Burning heaps of Negs and files makes way for Art

It's pouring rain at last ,so today is a good day to be editing .When it's wet out, it feels cozy to rummage through boxes and negatives.Have had a few good bonfires this year to cleanse the studio of negs and files. Six foot high bonfires.It's amazing how much fits into a bank of filing cabinets.Looks so much bigger when it's  piled into a heap in the front yard .Only holding onto a few commercial bits and pieces.And of course I am keeping my personal work.It's nice to hold onto some commercial stuff .I feel proud of a lot of it ,but it seems crazy to hold onto all of it .

This is not a "duty" cleanse..it is a "yay" cleanse.I will have lots of space for a new work table , and lots of clarity too.

The studio will be an Art studio from now on.

I shot this black & white image at  my  Carlaw Studio in Toronto.I won't burn it.

Herbes de Provence

Found this little clay tub in my kitchen recently.Once upon a time  ..I actually paid money for this herb mix. If I had known how simple it was to make ....It's just equal amounts of dried and crushed stuff from the pantry or garden.

Rosemary ,bay, lavender, thyme,savory, and a touch of clove.

I always add chive and tarragon to mine as well.Yummy and cheap.I think the clay pot has got to be part of the cost.

In a perfect world  you would grow and dry your own herbs.You would harvest them into a handwoven wicker basket.They would be dried upside down in fetching little bundles in your olde-style kitchen.( I am guilty of this sentimental behavior) If that's not possible just buy them.  Also, much has been said about fresh vs dried .I prefer fresh rosemary for poultry and  I love the intensity of dried oregano for omelettes.Use them any old way you see fit.The important thing is to cook , and enjoy it. A  glass of red helps on those days it feels more like a chore and less like a creative process. Happy cooking.

Photography ..play not work

I still love black and white.I have been doing so much colour work these days..it feels good to step away from it for a moment.Have been looking at old Andre Kertesz  country landscapes.Just beautiful stuff.I am happy to strip away the colour and just see the essential form and structure of a thing.And ya..I have always been a sucker for those grainy films..agfa , recording film, Tri-X pushed all to hell .That sort of thing.

Doing the look on the 'puter is okay.Feels a bit less magical...I wonder if I am alone on that one.I  embraced the technology long ago, as only part of me is a hopeless romantic.The other part is lazy and enjoys the  ease of digital. It's also way  cheaper .

The underlying requirement for effective photography is the desire to tell a story..To deliver the story well requires authenticity .Some of the best images I have seen of late are by amature photographers. Somehow their authenticity is on display (An eye takes years to train,and not everyone has the ability to see light.)

After years of honing my skills as a commercial photographer in Toronto ,I became able to shoot what I needed to shoot.I really enjoyed giving a thing a "look". Loved it .Every shoot was a challenge .

Art , authenticity, voice...These were a bit distant some of the time , drowned out  by the daily demands of my commercial work.I think this is why I love the work of amatures...and I am not speaking of aspiring photogs here..I mean real non-pros.Like my mother for instance.She has no clue about photography..and that is precisely why I love her work.It captures stuff in a great  way.Enviable really.

The greats are great...and the beginners are also great.

Anyhow ,once we have spent 20 odd years working professionally ,we can't undo it.We can only play.And this play is where the magic lies.

I am really enjoying my 'play" these days.I should stop calling it work.

Evil Stepmother shoot

Messing around shooting more Fairy -tale images on the property.I needed a woman of a "certain age" to be the evil  stepmother..seems everyone I know is either young and beautiful , or too busy to model for me .What ? You can't just drop everything and rush right over to look menacing on cue ? Hmmm. anyhow.I usually hate to be in role.I think I managed to look quite evil here though.Sometimes we do what we need to do to get the thing done.
Yes the apple is from our tree .

Slow-Life Summer coming to a close...

We had a beautiful dinner on the beach last night with friends.. Angel-Blue swam for an hour.I think she is part mermaid .The sky is getting moodier ,the clouds are rolling in .Part of me is sad to see the long hot days give way to fall.It seems there is never enough time in a summer to do all the  things we want to do .It would be nice to have at least another month to slowly enjoy the season.We have done a lot of fun stuff..but unless we want to live like the "Toronto-busy-people " we once were...it would be impossible to do everything.Our new life is not about cramming stuff in.Sometimes I feel like a hippy when  I see the tourists efficiently going about their summer business. Probably they have a list of" Hornby-activities" that all get completed in two weeks flat. It's hard to explain,but part of the joy of living here is the pace.It is the fact that we don't hurry much.Except to catch the ferry.So we only kayaked a bit this summer instead of athletically a lot.We only hiked up one mountain .We camped , slept under the stars ,rode our bikes here and there.We cooked on a beach fire almost daily..till the fire ban took effect. We participated in a few community events. This summer has  felt like the leisurely summers of old.It's why we moved here.We are really enjoying the slow-life.

Garden Chaos is my Dream.

I like my garden to be right on the edge of horticultural-chaos.Big ,billowy and a bit over -the-top.That final vision will take a few more years.I started with gravel on conglomerate (crappy soil ) I plant lots of stuff that is hard to kill.And lots of freebie stuff too...roadsidia.That way if anything struggles where I plunk it..I can pull it out without tears.I sort of abide by the  every-plant -for -itself philosophy.No hot-house babies  here.Lots of better gardeners than me live on Hornby Island.They nurture the soil, they haul manure and sea-weed.They pull weeds..I can  respect their  earnest approach...they know a lot of stuff about plants.Well..I am happy to drink a glass of chilled white in the midst of whatever grows easily.Cheers.

So visual poems will have to do..

Cara chasing paper dreams.Photo # 3 in a big series.

Not born a poet.

 Photography...because I am not a poet.

Martial arts at my house looks like.... this.

 So, this is what martial arts training has amounted to around here.Kicking the hell out of hanging balloons.

Rustic Fairy-Tale stuff

I have always loved this rough driftwood furniture.It's rustic,beautiful and fairy-tale all at the same time.The sundial taught me to tell time when I was a kid.This exact one..it was accurate within 10 minutes...then somebody went and changed the number placement.Now I have no idea what time it is if I am not wearing my watch.Luckily I am not in a hurry much these days.

Eco-Fashion Show Fun

  Recently we had an Eco-Fashion show here on Hornby Island.It was so much fun to see the local women become models.Organic farmers and herbalists, cooks, mid-wives, musicians.These women from all sorts of interesting backgrounds all agreed to come out that evening to model my clothes.And wow were they good.I can honestly say that I was impressed with their ability to shed the gum-boots and walk the runway.For most of them it was a first.

For me it certainly was.I was never a fashion designer...not really.I learned some fashion design stuff at the tail end of my Toronto life.Purely on a whim ..just to add to the bag of tricks really.And to have some fun.

For me Toronto was all about being a commercial photographer.So I have a ton of experience directing models..lighting, etc.etc.. (working with  Canada's best fashion stylists  doesn't hurt  either I guess) So anyhow ,I had a great time and was humbled by the purity and expressiveness of these women. I would never  dismiss the amazing models I  worked  with in Toronto .They were great..truly great., but somehow these small island girls with rough hands and interesting lives carry clothes differently.And it is a difference that at this stage in my life I can really appreciate.