Daily Photos

< September 2008 >

September 1, 2008
Be glad every day isn`t Labor Day, or else this is the type of thing you would see all the time. Can you see why it`s called a ruby-throated hummingbird? I sometimes have photographic frustrations, mostly when I try things outside of my genuine interests. If I could shoot gardens or color guard every day, I`d never get frustrated. This butterfly is called a Great Spangled Fritillary because of the shiny silver spots (or spangles) under its wings. Don`t ask me what fritillary means. My theory that they won`t bother you if you don`t bother them was put to the test when one landed on my neck.

September 2, 2008
If you live in Dayton, why go anywhere else? One small step for man. They don`t build `em like that anymore. Many Madonnas. Remember Artie Johnson from `Laugh-In`?

September 3, 2008
Hot night. Sunny morning. No diving. Nature`s beauty. Sorority silliness.

September 4, 2008
Something out of nothing. A psychologist might wish to comment on my tendency to take photos of isolated objects. An old Stan Kenton tune. It`s okay -- he wasn`t using it. In case you weren`t sure what kind of music he was singing, I spelled it out for you. Remember Charlie Brown`s schoolteacher? `Mmwah mwhah! Muh-wah wah!`

September 5, 2008
Greetings and precipitations. Bad weather results in a bad lunch. I bought the Wrap of the Month (I guess that means it`s less than 30 days old). On TV I once saw a man in an Arab country hosing down a driveway with gasoline. Over there, it`s more plentiful than water. Après la pluie. I C A C-gull.

September 6, 2008
First time in a new park today. Homage to Joyce Tenneson. Goose down. My weekly butterfly shots. A Clouded Sulphur, with its green eyes and pink stripe around the wings.

September 7, 2008
I`m not in a photography class this semester, but I`ll be giving myself small assignments to do in the studio. Assignment 1: circle of light on a dark background. Assignment 2: circle of light on a dark background with a silhouette inside it. Assignment 3: circle of light on a dark background with an illuminated person in front of it. Here`s all you need to do these exercises. Don`t trip on the cords.

September 8, 2008
Never shoot into the sun - morning. No clever caption can hide the fact that this is just a dull picture, so why try? Still the morning sun. One of those days? Never shoot into the sun - afternoon.

September 9, 2008
`Fate? or f/8?` cleverly scrawled outside the photo lab. What Augustus Gloop saw as he descended into one of Willie Wonka`s candy-making machines. `Looks like rain.` See the pine trees and cloudy sky? I haven`t had to buy gas since July because I`ve been walking to work a lot (oh, and I`ve been siphoning gas from the neighbors).

September 10, 2008
Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it`s off to work we go. Geese don`t have to go to work. There are certain alleys and back porches where I know a dog will bark or a cat will scowl at me. Depth of field exercise: f/36 at 1/2 second and 1600 ISO. Depth of field exercise: f/5.6 at 1/5 second and 100 ISO.

September 11, 2008
Our desire to communicate and travel quickly has exacted a heavy price. Has it been worth it? `Apes on strike . . . Management unfair to apes . . . Support the apes on strike . . . ` Where the `S` comes from (see August 13, 2008). Art from above. It`s significant that, as soon as I started getting steady paychecks about five years ago, I bought a camera.

September 12, 2008
Tappers. Rappers. For the eyes. For the ears. Part of my long-running series of people on fire (see March 20 and September 19, 2006, September 14 and November 23, 2007, and May 16 and August 14, 2008).

September 13, 2008
It seems a shame to eat it. Ringo played Ludwig drums. Looks like something that might grow in Hawaii. Since I just happened to be there with a camera, it seems I`m now the official photographer of the Server Olympics. She dropped one. Their team lost. Years of training wasted.

September 14, 2008
Windy? Windy! A picture means I know where I was every minute. That`s why I take pictures. It`s a visual diary. ANDY WARHOL Lots of people take pictures, but not many of us take pictures of pictures. Harold Edgerton invented the electronic flash in 1931 as a way to troubleshoot malfunctioning machinery, but he was quick to capitalize on its photographic potential.

