Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#76)

For your consideration:  on Saturday of the recent Memorial Day weekend I started out my day attending the Oakland A's vs New York Yankees game, from the luxury of a corporate box overlooking center field.  During the several hours spent tailgating and game (and crowd) watching I snapped just short of 400 images.

Later, arriving home, somehow my eye caught sight of a tiny, exquisitely tightly curled leaf lying intact against the curb of the busy street on which I live.  Naturally I had to pull out my tripod, macro lens, and (eventually) my flash . . . fifty more shots.

Ah, but the sun had not yet set so the day was still young.  Four hours later, downtown beckoned for some nocturnal wanderings — this structure, in particular, has been calling to me for many years.  A paltry twenty-five snaps of the shutter, and I was finally resigned to call a close to a full day of photography which was, for me, rare in its combination of varied venues, subjects, time spans and sheer image count (call it 500).

Upon reflection, this submission — one of the last shots taken — may well turn out to be one of my favorites from the day, simply for the lighting.


San Jose Old Water Company Building, #8271-72-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: May 26, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1 sec; —1 EV; ISO 250;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 14mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Monday, May 28, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#75)

For your consideration:  a token offering (not to be denigrated), considering the unfathomably profound sacrifice made for our living freedoms . . . eternal service on the part of myriad souls, the vast majority of whom we've never had the honor of knowing.

In honor of Memorial Day, and its true meaning.


Remembrances, Golden Gate National Cemetery, #4502-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 17, 2011; Canon 7D; f/5.6 @ 1/3165 sec; —2/3 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 269mm

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Saturday, May 26, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#74)

For your consideration:  the scene of a sureal sentiment, given the subjects scattered in mute reception.

The lovely bones, in a town consisting of bare, skeletal remains.

What's not to like?

I Adore You (New Idria), #7513-7515-7D (composite)


© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

 
Details: May 19, 2012; Canon 7D; f/12 @ 1/1000 sec; + 1 1/3 to —1 1/3  EV;  ISO 400;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 12

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Friday, May 25, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#73)

For your consideration:  taken in brilliant back-lighting, mid-morning, just off of Hwy 25 near Hwy 101, being an early leg of our multi-segment return voyage to Panoche valley and its environs.

For anyone suffering from hydrophobia — a veritable nightmare.

For the rest of us, at the very least this spells apparent relief from any local drought conditions.  Still, the thought of volunteering to attempt grasping and shutting off that valve might give one pause . . .

Posted in no small part due to the quite unexpected forecast for possible showers today . . .


Untitled, #7350-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: May 19, 2012; Canon 7D; f/5.6 @ 1/2660 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 272

________

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Thursday, May 24, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#72)

For your consideration:  the first image taken on the day of the Great Panoche Revisit Expedition, whilst I bid my time awaiting my ride.  Akin to a musician's pre-performance tuning session, if you will. 

A powerfully sweeping trochilic form, infused with energy beyond its capacity to contain, as suggested by the crumbling section poised to be ejected . . .

Untitled, #7278-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: May 19, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/1328 sec; —2/3 EV; ISO 800;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

________

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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#71)

For your consideration:  an homage to the (very) distant past days of my youth when I lived in Clifton, Arizona, and had virtually complete (and hazardous) access to large expanses of abandoned mining operations acreage . . . Indeed, it was during that very era (1974-76) when I set up my first home darkroom, and spent countless blissful hours exploring wonderfully decrepit, rusting machinery and crumbling structures of all sizes.

Back then the equipment was a Minolta srT-102, 50mm f/1.8 and 135mm f/2.8 Rokkor lenses; the media was Kodak Tri-X Pan (ISO 400), Plus-X Pan (125) and, what was to become my love, Panatomic-X (32).  I developed in Dektol (1:1) at first, then Microdol-X; my enlarger was a relatively cheap Vivitar model (bought in Safford, AZ) which leaked light galore yet produced stunningly crisp prints.

Things have changed some in the past forty years.

