Relax…

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, actually it’s been months. So I chose this photo because one, I found it in a folder labeled miscellaneous and I always have a hard time placing those files. Two, because I remember blurring the left portion of the frame on purpose. The composition is not stellar but I do like how it came out, so it’s here. It’s a busy frame but at the same time, the subject on the left gives me a softer feel to all that is happening. The photo was taken January 21st at the California stop on the Blue Line train station, it was early in the afternoon. I was running late to work and after resigning myself to the fact that the repairs on the track were going to make me more late, I decided to relax a bit. I took my camera out, took a few photos and waited for the train. In retrospect, I feel that the people around me had a similar realization…

Lake Geneva

On the last week of January I was at a Conference/Retreat/Training in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. I really love this place, in some ways it reminds me of a small town outside of Vail Valley, Colorado called Red Cliff. The last time I was in Lake Geneva I didn’t play photographer but this time I had some fun. The pictures turned into a series in which I play with over exposure and the color white… yeah.

…looking at the shore of the frozen Lake Geneva.

Terminal

Snack Shop/Taqueria

The words on the middle window read;
Tacos
Hot Chocolate
Tameles
Hot Dog
Hamburger
Champurado

This photo always makes me smile. There are dualities in various aspects of the larger U.S. culture that could be easily missed, not realizing how they affect us. They’re all around us and sometimes well hidden.

There is a Puerto Rican restaurant in Logan Square where I was able to order orchata to go with my Jibarito sandwich. I venture to say that the sandwich itself is a sign of a type or kind of duality in the local Chicago culture but I may be intellectualizing or even over-intellectualizing a simple thing. I smile again…

Yakuza

Bruce Lamont.

Yakuza performed at the Beat Kitchen on 1/19/’08 and as a little fan that I am, I was there supporting them.

I like this image. Now, is this representative of Yakuza? Yes, and of course no but I believe an image like this one could be viewed as a recognizable “rock show” photograph. That is why I chose it. I mean, Bruce Lamont isn’t even holding a saxophone. What this photograph doesn’t say is that; Yakuza is experimental metal rock at its core, they are progressive musicians, there is four of them, they are avant-garde in its pure definition, they have jazz and electronic music influences. What does it say then? I guess the audience determines that, right? Whoever is on the other side and how the other side interprets the work is as important as how the art itself is intended and presented -sometimes.

How do I say all that I want to say in a single frame, with one print, with one negative, with one shot? Is that even possible? One? Recently I was told that in itself is impossible. This is intriguing to me and lately I’ve been preoccupied with it maybe a little too much…