18-Jul-2019
Early light, Arrivals Hall, TWA Hotel, JFK Airport, New York, New York, 2019
To make expressive images using light and shadow to shape meaning, we need to change the way we look for our subject matter. Much of the time, photographers look for interesting or meaningful subject matter simply for its own sake. Instead, we need to look instead at how light can reveal and shadows can simultaneously hide our subject matter, creating its own rhythms, patterns, and flow to express meaning on its own. This image presents a good example of such an approach.
I was stunned at the beauty of the new TWA Hotel -- its great public spaces were once a spectacular air terminal of an airline that went bankrupt. I was having breakfast in what once was that terminal's arrivals hall. It had just been repurposed as the spectacular lobby of the only hotel within New York's JFK Airport.
As i sipped my morning coffee, my gaze happened to settle on the stairway leading from the hotel's lounge down into its lobby. It was a vast stairway, busy with people. Yet the final pair of landings were illuminated with lovely morning light and accompanying shadows. I noticed the gentle play of light and shadow on those final nine steps, as well as the way the sunlight defined the graceful handrails and concrete frame that surrounded them.
This image works best for me -- the flow of light and shadow here defines the act of movement itself and express the beauty and meaning of the architecture of the entire terminal, which is designed to emulate flight itself. Flight is movement, and these steps come to life as movement on their own at only a few moments each day -- when light and shadow simultaneously reveal the nature of the subject itself, as well as its meaning.
09-FEB-2013
Circus train, Ringling Circus Museum, Sarasota, Florida, 2013
The private sleeping car of John Ringling, who once owned every traveling circus in America, is among the features of Sarasota’s Ringling Circus Museum. I photographed Ringling’s own stateroom through an open window, a compartment bathed in panels of geometric light and shadow. A pillow, which once served as Ringling’s own footrest, is upholstered in the original carpet material, making it seem almost ghostly as it blends into the floor at the apex of my triangular composition. We can almost feel the past here, alive within the shadows.
10-FEB-2013
Sunset, High Springs, Florida, 2013
The golden evening light illuminates the upper story of one of High Spring’s vintage houses. I frame the house within an arch of trees, which helps to stress to repeating rhythms of its gabled roofs. The glow of the sunset elevates the image from a description to an expression. It takes us back in time and evokes nostalgic ideas about a rural small town from another era.
16-AUG-2012
Union Station, Los Angeles, California, 2012
The last of the great railway stations, the Union Station in Los Angeles opened in 1939 and has been serving California travelers for more than 60 years. Its spectacular “Streamline Moderne” style has remained intact through the years, serving Amtrak customers as well as commuter, subway, and bus passengers. I focus here on a sole traveler entering the vast waiting room late in the afternoon. As she stepped into a pool of light, shopping bags in hand, I abstract her as a symbolic representative of all the passengers who have passed through this historic building over the years. The light illuminates her shape from behind, while the shadows minimize descriptive appearance. The sweep of a huge arch in the background echoes the flow of curving light on her body and head.
10-NOV-2011
Ancient scene, the Pyramids, Cairo, Egypt, 2011
By abstracting the pyramid and surrounding camels through backlighting, I am able to make a picture that is utterly timeless (except for fading jet contrails glowing the overhead sky). I moved my vantage point to place the sun behind the bulk of the pyramid, and spot metered on its glowing edge. The silhouetted pair of camels, along with a cluster of tourists, is linked to the pyramid as a single monochromatic entity. I needed to shoot this scene from a fairly close distance in order to make the camels and people large enough to make an impact. The image required the use of a 24mm wideangle lens, enabling me to include most of the vast pyramid in the frame from such a close distance.
27-JUL-2011
Photo exhibit, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, Becket, Massachusetts, 2011
Several hundred work-prints by the portrait photographer Annie Liebovitz are currently on exhibition in a barn on the grounds of the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. I photographed a small section of the exhibit, wrapping it in the shadows cast by a barn window. Several windows are also reflected in the glass panels protecting the photographs. Liebovitz conceived the exhibition especially for the dance festival to salute the 50th anniversary of the Mark Morris Dance Group. By photographing photographs embraced by light and shadow, I recognize the very nature of the medium itself.
27-JUL-2011
Mask, Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, 2011
The mask seems to be floating towards us. I create this illusion by spot metering on the white plaster and allowing the rest of the image to recede into the shadows. The image speaks of another time, as does this historic theatre, which was founded in 1903.
09-MAY-2011
Hotel, Scottsdale, Arizona, 2011
There is no sign of activity at this luxury resort. What kindled my interest was the way the late afternoon light and shadow plays with the massive empty couch at the hotel’s entrance. The scene is essentially monochromatic, except for the brilliant red cushions that sit unused on long seating surface. The extended shadows on the concrete echo the horizontal flow of the extended couch, which seems to move from the light at left into the darkness at right. I used a 24mm wideangle lens and spot-metering mode to expose for the white couch and allow the shadows and surroundings to fade to black.
20-APR-2011
Golden machinery, Goldfield, Arizona, 2011
Goldfield was built to support a gold mine that operated here from 1893 to 1926. This gold mining equipment has been rusting unused for the last 85 years, and nature has provided it with a golden patina, accentuated here by evening light. I used my spot-metering mode to expose for the highlights, and allow much of the image to fall into the shadows of time.
09-MAY-2011
Imagination Gives Us Wings, Main Library, Scottsdale, Arizona, 2011
Sunlight moves, and artist Larry Kirkland has used it to create one of the most popular public artworks in Scottsdale. He carved the shape of a bird into the roof over the entrance to the Scottsdale Library. As the sun moves across the sky, the bird appears to move across the interior of the roof over the entrance. I photograph both the roof carving and the illuminated bird as they came together late in the afternoon. (The artist also created a huge golden feather of gilded aluminum that is suspended over the entrance. Your can see my image of it at:
http://www.pbase.com/pnd1/image/113688088 Both the bird and the feather make up a two-part work of art called “Imagination Gives Us Wings.”)
21-DEC-2010
Sainthood, St. Francis Church, Salvador de Bahia
The light was coming from behind this icon, illuminating a golden wreath that celebrates the worthiness of what appears to be a saintly figure, as well as the top of the hood that crowns its head. The face of the saint was in deep shadow. Instead of exposing for the face, I expose here for the illuminated wreath and hood instead. The shadowy face expresses the mystery that often cloaks the nature of sainthood.
19-JUL-2010
Grave of Cassandra Bartlett, West Dover, Vermont, 2010
Cassandra Bartlett died in 1854, after living for only three weeks and five days. Artificial flowers still mark her tiny grave. A shaft of late afternoon sun illuminates the red petals and the corner of her stone. By spot metering on the flower, I can make the façade of her gravestone, and the family marker just behind it, fall into shadow. The mood I’ve tried to create here is one of sadness, intensified by the play of light and shadow upon the grave.
28-JUL-2010
Backbenchers, House Chamber, Old State Capitol, Phoenix, Arizona, 2010
From high in the gallery over the House of Representatives Chamber in Arizona’s old state capitol building, I shoot the noon light as it pours through an overhead skylight to illuminate five desks at the back of the room. Using a superwideangle 14mm lens, I stretch the scene into deep shadow, symbolizing the presence of the past. The other desks are barely visible to the eye. If we looked at this scene with our own eyes, we would see the entire room as well as the highlighted desks. By using my spot-metering mode, I can expose for only the strong light, and create this effect. Meanwhile, a circle of 19th century light fixtures, as well as the great chandelier in the middle of the room, offer additional context of another time. The chamber is now a museum. The present Arizona House of Representatives, which is much larger than it was at the turn of the 20th century, meets in a new building next door.
03-JUN-2010
Panels of gold, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2010
The evening sun turned the wall of this dry goods store into three panels of glistening golden adobe. I used these panels to divide this image into thirds. The first third at left remains open, leading to the panel bearing the store sign, which gives us context for the locale. I waited until a silhouetted figure wearing a western hat entered the third panel, just in front of the sign, and made this image. I liked the jaunty upturned brim of the hat -- the abstracted figure symbolically comes to represent all who have lived in this quintessential western town over the decades.
08-JUN-2010
All aboard, Durango and Silverton Railroad, Durango, Colorado, 2010
The bright yellow wall is the side of an old railroad car. The shadow is that of the conductor, shouting “all aboard” as the train prepares to leave Durango on its daily trip to Silverton and back. His hand gesture tells us that he is in command here, and by silhouetting him, I abstract him into a symbolic figure of authority.
08-JUN-2010
Early morning walk, Durango, Colorado, 2010
The early morning light bathes the facades of an entire side of a residential street, creating a rhythmic series of the ten triangular peaks that carry the eye through the image to the walking silhouetted figure at lower right.
04-JUN-2010
Energy, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2010
The adobe walls of Santa Fe’s historic La Fonda hotel play host to an energetic shadow, which animates this image. This shadow of a woman in full stride, stressing her cocked arm and clenched fist, ties the two pedestrians in this scene together by linking the arm positions of both. The swinging arms, both real and shadowy, carry the eye through the picture, and echo the other repeating vertical shapes that line the sidewalk.
04-JUN-2010
Play of light, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2010
The soft curving flow of adobe architecture is often known as “Santa Fe Style.” It is at its best in the warm of light of morning or evening. In this image, which I made early in the morning, I layer the image by anchoring it with foliage, and then moving the eye through the colors and shapes of two different buildings. It is the play of light and shadow that separates one building from the other, and expresses the three-dimensional aspect of form, instead of the two-dimensional aspect of shape.
03-JUN-2010
Evening in Santa Fe, Santa Fe, Mexico, 2010
Another aspect of Santa Fe style is the covered arcade, which appears on so many of the town’s commercial and institutional structures. In the early evening, the low, warm light can illuminate the walls within these arcades, providing a perfect background for the silhouetted shapes of the evening strollers that walk below them. This couple was just entering the arcade. I relate their shadowy figures to the repeating pillars that urge them forward.
