to revisiting Salgado with this newfound knowledge.

    A few of you are aware that I do some work with kids who can be accurately described as “disadvantaged” who are from some of New York City’s most violent and despondent neighborhoods. Yesterday I showed them Davidson’s opus and David Harvey’s “Living Proof” to some of them and they were simply floored. And apropos of my comments above, it went beyond the content of the photographs themselves. the kids compulsively ran their hands over the pages and I could see them deeply inhaling, appreciating the work on levels that have nothing to do with sight or intellect. Not that they didn’t get the sight or intellect thing. I wish I had a video of that experience. Anybody who fails to see the fantastic fucking accomplishment that is Davidson’s “East 100th Street” should have seen their reaction. The kids gathered excitedly around that section of the book and put names to the faces in just about every photo. Those photos taken 50 years ago accurately captured the lives they are living today. They know all those people, now long dead, but still alive in the same places. I think that was by far the most powerful photography experience I’ve ever had. You should have seen it. (or I should have photographed it, eh?)

    A couple of the kids were so impressed with David’s work in the Bronx and Davidson’s work that they breathlessly told me how bad they wanted to learn photography. I’ve often offered to teach them about anything whatsoever that I know, but that was the first time anyone showed any fervent interest. So I’m trying to put together a couple systems for a couple individuals. I have computers I can give them, and maybe a digital camera, but am short a couple monitors, keyboards, mice and a digital camera. If anyone in the New York area has any of those things the would like to donate to an interesting cause, let me know.

    Anyway, that’s my long winded way of saying thanks on/sometime after my first anniversary here. Here’s the shorter version: Thanks.

    And if that’s all a bit weird and uncalled for, well, I can’t deny being influenced by the October full moon, or Hunters’s moon, my favorite full moon of the year. Gotta howl something or other.

  11. a civilian-mass audience

    VIVA MICHAEL WEBSTER…

    Thank you…!!! keep the spirit …the BURNING one…!!!

  12. Michael. Glad to hear that. Yes. the feel, The smell. a multi sensory experience.
    David Harvey….Thinking of a 50mm…….The very obvious question I suppose is why?? You being a confirmed 35er.after all….interested to know.

  13. JOHN…

    i started out my photographic life with a 50…only went to a 35when i started shooting color…needed the extra depth of field because of low asa/iso…always working wide open with color…a 50 with tri-x is different than with Kodachrome for example…with tri-x, one can stop down to something other than wide open and focus fast and be assured that you might just “make it” even when zone focusing…that is not happening wide open with a 50….now with digi and higher iso , i can go back to the 50 where i started….my American Family and med format i use the 85 which is the same thing…i like not quite getting “everything” in …edges mysterious sometimes…and the whole family project is pretty much a type of portraiture…anyway, i like the 50 look…the 35 was just a substitute for almost the same look in color…i will still use the 35 of course for some things..maybe even the 28…but i also love the discipline it takes to use the 50…forces a deliberate thinking even when shooting fast…too wide breeds lazy imo…

    cheers, david

  14. Social changes also lead to the need of a slightly longer lens. people are not so much worried about having their photo taken any more than 30-50 years ago , these days it is the possible consequences on the net that make people wary.

    Besides that I have found that in many situations I start with a 50 and once I have been there for a while it is easy to revert to 35 or 28 as your presence becomes acceptable. Then there is that great chance to use a portrait lens and take that extra physical step forward or revert back to a 50 in a more intimate way.

  15. Ross

    Yes, true. In the 6os and 70s, those that thought they were hip avoided the 50 because it was called the “normal” lens.

    Lens choice is complicated. It can be argued that working with a single focal length is liberating and encourages creativity, or, on the other hand, that it is a limitation. Getting “into the zone” with a fixed focal length means adjusting our visual awareness to always fit our compositions into the fixed angle of view, and depth of field characteristics. I personally enjoy working this way, usually with moderate wide angle lenses. I have to admit however, that there are times when I wish I had a wider or longer lens mounted.

    On the other hand, Zooms can offer a completely different way of working, especially wide to moderate tele zooms. When working with a zoom, one can choose a point of view, then adjusts the angle of view to suit. Maybe it offers too many choices. I suspect that many of us, when using zooms, find ourselves at one end of the zoom range or other, seldom in between. Zooms are also typically huge clunky things compared to fixed lenses which impacts camera handling and ultimately picture making.

    In the end, it doesn’t really matter. Falling back to musical analogys, a few years ago I was at a musical workshop with Jean michel veillon, a wonderful wooden flute master from Brittany. Jean Michel loved to try out other peoples flutes. It didn’t matter which flute he picked up, even on humble “entry level” flutes, he sounded brilliant.
    A great photographer will make great photos with whatever camera and lens is at hand.

  16. LEE…

    to the best of my knowledge i have never used a 20 on a full frame camera…i think the widest lens i ever owned was a 24 and that was years ago, before i met you…so i am trying to imagine what you are remembering…or, maybe i was playing with someone’s camera??..

  17. DAVID. Thanks. Never got the appeal of 35’s always thought they were a compromise lens, but what you say makes sense, and the added DOF over a 50 certainly helps wide open thats for sure. as you know I still do it old school and have a 50 on one body and a 24 on the other…all the lenses I ever need for film work.
    Digital(not that I shoot it much anymore..swimming against the tide :) ) I tend to use longer glass as well. The canon 85 and 135 particularly..something about digital super shallow DOF I quite like for some work. Anyways, always interesting to know WHY people settle on the kit they do.

    JOHN (off fishing for the weekend)

  18. Ahh, the 50mm lens.. I bought my first reflex camera when I still was in school, the family budget didn’t allow for it, so I worked the only free afternoon a week at a marzipan factory, and two evenings a week cleaning toilets in an office.. don’t recall for how many months.. could afford only the body, no lens. Then, one of my brother’s friends got a different lens for his camera, luckily same brand as mine, and borrowed me the 50mm.. I still have both, and I still use both..

  19. Well, I love my 16-35. But when I fell off that chair, shattered my shoulder and had to get a new one, I shattered that lens, too. So, finally, I bought another one. And then my grandson was in my office and he suddenly did something that I wanted to photograph, so I grabbed my camera that had that lens on it but I had forgotten that it was plugged into my computer. When the camera reached the end of the cable, it got yanked out of my hand, the camera fell to the floor and the lens sheared in half.

    That was in May. It will cost about $350 to get it put back together and in all this time I have not had $350 to spare. But Kivgiq (Eskimo dance celebration) is coming up in February and I must have it by then.

    I think a really nice, fast, 50 would be good, too. I did buy one a few years back, just to take to Kivgiq, but it always focuses well behind what I want it to focus on, so I never use it.

  20. It’s funny that when I shoot 35 digi (not that often lately), I always stick to 35mm, however when shooting MF or LF I almost always use 80mm and 150mm respectively. I don’t know if it’s the aspect ratio or the slower pace of work which allows me to think more about what I leave in and take out, but there is something about larger formats (especially with my 4×5) that makes “normal” lenses just feel right. They somehow look wider….

  21. anyone shoot crap?
    ———————-

    Sure, most of the time, any lens! ;-)

    PS: I just watched a video where William Klein was featured, adding up that just about every “great” photographer will be remembered for less than a minute of photography (at 1/125th a shot, he said) in a lifetime. The rest might not be crap, but for all purposes, is as.

  22. Frostfrog

    Send your 50 in for adjustment, I’ve had two brand new Canon lenses back-focus, a 70-200L, and a 28. Both fine after adjustment. Also, many newer cameras have fine-focus adjustments in your custom functions which are specific to particular lenses.

  23. Yeah, I’ve got an EF 100 f/2 that front focuses badly. Useless on my 5D Mk1, but was easy to dial in on the 1DMkIV. I believe any of the Canons starting with the 50D (other than the Rebels) will allow you to dial in focus on any lens.

  24. This roof, what a place!

    She has been host to so much wonder and possibility and connection and growth and love and understanding.

  25. Yeah, that roof brings loads of memories to a whole lotta photogs & artists for sure!!
    I know it does for me too!

  26. LEE… David shot a 20mm on a DX camera (D200 if memory serves). That was the compromise because of the cropped sensor. (FOV was close to 28mm) But for a “normal” size sensor it’s the actual 28.. or 35 and 50.

  27. I thought so Michael. Nice thing about Canon 5D series is there is none of that cropped thing going on. Not sure how it is explained but it was always what you see is what you get for me.

  28. a civilian-mass audience

    Thank you KATIA…for the link…
    I will call the civilians in the Universe…we are always there when there is vision!!!

    And my BURNIANS…
    Don’t be intimidated by lenses and cameras… Shoot with your soul…
    You can’t be wrong…

    Love you ALLLLLLL!!!

  29. LEE..

    as Michael explained to you (i think) when i am talking focal length i am always talking FULL FRAME focal length….i.e. technically i have a 20 on my little GF1 but the actual field of view is a 40….so to my mind and what shows up in pictures is a 40 , not a 20…i have never used anything wider than a 24 FIELD OF VIEW lens…yes, your Canon is a full frame as is my Nikon d700 and the M9

  30. KATIA…

    yes, please keep up your drum beat for Zana…she was a student of mine a long time ago at Eddie Adams and her spirit was strong from the beginning…Born Into Brothels was a landmark project…i was surprised she had switched over to more natural history work, but i have no doubt that whatever she does , she will do it with grace and Reverence….

    cheers, david

  31. I have young teenagers in the family who are totally into photography – film and digital – and they are on me for direction and help. Certainly they are a bit too enamored with gear, starry-eyed over the latest and greatest exponential technological advancements, which I fear will just destroy their potential. So how do I begin with them?

    Still not sure how to proceed but I am trying to do what I wish someone had done for me – show them great work beyond the usual “perfect” chuff that surrounds us everyday. Where would you start? What photo books are good primers to open up the mind? (they are already getting The Americans and Divided Soul for Christmas). How else can I help them? (And I am hoping they might show me a thing or two – fresh eyes). Hmmm, give them an assignment? “Show me your world” (playing on Zana’s work a bit).

    Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

  32. Tom…

    How about a daytrip with your 4×5?
    (by the way, how did your recent trip turn out? I would think that LF would be a good match for your landscapes…)

    Also, the Pittsburgh project would seat comfortably next to the Americans…

  33. Tom,

    An inexpensive and approachable book I got when I first started looking into books is The Photographers Eye by John Szarkowski, a collection of 172 photographs based on an exhibit at MoMA in 1964. I like his definition of 5 characteristic “issues” of a photograph: the Thing Itself, The Detail, the Frame, Time, and Vantage Point.

    From the book blurb:
    “Celebrated works by such masters as Cartier-Bresson, Evans, Steichen, Strand, and Weston are juxtaposed with vernacular documents and even amateur snapshots to analyze the fundamental challenges and opportunities that all photographers have faced. Szarkowski, the legendary curator who worked at the Museum from 1962 to 1991, has published many influential books. But none more radically and succinctly demonstrates why–as U.S. News & World Report put it in 1990–“whether Americans know it or not,” his thinking about photography “has become our thinking about photography.””

    http://www.amazon.com/Photographers-Eye-John-Szarkowski/dp/087070527X

  34. Michael K

    Thanks for that link. I have seen all of those photographs, but not the videos. Behind here in Lexington, KY, where Sam Started and took so many photographs gives me a special appreciation for his work.

    And, of course, there is that last photograph in the diary set that was taken by someone we are all terribly fond of, I believe…

    good light, all.
    A.

  35. Eva, Thodoris, Michael and Andrew … you are all too cool. Good ideas and leads.

    Thodoris, I won’t know how the 4×5 turned out until I get the film developed … but everything was good except for a slight delay with airport security when I was already late/running (literally) for my flight. But it did give me an additional idea for a body of work I was already contemplating with the 4×5. I found though that during the trip I fell back on the old 35 Canonet more often than not .. surprise, surprise :)) I shot hundreds of 35mm slides at the OBX Avalon pier in three days, just a blast, and I got to be friends with many fisherman including Jimmy from Boone, N.C. who was intent on saving my sinful soul. He just wouldn’t give up, must have appreciated the challenge. Life, politics, god and fishing. To be honest, I don’t care how the chromes turn out (well, okay, a little bit :)) Damn I miss the Outer Banks!

  36. Mike K. & All…

    Thanks for the Sam Abell link…I was visually consumed by images I haven’t seen for a long time.

    As for previous conversation, lens choice is so critical to photography and individual style. It should also remain simple. It is my personal opinion that the simplicity of a few good primes, will inevitably produce better images, knowing your field of view in advance, lets your mind focus on the exposure, the composition and above all the moment! Your camera will become faster, lighter and less obtrusive. I started out with primes, lost my way for awhile, and returned to what I know best.

    I was pleased to read David’s thoughts on the 50mm, simply because I have not removed mine all year. I also encourage anyone new to the field of photography to start out on a prime lens, learn to move first, composition is a powerful thing.

    Cheers, Jeremy

  37. And Tom you could take it even further. For Christmas give them a certificate for a workshop by you on how to shoot a story. You could do it over their Christmas Break. Follow DAH’s format–it works great. Although I shifted a bit in timing–I have them shoot in the morning and afternoon light and we meet in the afternoons to critique. They will learn a lot just from shooting and sharing. If I remember correctly Charles P is teaching kids photography and we were talking about this a few weeks ago under advance warning I think. Have fun! And you will learn more than they do guaranteed.

  38. Tom, going against the grain, I’d guess that the best way to ruin them on photography forever would be to give them photography related learning tools for X-mas. Gear, maybe, particularly if you can find a camera with lots of shiny lights or sparkles or face book access or something not boring to the teenage mind. But odds of them pursuing an art or photojournalism career are probably better if you just forbid them from pursuing photography and try to push them into accounting or law instead.

  39. a civilian-mass audience

         
    “I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.”
     Albert Einstein

    When there is a vision,
    There is a way…Go TOMH…!!!

    THODORIS,
    Viva Omonoia…you are in the center of the city…
    Funny…there is the guy with the uniform too…for decoration:)))
    Only in Grecolandia !!!

    Where are you BURNIANS…the moonlight,the moonlight is here…

  40. All, more good ideas. Mucho thanks. Lee, it’s a good idea but I’m not shaving my head ;-)) MW, I KNOW you are right! Jared, great link. Making it quick ’cause internet is in and out in the middle of the first big storm of fall.

    As for the 50mm, … Mercedes Monk

  41. a civilian-mass audience

    Oime academians are coming after me…

    Always a FAN …!!! enjoy the storm…as long as there is no advance warning…

  42. a civilian-mass audience

    MICHAELK…

    Your website looks …coolllll…is it a new one…???
    I remember the old one…But this one is more pro…
    And more civilian friendly…:)))

  43. a civilian-mass audience

    I am always looking…INSIDE/OUTSIDE…893 times…I follow the AMERICAN FAMILY…
    With my DIVIDED SOUL…and I BURN 01…it looks that I am gonna BURN 02…
    But there will be no return after BURN 03…

    BURN me once ,Good for you
    BURN me twice,good for me…
    Etcetera,etcetera,etcetera…:)))

    BURNIANS…I need updates…don’t forget to love yourself…and then the others
    BURN once…BURN twice…daradam,daradam,opa…

  44. a civilian-mass audience

    Back to my ESL class…

    Where are you my Academians…???
    Nightshifters, MRS.KATHLEEN FONSECA…and the others…civi is calling…

    To BURN or not to BURN…??? The BURNING question…

  45. What, Tom, you mean don’t need interns :) ?

    Am enjoying Haviv school – it would be great if Magnum could do something similar – or maybe they have?

  46. A site I stumbled over today:

    e-photoreview, interviews, there’s a list to the right, I also found Roberto Boccaccino, Matt Eich, Simona Ghizzoni.. only handicap, it’s mostly in Italian..

  47. Gordon and Jim – Thanks for the suggestions. I will first see if I can figure out if it can be dialed in either on my 5dII or ds3 (once I get it repaired) and, if not, think about sending it in.

    I have so much failed and broken equipment that I need to send in right now! It is terrible!

  48. HERVE…

    i have tried zooms…do not like them…they SEEM like they should be good and they make SENSE, but in reality you are zooming when you should be shooting or moving your feet or body….plus they are big…too big…obtrusive…heavy….slow…not sharp…i agree with Jeremy…go prime time….

  49. DAH –

    Here’s what I think: when it comes to lenses, a photographer should follow his own gut. If that gut says stick to primes, then stick to it. If it says go zoom, zoom. In the end, it is the picture that matters and there can be no doubt that many photographers who use primes only do excellent work and so do many photographers who shoot with zooms.

    Maybe one day, if I ever get on top of things economically, I will try out your theory and buy a new airplane and a whole bunch of primes and test it out. Right now, I would be lost without my zooms.

    And I’m already lost enough without my airplane.

  50. Herve;)
    Translation : “Fuck Zooms”…
    Zooms are for LAZY “pros”…
    Great for a boring wedding, family portrait session, engagement photos , quincinieras, highschool sports and proms and uninspired extreme crapiness :)
    Stay away from zooms like fast food..
    Actually “zooms” are “fast food”..
    Bad taste, little of everything and nothing at all at the same time..
    Love us, honor us, respect us.. Stay away from zoom lenses..
    They are as bad as alcohol right before a ling distance trip..
    Zooms should be illegal

  51. Zooms are as bad as processed meat..
    Herve u r from Thailand.. Go generic..
    Go Buddha or Muhammad just stay away from thieves like the “pope”,
    Catholicism, militarism, imperialism, communism , eliticism etc..
    Go green, go clear, show respect..

  52. FROSTFROG…

    agreed Bill, when it comes to ANYTHING “a photographer should follow his own gut”…and of course it is only the picture that counts…that is my mantra and why i rarely discuss tech stuff here…most of it useless for the reason you so correctly state…i was simply answering a question from our friend Herve who asked if i had ever tried zooms….i have, do not prefer them, and gave my reasons why… i am sure many great pictures have been taken with zooms….just not as many as with primes :)

  53. zoom with a lens zoom with the feet in unison……. Great for a boring krumi portraits, disengaged photography, krumistuff and uninspired extreme krumicrap :

  54. i suppose because of my travels, many folks often ask me ” David, what is your favorite place?”….i never really have an answer and usually mumble something silly about wherever i am is my “favorite” or whatever…however, i do easily come up with my least favorite places which seem to pop into my head when asked about my favorite places…today connections to Oaxaca just did not work out as i might have preferred and i will spend much of my day at the Mexico City airport…how do you think i rate that one?

    well, all part of the deal…i am now up at 4am nuking coffee in the microwave at the Econolodge motel at the Norfolk Va airport where i arrived late last night after a great session at NatGeo…i do have nice view of the parking lot….get the picture? so, i have now 6am flight and no more time to chat here although i would much rather do that than be thinking about my favorite place as i stand in the security line and wonder why in the world i double knotted my hiking boot strings….i swear i am always the man at the airport who looks like someone who has never traveled before…i am sure of it…

    ok, off i go to Mexico…do not know when i can get back here…yes, downtime Mex City and IF there is a good net connection , i will spend the day right here in the comfort of Burn comments…ahhhh, the small pleasures of international travel….

    oh yes, i should note that for sure Oaxaca City is one of my favorite places in the world…hard to beat mezcal and mole on the Zocalo…best sidewalk cafe shooting on the planet and just the best place to BE…so good that a bit of travel suffering is just part of the deal…

    back soonest…

    cheers, david

  55. GLENN..

    rushing a bit now, but i see we posted simultaneous…ahhhh, you have seen the light..literally…nice work amigo…i promise you , you will never ever again go back to zooms unless you just have to…a prime 35 1.4 is to be cherished…have fun…gotta go…

  56. Translation : “Fuck Zooms”…
    Zooms are for LAZY “pros”…

    Geez Panos; that’s a bit extreme. Even sounding a bit like a bit religous rant….! :-)

  57. My 24mm (36mm equivalent) hardly leaves the camera,it hasn’t left the camera for the family project I’m shooting at the moment though!

    But sometimes in clubs the 12-24mm comes in handy. I just leave it at 24mm (for 90% of pics); but when you get stuck into the middle of a mosh the ability to go wider can be a God-send. Mind you; I haven’t used if for at least 3 months! :-)

    Cheers :-)

  58. “I guess I will just have to cease posting……… zooms seem to be a ticket out of being a burnian”

    Nah Imants; horses for courses I say :-) “Fuck Zooms”… Zooms are for LAZY “pros”…is beginning to sound a bit too much like this…

  59. And ya know, for some of us, the thing is that prime lenses cost upwards of $1400 apiece so whereas 24, 35, 50, 85 and 105mm primes would cost more than $7000, one can get a 24-105mm zoom for less than the cost of any one of them. Albeit inferior in speed and perhaps marginally inferior in other qualitative measures, the 24-105 mm zoom is still very nice 24, 35, 50, 85, and 105mm lenses. That was my decision with limited funds. The 35 prime for low light and most situations, the zoom for all else. Another reason is that I’ve often found myself in dust, sand, wind and rain storms and have more than once been burned by simply having to change lenses at the worst possible time.

    And something else you all haters don’t seem to consider is that just because you can twiddle the zoom doesn’t mean you have to. When I want to shoot 50, I put it on 50 and leave it there. Same thing for 85. It would be nice if they put a lock on the damn things, but still, it’s a something you can control.

  60. Sounds more to me that someone is just trying to stir up an argument by taking a position and insulting others in the process. Kind of a theme for a certain person here.

    I agree with DAH in the fact that they are bigger and obvious, but there is a time for them obviously or there would not be hundreds of excellent award-winning photojournalists using them.

    But as many have intelligently pointed out, it is best to work with what you are comfortable with using. Obviously the short zooms can be replaced by using primes, but sometimes you need the 70-200. Again, depends on what you are shooting.

    I am always interested in how those who advocate pushing the envelope and breaking the traditional rules and ways of shooting (which is good), are usually the first to start spouting new “rules.”

  61. I am always interested in how those who advocate pushing the envelope and breaking the traditional rules and ways of shooting (which is good), are usually the first to start spouting new “rules.”….sounds a bit presumptuous if not naive

  62. “new rules”… Oh man do whatever the fuck u want .. I never implied that a prime would increase your talent or your photo quality… It usually works that way but not for anyone…

  63. Is this just talk about zoom lenses and personal preference?!?!?
    OR
    did I miss something?
    sounds a little intense,
    and
    all about lens preference?!?!?
    surely I missed something..
    :)
    **

  64. As a Pantagrualian, my advice is to approach photography with a certain jollity of mind, pickled in the scorn of fortune. But we say that about everything.

