Los Restos de la Revolución- Kevin Kunishi

"...sometimes I would lose track of which side this individual was on..."    -- Kevin Kunishi

Isn't that the lesson we never seem to learn- no matter the time, no matter the place?

Fracking- It's What's Good For You!

We all need our daily minerals. And as everyone knows, a little radiation only makes you stronger...

Gravity

Other than the stunningly realistic special effects, I didn't quite know what to expect from Gravity. And I'm more than happy to say that it delivered. George Clooney starts out as the casual, carefree, cowboy astronaut before quickly transitioning first into Cool, Calm and Collected Mr. Take Charge Guy, only to metamorphose even further into the ever so reassuring voice of mankind itself- warm, transcendent, almost spiritual.* Sandra Bullock perseveres through the ever escalating sequence of chaos via vacuum, stopping only once for a womb like, zen tribute shot to 2001. 

This movie, if anything, succeeds in portraying just how catastrophically dangerous space can be (not exactly a recruitment film), and how hard those space suits must work and train to make it all look so easy...

* Although The Wife said he looks and sounds like Buzz LightYear- also ironically true.

Cool!

Definitely one of the coolest things I've seen in quite sometime! And more than a little ironic in the sense that this was how it was always depicted in the cheapo, Grade B, Sci-fi flicks of yore...
(via Boing Boing)

New Depths...

I guess even Homeland Security is starting to tire of their own sting operations where they set up some local disgruntled stooges to participate in some lame brained scheme (largely concocted by their new found undercover friends and enablers) to blow up the universe with fake bombs and weaponry from your friendly, neighborhood FBI. Least, I haven't heard of any lately. Well, they can certainly take a page from these local law enforcement officials who recently came up with this sterling, outright gem of an undercover caper extraordinaire! Really shows what a little moral initiative and creativity in the hands of law enforcement can accomplish when set free...

What do you do when you don't have enough crime to even bust a Meth lab? How about something truly insidious, yeah- just pull out all the plugs and go as low, as low can possibly go!

A Rose By Any Other Name...

via Boing Boing

It's curious to see how the commentary on this facet of racism (in sports) so closely mirrors anytime (the very, very few times) the subject comes up in photographic circles- the defense of, denial of and justification for.

To actually have a team called the "Redskins" in 2013 is, I'd like to say, totally unbelievable. Upon seeing the plethora of blatantly racist commentary on the internet however, it is, in fact- totally believable as well as repugnant. As for the Cleveland Indians and Chief Wahoo, I must admit to having rather fond, endearing memories of The Chief since childhood, but Neil Shyminsky lays out a pretty convincing argument as to why "nostalgia for its own sake is always a pretty weak argument," not to mention a host of other more salient reasons...

Happy Christopher Columbus Day!

Celebrating the age of exploration and the civilization of cultures throughout the centuries!

Pay Your Own Prize!

At this point, everyone knows (one would hope) to check the small print of any competition they may enter for ownership and copyright abuse. THE INTERNATIONAL STREET PHOTOGRAPHY CHALLENGE from EMERGING SCENE however contains one stipulation that had me rolling- The Grand (and only) Prize is $1,000 US; and with that- the winner must: print, mat, frame and mail the winning photograph to a prestigious photographic gallery, museum, institution... some freaking restaurant lounge in Barcelona. Throw in cost of insurance, and if your finished artwork is of any considerable size you just might have enough change left from your winnings to eke out a six pack and toast to your success with your imaginary, international, jet setting, trend setter friends from afar!!!

One would have hoped the "Humanitarian" amongst their judges would have perhaps forfeited a meal and donated the proceeds towards postage. 

Donna Decesare

Photo: Donna Decesare

Documentary photographer Donna Decesare will be at North Gate Hall Library, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism on Thursday Oct. 10, 7PM.

This is what the work of a dedicated photographer committed to the subjects and subject matter she is documenting looks like. It is not taken incognito at arm's length, with an extended prosthesis, behind an ever moving and concealed window. And as Ms. Decesare herself states- she goes up close, in your face and personal, not to shock and have you look away, but to grab your attention and engage you. View (and listen to) her work, as she gives voice to the voiceless and let's us into their lives- and them into ours.

Photo: Donna Decesare

Drive-By Street Photography

 To view essay click HERE...

 ...I had a problem to solve. How do I show what I see while driving around,
without missing the moment by parking the car and getting out?  --Alex Garcia

Pro photographer Alex Garcia has shot an essay (only a part of which is presently shown) on a long neglected and under served community in Chicago. From what I gather, it had to be done within a very restricted time frame. To meet that time frame and the dangers inherent in said assignment (which I address in the comments section there-in) Mr. Garcia went to the extraordinary and unorthodox lengths of photographing from a moving vehicle with a tethered hidden camera- drive by photography at its most literal. While his innovative 'solution' to the assignment is indeed ingenious- one can't help but feel a tad (ie- A Lot!) queasy about the ethics and methodology employed.