22-OCT-2009
First sweep, Cismigiu Garden, Bucharest, Romania, 2009
The light is glorious, streaming through the trees, creating a translucent canopy over a twisting curb that carries us deep into the scene. All I needed were actors on such a dazzling stage, and two street sweepers eventually arrived to assume the roles as they make their first sweep of the day. They come out of the shadowy foreground as if they are dancing, each thrusting their brooms in opposite direction, one of them standing where the curb breaks to the left, while the other, wearing a bright road coat, wanders off into the distance, towards the bright red flowers.
24-SEP-2009
Smoke, Toronto, Canada, 2009
A smoker tapping ash from a cigarette outside of an office building is not in itself expressive subject matter. Rather, it is up to how we can photograph it to make it expressive. In this case, the smoker chose to stand within a pool of early morning light, casting a shadow on the marble wall behind her. She clutches a bottle of water in one hand, while using the other to tap the ash from her extended cigarette. A puff of smoke circles the fingers, while her highlighted expression remains passive. Using spot-metering mode, I expose on the sun-splashed wall, allowing the rest of the image to darken. The shadows embrace a row of softly focused red flowers at the base of the image, reminding us that smoking often casts a shadow on the quality of life itself.
28-SEP-2009
Athabasca Falls, Jasper National Park, Canada, 2009
This image is less an image of a waterfall, and more a study of light and shadow interacting on the mist rising from the gorge of the Athabasca River. The falls themselves provide background context, as do the rocks that surround the scene. Soft diagonal rays of light filter through the rising cloud of moisture, providing atmosphere that expresses the beauty of the falls more effectively than a descriptive scene.
24-JUN-2009
Inner Harbor, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, 2009
Late in the day, I like shooting into water that is backlighted by a setting sun. Deliberately underexposing the image, I blanket this busy harbor scene with watery texture, full of ripples, waves, and spray. The backlighting abstracts the water and creates silhouettes of the boats in the foreground, as well as of the seaplanes that wait to take off in the background. The harbor becomes a monochromatic abstraction, with only the red in the Canadian flag to remind us of reality.
10-JUN-2009
The challenge of photography, Scottsdale, Arizona, 2009
Light, shadow, scale incongruity, and rhythmic repetition combine here to symbolically express the nature of photographic challenge. One of my tutorial students, photographing the park surrounding Scottsdale’s Civic Plaza, is dwarfed by a series of long shadows that engulf her. They lean to the left while she aims her camera to the right, ignoring their presence. Using a 14mm wideangle lens, I am able to move in on the scene to make detail visible, yet still retain the sweep of scale here. The lower half of the image is filled with dark grass, contrasting to the white wall that provides the backdrop here. The great pool of darkness underscores the nature of the challenge itself – photography itself is a journey of discovery, a journey through the unknown. Photographers often use a trial and error approach to find their ideas. I also remove the green tint that emerged from the ground and smudged the wall, converting the image to black and white and thereby keep it true to the origins of the medium itself.
09-APR-2009
Garden Wall, Tucson, Arizona, 2009
This shuttered window in Tucson’s historic district leads to a garden – we can see leaves forcing their way through the wooden shutters. I was struck by the effect of the early morning sun on the blue wall – it paints that wall, as well as the shutters within it, with dappled light. The shutters show the wear and tear of the seasons – they have seen the sun rise on them many times over the years. The play of light and shadow expresses a mood of timeless serenity.
14-NOV-2008
Berber cave house, Matmata, Tunisia, 2008
Berbers have been living in cave houses here for centuries. I use the diagonal play of light and shadow here to suggest the passage of the ages. There is also a diagonal relationship between a young Berber boy and a hungry cat.
11-NOV-2008
Street corner, Tozeur, Tunisia, 2008
When I am on a photo-shoot, I try to go out well before breakfast to take advantage of the early light. It produces striking contrasts, making ordinary subjects appear in extraordinary ways. It also paints subjects in a rich golden color, adding a wealth of meaning in the process. This image is a good example of both contrast and color. Light and shadow alternate both horizontally and vertically here, producing depth perception and a timeless quality. The golden wall at left provides contrast for the seated shadowy figure of a turbaned man seated motionless at left. He is seeking alms, and finds none. The morning sun illuminates half of the red gate at center – it is locked shut, symbolically echoing the poverty of the alms-seeker. (A few minutes later, another character entered the frame, and offered me an opportunity to tell an entirely different story within the same space and in the same light. See
http://www.pbase.com/image/106455377 )
08-NOV-2008
Pattern, Sousse, Tunisia 2008
Light and shadow can create patterns that express ideas. In this case, an overhead awning made up of wooden slats becomes a giant shadow wheel on the wall of a beachfront building. Superimposed over a geometrically designed metal door, the wheel creates a symbolic juxtaposition. The door represents closure, while the wheel suggests movement. Time itself seems to wheel relentlessly on here, while those who may be locked behind the closed door remain oblivious to its passage.
20-MAY-2008
Gravestone, Chinese Camp, California, 2008
The soft, dappled light falling on this gravestone evokes the very sentiment engraved on its face – “May she rest in peace.” The interplay of light and shadow is not only peaceful. It also provides abstraction and symbolism. In this case, what the shadows withhold is as important as what the light reveals. We can easily see a cross, a memorial phrase, the last name, the year of death, and the national origin. The first name, age, and town of origin, are abstracted -- implied rather than defined, because they are obscured by mysterious shadows. Those shadows can symbolize the mysteries of death itself.
28-MAR-2008
Dawn in the village, Khajuraho, India, 2008
A rising sun is echoed in the design of an ornamental gate in the village of Khajuraho. The light clouds add important texture to the background as well.
21-DEC-2007
Imperial fence, The Citadel, Hue, Vietnam, 2007
The play of soft light and shadow on this fence, built over 100 years ago, offers a nostalgic glow that energizes the past and removes the present. The light also sculpts the ornate details on each fence post -- the design alternates. The Emperors of Vietnam built the fence, which borders the area housing the royal palaces and fortress that once made Hue the cultural and political center of Vietnam.
04-JAN-2008
Morning pho, Sadec, Vietnam, 2008
Pho (pronounced "fuh") is a delicious broth, filled with noodles, beef, chicken, or pork. It is a meal in itself and is often devoured as a breakfast by Vietnamese. This woman not only is enjoying the soup -- she also has a large cup of steamed coffee on hand. It was the dramatic “Rembrandt” lighting that drew me to this scene. I shot this picture through the open front of a small café. A window off to the side and behind the woman illuminates her cheek, fingers, chopsticks, coffee pot, and the incongruous stream of noodles that she was slowly ingesting. There is just enough reflection from this light for us to also see her intent expression within the shadows. The right hand side of the image is filled with the shadowed back of a dining companion, who sits across the table from her. He, too, fades to black as food for the imagination.
10-NOV-2007
Spruce Tree Cliff Dwelling, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, 2007
A flare of light grazes the ruins of Mesa Verde's Spruce Tree House, a cliff dwelling built during the 11th century. It had more than 100 rooms, and is in excellent condition because it is protected from weather by an overhanging cliff. I grazed the sun with the upper right hand corner of my frame to create the flare of light. Using my spot-metering mode, I exposed for the light, which throws much of the image into deep, mysterious shadows.
11-NOV-2007
At the heart of Chaco, Chaco Culture National Historic Park, New Mexico, 2007
Chaco Culture National Historic Park is a ruined ancient city in North Central New Mexico. Its origins are still shrouded in mystery -- the Choacoans left no written records. Chaco is a park for the imagination, and this image serves it well through light and shadow. A shadow that becomes detached from its source can often become the basis of an incongruous image. These ruins have been here for more than a thousand years and I wanted to suggest the presence of the ancient ghosts who still might linger here. I use light and my own shadow here to abstract myself and become part of Chaco’s past. The 28mm wideangle format embraces my shadow, a kiva, and the ruined buildings, fusing a tale to tease the imagination of those who will look at this image.
08-NOV-2007
Entrance, Hubbell Trading Post, Ganado, Arizona, 2007
A plaque bearing the profile of a Navajo is mounted over the entrance to the Hubbell Trading Post at Ganado, Arizona. It has been there for over 100 years. Founder John Hubbell was a trader, friend and father figure to the Navajo people from 1876 to 1930. I wanted more than just a description of the plaque itself – I wanted to express the nature of the texture, color, and light that define this unique place. I use the geometry created by the interplay of light and shadow to achieve my goal.
07-NOV-2007
Geometry, Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico, 2007
The Acoma Pueblo, also known as Sky City, is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the US. The first white man to enter Sky City was the Spanish explorer Francisco de Coronado, in 1540. Built on a 367-foot high mesa, the Pueblo rises to 7000 feet above sea level. The light is magical -- here it plays geometric games on the walls of the Pueblo's Visitor Center.
14-SEP-2007
City gate, Pingyao, China, 2007
This is more an image of light than it is an image of a gate. I use the silhouette of the gate as context, and the light on and behind the clouds as my subject. The light explodes from the clouds in a band of connected rays, which echo and complete the upward thrust of the roof of the gate.
14-SEP-2007
Banker’s house, Pingyao, China, 2007
Pingyao was the first banking center in China. Lei Livtai established the country's first draft bank here. A statue of Livtai stands in his house, which, like much of this ancient city, still stands. I exposed for the light coming through the decorative door panes. Just enough light falls on the statue to define it’s profile. It seems to float in space, just as Livtai’s spirit pervades the house where he lived and died.
12-SEP-2007
Sculpture for sale, Flea Market, Chaotian Palace, Nanjing, China, 2007
A marble statue of Mao and a terra cotta sculpture of an ancient Chinese lady stand side by side in the shadows of the Flea Market adjoining Nanjing's Chaotian Palace complex. The play of dappled light and shadow on these sculptures was exquisite – the kind of light photographers dream about. I used my spot meter to expose for the highlights on the lady’s hair, and let the rest of the image rest in varying degrees of darkness, implying, rather than showing all of the details. The woman’s face is more heavily shadowed than Mao, suggesting traditional subservience to authority.
