When I was in Washington, DC recently I stopped at the Leica Store downtown to take a look around and talk about the Monalog Collective. While I was there I asked if I could see the new Leica M6. As I picked it up it somehow felt heavier and more solid then the original M6 … or least my recollection of the original. To be honest, I didn’t even pay attention to the lens attached to it. I just fondled the thing, looked through the viewfinder and focused it. Yes, it is a thing of sublime beauty and mechanical excellence; a camera that will probably outlast the life of its owner(s). All as it should be for a cost of $5,695.00!  But that’s not what’s really important. What is really important is that Leica is now producing several film cameras!

In case you are wondering … does the existence of the M6, MP, or MA tempt me to sell my vintage M2 or M3?  The answer is a resounding NO! But not because my cameras are better or not.  But because there’s simply no need for me to do so. I feel like I’m finally through with the gear churn. My cameras do everything I could ask of them and nothing more. That having been said, what matters is Leica is doing what they can to keep the analogue flame burning.

Now what would really be swell is if Leica would introduce a film camera that was more affordable and thereby more accessible to a greater number of people. Probably not their niche or their role in life. Hopefully that’s what Ricoh will be doing when they introduce the new Pentax film camera. It sure sounds that way. In March Ricoh said the camera will be launched in the summer with the following features:

• 35mm-format compact film camera
• Designed for vertical-position shooting, using a half-size format in which two images are captured in a single frame of the film
• Hand-wound film-advance mechanism using a winding lever and a rewinding crank
• Manually set zone-focus system

Anyway, back to the Leica Store. I hung out for a while and had a nice time. And why not? Even though everything in the showroom was expensive, each camera and lens was made to the highest standards. Just having these gems available creates further excitement about film photography, which is good for all us! And guess what … earlier this year Kodak announced a price cut of 30% on Tri-X!!! That’s right baby!!! The film is now available at the new and lower prices!!!!

Hey, I’ll take what I can get, but how about you paper guys lowering your prices now?

Stay well,

Michael

This past week I went to visit someone for the work I do. We met in a ground floor seated area off the lobby of the building he lived in. It was a great meeting and well worth the out of town trip I made to see him. As we were wrapping up and sharing some small talk I somehow mentioned my interest in photography and my vinyl record habit. He immediately invited me upstairs, so off I went!

One of the first things he showed me with his prized near mint Leica M3 with its beautiful 50mm Dual Range Summicron. They had belonged to his father and he was proudly using it to produce spectacular images with Tri-X that were uploaded onto Flickr. Unfortunately he didn’t have the space for a darkroom, so of course I recommended a makeshift one that could fit in a bathroom or closet.  His work deserves to be printed and seen!

As I was getting ready to leave he gave me a self-published book he had produced using Blurb. It was a beautiful gem containing pictures and words commemorating his late father’s life. When I got back home later that day the first thing I did was to sit down and look at it. I studied it for some time, pushing back the dinner my wife made. A small book of about thirty pages, it was a wonderful testimony to a parent, and something I will always cherish. Not only because of the work itself, but because of the way it came into my possession.

Last week I mentioned self-publishing as a way to way to ensure a lasting record of our life’s work. But it can be so much more than that. If done properly, with thought and sensitivity, a self-published book can be as good or even rival what’s produced by a big publishing house. This little book sure did!

A lot of thought and time went into this book I now proudly own. To create something of this caliber is no small undertaking. But if you have it in you to make something special and the dedication make it happen, it most certainly can be done!

Stay well,

Michael

This past week I received some very thoughtful comments regarding my previous posting, and I spoke to a few people as well. The result … more to think about.

Is this really an existential crisis or merely a case of misguided ego?

Maybe my obsession is an unnecessary waste of mental energy, because in living my photographic life it’s been the journey that has mattered most. The pictures I’ve made have been the icing in the cake. I know this is true because I’ve written about it here many times before. But here’s the thing … I really do like good icing on my cake, particularly chocolate fudge. I also like it on my brownies. More so since I got Covid and lost my taste buds. Thankfully my sense of taste finally returned, but something changed. I became a dessert person, especially concerning chocolate cake and brownies and the chocolate fudge frosting spread so thickly on both. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it!