  65. “sounds a bit presumptuous if not naive”

    funny, that is exactly how I interpret this statement:

    ” “Fuck Zooms”…
    Zooms are for LAZY “pros”…
    Great for a boring wedding, family portrait session, engagement photos , quincinieras, highschool sports and proms and uninspired extreme crapiness :)
    Stay away from zooms like fast food..
    Actually “zooms” are “fast food”..
    Bad taste, little of everything and nothing at all at the same time..
    Love us, honor us, respect us.. Stay away from zoom lenses..
    They are as bad as alcohol right before a ling distance trip..
    Zooms should be illegal”

    Lets include arrogant and boorish.

    BUT…. “do whatever the fuck u want”… exactly!

  66. a civilian-mass audience

    If there is no soul…if there is no vision …in your photos…
    We,civilians will let you know…
    You might fool us once…
    You might fool us twice…
    But the judgEment day will come…whatever lens you might have…
    the j-day will come…sooner or later…:)))

    Cause…It’s all about photography and civility…!!!

    Can I dance now…???

  67. a civilian-mass audience

    MR.HARVEY…

    Your favorite place is the one…that you haven’t visited yet…

    Now,I am dancing…!!! I am Zorba the Greek…
    And I love you ALL…whatever lens …you might have…
    Opa

  68. Funny, I was going to go to a party at the Lofts on Friday night (was this when that was taken?) but got lazy and visited with some old friends from Seattle instead. I had a full day of driving to Long Island the next day and shooting a friend’s wedding that evening so didn’t want to BURN myself out. Oh well, next time…..:)

  69. Sometimes I am shooting primes and wishing I had a zoom…. and sometimes I am shooting a zoom and wishing I had a prime. So it goes… to paraphrase a late 60’s hit song “just love the ‘lens’ you’re with!”

  70. The best camera in the word is the one that is in your hand. Be it an iPhone or 8X10 view camera (OK, that one’s probably on a tripod!).

    This goes for lenses too, of course.

  71. Michael k.. Totally agree..!
    Pete check google analytics now.. Maybe your grin will turn into a smile…
    Be happy.. I’m doing my beat to boost your numbers up..
    Once again I just got out of a court and this time things look kinda
    Positive.. But let me not jinx it
    Big hug y’all..

  72. MW; Dunno; my 24mm 2.8AF cost 90 bucks (about US$70), mint condition! Occasionally (very occasionally!) I do find the odd bargain! :-)

    As for the model release discussion a little while ago; I decided to put the daughter (new mum) and her fiancee’s name on it as well just to be safe. All good; they’re happy too. :-) Cheers for the help.

    Actually; I had a really good shoot with them yesterday, probably some of the best results so far. It’s amazing how a good shoot can put a smile on your face when you’ve had a crap week! :-)

  73. So what’s everyone shooting?

    Me? Yesterday, a shoot with a fsmily for a project. Probably 2-3 shoots with them over the weekend. Today? Invoices…. :-(

  74. /Users/wendyrwalter/Desktop/Still Time, SLO California 10:22:10.mov

    Its what I shot Fri night…
    first time with digital camera, shooting a friends band…..
    trying….
    :)

    don’t know if link will work… testing….

  75. ROSS…

    i am shooting this week Day of the Dead in Oaxaca…one of my most favorite events on the planet…we should be able to skype edit latter part of november…

    PANOS..

    we will work on your Death in Venice book when i finish up this week my workshop marathon…you have new work? i do have to disappear for about two weeks in the outer banks, but we should at least be able to do an edit…

    WENDY…

    i do hope to see you when i come to Cali in a few weeks….

    PETE..

    why the anger?? hey, we are talking lenses for heaven’s sake…we all agree…whatever works, works…

    cheers, david

  76. a friend built a pinhole camera where the lens was a wineglass and the shutter red wine.. drink the wine to take a photo.
    thats a lens worth celebrating.

    nice work glenn.. the cross n kid with guns.. provocative..

  77. a civilian-mass audience

    GLENN,
    Rock on…I see… you are focused…
    Viva AUSSIES!!!

    BURNIANS…you are all amazing…and I am proud…

  78. a civilian-mass audience

    AKAKY…
    You don’t shoot…meatballs and furniture…only…:)))
    I see your vision in the book of face…

    Well,meatballs on you, ouzo on me…!!!

  79. a civilian-mass audience

    MR.VINK…shot his computer…
    ROSSY…shot the transformation…
    DAVIDB…shot mountains and snow
    PANOS…shot Southern
    JUSTIN…shot …some news…
    MR.HARVEY…shot the dead…

    And I am shooting one shot of raki…

    BURNIANS…you have been warned …I need updates…

  80. DAH

    No anger here. Just get weary of over-the-top rude boorish behavior. What ever happened to good dialogue where thoughts and ideas are put forth instead of dropping f-bombs in broken sentences while insulting half of the photojournalists on the planet?

    Actually, I am a bit disappointed that it is put up with on a site that is mostly visited by talented readers that engage in interesting and insightful discussion. I have talked with more than a few photographers that really like the idea of BURN, but refuse to read any of the comments due the “frat party atmosphere” or “clubhouse” feel of comments that seem to break into what are generally good discussions. (their words, although I do not disagree)

    I have nothing against free flowing heated, emotional and animated discourse, but some constantly cross the line.

    Try not to have too much fun in Oaxaca!

  81. David,
    Yes indeed I got sucked into the “venice vortex” once again…
    I got about 5 months of shooting new work..
    Especially after I returned in LA from New York..
    Yes yes yes and yes again.. And no rush..
    We are here for the long haul;)

  82. Pete your over the top “do and think, as I say, only those who I want to read should post here ” attitude shines like a beacon here.

    another classic……… (their words, although I do not disagree) the usual cop out and another put down of people who post here9 The Sidney syndrome)

  83. a civilian-mass audience

    WENDY,

    Your vision is shining.it’s flowing good for my civilian eyes !!!
    You are the Sunshine lady,yes,indeed.

    PETE,
    We are just a big,Universal family.Here in BURN,the windows are open and everyone is invited.
    I have kept a special wine(year 1988).When you have time come over to Grecolandia.
    We love you.

    P.S hmmm…my apologies …but my ideas are flowing better…with broken sentences.
    LOVE YOU ALLLLLLLL
    Goodnight

  84. Glenn;

    Thanks for that mate. I’m still shooting it, but have done a rough edit down to 60 pics. I’m just going to sit on them and keep shooting. I’m just editing my last shoot at the moment.

    The plan (and it has been a real roller coaster!) is to shoot until Feb and her 17th birthday. That way I will have her 16th birthday party pics; when she was a carefree schoolgirl (and didn’t realise she was pregnant)to her 17th when she is a mum with a 6 month old baby.

    You’ve got some nice new work on the link. Is The Wet beginning over there? I see Darwin was 35 degrees and thunder storms on the tv weather a couple of days ago…

    David AH;

    Thanks for that; a Skype edit would be great. I’m pretty happy the way this story is going; just don’t want to show many people and jinx it all!

    Civi; “ROSSY…shot the transformation…” Well I think I’ve undergone a bit of a transformation by shooting this too… A VERY steep learning curve…

    Cheers

  85. a civilian-mass audience

    IMANTS,

    Your wine is here too…your book MyEtrouko will be next to BURN 01 and BURN 02…
    Viva AUSSIES!!!
    By the way…
    SIDNEY,our academian is fine…he is just extremely busy with his writings…
    Love you all
    And
    THANK YOU

  86. “… and another put down of people who post here”

    Imants, with all due respect, pot and kettles a bit don’t you think?

  87. a civilian-mass audience

    Ohhh…and before I go to sleep…

    Bravo to all honorees,nominees and finalists for the Lucie Awards…
    We have been there…

    What not to Love…
    Ok,now I am going…

  88. Tom I don’t care who posts here that is the difference yes pots are black. Few take me seriously here and frankly don’t give a rat’s proverbial what I say except for those that hold a conservative photographic outlook who dismiss me. I have no complaints about burn.

  89. PETE..

    why the anger?? hey, we are talking lenses for heaven’s sake…we all agree…whatever works, works…
    —————

    Yeah man.. Can’t get any simpler than that, can it.. Next step is anger management classes..
    And please don’t talk in general like “they did that”, “he/she said this”, “them”, “someone”, “some of them”…. Blah blah… Call me with my name Pete, so I boost my google analytics..
    That (Patricia / Sidney) syndrome as “someone” said..
    And replace grinning with smiling..
    Nice sincere wholehearted smile..
    Ok, let’s move on..
    No anger please.. Or like I suggested million tea before either stop reading my posts or stop clicking on my YouTube links…
    As simple as that.. If u stop taking me “in a personal account” you might even love me in the end.
    I’m an extremely lovable person..
    Ask Tom (please don’t ask my brother in law, though)
    Big hug

  90. IMANTS

    “your over the top “do and think, as I say, only those who I want to read should post here ” attitude shines like a beacon here.”

    You miss the point. I do not care how people shoot and I certainly don’t preach it either. All I would ever do is explain how I shoot. Which I think is the route everyone should take. There is no right or wrong. While I may not care for a style or technique, I would never label it as wrong, just something I do not care for.

    To suggest that only the people I want to read should post here is just trying to pick a fight. THAT is certainly not true. As with politics, I may not agree with a person’s political views but I have no problem listening. Sometimes there is something to learn that may lead to a different viewpoint on a topic.

    It is not the message, or the messenger for that matter. It is the rude profane delivery method that I think is unnecessary.

    As a comedian once said about a guy who wants to burn and walk on the American flag… the guy is not being unpatriotic, he is just being a pain in the ass.

  91. A quick question; when you write a bio for a website should you use 1st or 3rd person? I can’t really find a definitive answer. All I do know is that I hate writing about myself! :-)

  92. Ross…

    I have yet to read a first person bio that didn’t sound just a little too “I’m so wonderful”-ish. For me, third person and concise works. Letting the photography speak for itself.

  93. However… truth is, I am not an avid bio reader to begin with, so it wouldn’t surprise me if there are some perfectly fine first person versions out there. Just sayin’.

  94. “Critical Mass is a program about exposure and community. The idea is simple—photographers (from anywhere) submit a 10 image portfolio for $75. This work then gets pre-screened by a committee of approximately 20 great jurors and from there, 175 top Finalists are determined. These top Finalists then pay an additional submission fee ($200) and their work goes on to a jury of approximately 200 ”

    strangely, an award i could not afford to win..

  95. What’s the American flag/patriotism got to do with this, your comedian’s input pretty meaningless to non Americans…….or your American centric vision

    same same but different I could also make a similar comment about yours … It is the rude profane delivery method that I think is unnecessary. …….. just as you stated……….. It is the rude profane delivery method that I think is unnecessary. It all depends on where one is coming from

  96. I rest my case.

    You could have just been smart enough to read translate what I was saying as referring to your flag but you choose to be rude. And just to be clear… I am not talking about disagreeing with something said as being profane, I am referring to the dropping of f-bombs and other profanities to make a point.

  97. As a comedian once said about a guy who wants to burn and walk on the American flag… the guy is not being unpatriotic, he is just being a pain in the ass.
    —————-

    Wow really! Funny! Amazing! ALL, laugh..:)
    Amazing joke … (plus it brings the google statistics , analytics, whateveritics..up)…

  98. a civilian-mass audience

         
    “The best thing to give to your enemy is forgiveness; to an opponent, tolerance; to a friend, your heart; to your child, a good example; to a father, deference; to your mother, conduct that will make her proud of you; to yourself, respect; to all men, charity.”
     Benjamin Franklin ( 1706-1790)
    And to all women…freedom!!!

    Peace…

  99. what I like on this website is the authenticity.
    people write as they would speak while meeting in real life.

    actually if that changed, it never were the same.
    I expect to see pictures “like it is”, and learn from it, and additionally the community is like they are in real life.

    what not to love?

  100. a civilian-mass audience

    THOMAS,

    Are you coming back to Grecolandia…where are you now???
    You travel a lot lately…like MR.HARVEY…
    Life between …terminals…:)))
    I am jeaLous…
    Yeap,I have to admit…I love terminals…:)))

  101. a civilian-mass audience

    Is it frat or fart…
    Did I use the f-word
    Silence…oime…

    BURN is the place to be…
    BURN 01 is the book to see…
    BURNIANS are chemical …free
    To be or not to be…

  102. Thomas, yep.. and always something to learn.. gotta google f-bomb now.. English is a funny language ;)

  103. a civilian-mass audience

    Now, I understand…why nobody wants to play with me…
    My game stinks…:)))
    Viva…

    Back to your shooting projects…and what “elements” can makes or breaks an essay…???

  104. for civi f-bomb…………

    Leaving a fart in the elevator just before exiting. That way the next person that gets into the elevator get’s a surprise.

  105. a civilian-mass audience

    IMANTS,

    Don’t disturb me…I am studying…
    :))))))))))))))))

    Back to your regular program…focus

  106. Ahh Ross I said I was sorry for tattooing Elmer Fud sticking his shotgun up your but with common” out wabbit in the speech bubble when we got you pissed as a nit

  107. CIVI,

    sorry for replying so late – currently in Bonn, but I am travelling a lot these days, unfortunately not into Greccolandia. I hope early next year to be able to come to Athens. I have an idea for a photo series – photographers in tutu. Like Ballet Dancers.

    Would you like to pose for me?

  108. a civilian-mass audience

    Ahhh…GLENN…today I feel like your “Black Elvis”…I wanna rock and roll…

    And yes, I am taking ESL classes but…since I am dyslexic…I am into visual…
    That’s why I love BURN…
    oups…i did it again:)))

    THOMAS,
    You are going to wear tutu…and I pose for you…with my civilian uniform and my moustache…
    Deal.

    You AUSSiES…hmmm…You need configuration :)))

  109. Anton, ehm, nope, sorry.. unless you relocate London a bit Southern toward Paris.. while you’ll have your talk (all the best!!) I’ll try to take a decent pic or two.. and til then I’ll try to focus.. on other things.. the thought of messing up is getting on my nerves.. argh..

  110. Ross – I think both work, with context sometimes favoring one over the other. IMO, first person is best for personal websites, unless someone else writes it about you, and you attribute it to that writer. (John’s photographs have graced the pages of…) can fly if we respect the view of the writer in general, but seems a bit much if it is a a personal site and we don’t know if John has written the bio. Few people dare to write in a self congratulatory tone in first person on their own sites. If it is for a book or exhibit, i think it isn’t a bad idea to have someone else write it, if the bio needs to have qualitative reflections in it about the work. If it is a straightforward history, I think either voice is acceptable.

  111. a civilian-mass audience

    Where are you my Academians???
    ROSSY…
    It depends…I have read many bios from artists…almost all of them …in the third
    I would go with the 3rd…
    But if you go with the 1st…you might want to go easy with the “I’s”…:)))

    Go figure…I need my academians…
    W

  112. a civilian-mass audience

    Ohhh…It’s for your website…hmm…

    I might have a change of heart here…the 1st might be more personal…
    the third…more formal…
    Oh,what the heck…
    Have a glass of donkey milk…and do whatever you love…
    :)))
    Goodnight all…
    I will be back…

  113. a civilian-mass audience

    I just had a wake up call…I have so many symptoms of codependency…
    I need to find out more…
    Wish me luck…

    I will be back…hmmm…I knew it…
    something is wrong with me…
    Can I say…I love you All…hmmm….

  114. Codependents Anonymous offers these patterns and characteristics as a tool to aid in self-evaluation.[1]

    Denial patterns:

    I have difficulty identifying what I am feeling.
    I minimize, alter or deny how I truly feel.
    I perceive myself as completely unselfish and dedicated to the well being of others.
    Low self-esteem patterns:

    I have difficulty making decisions.
    I judge everything I think, say or do harshly, as never “good enough.”
    I am embarrassed to receive recognition and praise or gifts.
    I do not ask others to meet my needs or desires.
    I value others’ approval of my thinking, feelings and behavior over my own.
    I do not perceive myself as a lovable or worthwhile person.
    Compliance patterns:

    I compromise my own values and integrity to avoid rejection or others’ anger.
    I am very sensitive to how others are feeling and feel the same.
    I am extremely loyal, remaining in harmful situations too long.
    I value others’ opinions and feelings more than my own and am afraid to express differing opinions and feelings of my own.
    I put aside my own interests and hobbies in order to do what others want.
    I accept sex when I want love.
    Control patterns:

    I believe most other people are incapable of taking care of themselves.
    I attempt to convince others of what they “should” think and how they “truly” feel.
    I become resentful when others will not let me help them.
    I freely offer others advice and directions without being asked.
    I lavish gifts and favors on those I care about.
    I use sex to gain approval and acceptance.
    I have to be “needed” in order to have a relationship with others.

  115. 2 men assassinated a couple of blocks from my class…right in front of the main church of Oaxaca, Sto Domingo…and right where all the kids gather to start their parades through the city…right where we often make photographs….two gunmen on motorcycle were able to quickly get away….disturbing to say the least….targeted men they say, but makes all uneasy nevertheless….this sort of thing just does not happen here in this colonial town…or, at least not until yesterday….however,the fiesta goes on as per normal…not random victims..targets to be sure…no matter, we are all out shooting…nobody can live in fear…

    cheers, david

  116. Murder in the streets. My first thought was did anyone get a pic? What an essay for the Festival of the Dead–Murder in the Streets.

  117. No not out just distance softens the blow somewhat. Makes it easier to think of these things. I am curious though if anyone in the class got a photo.

  118. I heard. Good news. Mantis’ are amazing. My daughter came home when she was 19 with a mantis tattoo on the back of her neck. She said, “Mom, I got a tattoo.” Then lifted up her hair and showed me a mantis on the back of her neck. Very scary. I said, “Yes, you do.”

  119. a civilian-mass audience

    KATIA…
    Bravo…

    LEE…yes Mantis…good taste…

    WENDY…
    Thank you …

    I better leave my luck alone…I have to rediscover…my inner strength…
    And yes…definitely
    I love you All…

  120. a civilian-mass audience

    Wake up…BURNIANS…where is the party…

    Keep rolling…moonlight is over…Happy Hellowin…
    You better be ready to shoot…
    There are no safe heavens…when you are out there…
    I am not sure about the backyards …hmmm…
    Be you
    Be free
    And respect …

    Your civilian
    The mass audience…

  121. Woah, lucky students, what could you wish for more, couple deads for the day of the death workshop… Lee, I do hope your commemnt was a joke…

  122. Eva, no actually it wasn’t a joke. Think about all the essays and work you have seen over the years. Are they all free of murder in the street themes? This could be an essay as easily as any of the other essays that I have seen here and work done by photojournalists through the decades. It isn’t made up. It happened. Murder in the streets happens every day in this world. It is just as important to know about as any other subject. I wonder if someone will do an essay paralleling the Festival of the Dead and Murder in the Streets. DAH, I’m sure someone has thought of this. Of course it would be very dangerous and extremely hard to pull off in one week…No not joking, murder in the streets is very serious.

  123. I’ve seen the future, baby,
    it is murder.
    — Leonard Cohen

    I’ve been thinking too much, not doing enough lately. So just to get off the snide, I downloaded all the photos off the walking around cards in my cameras and made a little slideshow for your amusement, if you are so inclined on a lazy Sunday afternoon. It’s nothing special. Mostly Brooklyn, a little Manhattan and the Bronx; a lot of fall foliage, tourist traps, one of those embassy things at the Plaza, just stuff I see bumbling around New York. Enjoy, or don’t.

  124. a civilian-mass audience

    I can’t see your photos MW …in my device…
    I am gonna switch…
    Cause I wanna enjoy my lazy Sunday night…

  125. No not out just distance softens the blow somewhat. Makes it easier to think of these things………….. of course we are aware that murder happens but why treat it as just another photo essay aka TV show of cops and robbers. The best part is this ………. I am curious though if anyone in the class got a photo. whoopie lets put it up as a single!!!

  126. a civilian-mass audience

    And I was ready to switch….14 steps to get the laptop…thank you MW
    Ok, I am ready … Red wine, fireplace…
    Can you feel me…

    Let’s see what is bumbling around you…

    P.S …goodnight BURNIANS…respect and love …

  127. He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you.
    “Beyond Good and Evil”, Aphorism 146 (1886)

  128. What then is truth? A movable host of metaphors, metonymies, and anthropomorphisms: in short, a sum of human relations which have been poetically and rhetorically intensified, transferred, and embellished, and which, after long usage, seem to a people to be fixed, canonical, and binding. Truths are illusions which we have forgotten are illusions — they are metaphors that have become worn out and have been drained of sensuous force, coins which have lost their embossing and are now considered as metal and no longer as coins.

  129. Life and experience. If one notices how some individuals know how to treat their experiences (their insignificant everyday experiences) so that these become a plot of ground that bears fruit three times a year; while others (and how many of them!) are driven through the waves of the most exciting turns of fate, of the most varied currents of their time or nation, and yet always stay lightly on the surface, like cork: then one is finally tempted to divide mankind into a minority (minimality) of those people who know how to make much out of little and a majority of those who know how to make a little out of much; indeed, one meets those perverse wizards who, instead of creating the world out of nothing, create nothing out of the world.
    Section IX, “Man Alone with Himself” / aphorism 627

  130. We are, all of us, growing volcanoes that approach the hour of their eruption; but how near or distant that is, nobody knows — not even God.(god..u can laugh here:)

  131. Benefiting and hurting others are ways of exercising one’s power upon others; that is all one desires in such cases. One hurts those whom one wants to feel one’s power, for pain is a much more efficient means to that end than pleasure; pain always raises the question about its origin while pleasure is inclined to stop with itself without looking back. We benefit and show benevolence to those who are already dependent on us in some way (which means that they are used to thinking of us as causes); we want to increase their power because in that way we increase ours, or we want to show them how advantageous it is to be in our power; that way they will become more satisfied with their condition and more hostile to and willing to fight against the enemies of our power.