08-AUG-2007
Mule deer, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 2007
Walk anywhere along the rim of the Grand Canyon just after dawn and you will see mule deer grazing on hotel lawns and in the high grasses that line the trail. I saw this one just off the Bright Angel Trail, framed in beautiful backlight. The light was streaming through the trees, creating pockets of sun and shadow. I waited until the deer move its head into the brightest spot of the picture to make this image. The light illuminates that head just as it begins to move towards a meal. It is almost a halo – a brilliant exclamation that underscores the point of the image. By exposing for the brightest part of the picture, I also darken the rest of it. In doing so, I reduce the visibility of the large scars on its back, no doubt from a predator, that mars its otherwise smooth coat.
06-JUL-2007
Pearl Street, Denver, Colorado, 2007
The early morning sun illuminates the brickwork on the side of an early 20th century apartment building. Using my spot-metering mode, I expose for the brightest part of the image, which plunges the shadowed areas into blackness. The large black areas within this image fragment the brickwork, dividing it both vertically and horizontally to create an incongruity. The image features that most solid of surfaces – a brick wall. Yet it the play of shadows upon that wall breaks it into pieces. The image offers a simple metaphor: things are not always what they seem.
09-JUN-2007
Evil Eye, di Rosa Preserve, Napa Valley, California, 2007
The incongruity of this single baleful eye on a shattered face was, in itself, worthy of a shocking image. But the interplay of light and shadow brings so much more meaning to it. The angle of the mid-day sun creates a deep shadow that cuts the sculpture in half. The upper half of the head, holding the eye in place, seems to float menacingly in space. It looks like it can follow us anywhere. Adding to that threat is the zigzag background shadow that tears the image into jagged points of light and darkness. This sculpture is one of about 2,300 works of art in the collection of Rene di Rosa. Fortunately, it can be displayed outdoors, and benefit from the natural interplay of light and shadow upon it.
13-JUN-2007
Fence, Tomales Bay, California, 2007
Tomales Bay reaches like an outstretched arm between the shores of West Marin County and the Point Reyes National Seashore. The bay, resting quietly between the hills just north of the historic Olema Valley, is lined with tiny towns and lovely homes. One of those homes was designed as a dacha, its fence echoing the spirit of Czarist Russia. The play of sunset on this wooden fence created a work of natural art unto itself. All I had to do was to spot meter on the brightest post, drawing the ornamental fence into the light out of the dark shadows falling both on it and beyond it.
A week before I made this image, I read a quote from Paul Strand, whose own iconic image “White Fence” was a turning point in American photography. Strand said of a visit to the former Soviet Union, “I saw a fence against dark woods – it was a very special fence, containing the most amazing shapes. If I’d had my camera with me, I could have made a photograph that had something to do with Dostoevsky.” Strand went on to say that those dark woods gave him the same sort of feeling you get from reading Dostoevsky’s ‘The Idiot.’ When I saw this shadowy Russian fence on Tomales Bay, and my resulting image, I thought of what Paul Strand had said, and a chill ran down my spine.
13-JUN-2007
Nude, Tomales Bay, California, 2007
Just beyond the fence in the previous image, a sculptural figure of a nude woman looks out on the waters of Tomales Bay. The late afternoon sun that sculpted the Czarist Russian fence also illuminates the backside of the stone body. The figure appears almost alive, energized by the flow of light and shadow that defines the body, arms, and ever so little of cascading hair. Another band of soft evening light separates the figure from boulders and the water beyond. It seems to yearn for the water it never can reach.
19-FEB-2007
Mural, Amargosa Opera House, Death Valley Junction, California, 2007
Located in Death Valley Junction's Amargosa Hotel, just outside of the National Park, this opera house was created by Marta Becket in the 1960s. She still performs weekly in this isolated hall, formerly a borax plant infirmary. A caretaker opened the opera house for us, which gave me a chance to photograph the murals that Becket painted on its walls. This mural is at the back of the auditorium, creating an illusory balcony filled with a 17th century audience. I built this image around a single face, caught in the glow of ceiling light. Using ISO 800, I made this image hand held at 1/8th of a second, bracing the camera on the back of a seat. This painted figure, seated high in the corner of the painted balcony, would be the most distant member of the audience – yet because of the interplay of light and shadow here, I’ve made him the most important.
25-FEB-2007
Smokestacks, Bakersfield, California, 2007
We passed through the city of Bakersfield on the way back from Death Valley. It was a Sunday morning, and the streets were deserted. Yet these chimneys were belching smoke into a semi-overcast sky. Exposing on the bright sky, I abstracted the smokestacks and the surrounding structures and supports, creating a silhouetted geometric pattern of shapes that symbolize industry. I positioned the flow of smoke so that it flows into the one patch of sky that remains blue.
19-FEB-2007
Sunburst, Death Valley National Park, California, 2007
Wherever visitors go in Death Valley, ravens are sure to follow. I found this backlighted raven waiting for handouts in a parking area near Artist’s Palette. With a setting sun just behind it, the raven seemed to be enjoying his moment in the limelight. When we shoot directly into such light as this, we will usually get an image full of distracting reflections, known as lens flare. I minimized the distraction of lens flare by lowering the top edge of my frame as far as possible to cut the sun out of the picture. I took off my cap and tried to block the sun with it as well. I wanted the effect of a sunburst without all those little round distracting reflections that usually come along with it. And that is what happened here. The sunburst is there, but the distractions of lens flare are not.
18-DEC-2006
Camel herd, Erg Chebbi, Sahara Desert, Morocco, 2006
The sight of a camel herd moving past our camp in the Sahara was startling. It seemed like a scene out of a movie. These particular dunes, in fact, have been the setting for many films, including "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Sahara." I isolated only a portion of the herd for this image, choosing a group of camels that was strung out against the sand instead of bunched together. I also made sure to include a solitary camel driver, walking alongside just below the herd. I also waited until this particular group of camels came opposite the huge, funnel-like shadow on the dunes just above them. It is the shadow that gives this image its expression and power, symbolizing a sense of both time and mystery.
22-DEC-2006
County line, Skoura-Marrakesh Road, Morocco, 2006
Shooting at sunset through the front window of a moving bus bound for Marrakesh, I saw these lonely gates flanking the highway well before we got to them. These gates represent the entrance to another county. Four cyclists were riding between these gates just as I shot. The image is bound together by a wrapping of telephone lines. The image works because of the degree of abstraction – in this case I exposed for the golden sky and let the gates, ground, riders and poles all go into blackness.
27-DEC-2006
Caleche, Marrakesh, 2006
These horse drawn carriages are a Marrakesh tradition and seem to fit naturally into the old streets of the city. I photographed this one around sunset, exposing for the brightest spot on the pavement to abstract the oncoming horses, the driver and the people waiting to cross the street behind the tree.
30-SEP-2006
Moose, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, 2006
I was fortunate to be able to abstract this female moose with backlighting. The early morning sunlight creates a rim of light around her body, and illuminates the water dripping from her mouth. The backlighting also picks up the gold in the grasses both in the foreground and background. The body of the moose is left in deep shadow, leaving the details of her appearance to the imagination of the viewer.
19-SEP-2006
Reeds, Mount Carmel, Utah, 2006
Using my spot meter, the sidelight of an early morning sun allows me to bring out the color and texture of these reeds, while putting the background into shadow. This simplifies the image, removing all distractions and clutter from the scene. The stage is left to the reeds alone, glowing in a deeply shadowed world.
20-SEP-2006
Sunrise, Bryce Canyon, Utah, 2006
I underexpose this sunrise to abstract the image, intensifying the rich colors of the sun as it sends a single beam of light through the clouds, as well as illuminating the sky. Nature hides the sun itself, and I hide details of the earth and clouds in turn. What is left is the essence of the scene – the power of light and color.
25-SEP-2006
Mormon Tabernacle, Paris, Utah, 2006
The Mormon Tabernacle in Paris, Utah, is 118 years old, and was designed by the son of Mormon leader Brigham Young. The morning I visited it, I was struck by the way the sun hit one of its delicate spires while at the same time the tabernacle’s decorative motif glow softly in reflective light. While only a very small part of the structure appears in my image, it is enough to give a viewer a sense of both time and place.
02-AUG-2006
Graffiti, Fifth Avenue, New York City, 2006
Given the upscale nature of New York’s Fifth Avenue, one does not expect to find inscriptions of this kind on its buildings. But Fifth Avenue is not always upscale. As it threads its way below 23rd Street, Fifth Avenue becomes a hodgepodge of commerce.
Many of its buildings are derelicts, such as this one, buildings either being slowly taken apart or being renovated. Graffiti artists throng to such structures, leaving their mark on a city and its buildings. It appears as if somebody has neatly painted a cross on the remaining red bricks with a roller. Other followed, leaving five or six signatures over the cross. The neatly painted red bricks hosting the graffiti contrasts strongly to the shadowy brick that is fading all around it. All of which holds the seeds of a successful expressive image. But the deal was sealed for me by the flow of light and the presence of shadows within the scaffolding that enveloped this structure. It allows me to begin my image in the upper left hand corner, and then follow a symbolic ray of light down along a diagonal until it expands into an illuminated square that holds the graffiti.
05-AUG-2006
Forgotten, Mohonk Museum Attic, New Paltz, New York, 2006
It is not often that one visits a resort so old that it has its own museum. Such is the case at Mohonk Mountain House, a Victorian resort founded in 1869. As the resort ages, its museum, housed in a barn on the grounds, grows apace. I spent several hours prowling its crowded floors, filled with fascinating 19th and 20th Century artifacts of a country hotel. In a corner of the museum’s attic, I found a small dimly lit room housing dusty registers of hotel guests, going back to the 1870s. On a shelf above some of those registers stood three painted plaster busts. In another era, they might have adorned the hotel’s lobby or dining room. Forgotten and unseen, their colors are faded and their plaster is chipped. Yet they still carry themselves with dignity as they hold their poses from another time. I isolate them in the light from a distant window by using spot-metering and a hand-held shutter speed of 1/13th of a second. The guest registers are barely visible, their contents out of sight and out of mind. It is said by some that Mohonk is haunted by ghosts from its past. If so, it would not surprise me if some of them might live in this room.