Where am I going with this before the food metaphor spins out of control and I run into the other room and beg my wife to make a special dessert for dinner, or start tearing through the freezer to find that stash of leftover frozen brownies?

Time to get a grip big guy!

The journey has been what’s so important, but along the way I’ve created a body of work I’m proud of too. Something I think has some value, to those I care about, and hopefully to those that care about me. And maybe even others … now … and in the future.  If I’ve created an image that moves someone now, or might down the road when what we have now no longer exists, then that’s a good thing … whether I’m here or long gone.

Ok, so what to do? I’m going to continue to think about this and explore the possibilities, perhaps together with other photographers, but I’m also going to think more about books, self-published ones most likely. I have established Monalog Press after all! And I’ve been told that museums and other institutions have libraries that will take books and put them in their permanent holdings!

Self-publishing is something we all can do if we want to make sure there is a lasting record of our work. Maybe not the perfect solution, but a pretty good one to fall back on.

So go ahead, have your cake with some really good icing, and eat it too!

Stay well,

Michael

Last week I wrote about making the most of the time we have. But what happens to our life’s work after we’re gone?  I think about this from time to time and did so again when a front page above the fold story appeared in the Bucks County Herald and caught my attention. The story entitled Princeton University Art Museum Acquires Archive of Celebrated Photographer Emmet Gowin describes in detail Gowin’s commitment to provide Princeton with his entire archive and Princeton’s plan for housing and making it available “as a resource for future teaching, research, publications, and exhibitions …. that will “continue to be appreciated for decades to come”.

OK, what about those of us who are not famous by choice or otherwise but have nevertheless worked hard and have our own archive of life work?

One of the things I worry most about is what will happen to my negatives and prints when I’m gone. I know, I’m not Emmet Gowan in so far as photography has not been my career. I’ve had a very different type of career and a lot less time to produce a large volume work, yet I know my work has value to it (That’s right … if I don’t feel this way who else will?).  I’m sure many other photographers must feel the same way.

So what to do?

I could hope that someday an organization will become interested in my work, but that’s a longshot, given I’m a comparative unknown. How about doing a few books? I’ve created Monalog Press, so that could very well happen and it would certainly enable me to create what might be a lasting record for those who knew me.  But then what? Another option would be to digitize my negatives and store them on a hard drive or the cloud and hope for the best.

Now here’s a novel idea … how about a for profit or not-for-profit organization establishing a repository that could take on our negatives for a fee (Housing prints might be problematic because of the space they take up.). Perhaps this could become a viable solution with enough funding. I’m pretty sure such a thing does not exist, but if I’m mistaken please let me know!!!

There’s a lot of important work out there that needs to be saved. Take a look at Vivian Maier for example. What if her incredible work hadn’t been found?  What a terrible loss that would have been. There are real gems out there that need to be saved. If anyone has any thoughts about this please jump in!

Stay well,

Michael

“To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan, and not quite enough time.” LEONARD BERNSTEIN

I tried to watch Maestro, last year’s biopic on the great Leonard Bernstein, but after about twenty minutes or so I turned to my wife. Almost fifty years being together we know each other’s looks and what to do with them. Off went the movie. So Leonard, you will have to live on for me when I turn on my stereo and listen to one of your great recordings.

Then there’s your brilliant statement of what should be the obvious, quoted above.

As I get closer to my seventieth birthday I have been thinking more and more about what Bernstein said. Actually, I’d been thinking about this for a long time, but not in these exact terms. When I stumbled across this somewhere on the Internet things became clearer to me than ever before. I/we all want to achieve great things, in life and in our photography … but how?