Last weekend Jerry and I, with our friend Vernon along for the adventure, made our long-anticipated second effort to traverse the entirety of the Panoche Valley route into the hills, with the goal of reaching an abandoned mining community.  We set out at 7:00am, and (eating and photographing at various points along the way) finally succeeded in finding the rapidly decaying ruins of this remote hidden collection of shambles at about 2:30pm.  Perhaps three hours were spent exploring the site, with much to see but (for me at least) not nearly so much as I'd hoped for in terms of compelling photogenic subjects.

The weather was unfortunately — and expectedly — blandly beautiful . . . thus utterly cloudless, boring skies and flat lighting for most of the day . . . Consequently I had to work much harder to "see".  Tonight, after reviewing the several hundred images taken, I confess to be being somewhat disappointed, although I knew going in that the first visit's richness (last January) set the bar impossibly high to match this time.  Still, a few images worthy of publication seem to come out of the effort. 

And so this:  literally at the pinnacle of my day's shooting, a self-portrait of sorts, standing atop a quite large, equally empty tank which provided a commanding view over most of the surrounding remnants of once thriving operations


New Idria Tank Summit, #7560-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: May 19, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/1600 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 320;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 11mm

________

Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com


Saturday, May 19, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#70)

For your consideration:   tomorrow (at this writing being Saturday, May 19, 2012) I shall make a return trip to the splendid area of Panoche Valley, largely unknown and hidden between mountain arms a few hours distant.  The weather and foliage promise to be rather different from my last visit — few if any clouds are forecast and green grasses are likely to gently cloak the hills — thus I'll get to experience another facet of this region's atmospheric personality.

The prior trek stands out as one of the absolutely, utmost enjoyable days of photography in my life.  Every aspect was in its own way exquisite:  the lighting, the cool temperatures, the virtual lack of civilization's modern imprint, and the serendipitous synchronization of the storm fronts — we managed to dodge the heavy rains while remaining in the tranquil gaps between throughout the entire ramble — the myriad elements combined to infuse my spirit and soul with a sense of lightness, awe, well-being and a fundamental joie de vivre rarely co-extant. 

An extraordinary ratio of superb shots for the total number taken was a major aspect of this bountiful, personal harvest; my favorite image from the January excursion is presented below.


Incoming Storm, Panoche Valley, #5217-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 21, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/2000 sec; —2/3 EV; ISO 200;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 13mm

________

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Thursday, May 17, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#69)

For your consideration:  triumphant trumpeting  . . . in the most incongruous of locales:  a Buddhist temple settled in the cacophonous Las Vegas Caesar's Place — on New Year's Eve afternoon, no less.

Oases of wisdom and the promise of serenity can appear, and exist, in any environment, if one is but willing to persistently search.


Vegas Elephant, #5124-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 31, 2011; Canon 7D; f/10 @ 1/400 sec; –2/3 EV; ISO500;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 300mm

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Seeing 2012 (#68)

For your consideration:  a macro study —  gas pockets treading within glass . . . featuring a singular defiant (or brave, or simply lost) outlier.

This objet d'art is courtesy of an oil bottle, which happened to be bathed by perfectly diffuse lighting in a friend's kitchen this evening.  Apparently, just waiting to be photographed.

A favorite theme:  small-scale focus yielding unexpected abstractions.


Vesciles, #7266-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: May 16, 2012, Canon 7D; f/3.5 @ 1/332 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 800;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

________


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Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#67)

For your consideration . . .

. . . well . . . the palm tree, the hair, the diagonals, the symmetries . . . and the good-humored cooperation of my friend, who also saw the playful potential before the shutter was tripped . . .

Resistance was futile (I just had to take the shot)!

(Not all art has to be serious.)


Jerry, #6808-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 7, 2012, Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/125 sec; —2/3 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

________


Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#66)

A note, before the "official" bit of musing:   my deepest, heartfelt thanks, appreciation and love to my wife, parents, brother, sister, and several close friends who took the time (and in a some cases traveled considerable distances) to support me at this evening's 2012 San José Historical Photography Competition awards ceremony.  