10-JUN-2006
Gothic arches, Florence, Oregon, 2006
The architecture of this 1936 bridge over the Siuslaw River is beautiful in itself. At dusk I was able to abstract this architecture, using the golden light and deep shadows created by the setting sun. Some might find the light illuminating the tiny red directional sign in the middle of the bridge to be distracting. I found it added a new dimension to meaning – the old bridge has always carried traffic in two directions, and the sign can be viewed as a symbol of life as a two way street. Our trip's co-leader, Winn Krafton, chose to photograph the entire bridge at the same moment, using the golden light to tell an entirely different story. See it by clicking the thumbnail below.
11-JUN-2006
Creek shadows, Reedsport, Oregon, 2006
Rather than show the bridge itself, I photographed the shadows on the columns beneath it. The shadows create a series of repeating arrows echoing the gradual rise of the tall grass that lines the creek. The subject of the picture is not really the bridge – it is the interplay of light and shadow on the bridge and its surroundings.
10-MAY-2006
Race to the future, Phoenix, Arizona, 2006
Darkness can convey the mystery of the unknown. But so can brightness. I photographed a number of cars speeding through an underpass in the heart of downtown Phoenix. The underpass ends in a blaze of over-exposure, burning out all of the pixels in that area of the picture. Photographic purists view burnout – the loss of all pixel detail -- as an exposure mistake. But as an expressive photographer, I deliberately use burnout here to symbolize meaning. In this instance, burnout provides a metaphor for what lies ahead of this car that appears to be racing towards the future: a dazzlingly bright, unknown destination. I heighten the illusion of speed by using a slow shutter speed that blurs the car, stretching its tail lights into red streaks. I use a wideangle lens in a wide format camera to extend that blur and hasten this car towards its destination. The long railing and facing wall of arches also accelerate its headlong rush towards the blazing hole at the end of the tunnel.
01-APR-2006
Deliveries, Old Town, Lijiang, China, 2006
It is just after dawn. The morning flood of tourists has yet to descend en masse on Lijiang's Old Town. Yet this man is already making his deliveries to one of its many restaurants. At this hour, the town is at its most genuine. What we see is the workings of a town, not the commercial facade created to draw tourists. It is a quiet, almost private time of day here. I made this image to speak of that quiet. He seems to tip toe through the door, with his handcart by his side. He is backlighted. The golden light brushes his hat, the doorframe, boxes, and floor. All else is dark. To prevent my camera from trying to “expose” this image “properly” by “balancing light and dark into gray” I use a spot meter. I meter only on the bright door panel, exposing it perfectly. Almost everything else in the image falls into abstract shadow.
15-MAR-2006
Demo man, Beijing, China, 2006
Demolition crews work late, and often with primitive equipment, to smash the old in order to make the new in booming Beijing. I photographed this man at work on and off from various positions for nearly ten minutes, watching the sun swiftly work its way ever downward. Finally the sun reached the arc of his swing. Spot-metering off the sun itself, everything becomes shadow except for the golden sky and white-hot sun. The buildings are abstracted geometric shapes. We have no idea how big or how small they may be. They become symbols of a city, nothing more. Using the multiple frame option, I hold the shutter button down as he begins his downward swing. Three frames are exposed within a second. One of them is dead on – the back of the man and the shaft of the hammer are complementary diagonals, and the hammer slices into the sun itself.
31-MAR-2006
Quick read, Shuhe, China, 2006
A local shopkeeper savors a read and smoke at high noon. This is by far the worst light of the day, offering harsh, unforgiving contrast. But I have two things going for me here: indirect, reflected light off the paper is softly illuminating his face, and the sun is just grazing the end of the top of the end of his cigarette. I use the spot meter to expose for the newspaper, which intensifies the shadow areas instead of graying them out. While the fingers, newspaper and chair are strongly lighted, the face and cigarette, which are the most important elements in this image, are subtly illuminated. His black hair and sweater have absorbed much of the light that strikes them, but just enough of his chest and hair show to give his body form.
13-MAR-2006
Wangfujing Street, Beijing, China, 2006
I love lighting challenges. I learn from them, and perhaps others can as well.
While walking through this busy Beijing shopping district just after dawn, I noticed an intense reflection of sunlight on the glossy paving stones that lined the curb. Within that reflection was the shadow of a man and his pushcart. I wanted to abstract the man and cart, hold as much detail in the reflection as I could, and still give some context for the busy street around him. I exposed with a spot meter on the reflected sun. The reflection was so intense I knew that I would sacrifice some detail in the street texture. I made this image at 1/400th of second at ISO 80 with the lens closed down as far as it would go. I could have darkened it more with a faster shutter speed, but I would have risked losing background context. Exposure control is a balancing act – there are no right or wrongs here, only an objective to reach. I wanted to hold background detail in the street and I did. The image works for me because it is full of life and vitality, yet also quite abstract and hauntingly beautiful. A bit of burned out street is a small price to pay. I am not after technical perfection in my pictures. I am only concerned with expression.
13-MAR-2005
Break of day, Beijing, China, 2006
When I shoot, I look not for things to make pictures of, but for the effect of light itself on things. I was drawn to the sidewalk shadows created by a row of columns, and the rhythmic rays of light that fell between them. These repeating diagonal lines could draw the eye into a scene. But what scene was there to draw the eye to? I solved that problem by moving my position until there was more space between the two columns at right than anywhere else in the picture, and then waited for people to pass into and through that space. I was very fortunate – within a few minutes, two people entered that space, walking together, step for step. Their back legs formed rhythmic diagonals that echoed the diagonal play of light and shadow in the foreground. The image became more than just expression of form and rhythm. It expressed a bonding process that makes two people into one – the rhythm of life itself.
31-MAR-2005
Shadows at the corner, Shuhe, China, 2006
These ancient buildings display strings of lanterns and golden signs -- a tell tale sign that they have been gentrified for touristic purposes. Yet the rhythms of early morning life on the streets of this village are authentic. The shadowy figures at right are farm workers who could well be figures right out of the 1930s. I was drawn to this subject by the play of color, light, and texture on the building, but it was only an exercise in form until the figures hurried past me into the deep shadows at right. Shadows within shadow, they become abstractions that prove timeless symbols.
10-FEB-2006
Oil Company Sign, Barstow, California, 2006
This sign, photographed in the late afternoon shadows at Tom's Welding and Machine Shop in Barstow, California, might have once encouraged travelers along US Route 66 to check their oil levels. Today it offers a nostalgic glimpse of a logo long since discarded.
I would not have photographed this sign without these shadows. They hide the face, arm, and a leg, leaving the warm late afternoon light to stress the active leg, chest and one of the arms. The name of the company is also abstracted – this image is about an icon, not a corporation. Even the company’s venerable slogan, “Best in the Long Run,” is obscured by shadow. I want this figure to exist in memory as much as in fact. The illuminated partial body, sporting large and small rust spots, says it all.
10-FEB-2006
Rusting Wheel Hub, Barstow, California, 2006
This vehicle wheel hub l has long since come to a stop at Tom's Welding and Machine Shop in Barstow. The golden light warms its rusted finish and with a little imagination, it might seem ready to move once again. I moved in close to abstract it and stress the detail, right down to the tiny figures and symbols etched on the hub. The dark shadows in the background abstract much of the wheel itself, leaving our eyes to feast on the rusty hub with its bolts, nut, and pin, a true relic of the industrial age.
01-NOV-2005
Choices at #101, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, 2005
Warm light and deep morning shadows mark the start of a new day. What will that day bring? I use the deep shadows blanketing the foreground to suggest that question. The warmth embracing both this woman and the house she is emerging from represents the comfort and security of the known, while heavy shadows signify the mysterious and the unknown. The interplay of light and shadow are working together as symbols for meaning in this image, as are the two doors, which suggest differing options. I intended this image as an expression about the choices we face, the mysteries that await us, and the chances we take.
The Dawn Casts Long Shadows, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, 2005
Morning and evening light in San Miguel's clear air and high altitude illuminates the warm colors of its buildings, the colorful clothing of its residents, and casts long and mysterious shadows. I find the man’s sharply defined shadow to be aggressive, perhaps even somewhat threatening. Yet the soft shadow on the right hand side of the image seems more of a mystery than a threat. The man is pinned between both shadows, and framed by the black hole of the doorway behind him. He is so relaxed that he notices none of this. But as photographers, we must notice such things. The meaning of our pictures depends on them.
04-SEP-2005
Mourning Shadows, Mirogoj Cemetery, Zagreb, Croatia, 2005
This sculpture, marking the tomb of a 19th century resident of Zagreb, seems to be mourning a loved one. I use light and shadow here to tell the story of grief. There were originally three parts to this image -- the evergreen tree draping the top and left side of the frame, the sculpture behind it, and a tomb in the background. I used my spot meter to expose on the brightest part of the picture – the leaves. The sculpture gets darker as a result -– it seems to grieve even more as it merges into the dark background. The tomb itself vanishes into shadow, creating a large empty space in the center of the image. I use that emptiness to express a loss that cannot be replaced. It is the shadow that best tells the story here.
12-SEP-2005
The Face of Time, Franciscan Monastery, Dubrovnik, Croatia, 2005
The soft reflected light falling on the face of this figure atop a 14th century sculpted column in the Monastery’s cloister creates a timeless image – it almost comes to life before us. I often think of the flow of light and shadow as sculptural in itself. It reveals as it hides, offering our imaginations food for thought. Some might opt to convert this image to black and white since there is very little color in it. I did not choose to do so. The tiny amount of color here is subtle but important – it is the palette of the middle ages itself, a bit of beige, a trace of purple, wrapped in the softness of gentle, indirect light. It is what gives this image its title.
04-SEP-2005
Family Plot, Mirogoj Cemetery, Zagreb, Croatia, 2005
The haunting Mirogoj is one of the most beautiful cemeteries in Europe. Some say Zagreb's former citizens buried here are better housed in death than they ever were in life. The small figure of the child is the focal point of this image. To make it contrast to the overall scene, I spot-metered on its brilliant white marble and everything else in the image falls into the shadows behind it. The cemetery itself thereby becomes context for the poignant sculpture of the child.
