I love FIRE!

I just had all the photos from a black & white photography class I took a few years ago translated to digital.  The series this comes from resulted from a conversation I had with one of my classmates.  We were talking about how great it was to take pictures of fire, and he mentioned how great tennis balls were for capturing it.  You soak the tennis ball in gasoline, then stand back and light it up.  The problem with photographing gasoline fires is that they are fairly short-lived - but not with tennis balls added into the equation!  The fabric on the outside acts as a wick, and some of the gas gets into the inside of the ball, which keeps the fire going for awhile.  They don't just smoulder either - they get a nice long flame going.

I took this series right around dusk/early evening and messed with the exposure time to get everything dark around them.  I had the tennis balls contained in a metal ash tray top (the kind with the garbage can underneath that you still see at some businesses), and had my husband swirl them around to get the flames to do interesting things.  And I got a ton of great shots with about an hours worth of work.  Then we started with the black powder.  Not so successful - but at least we didn't loose any eyebrows!

And I'm getting inspired to do more of these - I'll just have to fiddle with the exposure settings, because I can't quite remember what exposure I used.

Alligators, the Irish and Fireballs

It's been a week for news.

First - my mother played the Catholic Mother Guilt Card of "Oh, won't you come visit your poor blind mother".  She's not - just in the very early stages of Macular Degeneration.  But she really wants me to come visit.  So I will be traveling to Florida March 21st through 26th.  And I'm getting excited, not just to see my family, but because I can bring my camera, and go wildlife stalking.  They live in Sarasota, and there are both Keys and a State Park famous for wild birds nearby.  And I might get to take a picture of an alligator.  In my professional opinion, alligator pictures would be SO AWESOME.  Family is awesome too - but I'm too much of a geek not to be totally revved up by the possibility of giant carnivorous lizards.

Referencing my post about not thinking enough to stay out of the road when I am taking pictures, I think my husband is going to have to talk to my dad about making sure I don't get eaten.  Perhaps I should wear a belt so that he can pull me out of the way easier.  Although that would make a great obit.

Second piece of news - I am still scheduled to exhibit at the Irish Cultural Center here in Phoenix, but my exhibit has been delayed until July or August.  They will probably be opening the new cultural library building there in May or June, and they had already reserved a specific artist for those months.  No problem for me, I'll just have to look for some other places to exhibit in the meantime.  The only thing I am worried about is that Phoenicians do not tend to go out during the summer if they can help it - and I worry a little about what the traffic is going to be like during those months.  The center itself is air conditioned, but there really isn't a lot of shade in the courtyard around it.  But the upside is that if I get really cool alligator pictures, I will have plenty of time to get them ready to include in the show.  I will post the revised exhibit dates as soon as I know what they will be.

And finally, I managed to dig out all my negatives from a class I took on black & white film photography a few years ago.  I took some really cool fire pictures during that time (Great Balls of Fire is one of a series), but never got most of them transferred to digital format (because, y'know, the class was FILM photography).  I just took them down to the lab I use, and I should get them back by the end of next week.  So I should be posting them soon.

Instinct

Some of my favorite (and I think my best work) comes about with no planning, or setting up, or thinking at all.  It's like my camera is a direct conduit to the back of my brain.  I see the shot.  I take the shot.

This is one of them.  I didn't have any time to think about this shot when I took it.  I didn't think about the light, or the angle, or the background, or anything.  I operated purely on instinct - which is what I try to do.  No over-analysis.  Less than 5 seconds total.

This photo was taken a few years ago at a local medieval historical re-enactment "war".  These guys had just come off the fighting field, and were marching to their regrouping point for the next battle.  The dents and marks on their shields are caused by being repeatedly hit with weapons made out of bamboo and tape.  I really respect these guys for the work they put into their armor making it look real.  They also walked like you would expect Roman soldiers to walk - confident and bold, even after a tiring and bruising battle.

What I'm thinking

This is going to be a hard blog to write.  I'd much rather hide behind my photography, but it's probably important that I tell you where I'm coming from with it, what I'm trying to say, and what I'm thinking when I'm taking photos.  What I'm thinking is ...Nothing.  That's right - Nothing. 

When I'm taking photos, I'm not even smart enough to stay out of the road.  I have to have a handler to make sure I don't fall off a cliff, or walk into traffic.  What I FEEL is an overwhelming need to TAKE THAT PHOTOGRAPH.  Because it's perfect.  Not necessarily pretty, or beautiful - but perfect.

I take alot of photos without thinking much.  Sometimes all I hear in my head is "Light Good" or "Need to get higher" or "wrong film :(".  The thinking comes in when I'm looking at the prints after they are developed.  THEN I can start thinking.  And I throw away a lot.  The thinking comes in when I decide what I want to show people.  What the world needs to see.  Because sometimes I have to take 20 shots of something slightly differently to capture the Perfect.  And sometimes I get them back and say to myself "Well, that was a complete waste of walking in traffic."

I really don't want to come across as one of those stereotypical Artists So Impressed With Themselves That They Think Everything They Do Has Deeper Meaning.  That's not it for me at all.  I know I'm pretty smart.  And I think (and enough people agree with me that I might possibly be right) that my art is pretty cool.  But rainbows don't shoot out my ass.  My political opinions don't carry any more weight than anyone else.  I don't have the answers to all the worlds problems.

I'm just trying to say "This is a Drum".  See the hand marks?  The nicks in the frame?  The color differences on the head?  That's what I mean by Drum.  I'm just trying to get at the metaphysical construct of Drum.  Or Green.  Or Fire.

So - Have a Drum.

Big Drum

Tonight, I am stuck home sick with an evil virus, rather than at the One-Voice Center with my exhibit.  My wonderful husband Ray is going to be there in my stead.

So, I blog alone at home, and give you "Big Drum". Wish I could be there.