This past Friday evening I attended the opening reception for the 2018 Photo Review Photography Competition Exhibition at the University of the Arts in downtown Philadelphia.  It was a wonderful experience, short of one unfortunate misstep that was self-inflicted. After I left the event I entered the alternate universe one travels to when their car is towed away and impounded in unfamiliar surroundings after dark.  Strange places, a little disconcerting, some interesting helpful and not so helpful people and very expensive!  In short, I don’t recommend the experience.  I did make it home the same evening so I guess things could have been worse. This having been said the show was wonderful and I feel privileged to have been part of it.

If you happen to be in the area I encourage you to see what a nicely displayed show in a beautifully intimate gallery space looks like. The show was presented in the University’s Sol Mednick Gallery.  Just the right size to host the fifteen print show, with ample space between photographs.  And it was gratifying to see a show where the prints are hung at the proper viewing height!  There is nothing worse than having your work shoved close together with too many other prints in a pseudo salon presentation with poor lighting.  Here it was just the opposite.  Well lit, glass outer walls, clean white walls on the inside, very tall ceilings and a few places to sit in the middle. In other words … just about perfect!

I also got a chance to chat with Stephen Perloff, Editor of The Photo Review, and Anne Leighton Massoni the Director of the Photography Program and Associate Professor at the University of the Arts. All and all a splendid time!

So what about the photographs? If I remember correctly about eight or nine out of the fifteen were color and I think mine and one other were the only ones not digitally produced. As you might guess, my photograph was smaller than all but one.  The subjects and styles were diverse as one might expect from a show without a theme, but all were very fine images. Not all pictures I would have made, but that doesn’t matter to me. An key takeaway was that in a mostly digital and excessively photoshopped world, these prints were all tastefully executed … and I think that is important. While I can still usually spot a digital print from long range, it is gratifying to see a show where prints have been tastefully made despite the ease of going over the edge. This tendency can be seen all too often in shows and on the Internet.

So one can learn quite a bit by attending this exhibit, whether you resonate with all the subject matter or not … from what makes a well seen image, to tasteful printing, and finally to proper display and the environment in which to enjoy good work.

Recently I was reading a book written by a very learned religious scholar.  He spoke about how important it is to find the time at least once a day to “retreat to an intentional space for silence, solitude and listening to what is stirring in our hearts.”

It turns out I have been doing this for years.  For me it’s the walking I do by myself and now with my puppy every day. No music, no phone … nothing. But I could be sitting in the park, finding a quiet place in the library … it could really be almost anywhere.  My walks are a central part of my life and I’m out there unless it’s below 12 degrees (my wife’s rule, not mine!) or monsooning. The time I spend doing this is one of my most cherished and essential parts of the day. I think about many things … family, friends, new ideas for my business, all the other things I have to be thankful for, and of course photography.

What I try my best not to think about is the non-stop insanity that seems to be going on all around us on a daily basis. When one of those ugly thoughts pops up I turn my attention to something else. Plenty of time during the rest of the day to think about what makes me sad!

So when I am out there alone and with Sparky I begin to think about new ideas, places to go and pictures to make. Often I imagine photographs I have never made, but the more I think, the more inspired I become!  I also think about what I want to accomplish in my darkroom. I map out entire plans for projects to do, outings to take and prints to make. It is a very good and creative time, away from all the daily distractions we all have.

Every now and then we need something to inspire us to be creative and do the work we truly want to accomplish. We just can’t find the time to reach deep down inside ourselves to discover what it is we want to do and how to make it happen … in life … and art. We’re unable to “listen to what is stirring in our hearts”.

I’m lucky that many years ago I decided to make walking a central part of my life. I did it for the exercise, but soon realized that the miles I put in every day were the least of what I got out of my daily routine. I know that what I’m able to do is easier said than done for many. So what I am suggesting is that you find some way … any way … to carve out moments of quiet time each day, wherever and in whatever way works best for you … even if it’s just a few minutes. Use the time well. Doing so might just spark a whole new creative phase in life … and art.

I celebrated my 64th birthday last week and of course it got me thinking about a scene in in the great American movie Risky Business.

Miles: Sometimes you gotta say “WTF” (this is a family website!), make your move. Joel, every now and then, saying “WTF”, brings freedom. Freedom brings opportunity, opportunity makes your future. So your parents are going out of town. You got the place all to yourself.

Joel Goodson: Yeah.

Miles: WTF.

Last time out I discussed my Two Hour plan and how I now felt much looser, less pressured, and more liberated.  I thought that others could benefit from the concept as well. What do you need to do in order to become fully liberated? I think Miles’ philosophy is sound and worthy of being followed, at least when it comes to photography. Think about it … we are always being told what galleries want, what the competition judges are looking for, that bigger is better, what camera to use, what format is best, what film to use, what developer, what paper to print on.

I am now at the point where I could care less about what the vast majority of people have to say.  I have had my WTF moment, and yes, it is bringing me freedom, which in turn will bring opportunity. Why? Because I feel completely unfettered to do whatever I want, whenever I want, and in a way I want to do it. The world is my oyster and with my Two Hourplan, it’s never far away!

This mindset isn’t a license to become lazy or to stop learning. It’s not a replacement for getting out and making photographs and then doing the very best you can in the darkroom to recreate your vision. Far from it! It is living yourphotographic life on yourcreative terms to produce what is truly important to youin a way that works for you. What a novel concept … doing your work unencumbered by what others think. WTF!

That’s the name of the new focus I have established for myself, and I am suggesting it might be one for you as well.  So what do I mean by Two Hours?  Glad you asked. Looking out for and discovering things of obvious and potential photographic interest that are within two hours of where I live. That sounds pretty vague but I actually think it’s a stroke of genius.  I can always be on the lookout for interesting and even bizarre and other out of the ordinary events to checkout. Or I can learn about things that are important to those I live near me and hang out with them. And guess what – it takes a lot of pressure off me concerning what to be photographing. Now I’m surrounded by all sorts of opportunities!

All of the sudden local news and nearby events become more worthy of note.  For example, over the past few months I have attended several protest events here in Doylestown organized and made up mostly of high school students (my faith in the young has been rekindled!), attended the annual Peace Festival put on by a local Quaker school here in Bucks County about 10 minutes from where I live (I felt like I stepped back into the Sixties), visited Ocean Grove NJ, a small community on the Jersey Shore founded by Methodist clergymen in 1869, and mingled with some strange rangers at the annual Zombie Walk held in Asbury Park.

So you might say I am pretty lucky to live where I do and that I have an unfair competitive advantage – Bucks County, Philadelphia, the Delaware River, New York City, the Jersey Shore, the Poconos … I could go on.  Yes it’s great, and I love living here, but I don’t think I am better off than anyone else. I truly believe that there’s always fertile opportunity wherever one might be if you’re open to it.

None of this means I have dispensed with specific projects. Far from it!  A benefit of the Two Hourplan is that with enough outings and results new themes demanding additional focus may emerge.

I never thought about this idea before, despite it being so utterly simple and obvious.  Now that I’ve had this news flash I feel much looser, less pressured, and yes, somewhat liberated. When I am out and about I feel more creative and have even more fun.  Consider the Two Hourplan for yourself. You might get similar benefits!