15-JUL-2005
Self-portrait, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2005
The morning sun was at a perfect angle, throwing a shadow of a heroic sculpture, depicting a mounted Indian holding a buffalo skull over his head, on to the street. As I tried to photograph this shadow, my own shadow kept appearing in the frame. I finally gave up and changed my concept. I would make the problem into my subject matter. I simply held on to the pedestal of the sculpture with one hand and shot with the other. Fortunately, I was wearing a wide brimmed hat, which, in combination with my photographer’s vest, makes me look very much like a figure out of the Old West. The resulting abstraction speaks more of Santa Fe’s history than it does of either the sculpture itself or myself. Both become symbols of a larger idea.
16-JUL-2005
Detail, Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2005
The warm color and strong shadows of early morning light redefine the ends of the rugged roof beams that protrude through the wall of this building, and illuminate the colorful detail that decorate the posts and beams that support the roof. The Institute of American Indian Arts is a good example of what has become known as Territorial Design or Santa Fe Style architecture. In this image, I wanted to express the symbolic essence of Santa Fe Style through the interplay of light and shadow on a small section of the Institute’s external detail, texture, and structure. I cropped this photograph into a long horizontal format to stress the flow of the dark shadows that hold the image together.
16-JUL-2005
Ghosts of the La Fonda, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2005
If you believe in ghosts, there is no better place in Santa Fe to find them than at the historic La Fonda Hotel. Although the present structure dates from 1922, there has been a series of inns and hotels on this site since Santa Fe’s founding in 1607. Executions, murders, and suicides are said to have taken place here over the years, and travelers periodically report ghost sightings in the present hotel. Given its haunted history, I felt obligated to create an image commemorating that aspect of La Fonda’s legend. Although it might have been a lot easier to fabricate a ghostly photo with Photoshop manipulations, I preferred to find my own moment in light and shadow, an actual image expressing a haunted vision. Standing across the street from one corner of the hotel, and using a long lens to draw a crosswalk into the frame as a lead-in to my images, I previsualized the images I would make before I made them – I simply wanted to photograph a series of early morning shadows cast by passing pedestrians on the hotel’s façade. And so I waited and shot, and shot and waited. People often cluttered the crosswalk, and passing cars obliterated some of my favorite shadows. After a half hour of shooting, this image was as close as I would come to imprinting the spirits of the past upon the present structure. The people themselves are well out of the frame, but the low angle of the sun here has etched a vanishing body into the recessed portal – all we can see are his legs and part of his body. Another person, walking just in front of him, and wearing a wide brimmed cowboy hat, is dramatically defined on the wall just to the right of the portal. Their abstracted images have been frozen in time here forever, and in their own one-dimensional way, each has become a Ghost of the La Fonda.
14-JUL-2005
Georgia O’Keefe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2005
Nature makes shadows, but photographers can interpret them to express ideas of their own. After visiting the charming museum devoted to the paintings of Georgia O’Keefe, much of it done in the light and shadows of New Mexico, I felt inspired to work with the same qualities of light and shadow as they played upon the façade of the very building displaying so much of her own work. I noticed that the angle of the sun had cast a strong diagonal shadow of leaves from a nearby tree on to the museum wall. I was moved by the pattern of that shadow – it resembled, appropriately enough, the broad-brush strokes of a painter. Yet the shadow was not enough to make the image express an idea. I waited as person after person walked past or into that shadow. I wanted a perfect diagonal match, and got it with this museum visitor, as he launched a leg at the shadow in exact alignment. The photo contains four elements – the light and shadow playing on the wall, the museum sign giving the image its identity, the leafy overhanging tree, and the museum visitor. All of them work together to link O’Keefe’s legacy to her present day audience.
12-JUN-2005
Day’s end, Bruges, Belgium, 2005
Light cannot be considered in a vacuum. Many factors combine as light brings character and meaning to a photograph. We work simultaneously with light and its counterpart, shadow, to express ideas. The angle and intensity of the light is critical – it determines how those shadows fall, and also affects the color of the light as well. We can build meaning with those colors. We can also take advantage of reflected light, as it paints our subjects in varying colors. Light and shadow also can create mood and atmosphere. It abstracts and reveals, passes through some of our subjects and bounces off of others. This image, made at sunset, offers examples of some of these factors at work. Light and shadow in sharp contrast create the focal point of this image, the group of brownish red buildings, which appear almost three-dimensional because of this lighting. due to the lowering sun coming in strongly from the right to illuminate them. The buildings in the foreground fall into shadow, becoming a massive anchor and bringing a sense of stability to the image. The low angle of the light is warm, bringing rich color and a spiritual glow to this photograph. The color speaks of time and age, very much a part of the character of Bruge itself. The turreted church spire is also defined dimensionally by light and shadow. The delicate hue of the pale blue sky is created by light as well. This image will lodge in the imagination, not because of the content itself, but because of what the interplay of light and shadow does to that content. It reveals the essence of Old Bruges – timeless, spiritual, historical, beautiful and memorable.
18-JUN-2005
Escape, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2005
As I photographed this mannequin in a Leiden shop window, I thought first of a ghost. The light was creating a reflection on the glass, subtly fragmenting the figure. A shadow crosses the middle of the body, separating the head and shoulders from the rest. Light and shadow also create an illusion on the building’s façade. The brick wall symbolizes a barrier, yet the black shadow that cuts diagonally across it implies otherwise. It suggests a fire escape to me, even though none was there. When I looked at this image for the first time, the ghostly figure seemed to be gazing longingly at that shadow. I thank the imagination of a Leiden window dresser for creating the display itself. I am essentially photographing the art of another artist here. However, I’ve also used my camera to take advantage of the interplay of light and shadow on the mannequin, the glass window, and the brick wall in ways the window dresser probably could not imagine.
17-JUN-2005
Slivers of light, Gouda, The Netherlands, 2005
When I look for light, I look first at how it falls on the subject. There are infinite differences in the patterns of light and shadow – no two are precisely alike. However there are certain arrangements of light and shadow that offer instant drama. This is one of them – I call it the “slivers of light” pattern. Whenever light and shadow alternate within a very small space, the chance of creating a visually arresting image out of it are there for the asking. All we need is subject matter within that space that carries the potential for expression. In this case, the high mid-afternoon sun was dividing the image into three distinct bands of light and three areas of deep shadow. The sculpture represents a divinity or ruler of some kind. The sun illuminates the scepter at left, half the head and bit of neck and chest in the center, and one arm at right, along with two panels of brickwork behind it. The light is selective and emphatic. Because of it, this image speaks of strength, resolve, and power. The “slivers of light” pattern draws the eye to the subject, part by part, and holds it, demanding our attention and thought.
25-MAY-2005
Old Wood, Scottsdale, Arizona, 2005
It’s not the subjects themselves that make this image expressive. It’s what the interplay of light, shadow, and color do to those subjects. These massive wooden coffee tables, sitting upon a rainbow-like hotel carpet, are defined by light, and at the same time are abstracted by shadow. Light and shadow can create the illusion of a third dimension, even though a photograph has only two dimensions. The warm colors of this carpet reflect light on to the richly grained ends of these tables, painting them with a warm, reddish glow. The light also emphasizes the aged texture of the surface. It casts the shadows of these tables upon the patterned design of the carpet, superimposing the geometry of wood upon the geometry of the weave. I combine both tables and carpet as illuminated symbols representing the lifestyle of the American Southwest – bold, colorful, and primitive, yet also contemporary, with an eye on the future.
03-FEB-2005
Marionettes, Bagan, Myanamar, 2005
Marionettes are mediums of expression rooted in illusion. They only seem to come to life when their strings are pulled. Photography bases much of its own expressive power on illusion as well. A photograph, in itself, is no more real than a marionette. Photographs draw their vitality from the interplay of light and shadow, very much as marionettes depend on their strings for energy. I have brought the two mediums together with this picture. Using the interplay of light and shadow, I’ve tried to imply a sense of vitality to both the marionettes and this photographic image of them. It is the variation in the tones of light, the pattern in which it falls on the marionettes, that makes it seem as if these marionettes are behaving as humans. The figure at left is only partially revealed as he seems to rise out of the shadows below him. Because of how it is abstracted by those shadows, we must imagine where this marionette is coming from. The figure at right is even more abstracted by the shadows surrounding it. Because its face is only half illuminated, it, too, seems to springs to life in a way it would not if we could see all of it. The figures are dressed in clothing that reflects light and color, adding still more illusion to the scene. I include very little additional context in the frame. The less seen, the better the illusion.
01-FEB-2005
Golden Buddha at Shwedagon, Yangon, Myanmar, 2005
In the warm light of sunset, this shaded figure of Buddha, plated in solid gold, echoes the golden curves of the Banyan tree planted just behind it. I used indirect light to make this image. Its beauty, as well as its mystery, is expressed by the reflections that cover the body and head of the Buddha. Its reflective quality is not accidental. The figure itself is seated as if in a reflective pose, and the more we look into it, the more we will see of ourselves and all that surrounds us. The old tree behind it is just as important as the figure. Its external roots are illuminated by the low, warm light coming from the side, giving them greater depth and making them stand out in bold relief. It is the combination of vitality radiating from both the light on the tree and the reflections on the polished gilded statue that give this photo its energy and its meaning. Photographing both at another time of day would not have produced the same effect, nor expressed the same meaning.
02-FEB-2005
Shopper, Chinatown, Yangon, Myanmar, 2005
There is a very large Chinese presence in Yangon. At its heart is Chinatown, a warren of narrow streets piled high with baskets, produce, delicacies, crafts, flowers, songbirds, and crabs. I waited for this preoccupied shopper to walk out of the deep shadows and into this tiny spot of sunlight in order to make this picture. The interplay of light and shadow in this image reinforces the mood, and perhaps the frustrations of the shopper herself. It is the eve of the Chinese New Year, and her expression tells us that she is intently searching for something she needs, yet cannot quite remember what it is, or where she can find it. Maybe she is trying to sort out her options, as well. By surrounding her in darkness, I imply these unknowns – the unanswered questions of a busy shopper.
