OT; Thoughts...

Sam, relax into it, a fresh verve on its way...

S, like Brad said no need for the guilt. Both this <a href="http://www.magnumphotos.com/c/htm/TreePf_MAG.aspx?Stat=Photographers_Portfolio&E=29YL53UIH@2"> guy </a> and this <a href="http://www.agencevu.com/fr/photographes/default.asp?Photographes=1"> guy </a> both use Hexars.

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Scanners for the web that can print good 8.5x11's can be had on the 'bay for around thirty bucks.

you got some books there jeff.

 

i was over at a friends house in london last year and he

has 4000 plus... he has just published one himself - all inspired by hokusai's work. check

it out, it's called <a href="http://www.tomato.co.uk/home/tomato3/floating.html" >the

floating world</a>.

 

i saw the roughs for it and every page is simply breathtaking.

I shoot with the Hexar. I'm waiting for the Hexar D, maybe in vain. I used to use it quite a bit, not so much now.<p>

 

<center><img src="http://www.spirer.com/images/hard.jpg"><br><i>Hard, Copyright 2001 Jeff Spirer</i></center><p>

 

One of many Hexar shots around here.

This forum rocks and hopefully, it will become even better.

 

Jeff: let us know about that arbus shirt's availability.

 

Sam: welcome back

 

Books: Recently, I browsed through carlos clarke's How to

Shoot Sex . While it's definitely not street/doc, it is a good read.

It's well balanced between techniques, tips, memoir, and

(nudes+portraits) photos.

Funny, though I don't mind finding out how someone did something I admire, whether it be a filter or some process, if I want gear, there's gear forum's. I liked the Leica forum, the push/pull plus the photos made a nice mix, volatile as it is. But when people started getting purged, that's it as far as time invested over there. Its ultimately about exploration and expression and when that starts getting stifled, it has a bad effect on the process. But for me I want to hang out w/the shooters as that's what I'm most interested in. Its funny, I heard a audio blog by the guy who does Lens Work magazine, and he made a really intersting observation. He went into book store and looked at the photo magazines. Out of about 10/15 different mags, virtually all of them talked mostly about gear, and/or personalities. Very few of any were actually talking about photographs..kind of wierd. Check it out for yourself, I think its true. And its no different on most of the forums here. At least here, absent the equipment crap, there's a chance to have a visual dialogue and other types about pictures...wow, what a concept. As soon as the blow out happened over there..I checked over here cause I knew that's where people would go to. Now if we can just get Grant back showing pictures that would be great..at least for us.

Edmo, have looked at Majoli's photos, but not seen Ackerman's work. Really intersting stuff..thanx.

whoa.........Ackerman is awesome........thanks Ed. Yeah, threads like this are very inspiring. I was really ready to put the cam aside for the winter after the last couple weeks here......well, over there....think it even affected my picture taking capabilites. now I'm ready to brave the winter mess again, looking for those elusive shots that pounce on you if only you are in the right frame of mind.

I am looking around at 'fora' I can join in with. Nikon, Digital, Street & Documentary, NW etc and even the Weddings/social forum (I am doing one later in the year)

 

I do not think It wise to join in at the Leica forum for a while because it makes me too angry right now and I am afraid of getting banned from the whole of PN as a result of saying something 'regrettable' or upsetting Al.

 

I shoot with Nikon D70 and a Bessa RF and if I post, I am not prepared to answer to Al's acolytes for the sin of including a mixture of shots from both systems. And I am not prepared to be lectured about why all digital photographs MUST be c##p simply because one person says so. (Based on no experience at all.)

 

The present tightening of the rules will not allow for any of my non RF shots to be displayed without lying about their provenance and I am not prepared to do that either.

 

I do not know what 'rangefinder style' is and my Summicron does not exhibit Leica 'glow' or 'pop' or mystical Bokeh properties. It is a good lens, thats it really.

 

So please humour me if I stumble around posting here and there and getting it wrong. There is some savage talent here (edmo, balaji, Pete etc) and I see it as a chance to learn and improve. The challenge could be good for me.

 

This is not me walking out of the LF never to return. It is just me getting out more and getting a healthier perspective over a wider range of opinions and skills.

 

Now I am off to look again at Grants Seaview hospital gallery at streetzen and his 'gates' stuff.

 

Thanks

You know Trevor, Al's not anyone you have to answer to. I know you want to do the approriate thing in terms of that forum and you seem a straight up sensitive and sensible bloke, but why empower them with your energy? It just feeds the frenzy and rips you off. I think your photos are fine and enjoy many of them and in fact the ones from that sky thing you were on, blew me away. I wasn't wondering if the camera was appropriate just appreciating the photographs. But that's just me. Anyways, apparantly not that hassle here.

