Seeing 2010 (#60)

For your consideration: a small portion of a massive, iconic monument to engineering accomplishment . . . its scale reduced by the foreground silhouette of a barrier wall topped with a maze of guardrails. The entire composition is arranged to greatly flatten the sense of perspective, rendering abstract what would otherwise be simple a juxtaposition of vastly disproportional subjects.

This lengthy time-lapse exposure was taken at 1.30am during my most recent nocturnal photography safari (see this entry for a comparative shot taken the same evening). Being nearly two months ago, it's becoming overdue for another post-sunset adventure.

Golden Gate Tower from Battery Spencer, #6540

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 2, 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 30 secs; -2/3 EV; ISO 200; 41mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#59)

For your consideration: a pair of photographs which together depict vastly different scales of reference, yet both were taken using the same Macro lens.

The first image is a characteristic of classic macro work: an extreme close-up of a subject, revealing fine detail and structures which in normal, casual consideration would escape attention and thus appreciation. For an untrained botanist/gardener such as myself, this temporary biological state provided quite a delightful surprise when it blossomed into a California Golden Poppy overnight.

The second scene was recorded in a 5th-floor conference room at my current place of work, a location which has been visited before in this blog. The sterility of the entire space has long made an impression on me. The particularly complex arrangement of sharp angles and stark geometric forms in this construction -- with the surprising, subtle elegance of the wood grain -- evokes a mood of looming questions without clear answers forthcoming . . . The chair is already backed into a corner and the table spans the frame, creating a claustrophobic sense of no escape from the impending examination . . .

* * *

Embryonic Poppy, #7458

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 26, 2010; Canon 20D; f/8 @ 2 secs; -1/3 EV; ISO 100; 100mm.

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The Interrogation, #7395

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 22, 2010; Canon 20D; f/6.3 @ 1/500 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 200; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#58)

For your consideration: representations of flowers' Forms, as per Plato.

Since my earliest tentative forays into the creative possibilities of photography I've greatly enjoyed the elegance and subtle complexities revealed in the close study of plant life. Having a superior macro lens lends itself to such pleasures.

The first offering is from the sole plant in my office at the library; it was a gift from the staff as condolences for the passing of my biological mother last year. As such it has come to symbolize for me a sort of living memorial to her. Consequently I was appalled when I returned to work on Monday and discovered the leaves and stalks uniformly limp, sagging and yellowing from lack of water . . . I hurriedly soaked the pot thoroughly with thin hope that I might be able to save this entity at least from an early death. At first the prognosis seemed grim, but I am pleased to report that three days later the patient seems to be rallying strongly. This particular photograph was taken almost two weeks ago, in the late afternoon under natural lighting conditions -- and well before my lapse into plant abuse occurred.

The second composition was taken while recently visiting friends for dinner and cards; I noticed an exquisitely crafted and detailed set of salt-and-pepper shakers in a glass curio cabinet next to the dining table and - as intuition had compelled me to bring my camera along for the occasion - I was granted permission to take a few shots. Besides being attracted to the fine artistry rarely seen these days, I also wanted to create a visual pun of sorts, a nod to one of my photography cohorts who happens to find most flower pictures of modest interest at best . . . I've warned him that quite soon I'd be posting at least one more lily . . . this one's for your viewing pleasure, with a wink, my friend.

White Blossom (L'Homage à ma mere), #7359

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 16, 2010; Canon 20D; f/9 @ 1/60 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Inorganic Lily, #7428

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 24, 2010; Canon 20D; f/2.8 @ 1/50 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#57)

For your consideration: a study of subtleties in form, texture and hue.

The dwindling reservoir of remaining days with unfettered access to my current, cherished work venue is the source of premeditated nostalgia. Accordingly I've been taking what moments I've been able to find in order to roam the inner sanctums of the building, soaking up imagery while I can.

This photograph is an extreme macro taken in one of my favorite spots, a quiet, deeply removed corridor in what passes as the library's equivalent to the National Archives. Nestled betwixt the Vaults and the back offices of the Beethoven Center is a small window space, upon the sill of which sit several potted plants, an infinitesimally small portion of the 470,000 square foot structure.

This tiny composition has occupied my attention for several months . . . a particularly challenging scene to record due to the delicacy of the petal detail, subdued lighting conditions and very little depth-of-field with which to work. I was especially attracted to the flowing, graceful edges and the spare coloring amidst a sea of white.

Stem and White Blossom, #7401

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 22, 2010; Canon 20D; f/8 @ 1/800 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 200; 1 00mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#56)

For your consideration: a pair of offerings converted to black&white, inorganic versus organic macro images.