23-NOV-2004
Flying Horse, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2004
When I saw this copper weathervane for sale in the snowy front yard of a Santa Fe gallery, I was struck by how light was grazing its mane and tail, and illuminating two of its four feet. I found a vantage point that made the image flow across the frame from one softly focused snow-covered ledge to another. I was able to abstract the horse by focusing and exposing on its only its brightest part – the mane -- with my spot meter. The mane, tail, and hooves pop out at us, as do the soft snow covered ledges behind. The water-streaked adobe wall of the gallery recedes into the background adding unobtrusive context. By doing this, I was able to incongruously launch the flying horse into space.
17-OCT-2004
Desert Texture, near Conway Summit, California, 2004
The low angle of the morning sun and a 24mm vertical wideangle perspective brings out the rich texture of sage coating the rolling hills of the Eastern Sierra desert. To make this landscape photograph work, I used my spot meter to expose on the brightest spot in the picture – the distant snowcapped mountain peak. I locked in that exposure, allowing me to make the rest of the image much darker to bring out the wealth of detail in the field of sage that sweeps us out to a stand of brilliantly colored trees, the stunning focal point of this image. The wideangle lens also offers tremendous depth of field – everything from the grasses at my feet to the distant Sierra Nevada Mountains is in sharp focus. This image is all about space and the vitality of nature, made possible by the warmth and angle of the morning autumn light.
19-OCT-2004
Hawk, Mono Lake, California, 2004
An oncoming snowstorm forced cancellation of our scheduled visit to Mono Lake – a strange briny oasis in California’s dry Great Basin, and a vital habitat for millions of migratory and nesting birds. We did get a chance to briefly pass part of Mono’s shoreline as we headed home, and I stopped long enough to make this early morning photograph of a watchful hawk scanning the surface of the lake’s glistening water for its next meal. Using a 432mm telephoto lens, I took my reading off the water, and abstracted the image down to its bluish-black essence to capture to mood of the moment. It is an eerie scene, but then Mono Lake is said to be one of the strangest lakes in North America.
18-OCT-2004
Aspen Forest, near Lee Vining Canyon, California, 2004
If nature were to build its cathedral, it would probably look something like this. A picture inside of a forest is very difficult to make because of nature’s natural clutter. However in this case, I was able to use light to organize this forest of Aspen trees into a coherent landscape photograph. The sun guilds the floor of the forest and brilliantly illuminates the yellow and orange Aspen leaves up top, providing both a “floor” and “ceiling” for this natural cathedral. I also make use of the tent-shape shadow in the background, gradually tapering to a peak at the center. This peak crowns a single pair of Aspens in the back of the picture that pulls the eye right into and then through the image. The angle of the sun creates “rim” lighting on many of the trees, giving them a delicate glow. There is even very soft light deep in the forest, reflecting on hundreds of tiny leaves that twinkle like a band of distant fireflies. The rhythmic repetition of tree trunks draws our eyes across the forest, just as the light and shadow pulls them into it. I used my Leica Digilux 2 for this image because of the remarkable ability of its Summicron Lens to interpret light and resolve detail. All of these factors work together to help me express the very nature of nature, but it is light that holds the keys to its success as a landscape photograph.
30-AUG-2004
The Chapels of St. Vincent, St. Malo, France, 2004
Mystery can often be expressed by the interplay of light and shadow. And such mystery can work symbolically as well, as in this image. I was initially drawn to this scene by the beauty of the light itself. It was flowing into this cathedral through its stained glass windows, producing a subtle rainbow-like pattern, and striking the steps that led to each of the chapels that line the side of its nave. Then I realized that it was much more than just the beauty of the light itself that was drawing my eye. It was the interplay of that light with the deep shadows, creating a pattern that mysteriously lingers at the entrance of each chapel. Light and shadow also define a series of black rectangles on the floor - each of them a gravestone. My spot meter was an essential tool here - by exposing precisely on the bright light, I was able to intensify the depth of the shadows, instead of washing them out, as I would have done if I had used standard evaluative metering.
Ultimately, the meaning of this image must be resolved by each of my viewers. As for the meaning I intend here, I hope I've been able to imply that there is beauty and meaning in death, as well as in life.
24-AUG-2004
Figurehead, Upton Slip, Falmouth, England, 2004
When you enter the narrow Falmouth alley known as Upton Slip, you will encounter an enormous figurehead moored outside of a sail-maker’s shop. My goal is to confront you with this strange piece of nautical history, and do so with impact and power. I take an intimate, in-your-face vantage point, making the head of the figurehead very large and powerful. The sun was very high in the sky, throwing harsh shadows on the face, particularly around the eyes. It was not good lighting at all. I solved the light problem by making it the solution. I made the mysterious, high key light work for me instead of against me. I let this confrontation become an eerie one, full of mystery and veiled menace. I tilted my camera so that the figurehead dominates the picture as a forceful diagonal instead of in a passive, vertical orientation. I leave half the face light and the other half dark, by metering on the bright side of the face with my spot meter. (Normal “evaluative” metering would tend to lighten the shadows and wash out the highlights in a situation such as this.) The result is a surreal encounter with a mysterious lady of the sea.
03-SEP-2004
The old Parade Ground, Guimaraes, Portugal, 2004
The vast 600-year-old plaza fronting the Ducal Palace in Guimaraes was used as military parade ground in the 19th century when the building was turned into a barracks. Today, the old parade ground is still there – a sea of cobblestones glinting in the early morning light. I often photograph the interplay of light and shadow on cobblestones because of the wonderful textures, rhythms, and patterns it produces. As I was shooting this old parade ground, I heard the tramp of feet. Alas, no long dead Portuguese soldiers marched into my frame. It was but a single man. I used his illuminated shoulders and long shadow to provide human scale to this shot. I also made good use of appearing, disappearing and reappearing light here. The foreground is brilliantly illuminated, clearly displaying the long deep shadow leading into the picture at left and also defining the rows of pavement within the cobblestones that gradually recede into the distance. The middle ground is plunged into deep shadow, but there is still enough detail visible to make out the Ducal Palace in the background. The light reappears once again in the sky – a searing white light that explodes from behind on overhanging tree to define the shape of palace roofline, turret, and chimney. The backlighting from this bright sky also illuminates the leaves of this tree, which embraces the image from the top and holds it together. All in all, I’d say that light does a pretty good job of holding this picture together and reawakening the thud of old soldier’s boots on this historic pavement.
30-AUG-2004
Dawn, St. Malo, France, 2004
A sunrise does not make a great picture by itself. It only offers the light source and provides the coloration. It is up to the photographer to make use of that wonderfully warm light in a memorable way. The sunrise that morning in St. Malo was in and out of the clouds, and I could see immediately that any picture would be as much about the effect of light on the clouds and on the sea as the nature of the light itself. I shot continuously for nearly fifteen minutes during this sunrise. I was on a cruise ship anchored just offshore, and my position regarding the direction of the light was fixed. But as I shot, the coloration and intensity of the light changed constantly during those 15 minutes. Spot metering was essential, because I wanted to capture the richest colors, while abstracting both the city and the harbor. I metered on the most intense band of light in the picture – that bright yellow streak just behind the city’s buildings. The colors of the light on the sea and the clouds were remarkable. Traces of the houses can barely be seen coming through the black shadows. The closer I study this shot, the more I imagine I see. The image of this historic city becomes timeless. Aside from the design of the boats in the harbor, it could have been made in 1804, or 1904, as well as in 2004. Rare are images you can look at again and again without tiring of it. This is one of those images – and it’s all because of the light and how I was able to use it.
21-JUN-2004
Awakening, Tomb of Emperor Qin, Xian, China, 2004
Over 6,000 life sized soldiers made of pottery guard the underground tomb of China's first emperor in Xian. Unearthed in 1974, these soldiers were accidentally discovered by farmers digging a well. I visited the site just as the sun was grazing the front ranks, leaving the soldiers behind them in shadow. I exposed for the lighted soldiers, defining them clearly but leaving the rest in virtual darkness. It is the perfect way to suggest an awakening – after 2,000 years of darkness, these soldiers seem to come to life again as they march into the light of day.
23-JUN-2004
Shoveling gravel outside of Xian, China, 2004
Two workers attack a pile of gravel in a small farming village. A day of hard work has just begun. For the vast majority of Chinese, physical labor is a way of life. This picture could not say what it says if I had taken it only an hour later. I wanted to stress the nature of the gravel itself, hard edged, dusty, and heavy. At this hour of the morning, the low light throws each stone into hard relief, providing a texture to this picture that defines the essence of the task at hand. The light also elongates the shadows, and makes the dust raised by the shovel seem to hang in the air. High contrast, high relief, and the low light angle combine here to tell us what this job must feel like.
24-JUN-2004
Door knocker, Chengdu, China, 2004
I was trapped for a half hour with a tour group in a brocade "factory" in Chengdu, which was well off by itself and far too isolated for me to escape to more photogenic areas. (The tourist industry often put its "factories" in such places because it sets up a "shop or else" situation.) Distressed by my predicament, I concentrated on making a worthwhile photographic opportunity come out of this situation. I found the answer in this tiny lion’s head door knocker. It adorned the door of the brocade "factory" and the side angle of the afternoon light was illuminating it perfectly. This frumpy lion seems to feel just as I did -- a frustrated captive being led around town with a ring in the mouth!
30-JUN-2004
The Old Yangtze Ferry, Sanxia, China, 2004
The key to landscape photography is light, and the best light for photography comes just after dawn or at dusk. The Three Gorges of China’s Yangtze river are as beautiful as any riverscape on earth, but I still needed be able to shoot it in warm, low angled light such as this to get the most out of such a scene. This image reminds me of the 19th Century paintings of New York’s Hudson River Valley – the hills, the mist, smooth water, and an old boat about to touch land. Even small details such as the boat’s shimmering reflection on the water and the tiny figures on the bow of the ferry are dependent upon the angle of the light. The tinge of warm gold, and the four levels of land rising through the frame, complete a timeless vision of a river soon to vanish forever, as it becomes a reservoir for Three Gorges Dam Project.