September 15, 2008
I`m going to make Ike pay for all this if it`s the last thing I do. If only I knew his last name. That`s fine, I didn`t really want food anyway. This home is a handyman`s dream. Hmm, I guess they don`t like pepper spray. Just kidding about the pepper spray. Ha, get it?

September 16, 2008
Even when I drive to work, there`s still a chance I might find a photo on the way in from the parking lot. In a quiet garden. Sports are so geometrical and mathematical, they should be the topic of word problems, instead of baskets of apples or two trains traveling in different directions. There was no advantage of climbing up here except maybe for amusement. Provocative graffiti.

September 17, 2008
TRIUMPH! I managed to find a grocery store that was open so I could replace the things I had to throw out after the power failure: milk, graham crackers, paper napkins... I attended the annual meeting of the Dayton Visual Arts Center and got a free T-shirt. The meeting`s still going on . . . The meeting`s still going on . . . The meeting`s still going on . . .

September 18, 2008
Markers and boredom. Speak softly and carry and big stick. THEODORE ROOSEVELT You may see this picture on a gallery wall in the future. If only I`d paid better attention in Bulgarian class, I`d know what she was singing about. The man with the golden horn.

September 19, 2008
Emerging from a foxhole . . . a fox? From a distance. Up close. Late summer bees seem to have a sense of urgency. Color field painting.

September 20, 2008
`Remember that one day . . . years ago . . . you took me someplace . . . there were ducks!` I travel far and wide to bring you these photos. `I remember it was a festival . . . there were ducks . . . and someone painted my face.` If only I`d paid better attention in Spanish class, I`d know what he was singing about. The Girl from Empanada.

September 21, 2008
Keeping an eye on things. Wings over the world. Turtle convention. Where Christmas lights come from. I encountered a familiar face at the park.

September 22, 2008
With zero pictures taken by 5:00pm, I battled traffic after work to find me some nature. If you were paying attention on September 6, you know what kind of butterfly this is. I don`t know if it will scare any crows, but it works on kids. I got hungry while taking pictures in the park, so I ate the sand which is there. You know it`s a monarch, but do you know it`s a female?

September 23, 2008
In the shadow of art. See the world through children`s eyes, every day a sweet surprise. Busted! I might take up jogging if I could always run downhill. Vaguely reminiscent of July 29, 2008.

September 24, 2008
Straight or curved lines? En plein air. At least it`s not another bee or butterfly. The other cats make fun of his nose. At least it`s not another cat.

September 25, 2008
A night when legends are made and hopes are crushed. Obviously Barb hadn`t read my warning from August 26, 2006. The action was too fast for the eye to follow. Those who preferred a slower game gathered nearby. But any game that requires a color-coded instruction sheet is beyond my skill.

September 26, 2008
The clues may be subtle, but the evidence is undeniable. More snapshots of my daily activities means I`m putting less effort into creating pictures. The best I can manage today is a raspberry tea abstract. The idea seemed simple enough when I started. But I went into this enterprise lacking an exit strategy.

September 27, 2008
Coins along the top of Paul Laurence Dunbar`s grave. Today I came across the grave of Paul`s mother for the first time. I may never find his father`s grave. Let me know if you can see it in the pictures from November 20, 2007. You should entertain no illusions about gravestones -- they`re temporary too. CRUNCH!! This is a dangerous place for the living. `When is somebody going to pick up these branches?!`

September 28, 2008
Last Sunday I ran into her accidentally. This Sunday it was on purpose. And she brought a friend with her. Normally I don`t make people pose in the blazing sun, but that arch and shadow were too good to pass up. She`s a natural at this. Sitting in the shade on a sunny Sunday.

September 29, 2008
Morning rush hour. The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun, The higher he`s a-getting, The sooner will his race be run, And nearer he`s to setting. ROBERT HERRICK Camera shy. Going so soon? Photograph ye rosebuds while ye may, Old Time is still a-flying: And this same flower that smiles today, Tomorrow will be dying. ROBERT HERRICK (sort of)

September 30, 2008
Through this door, the world leans a different direction. Remember that movie `Brazil`? Steinway: there is no substitute. It`s never too early to start planning for the holidays. `Pinkham is American, so why does he write in Latin!?`

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