  132. So to stop being a slave what u really do?
    Read the above post and don’t accept anyones abuse,
    Punishment or “gifts”…
    All be aware of the “Greek Troyan gift Horse”…
    Stay away from the “Greeks”.. They just try to take your power away..
    Don’t let them…

  133. Without art we would be nothing but foreground and live entirely in the spell of that perspective which makes what is closest at hand and most vulgar appear as if it were vast, and reality itself.
    Sec. 78
    Good prose is written only face to face with poetry.
    Sec. 92
    Art furnishes us with eyes and hands and above all the good conscience to be able to turn ourselves into such a phenomenon.
    Sec. 107

  134. Was sagt dein Gewissen? — ‘Du sollst der werden, der du bist.’
    What does your conscience say? — “You shall become the person you are.”

    translation: Become who you are.

  135. believe me!

    — the secret for harvesting from existence the greatest fruitfulness and the greatest enjoyment is:

    to live dangerously!

    Build your cities on the slopes of Vesuvius! Send your ships into uncharted seas! Live at war with your peers and yourselves! Be robbers and conquerors as long as you cannot be rulers and possessors, you seekers of knowledge! Soon the age will be past when you could be content to live hidden in forests like shy deer! At long last the search for knowledge will reach out for its due: — it will want to rule and possess, and you with it!

    translation: believe me: the secret for harvesting from existence the greatest fruitfulness and greatest enjoyment is — to live dangerously.

  136. We “conserve” nothing; neither do we want to return to any past periods; we are not by any means “liberal”; we do not work for “progress”; we do not need to plug up our ears against the sirens who in the market place sing of the future: their song about “equal rights,” “a free society,” “no more masters and no servants” has no allure for us.

  137. We simply do not consider it desirable that a realm of justice and concord should be established on earth (because it would certainly be the realm of the deepest leveling and chinoiserie); we are delighted with all who love, as we do, danger, war, and adventures, who refuse to compromise, to be captured, reconciled, and castrated; we count ourselves among conquerors; we think about the necessity for new orders, also for a new slavery — for every strengthening and enhancement of the human type also involves a new kind of enslavement.
    The term chinoiserie indicates “unnecessary complication” and some translations point out that this passage invokes ideas in the concluding poem of Beyond Good and Evil: “nur wer sich wandelt bleibt mit mir verwandt” :

    Only those who keep changing remain akin to me.

  138. Ok…5:17pm in venice…
    Halloween … Harsh sun .. One more hour for the golden light… So
    I had to “share” some street philosophy with u my friends..
    Peace out..
    Time to shoot..
    I owe you, ALL…
    ;)

  139. Here you go Panos; a poem for you

    The Maori Jesus

    I saw the Maori Jesus
    Walking on Wellington Harbour.
    He wore blue dungarees,
    His beard and hair were long.
    His breath smelled of mussels and paraoa.
    When he smiled it looked like the dawn.
    When he broke wind the little fishes trembled.
    When he frowned the ground shook.
    When he laughed everybody got drunk.

    The Maori Jesus came on shore
    And picked out his twelve disciples.
    One cleaned toilets in the railway station;
    His hands were scrubbed red to get the shit out of the pores.
    One was a call-girl who turned it up for nothing.
    One was a housewife who had forgotten the Pill
    And stuck her TV set in the rubbish can.
    One was a little office clerk
    Who’d tried to set fire to the Government Buldings.
    Yes, and there were several others;
    One was a sad old quean;
    One was an alcoholic priest
    Going slowly mad in a respectable parish.

    The Maori Jesus said, ‘Man,
    From now on the sun will shine.’

    He did no miracles;
    He played the guitar sitting on the ground.

    The first day he was arrested
    For having no lawful means of support.
    The second day he was beaten up by the cops
    For telling a dee his house was not in order.
    The third day he was charged with being a Maori
    And given a month in Mt Crawford.
    The fourth day he was sent to Porirua
    For telling a screw the sun would stop rising.
    The fifth day lasted seven years
    While he worked in the Asylum laundry
    Never out of the steam.
    The sixth day he told the head doctor,
    ‘I am the Light in the Void;
    I am who I am.’
    The seventh day he was lobotomised;
    The brain of God was cut in half.

    On the eighth day the sun did not rise.
    It did not rise the day after.
    God was neither alive nor dead.
    The darkness of the Void,
    Mountainous, mile-deep, civilised darkness
    Sat on the earth from then till now.

    – James K. Baxter –

  140. a civilian-mass audience

    “Civilized darkness”…ROSSY…oime…

    PANOS…
    Thanks for…”the awakening”…

    Life goes on
    We have to move on
    The light is above
    You only own to your soul…

    To my friends, thank you for your support…
    And a message to all of you out there…you are strong…
    LASSAL…we are here…love…
    Love to all…

  141. a civilian-mass audience

    MW…I am walking with you…
    Bumbling around…and it wasn’t the wine…:)))

    Enjoy your November…good things are coming…!!!

  142. MW…thanks, nice one – I like it.

    MK…saw that live..hilarious. As was his description of Rand Paul, who is running right here in KY.

    Good light, all,
    A.

  143. It’s been several days since I have taken the time to drop by, but I did today and right away saw all the references to MW’s walking around download show…

    Nice… reminds me that I need to get better attuned with my own walking/biking/driving images.

  144. a civilian-mass audience

    Yes, MICHAElK…someone to restore sanity…Someone who is working around the edges…

    FROSTFROG…you are doing fine…we follow you too…

    ANDREWB…tell your wife…I have baklava…she will understand…;)))

    And for those who are going through the voting process…
    Please, go out and vote…you have a “voice”.

    Keep shooting BURNIANS…don’t be intimidated …
    “pictures everywhere”…it’s in the Twitter feed…

  145. Killed a huge rat on my lana’i tonight and did not take a photo of it. Whacked it 7 times with a huge shovel. I’ve been after him for weeks. My granddaughter said, “Poor ting.” Not. But a dead ting. Murder on the lana’i.

  146. a civilian-mass audience

    Hmmm…Don’t be intimidated…:)))
    There is death,everywhere …even in our backyards…

    LEE…I have to reconsider my plans…there is a travel advisory…for your lana’i…
    :)))))))))))))))

  147. a civilian-mass audience

    Ohhh…I want this car…
    I can definitely impress …some people here in Grecolandia…
    Or I can smash the cars that blocking my driveway…

    Hmmm…I am getting old and grouchy …:)))

    Anyway, MR.VINK…what are you cooking???

  148. Thanks to all who left kind words. The bumbling around NY photos are much more about process than product. The fall foliage pics in particular are much more an exercise in mindfulness than any attempt to produce professional photographs. Same thing with the aquarium pics. Most of the others are the result of playing with my new camera. For those interested in that sort of things I recently bought a Lumix LX5. I’d been wanting a pocket camera for some time and it came down to a choice between that and the Sigma DP2. I chose the LX5 because I liked the specs and it got very good reviews, particularly for the quality of the lens, which actually is very good. I’ve found, however, that I very much dislike the color it produces, although I can’t put my finger on exactly why. It just seems unexceptional in its extraordinary digital-camera-style quality. I’m finding I like it as a black and white camera though, especially with flash. And the video is very good as well. Still, I’m kinda wishing I would have gone with the Sigma (anyone have any comment on that camera?) and it looks like I’ll have two pocket cameras as soon as I pay this one off.

  149. I have the Sigma DP1s. Maybe it is a little comparable. It has a 16mm/F4 lens – which is on the APS-C Chip about 28mm. The F4 however hurts, and the further processing is a pain, if you are using it from RAW and usually use Aperture like I do. Lightroom is able to process the Sigma RAWs.
    I like the picture quality and the colours are OK, too. Unless you like noise, you should not go beyond ISO 400.
    I love/hate it. I love the pictures, it is small, but slow – also the time between taking pictures.

    Those pictures were taken with the Sigma DP1s
    http://www.fotocommunity.de/pc/pc/mypics/7384/display/22228173
    http://www.fotocommunity.de/pc/pc/mypics/7384/display/22418817
    http://www.fotocommunity.de/pc/pc/mypics/7384/display/22430182

    and the whole series here:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/tfelix/4910082407/in/set-72157624642928383/

  150. a civilian-mass audience

    VON THOMAS…
    You are bumbling around a lot…
    And you don’t like noise…straight to the bone :)))

    What not to love…

    Different styles…Bravo BURNIANS…keep shooting…

  151. That was funny John Vink. I can’t help wondering how he got the bike out from under the car.

  152. National Punctuation Day was September 24th this year and it pains me to admit that I missed the great day completely. This was entirely my own fault; I simply wasn’t paying enough attention and the day went by with nary a hosanna in praise of the period or a paean to the delights of the semicolon from me. To all, I wish to apologize deeply for this unconscionable oversight. People do not pay enough attention to punctuation; punctuation lacks the solemn personal dignity of the nouns or the vigorous get up and go of the verbs, and punctuation certainly lacks even the sheer descriptive power of even the most overworked of adjectives; but in its own small way punctuation makes the simple English sentence both simple and possible. How would anyone know what a sentence is supposed to sound like without the punctuation? If a true sentence must, as the nuns taught me, contain a complete thought, how would I know when the thought, and therefore the sentence, was complete, beyond the traditional one of graduating from high school? Without punctuation, The Cat in the Hat would be as difficult to read as Finnegan’s Wake, and a troupe of actors on Benzedrine could perform the complete works of Shakespeare (including the sonnets and the long poems) in just under forty-five minutes, if you don’t include the time spent on psychotic giggling, bathroom breaks, or police raids.

    We use punctuation every day, and yet many people cannot identify any but the most common punctuation marks. Everyone can identify a comma or a period, of course—they are the stars of the punctuation universe—but not many people can tell you that # is an octothorpe. Fewer people still can tell you that an umlaut (¨) is not some creepy guy who tries to take advantage of intoxicated women during Oktoberfest, that tilde (~) is not the character Rosalind Russell played in His Girl Friday, or that the circumflex (^) is not an incredibly popular French exercise machine. Even if they know the name of the mark they are using, many people still misuse punctuation all the time. Is there a more abused member of the English punctuation family than the simple apostrophe (’)? In a classic error, one that almost every Anglophone has made at one time or another, its and it’s are not the same word and do not mean the same thing. Its is a possessive pronoun; it’s is a contraction of it is. And since contractions fill the English language in much the same way that the dead fill the voter rolls in Chicago, the chances of some careless writer dropping the apostrophe grow exponentially with every word they write. Some writers choose to eliminate the apostrophe altogether, even if, as in the case of cant and wont, the words have nothing to do with can’t or won’t. Punctuation is, I think, one of the great inventions of the human mind; it clarifies the dense and often opaque mush of language into an easily understandable form; and it boggles the imagination that people went for thousands of years without it.

    Punctuation, it may surprise you to learn, did not arrive along with the invention of written language, although you’d think the need for it would be immediately obvious. The Sumerians, who invented writing to help them collect sales taxes and then used their invention to help them dodge those same taxes, did not use punctuation at all. If a scribe reading his cuneiform tablets droned on for longer than the listener was prepared to listen, the listener would ask the scribe to stop, or, if time was short, the listener would simply bash the scribe into unconsciousness with a large rock. Being a scribe was a dangerous trade in Sumer, and among the first occupational safety laws archaeology knows of are found on a cuneiform tablet that dates from approximately 3500 BCE, which required scribes to wear helmets whenever they had to read any document longer than two tablets to the easily distractible public.

    The Egyptians had no apparent need for punctuation, a contention that many Egyptologists now feel is not altogether accurate; a hieroglyph of a boy choking a cat is, many scholars believe, the first use of the semicolon. The ancient Hebrews eliminated punctuation along with vowels in order to save space—the Ten Commandments did without both, for example, so Moses would not herniate himself on the way down Sinai—the lack of both does lead one to think that the Ten Commandments may qualify as history’s first tweet—and the ancient Greeks could have used punctuation—Aristotle first advance the possibility in the Nichomachean Ethics—but chose not to do anything with the idea; keeping the punctuation out kept everyone except the speaker from getting a word in edgewise, an always important skill in Greek politics.

    After the Aristotelian false start, punctuation waited for another millennium for its ineluctable rediscovery, if can call Aristotle’s one line afterthought a discovery in the first place, by Christian monks in the years after the conversion of the Irish. Soon after St. Patrick converted all the land to Christianity, it became clear to him that the traditional Irish form of writing, Ogham, was not adequate to meet the needs of his ever-growing congregation. Ogham, a series of lines and symbols cut into a vertical axis, looked good cut into a large stone, but to Patrick’s Romanized eye Ogham lacked the both the dignity and the utility of the Latin alphabet. The introduction of the Latin alphabet, which, if you didn’t already know, is what you’re reading right now, proved a boon as the Irish (except, of course, for the Ogham chisellers, who had to find other work and were therefore not inclined to help Patrick at all) entered into the spiritual life of the Church with the zeal of the newly converted, giving up everything to lead the monastic life and serve the Church by leading lives of piety, poverty, chastity, and copying.

    Copying was a big part of Irish spirituality in those years. The Roman Empire in the West had shuffled off this mortal coil the century before, leaving a big stack of stuff in the Church’s in-basket to do by the time it got back from vacation. Well, the Roman Empire in the West never did make it back from vacation (the Roman Empire in the East continued onwards and upwards for another thousand years, but that’s another story, and one that did not require copying and collating parchment in bulk), but the Irish Church decided that this was work that needed doing anyway and that the swarms of devout new monks were just the ones to do it. The monks agreed and set off on their tasks with a high heart and a prayer on their lips. It did not take the monks long to discover, however, that the Romans, the Greeks, and the Israelites all suffered from the same curse—they didn’t know when to shut up, a failing that carried over into their literatures and even into Scripture, and if they (the monks) were ever going to get a bite to eat or something to drink down at the pub they would have to do something to cut the graphomanical enthusiasms of the ancients down to a reasonable length.

    To that worthy end, one Father Ambrose, a young monk at the monastery at Clonmacnoise, one day decided that he’d had enough of Roman politics in the form of Cicero’s denunciations of Catiline in the Roman Senate (Cicero thought that Catiline was a lying traitorous two-bit punk and wasn’t afraid to say so, but Cicero was also a politician who loved the sound of his own voice—what politician doesn’t—and so expounded on Catiline’s faults at considerable length and for hours on end, something politicians could do in ancient Rome, given that no one had cable yet) and in disgust threw his quill pen down at the manuscript. A bit of ink flew from the nib and landed at the end of the last word Father Ambrose had copied. The good monk looked at what he had done and in a flash of incredible insight saw that it was good. In fact, he shouted, ‘Hallelujah,’ or something roughly equivalent to that worthy word of divine praise. One witness to the event said later that he was pretty sure Father Ambrose had said, ‘Hot Damn,’ but very few people credit his account.

    After the invention of the period, Irish monasteries entered an age of punctuational brilliance; the monks invented the colon, the semicolon, the comma, and the dash in short order. They had to give up the dash; the Pope declared its use sinful in 619 CE; but they invented the ampersand (&) and the asterisk (*), and were working on the apostrophe when Viking raiders sacked Clonmacnoise and took the punctuation back to Scandinavia with them. From that time punctuation has spread like high taxes from one end of the earth to the other, and yet people still do not know how to use it correctly, leading to the popularity of such usage guides as Eats, Shoots & Leaves. In other cases, punctuational overuse has led to a backlash. The constant use of colons in modern society, for example, led to a movement that demands that we rid the language of the mark entirely. On the cable channels, one can see one infomercial after another telling the gullible American viewing public how to detoxify the user’s constant use of the colon. Such extremism will not catch on with much of the public; the colon is simply too useful for anyone to do away with it entirely; but it is clear that punctuational abuse and misuse are among the largest obstacles to teaching schoolchildren how to write properly and that the schools are simply not doing enough to address this unfortunate situation.

  153. Thanks Thomas, apparently the DP2s is much faster, both for aperture and focusing, and it’s a 40mm equivalent lens, which is my sweet spot. But anyway, now that I have a relatively fast pocket camera, I’m interested in the Sigma for the reported picture quality and unique characteristics of the Foveon processor. It seems the photos you linked to, particularly the first two, show off that distinction. Of course I have a weakness for strange cameras and should probably just get on of those new 4/3rds, but so far I haven’t liked examples I’ve seen from them for much the same, albeit indefinable, reasons I don’t like the LX5 color.

  154. a civilian-mass audience

    I am Greek ,I suffer from the curse therefore I have immunity.
    Am I right,AKAKIE?

  155. CIVI:
    She certainly will understand…as I think do I :) We pretty much always have a little baklava in teh fridge (although she pronounces it different than I do, it’s the same)…along with hummus, tabouli, and other such basics. And flat, or pita, breadf – although in our house we just call it bread. :)

    AKAKY
    I believe I punctuated on that day, so observed the holiday. And I like the subtle watermarks you’ve started placing on your images.

    MW
    Was thinking about a LX3 or 5, or even the GF1…I think I would miss the viewfinder, though, so am now holding out for the Fuji x100 with a fixed 35mm (equivalent FOV) and APS-C sensor. Are you shooting RAW, and have you tried fixing the color in post?

    I feel of late I have become nothing but a snapshot shooter, and a mediacre one at that…time for some immersion and dedicated shooting time….

  156. Michael,

    the picture quality and the Foveon chip was driving me, too. The DP1(s) is pretty cheap to get these days, the DP2 is more expensive, for a reason. :)
    I also have a Ricoh GR digital, which has nice pictures in b/w, but strange colours. So usually I convert.

    In the future, there will be many more cameras like the 4/3rds, or the Fuji X100. Seems like the industry found a new market.

    I hope some day, they’ll create full frame compacts.

  157. Lee: the motorbike was from a policeman trying to stop the car from driving on the wrong side of the street divide… So much for respect of the Law…

    Civi: just finished the 3rd +-15 minute slideshow to be shown at Meta House this saturday. If you’re in Phnom Penh just drop by…

  158. Andrew, I’ve got subtlety coming out of my pores…this probably explains the outrageous laundry bills. I think there’s shots for this sort of thing; I must ask my doctor about them.

  159. Andrew, Thomas, I don’t draw hard lines in the sand, but generally speaking, I have trouble envisioning doing paid professional work or a serious personal project that I expect to sell with less than a full sensor camera and a big chunk of glass. I like the pocket cameras for my walking around stuff, which is more of a hobby, or therapy, or mindfulness practice, or something like that, though some crossover has been known to occur and no doubt will more often in the future as pocket camera technology continues to advance. I only shoot RAW but years ago went over to the “get it right in the camera” side of the fence. I typically make very minor adjustments in the RAW processor and may tweak the curve in Photoshop, but unless it’s some kind of special photo or something for an assignment that I screwed up on and have to recover, I don’t do a lot of post. It’s that kind of thinking that attracts me to the Sigma, and other weird cameras, and filters (be they purchased or homemade or environmentally available). I’ll probably embarrass myself by mentioning this in a forum with so many much more successful professionals, but the fall foliage photos are an example of just about all of the above. I take them most years because I enjoy the act of taking them. I originally put a lot of effort into the look, which came out of my love for the Hudson Valley school of painters (Thomas Cole, Asher Durand, Fredrick Church, et. al.) and their use of subdued colors and dramatic light and shadow. I used to get the look I like with a complicated software workflow but now manage it with almost no post processing at all. But to do that requires a full frame sensor and interesting glass. To manage it with the LX5 I’d have to go back to the software solution and even then it wouldn’t be the same.

  160. a civilian-mass audience

    MR.VINK,

    I will be there…because when you cook,you cook good!
    But since I am a Mass-Audience…can you throw a link…
    For the rest of the civilians.

    J V
    O I
    H V
    N A

  161. A person needs a little madness, or else they never dare cut the rope and be free.

    Beauty is merciless. You do not look at it, it looks at you and does not forgive.

    Every perfect traveler always creates the country where he travels.

    Everything in this world has a hidden meaning.

    I expect nothing. I fear no one. I am free.

    I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.

    I said to the almond tree, “Friend, speak to me of God,” and the almond tree blossomed.

    In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can.

    My entire soul is a cry, and all my work is a commentary on that cry.

    Since we cannot change reality, let us change the eyes which see reality.

    The real meaning of enlightenment is to gaze with undimmed eyes on all darkness.

    There is only one woman in the world. One woman, with many faces.

  162. GREAT stuff panos.. enjoyed that.

    on small cameras.. i’m using 2nd hand lumix cameras which are pretty cheap… 4 or 5 to the e
    dp1..
    they are going to get broken, rained on and dropped.. actually, they seem to bear a knock more than my past g9.

    now..
    channel 4 televisions dispatches show on the leaked iraq war files was screened in norway last night..
    initial findings on 400 000 pages.
    maby no surprizes, although it’s a powerful presentation..
    http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/iraq-secret-war-files-wikileaks-special/

  163. a civilian-mass audience

    “How simple and frugal a thing is happiness: a glass of wine, a roast chestnut, a wretched little brazier, the sound of the sea. . . . All that is required to feel that here and now is happiness is a simple, frugal heart.”
    — Nikos Kazantzakis

    DB…PANOS…
    Life is weird….

    BURNIANS,wherever you are…don’t give up.Click and edit.

  164. a civilian-mass audience

    “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”

     George Santayana quotes (Spanish born American Philosopher, Poet and Humanist)

  165. a civilian-mass audience

    I am the happiest civilian…I am rediscovering myself…
    I love you all…

    Be brave,be happy,only You can do it!

    P.S and be careful of “Greeks” …who are sending… packages and gifts…:(((

  166. All

    … as for compact cameras, not so rarely in some places and circumstances, only those compact cameras allow you to work really efficiently… for most work, technical image quality of pan LX5, can G12/S95, sam TL 500.. etc. is decent almost for any kind of photojournalistic – personal project, and these pro compacts have quite bright lenses and good image stabilisations that allow you not to go beyond iso 400, 800… If there is really strong theme and concept, and a master has a good photographer’s sense, and a good eye… you don’t necessarily need to lug around a full frame monster with 2.8 zoom. Look what grainy images are being sold for 10000 $ and more at Christies and other auctions… so many Magnum guys come into my mind when I think of timeless, outstanding but with average and sometimes even blury technical quality images of 20th century… full frame is only irreplaceable for professional sport, wedding, maybe wild nature photography, and for those newspaper photogs that need quickly to get a decent picture of politicians shaking hands and move to another event… For a long time, I was photographing only with big cameras… recently I have had a chance to work with friend’s Leica D-lux 4, and now discovered – I take better pictures with compacts!!!:))… now seriosly thinking of getting lumix LX5 in a form of Leica D-Lux5, or maybe just canon S95???… haven’t decided yet… any thoughts??? Cheers guys

  167. YIKES is right…

    I shot this band on saturday and put together this slide show…
    shooting digital is NEW to me,
    and my slide show is ALL ken burns effect (my choice is all or nothing)
    so for those of you who HATE the moving effect, don’t watch…
    AND
    I shoot full frame, so lots of images get cut – gulp!!!!