12-JUN-2004
Art school storage area, Shanghai, China 2004
Our tour group sent an hour or so visiting a neighborhood art school in Shanghai. My most memorable image from that adventure came from an unexpected place – a corner of a room used as a storage area for props and materials. Beautifully soft light was flowing into this corner from a nearby window. Whenever I make photographs, I try to look for the effective light first, and once I find it, I learn what subject matter it can illuminate for me. That was the case here. I had no intentions of photographing a floodlight, a few easels and a copy of large Greek sculpture. But when I saw how that window light was illuminating these things, I knew I had a chance to make an expressive image. I kept moving the camera until the floodlight and easels partially blocked the head, making it appear as if it was lurking there in the shadows. The head’s intrusion into the easels is incongruous and the light and shadow bathe the head in a soft glow. I focused and exposed on the brightest part of the picture with my spot meter – the curls on the big head. The rest of the image darkened accordingly, and I came away with this image of “art waiting in the wings for its moment.”
03-JUL-2004
Devotion, Man Mo Temple, Hong Kong, China, 2004
This woman spent nearly an hour praying and chanting at various altars within the Man Mo Temple. Her passionate spirituality was a welcome counterpoint to the rapacious commercialism I found in Hong Kong. I followed her with my camera over most of this period, staying quietly out of her way, and photographing her in the temple’s dim light. She was so involved in her devotions, working herself almost into a trance, that she never even noticed me, and I never gave her cause to see me. I never use a flash when shooting indoors – I much prefer to remain invisible and produce pictures made by natural light. And I certainly did not want to disrupt her worship in any way. Using a flash would have been insulting. I used the spot meter option in my camera to take readings off the dim bulb on the altar, and on the nearby candles. I am using a technique here known as “Rembrandt Lighting” – making the scene as dark as possible, and recording only the highlights coming out of the dark shadows. In this shot, the fruit, lights, candlesticks, ceramic vases, as well as the woman’s face, hands, and shirt are highlighted and everything else goes black. The key to “Rembrandt Lighting” is the use of a spot-meter, a tool essential to available light photographers. It allows me to paint with light, exposing for only for the highlights and letting everything else recede into abstract darkness.
26-JUN-2004
Pilgrim, Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, Tibet, 2004
Hundreds of Buddhist pilgrims clutching prayer wheels still circle the three-story Jokhang, Tibet’s holiest Temple. They come from all corners of Tibet to circle the 1,300 year-old building in never ending waves. I carefully planned most of this shot in advance, primarily because of the way the light fell on the ancient building and on the plaza that surrounds it. I spot-metered on the white façade to hold detail and prevent “burn-out.” That made the shadows black and the sky deep blue. I then waited until a pilgrim entered the frame and shot him as he stepped into the space between the two shadows on the Plaza.
27-JUN-2004
Yak Skull, Lhasa, Tibet, 2004
We visited a Tibetan home in Lhasa that had the skull of a Yak lodged within the roofing over its front door. Good fortune, faith, and perhaps just luck are supposed to come from such symbols. This photograph works because of how the light shapes the subject. Once again, I used the spot meter option in my camera to expose on the white skull, and everything else in the picture becomes darker. The façade of the house flows into darkness and the red rooftops get darker as well. A Buddhist decoration set into the window directly between the horns of the skull, and decorative elements hanging below the roofline are kept in shadow for context.
16-APR-2004
Translucence, Botanical Garden, Balboa Park, San Diego, California, 2004
Sometimes, light and shadow will combine to create memorable rhythms and patterns. And when that light is translucent – passing through the subject itself – the effect can be even more striking. Thin, opaque subjects lend themselves to such lighting effects, particularly leaves. In making this particular shot, I looked for translucent leaves in front of darker backgrounds. I noticed that the light passing through some of the leaves also cast crosshatched shadows on the leaves in front of them. I used my spot meter to expose for the brightest part of the leaves, which made the shadows as dark as possible. The interplay of light and shadow on these delicate ferns is mesmerizing. The more we look at it, the more complex and beautiful the scene becomes.
15-APR-2004
The Star of India, San Diego, California, 2004
This 19th Century sailing ship once carried hundreds of passengers to ports throughout the old British Empire. Today it draws hundreds of visitors to its berth at San Diego’s Maritime Museum. I must have made fifty or so different images of this ship, but none as effective as this one. As we left the ship, I noticed that the sun had moved lower in the sky, and for the first time I could find a vantage point that would allow me to place strong light behind the ship’s sails. This would help me to simplify my image by backlighting it, and create an abstract, rather than a literal, interpretation. I selected only one slice of the ship to avoid distracting clutter, and this called for a vertical frame. After numerous experiments (digital film is always free) I was able to express the essence of the Star of India by relating the graceful figurehead at the front of the ship to the three translucent triangular sails soaring above it, as well as to the reflection on the water
15-APR-2004
Urban Tree, San Diego, California, 2004
Interpreting the art of another artist is a great challenge to a photographer. I want to maintain the integrity of the original concept, yet also express my own point of view about the work. San Diego offers a stunning variety of public art works. Among my favorites are the “Urban Trees” that sprout along the harbor – each of them interpreting the work of nature by using man made materials in different ways. One of these trees features huge textured leaves made of tinted opaque plastic. By putting the sun behind five of them – along with their metallic supports – and using my spot meter to expose for the brightest area, I was able to bring out the richness of texture and tinting through backlight, abstraction, and translucence.
17-APR-2004
Resto en Paz, San Diego, California, 2004
On the edge of the oldest surviving cemetery in San Diego, I found a small cross and a few stones placed next to the massive roots of an ancient tree. When I first saw this scene, the sky was overcast, and my attempts at symbolization did not work very well. Within the hour, however, the sun broke through the clouds, and I returned to this small grave at the foot of the old tree. I noticed that the shadow of the cemetery’s wall now ran diagonally through the grave itself. I was able to repeat that diagonal line by finding a camera position that oriented the roots diagonally within my frame as well. I used my spot meter to expose for the highlights on the roots and the ground, which made everything in the shadows, get much darker. The resulting image uses light as both abstraction and symbolization. The incongruity in scale between tree and cross, the interplay of light and shadow, the glistening highlights on the roots themselves, all work to suggest the cyclical nature of life itself. (Some have suggested to me that this image might work “better” in black and white. I made the conversion, and found that when I removed the golden brown warmth of that sunlight, the image became quite bleak and severe. The photograph became a metaphor for death itself, rather than death as part of life.)
Shadow of Time, Cappodocia, Turkey, 1999.
This old Turkish caravan stop at first appeared to be just another ruin, but when I noticed an assertive shadow of a tourist momentarily imprinted upon its vast façade, I created a photograph based on the interplay of light, shadow, and structure. The shadowy figure at the summit of a neighboring building represents the authority of man, but it is impermanent, and will soon vanish. These old buildings, however, have stood the test of time and history -- they will remain long after we pass from the scene.
Nile boatman, Elephantine Island, Aswan, Egypt, 1984
The translucent backdrop dominates this photograph of an Egyptian boatman waiting to carry his passengers along the Nile. The sails of the boats glow as the sun passes through them, while the lush foliage, his costume, and his body language create a mood of timeless tranquility that brings a sense of place to this image.
14-DEC-2003
Cemetery Fence, Willemstad, Curacao, 2003
I find cemeteries to be rich in symbolic potential. Various religious beliefs are expressed in monumental fashion. Cemetery art represent man’s attempts to somehow transform mortality into immortality, all of which provides much grist for photographic interpretation. Light and shadow plays a significant role in interpreting such subject matter photographically. Shadows can be regarded as symbols in themselves. They mysteriously withhold information, abstract subject matter, and can often provoke the imagination of the viewer. As I walked about this old cemetery on the sun-drenched Caribbean island of Curacao, I noticed a rusted fence casting its shadow on the walls of a very old tomb. A series of shadowed bars and gothic crosses, symbols of religious beliefs in themselves, rhythmically move across two of the tomb’s surfaces -- the walled up entrance to the crypt itself, and the outside wall of the tomb. A long horizontal shadow bar sweeps across the frame. The recessed entrance to the crypt is also in shadow at its top. The tomb basks in the warmth of the morning light. In this image, I contrast this symbolic interplay of light and shadow against the stark, rusted iron bars of the actual fence that wall the tomb off from us. This fence speaks of the reality and finality of death – whereas the light and shadow imply the spiritual forces that make the concept of death easier for some to accept and perhaps even understand.
12-JAN-2004
The Conspirators, La Boca, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2004
I almost stumbled over this trio of small angels enhancing an entrance to a Buenos Aires building. They were hidden in the shadows, and seem almost conspiratorial. I chose a high vantage point and shot down on them to make it seem as if we were spying on their little meeting. This vantage point led me to another discovery. These angels may think they are hiding from us, but there is a virtual directional arrow right leading us right to them – a big black shadow on sidewalk gives the game away. It is the interplay of light and shadow that makes this picture work.
23-DEC-2003
San Francisco Monastery, Lima, Peru, 2003
Rather than attempt to photographically describe the appearance of this beautiful Peruvian monastery built by the Spaniards in 1620, I use light and shadow to express the feelings I had while walking through a long, haunting gallery. Its arched windows had bars on them – this monastery was not only a retreat but also a sanctuary, a place of refuge at a time of great dangers. The light on the floor was reddish orange – the color of fire. I used a wideangle converter to create a series of window shadows moving through space, as if from the past into the present. It was a mystical place, and I use the beauty of its light and the symbols of its colors and shadows in my attempt to visually define it.
04-JAN-2004
Roses in Hand, City Cemetery, Punta Arenas, Chile, 2004
A Sunday afternoon visitor had just placed a floral display in the hand of this sculpted angel looming over a tomb surrounded by massive trees that have been pruned into a series of rounded dome-like monuments. The late afternoon sun is illuminating the statue and its roses from the side, turning the pruned trees into shadowy background. By using my spot meter on the angel, I keep it from washing out, and turn the green trees in the background to black. I placed the figure of the angel on the right side of the frame, making it seem to offer those roses towards the darkness. If the angel and its roses commemorate life, the darkness implies that most unknown aspect of life – death. This interpretation is made possible entirely by the interplay of light and shadow on the angel, its flowers, and the trees.
