“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” — Antoine de Saint-Exupéy
A dozen years ago I experienced the pleasure of watching Matt Maher play high school football (and grow up) along with Ann’s son, Tyler. Last Saturday afternoon I experienced the pleasure of discussing Matt’s new career as a furniture designer; and meeting Mo Maher at Tyler’s (new) house warming, and Noah’s seventh birthday, celebration.
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Last Friday Ann and I packed a few things in the car and drove west by northwest on Hwy 60. We stopped in North Leeds for a bite to eat. The restaurant had what seemed like a romantic little room for two; it also had very little and very red light and quickly began to feel claustrophobic with too much funky decor.
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At Sauk City the highway does it’s best to follow the Wisconsin River. I love to drive the blue highways that follow the rivers; the paths of the animals and birds. At Gotham we headed north by northwest on Hwy 14 towards Viroqua to visit Ann’s niece, Jessica, and her husband Matt. They provided us with wonderful hospitality; including a bed for the night. Saturday morning’s coffee and conversation on their new deck — built by Matt — simply delightful.
Back on the road at 9:30 am — Hwy 14/61 to St. Paul, MN — now following the mighty, muddy Mississippi. Spectacular views with no time to stop; except for fuel, juice and muffins.
Arriving just a tad late due to one wrong turn.
Seeing as a guest and not “the wedding photographer” freed me to photograph “whatever” and take note of things I’d have done differently than the fellow and his crew. Slide show of additional wedding observations here. And a few from the “film” camera here.
Sunday morning, at the Best Western, provided pool time for Sophia and social time for family and friends of the iHusband and iWife (Sean is slowly Macifying Ellie):
Strolling, shopping, photographing with a late Mexican lunch in St. Paul before heading south along the mighty Miss.
A chocolate malt while driving through the night. Then south on Hwy 35 (hugging the river on the Wisconsin side); crossing back over to McGregor, IA at Prairie Du Chien. The Holiday Shores Motel provided us with a terrace seat and cooling summer breeze which made it difficult to “go to sleep.” We watched a huge row of barges navigate the water-way in the dark. Monday morning provided a gorgeous view of Wisconsin’s river shore.
Monday passed too quickly — simply enjoying the river, the light, the barge traffic and McGregor (at one time allegedly larger than Chicago because of it’s ferry crossing). Slide show of additional river and McGregor photographs.
“The whole point of [making] pictures is so you don’t have to explain things with words.” — Elliot Erwitt
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Brady Street Festival, 2008. Slide show of additional images from this event.
“To compose a subject well means no more than to see and present it in the strongest manner possible.” — Edward Weston
enjoy the summer
blooms return quickly to earth
with autumn’s approach
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“I don’t trust words. I trust pictures.” — Gilles Peress
water, wondering,
waiting for still to reveal
trustworthy knowledge
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Slide show of additional “river walk 080715” photographs.
“I have to be as much a diplomat as a photographer.” — Alfred Eisenstadt
Ann’s sister, Teri, visits from Florida and the family gathers together at Menomonee Park, the 297 acre site of a water filled Lannon Stone quarry. Additional slide show of images.
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“The whole search is for the unknown.” — Jerry Valente
Today I finished assembly of the milled ring to the recessed Cambo lens board to allow the mounting of Hasselblad lenses to the Cambo Ultima. After mounting the 40mm Distagon and the R8/DMR to the Ultima I walked the rig out to the porch, where a fern had grown up between the floor boards, and composed the first test.
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I made just one exposure and removed the SD card from the DMR. Having just worked with the view camera movements this felt like removing a tiny, miniature sheet film holder. I fondly recalled the days of pulling out 12×20 dark slides and holders (as well as 11×14, 8×10, 5×7, 4×5 and 2 1/4 x 3 1/4 and now this) after making an exposure I felt good about. Walking the itty-bitty image holder to the computer, then dropping the file into LightRoom, compressed an hour and a half of darkroom film processing and proofing into about 5 minutes; then, almost immediately, sharing the results with the world.
I love this return to view camera controls. A whole different experience in photography occurs when every conceivable movement of camera image plane and lens becomes available during the acts of framing and focusing. Contemplation. Meditation. Dare I call it a spiritual experience?
“[I crop] for the benefit of the pictures. The world does not fit conveniently into the format of a 35mm camera [frame].”
“What use is having great depth of field, if there is not adequate depth of feeling?” — W. Eugene Smith
they appeared where once
I photographed a family
of feathered friends
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“Saturate yourself with your subject and the camera will all but take you by the hand.” — Margaret Bourke-White
Last evening the storms roared through (again).
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The rain poured down most of the night – leaving our little town’s main street underwater (and the upstream water has yet to crest). Click here for slide show of Thiensville Flood.
A visit with Sophia and Tanya this morning.
On the way home.
“I didn’t want to tell the tree or weed what it was. I wanted it to tell me something and through me express its meaning in nature.” — Wynn Bullock
Last weekend severe storms swept through our area. Many families lost things, including some losing their homes. Our own Main Street was several feet under water. Today I stopped by Firemen’s Park in Thiensville. The Milwaukee River remains dangerously high. And new storms currently rain down upon us. The damn is totally under rushing water.