    In light of the elections here in the good ole usa….
    listening to the blues….
    **

  168. Wendy you may as well point and shoot blind or use a security camera if you are letting Mr Burns compose all the images. You may shoot full frame but your mate Ken does the cropping ………….. pity

  169. Thanks for sharing Wendy. Now I don’t have to go out in the storm to listen to some honky tonk. Even with the Ken Burns very nicely done. I like the moments you captured. Color is great.

  170. Imants
    I totally agree!!!
    But the band liked the motion ones!!!!!
    I just learned today about making a slide show in imovie so I can control each frame!!!!
    I’m new at this….
    But yes,
    Ken Burns cropping is UNACCEPTABLE!!!!!!
    :)

  171. BTW – if you use a tool like Lightroom or Fotomagico, you may adapt the slides to the music timing wise.
    Don’t know how to do this in iMovie, but then, you have the music completely and not cut off.

  172. a civilian-mass audience

    Go WENDY Go,Go WENDY go…rock on…!

    MR.VINK…I hear you…physical works better for me…

    Rock on! I would like to have more updates BURNIANs!

  173. WENDY. For a double first time ,this is neat..and I bet you had fun with it. Now do many many more.
    But Imants has a very good point. What the ‘band’ thinks of the work is mainly irrelevant. Unless it is a friends band that you are shooting ‘just for them’, then getting strong, atmospheric images that stand alone is the name of the game (in my humble(ish) opinion)..even if the band hate them, or dont get them.
    Artists are super vain(especially old wrinkly ones) and the temptation to do flattery shots is always there.
    i would say resist this temptation if you want to get strong imagery.

    John

  174. Hey Burnians……..
    Thank you so much for the feed back….
    I absorb it all like a sponge….
    love ‘ken burns babies….’ David B- ha ha ha!!!
    I’m having fun with digital imagery….
    I learned final cut pro for my flick, and scanned all my chromes….
    so the digital still world is new to me,
    and I’m loving it!!!
    Yes, I must get light room….
    so thank you all for your critiques…
    and John G- more of this is exactly what I need, for experience and for my soul……
    and I got ‘good stuff’ from Jim
    WOW!!!!!
    :)

  175. John

    “What the ‘band’ thinks of the work is mainly irrelevant”

    Depends who’s dime it is. As they say, beauty is in they eye of the cheque-boook holder.

    The Ken Burns effect actually works pretty well here, and re-inforces the sense of motion suggested in the photos. It would be interesting to view the same show without the effect, I suspect it could be a bit boring and repetetive by comparison. What would help here is a more deliberate pacing, with some straight cuts and fades mixed in and timed to punctuate the music.
    Great start Wendy. Weclome to the digital age.

  176. Although I’m not opposed to motion in general, I’ve only seen it work when used very sparingly. This is way, way, way, too much, too fast. Ruins what could be a nice piece. Trust your work. Trust the value of still photography. None is better than bad.

  177. I don’t think there’s any real argument here. Everyone seems to acknowledge the fact that a great photo can be taken with pretty much any camera. But is there anyone who doesn’t believe that quality glass and size of the sensor/negative are important? While it’s true a great photo may be taken with any camera, it’s also true that a great photo cannot be taken with any camera in any lighting situation. Same as it ever was.

  178. I think everyone agrees that size matters in Photography. That is certainly a reason why some people still photograph with 8×10. However, there are always tradeoffs – size, weight etc.
    For some situations compact cameras are a good compromise, for other a “full format” digital does the trick.

  179. Jim unfortunately people always bring up Alex Majoli and what he did in 2005 as the ants pants of his work without checking where he is at now.

  180. Actually most everything Alex shoots is the “ants pants.”

    I personally would probably not use a point and shoot as a main camera, but certainly don’t see the harm in having one handy for fun stuff. But as far as Alex Majoli goes, what he was able to do with them was pretty impressive. He did say that the main thing he had to get used to was the shutter delay. He also used these for more than just 2005. When the story came out in 2005 he had been using them for 3 years although it was unclear as to whether it was exclusively.

    For what it is worth, I was talking to David Burnett at the “Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear” last weekend and he was carrying 3 or 4 different point and shoots along with his Contax Rangefinder. Every time I saw him shooting something it was with one of the point and shoots. It was even pink.

  181. Michael who said it was directed at you…….. the Majoli caper comes up with regularity on the net in regards to a small portion of his work as a justification of using small sensor cameras.

  182. I didn’t say it was directed at me. I was curious as to who these “people” were who “always” bring it up, who these “everybodies” were. It seemed a bit straw man-ish.

  183. … David Alan Harvey recently photographs mostly with P&S camera panasonic GF1, OK it has a bit bigger chip in it but still… some famous guys from agency VII shoot in war and conflict zones with canon G11, S90… there is no one perfect camera type for every task, a big full frame camera isn’t always the most optimum tool… those small cameras are way easier to cary around, and they are advanced enough to be able take publicizable images, why not use them?…

  184. Well, small sensor cameras are great when it’s sunny f8 and you’re not gonna be making any 40 x 60 prints for that gallery show in soho. But in low light situations, they’re pretty much worthless, certainly as color cameras. But the same is true of any camera. You have to learn to love what it’s good at and use it for that. And some cameras and lenses are good at more things than others. It’s a situational thing.

  185. never mind war and 7 heavily ¨canon sponsored¨ photographers..
    top cats grandparents photograph him with a point and shoot and it’s the most important subject they have ever photographed.. along with their 3 children and 2 other grandchildren.

    photographers have always explored camera choice.. size.. format.. camera-less photography..
    personally i’ve had a point n shoot hanging around since 110 film, and they’ve sorted me out on commission when i’ve broken my main camera.

    who goes to a gallery and says, ¨yeah – nice work, but it was taken with a coolpix¨..

    to the point – there seems to be an inverse relationship between discussing what other photographers are doing and actually working for ourselves.. the less a photographer works, the more the equipment, technique and projects of others drift into mind..

    MW is right that there is no argument here really..
    howdya likeya eggs cooked?

  186. I’m shooting shooting and shooting..
    No time to edit.. No reason to edit…
    If I’ll be able to come up with 5 “new” venice photos that will please my burn people I’ll be as happy as
    an unemployed father that got his first EDD check..
    Gotta feed the kids first..
    Although it’s a good idea to reconsider having any kids regarding the state u live in..
    In Cali go to an appeal court , no jobs, in Nebraska though it’s a whole another story..

  187. Bill Clinton left his office due to blowjob but left a healthy economy.. Surplus..
    And then the Republicans showed up..
    Two wars later and 11 trillion deficit we are begging for a loan from China…
    My oh my..
    And the we voted for Obama..
    Poor guy had only 18 months to “fix” everything..
    Big O., inherited a huge black Bush Hole and now gets crucified because he didn’t “deliver”!!!??
    Deliver? Fix a black hole? Yea..
    My fellow citizens voted for republicans once again…
    We lost all of our “power”…
    Nobody worries about health care system no more..
    Nobody cares that unemployment hit records high.. Foreclosures, ruthless banking system..
    The 1% worries about taxes.. And the rest.. The 99% , the slaves, the servants..
    also worry about the precious 1% that rules the world..
    The big pharmaceutical companies , the cops, the lawyers lobbyists wouldn’t let the mary Jane prop pass for example.. Are u crazy? U think that the liquor/tobacco/pharma dealers would let a proposition
    For medical marijuana pass??
    Nahhh!
    Do u think republicans want our troops to evacuate Iraq and Afghanistan ?
    Laughing ! Yeah right.. Hmm .. Sure…!

    I’m mad, pissed and upset with my fellow citizens now..
    R U for Real?
    Voting for republicans ??? After all that went down the last 10 years????
    Are u for real?
    Do u really need Mosando feeding u modified corn?
    Do we need real food or generic? Destroying the farmers that trying hard to bring some organic shit to your table.. And “you” are upset?
    Obama trying for affordable health care and “YOU” disagree?
    Trying to bring the troops back and “YOU” disapprove ?
    Hey YOU.. yes you..
    I’m talking to you.. I don’t worry.. It’s not about me..
    I live by the border ..
    I can always go to TJ (Tijuana) or Thailand and do my dental work..
    Don’t worry about “me”…
    Nothing personal..
    Worry about “you”.. And your children..
    Coz I don’t have any.. But I’m sure u do..
    So think about them before u go cast that vote..
    Yeah yeah yeah I know.. Too late of a warning..right?
    Yes my fellow compadre American citizen..
    This election.. This time “YOU” fucked up big time..
    And u know what? Sooner or later u’ll have to explain to your kids why..
    Why the back pedaling ?
    Fear.. Fear.. Fear…
    Yea your middle name is fear..
    Go tell your kids now what you’ve done.. And live with it..

  188. Imants indeed…
    (head out …work)

    And one last thing regarding my fellow citizens..
    Somehow “they/we” tend to forget so easily…
    Got sushi for dinner? Got a new credit card ?
    Then fuck the rest of the world..
    As long as “I’m happy”…
    But the sad thing we always forger over here is how
    “powerful” we are.. Our vote doesn’t only affect the US ..
    It also affects the rest of the world too …

  189. a civilian-mass audience

         
    “One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.”
     Plato (Ancient Greek Philosopher He was the world’s most influential philosopher. 428 BC-348 BC)

     

  190. “I didn’t say it was directed at me. I was curious as to who these “people” were who “always” bring it up, who these “everybodies” were. It seemed a bit straw man-ish.”

    If you google Majoli, most of the hits are about his shooting small digital cameras from 2003-2005. I’ve seen a lot of work from him since then, but you wouldn’t know he kept working from searching the Internet. His dalliance with consumer P&S cameras seems what he is best known for.

  191. ………. but then again you still hold that grudge maybe it is still on the barn door as you parade past……. ahhh well I have to see a man about a crumpled shirt………. enjoy your peaceful.. catch ar laita as I am not here to respond

  192. David Bowen may be generally right about photographers talking about gear when they should be working, but that’s not typically the case with me. I started this thread about pocket cameras because I recently bought one, the LX5, and have been shooting a lot with it to find out what it’s good for. And now I’m doing intensive shooting on a professional project in poor, or I should say low light situations which has deepened my insight, or at least reinforced my prior knowledge on these matters.

    I have little, if any, interest in camera related technical matters. For me, a new camera is like a potential love affair. We go out a lot and get to know each other intimately then see where we go from there. I don’t know if I can ever love the LX5. I find its color soulless, though I like the way it handles black and white, at least on the first few dates. It’s the opposite with the Canon. The color goes deep into soulful territory but the black and white I find cold and borderline ugly. And right now, although I enjoy black and white for fun, I am only interested in color for my professional work and am shooting in spaces where I have to go iso 1600 at f4 or wider so using the pocket camera is not a realistic option.

    Sorry if that kind of camera talk bores anyone and I certainly don’t mean to initiate any kind of pissing contest. Just sharing the love, man. Or talking to the wind, which, I know, always makes the same reply. shhhhhh…..

  193. mv,

    can’t you correct and improve color when processing images in lightroom or PS if you don’t always like it???…

    all,

    talk talk about equipment please:)))… it still has more meaning than when competing photographers talk about their own pictures and photography styles… if certain pictures affect you, they should be felt and contemplated inside, talking about photographs should be left for the critics and the audience… our main voice is a visual one… while our working tools is a completely different matter:)…

  194. Gear talk, most of it anyway, just … well … sucks. I mean, there are a million outlets for it, consumed by it actually, so what about great work out there that is hot, or ideas, or … sorry, just being real, and not quite understanding why those good discussions of road trips have slipped on by. Perhaps all good things burn themselves out in the end.

  195. YOUNG TOM…

    so, amigo , why not start a thread to bring out exactly what interests you…as you well know, during workshops i sort of drop off the Burn dialogues…however, there is way more discussion than ever before, but perhaps with expectations rolling higher and higher…for us here at Burn , it takes everything to get the EPF grant going as well as Burn in print etc etc which has taken us way beyond the road trips discussions…so do not quite get your lament……action instead of talk is the way we viewed it……on the other hand, all creative things by their very nature do come to an end…or need to be re-invented…we will see…there is definitely a plan to move Burn forward into yet another place….we just have to decide if we want to implement that plan…i have been on a 6 week workshop marathon, so now that is over i can put some time in here…your suggestions are always welcomed Young Tom…….it was great to see you on my front porch….come back anytime…

    cheers, david

  196. a civilian-mass audience

    Yeah…TOM YOUNG…we don’t want to BURN out,Fade away…some of us we are new,we haven’t
    experienced the road trip adventure…
    Come on BURNIANS…together, we have been through a lot, birthdays,deaths,separations,new friendships,
    Killings,chickens,philosophers…we might be tired,season blues…
    You might close down the dialogs with the 6000 comments…who wants to read what one civilian had for
    dinner But please don’t turn off the visual…so many people are Here and There for You…

    Thanks
    Civi -Mass Audience

  197. Tom; I think a little gear talk is ok; as long as it doesn’t take over and like others have said; become a pissing contest in the snow (which does tend to happen).

    Burn’s big difference is that most participants are active photographers; they aren’t out shooting brick walls “testing” lenses! :-) It probably seems to predominate a bit more now as the dialogue threads aren’t as busy as they once were, so the gear talk tends to show up more.

    Anyway; what’s everyone shooting?

    I spent last night at the local stock-car meet; back shooting the kid’s project after a 4-5 month hiatus. A great night! About twenty-five 12-17year old kids going hell for leather around the track in their mini-stocks. Certainly makes the old downhill trolley racers we used to make look a bit sad! :-)

    A great bunch of kids with supportive but not pushy parents. I focussed mostly on the (now 13year old) girl and her family that I worked with at the last two meets in February. Building on last season’s groundwork. I now have permission to photograph her at home working on her car.

    I do think that there is a separate magazine story here too, so as well as shooting for the kids project, will keep that at the back of my mind too.

    Cheers :-)

  198. Ross…
    im mercilessly pounding venice with B-52 bombers…
    classic american style;) night and day…one camera , one lens..
    ok..sorry i forgot the iphone light bomber…video, voice recordings..whatever…

  199. As for Burn fading away; that would be a shame. I feel that real friendships and a tangible camaraderie has developed. Compared to the “virtual” friendships of most other online blogs etc. Skype etc has made this type of interaction possible.

    In my case (and probably many others too); Burn is the only photographic community I am involved in. I have found the interactions with many of the other photographers invaluable.

    Cheers :-)

  200. Panos/everyone; What are you using for voice recording? (everyone please excuse the gear talk). I really felt that I could have recorded some nice stuff last night; parents advising kids, kids talking over their races, winding each other up etc.

    I have a standard digi note taker (that I used for article interviews) but the quality isn’t great. I recently looked at some “pro” recorders; but fainted when I saw the prices! :-) Is there a “best bang for your buck” option?

    Thanks

  201. a civilian-mass audience

    ROSSY,
    We love tech talk…

    BURN is the place to be!

    “What are you using for voice recording?”…any suggestions?

  202. Anthony seems to have implanted his tongue well and truly in his cheek ………………talking about photographs should be left for the critics and the audience…

  203. ROSS…

    Burn is not going anywhere…except to make it better for you….gear talk just shows up mostly when i am so busy that i do not have time to comment or post…after my all day flight tomorrow back home, i should have some time to reconnect so to speak…

  204. Ross good to see you ever expanding your project, remember not to lose sight of your intent. Sometimes too many layers create the mundane, every now and then some layers have to be pealed off to give the project room to breathe

  205. David; that’s nice to know. :-)

    Imants; Thanks for that, I’ll look into it. Re; the kids project; The intent remains the same, but now I have more time to actually shoot the project. I’ve also been a bit sidetracked with the pregnancy story; but can shoot them both at the same time.

    “Sometimes too many layers create the mundane” I agree; I don’t want the kids project to become un-focussed, but then again I did begin to feel I had too much “party stuff”. I need more home-based images too. But then again; the project was inspired by music, so i do like the music theme… I’ll just have to see how it evolves! :-)

    I just need to shoot, shoot, shoot. Hopefully now I may have the spare cash and time to do just that! :-)

  206. ROSS…

    what you have going for you is good old fashioned ENTHUSIASM…works every time and will put you in the right places over others simply for that reason alone….looking forward to both projects….

    cheers, david

  207. Personally am just in a busy spell with assignments; that’s a good thing but doesn’t leave much time for engendering or joining in quality discussion. But I guess that is a discussion to have – about the catch22 of working (working, working.)

  208. ERICA…

    yes of course this is the conundrum …by the way, i think you will be pleased to know that BURN 01 sold out all Euro copies in the best bookstore in Milan…bookstore owner said he couldn’t believe it and the customer feedback was over the top…not bad since the book is only in English….

  209. Hmmmm, I didn’t really consider all that to be gear talk, certainly not in the typical sense of the term. I find the process of learning and appreciating a camera’s strengths to be an integral part of the creative act, hardly a technical thing at all.

    But I never get why people feel they should dictate the limits of conversation. I, for example, have no interest whatsoever in the intricacies of film developing and darkroom chemicals, very technical subjects which come up periodically, yet it has never occurred to me to complain, much less to tell anyone to shut up. I like the fact that people here have passionate interests, whether I share them or not. And David, with all your talk about your beloved GF-1 and the magic of Leica’s, it’s not like gear talk only happens when you’re not around. But again, I don’t really consider that gear talk so much as photography talk. Cameras and aesthetics go hand in hand. No doubt it’s not true for everyone, but I think for a lot of us it’s just as important to love our cameras as it is our subjects, flaws and all. It’s hard to imagine great photography coming from some cold, hard, unloved thing. And yes Tom (hate to call you young Tom because in that last post you come off more as old Mr. Tom yelling at the kids to get off your lawn), please, start a more interesting conversation. Seriously. Please.

    And Anthony, as I’ve mentioned before, I believe it’s important to get the photograph right in the camera. Outside of a few minor tweaks, post processing is mostly only good for covering up a bad photo, or at least bad aspects of one.

  210. DAH – that is pleasing! I’m so proud of/ happy for all of us. I heard today the thoughts from an 8 year old who is in the book, one of my photos, the girl with the leaf. Her mom showed her the image, and said she “recognized” that to be herself, on the deeper level…

    I just this moment submitted a link to a short essay / personal piece for your eyes.

  211. I just spent the evening viewing Jeff Liao’s work and then listening to him speak (and chatting afterwards) at the university of Kentucky’s Robert C. May photography lecture series…

    His work is amazing – using 8×10 view cameras on location, he takes mulitple images over a period of time, and then merges them together to form enourmous prints (some as large as 8′ x 24′).

    emcd, did a remedial version of scribbling notes in the dark :) You might be interested that his next project is doing street portraits with a 8×10 in NYC….

    One more interesting statement was when he said “All of my images are lies.” Having a strong photojournalism and street photography background, he says that this evolution of his work is not real, as it cannot and does not represent any real place or time, even though it appears to do so. When looking closely, you can see some areas that are obviously evening light (nice and warm), others that are night (light trails behind cars), and others that are day – all seamlessly combined into a single image.

    In all, a very nice evening getting to hear him talk about his work and see the prints full-sized, meeting other local photogs and some of the Photography faculty from UK, and just absorbing and regenerating enthusiam in general…I have been a bit flat of late.

    Next Month is Kael Alford, who I think a few of you here may know. Looking forward to meeting her as well….

    good light, all

    A.

  212. Page 21-22 book no 7 ( “mis’ remembering”) of the series etrouko is my lot for this year……… a dummy print of 6 books done. Too much teaching of late to devote a lot of time to all things past and present

  213. Yea I quite like the format size better than blurb, great service. I have printer lined up I know when I choose to go limited edition but that is a lot of money up front and I just bought a solar electricity power generating system for the house so little money left at the moment to go there. No matter living beats photography any day

  214. mw

    “it’s just as important to love our cameras as it is our subjects”

    Gotta agree with you. Different cameras spawn different photographs. I make different photographs with a Leica in my hands than I do when I’m holding a digital point and shoot, or peering through the viewfinder of a Rollei.
    We photographers love our gear, and love to talk about it. I must say, I have not fallen in love with any of my digital cameras as much as I did with many of the wonderful film cameras I have owned, though I’m beginning to develop an affection for my old Canon 1ds.
    Photography is a technical craft. Craftsmen love their tools.

  215. Yeah, knew I shouldn’t have posted that. Came off harsher than intended apparently. I did not mean to offend, my apologies. Obviously BURN is an immense success and in no way did I mean to detract from that. The comments section is merely a small part of Burn. But still, I do have my opinion, or rather, maybe just a feeling and I said what I said.

    David, of course you are right, and yes I should. Thank you again for hanging out in the midst of everything at OBX, and listening to crazy ideas. Just had the best time at OBX, totally reenergized and out the gate. I’ll be back in the spring for a week. Hope to catch up. Say hi to Jimmy from Boone for me if you see him at Avalon. Never has anyone tried so hard to save my agnostic soul, god bless him.