The first is a study which combines elements of deliberate, premeditated engineering, structures arbitrarily revealed by means of erosion, and a serendipitous compositional arrangement suggestive of a modern take on the Michelangelo's creation panel in the Sistine Chapel.

The second is a time-lapse photograph demonstrating the blistering, trailblazing pace set by some denizens of mobile homes . . .

* * *

Arrow Creation, #7337

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 16 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/1250 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 200; 100mm.

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A Snail's Pace (Life in Alviso), #6454

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: February 28, 2010; Canon 20D; f/5.6 @ 6 secs; -2/3 EV; ISO 100; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#55)

For you consideration: seeing red . . .

A pair of images with drastically differing approaches to focusing on red as the dominant subject.

In the first case, a demonstration of the surprising power of a minute portion of a scene to command attention, even amidst complex texture.

The second photograph is simply a bit of whimsy, and is in fact an inside joke dedicated to my friend Matt Loo, who's current circumstances has him searching for a pig without also breaking the bank . . .

* * *

Red Summit, #7320

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 16 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/125 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 200; 100mm.

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Red Pig, #7375

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 16, 2010; Canon 20D; f/16 @ 1/40 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#54)

For your consideration: notes on the strange duality of bittersweet outcomes.

After several months edgily awaiting news of California's budget axe wreckage, today the blow was delivered -- and how sublimely ironic that it fell on April 15th (not only Tax Day, but also the anniversary of the Titanic's sinking). A cruel bit of timing employed by the Powers That Be.

Relief, of course, at this: I escaped the worst-case scenario of being laid-off, a particularly bleak outcome for others not so fortunate. That would have been truly horrid news.

However, deep grief -- and yes, anger: come July 1, 2010, I shall be ousted from my cherished, beloved, nurturing and fulfilling position with the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., library, shuffled to another IT department elsewhere on campus. The final destination has yet to be determined (or so I've been told). Easily the best job I've had during the long course of my career, knowing that the decision to eliminate my position and thus force a reassignment utterly ignored any sane criteria with respect to performance, institutional knowledge, team chemistry or any other facet of common business sense, is acutely frustrating and bleakly disappointing. Making a significantly positive and visible impact here, and having earned the respect of my professional peers and (large) end-user community -- all for naught -- is a hard reality to swallow.

There are several facets of losing this particular job which I will grieve; the deepest sadness arises from the inevitable dimming of the daily interactions with quite a few people, an aspect of my work which has been a source of tremendous pleasure . . .

Nonetheless, for some time now I've been blessed to be traveling a spiritual path which teaches me that Impermanence is a core reality of life, and the degree to which I resist accepting this truth is the measure of my attendant pain. Even as one aspect of my life's journey draws to a close another will simultaneously begin. Therein rests the possibility of yet more positive growth, joy and revelation.

Thus, these two photographs.

The first: a meeting room on the fifth floor of the library, in the Special Collections area. I've long loved its airiness, light and solitude; it is a good space in which to meditate. This composition reflects the emptiness and sterility which describes my feelings about the impending forced exile from this wonderful building and the friends who I'll miss.

The second: a decidedly different setting, cool, inviting, and flourishing with life and its accompanying possibilities. Between parted curtains of darkness, an optimistic view of what may yet await at my next station on campus. More will be revealed.

* * *

Conference Room, #4104

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: July 24, 2009; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/200 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 100; 18mm.

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Pinnacles Wall, #7803

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 30, 2010; Canon 20D; f/5.6 @ 1/125 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 50mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#53)

For your consideration: two still-life images, of differing sorts.

The first is another offering from my growing body of leaf and flower series, a subject matter I apparently favor. Here we have a macro image of a lily firmly planted, yet by virtue of this particular perspective conveys the illusion of an object swiftly flowing across the frame. This was shot in natural, late afternoon sunlight.

The second photograph is a portrait of a good friend, who reluctantly but with good humor agreed to pose on an overcast afternoon following a day-long gathering of mutual friends. In contrast to the delicacy of the first submission, this pseudo still-life's subject emanates strength, confidence and a keen watchfulness.

* * *

Calla Lily, #7279

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 14, 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/100 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 200; 100mm.

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Chris, #7251

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 10, 2010; Canon 20D; f/7.1 @ 1/125 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#52)

For your consideration: a pair of images which together represents clashes of both architectural fashion and environmental sensibilities . . .

Yet, despite the disparate tableaux, these photographs' compositions bear considerable symmetries to one another: the crossed cranes mimic the peak of the barn's roof; the rusting silo's ladder finds similar expression in the cranes' girders; the modern, sterile office building is an ironic counterpoint to the similarly placed tank rich with rusting age; the black&white streaks on the skyscraper's façade are echoed in the corrugated barn doors (and sides) . . . even the undulating hills have equivalent geometries subtly present in the city's roiling sky.

