Mighty good image, instantly recognizable style! PDE

[*sigh* -- This site is so clunky. Why not have an area right underneath the photo, like the old PN, to leave and see comments. Rather than this stupid box off to the side, floating in space....sorry, rant over.]

 

This made me think, "Jack McRitchie with a dash of Stephen Shore and a soupcon of Lee Friedlander. Something about the way this is framed, and the angle, that gives life, prominence, and significance to that painted over sign. And it stands in relationship to the white building in the right background. And the shadow of the upper, unseen, part of the power pole. You've always had a gift of somehow giving life to inanimate objects -- or finding the right way to present the life to the viewer.

 

[it was very good to hear from you, I saw your comments, thank you. I am mostly active on Instagram these days. I am going to try to be more active here again -- I even posted a brief comment in a forum yesterday -- but it just seemed so much easier to move around in the old site. What troubles me here is that everything seems isolated. No sense of community or central gathering place. And, as you said, most people want to sing and not listen, but in some ways there has always been some of that here, and on other photo sharing sites as well. I'm not going to lament popular, plebeian taste...it is what it is. Regardless, it is nice to make contact with you again. You are definitely a draw for me to come here, a kindred spirit. Stay well, Jack, see you around.]

There seems to have been an attempt to camouflage the billboard, which causes me to ask why? The paint job is acceptable, roughly matching the blue sky and including a utility pole and wires ;) But it's never going to blend in. In this setting of concrete, steel doors, chain link, cell towers, and asphalt, why bother trying to disguise a billboard?

 

I love the colors here, and how none of the planes is parallel to the frame. An excellent shot, Jack.

 

By the way, Jack, do you get notifications from PN that I've sent you a couple of private messages?

 

And Steve, it is great to see you back on PN! I had just commented to Jack that I hadn't seen you in a while. Please post some things here!

Pierre, Steve and Mark - Late as always with my reply. The older I get, the lazier and later I get. I don't seem to have that youth-stoked enthusiasm much anymore which really isn't all that surprising since I'll be 75 in ten days - and how the hell did that happen? In my mind I'm around 42 but every time I pass a mirror, the truth confronts me; not a pretty sight. But the mind is still in pretty good order and I'd have to say a lot zippier than most of the people I meet who seem to have given up thinking about things entirely. When I start spouting my ideas they look at me as if I'm from another world, some kind of ancient alien seed pod that's landed among them. I keep waiting in vain for some interesting conversation but all I seem to get is the newspaper, straight reportage with very little meat on the bone: went here, bought that, the kids and the grand kids are doing this or that . Anyway, I digress - again - ranting comes easy to me nowadays. Mark, I'll keep my further remarks limited to this picture and save the real blood and guts to our private conversation. I'd like to get Steve into it, too, if he wants. and Pierre and anyone else who has a bone to gnaw. I'm not sure how to do that, maybe we can just add names to the list. I don't know.

As for the picture, it's one that's very much up my alley in that it's not really about anything, any kind of meaning or memento or commentary but more a momentary observation that really doesn't give itself over to logical disection. The blue billboard is key, of course, but I very much doubt the color was intentional. That kind of subtle guerrilla art simply doesn't exist in Japan. It was more a matter of how things happened to be and then someone (me, in this case) happening to come along and happening to see how things happened to be. I'm a big believer in happenstance which I don't think is happenstance at all but actually a willful calling forth of pictorial elements on a subconscious plane which then form themselves into a composition for you. They correspond somehow to who you are and the intent you display. Boy, how's that for a brain teaser?, I'm starting to trip out. Anyway, that aspect of photography is something that has always fascinated me. It has to do with perception which most people consider fixed within rather limited parameters but I believe is malleable and in a way unlimited. Okay, I'm starting to ramble again so I'll bring this to a close. I appreciate your intelligent and detailed attention to my picture. I was initially disappointed by the reaction though I should have known better. I'm often disappointed in how people see things or rather don't see things but that's the way it goes and who knows people are probably saying the same thing about crazy Jack who is always out there in LaLa Land. Still a few comments from you guys does a lot to keep me going. Thanks again, Mark , Steve and Pierre... and Mark, I'll be talking to you again soon on the other channel. Best regards, Jack

Sorry about this,, I posted a long reply to Mark's comment but it refused to save it. When I hit save again about five minutes later it re-posted all the previous messages multiple times. Steve is right, this website is incredibly clunky.

Pierre, Steve and Mark - Late as always with my reply. The older I get, the lazier and later I get. I don't seem to have that youth-stoked enthusiasm much anymore which really isn't all that surprising since I'll be 75 in ten days - and how the hell did that happen? In my mind I'm around 42 but every time I pass a mirror, the truth confronts me; not a pretty sight. But the mind is still in pretty good order and I'd have to say a lot zippier than most of the people I meet who seem to have given up thinking about things entirely. When I start spouting my ideas they look at me as if I'm from another world, some kind of ancient alien seed pod that's landed among them. I keep waiting in vain for some interesting conversation but all I seem to get is the newspaper, straight reportage with very little meat on the bone: wen here, bought that, the kids and the grand kids are doing this or that . Anyway, I digress - again - ranting comes easy to me nowadays. Mark, I'll keep my further remarks limited to this picture and save the real blood and guts to our private conversation. I'd like to get Steve into it, too, if he wants. and Pierre and anyone else who has a bone to gnaw. I'm not sure how to do that, maybe we can just add names to the list. I don't know.

As for the picture, it's one that's very much up my alley in that it's not really about anything, any kind of meaning or memento or commentary but more a momentary observation that really doesn't give itself over to logical disection. The blue billboard is key, of course, but I very much doubt the color was intentional. That kind of subtle guerrilla art simply doesn't exist in Japan. It was more a matter of how things happened to be and then someone (me, in this case) happening to come along and happening to see how things happened to be. I'm a big believer in happenstance which I don't think is happenstance at all but actually a willful calling forth of pictorial elements on a subconscious plane which then form themselves into a composition for you. They correspond somehow to who you are and the intent you display. Boy, how's that for a brain teaser?, I'm starting to trip out. Anyway, that aspect of photography is something that has always fascinated me. It has to do with perception which most people consider fixed within rather limited parameters but I believe is malleable and in a way unlimited. Okay, I'm starting to ramble again so I'll bring this to a close. I appreciate your intelligent and detailed attention to my picture. I was initially disappointed by the reaction though I should have known better. I'm often disappointed in how people see things or rather don't see things but that's the way it goes and who knows people are probably saying the same thing about crazy Jack who is always out there in LaLa Land. Still a few comments from you guys does a lot to keep me going. Thanks again, Mark , Steve and Pierre... and Mark, I'll be talking to you again soon on the other channel. Best regards, Jack