You said it eric, let the captain have his t-shirt forum. This place is cookin with great

pics.

I hope the moderators maintain the standards of this forum and delete the "I would have posted on the Leica forum but I'm in a huff" pictures. This forum has always been available for people shooting S&D.

<i>While we're OT, does anyone know where to get this shirt in SF?</i><P>

Can't answer your question, but I can do a little gloating. My ex-girlfriend bought me one when she went to the Arbus show in L.A. last Spring.

"You said it eric, let the captain have his t-shirt forum."

 

I think that was Peter, Kipling. I've always bit my tongue in regards to how that forum is centered. Ashame though, an end of an era for that place. It's going to fill up, like it already has, with 'which billingham bag' threads. Out with the old and in with the new...cheers to this place!

 

E

Eric - Thanks for starting this thread!! I was so happy to see photos posted again in edmo's Street Photography (SLR) thread yesterday. There are those of us that (mostly) lurked over of the LF that are disappointed with the recent turn of events. Glad this forum has come to life in the last week and may again be the lively forum it started as.

If you liked Ackerman then <a href="http://www.agencevu.com/fr/photographes/?photographes=21"> Antoine d' Agata </a> is worth a look too...

To clarity: I don't feel guilty one iota about using a Hexar AF. It's a superb lens-camera combo for a great price compared to you-know-what

(the L brand). I meant I felt pseudo-guilty about contributing

"over there" without posting any pics, which seems to be the real

forte of these forums.

Oops, that's "To clariFy:" Guess I got too excited being "over here."

The label "street and documentary" seems sufficiently broad for most things.

Personally, I can't see how "documentary" and "travel" can be separated --

assuming you're not taking photos of the hotel swimming pool or your Aunt

Jenny standing in front on the Eiffel Tower. I mean, after all, travel photograhy

is just about shooting in a street a bit further way!

<i>Jeff: "I think what makes this work is that there is a focus other than random postings..."</i><br><br> Indeed... and personally, I have found the <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/policy?topic_id=2061">about page</a> quite useful.

I like this forum as it is somewhat interpretive. In Coles book "Doing Documentary Work" one is able to explore the "range of documentary work" without the troublesome inhibitions of equipment. I am sick of what year a lens was made and which gives the most glow. Isn't that what vasiline is for?

 

Admittedly, I am curious how some have gotten the shot. What drew you to take that photograph? Many on this forum make the most mundane boring scence to the passerby light up in your photographs. Was it your vision? Or some contrasty film?

 

I hope there are some discussions on personal projects too. Sometimes I need some help in a personal project to stay motivated.

 

Just a few of my thoughts based on the documentary portion of the forum. I am here primarily to learn and gain more confidence in my photographic projects.

<i>Admittedly, I am curious how some have gotten the shot. What drew you to take that photograph? Many on this forum make the most mundane boring scence to the passerby light up in your photographs.</i><p>

 

I think this is an interesting and worthwhile question and I don't think there is an easy answer to it. The best answer is probably learning how things will look as photographs rather than as "real life." A lot of people get confused about this, thinking that if it is interesting as a scene on the street, it will be interesting as a photograph, or that if it is boring as a scene on the street, it will be boring as a photograph. And that's simply not the case.<p>

 

And although it all sounds simple, it really requires some feel for the translation onto the film/sensor <i>and</i> what can be done after shooting, in the post-processing. And it's the post-processing that can make photographs come alive, although you'd never know that from some of the comments on a few of the forums here (not this one.) <p>

 

If you're asking how to get there, I guess the answer is to shoot a lot of different stuff and play with it in the darkroom or Photoshop. Other than that, there really isn't an easy way to find out how things will look.<p>

 

Here's a shot of something so mundane that two other photographers with me were probably perplexed. But it interested me, and in the end, soap suds and a broom became something more than just soap suds and a broom, at least I think so...<p>

 

<center><img src="http://www.spirer.com/images/broom.jpg"><br><i>Swept Away, Copyright 2003 Jeff Spirer</i></center>

Jeff, if I see that again, I'll definitely shoot it!

Jeff, yeah. For me, Daido is one of the first one that comes to mind regarding that. My art teacher told me: 'If you think something's boring, it's your mind that's boring'<br><br>Card board...<br><br><center><img src="http://www.takaakiokada.net/images/november/images/2004_11_13_17.jpg"></center>

For me Bob Marley comes to mind....

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