My entry, Bank Of America Building (Encroachment), was chosen for First Place.  I was stunned, and enormously gratified.

*  *  *  *  *

For your consideration:  a chaotic, complex composition containing a plethora of distractions . . .

Still — the fundamental message:  the vast majority of our mental background's terrain is frequently littered with ill-defined personae of little substance, and often times messages brief, yet potently toxic.

These troublesome sources of erosion are put in their place as insignificant decorations when one remains focused on, and fully engaged with, the noble purity of the present, foreground moment. There unexpected good humor may even be discovered . . .


(War) (Buddha), #0941-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: July 24, 2011; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/20 sec; —2/3 EV; ISO 800;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 12mm

________


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Friday, May 11, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#65)

For your consideration:  a (likely) random convergence of literary voyagers, crossing paths in a seeming near miss.

The scene from upon high:  many times I've contemplated the multitude of anonymous encounters we all have, most days of our lives, brushing in close proximity to fellow beings who are at once unique in their specific life experiences while also far more alike us than different in most regards . . .

Each such transit is as fleeting as the trails of fading exhalations left behind them.   How much more  enlightened might each participant become, however, if there were to be a spontaneous exchange of accumulated knowledge, shared aspirations and common concerns (through osmosis, perhaps?).  One might well imagine a quantum leap in empathy, compassion, and the restoration of some semblance of unity might be one yield of this mystical fantastical sharing.

Alas, in the Modern Era, despite a logarithmic expansion of so-called social media technologies, an ever deepening gulf between actual interactions with "strangers" is the reality.  Wariness, mistrust and an undercurrent of fear fills the vacuum.

And so it goes:  in this tightly structured and subliminally choreographed tableau the players may or may not be oblivious of their barely avoided convergence, yet even from afar a sense of danger floats just above the surface, as an outstretched arm reaches for the safety of a connection . . .


Patronage, #1417-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: September 3, 2011; Canon 7D; f/6 @ 1/100 sec; –2/3 EV; ISO 640;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Thursday, May 10, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#64)

For your consideration:  a scene on conflicting moods, at once majestic, embroiled, threatening . . .yet also possessed of expanses suggesting a measure of tranquility as the underlying atmosphere.

What caught my eye at this commanding outcrop was not the frothing ocean and craggy outcroppings, but rather the skeletal remains of hardy guardians  — malformed in their organic stances, one poised as if conducting the tidal flows whilst the other looms in a fierce readiness to challenge any assault from afar.

Its rare to find such a juxtaposition in this locale where the tableau's subjects, despite their fragility and relatively temporal composition, can bring an imposing energy to the fore.


(C)2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved
Sentinels, Point Lobos, #1996-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: September 25, 2011; Canon 7D; f/16 @ 1/500 sec; –2/3 EV; ISO 500;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 16mm

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Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#63)

For your consideration:  a reminder that just all trials and tribulations, successes and glories are temporary, so too all days, whether brilliant or stormy, end with light fading to darkness . . .and yet are renewed with the dawn's arrival, heralding hope and boundless opportunity.

There are few sunsets as serene, powerful and optimistic as those encountered in purity of the desert.


Yucca Sunset, Northwestern Arizona, #4881-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 28, 2011; Canon 7D; f/7 @ 1/1600 sec; –1 1/3 EV; ISO 250;
Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS @ 26mm

________

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#62)

For your consideration:  a brief exercise in compare and contrast (one of my favorite English class challenges) — Turtles vs. Whales.  Regard the images below . . .

I was an only child, raised largely by my grandparents on a parcel of urban land inhabited by retirees. Consequently, I spent much of my youth playing outdoors by myself, with my own imagination as the primary source of entertainment.

One tends to gravitate towards the familiar, so I suppose it is no surprise that I've spent considerable periods in my adulthood as a single, free-spirit.  On the surface such a lifestyle can appear deceptively attractive:  nobody to be responsible to (on the domestic front, at least), keeper of one's own schedule with a minimum of socially-imposed obligations, reduction in conflict by way of less need to integrate desires and responsibilities at an intimate level; keeping house in any manner without restraint, going to bed whenever it pleases . . . Ah, yes, "freedom."  Our modern society, with its ever strident emphasis on Self and the disposable nature of all things, seems more and more predisposed to a populous of solo agents.