Let’s focus on the photography part. NOTE: In the case of my non photographic life my plan has been not to have a plan and it’s worked out remarkably well! I’ve worked very hard at doing only the things I’ve wanted to do as they presented themselves. I’m not wealthy but I’ve lived a life full of great meaning and purpose.

In my photographic life I’ve established and worked towards plans to meet specific projects/objectives, and to achieve success in completely ad hoc ways … always cognizant of the time I have to accomplish my goals.

The problem is that there will never be enough time, and I’ll admit to thinking about this often. As we reach a certain age it becomes clear that all we want to accomplish may not be possible.  Think about it … in photography you often need to travel some kind of distance to get to where you want to go. You need to be able to walk around the area you wish to photograph, and be able to see well enough to find and properly frame and focus your subject. Of course you also have to be able to see well enough to produce the final realization of your vision in the darkroom. Yah, I know, there are some work arounds but don’t kid yourself …  in reality, everything has an expiration date.

What to do? Make the most of it. Most of what? Everything! Get your plan(s) together and use your time wisely to achieve your goals. Of course we can’t be photographing all the time, but we can be thinking, learning, and preparing, so that when we do photograph and make prints in the darkroom we make the most of our time and achieve the great things Bernstein spoke of. For me there’s even more. The great things go beyond the pictures themselves. That’s the icing on the cake. It’s all the other meaningful stuff that surrounds the work and happens because of it … the people I meet … the experiences I have.

So little time.  Cherish it and use it well.

Stay well,

Michael

Super Tuesday is now in the rear view mirror and we now know for sure who is going to be on the ballot come November.  Yes it will be a rerun of 2020 and the choice we make could not be more important for our democracy and many of the other things we take for granted that are made possible by our democracy. Focusing for now on photographers and other artists, re-election of former occupant of the White House could have disastrous consequences.

We all know his infatuation with autocrats, and in particular his long running bromance with his sweetheart Vladimir Putin. So how have things worked out for Russian artists lately and is this something we should be worried about if the Orangeman and his coterie come back for the revenge tour and other fun stuff?  Let’s take a look at an excerpt from a February 24, 2022 Freedom House analysis. If anything, what is described probably is much worse two years later. The full article can be found here: https://freedomhouse.org/article/cracking-down-artistic-expression-another-strike-against-russian-democracy

“There is a section of the New Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow where one turns a corner and the art transforms from the Soviet to post-Soviet era—an explosion of color, emotion, gore, heart, and the freedom that 1991 hearkened spreading across wall after white gallery wall. This captures the powerful mix of opportunity and possibility that defined the Russia of the 1990s. Today, the brutal persecution of the Russian artistic community has destroyed an integral piece of democracy—bringing an end to the dreams of freedom displayed on the New Tretyakov’s gallery walls.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, the Moscow regime has eliminated any opportunity to express independent perspectives in the country—enforcing a politically homogenous public through a potent combination of legislation and propaganda. Russian authorities have arrested and detained almost 20,000 antiwar activists and pursued more than 3,400 criminal cases against citizens for any infraction deemed to discredit Russian forces. Propaganda media guides assert stringent policies for outlets to discuss the invasion and ongoing war along government lines, helping complete a total social “purification.”

This crackdown extends to arenas of art and culture which served as important spaces in civil society throughout the 1990s and 2000s, when lines between art and activism blurred. Citizens’ ability to make sense of and express their perspectives through art is a crucial tenet of democracy in any society—only made more urgent and valuable as citizens endure personal and political crises which spur its necessity. Over the past decade, the regime has carefully lowered its tolerance for politically-provoking art, using broad legal jurisdiction to censor the arts around pro-Kremlin lines.

Since the start of the war on Ukraine, authorities have raided concerts in Moscow and fined musicians, including legendary rockstars Andrei Makarevich, Yuri Shevchuk, and Boris Grebenshchikov, over antiwar expressions. Legislation has placed dissenting filmmakers and writers on wanted lists, proposed book bans equating queerness in literature with pornography, and blatantly censored art exhibitions to comply with Russian National Security Strategy. On June 29, the Moscow Cultural Department dismissed the leaders of three prominent theaters, including the Gogol Center, a prominent, beloved oppositionist theater known for its community spirit and alternative visionary mission in Russian culture.