22-DEC-2003
Textures of Chan Chan, Trujillo, Peru, 2003
The Citadel of Chan Chan, located in the deserts of Coastal Peru, was the ancient capital of the 13th Century Chimu Empire and the largest adobe city on earth. This picture of two of Chan Chan’s ancient honey-combed walls communicates because of contrasting lighting direction. The wall in the foreground is illuminated from the side to stress its texture and give it a dimensional effect. The wall in the background, however, receives frontal light, which flattens its texture, and makes the subject lighter as well. Because of its side lighting, the recessed areas of the wall in the foreground are heavily shadowed and give it a sense of depth. On the other hand, the recessed areas of the wall in the background show almost no shadows within them. Whenever I shoot subjects that have surfaces facing in different directions, I can usually expect such contrasting effects as in this picture. I always try to be conscious of where the light is coming from. I prefer to use side lighting for dimensional effect and backlighting for abstraction. Frontal and overhead lighting is usually boring, flat, and literal, unless used for contrast and context as in this shot. That’s why I generally try to shoot early or late in the day and avoid the flatness of overhead mid-day light. The flattening effect of frontal light is another reason why I prefer to use natural lighting instead of flash in my photography, and I’ve always advised my students to do likewise.
12-JAN-2004
Tango Mysteries, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2004
As I began photographing the shadows cast by the neon tubing attached to the side of this Tango Club, a woman walked into my frame and lifted both arms to her head, as if she was dancing the Tango. I pressed the shutter release at that instant, capturing her with her arms frozen on the back of her head, leg bent forward, head down. Is she dancing? Or is she just fixing her hair? We’ll never know. When I later studied the details of this photo on my computer, I was astonished to see that the advertising photograph featured within the sign at right shows the head and arms of another woman in the very same pose. These congruities and incongruities turn a Buenos Aires street shot into a thematic image worthy of close study. Light and shadow combine to give this image its context and intensify its meaning – abstracting the woman by shadowing her face and body, creating a dark stage for her to dance upon, and illuminating a background filled with mysterious detail.
15-DEC-2003
Natural Bridge, Aruba, 2003
One of the main attractions of Aruba's east coast is a 100 foot-long coral formation carved out by the pounding surf over the centuries. Rather than describe the appearance of this bridge in my photograph, I wanted to express the feeling of walking twenty-five feet in the air over the swirling waters of the Caribbean Sea on a bridge designed by nature. Using my wideangle converter lens, I backed away and used my spot meter to expose for the intense sunlight on the water itself and thereby abstract the image. Everything went black except the foaming water and a hint of blue sky. The tourists standing on the bridge itself became tiny silhouettes, defining its size through scale incongruity. It is the interplay of light and shadow that turns what would have been a literal snapshot into an expressive image.
26-DEC-2003
Schoolroom, Humberstone Ghost Town, Iquique, Chile, 2003
Humberstone once served a flourishing nitrate-mining town at the junction of the Pan American Highway and the road to Iquique. It became a ghost town when the mining stopped in 1960. Forty-three years later, this abandoned town is almost perfectly preserved in Chile’s Atacama Desert. Some of its interiors, such as this schoolroom, have been carefully restored to their original appearance, right down to the paint on the desks. I wanted more than just a picture of a schoolroom, and the light streaming through its one window and onto its desks and floor, gave it to me. I used this light as a symbol – a glowing substitute for the energy of children who have long since departed.
19-APR-2003
Archduke's Crypt, Artstetten, Austria, 2003
Archduke Frans Ferdinand, whose 1914 assassination in Sarajevo triggered World War I, is entombed in this crypt on the grounds of Artstetten Castle, just outside of Vienna. The only light entering the crypt comes from a small window, barely enough to cast a soft golden glow on the tomb of the man who almost became an emperor. The soft light enhances the mood of this memorial image, while the interplay of light and shadow add a sense of dimensionality to the scene.
24-JUL-2003
Kremlin Cathedral, Moscow, Russia, 2003
The gilded medieval domes of Moscow's Cathedral of the Annunciation rise over the Kremlin's walls against a brilliant blue sky tinged with feathery clouds. Early morning light softly burnishes them with light and shadow, causing them to seem as if they are rising out of the picture toward us, as well. Within just a few hours, when the sun moves higher in the sky, these same domes will appear flat and harsh. The angle of light is critical to both effect and meaning -- the lower the sun, the greater dimensionality.
17-APR-2003
A mother's tomb, Central Cemetery, Vienna, Austria, 2003
Highlights graze this bronze monument to a woman who left four young children behind. It was the interplay of light and shadow that attracted my interest first, not the tomb. These highlights emphasized only the youngest and the oldest of the children, and minimized the rest. Nature sculpts and resculpts this sculpture with light every day. It's meaning changes hourly. At this moment, the light was coming from the side and grazing only the two children who look to the left. I exposed for them, knowing that if I exposed for the entire scene in order to make shadow detail more visible, I would wash out the details in the highlighted areas. Shadows withhold and suggest meaning, while light fully reveals it. I often expose for highlights, and let shadows go dark. It makes my pictures more abstract, less literal, and often more dimensional, leaving room for the viewer's imagination to do its work.
27-JUL-2003
Dusk, Svir River, Russia, 2003
The Svir River links the two largest lakes in Russia -- Onega and Ladoga. We moved onto the Svir at dusk, its rippling water still reflecting the lingering sunset. I exposed for the sky, allowing the Svir's mysterious waters to grow even darker. Light sculpts its ripples into rhythmic echoes of the clouds overhead. Of the thousands of images I made in Russia, this is one of my favorites -- I can look at it again and again and never tire of it. I think it holds such fascination for me because of its dimensional and abstract qualities, created largely by the interplay of light and shadow in the sky and on the water.
(In November, 2004, after a number of people expressed dissatisfaction with the point of this image, and after Zebra was kind enough to suggest the "revision" below, comparing it to my original image, it occurred to me that I could make an additional point with this image by revising it myself, using Photoshop as my tool. The version above is my new version of the same image that Zebra has labeled as "original." What I have done, essentially, is to use the new Photoshop CS "Shadow/Highlight" tool, which revealed much more detail and color in the clouds that I had realized were there. I did not have the Shadow/Highlight tool available to me when I originally edited this image back in 2003. I essentially have changed the message of this image in Photoshop by creating more emphasis on the Sunset (highlights) and less emphasis on the shadows. We now not only have the tranquility I wanted so much to express, but it is also an evening of great beauty. The added color brings warmth into the image that was not there before, extending an idea that Zebra suggested in his first re-do of it. I think this image is much stronger in its new version, and wonder what its critics will have to say about this. It shows us that with Photoshop we have infinite opportunities to affect the meaning of our images. It is if I went into the darkroom (in the good old days of film) and created a print that expressed entirely new ideas. It is perfectly legitimate in my view to do so. I added nothing to this image that was not actually there that night. It was just not properly presented in my first version. It is now. Let me know what you think.)
04-AUG-2002
The Ring of Fire, Kamchatka, Russia, 2002
I was photographing a range of Siberian volcanoes from the deck of a cruise ship at dusk. A seagull drifted alongside the ship, and when it entered my frame, I was able to capture it floating over the distant mountains. As much as this picture is about the moment, is also about light. A intense golden haze envelopes the horizon and the entire sky becomes luminous, filled with a variety of colors generated by the glowing evening light. I exposed for the sky, allowing the gull, sea, and mountains to become abstractions in shadow. This area of the Bering Sea is known as the "Ring of Fire". And so is my photograph.
13-FEB-2002
Adobe Gate, Camino del Monte Sol, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2002
Light can have a subtle, as well as dramatic, effect. I photographed this old adobe gate just after dawn on a very cold winter morning in Santa Fe. The sun is still low in the sky, and screened by trees. It illuminates the wall with diffused, rather than direct light. It casts soft shadows that brush the surface of the wall in a range of warm, dappled tones, enriching the colors and drawing the eye to the charming weathered carving on the door.
08-AUG-2002
Ittigran Island, Siberia, Russia, 2002
I was very fortunate to be up on deck shooting as the sun broke through heavy morning clouds during our approach to this tiny Siberian island just off the coast of the Chukotka peninsula. I had never seen a mountainous landscape illuminated as selectively as this one was. Siberia is one of the harshest lands on earth, yet the fleeting early morning light had turned this rugged, remote island into a place of great beauty. The sea itself becomes a black, abstracted base for the scene -- the barren mountains are splashed with streaks of gold, while heavy clouds roll by overhead tinged in purple, yellow, and gray. My ISO setting of 400 provides a subtle texture to complement the nature of the landscape.
11-FEB-2000
Grand Palace, Bangkok,Thailand, 2000
A palace spire reflects the setting sun in a blaze of gold on a field of deep blue. I deliberately underexposed the picture to make the sky darker than it really was. It creates more contrast for the temple spire, which became a burnished stack of golden cubes. Because of the effect of reflected light, this golden spire becomes a glittering abstraction symbolizing not only the Grand Palace itself, but Thai culture as well.
24-NOV-2002
Tuskers at Sunset, Amboseli National Park, Kenya, 2002
Of all the elephant photographs I've made over the years in Africa, this one is my favorite. As the sun went down in Kenya's Amboseli National Park, two foraging elephants drew ever closer to us. They moved at a trot, head to head, tusk to tusk, in perfect rhythm. As the warm light turned their grey hides to a reddish gold, they seemed to be smiling as they brushed past me. It was one of those rare opportunities to make a photograph when everything had fallen into place simultaneously -- an endangered subject, a perfect vantage point, and golden light to intensify the meaning of this special moment in time.
10-SEP-2003
Rainbow, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2003
The rain was still falling as the setting sun illuminated the clouds behind this rainbow. The sun's golden light, displayed in many shades of color, offered a breathtaking context for this rainbow, and only a wideangle lens could embrace its huge arch.
24-NOV-2002
After the storm, Amboseli National Park, Kenya, 2002
Backlighting not only abstracts the subject, such as these trees, but it creates a translucent glow as it passes through these cumulus clouds -- all that remains of a powerful thunderstorm that had swept through this vast game park only minutes earlier. I exposed for the sky, and allowed the trees, road and safari vans to become darker as a result. The subjects of this picture are the illuminated clouds. The tiny vehicles provide a scale contrast, indicating the size of these huge clouds.