There is another relationship between these two scenes: Houston is easily my least favorite city in the United States, while my soul finds comfort in the peace, quiet and sublime beauty in the region near San Juan Bautista.

* * *

Summer in Houston, #8102

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: July 28, 2007; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/250 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 800; 17mm.

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Spring on Highway 25, #7101

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 30, 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/800 sec; -1 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#51)

For your consideration: a confluence of organic and inorganic elements in a subtly complex composition.

This abstract - hewn of both rough, heavy block elements and gracefully flowing tendrils - yields an unexpected sense of undulating motion across the frame, as well as a pronounced tension between fixed masses juxtaposed with slender organisms seemingly ready to float away.

This tableau presented itself to me during a walk on Christmas Day.

Untitled, #5861

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 25, 2009; Canon 20D; f/13 @ 1/200 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 100; 45mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#51)

For you consideration: a pair of abstractions from nature.

The first, taken after a meditation on she shore of a local percolation pond, presents a subtle tension between strata diving towards darker depths and a barely rising form, seeming to hover above the surface.

The second is for me an exceedingly rare foray into actuely accentuated image manipulation: a solarized version of a still life originally photographed indoors under scant lighting.

Each photograph illustrates the principles of the elusiveness of reality and the unreliability of visual evidence . . . there is more to see of what we perceive.

Untitled, #6887

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 20, 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/125 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Untitled, #6914

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 23, 2010; Canon 20D; f/22 @ 4 secs; -2/3 EV; ISO 200; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#50)

For your consideration: two submissions representing favorite subjects -- high contrast organic abstracts and time spent with my beloved friend Nino.

The blade is an example of a bit of extemporaneous vision: I exited a building just before sunset and discovered that my car was parked along side a long row of large plants whose leaves were in various states of decay. Many of them were fortuitously positioned to be glowingly illuminated by the last rays of the day; having my macro and a unipod made capturing fine detail with simplistic backgrounds possible, despite unpredictably swirling breezes. I especially enjoy the duality of symmetries and asymmetries present - note the unbalanced shadow of another unseen leaf.

Nino and I go back more than two decades. Since the early days we've become among one another's closest confidants, advisers, and sources of solace and encouragement. A rarest of friends, who continues to be a shining light in my life.

While not quite as spontaneous a setup as that of the blade image, when I realized Nino and I were skirting the local dome this pose was easy to visualize. Several forms echo throughout the space -- some obvious and others subtle (such as the zipper's teeth mimicking the hemisphere's grid). The dramatic sky is a nice counterpoint to the serene demeanor of this kind and peaceful man, who here holds a wry grin congruent with his good humor and the whimsy of this tableau.

* * *

Blade, #7233

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: April 7, 2010; Canon 20D; f/4 @ 1/640 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Nino, #6402

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

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Details: February 27, 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/125 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 100; 35mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#49)

For your consideration: l'idée abstraite du jour.

The hour is quite too late for me to muster any coherent commentary; as always I eagerly invite your own.

Untitled (Synthetic Façade), #7212

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 6, 2010; Canon 20D; f/11 @ 1/400 sec; -2/3 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#48)

For your consideration: a natural abstraction courtesy of life tenaciously clinging to a rocky environment. How often do we find more than meets the eye in a given setting: here a multitude of collected organisms array themselves in such a way as to suggest quite a different entity altogether, perhaps the fossil of an ancient alien visitor.

This image presented unexpected challenges, not the least of which was low intensity indirect lighting, and a markedly uneven surface which posed depth-of-field issues for the close macro. In fact my original intent was to publish this scene in its original colors (light sea green with blotches of orange and red in the "background"), with its inherent surrealism enhanced via slight saturation increases . . . Efforts in that direction proved unsatisfying, but a sudden vision as a black&white rendering lead to this result.

Lichen (Levitation), #7091

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 30, 2010; Canon 20D; f/5.6 @ 1/640 sec; -1 EV; ISO 400; 100mm.

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Seeing 2010 (#47)

For your consideration: an unexpected, delightful find while shopping for a necklace in honor of my step-daughter's upcoming Confirmation.

Taken in my living room during the opening hour of the twenty-first year of a particular journey I'm following; the object at hand is not meant to represent a specific path or discipline, but rather as a meditation on the rewards of seeking enlightenment. The discoveries are limitless and often surprising . . . the surface here is velvet.

Black Buddha, #7181

© 2010 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 1, 2010; Canon 20D; f/16 @ 30 secs; -2/3 EV; ISO 200; 100mm.

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