Refusal to cooperate under strict sociopolitical conditions means harsh consequences for dissenting artists. In March, theater management across Russia began pushing their teams to make public pro-war statements, and many fired cultural workers over their open criticism of the war. The 15th annual ArtDocFest, Russia’s largest documentary festival, was canceled after Russian nationalists attacked its director. In April, playwright Mikhail Durnenkov posted his hopes for a defeated Russia on Facebook to find his account immediately flooded with threats. Signatories of an antiwar petition quickly lost work, including director Dmitriy Krymov, whose performances were canceled in Moscow. Prior to the war, film and television management circulated stop lists of Russian actors who held dissenting views in 2021, systematically purging artists who did not politically conform.”

Then there is Trump’s soulmate and idol, Hungary’s prime minister and strong man Viktor Orban. On Friday, the two paled around at Mar-a-Lago. Great #@$%^&.  Like Putin and most other autocrats, Orban came to power democratically and began to destroy democratic institutions, the rule of law and the free press. In November 2022, the Artistic Freedom Initiative (AFI)  released the Artistic Freedom Monitor report on Hungary – Systematic Suppression: Hungary’s Arts and Culture in Crisis. The full report can be found here: https://artisticfreedominitiative.org/projects/artistic-freedom-monitor/hungary/

A summary the report states “Over the last decade, Hungary’s Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, has implemented constitutional, legislative, and administrative changes aimed at consolidating his party’s control over the arts. Under Orbán’s leadership, Hungary’s previously independent arts and culture sector has been refashioned as a mechanism for advancing a singular ethno-nationalist narrative. …. Systematic Suppression exposes how Orbán’s administration wields policy to limit free expression, restrict plurality in the arts, and encourage self-censorship among Hungarian artists.”

I think you get the picture.

What can we do?  Whatever you can to make sure things don’t go south in November. If we don’t we only have ourselves to blame for what happens next.

Stay well,

Michael

Paula Chamlee told me to meet Edward Nowak. He’s the owner of Archetype Archetype Gallery located in a former Good Will Firehouse Building in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Old No. 3 to be exact! Paula told me Edward had a gallery and that he was a photographer, but wasn’t sure if the gallery was still open. Well, it turned out that it was … and it wasn’t but I’m jumping ahead. Soon enough I made contact with Edward and he invited me to come by for a visit. Even offered to treat me for lunch and that sealed the deal!

I drove through the pouring rain from Doylestown, about an hour’s drive away and finally pulled into the parking lot sitting next to Old No. 3. What a wonderful old building with the words Good Will over the doorway!! I got on my raincoat and called Edward to let him know I had arrived, and in a jiffy he came down to meet me. I knew things were going to be interesting when I noticed he wore a beret. I wear one too. But I wasn’t prepared for what greeted me when at the top of the stairs!

Adams, Weston(s), Cunningham, Avedon and more!!!! I just sort of stood there in awe. Good thing I didn’t fully lose control or I might have tipped back on rolled down to the front door. But there was more … a huge assortment of books and then Edward’s color photographs. Yes, that’s right … color … digital color. Edward is a marvelous color photographer. The gallery is pretty much closed to the public which has let Edward concentrate on his personal color work. Good for you, Edward!

I had a wonderful time enjoying all the tremendous images on the gallery walls, but most of the time was spent talking with Edward. I got a chance to learn about someone who had truly lived a photographic life.  The galleries he owned, the students he taught, the famous photographers and notables in the photographic world he met. All the time working together with his wife and partner in a lifetime endeavor. I had fun, learned a lot and received sage advice. We agreed to stay in touch and I’m already looking forward to my next visit to see Edward and Old No. 3.

Every once in a while you get lucky and something unexpected and wonderful takes place. Something did for me last Wednesday.

Stay well,

Michael