September
9/30/04
7:40pm-The scanner saga continued: So the replacement scanner Canon is supposed to send us hadn't shown up yet so I call Canon today on my lunch break. Apparently our 12 month warranty HAS run out and so the order never went through. Of course they were not going to let us know that. I managed to get to a supervisor who upon learning that we were told we COULD get the replacement scanner, agreed that not sending it to us now was "not fair". So he agreed to send us one anyway. The only problem now being that it wont arrive here until Monday or Tuesday the latest.
On a happier note I did just get back from shooting 3 rolls of film downtown. I actually found a spot that intrigued me enough that I spent the whole time there.(about 2 hours) Its called Cathedral Square and is home to an enormous church, but is surrounded by a big plaza with concrete stairs and a little park area filled with stairs, trees, benches. You get the idea. It was starting to get a bit darker out and was overcast, so the light reflecting off the cobblestones and stone steps was a beautiful thing to see. There were fallen leaves on the steps, people walking around, sillouettes of the tree truncks against the light colored stairs.......I wish I was a more talented writer so I could adequately explain to you what this sort of experience is like for me. I'm sure this will be a spot I return to again. Cant wait to hit the darkroom on Saturday.
9/28/04
9:48pm-I called Canon today and since the scanner we bought is within the 12 month guarantee period they are shipping us a new scanner tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed that it works. So hopefully this weekend I'll get to post a new photo of the week. Here is an article sent to me about the "battle" going on between film and digital photographers. This is definately a turning point in the history of photography.-not for me though.
10:05pm-Actually when I say not for me in regards to digital photography. I'm not saying it doesnt have a place and isnt a useful tool. I just dont have any desire to embrace it for my personal work that Im doing here. My hope is that the two can coexist. Why not? I understand that digital is easier, faster and all that but there are those of us that like the whole process of shooting developing, printing, editing, etc. I just can't see it coming to where film is this mysterious thing that can only be bought in dark alleyways and is talked about in the the past tense. But if it should come to that I'll be the first in line to buy up all the TriX I can.
9/27/04
10:24pm- New link added today. If you haven't come across this website before, take your time and check out the many different galleries. You won't be dissapointed. Urban Photos. To get myself back into the swing of things again, I've decided that each day this week I will shoot at least 1 or more rolls of film. Today I spent my hour lunch break shooting in the neighborhoods around where I work. Hopefully I'll shoot some more tomorrow, maybe I'll take a walk around the industrial park at lunch or go downtown when I get home. I still cant get the stupid(yeah, I said stupid) scanner to work. We've only had this thing for 3 months! I guess I'll have to take the plunge and call Canon support tomorrow. Maybe not having the scanner for a little while isnt a bad thing though. I think my focus has been more on the website than on my actual photography lately. Its sort of like , my scanner doesnt work so suddenly Ive stopped shooting and printing because I wont be able to post anything. Somewhere along the line my thinking got screwed up, you know? Maybe its the instant feedback you get when you can put your photos out there and people can see what your doing, but that has never been my motivation for doing this. It has to be about the photography, processing and printing first because that is what feeds me to do more. Maybe i'll figure out a way to post a bit less often so I can concentrate on the work and when Im ready, post a small portfolio of recent images. I'll think about that. I would like to keep up with the photo of the week though , which I have struggled with. We'll see. Stay tuned.....
9/25/04
9am-Guestbook entry: Excellent website and photos. Wow! I am intrigued, as always, with your creativity and view of the world. Say hi to Stacey. Keep your Sox on! -Brother Brian.
There are times when Im not feeling so inspired about my work for one reason or another. I think Ive been away from it for a while and am having a bit of trouble getting going again. There has just been so much happening around me lately, trips, computer problems, blah, balh, blah. Now our scanner doesnt want to work for some reason. Today were going to help a friend move into their new house. Always something happening. I feel like time for my photography is so limited sometimes- whats the point? Then I get this guestbook entry from my brother. Thanks, you made my day! Staceys going out with friends tonight, so maybe I'll develop some film and see what Ive got there. Not sure what to do about the scanner though, I'll work on it later. The cat sleeping on it probably doesnt help!