  216. David; Thanks for the kind words. Actually I’ve been surprised by the amount of flak I’ve taken over the teen pregnancy story. And it’s been by those closest to home… Cheers :-)

  217. panos skoulidas,

    made in china is a good thing – a huge nation get jobs and can feed their kids, Chinese are very hard working people, so I am glad my working tools are being assembled there…

    mw,

    if you have already find a digital camera manufacturer that makes cameras which are able to produce particular color look you need right out of the camera that’s a great discovery for you… While post-production of photographs, for the last hundred years, has always been part of the whole process, and been done by either by photographers themselfs or their assistants… either during B&W film days or now digital, it has always been that final crucial touch before photographer presented his images to the public… I guess, color film days were a bit different, because color image processing was too complicated and unavailable for the most artists, and they had just two options – to choose your favorite film makers, and trust your lab… thanks to the nature of film emulsion, it allowed kodak, fuji, agfa, polaroid to make films that produced aesthetically pleasing images without too much processing… Digital isn’t film, and I have yet to find a digital sensor and camera settings that would produce color image aesthetic I exactly need for a particular photo series or project… hey! but now I have my own lab – a small mac book pro + lightroom, and once you master the program the process becomes quick and hassle free, and you are in control of everything!… and unless I started to shoot two weddings a week or so I don’t even need an assistant. Cheers

  218. Nah Anthony, little has changed. Still best to get it right in camera, same as it ever was. If the day arrives when you really master the program, you’ll find you don’t want to use it any more than absolutely necessary. I’m not entirely sure, but perhaps that’s an issue on which reasonable people can disagree? Basically, I’m just quoting you the professional line. But though I’ve made a fair chunk of my living preparing photos for print and have used Photoshop since version 2.0, it’s true I’m far from the cutting edge these days. Still, that’s the traditional wisdom and being on CS5 at the moment and struggling with a poorly white balanced photo, I don’t see that the bottom line has changed regarding color correction. Anything done right on the front end saves at least twice us much time on the back end and results much less loss of information.

  219. mw
    “Still best to get it right in camera, same as it ever was”

    While this is true, accepting a photograh as it “comes out of the camera” is like taking your colour negative film to Walmart for printing. Like colour negatives, RAW files and even JPGs can be interpeted an endless number of ways. It is part of the creative process.

  220. “While this is true…”

    That’s all I’m saying. Post Processing time is better spent interpreting than fixing.

  221. i had a nightmare…
    photoshop divorced me and i panicked..
    but then i found a phone number of that call girls
    Aperture & Lightroom …but they took the rest of my money and left…
    and still looking for a divorce lawyer… mrs Ps will take the rest…
    so next time? … prenuptial agreement it is;)

  222. Now Panos, you just have to learn how to be sensitive, to woo and stroke your files the right way. When you find the right buttons the heavens will open and all will be well with the universe. Much more satisfying than auto..

  223. And since I’ve gone so far down this road, here are two similar photos shot a moment apart with the LX5 and the 5D, opened and saved from RPP with no adjustments. Of course they are then shrunk and converted to jpgs in Photoshop, so the difference isn’t as stark as you’d see in a hi-res tif. Perhaps “soulless” is a bit over the top (who, me?), but I think you’ll be able to see the gist of what I’m talking about.

    But you know what would really be shocking is if I did the same exercise using Adobe Camera Raw and compared it to RPP.

    RPP rulz.

  224. mw,

    all right, if you have to constantly fix photos in PS, that’s a problem… while I was talking about processing images, not fixing them… Is this panasonic LX5 that bad???…

  225. I’ll fix it later in Photoshop, I’ll start all over again in Photoshop, I’ll do stuff in Playstation. I have some fun in Photoshop………..

  226. Still best to get it right in camera, same as it ever was…………..That’s like saying the best mode of transport is walking ( so what if it takes 17.54 hours to get to work and another 18.32 back home) get real!

  227. a civilian-mass audience

    IMANTS,
    I love red and white…but I forgot my reading glasses…:)))
    Thanks to the spirits… my imagination is still working…

    BURNIANS…shoot if you dare…:)))

  228. Anthony, no, by all accounts the LX5 is one of the best cameras in its class, and I find it quite good as well. I like it, but I don’t love it. And I don’t want to go all color theory on your ass, so let’s leave it at that for now.

    Imants, that’s an interesting metaphor, and almost in the ballpark, but I think you’d do better to contemplate the old story about the trike and the bike and the sike. Much more apropos.

  229. http://praxeology.net/zara.htm

    I’m in venice beach …. Heavily bombarding the pacific once again..
    Big travel in 3 days… Ready for a big change.. Stay tuned.. I’ll will
    Temporarily vanish , “disappear”, after Tuesday for weeks or who knows how long..
    Due to lack of Internet …nothing to be worried about..
    Wind surf suddenly changed and Im willing to float on away…
    Stay tuned….
    I’ll do my best not to disappoint u!!!!
    Yes yes the camera will be with me all the times.. Don’t worry..
    Amma letu see what I saw… Don’t worry..
    Stay tuned

  230. Meant to mention, the only adjustments in Photoshop were slight crop and down-rezing for web. No color correction or curve adjustments.

  231. Ok 8:05 pm… In the infamous Venice Beach..
    All the arrests in the pagoda must be done by now and
    We getting ready for one more show with Seana and whoever else wants to come party with us
    down by the beach on Dudley16…
    We are cooking right now (well Robin
    Does) and I’m on bloody mary trying to
    Wake things up..
    Most here are on my Facebook friendly page anyways so you’ll take a “peak”…
    As always..
    Stay tuned

  232. a civilian-mass audience

    PANOS,
    Keep the camera close…don’t ever stop to tell it as it is…
    Safe travels!

    MW,
    You are rolling…keep rolling…we follow

    GORDON,
    Say hi to your mom…I wonder where is my KATIE…

    LOVE YOU ALL MY BURNIANS…

  233. I dont care what that guys says, I’m not giving up my film cameras and I’m not giving up b&w film. NEVERNEVERNEVER!!! Just try and take my film stuff away, I’ll hold my breath and turn blue and then you’ll be sorry.

    AKAKY IRL: You’re losing it, kid. Knock it off before I have to slap some sense into you.

    AKAKY: Sorry, I got carried away.

  234. a civilian-mass audience

    AKAKY,
    I thought …you are blue…:)))

    Back to my demons…black and white…whatever,wherever they are…!

  235. Gordon , I suspect we need to be Facebook friends first … Some of my friends demanded that their videos should be seen by other friends and not the general public… I guess everyone afraid of losing their jobs these days :(

  236. a civilian-mass audience

    Meta House…MR.VINK…amazing stuff…!

    BURNIANS,
    Don’t forget our ANTON…
    London is calling…

    BURN is a BURNING place…

  237. JOHN VINK

    thanks for the look at your multimedia piece…..we should all be supporting your efforts…

    MW

    i totally missed whatever work you recently linked here …can you pop it in here again please?? thanks

  238. Once upon a time you dressed so fine
    You threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn’t you ?
    People’d call, say, “Beware doll, you’re bound to fall”
    You thought they were all kiddin’ you
    You used to laugh about
    Everybody that was hangin’ out
    Now you don’t talk so loud
    Now you don’t seem so proud
    About having to be scrounging for your next meal.

    How does it feel
    How does it feel
    To be without a home
    Like a complete unknown
    Like a rolling stone ?

    You’ve gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
    But you know you only used to get juiced in it
    And nobody has ever taught you how to live on the street
    And now you find out you’re gonna have to get used to it
    You said you’d never compromise
    With the mystery tramp, but know you realize
    He’s not selling any alibis
    As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
    And say do you want to make a deal?

    How does it feel
    How does it feel
    To be on your own
    With no direction home
    Like a complete unknown
    Like a rolling stone ?
    You never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns
    When they all come down and did tricks for you
    You never understood that it ain’t no good
    You shouldn’t let other people get your kicks for you
    You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat
    Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat
    Ain’t it hard when you discover that
    He really wasn’t where it’s at
    After he took from you everything he could steal.

    How does it feel
    How does it feel
    To be on your own
    With no direction home
    Like a complete unknown
    Like a rolling stone ?

    Princess on the steeple and all the pretty people
    They’re drinkin’, thinkin’ that they got it made
    Exchanging all precious gifts
    But you’d better take your diamond ring, you’d better pawn it babe
    You used to be so amused
    At Napoleon in rags and the language that he used
    Go to him now, he calls you, you can’t refuse
    When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose
    You’re invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal.

    How does it feel
    How does it feel
    To be on your own
    With no direction home
    Like a complete unknown
    Like a rolling stone ?

  239. a civilian-mass audience

    Fear of the unknown …

    You have a choice between two FF’s :

    Fear and Freedom !

    Your choice and your choice only…!

  240. a civilian-mass audience

    MR.VINK…

    Speechless…Close to the edge…
    Thank you for breaking…the Silence.
    Oime…we have to get involved…and we have to support.

  241. a civilian-mass audience

         
    “Human beings will continue to deceive and overpower one another. Basically, everyone exists in the very nature of suffering, so to abuse or mistreat each other is futile. The foundation of all spiritual practice is love. That you practice this well is my only request.”
     Dalai Lama

  242. John Vink, I like the pitch. Who are you attempting to reach John? I know that traditional methods of financing photographic work are fast-disappearing and many photographers are trying to find the new business model. Self financing is one method i.e. produce the work then find a buyer, another is Anton’s “playing it wide” i.e. produce work aimed at multiple media outlets – book, 893 magazine, video, subscription to behind the scenes etc. Just curious. Hope it goes well.

    Mike.

  243. ERICA…

    i think you have the last stash of Burn 01 available in the U.S…Magnum has a few as well…can you text me please? damn , we ran out before Christmas which i never thought would happen…better to run out than have a warehouse full of books…this is the problem with hard copy…how many to print? always the unanswerable question….

    MW…

    very nice set of pictures Michael…i love to see someone just wandering around shooting…some really nice singles in there…and yes, nice song too…i think the statute of limitations is up, so i can now confess to once having tried opium tea while i was under some weird house arrest in Hanoi a long time ago…held along with another now well known female photographer …and Oliver Stone (just shot Born on the 4th of July) in the same hotel but not under arrest…i gotta run to a Magnum meeting otherwise i would explain everything…anyway, thanks for sharing …

  244. a civilian-mass audience

    The bars have been raised…
    It seems to me…freedom is the only choice…

    Thank you.

  245. The more one stays imprisoned the harder it is to re adjust once one is back in society…
    In other words the least amount of time u serve , the faster the recovery..
    There are times one feels weak and discouraged.. Soul fills up with poisonous fears and doubts..
    Relapse.. Wanna go back .. Like any addiction…
    But addiction is not love by any means..
    Freedom costs, needs sacrifice .. Getting out of the comfort zone.. Not easy..
    Freedom is priceless..

  246. Wendy, thanks for sharing that link to your friend Sara’s film. Will keep my eye open for it; our film festival is in June. Maybe it will be here.

  247. Mike R.

    Who am I trying to reach? With the project everyone. With the pitch foundations, institutions, individuals who have the kind of money needed for the production. The Youtube movie is the first of a whole series of tools which should be available in a couple of months.

    Until now 95% of my work was self-financed before having a buyer (talking about freedom?). I’d like to turn that around for once (and try to keep the freedom).

  248. john vink
    thanks for sharing….
    i like the mix of b/w and color footage….
    would love to see this develop…
    GOOD LUCK!!!!
    keep us posted!
    :)
    **

  249. John V, yes, I was asking about who you are trying to reach in terms of financing. I’ve just received an email from Pete at the 37th Frame with a link to your Utube video (thanks Pete) so the word is out there – at least among photographers. Please keep us informed of how the funding goes and how your funding methods work – or don’t. Thinking about the latest essay posted here by Walter and the sense of helplessness one feels as to how to help, it would be good to see, at some time in the future, a newspaper article about how you funded the story, what you encountered during shooting, who you managed to show the work to (no need to wait for completion to show governments and institutions) and any positive outcome. That was a long sentence. If people can see that their actions are making a difference they will be more likely to participate.

    Please keep a diary and post photographs along with pages from said diary on a pay to view website. I’d pay to view and I’m sure many others would too. Good luck with it John.

    Mike.

  250. MIKE R…ALL

    one of the primary things we are working on behind the scenes here at Burn is to figure out creative ways of financing important journalistic/humanistic projects…there will be some projects that we will in fact endorse heavily and help to raise financing…there are of course dozens of online operations set up to do just this…we will not compete with them, but will either work with them or endorse perhaps one for one thing and another for different reasons…your ideas, and your input always welcomed of course…

    IMANTS…

    damn…you sure woke me up this morning with that etrouko link..it is time for us to publish one of your essays again….let’s talk ….i will be home day after tomorrow…skype?

    cheers, david

  251. Re: Timing

    David

    I have submitted two essays via the submissions link. You had mentioned about a year ago about maybe publishing some of my work. I hope maybe the timing is right just about now :)

  252. AKAKY: How do you say Happy Birthday in French?

    AKAKY IRL: I’m sorry, are you talking to me?

    AKAKY: Of course, I’m talking to you, no one else is here.

    AKAKY IRL: Why are you channeling Robert DeNiro all of a sudden?

    AKAKY: Look, I’m not playing a movie trivia game, I just want to know how to say Happy Birthday in French.

    AKAKY IRL: It’s feliz cumpleanos, I think.

    AKAKY: That’s happy birthday in Spanish, guy, not French. They’re different languages.

    AKAKY IRL: Dude, I hate to rain on your parade, but there are only two languages in the world. There’s English and NotEnglish. There’s a lot of differences between the two, some subtle, others not so subtle, but the way I tell the difference between English and NotEnglish is that when someone speaks English I usually understand what they are saying and when they speak NotEnglish, I don’t.

    AKAKY: Wow, that was truly…not deep.

    AKAKY IRL: Thank you. Your sarcasm is duly noted. Why do you want to know how to say Happy Birthday in this alleged NotEnglish dialect?

    AKAKY: It’s Audrey’s birthday and I thought it would be nice to say happy birthday in French.

    AKAKY IRL: What’s the matter with saying happy birthday in English? It means the same thing as it does in NotEnglish.

    AKAKY: Because she’s French and I thought saying it in French would be appropriate. You’re very nosy today, aren’t you?

    AKAKY IRL: Look, bubba, you asked me, not the other way around. You didn’t say anything about someone’s birthday or that this someone was a foreigner. You just asked how to say Happy Birthday in NotEnglish, Am I right or wrong here? Now, in my experience, most NotEnglish speakers tend to be foreigners, when they are not actually teenagers. Teenagers are a singularly uncommunicative group, especially when their parents are around, which limits their ability to communicate to a series of grunts, shrugs, and exasperated eye-rolling undecipherable to all save other teenagers and several small species of East African baboon. Are you okay, guy? You don’t look well.

    AKAKY: No, I’m fine. I’m just trying to figure out whether you’re serious or whether I should claim amnesia when anyone asks about you.

    AKAKY IRL: I’d claim amnesia, guy. Having to admit I actually know you is embarrassing in the extreme. Nothing personal, you understand.

    AKAKY: No, no, no, I understand completely.

    AKAKY IRL: Thank you.

    AKAKY: You’re a moron, you know that, right?

    AKAKY IRL: Right back at you, bubba.

  253. this…Now if I am reading this right, this bit of insignifica is the 79,000th comment here at Burn. Well, dont I feel special?

  254. a civilian-mass audience

    AUDREY,AUDREY…what a timing!

    Happiest Birthday ever…we LOVE youuuuuuuuuu…
    A big hug from all the civilians in the Universe…
    Enjoy!

    AKAKY,Ahh,AKAKY,thank you.

    And yes,there is Greek and NotGreek after 2 glasses of ouzo
    I am out of time.
    LOVE YOU ALL.

  255. but as Metallica says :”Life is like a fuse, short and burning fast”……..that’s because they and their fans had no expectations of living beyond twenty something

  256. a civilian-mass audience

    79,0000? Time to celebrate.

    I will be back…I am might be old to shake it but when I shake it…
    No GFi’s,no black and whites
    Can get it…

    VIVA!

  257. HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUDREY…

    Hello y’all from gate8 LAX…
    Thank you HAIK for driving me to the airport and thank you RYAN
    for re-installing PS5 on my tormented laptop this morning..
    Nothing compares to a Real Friendship..
    All money in this world is not enough to buy you a friend..
    Friendship requires more than stealing..
    U can make lots of money by stealing..
    But go “steal” or “buy” a friend..
    Not a chance..
    Friendship is real hard work..
    Love u all (as Civi says)..
    Almost 2pm in LA… Flight
    500 to Arizona in 2 hours …
    Then heading south… Going to meet and reunite
    with the “Unknown”

  258. a civilian-mass audience

    Timing…     
    “Sometimes being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence. A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their own destiny. And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it’s all over.”
     Gloria Naylor (African-American novelist and educator, 1950)

  259. a civilian-mass audience

    Ainte PANOS…come on malaka…”unknown” is in your everyday agenda…
    May the Spirits of travel be with you…
    And with all of that you are traveling through out the Universe…

  260. a civilian-mass audience

    P.S Academians…my apologies but I failed in my ESL classes…
    I will try harder.

    Goodnight from severely beautiful Grecolandia

  261. Yes timing is the absolute Art of all Arts…
    Remember Tarzan movies? Remember how he was able to “transport” himself from a tree to a tree with minimal effort?… That’s timing..
    Leaving, coming, going, cornering, entering, exiting with perfect “timing”.. Thats all we need to “Learn”..
    Life is all about timing.. Knowing when to talk and when to speak not..
    It’s more than FEEL-ing and sensing than “knowing”…

  262. Mister Skoulidas,

    Some of your fans do not have (and do not want) Facebook accounts.

    So they are now very sad because they can’t see your new work anymore. What happened to the old way of showing your work? We want to see your work!

  263. this is the only thing i got from TV this last three weeks:

    We are so accustomed to disguising ourselves to people
    that in the end we cannot recognize ourselves.

    good nite burnians and hello night shift.

    ps andrew b..
    ive popped some corn and saved you a diet coke..
    warm up katie’s couch and come sit with me.

  264. a civilian-mass audience

    MY GRACIE,

    The muse of BURN…I missed you much…your ice-creams,your postings…
    Can I have some regular coke and corn?
    Did you become a photophiloshoper?

    Thank you for all your support,thank you for believing in my civilian existence …
    Thank you…
    And where is KATIE FONSECA to express with words my appreciation…
    And PANOS and ROSSY to throw some music…
    And ANDREWB to bring some light…
    And GORDON to wrap it up…
    And BOBB to write like there is no tomorrow
    And
    All of MY BURNIANS…to give me some updates…

    Dammit…I love you All …I am out of silents… :)))

  265. Good morning Civi,
    I’m at school scanning a bunch of slides for my latest project and it’s going to take forever, so I’m here to catch up!
    How are you?

  266. a civilian-mass audience

    JASON,
    Where have you been ? I am scanning too… my brain :)))
    It was raining heavily the last few days in Grecolandia…
    I am out of chickens…basil didn’t make it,orange tree is looking bad,
    But your Greek house is standing strong…

    Nice to see ya around mate…Have a nice “Focus” day!

  267. Hi Civi – I’m glad the house still stands! Sad about the orange tree.
    Scans…
    I’ll be posting a few of these images on my site later tonight – It desperately needs updating as well. Maybe I’ll link here too.
    Where have I been? focusing on a few too many things. Shooting a huge long-term project, school, and working. Not much time left over to be here. Currently working on a research paper about Robert Adams. his writing is beautiful.

  268. a civilian-mass audience

         “No place is boring, if you’ve had a good night’s sleep and have a pocket full of unexposed film.”
     Robert Adams

    Keep rolling …we will be here:)))

  269. panos – done.
    hope all is well my friend.

    all.
    anyone have an imacon scanner and a couch i can sleep on for a month?
    hmm..
    up to 3000 usd quote for fixing my harddrive.. not affordable.. not affordable..

    doing new work.. will post a couple later perhaps.

    gone
    d

  270. a civilian-mass audience

    Oime…how can I forget DAVIDB…another night shifter,big time supporter!
    How are you DB?
    Hugs and bugs to BEATE and TORCAPA!

    I will be in and out…we need some visual…
    Am I a spoiled civilian? Yes, I am am…

    Bring your mission…BURN my vision !

  271. jason..
    i dropped it while working in croatia last year.. dead.. have tried firewire, software and all that jazz.. different box.. so on.
    needs attention which is unaffordable.. so easier to write it off and rescan.

    civilian..
    i’m doing very well thank you.. and you?
    consider beate and tor capa hugged and blessed.

    life has been a little up n down .. photography smoothing out the road.
    always the same :ø9

    O

  272. still waiting on BURN01.. it arrived in england ages ago and my mother has sent on..
    living where i do is great for fishing, talking to seagulls and photography.. not so great for post.

  273. a civilian-mass audience

    OOO…

    I will be back…
    Can you imagine? I missed some tech talk…
    Hmmm…

    Back to You…All of You!

  274. David – I had done something like that once…
    had to replace the drive also.
    I know your pain. Really I do – I’m scanning now and it really takes all the fun out of being a photographer… but nothing can replace the look of film…

  275. Panos, Arizona – heading South: sounds good. Hope the light is good for you – post photographs. I’m not on Facebook (if I join “they” might find me). I don’t know who “they” are but I’m taking no chances!

    Happy Birthday Audrey!!

  276. jason..
    i’m no film puritan – just began my youth culture work on film and kept shooting that for continuity.
    toying with the idea of just lumping the problem onto a lab – again though..
    moneymoneymoney. i’ve had my first bank account in three years for a month or two and very reluctant to blow it again… credit has been maxed out for too long.

  277. David bowen. Dont have an imacon handy, but there is a v750 epson and a couch here anytime you need it….also has a full darkroom and an expresso machine attached…..and im out at work or fishing most of the time, so if you can get to englandland you are more than welcome.

  278. DAH

    Sorry just seeing your words now – had 2 assignments yesterday – tuckered! I did talk with Anna tho about this and I think she’ll be collecting what I have to give.