Mr. Garcia argues that some good has already resulted from his work, that more is certain to follow, and that the balance of his work will show a more intimate portrayal of the community. I certainly hope that is the case, because the initial phase of this project, if anything, seems to highlight, exploit and perpetuate the plethora of negative imagery and stereotypes long out there. That is not to deny that Mr. Garcia includes some neutral or positive images as well, but I couldn't shake the feeling that ultimately I would be treated to the image of Ronnie Reagan's welfare queen cruising about in her pink Caddie convertible, wind in her bonnet as she made her rounds casually collecting her welfare checks.

Yes, you can view real life images such as Mr. Garcia's in any inner city you choose- no argument there. But one of the main responsibilities and rewards of in depth photojournalism is to provide analysis and understanding that goes beyond perfunctory, everyday images, and to give voice to those not heard- part one of his body of work does neither. And so, I suppose, we must wait to see the remainder of this work (as well as its social aftermath) to see how it redeems itself and fulfills its stated mission.

I'm sure his initial photos would receive considerable kudos from some street photography advocates for his innovative 'candid' approach- curiously, Mr. Garcia repeatedly asserts there is a long, respected tradition of this kind of photography* in photojournalism. Really? I don't recall Mr. Riis, or Smith, Davidson or Ms. Mark employing such methods. I'm also quite sure that there are many street photo advocates that would say this represents the complete antithesis of that particular genre.

Some will forever say the end justifies the means, but then- some will even profess that it is quite OK for a conflict photographer that documents the suffering and evils of war to actually profit form those that perpetuate and profit from that suffering! To be sure none of us are without sin, but sometimes (ie- all the time) it does serve to question one's motives, how one approaches and arrives at the work they produce, and how that work will be ultimately perceived, interpreted and used...

*For the possible exception of Evans, none of the photographers listed went to the all out deception engaged in by Mr. Garcia. And I think it's no stretch to say that Bruce Davidson would positively vomit at the very thought, and that even Mr. Evans did not practice his particular 'skullduggery' in one particular neighborhood with one class of people.

How Ignorant Are Americans? Oh, About...

Yeah, but them's hicks- surely my sophisticated, hometown New Yorkers know what side is up...
(thank you FOX News- bring on the Death Squads!)

Rep. Randy Neugebauer Needs To Have His Flag Shoved...

... far enough up his ass till he finally apologizes to that park ranger, the American people and better make it humanity as a whole considering the lengths he will go to fabricate excuses for his own insidious treachery. The sad fact is that there is no flag big enough for this HYPOCRITE, loser extraordinaire to hide behind. And, of course, immediately after blaming an innocent person for his own actions, this coward writ large immediately turns and runs- lest he be forced to defend the "logic" of his baseless accusation.

If my rant sounds a tad obscene- it's not half as pathetic as what these Tea Party Bastards disseminate each and every day, spreading their hateful, lying bile, conceived from the most purposely ignorant misinformation, whenever and where ever they can. And as soon as they reap what they sew... there they are- blaming someone else!

What is it that their Christian god says about hypocrites???

Transit Art vs. Ads Ad Nauseum

Photo: Sara Fusco

Photo: Richard Sandler

I remember stopping dead in my tracks back in the early eighties in NYC upon first coming face to face with what talented graffiti artists could actually do when they went all out on a subway train- and that was in no small part because most graffiti just flat out sucked and had a pretty negative effect on one's everyday psyche. The great majority of it was to the painterly arts what the vast majority of Flickr is to its photographic counterpart. People bitched till they went numb- it helped defeat one mayor, and elect another.

Photo: Todd Hull

But I've yet to hear of any public furor anywhere decrying the commercial abominations now festooned over much of our public transportation systems the world over all in the name of the almighty, corporate dollar. Not satisfied with the billboards, posters and regularly placed cardboard inserts of yore- they now plaster over the little view we pay for, blotting out the occasional glimpses of sunlight with their massive, coma inducing logos and food by products galore.

I'll take graffiti any day...

Our House

The Money Question

Uhhmmm... Errrrr..... Uhhhhh..... See how easy it is to render these bobblehead fuckers naked, moot and useless soon as you ask the right question, and demand an answer- instead of just kowtowing to their usual monied bullshit (like the 'journalist' on hand)?
Via- Daily Kos

Say What!?