9/21/04
9:45pm- Ten days later, here I am. Sorry its been a while since Ive done anything here. Traffic at my site has dwindled quite a bit, but its understandable. First, without warning, I had to take our Mac back to the Apple store for futher repairs. Secondly, we just got back from a weeklong vacation in New Mexico and Colorado. We had a great time, as the main reason we went was for a friends wedding held in Lake City Colorado. Its a small town of less than 500 people that is surrounded by 10-14,000ft mountains. Incredible views everywhere you looked. Also, we stayed a couple nights in New Mexico and plan on going back there next year. Stacey photographed our friends' wedding for 8 hours and at the end we finally got to get in a few dances. Along the way we took many photos, color and Black and white. We even brought along our new Holga for some experimenting. We'll see, I may post a color image or two when the film is developed. Maybe I'll put together a page of images from the whole trip for you to see. So thats where Ive been for the last ten days, I hope some of you are still out there. Ive got film to develop, printing to catch up on and more shooting to do in Providence.
9/11/04
8:25am-Two new links added recently. Both are traditional b/w street images, but from different parts of the world.
9/8/04
11:40pm-Photo A Week #19.- I hope it looks ok, my monitor is still looking off. I'll check it at work tomorrow and then adjust the photo if need be.
9/8/04
10:46pm-After about 2 full weeks without really picking up my camera I'm trying to get myself back into the swing of things. I took my Konica Auto S2 with me to work today. I really havent used this camera too much so i want to give it a try. I actually did a little shooting on my commute to work as I sat in traffic on the on ramps to Route 95N. Probably nothing too great(though one never knows), but sometimes it just feels good to be clicking that shutter button. Im planning, tomorrow, to take it with me again and after work head downtown for a couple hours of wandering and shooting. Also, on ebay, I bid on and won on a Yashica Lynx 5000E! While I love using the Yashica Electro GSN it is not fully manual in that the camera sets the shutter speed once I choose my Fstop. I like that feature when shooting photos of people on the street because I dont have to be fussing too much with the controls when shooting quickly. But when not shooting in this way I want more control. Ive been wanting the Lynx 14E, but a good one can cost $90-$100 which isnt all that much camerawise, but right now its not in the budget. I got the 5000E for $26.50! Of course I wont know for sure if its fully functional until it arrives, but those are the chances one takes on Ebay. I'll let you know as soon as I get it. I covet the Lynx 14E because of the 45mm 1.4 lens it has, so one day I'll get on of those babies. The Lynx 5000E has a 45mm 1.8 lens which is pretty good also, and it can be stopped down to F22 for maximum depth of field. OK, Im going to go look and see if Ive got anything I can scan and post to my site since its been a while. Or maybe I'll go check out the Red Sox score! Go Sox!! Check out the Yashica Guy's website.
9/6/04
3:27pm- Ugh! Sorry its been so long since my last entry. Reason # 1 is that our computer(imac) has been kaput for about 2 weeks. I just got it back from the Apple Store today. Upon bringing it home and plugging everything back in, I discover that the keyboard is now dead. So I climb back in the car and drive to Warwick to buy a new keyboard and here I am, finally!!! I dont have anything new to show you right now, but stay tuned a bit longer.(assuming there is anyone left returning to my site at this point.) I've also been quite busy helping Staceys mom get situated in her new apartment in Pawtucket. The painting is all done and only a little unpacking remains for her. Whew! Even if I had the computer for the last 2 weeks I dont think I would have gotten much done on it, seeing that I havent had much time for shooting either. In addition to posting new work here soon, I have to get some new work posted for Staceys website. So if youre still out there, thanks for being patient!! Check back soon for something new.