  279. AUDREY…DAVID B…

    double birthdays?? cool…two of my favorite people born on the same day….wishing you both a very special Happy Birthday…both of you have contributed so much here with your works and your words…i guess this is as good a time as any to let you know how much i appreciate it….more time has gone by than we think with me in conversations with Audrey about which project she should pursue either the teenage woman or her parents and since the days when David got second place in the self portrait contest with that now famous self portrait running nude…maybe we should bring that contest back? anyway, lots of laughs, great times, actual meetings, exhaustive edits, and a few cold beers….cannot be described as anything but good times and a true personification of what Burn is all about…or rather, what i am all about and what we collectively are all about …..i do hope you feel the same…and i do wish i could toast you both in person…since i cannot, i do hope you both will feel the good vibes coming from me now…so, let’s savor what we have done, and try to collaborate again in the future….all good stuff, all good stuff…

    big hugs, david

  280. harvey..
    thats very kind of you indeed.. actually audrey is yesterday.. me today.

    it was such a long while ago on lightstalkers when our paths crossed.. 4 years maybe?
    hmm.. i was the other side of 35.
    much, much time and thought passed.. i was on the merry-go-round of weekly gigging in this city/country or that.. life changed abruptly actually.. perception of my work and photography in general has exploded beyond the previous.. and i still have to tell you some of the darker stories which made me quit the music project.. hmm.

    a little more shooting and a lot more scanning and my book wil be done. chat some time and will fill you in.

    shooting heavily right now.. day in, day out on an utterly different project.. anyways.

    thanks for the birthday wishes and more thanks for the generosity of spirit and confident encouragement you lend seemingly effortlessly.
    times have been, and are, tough since jumping off the music project.. road trips was a sanctuary.. burn is a revelation and although no longer posting daily, i’m still astonished at the little connections and good things spinning off burn.

    muchos thanks.. muchos respect.
    d

  281. JOHN GLADDY…

    you fish?? you need to come to my neck of the woods my friend…if surf casting appeals to you, then this is the season…or pier fishing or deep water off shore into the Gulf stream…anyway, where you go?? streams, trout?? anyway, extra bedroom for you…just might need a bit of darkroom help/advice in return for room and board…in these hard times, trade outs work…

  282. ERICA…

    yes, all is just fine…many thanks for your help …..we are now just figuring out how to hoard some copies for ourselves…we have also had a couple of collectors seeking copies signed by everyone…a formidable and expensive task…might try to send around 5 copies…not sure…sounds like a lot of work and potential logistical nightmare…on the other hand, i want one!! anyway, thanks for working with Anna etc…

    cheers, david

  283. DAVID,

    I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for me and my parents… I am so grateful, many thanks again for all your help, advices, kindness, generosity… Burn is always inspiration*
    Hope to see you soon

    Big hug, audrey

  284. DAH

    I want one signed by all too – that was one of my earliest thoughts, but formidable indeed! I was hoping to hoard some copies as well for down the line, but I think it is more important that you have some to hoard :) I will still have enough that I purchased for my family and also to sign/sell at some point. The question remains still of how many to let fo and how many to keep for a few years…

    ALL

    I think I may be turning down a wonderful assignment in Minneapolis because of logistics – if you are in MN email me quickly and I can pass your name along in case I have to opt out.

  285. You know, there must be more to life than having to find every 70 to 80 year old man named Morris Schwartz in Brooklyn, explaining that there is no online version of the Queens White Pages (you have to look by individual neighborhoods) where you can look for Morris just in case he’s moved since 1948, attempting to locate Rue McClanahan’s death certificate, and telling this dumbass sitting in front of me that he can’t use my computers to watch videos of a very attractive young woman dropping a deuce. There must be more to life than this, but I can’t imagine what it might be.

  286. My apologies for whining, but there are times when I think this place ought to be redesignated as a kennel for humanity’s more outlandish specimens.

  287. Akaky, sounds like someone needs to spend time following you around with a camera. Rue McClanahan & Morris? Hummm.

  288. a civilian-mass audience

    MRS.RUE was cremated in New York…June 3rd…
    AKAKY,
    I am blobfish…Yes, I am a outlandish creature…
    I repeat …blobfish,not a blowfish…
    Hmmm…I look like a blobfish and a blowfish…
    Ok,enough said

    Happy B-DAy,DB!!!
    AUDREY, your English are improving…Bravo!

    I would love to toast you all …but I am trying to cut down on my protein intake…
    (to be perceived as a joke)

    Keep shooting BURNIANS…

  289. LEE..

    i have tried to meet Akaky for the express purpose of seeing if i might be able to figure out a way to illustrate one of his pieces…long essay by Akaky, just one dah photo…or could be someone else, i just am applying for the job…but alas, Akaky just will not meet..he is a friendly guy for sure, but wants to maintain his hidden identity…not that Akaky has anything to hide….anything? no…everything? ahhh , maybe yes…i have often thought that Akaky actually was a New Yorker writer posing as a photo blogger…for a story , or just to torture us from time to time…

    anyway, i do not really care who Akaky is, or really is, or maybe isn’t, really …

    love his work nevertheless…i just would like to tell him in person sometime…

    thanks for the hurricane map….i love those things…

    cheers, david

  290. DAH. LOL. I forgot I sent that. I found it looking through my diaries working on this book and remembered the two times you cornered me and tried to make me believe we don’t have hurricanes in Hawaii!

  291. Hello Burn

    time flies… hard to believe it’s November already.

    on the subject of BOOKS
    i thought you all might like to know (well burnians that don’t live near good book shops)
    that the book depository http://www.bookdepository.co.uk is offering

    FREE INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY on all books.

    they seem to have a pretty decent catalog of photography books…

    and Happy Birthday David & Audrey!!!

    cheers
    Sam

  292. LEE..

    yes, i truly believed you did not have hurricanes per se in Hawaii…thanks for the clarification and enlightenment….they are rare, but they are “hurricanes” ( i think generally called cyclones in the Pacific)…and i remember one now recently on Kuai that was quite severe and damaged many homes…

    sorry we missed this fall….

    cheers, david

  293. dearest DAH,

    nicest way to dissipate fever … over THERE..
    glad you’re well, you’re here and you’re back

    (wishin: turnin back to time when no one knew no more than nuthin)

  294. “I always have hard time getting out of NYC. Mucho buzzing. Yet wanna go home. Prioritizing the challenge. Kid in candy shop concept prevails”

    In venice beach we used to call it “the Venice Vortex”…
    I think u experience the NYC Vortex…

    Michaelk, MartinB….
    I hear u , I hear u… I need to find a better way to “present” myself…
    FB works well as a diary.. Impulse posting but it can get weird.. I just got spoiled in that instant video posting but that already put me in lots of trouble… iPhone never let’s me “think” before I post..
    Best thing about Facebook though is the “delete” button..
    Big hug..
    I’m lost somewhere in the American south enjoying that infamous “southern hospitality”…
    Stay tuned .. Hopefully i will make more sense soonest…

  295. “iPhone never let’s me “think” before I post..”

    Post in haste; repent at your leisure…. Pity my mouth hasn’t got a delete button that I could hit when the words are about a foot away from my mouth and haven’t reached the intended person!

    I heard an advert for a computer program that assessed whether you too drunk to post on FB etc! If you don’t pass the test it won’t let you post. Only for serial pisshead FB posters! :-)

  296. ALL,

    please take a good look at this: http://www.magnumfoundation.org/emergencyfund and mostly see this,
    Krisanne Johnson’s “I Love You Real Fast” : http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1611920404/i-love-you-real-fast

    please know that any support you give through the Magnum Cultural Foundation is always something that spins back to you…starting with the Inge Morath Award, our own Burn Emerging Photographer Fund, and linked above the Emergency Fund created and vigorously maintained by Susan Meiselas, the driving force behind the MCF…while Magnum is indeed a business set up to represent photographers to publishers, magazines, galleries etc., the MCF is really set up as Magnum’s truly altruistic wing…we raise funds because of our tax free status and in return we give those funds to photographers who have projects most deserving..these are photographers represented by any agency or perhaps with no agency…Magnum photographers care about legacy more than anything…and a clear part of our legacy will always be, and has always been, to help support the next generation in a variety of ways..particularly with a humanitarian cause….in any case, please look at this proposal …lots of small donations from here could put this over the top…one dollar from each of you would do it…no joke…be fun to see if we could make that happen…

    and please, the MCF website is still in beta, we welcome your ideas for improvement.

    cheers,david

  297. GRACIE…

    hey dearest Gracie, nice to have you back…i do not have much to offer for the late night crowd….pretty much need some sleep…but, my dreams are always cranking…that count?? goodnight for this time…back tomorrow…

    cheers, david

  298. a civilian-mass audience

    Thank you SAM…!

    Yeap, that’s why BURN is the place to be…!

    Be you, keep shooting and supporting each other…Universe can’t do it all…

  299. I heard this saying one day: control your thoughts, control you mind. Control your mind, control your life. Control your life you control your destiny. I’ve always heard that you cannot control your destiny–that you will end up where you are supposed to be regardless. I think you can.

  300. David;

    You mention humanity in photos (in the essay post). Coincidentally; I was talking about this subject with a friend a week or so ago. Funny you mention Eugene Richards, because he and James Nachtwey came up in the conversation.

    I always feel more connected to the subjects in Richard’s photos than Nachtwey’s. That is not to denigrate Nachtwey’s photos because I think he is a wonderful photographer, and has proved over time to have great compassion towards those he photographs. Yet; when I look at a Richard’s photo (or Towell, Allard) I always feel as though I’ve been “pulled into” the photo. As though more of a “connection” has been gained to those in the image.

    It made for an interesting conversation!

    Cheers :-)

  301. Audrey…David B…Happy Birthday! Hope you had wonderful days in whichever part of the world you are in at the moment.

    David AH/All…Thought you might like to have a look at a few pictures I recently took of British Prime Minister, David Cameron, on his recent trip to China. I spent 2 days photographing his visit. Just a snippet of images via this link… http://bbc.in/cxbKa6 Hope you Enjoy.

    Warm regards to everyone,
    Sean

  302. SEAN,

    We all enjoy seeng what you are up to… I have seen the photographs on this link as well as few others you have shared sepaately and the great thing indeed is that when looking at these photographs, I was able to see your personal touch in an event that must be so controlled… Well done gentleman…. Your environmental work is taking you to unexpected places :):)…

    Take care.

    Eric

  303. hey sean..
    big tanks for birthday wishes.

    good stuff – saw that on the bbc photo blog first thing this morning and had to smile..
    following cameron while students in london burn his party HQ.. nicely distracted.

    very well done – must have been a fascinating time and with the added bonus of being able to stand alongside, without having to be within, the press pack.. yours will have been the more interesting perspective for sure.

    d

  304. LEE..

    “control” is not a word that i would normally associate with you (smiling) but that sure is a nice thought….and i am sure you would say the same of me…big hugs

    ROSS…

    you are quite correct…Richards, Towell, more connected…Jim a bit detached..as you say, does not take away from the power of any, but you really can tell what someone is all about by looking at their work…

    i just saw the work you linked to me on skype…what a transformation in your work!! amazing..great stuff…needs editing of course, but at least you have something to edit…very nice Ross, very nice…let’s publish that on Burn..so no links in comments etc..ok? we want it to be a surprise

    ERIC..

    been missing you my friend…nice to see you here…your voice is always welcomed and respected….

    SEAN..

    thanks for the link ..you are one busy boy..always!! i am trying to remember where you stand with a China book…one in the works?

  305. Yep, the ship always sails best with the captain at the helm. And while you have many different priorities pulling you in many different directions David, there is just no getting around that fact. I hope you don’t mind me saying that, or my tactless previous comment in which I offended just about everyone, but it’s just what it is. Burn is Burn with only all its parts.

  306. a civilian-mass audience

    TOMMY…our tumbleweed friend…we have not been offended…
    BURN is Unique
    BURN has Taste
    BURN has voice
    BURN has one Captain who inspires
    BURN has a Leader     
    “Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them.”
     John Maxwell
    BURN is a place to Be

    And I am with you,TOM…”Burn is Burn with only all it’s parts”…oime…

    Where are you My BURNIANS…I love you and I miss you all

  307. a civilian-mass audience

    And TOM …I have your selected photo
    Untitle,Greece
    Yes, it’s up …on my magnetic wall…
    When I drink my tsikoudia…
    Your vision…is next to me…
    Yeap…that’s why I love BURN

  308. DAVID,

    Thanks…. You know, even if I have not written much lately, I have not been very far and I often follow what is happening here…. Somehow, I may have felt a bit disconnected lately from the Burn community, not because of anything here on Burn but solely because I have not had the time to focus on photography as much over the past months so it makes it more difficult to engage, exchange when mentally you are somewhere else…. I tell you…. life back in Europe is proving very demanding…. day work is absolutely crazy… kids growing and needing more time when work is over especially as we are both working parents with demanding jobs and careers… so, not easy to carve out for photography the place I would want and that it deserves… I am sure you or others will say that it is always a question of choice and priorities at the end of the day… and you are absolutely right so I will not complain :):)… it is what it is, at least for now…. The only thing I have been working on lately is to take a lot of family portraits… may not have great photographic value but at least great personal and sentimental value… Might show you some sometimes…. I will try to stay more in touch from now on….

    Cheers,

    Eric

  309. a civilian-mass audience

    ERIC,

    The Universe is changing…circle of life…
    We are here…
    Circle of friends…

    Stay in touch…and keep shooting
    Cause we love personal and sentimental visions…
    Your civi

  310. a civilian-mass audience

    THOMAS,

    Thank you…cause the civilians next to you…are your strength…
    The mass audience, the silent readers are here and there to support you…
    Don’t forget them…

    And THOMAS…I love your photos…I see a transformation…
    You are one of the most hard working “everyday” people …
    I follow and I believe…
    Keep it up mate

  311. a civilian-mass audience

    Is there any other way…?

    Talking about a long way…today, I messed up… a nice piece of veal…:)))
    You better postpone your visit in Grecolandia…
    But I am a fighter and I will make it…!

    Where are you BURN ladies..?

    I will be back…

  312. ERIC…

    yes, i totally understand…circumstances..and not bad circumstances at that my friend…nothing wrong with family pictures…i would say they hold the most value…it is certainly those that i treasure the most, those that i am printing in the darkroom, and those that are leading to my largest single project…so all you have to do is make those family pictures part of your “work”..dig deep and enjoy these moments with your wife and children…i think i have told you this, but the family pics, my kids at the beach for example, became my largest stock sales area…so my own sons literally paid their way through college by being willing (well almost) models!! and we had a whole lot of fun doing it…so, put those kids to work!! :)…in any case, enjoy this time…it will not come back again…there will always be pictures to take of “others”..so priorities my man, priorities…

    cheers, david

  313. ERIC
    I echo that feeling, not of late but at times. Disconnected but not gone or abandoned or departing (I don’t think CIVI will abandon any of us without great fuss)…well put, friend, and the photos of your little one you’ve been posting of late are quite you, and quite full of feeling.

    CIVI
    I am home for the weekend…editing now (or, doing as best as I can at it) while also compiling work documentation on my other machine…I finally have uploaded a few modest photos to a web site, if you google me it will appear…no bio written for it yet, as I’m not quite sure what to say since I have really no photographic background of which to speak…any suggestions appreciated, by all…

    Headed to Philly next week, hope to have some time for some photography and comradery with fellow photogs…and then I will be done traveling for the year, I hope….

    I had a wonderful conversation with the Curator at the University of Kentucky art museum before and after a talk by Jeff Liao (DAH, he remembers you…something about having to carry beer :). Also some good talks with the faculty, so some nice contacts made. I bring this up because the museum has an endowment that brings photographes in to speak each year…usually 4 or 5…Jeff was first for this school year, next up is Kael Alford (early December), then Abelardo Morell, and finally France Scully Osterman. One of the people AI met said that they had a Magnum photog a while back, but couldn’t remember who it was…it’s a very nice setup, the photographer comes for a lecture/talk and hangs an exhibit for 3-4 weeks….much fun.

    Anyway…my documentationhas uploaded for work, and my web site needs a few words and more images….

    good light, all.

    a.

    p.s. Dear Gracie….glad to see you back again, I’m so so sorry I had to fly away before I could enjoy the popcorn and diet coke…but more late nights are sure to come next week…stay tuned.

  314. a civilian-mass audience

    ANDREWB…
    Yeap…I am a fussy civilian…no one “leaves” BURN…:)))
    if you have been through the BURNING experienced…then you are stigmatized for life!
    That’s it …you are BURNED for life.Now, if you stay around or not,that is not the case.
    Only you know that You are BURNED…

    To All BURNIANS…Suggestions:
    “…I finally have uploaded a few modest photos to a web site, if you google me it will appear…no bio written for it yet, as I’m not quite sure what to say since I have really no photographic background of which to speak…any suggestions appreciated, by all…”

    I grew up with Neil…what not to love!

  315. I grew up with him too Civi. And Neil Diamond…there are no words for how I feel about that man! Speaking of photographing family, my cousin was just here DAH, and I took some photos of her that helped her in her healing process. She was able to see herself in a whole new light–healed. After a long day out at two beaches we were reviewing the photos and as they were loading she mentioned she did not know how she was going to be able to navigate by herself on her 3-month tour of the Big Island. Then she saw the photos I took of her at the beach and we looked at each other. I said, “Like that.” She looked like a model, and had totally forgotten her cane, strolling off toward the water as if she did it every day instead of being disabled for the last 12 years.

    Civi since you asked, today I had another good lesson in dark room processes, relearned some things about my light meter and the old Rolleiflex, killed a riding lawnmower with 3 hours of very tall grass due to lots of rain, a movie and dinner and now just finished doing 4 minute exposure shots at the mountains behind my house. A very full and wonderful day. But I have checked in on both dialogues and love them both.

    Veal? How very un-PC Mr. Civi. tsk, tsk, tsk.

  316. DAVID,

    Thanks for the advice…. Will try to do just that…. I will in particular remember the concept of putting the kids to work :):)… Just actually sent you a portrait of my daughter from few weeks ago in the submission…. Let me know what you think…. I better photograph her before she gets too old…. almost 6….

    CIVI/ ANDREW,

    Thanks for the words of encouragement!

    Eric

  317. Civi, I’m sure stigmatized is not the word you want to use here. On the other hand, as I sit here looking out the front window, there is a man dressed as a very large sandwich dancing around the main thoroughfare of our happy little burg trying to drum up business for a Subway store. This has nothing to do with the first sentence, but I am just going with the flow here. Words, sandwiches, silliness, all are part of the human condition.

  318. That’s an exaggeration Panos. One of Neil Young’s neighbors and acquaintances was Charles Manson, they were hardly best friens. Young tried to help Manson get a recording contract with his record company and speculated how history might have been different had he succeeded. Young’s album “On the Beach” is very much influenced by that relationship, particularly the song “Revolution Blues.” Regarding Neil Diamond, I suspect he was more of an important influence for the punk revolution, though not in a positive way.

  319. I wish that music industry would have given Manson a record deal back then..
    And would have let the other psycho/killer :Phil Spector produce it..
    Imagine what kind of music would have been !??!
    (plus the bonus would be , Polanskis’ wife and few more would be still alive.. Music industry should have known better…;).. But then again the movie world would have missed that amazing
    “Rosemary’s baby” movie…
    Funny that the music world missed but movie industry gained..;)

  320. david:

    have put a hold on both the 1st burn project and the Nova Scotia until i return from russia…going in december, to finish the Russian part of the book/burn thing….but, who knows, in the week i’m alone in december before i leave, i might make it and just send to you and anton…

    it’s about landscape as calligraphy…

    but it has been an enormous and exhausting week….and after the last 3 1/2, emotionally just spent….i cant even write comments….even though that one just now was long, and shorn of poetry…

    just tired….will touch base next week…

    running
    b

  321. Eric
    I can only echo David.

    I’ve mentioned this before, but thirty or so years ago one of the old photo mags, Camera 35 I believe, published some work by photographer Nathan Farb, which featured photographs of his special needs daughter, then about four years old.
    In the text, he wrote something to the effect “it has occured to me that years from now, the only photographs I will value are those which document my own life and the people close to me.” This rang very true to me then, and still does.

  322. The timeline is wrong there; Rosemary’s Baby came out in 1968; the Tate-LaBianca murders happened in 1969. Other than that, I have nothing else to say on this subject. I do have something to say about this ongoing controversy…

    There’s been a good deal of talk these past few years about the genetic modification of various foodstuffs, especially those foodstuffs derived from plants. I suppose I should be worried about this; millions of other people are worried about genetic modification and who am I not to be worried when so many others are; but frankly, I’m not. No matter how much you genetically modify a vegetable, said vegetable will rarely do anything interesting beyond lying on a plate next to the meat. Even if you put ketchup on a genetically modified vegetable, the end result will not taste differently than a non-genetically modified vegetable with ketchup on it. It will taste like ketchup with something else in there somewhere. That is the whole point of ketchup in the first place—to render palatable that which is inherently unpalatable, like eggs or liver (ketchup only works with liver if you put lots, and I do mean lots, of the stuff on the liver. Liver is so inherently disgusting that you need large amounts of ketchup to keep you from gagging on it. I hear the Heinz Corporation’s Keg O’Ketchup works wonderfully in these situations, so you might want to try it, and no, this is not a paid advertisement, but if you work for Heinz and you like this bit of product placement, please feel free to send me a check; I’m saving up for a wildly expensive camera, or a new roof, whichever comes, or in the case of my current roof, goes first).

    But the most intensive DNA manipulation you can imagine will not permit your zucchini to enliven your boring dinner party with scintillating conversation—what the zucchini thinks of the veal is always interesting, I think, as are his stories about what a trollop the veal’s mother was—nor will it permit your ears of corn to dance the more difficult parts of Le sacre du printemps backwards while discussing Proust’s use of the double narrator, much as you may want to. You may be able grow the rutabaga that crushed Pittsburgh, especially if you can find enough fertilizer, but other than that, genetically modified plants don’t do much of anything except be vegetables, which is something most vegetables, all teenagers, and the vast majority of civil servants can do without any genetic modification whatsoever.

    Of course, genetic modification has been going on for quite a while. For all it may gall the Gallic sensitivities of French wine connoisseurs, their ancestors the Gauls didn’t drink the wine the French drink today; in the 19th century, after blight devastated most of the French vineyards, the French imported blight-resistant vines from California and grafted them onto the remaining good vines. So whether the French want to admit it or not, they’ve been drinking California wine for more than a century, a fact that goes a long way towards explaining why no one knows where Antoine de Saint-Exupery is these days (no, I have absolutely no clue what that means). Throughout history, people have done strange things to plants and animals in order to give them the traits that people find desirable. Chihuahuas, for example, sit in their teacups all day long and remember when they were wolves and know how the mighty are fallen, all because people chose to make them fit into teacups. If you have a Chihuahua, this goes a long way towards explaining their resentful attitude towards people (look, if you started off as a wolf, the mighty hunter of the forest, and wound up in a damn teacup pissing on yourself, you’d be pretty damn annoyed too).