Bay Bridge- Photo: S.Banos

The amount of tension, mistrust and underlying bigotry can be rather apparent in online discussions in various photographic forums when the subject of minority representation in professional or art photography is discussed (however inadequately and infrequently). But I must say even I was taken aback a few years ago when I encountered the rampant, in your face hate and racism propagated in more public online forums. No code words, no well honed political doublespeak. And it just wasn't the odd solitary guy standing in the corner of the virtual room by himself; it was the whole mighty chorus, each trying to out do the vile, profane, degenerate racist tirade of the previous commenter, and to a large part, they were in fact, succeeding- dragging the "conversation" yet further into the depths of monosyllabic hate and kill babble.

So whenever I walk the streets, I find myself (more than ever) asking who those strangers writing those "comments" might be. I know they don't all look like hideously deformed hate demons, I know they don't live in one solitary enclave- I know that we walk and live amongst them each and every day...

The Man Who Saved The World

Why every Tea Party Republican (and every single American) should kneel down and KISS this ever lovin' Red Commie's Ass!!!

The Eyes Of Your Sole(s)

One of the first things I notice about a person upon first meeting is- their shoes. They tell me way more about a person than their eyes- any lying liar can tell me whatever they want with their eyes. But their shoes are a whole different ballgame- shoes don't lie. Just think about it, they're the first things to come between you and the planet you deal with, the terra firma that spawned, nurtured and defined you. They reveal more about you than any damn photographic portrait- that's for damn sure! Your temperament, politics, favorite movie- they're all right there between your toes.

I've worn some variety, shape or form of sneaker most my life. High tops, low tops, canvas and leather of many styles, colors and brands- many fairly cheap, many fairly expensive. I walk- a lot. Many sneakers today, particularly the better made ones are both prohibitively LOUD, as well as prohibitively expensive for an aging person of non-means as myself. Recently, I took to wearing inexpensive canvas sneakers which when I was considerably younger were quite well built and durable- these days they are built so shabbily that I actually had to buy gel insoles to enhance their napkin thin soles. 

Of course, the very concept of buying insoles for... sneakers is well beyond insanity! So thinking outside the box, I decide to get some desert boots. Fairly stylish these days, and they have those nice, springy, cushiony, natural kinda soles. I'm in! And to make things even sweeter, I even got a brand new pair of gel soles to go with 'em- that's right, Stan's gonna ride high and live large once again! And the whole of the following week I'm draggin' my feet home with whatever's left of me- those freakin' shoes are the largest energy drags I've ever placed upon my body.

Nike Free 3.0 V5 (wish the soles were dark- but, hey...)

So back to the drawing board I go, when I see this pair of running shoes. Now I usually steer clear of running shoes- 99.99% of them are the absolute fugliest clown wear ever placed atop this earth. I don't care what they feel like. But these looked different, they didn't have a thousand stars, stripes and gyrations clashing about them every which way in every fluorescent color not humanly imaginable, they weren't clumsy, they weren't awkwardly pointy- in fact, they were pretty understated, classy even...

So I went to Uncle Amex, who always smiles upon his children, and ordered me up a pair. And, oh dear lord, the saints delivered!!! These shoes are a pair of heaven itself! Light as the literal feather and comfort beyond reckoning; it's not that my feet get less tired- they just don't get tired... period! At all! I feel like I'm twenty five again (at least my feet do). And no damn photo ever made me feel that good!

Cristophe Kutner- The US

To be quite honest I'm not all that excited by this guy's photographs- many of them are simple snapshots, many unnecessarily overexposed, and quite a few others- quite good, indeed! What I do love is the concept-  the candy colored covers, the idea of one book for each state. Nicely understated, yet- Brilliant! And can't believe it hasn't been done (or at least attempted) before...

Photo: Cristophe Kutner

Let The Sadness Hit You Like A Truck...

Gotta make a decent scan of this...

I don't have a smart phone, didn't get a cell phone till around 2003, after my wife kept insisting that we had to get them so that we could locate and dig each other out after The Big One here in "don't call it Frisco." It didn't seem to matter that cell phone service will undoubtedly be one of the first casualties when it does hit. So I carried it around for the first year and a half turned Off. And the wife yelled at me some more till I finally left it On. But I still don't text, and I've never responded to the one someone sent me a few years back.

I'm on the computer way too much as is; I have an addictive personality, and it's by far the best toy I've ever had since the camera. But I want to experience life when I leave my fortress of solitude and distraction- painfully, monotonously boring and aggravating as it usually is. And I don't want to be one of those people I constantly see looking into their palm sized screens as if it held the secret to a better life, a more fulfilled life, the life I could imagine myself to have if only I too walked around staring at my palm. Anyone can promptly list the advantages of smart phones- I'll let the great 21st century philosopher, Louis C.K., espouse the drawbacks...

Click on link below if video does not play-

What More Is There To Say...