Brad_

>>> Are you interested in art history or art appreciation? Yes, it was part of my life growing up. My mother's passion was buying paintings from thrift stores and garage sales, and she dragged me along as a child. She had a great eye and became very knowledgeable on her own. We also took many trips to local museums and exhibitions, starting when I was a young - that continues for me today. My wife is a painter, and we enjoy certain genres and artists. >>> Have you studied it formally or on your own? Nothing serious, but when I was working on my EE degree a long time ago, three Art History course I decided to take were my most enjoyed classes. I still take art and photography related classes today. >>> If so, how has it influenced your photography? I think so, no doubt with respect to composition, color/value, gesture, narrative, etc.

>>> Clarity is an attempt to have something look better than it really is. You mean like dodging and burning?

>>> For someone like that, they might prefer to spend $500 on a lens, flash or other item rather than a camera per se.<P> Or a set of books, something good for photographers of all levels. I might choose, for example, hardcover versions of Avedon's <i>In the American West</i>, Frank's <i>The Americans, Expanded Edition</i>, Arbus' <i>Revelations</i>, and Iturbide's <i>Images of the Spirit</i>.

Is the person retiring a photographer? If so, what level is his involvement?

>>> Do you compare yourself with other photographers? Do you find yourself doing it even if you had no such intentions? Outside of the locker room, no.

>>> He bought and paid for the negatives. He indeed did. And he can certainly resell those negatives, hold onto them, or give them away to a good home. It's what has happened after the purchase that I find interesting and worthy of debate.

>>> Part of that is his not buying into the institutional world's desire to take control of things, and I can admire that. That's not something I can admire, Fred. Instead, we have a person with apparently no background/education in art, photography, art institutions, archiving, etc, having taken very tight control - including copyright to Maier's work - and the editing, creation and sales of editioned sets of prints. All as he sees fit. That's really "taking control of things." When considering the Vivian Maier story, one should be mindful that the narrative was crafted, edited, and being controlled by a single individual.

>>> There is controversy, deservedly so, around Maier's photos and how they're being shown and edited. (Some feel that too much of her work is being shown and not many artists wouldn't first edit out much of their stuff before showing to the public). There's certainly that. For me, there are also a lot of other questions, such as how Maier, apparently being a very private person, would feel about a stranger having copyright over her work, and from that the creation and sale of editioned prints and books, movies, exhibitions, etc. A better option would have been if her work was held by a museum, or a university archives, similar to William Gedney's photos being archived by Duke University. It's also worth remembering the narrative about VM that's out there was created by one individual, the person who holds the copyright on her work.

Luigi half case and Luigi strap for my X-A1? Haha, probably around the price of the camera! Though it would look great with my O-ring finger strap...

>>> I think Fred is onto something, and might explain the low number of people willing to champion a thread. >>>> Both Brad and Sarah make good and valid points. Fred, I think my writing was ambiguous/unclear. I wasn't suggesting that you might explain further. Rather, what you wrote earlier could be a good explanation for the small percentage of pinged people willing to start a thread here.

I think Fred is onto something, and might explain the low number of people willing to champion a thread.