    The orange, to take another example, began life in Los Angeles, California, the only child of hardworking emigrants from Iowa (in those days, all native Californians came from Iowa) who had lost everything at the Battle of the Little Big Horn and went to California without looking under the couch for their lost stuff (always a big mistake). The orange was a bright young lad; he did well in school and played well with others, and eventually went on to University of California at Berkeley, where he majored in international relations and Freudian metempsychosis. After the war—do you really care which one? I didn’t think so—the orange fell under the influence and woke up as a potted plant, the result of a CIA thought control/genetic modification experiment, and from that day to this he has been a pillar of California’s economy, although he would rather play center field for the Dodgers. Well, we can’t have everything, I guess. Florida oranges are an entirely different species, or so people tell me, and have nothing to do with genetic modification, thought control, or the CIA, but that’s what they want you to think, isn’t it?

  323. “no way you are a Neil Diamond man…???”… he is a what…….. and whats are not to be loved

    “thirty or so years ago one of the old photo mags”,……… 30 years ago there was no flickr facebook and every other forum that specialises in cats, dogs and children ……… another Fred writes on a forum “Please look at the picture of my daughter Petunia…….” as the image is pasted over the net…… then young Petunia is playing in the local park along comes Daniel with his camera taking random shots. We know what happens then “Don’t you dare…….. I don’t want the picture pasted over the net……..

    Fred takes his shot comes home and logs on flickr and starts to download the images of his daughter.

    ……………….. the family photo changed with the net it no longer holds that special place lost foorever from the mantelpiece and wallet

  324. Akaky , I lived in LA more than in athens ..
    Am I except from LaLalandian also an Athenian ?
    Does it make me less of Athenian ? Or it just doesn’t count?
    I mean really u could care less for modified corn but at
    The same time u oppose stem cell research!!???
    Can u see the contradiction/antifasis/αντίφαση …
    within your own theory..!!???

  325. …….pity about no crowds pretty hard to sustain a whole song with still images of a band and in black and white only. That’s why videos work so well we listen to the music and don’t really need to look we can drift through the visuals. Still images require concentration and visual analysis thus taking from the music or the music takes from stills. One used to hold a CD/album cover in ones hand look at the single image, dream and listen.
    You can figure from that why the Ken Burns effect visually worked for the band it turns stills into moving images.

  326. Imants….
    first no ken burns effect and now, no stills……
    mmmmm…
    thanks for your thoughts…
    gives me stuff to think about…
    I’m just playing with my NEW and 1st digital camera…
    and having fun…..
    thanks for looking :)
    it is a challenge to put images together, that are somewhat visually interesting of just a band…
    a challenge indeed…
    especially when you are stuck in one spot with LOW light!!!!
    I will keep trying…
    just wait till i learn imovie!!!!!!!
    :)
    **

  327. No Wendy it is not me it is about the limitations of stills just as moving picture,performance art, sculpture etc have. Some media is better suited than others to a certain subjects eg portraiture great with paintings photography but sort of loses its way sculpturally and tends to become something different

  328. it is a challenge to put images together, that are somewhat visually interesting of just a band… that’s when you look for other visual/communication hooks

  329. WENDY. I think a slide show of stills is the wrong approach for a single band at a single gig. I mean there are two or three nice shots in there mixed up with all the lesser analogs of those shots. Trying to nurse them through three minutes of song is a big ask. motion Video/film is still probably the best medium for this type of work….or, use a wider set of stills to build a narrative that follows the course of the music. This can give you the freedom to raid your archives for shots that can be fit together.
    DAVID ALAN HARVEY. Yes I fish. mainly in the winter for PIKE. you have them over there also but you call them northern pike and they are related to what you would call muskies. We fish a bit different over here, so its not usually spinners or plugs, but instead static deadbaits or roving livebaits on old gravel pits, lakes and rivers. Caught a 23 pounder on friday……Also we dont kill them or eat them…we take great care of them and put them back. Its the one place where I get totally away from cameras and editing suites.

  330. AKAKY…

    ongoing controversy?? hmmm, i must have missed something…anyway, we just have to get your stuff out there…we did our best with Burn01, but we should do more…anyway, in the design revision of Burn that is coming, maybe we can find a place for you and Bob and maybe Sidney and Preston or whomever wants, to have fairly regular columns or whatever…anyway we have of course all your work archived and when collected in one place will represent quite a tour de force..since my family is from Iowa and migrated to California and i am sure left the family fortune under the couch, i can relate in particular to this essay..yea, my dad at 19 even put ketchup on his war ration “scrambled eggs” while riding out the war below decks in the engine room on a battleship…said he didn’t see the war, but listened to it..i write this as i drink a glass of Florida orange juice…well, it’s an east coast thing…..and Mike R. might have a point …that hydroponic mary jane might just spin you out…just say no

    JOHN GLADDY…

    i am not a fisherman….tried all types…fresh water fly and spinners..surf casting….pier…deep water….always go with someone who is going to teach me…i am a bad student….and the fish around me at any given moment are lucky indeed…..you caught a 23 pounder out of a lake or river?? THAT is something….i do not fish , but i am around fishermen all the time, so i do know a good catch when i see one…here sport fishermen throw about 90% of the fish back as well…good thing because the offshore commercial fishermen ain’t leaving much left to catch anyway…..supposedly we will not have any fish except jellyfish in 6-7 years they say…sounds like a very harsh pronouncement, but we will see…seems like a big ocean out there between thee and me…maybe smaller than we think

    cheers, david

  331. Wendy, Imants, John, All

    from February to August this year, I followed some school mates of my son while they rehearsed and attended a band contest. This slideshow was for their half-finals, finally they scored third.

  332. Wendy, a couple of suggestions from an old AV guy.

    Turn it into a music videos. This song is a love story, handing you all kind of visual references “I was lookin’ at you, you were lookin’ at me” etc. It would be great fun to set up a seperate shoot with a couple to illustrate the songs story-line. Straight up performance videos can be pretty boring.

    The pace of the visuals needs to synch with the music, bam…bam…bambambam, images changing on the beat, or otherwise timed, but not random.
    More images, a mix of cuts and fades, sequences of the same shot, starting off with a tight crop and moving out (or the other way around).
    Lotsa possibilities. Have fun. And hey, if the ken burns effect works for you, use it.

  333. Imants/John/ Gordon
    Oh dear….
    I only put that slide show up, to show no ken burns effect,
    thats all….
    I’m only playing around, and trying to figure out a new camera…..
    Thanks for the suggestions…..
    I’m having fun….
    **

  334. a civilian-mass audience

    IMANTS…ahhh, ore IMANTS…

    I didn’t make it…oh, well…600,800,1000…
    Numbers don’t matter…cause I have you

  335. a civilian-mass audience

    IMANTS …thanks for the link…
    I was so self absorbed …
    That’s what happens …when we don’t listen…

    To all MY BURNIANS…and the future BURNIANS…
    I am sending good energy out there…wherever you are in the Universe!

  336. IMANTS…

    thanks for the link…i have only one comment…THAT is how really stupid journalists and photographers get killed…for no good reason …rushing with zero prep or knowledge or contacts into a scene like that is asking to get killed…there is a safe way to work those kinds of things…and that was not the way…this is not bravery…this is ignorance…no wonder some folks think the press are sensationalists …paparazzi…and worse!! i am pleased these two are safe, but they are the worst examples of the press at work i have read about for awhile…

  337. WENDY
    Like it without the Ken Burns effects…but as you and others have said, I agree it’s too long to pull off with just shots of the band, and from a limited location at that.

    But there are some nice imagers in there – you are doing well in your low-light digital quest….I paused on two or three images to allow them to soak in….

    A few other thoughts and questions – I would like to email you directly….

    THOMAS
    Looks like a fun bit of project, and some nice stills in there as well…and much easier to tell a story with stills and a soundtrack when you aren’t haandcuffed to one spot on a stage :)

    DAH
    I have a longish post for you, will need to transcribe it digitally, I wrote it on the back of several sheets of yellow legal pad while on the last airplane…will send you and give you a heads up here and on skype…

    ALL
    If anyone is in the Philadephia area let me know – heading there tomorrow for a few days….will actually be in a small township west of Philly….but have transportation….

    Struggling to make my not-very-good monitors (one on a laptop, one not) halfway acceptable for first round photo edits and printing….a losing proposition, I’m afraid….looks like I am going to have to order a decent monitor that can be properly calibrated….at least in failing to make it do what I wanted, I (think) I learned how to do what I need to do with them…..

    good light, all
    a.

  338. You know you’re in strange linguistic territory when a writer refers to a corpse lying in the middle of the road as a deceased woman. I understand that he was probably trying to give this woman some small degree of dignity, but there are some circumstances that do not allow for dignity, and lying dead in the street in the middle of a Third World backwater is not one of them.

  339. “…and lying dead in the street in the middle of a Third World backwater is one of them.” Read what you write out loud, dummy; what’s the point of the rule if you do not follow it at all times?

  340. AKAKY…

    yes…i had already put enough bad juju on that story, but you bring up even more…really pathetic “reporting”…the sale by the Washington Post of Newsweek last year kept the brand name intact, but lordy lordy they lost it all…sad

  341. I figured that the intent was there but has that boys own manual feel especially the kid and the candy bar.Despite that one probably can visualise the situation in a “more real” manner that a still image from across the street ……………. there is a lot that can be said in the positive about words over image.

  342. And then there’s the question of whether or not the reader is at all interested in the writer’s high adventures in the Third World. This sounds like the sort of story a tourist who took the wrong turn off the highway might tell to a crowd of guests at a cocktail party

  343. I think it is time to start thinking about evacuating out everyone from Haiti and let that land recover for a few generations. Let some trees grow back, organic matter collect and help the soil, and let the waters run without filth flowing thick and maybe in a hundred years Haitians can go back home. It is so much more humane than trying to fix everything that is wrong there and the misery that is rampant. The land and weather are not having it. If this effort started tomorrow how many months would it take to find everyone a new place to live? I cannot imagine living there, or even traveling there to take photos. Is there precedence for this kind of action? Has there ever been a country that was deserted and left to recover?

  344. IMANTS…AKAKY..

    i like the candy bar part although not an unusual moment at all…i mean the woman was dead..dead is dead…no emotion to be had from a passerby……but it could have been written so so much better..but yes Imants maybe still way better than any picture..but, i did not see any pictures….

  345. And then there’s the question of whether or not the reader is at all interested in the writer’s high adventures in the Third World,,,,,,,,,,,,, that is where the interest lies for many people (that self fantasy) and the media is quite aware of it and happy to use as a lever.

  346. Lee, that would do wonders for the ecology, no two ways about it, but after a hundred years living somewhere else, would the Haitians still be Haitian?

  347. I brought up the article because I sorta find that blurred line between truth and fiction interesting especially when one can turn it into barbed wire with some good old fashion propaganda to give it a bit of bite.

  348. LEE…

    we would need Noah’s Ark..seriously a great idea IF all Haitians could be teletransported back to the future and wait 20 years and then teletransported back as per your suggestion…in the meantime there ARE plenty of positive stories in Haiti…i will publish soonest some of the pictures from Haitian school children collected by Marie Arago who you may remember was my assistant in New York and who spends most of her time in Haiti…actually Haiti is probably exactly where you should go..if you want i will put you in contact with Marie..she would show you the whole deal…it would change your life…

    cheers, david

  349. I think the way they hold on to their culture and love of country that the dream would survive for a long, long time. There are exiles from many lands who have been banned for decades still pining to return home.

    And maybe those die hards who cannot imagine leaving country of birth could stay and help orchestrate the ecological recovery.

    Armchair world recovery effort…

  350. DAH, LOL. Yes, I remember Marie. Wonderful lady and very talented photographer and organizer.

    Talk about living in extreme opposites: Maui to Haiti.

  351. AKAKY…

    you mean Bazooka bubble gum? ahh, the best…or you mean Joe Bazooka the cartoon character..not bad…or, please do not tell me you mean the bazooka rocket/shell launcher?? Bob Burns? no relation to Ken Burns, yes THE Ken Burns my old neighbor in the Binns suburban neighborhood in Newark, Delaware…Swarthmore Drive…yup both of us on the same street in the most obscure suburban neighborhood of all time…his father must have been doing some time at Univ of Delaware…he was a little runny nosed kid when i was in Newark Senior high school and wheeling my Ducati overhead cam…..check it out…well, its a long story, but you will see the converging lines someday….

    cheers, david

  352. AKAKY…

    he was born Robin Burn..where do you think i got the name of this magazine from?? changed his name to Burns…Related to George Burns the comedian?

    ok, goodnight, i am burned out so to speak….

    p.s. Bazooka bubble gum was really good not only for the taste, but because it had a little cartoon picture story inside and wrapped around each piece…hmmm, maybe THAT is when i got interested in pictures !! as i said converging lines….

  353. Regarding the Newsweek story, for that kind of thing to work it’s necessary that the writer take a lot of drugs and travel with an angry Samoan. Not being annoyingly shallow helps too.

  354. That Newsweek story sounded like a (bad) High School-Third Form (Year 9) “What I did in the holidays” English essay. “And then I did this, and then I did that” etc etc etc. And I’m sure most Third Form essays are much better than that.

    To me, it sounded like the story was written by a very inexperienced journalist who was blown away by the gravity of the situation he was witnessing.

  355. Eric…David B…Thanks for the feedback. Yes, it was an interesting assignment for sure. Never thought deserts and wetlands would take me there.

    David AH…Yes, trying to keep as busy as possible. The book is always in my mind. At the moment, I am still working on this new body of work for the Pulitzer Center http://www.threatenedwaters.com Trying to decide if it works with the desertification work, or deserves its own existence. I’m thinking maybe the latter. Appreciate any thoughts.

    Sean

  356. Sean, I’m sorry, I somehow missed the link to any desertification story you’ve done, a topic with which I once had some familiarity. Don’t know if you’ve ever come across this book; if not, I recommend it. Probably not directly relevant to anything you might be working on, but many great insights into the big picture nonetheless.

  357. MW..

    you have just got to start doing a little bit of homework amigo…Sean was the first recipient of the Emerging Photographer Fund grant in 2008 for his work on the desertification of China…he has been working on it ever since..published twice here on Burn for China work…the Charles Bowden book was pretty scary when it was written and even scarier now…civilization could end just as it started…war over water

  358. DAH: maybe now is the time to get another GF1 body if you want a backup :) amazon just lowered prices, $599 with the 20mm… I love this camera so much that I ordered a backup while it’s still available. the “updates” that are coming with the GF2 are not to my liking… they went more mass market and removed a lot of the manual control dials.

  359. MW…No worries about missing my desertification work. As David said, I was lucky enough to receive the first EPF, which acted as a real kickstarter for the current path I now find myself on i.e documenting environmental issues here in Asia. It’s my passion (bordering obsession!) now. Here’s a link to the desert work http://nyti.ms/7dKFGj Thanks for the book link. Will check it out.

    John V…I would like to expand this work to other places but the question then comes, where do I stop? I feel that by limiting myself to China, a country which I am understanding more the longer I stay here, I can tell the stories behind these issues better. Lifetime job? Sure. I’d be happy to spend the rest of my photographic days reporting on environmental issues. I come from a science background, so it’s a real continuation of my seemingly innate interest in these issues. I’m starting to look at issues in other Asian countries now. Will let you know if I make it your way. Btw, thanks for link…wouldn’t open for me though.

  360. you have just got to start doing a little bit of homework amigo…

    Ain’t that the truth. Though to be fair, I do know who Sean is and have been following the wetlands in China thing. But tis true there’s a lot here at burn that took place before my arrival that I’m entirely ignorant of. For example, what’s this “Road Trips” thing about which you all so often speak? Ah, homework…

  361. Sean, I appreciate that you’ve taken on such a tough subject photographically. How does one deal visually with water disasters that unfold incrementally over long stretches of time? I can see you’ve put a lot of thought into it and like the looks of the edifice you are in the process of building. Don’t know how helpful Bowden’s little book might be, maybe not at all, but I suspect you are kindred spirits and it’s possible some little insight or other would come of it.

  362. CARSTEN…

    i was thinking the same thing…..seems like the GF1 will now have its proper place in the Museum of Near Perfect Products That Got Discontinued..

    SEAN..

    when you get to book point , please let me know…many ideas

    MW..

    Road Trips is all archived right here

  363. Hi David, all –
    I was on the other night and mentioned I may post a link that night of some of the latest work I’ve been doing – well, I’m late as usual on such things – I’m having a tiny show next week as a preview of the project i’ve been working on all year.

    This is just an experimental show to test print sizes, viewer feedback, etc…

    http://jasonhouge.com/2010/11/algoma-preview/

  364. a civilian-mass audience

    Oups…so GF1 …is not Greek Formula 1…:)))
    Stuck up in the mountains…
    With stolen wifi…
    LASSAL…Stay strong…I will email you when I will be back…

    To ALL MY BURNIANS…
    I am the happiest civilian in the world…
    I believe …that good energy comes back to you…
    Do you?

  365. David; I didn’t want to hijack Michelle’s essay so posted here instead.

    Regarding the reactions of people to stories etc. I suppose a lot of the criticisms of work comes down to some who just don’t “get it”, or don’t try to get it, and also hidden agendas too.

    Regarding the link I sent you; I’ve been really surprised at some of the negaqtive comments I’ve received from some people. As soon as I mention “teen pregnancy” I often end up listening to a rant about the subject in general; and that all I am doing is glorifying the subject.

    It’s been quite interesting hearing the reactions from people who haven’t even seen the work; (which I don’t think glorifies the subject). Anyway; it’s about one person’s journey; not just about teen pregnansy per se.

    Criticism of the work? Fair enough; I can take that and much more, no worries bring it on! But passing judgement on work without actually seeing it, or really listening to the project explanation seems a bit weird to me!

  366. ROSS…

    like i said, the more you do and the better you become at it, the more folks will take jabs at you…pretty much personified throughout history, so nothing new….sometimes small people have big voices

  367. David, regarding Road Trips and the link in the other thread, yes, that was a good paraphrase. I had some time today and kicked around Road Trips a bit. Interesting stuff, kinda fun seeing how the record goes round, but also how some of the relationships in comments began and evolved.

  368. I just thought I’d post a couple of links for whoever’s around tonight. I mentioned a while ago that I was trying to take a year of mag work to better my work. I also decided that one of the ways to do that was to expose myself to all manner of art; painting, photography, writing etc; practically anything.

    One of my favourite movies is “Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus”. Everytime I watch it I “feel” new things. Through that movie I learnt of American writer Harry Crews (I hadn’t heard of him before); his story telling in that movie amazed me, and keeps ticking over in my subconcious.

    So; I’ve made a point of reading/listening to more of his work. I found these interview links; his thoughts about writing pertain to most other arts.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjTRfo-sZw8

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rT0oMeGf9So

    I hope somebody finds them useful!

  369. Imants,

    Sorry I’m late to the game. I just read the Newsweek piece, and I could not believe that the lack of prep work that was done by the journalist or the editors. That is some scary stuff. The writing in the first person adds to the impression that the journalist had no idea what he was doing (not because the writing style is unacceptable, but because it is so informal). It reads like a high school term paper in style AND content.

    “This sounds like the sort of story a tourist who took the wrong turn off the highway might tell to a crowd of guests at a cocktail party”

    I was going to say that the reporter sounds like Clark W. Griswald in East St. Louis.

  370. ………and then it got sophisticated and lost the plot because everyone wanted to be part of it. mmmmmmmmmmm nnnnnnnnnnnnn sounds like some of the essays here let them stay raw and alive.

  371. It reads like a high school term paper in style AND content…….. not sure if that is a bad thing maybe from an adult in this instance but what kids write it is a great read. Naive is naive and shouldn’t be condemned to the backwaters just accepted for what it is and not viewed that is should be something that it is not

  372. Why are we still here in October when there is Madrid?

    Hello, night krewe. Had to get off an airplane earlier becasue it was, according to the captain, “missing a part”, finally got another to take it’s place and arrived…so I’ve had a cream soda and a couple of cookies, and might be up to edit a few images … then again, I might just fall asleep in the chair.

    No light, here, except for the sodium lights in the parking out outside my window…..

  373. “Why are we still here in October when there is Madrid?”
    Not to mention it’s now November… We like to live in the past Andrew! Plus, when there’s a decent discussion moving, it’s hard to jump from one place to another… It’d be like starting a TV show on one network and needing to switch to another to see the ending.

  374. MW…

    and you can see the whole plot develop from blog to online mag to print etc…

    JASON…

    i have no idea why nobody went over to the newest Dialogue , Madrid…they didn’t, so i just went along with it…well, too late now and i am ready to write a new story anyway, so go with the flow…

  375. 666?…?
    Are we at the 666th comment ? Are u counting like Akaky…?:)
    Either way no, there is not a smart or proud or useful way to die…
    I never understood why people celebrate birthdays..
    Is it ego?, self importance? What exactly is it?
    Why not celebration the day of their death?
    It sounds cynical but I think that the death day should be the day to celebrate for most..
    Coz all they achieved in this life is fat around their bellies, broken livers and tons of $$$..
    Art is the proper task of life.. That way u served your purpose..
    Otherwise let their deathdays be the most important day in this world..
    That is the day that they did something useful ..
    They finally “exited”.. And let some free space for those that really want to live..
    And that goes to all religious livers that cry and preach the afterlife..
    They should exit… They don’t need to be here..
    They should go to their “heavens” asap..
    Leave this nasty earth to be celebrated by the rest of us.. The sinners, the crazies,
    The misfits, the not normal.. the talented.. The light..
    The freaks….
    All, after weeks of editing from 4000 Venice Beach photos down to 230…
    I’m ready for another edit by the master and then I need to present Venice Part2.. The final story…
    I was pregnant for so long.. Time to deliver…

  376. Man, talking about not getting it, I’ve never got why you all give up your edits so easily. I can see it, and I’ve certainly done it, when it’s a requirement for getting published, but my understanding is that it’s not the case here. I understand the value of a good editor, and it’s good to hash these things out with a high level professional, but in the end, isn’t the final edit as much an important element of authorship as the rough draft?