Yet, swimming solo, as self-directed as Moby Dick, ironically and ultimately creates a journey of far fewer possibilities, greater vulnerabilities, and narrowed vision.  An incipient loneliness takes hold, barely discernible in its embryonic stage . . . yet a discomfort which inevitably grows, gnaws, and eventually undermines the illusionary romanticism of unfettered wanderings.   One awakens to an ache for the safety and comfort which can only arise from the nurture of intimacy. 

Thus I've discovered it to be, late in life.  There is no greater healing, no more exquisite joy, than forming a deep, devoted and true love with another soul.  Certainly such a melding of lives creates complications, challenges and stresses . . . yet honest appraisal reveals that these are simply of a different flavor than the discomforts which arise from other challenges confronted alone.


"Safety in numbers."  A bromide with fortitude and efficacy.  I've found that I am far greater than the sum of my Self's facets when I've been engaged and intimately joined to my soulmate.  There is a joy and strength which is spiritual in nature, and is unifying in a manner which expands my capacities, interests, and depths of insight, compassion and forgiveness which cannot exist in the absence of such connection.  A depth and breadth comes into existence which can't be described nor explained, yet which is unassailably beautiful.

Certainly it can be extremely difficult at times; one might doubt having the strength to cling to the slippery surfaces of the sharp-edged, rocky problems that often arise in human interaction.  Yet, as my grandparents demonstrated over many years, there is no nobler path than the faith and persistence in love and partnership, and no other method to develop and grow at depth in love, faith and honor.

The whale may swim powerfully, swiftly and magnificently. but the connection, deliberation and unification of the turtles — a humbler path — creates the wisdom, strength and ultimate reward of truly basking in the sunlight, and with the soothing balm of protection uniquely provided from the power of spiritual and emotional intimacy, devotion and commitment.

________



Wall Whale, #6977-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 27, 2012; Canon 7D; f/14 @ 1/80 sec; –1/3 EV; ISO 200;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 16mm

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Turtle Trio, #6579-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: March 24, 2012; Canon 7D; f/11 @ 1/500 sec; –2/3 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 155mm

________

Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Seeing 2012 (#61)

For your consideration:  a blanket statement on modern economics, for some at least.

I spotted this artistic canvas on the beach in Santa Barbara, at the wharf, whilst whiling away some time as my car was being serviced.

For those readers who may be unfamiliar with the locale, this entire region of southern California is generally awash with wealth, often enough exceeding any reasonable definition of ostentatious. Even the basic architecture and attendant landscape trappings seem to have an underlying current of currency as a prime nutrient. 

Thus I was struck by an unexpected sense of incongruity:  who knew that the impoverished exist even here?  I took great delight in this impromptu studio's artist-in-residence, a warm and gregarious man roughly my age (or so it seemed to me . . . somewhat hard to tell given the unique physical erosion exacted by excessive sun and sand common to beach habitues).  His genre was a minimalist confluence of economic excoriation and performance art, the latter as an implied, implored invitation to the viewer: take aim, as many times as the interest can be sustained.   One has as much chance of scoring as does the average job seeker in today's market; this sculpture's statement couldn't have been more potent in its direct simplicity.

The reward for a bulls-eye?  No, not to walk away with the ante, for that would be a bit too much suffering for this artist's output.  Rather, for the tosser, a priceless bit of self-congratulation.  (The intoxicated twenty-something hit it on his first attempt, to emphatic, supreme delight.)  Alas, I never came close, but I suspect the primary motivation for this primitive "hanging" was satisfied in both cases.

In these bleak economic times that's just, well, common cents.


Try Your Luck, #6971-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: April 27, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/3000 sec; –1/3 EV; ISO 250;
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 16mm

________

Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com