  377. And just in the news:
    CHOLERA EPIDEMIC IN HAITI…

    Big thank you to BURN and DAH for supporting Haiti Relief Fund..
    and whoever else trying hard to help (Marie arago, Jared Iorio…and whoever doing the right thing volunteering, helping rebuilding Haiti)
    Big hug

  378. MW…

    i guess i missed something here…what on earth are you talking about? what edits, whose edit, where? who gave up something? you referring to edits on Burn? again, maybe i missed a point way back there somehow…

  379. I’m ready for another edit by the master…

    Was primarily referring to that line by Panos, but seems like over the year, several people have indicated they just handed over their photos and let David do the edit. Perhaps I read it wrong. No offense intended to anyone.

  380. MW…

    the way it works here on Burn, is that those who want an edit by me may have one, those who would prefer for you to do it may make that choice, and those who want no editing done at all have that option…let freedom ring!!

  381. I’ve never got why you all give up your edits so easily
    ————–
    M?…? who is “you all”?
    Give up what edit? To whom?
    Ok let me talk about myself coz I have no idea what the rest do or don’t..!
    Venice Beach you all seen so far.. Let me call it Part1…
    In the Part 1 (since you are checking on Road Trips)…
    I started posting links (little stories) in a weekly basis.. I was eager for feedback and I was hoping
    that I will find out where my subconscious will take me.. I was shooting Venice with no plan, no target not even a “real reason”.. Link after link after link I wanted to express myself ..
    I was getting pregnant over and over and all I fell I should is simply give birth over and over again..
    All I was trying to do is “find” , “discover” myself and finally be me, myself, whatever that is…
    There were links with photos I posted that nobody liked except one or two photos.. There were time that I was in the zone, in such a great mental place, that everything worked out magically, effortlessly .. No stress (example, the photos in the magic Jim Morrison RV).. Perfect light, timing, feeling etc… I knew some photos were good (from feedback here) and some not good enough..
    Then Harvey came to venice Beach, we went to that famous Cadillac Hotel, and spread 800 photos on the lobby.. And then the master taught me how to edit..
    What does that mean? It’s more than putting photos in order to make a story .. We can tell a story with bad photos too.. Still the same story.. So we have problem number1: tell the story,
    And then Problem no2 to tell stories with the STRONGEST POSSIBLE photos..
    Many of my photos had 2 or 3 versions so I had to decide which was the strongest.. But I was attached to my babies so I wanted them all in.. This is where u need the third eye that’s is not emotional and see clear… That was Harveys precious help.. He didn’t shoot for me, he never told me what to do or not to do.. He only said one thing: shoot now we edit later.. In other words don’t “overthink”.. Just shoot as raw as possible.. And later we will think, eliminate, value etc…
    That is not giving up my edit..

    Think of any music band you know: from the Beatles to Red Hot Chilli Peppers etc..
    Have u ever heard of Brian Epstein? Phil Spector? Rick Rubin?
    Well those are all master PRODUCERS… they “decided” what song goes first, which one is a single , which song would go to the next album etc..
    Have u ever heard of Audioslave (rage against the machine ft.Chris Cornell?)
    Well guess what: it was Rick Rubins idea.. He brought them together.. He created the Band..NOT THE MUSIC!
    did Rage and Chris gave up their “edits”/music??? Not at all..
    Red Hot Chilli Pepoers is another similar example.. They split 40 times, 1st guitar player dies on overdose, 2nd (Frusciante) goes crazy on heroin locked in a room in venice beach but Rick managed to keep them together… They were writing, he was editing/PRODUCING..
    ever heard of the mighty RAMONES?
    well it was Phil Spector who rented a mansion locked the band in and he even pulled a GUN when Joey wanted to quit and leave.. Yes he pulled a loaded gun and wouldn’t let them quit..
    Did Phil wrote the RAMONES music???
    Laughing.. Of course not.. He just edited them and put things together…

    Now back to photography… No no no, DAH is not Spector , he does not own guns nor he aims them to poor photogs .. DAH is not millionaire Rubin and photography is not Music Industry..
    But photography is Art.. Is Music in a way ..
    We need Brian Epstein to put things in order but we need John Lennon to WRITE THE SONGS FIRST…
    and of course Paul , John and Ringo have the final word just like in Burn..
    When we did another editing session with DAH through skype couple winters ago.. We worked together,
    Edited together, heard his opinion he heard mine and I decided in the end…

    Unless you are not talking about Burn (and speaking of newspapers) then I agree.. Most give up the edit to simply get paid.. But that’s not photography then.. That’s simply a job.. Same as waiting tables or washing cars.. Newspaper folks are not artists.. They just try to feed their kids.. We all know them.. Even here on Burn there are couple of those “editors”.. that make everyone laugh occasionally …
    So obviously “giving up your edit” rule does not apply here on burn.. But i agree with u.. It applies to
    those boring smalltowner news editors … But again who cares..
    Newspaper work is just a job.. Providing food to family is not a wrong doing..
    But we are wasting our time talking about newspaper guys..
    So, MW, I’m missing your point..
    Who are u referring to? When u say:”giving up the Edit?”
    That small Towner news editor somewhere in DC or Arizona

  382. Now thinking of my own professional experience, I realize that relationships with editors, I realize I still think primarily like a writer. Photo editors I’ve worked with have just expect me to just hand it over and let them take it from there. Is that the norm? With writing it’s been a much more interactive, if not contentious, process.

  383. Yes David, I realize that’s how it works here. Can’t imagine a better way. And seriously, no offense intended. Just something I have trouble understanding. Panos’s explanation re his own work makes sense, but for me I see the photo essay editing process much more akin to writing than sequencing songs on an album.

  384. Mike…sigh!!!! I hear u…
    I always wanted to be a musician.. In this lifetime I consider myself a “failed musician”…
    Maybe I’ll wait for the afterlife?!!!
    Big hug bro;) (and I still owe you btw.. I’ll never forget your precious help in my NY arrival!!!!!)

  385. MW

    i was not being flippant…and my experience with picture editors in this biz is exactly like your experience with text editors…it is a collaborative process with photographers at any of the major magazines and publishers….

    i do not know anyone who “just hands it over” except maybe on breaking news from the field …but nobody that i can imagine would do anything other than become very involved with the whole process from story idea to final layout on any in depth coverage…

    i am going to do a series of interviews here soon with some of the more well known magazine picture editors like Kathy Ryan, David Friend, Scott Thode, Michelle McNally, Peter Howe, Mary Ann Golan, Susan Welchman, David Griffin, and Sarah Leen to name a very few…these editors form a block of talent that is at least as important as the talented photographers….few have the ability to choose….and a whole bunch of designers as well who are a key to the process…it is a threesome effort for the most part… photographers submitting works to magazines , either in print or online know they are not uploading to a Flickr group but to an outlet where the selection of pictures is an art form into and of itself…

    we have here on Burn , Diego Orlando and Anna Barry Jester and Anton Kusters …we all work together…pictures do not just show up here…it is a process..yup dude, better start doing more homework..again….

    with all due respect Michael, nobody would expect a newcomer to know it all…of course not.. but nobody would expect a newcomer to make quite so many not-so-well-researched pronouncements either…again, just think before you write and realize who is reading what you are writing…and i do not mean me…

    cheers, david

  386. Not quite sure how that qualifies as not doing my homework? Isn’t asking you that kind of question an example of actually doing my homework?

  387. And lordy knows I should give more of a shit about my career, and impressing the important people watching here, but right now I only care about doing good work. Reading and writing here’s been a great help, and I like to think I give back a bit by provoking interesting conversation from time to time, but if you ever come to feel I’ve become too much of an annoyance, you have my email, just drop me a line.

    But back to the point, I really do have trouble understanding Panos’s attitude towards the edit and that’s why I asked. I think Panos knows I respect him and recognizes my goal is one of inquiry, not negative criticism.

  388. And to go on wailing on a dead horse, or continuing to get kicked in the head by one, whatever, did greats like Faulkner, Joyce, Garcia-Marquez, et. al. hand over their raw work for editors to sequence their chapters, or even their paragraphs? I’m guessing some, but not so much. What do you think Panos? Why not go for it? Keep the editors out of it for as long as possible? It’s your vision. The longer you can hold out, probably the better they’ll be able to help you in the end.

  389. Michael;

    As I see it; Panos (who I’m sure can stick up for himself!) edited the pictures down to 230 from 4,000 after many months of shooting. I think his initial cut will “show” the intent of the work; the rest will be fine tuning. I can’t imagine Panos being too easily swayed off his photographic intent.

    Anyway; (and I’m not trying to kiss butt here…) I learnt a ton about my work and how to produce better work through a 45-min edit with David; and my last email critique from Bill Allard.

    “give more of a shit about my career, and impressing the important people watching here, but right now I only care about doing good work”

    Isn’t editing integral to producing good work too? And as for impressing important people; I think I’d be a fool if I didn’t listen to advice from those whose work I admire; doesn’t mean I will always take it though! The main thing is to listen to advice but still produce your “own” work.

    I’m not having a dig at you; just thinking out loud!

    Cheers :-)

  390. I think I’m flogging a dead horse now too :-) But… if I was a (decent) writer (I’m not; I’m just a hack) and Faulkner had a look at my writing and made a few suggestions I’d surely listen! :-)

  391. MW .. No doubt about respect.. likewise..
    I just think that Ross got the point.. Maybe I was typing fast and gave the impression that now that I edited down I’m gonna throw the rest of the editing work on DAH’s desk and I’m off for a beer..
    No no.. My bad .. All I meant that know I will appreciate the third critique of anyone I look up to..
    It could be DAH, or D’Agata.. Or Nikos or Allard or Ross or MW.. even civilian could “help”..
    I was actually thinking to show my edit to a 10 year old and see what a kid thinks..
    But due to “violence and stuff like that”.. I changed my mind and I rated my photos “xxx”…
    So I can’t really do the latter..
    But yes that’s what I meant as Ross guessed it..
    Because I’m aiming towards a Book and any professional advice highly anticipated and needed ..
    I would love to show “someone” all 4000 coz like I said we tend to love our babies equally and it’s hard for me to eliminate photos since they all mean something special to me..
    But a book is not Internet .. Has limitations..70-80 photos at the most.. So I would use all the editing help I could get.. But in the end I will need to decide coz if the book sucks I’m not gonna accuse the editor(s)… I need opinions I meant regardless how big the name of the editor is..
    You only make a book once.. Once it’s done.. It’s hard to change it..
    That’s all..( and btw who gives a dime if this book ever comes out or not.. I just need to make sure I did my best ).. With both respect to me and the viewer:)

  392. “coz if the book sucks I’m not gonna accuse the editor(s)”

    Panos; you should know you should never make a decision you can’t blame on someone else! ;-)

  393. I’m gonna throw the rest of the editing work on DAH’s desk and I’m off for a beer……….good idea it will keep the bastard up so he doesn’t burn the place down.
    I do the opposite send stuff to David and if he even thinks about editing it………… well I threaten to burn his house down, though that no longer seems to be a positive threat.

  394. Thanks Ross, wise words for the most part, but if that Faulkner fellow ever tries to tell me what to do, I’ll tell him to take a flying fuck at a rolling donut, to take a flying fuck at the mooooooooon.

    What self-respecting artist wouldn’t? At least every now and then?

  395. Life’s but a walking shadow, you know, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

  396. “I’ll tell him to take a flying fuck at a rolling donut, to take a flying fuck at the mooooooooon”

    Really? Ok….. Methinks someone took a few too many “angry pills” tonight? ;-)

  397. Whoever posted the video on Duffy, thanks. Loved it. He looks like someone we all know and love…

  398. Found this buried on a hard drive. Was a little commisision for a charity and shot on a 5d II in about an hour…very rough around the edges but I think its kinda sweet.

    my good friend jannis had already written the piece of music and given it to me so when the piano shoot came up it was perfect.

    john

  399. a civilian-mass audience

         
    “In human intercourse the tragedy begins, not when there is misunderstanding about words, but when silence is not understood.”
     Henry David Thoreau (American Essayist, Poet and Philosopher, 1817-1862)

    So come on BURNIANS, don’t be silent…express yourselves,don’t withdrawal…
    Talk about your concerns,your fears,your dreams…
    That’s why BURN is the place to be…

  400. a civilian-mass audience

    Not a good Internet connection…up here in the mountains…
    But I did manage to listen Giannis music …thank you JOHNYG…

    Thank you BURNIANS…I hope I am in the right aisle…
    Or should I go with the flow…?:)))

  401. MW…

    your right to write remains intact of course…please please do not always say “well, i will leave if you want”..nobody is saying that Michael….we want you here…

    ok, i do not know how i could be any more clear…let me try again…some need/want edits, some do not…..either way works for me IF it works…again, this is not a flickr style drop anything in the bucket deal…we are NOT a photo sharing site….in actual fact, there has NEVER been a problem so far that i know of concerning editing……

    we always ask the photographer if they want an edit or if we may edit and then clear it back with them….the photographers with strong points of view and want no edit will be respected always, since guess what?..i am a photographer with a strong point of view..takes one to know one…nor was i suggesting you kiss butt with your writing here, i was only suggesting that since the readership here consists of more than Ross, Panos, and Imants (all with strong essays by the way), that you might just want to refine your literary missives just a bit for your own cred, not ours…OR better yet, since you say you only want to do good work. LAY SOMETHING TANGIBLE DOWN ON THE TABLE..SHOW US (in words or pictures) what you mean…nothing beats “show me”…….i think at this point we are all waiting with baited breath….

    cheers, david

  402. David, sorry, really didn’t mean to step on any toes, nature of the medium sometimes, I guess. And yes, your policy on edits has been as clear as an unmuddied lake under a sky of deepest blue for a long time now — I have no negative criticism of it whatsoever. I have, however, over the year noticed a few photographers whose essays were published comment that they were not responsible for the edit and that kind of mentality does somewhat fascinate me. But just because I don’t “get it,” doesn’t mean I don’t respect it. And in this case, Panos explained himself quite well.

    You know, I was trained primarily in the adversarial method of journalism and that method of questioning slips out in places where it can be inappropriate. Does tend to get great responses though. We articulate better when defending ourselves.

    Waiting with baited breath to see my current work? Umkay. I’ve often linked to walking around stuff here and many have commented on it both online and off. I generally don’t publicly discuss or show work I expect to be published, though I’m happy to discuss and sometimes show it to individuals who might be interested. The Bronx school stuff is pretty fascinating. Whether it’s good or not, we’ll see, but it’s an important topic and my approach has been consistent with your typical advice to be loose and go for greatness and certainly to make mistakes. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean to denigrate the walking around stuff. Most of that is not just random pictures but is consistent with themes I continually work on. My serious work is no better visually or technically, just deeper intellectually.

    Anyway, enough about me. Not trying to be a drama queen much less sending off to Panos for an “I’m leaving Burn” t-shirt, but seriously, feel free to drop me a line if every you want. I’m not in any way like she who shall remain unnamed and cringe at the idea of perhaps being perceived that way. And frankly, I’ve been editing and thinking and writing about photography too much lately and need a break, so I’m looking forward to some upcoming travel where I’ll be totally off-line for a couple weeks. Too easy to get wound up here in this here city.

    Peace.

  403. MW….

    smiling…maybe we could make some money out of “I Am Leaving Burn” t-shirt sales…Michael i totally understand your adversarial journalistic stance and have told you many times to keep at it…keeps things lively around here…..the nature of it however begs for response…that’s all …pure and simple…dish out a controversial line and you are likely to get one back…isn’t that fair enough??

    well, i have seen your links and commented positively…l liked your most recent walk around work and said so…and i like you as a writer and how you think in general…what we should do is edit or play with walk around a bit (either or both of us) ..and we still need a conversation on the multi-media bit which we will go into in a big way in 2011..we just need you to do a full blown essay…

    so, don’t ride outta town just yet…put in your two cents on the most recent story…in tangent with Michelle’s Destino….again, your territory …have at it….

    cheers, david

  404. “readership here consists of more than Ross, Panos, and Imants”

    And I thought you created this site just for us three… I’m horribly upset and terribly hurt now! ;-)

  405. JOHN GLADDY…

    i like the IDEA of the Piano more than the actual piece, but i can see where you could take it…but , for a one hour shoot, just fine….any thoughts to expand?

  406. of concerning editing……
    ………… self editing, things can go horrible wrong in most cases it is not the editing itself it is the concept or media that the edits ride on that is the real thorn. In my second essay I made that mistake, as a book the edit was right then I did a direct translation into the digital wwwdot world media and it all became a mess. I tried a couple of quick re edits but I knew it was a lost cause I had already made that wrong turn.
    ……… now I sit with a new approach still using some of the images from the books but the images are dropped into place intuitively within a minute or so and create their own narrative. The edit process from there is … reducing images that repeat what is already said and adding newly created essay specific images to reinforce the concept. Some images may be reworked to suit. Sure it is a fragile state of affairs and things can go horribly wrong but one knows early on if there is any hope for the piece. There is always that chance of the “essay” getting to sophisticated during process and it becomes a dud, all one does is bin > delete and get on with something else

    ……………………………….end of artwork

  407. I fear I will edit myself down to zero photos……….. no harm in that worked o book “stonemason’s chair”(book 6) for two months or so, figured I needed to change one image……….. nah it just didn’t work the whole book went straight into the trash…..gone . Placed that image in the new empty version of (book6) and just got on with “suitcase” and is completed after book 7, still worked in the series

  408. It’s like growing asparagus in your garden ……….. The new seedlings should emerge in about 3 weeks, and as soon as they are large enough they can be thinned out to about 2in apart. Then, once the seedlings reach about 6 inches high, they can be thinned out again to around 18 inches apart. For the rest of the year you just need to keep the beds weeded and the plants well-watered.

  409. David. I know what you mean. No chance to expand, or desire to really, just a throwaway piece. The piano was left there by the charity, and I had no idea that the removers were coming to get it that day, or that tony the clown would decide to jump on it and try and stop them(in a clown like way of course). nothing was scripted at all, I just shot what was in front of me….and then it was gone. It just seemed like a gift, so I cut it just like it happened.(well almost)

    IMANTS. What if you got to the 18 inches apart stage and then realised you dont even like asparagus. Could you just pull them up and plant carrots?

  410. Uh huh. However, I have promised myself I will do this work. So back to the next session of editing, not re-editing however. Last full edit about 1/3 done. I loved the photo of the wind up rooster that lost its key. That was yours? I know how he feels.

  411. What if you got to the 18 inches apart stage and then realised you dont even like asparagus …….you could do what most people do and keep growing them in the faint hope that you will like them in the end.

    ……. remember
    Carrots are a “short term project” and should never be sown among asparagus as a companion plant.

  412. a civilian-mass audience

    Life and Death…in my backyard!

    I pull out my carrots and I plant garlic…
    I edit my “backyard ” everyday…
    Life and death…the Circle of Life…
    Or should I say…
    “the Circus of Life”…?

  413. a civilian-mass audience

    BURNIANS,

    Do you know where is KATHLEEN FONSECA???
    I haven’t heard from her…
    Thank you in advance for your help.

  414. a civilian-mass audience

    EVA,VIVA!!!

    Amazing,another baby BURNIAN…like FELIX,TORCAPA,THE DARK KIDS,MICHELLE…

  415. a civilian-mass audience

    Most Wanted BURNIANS t-shirt!

    KATIEE,HERVE,SIDNEY,PAUL,KATIA,LAURA,OURPATRICIA,JENNY,ANDREA,KELLY,KATHARINA,
    REIMARRRR,KERRY,ASHER,MIKE,MARK,JARED,
    ABELE,STUPID,CHARLES,MEDFORD,CHRIS,MARCIN,GINA,CATHY,RAFAL,SOFIA,PRESTON,MATTHEW,
    ANDREW…SPACECOWBOY………

    Sending good energy to all…I know,you are so many…my brain is trying hard…
    and for those that you can’t see your name…I will be back…:)))

    Now,let’s see if this post will go through…I hear thunders and wolves…
    Oime…

  416. a civilian-mass audience

    POMARA,FROSTFROG…HAIK,BJARTE,VIVEK…

    My brain works hard…

    BOBBYYY…thanks mate…now, I can have my coffee in silence…

    Hey,hey…
    Hey hey, my my
    Rock and roll will never die
    There’s more to the picture
    Than meets the eye
    Hey hey, my my

    Out of the blue and into the black
    You pay for this and they give you that
    Once you’re gone, you can’t come back
    When you’re out of the blue
    And into the black

    The king is gone but he’s not forgotten
    Is the story of Johnny Rotten?
    It’s better to BURN out ’cause rust never sleeps
    The king is gone but he’s not forgotten

    Hey hey, my my
    Rock and roll will never die
    There’s more to the picture
    Than meets the eye

  417. a civilian-mass audience

    There’s more to your pictures
    Than meets my eyes…

    Love you All…Up,up, and rolling…

  418. a civilian-mass audience

    John Langmore
    November 17, 2010 at 5:44 pm
    David,

    Great seeing you in Oaxaca. Helluva deal hearing my name called 5 minutes after arriving and turning around to see you sitting there with Marie, Michael, AJ, etc. Small damn world even though I wouldn’t want to paint it. As always, I enjoyed the chance to hang out and also get to know some of your students. I also really enjoyed seeing the fruits of their labor.

    I hope the current travels are going well. I’m now back in Austin and scrambling to keep pace with the treadmill of life – a tough transition after a week in Oaxaca with nothing but a couple of cameras. It was good while it lasted.

    I ordered Burn 01 as soon as I got back from the Magnum website. I hope I placed the order before they all disappeared. I really loved the magazine and would be bummed if I didn’t have one for the collection. As you said, I guess I better start paying attention.

    Travel well in the meantime and I hope our next encounter comes soon.

    Your amigo,
    John

    Just in case…MR.HARVEY …closes damper on Madrid too early…:)))

  419. CIVILIAN…

    i do not know why everyone stayed on this Dialogue when Madrid is newer..anyway, must today write an new Dialogue post anyway….in any case, thanks for the re-post…i did catch John’s comment under Madrid and responded…however, no doubt only you seem to really know where everything is at all times…many thanks

    cheers, david

  420. a civilian-mass audience

    No problem…MR.HARVEY…you know…copy and paste is my middle name:)))

    If I only knew…where did I put my glasses…

Comments are closed.