ARCHIVE 11: DEcember 2009

DAVID'S PERSONAL NEWS PAGE
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December 29, 2009 - Black Canyon revisited and Boulder Creek: last trips of 2009

To my pleasant surprise, another good friend wanted to go do some shooting and wanted to revisit Black Canyon because of a simply wonderful tree there.  It gave me an unexpected chance to get in one last photo trek this year.  Even though I was there just a few days ago the weather promised to at least start off being very different which meant the light would be different... and that changes everything.

So, off we went.  Indeed at this early hour the sky was mostly clear with a few puffy clouds so it looked quite different than the previous trip.  Now the patches of leaves were better backlit to show off the vibrant fall colors; an interesting comparison if you jump back and forth between these and the first ones (or you can scroll down two posts).

The workers were there building the new monstrosity of a bridge.  I can only hope it truly is a needed bit of work and that the old one is actually in danger of collapse, otherwise it is a visual travesty compared to the old one.  By the time we reached the site of my favorite tree the sky had completely changed and the leading edge of a huge cloud bank was rolling in.  The tree itself was again under a dull gray sky but the hill to the east was getting shafts of light through the holes in the thinner edge of the cloud bank.

We explored a side road where there are some great potential sites but it was not "light tent" scenery so we went on.  Because we had spent so little time in Black Canyon I thought we could blast over toward Julian and then down Lake Cuyamaca to take a last trip down the southern end of Boulder Creek.

The major storm clouds were in the process of passing over as we cut over from the Cuyamaca highway to Boulder Creek on Engineer Rd.  The fire-burned white of the trees looked very much like frost against the dark storm clouds, especially when shafts of light hit them so several stops were mandated before we actually got to the Boulder Creek Rd.  Due to both time of year and time of day the light was different than on previous trips.  Some places I expected to stop were not all that visually exciting but some others usually passed on by gave views that provided a sense of the topography.

The trip was finished off by coming back over the old Viejas Grade into the Casino where a buffet pig-out dinner put an end to the day.

December 28, 2006 - San Diego:  Experts, Blogs, Digital and other controversies... what can you believe these days?

I generally revel in having friends of all persuasions on a broad base of topics from politics to issues of art genres and approach.  I believe that ideas ought to be tested by fire in the flame of open debate to see what survives and what falls and that only from that activity, undertaken by people of good faith, mutual respect, and an open quest for the truth, can we arrive at real knowledge.

But some things simply seem to inspire such radical partisanship as to render such debate impossible.  Of course we all suffer for that since truth is rarely if ever to be found on the vocal fringes of any arena.  That is true in politics and it is certainly true in my field of photography.  The world in general and even the specific world of various disciplines and inquiries has become so complex that anyone whose brain is not yet dulled into quiescence but the media, out to be very afraid of any attempt at simple explanations and positions. 

However, I have an acquaintance and blog author who is so rabidly supportive of film as vastly superior to digital in all respects as to be blind to all contrary evidence no matter how compelling.  He makes me crazy sometimes supporting his position with references to "professionals" when among the professionals I work with and around and use as advisory panelists for our photo program at City College, none are in agreement with him. Not about equipment, not about resources, and not even about comparative formats. Oh well. 

I honestly am divinely indifferent to an individuals preference for film or digital, one format over another or even as to their choices of options within their broader choices.  Especially as pertains to issues of fine art, we are all allowed to go with our own visions and do not have to explain or support them to anyone in any manner except by showing the resulting work and seeing if it holds up.  Digital and Film clearly have different "looks" and when a photographer finds that one or the other better suits their vision then that is what they ought to be using until that vision changes.

But to argue technically about the superiority of one or the other can only be done by cherry picking data points and using statistics as politicians do.  Raw numbers do not lie, but interpretations of those numbers often do.  And when apples are compared to oranges then the objective comparisons are so inherently flawed as to be meaningless.  This acquaintance commonly resorts to such arguments and normally I truly don't care.  His readers are on their own: after all no one ever claimed broad accuracy for web-based materials anyway.  But as a teacher it bothers me a lot to see not only numbers skewed to fit a desired outcome, but to see him reference a legitimate white-paper style comparison and by carefully selecting out-of-context points write that the paper concluded something contrary to the paper's own stated conclusions is just unacceptable.

The lesson here is that when you read ANYthing that tends to draw hard-edged conclusions and opinions about pretty much ANYthing, you have to take all of it with a grain of salt, whether it is from someone you have heard is an expert or even from me.  One becomes an expert because either they call themselves one or someone else calls them one.  There is no certificate or degree bestowing the title of "expert."  I've been on panels and given seminars and workshops where I was introduced as an expert on one thing or another. But that is not a word I would use to refer to myself.  I know better.  And in a field where the knowledge base is being changed almost daily, whatever expertise I might have today must be questioned tomorrow.

In the old day the approach was, upon hearing hard edged conclusions being drawn about almost anything, to start checking references and read them for ones self to see if the presenter said what was being asserted or implied by the authors of their references.  Now, in the day of bumper sticker wisdom and sound-bite philosophies we simply take things as presented.  And too many unscrupulous would-be experts are coming to rely on that in all fields of inquiry from the arts to the weather.

I know there are people out there that would take nearly anything I write as gospel truth; but that is the LAST thing they should do and the last thing I want them to do.   I try very hard to get my foundational facts correct but I interpret them through the filter of my own biases du jour as does everyone.  There is no such thing as a truly objective opinion or conclusion.  You the reader need to make a habit of checking references and questioning conclusions no matter how much you revere the source.  You need to take what I or anyone else writes or speaks as the jumping off point for your own research which, if done diligently, may take you into areas I completely missed.  Perhaps they will reinforce what I said, but perhaps not.  if they do not, please get back to me so I can then check it further myself.

The bottom line is that not one of us, whether you see us as an expert or not, is beyond fallibility.  And if your gut makes you want to question something, there is almost always a good reason to listen to that inner voice.

 December 26, 2009 - Black Canyon Rd

One of my better students asked if I'd be interested in going shooting for a day.  Duh, let me think...  Oh, OK, if I have to...

So off we went and found our way to the Black Canyon Road that runs between Ramona and Mesa Grande.  This was, in the early part of the 20th century, part of the main highway that ran between Warner Springs and San Diego.  It has one of the finest examples of concrete arch bridges around.  (It used to span the little river that is now held back by Sutherland Dam.)  Well, it used to, anyway.  For reasons somewhat unclear, they are fixing this road and replacing that bridge with a new and terminally ugly span.  What was once a fun ledge road high above a great creek bed of shallow pools has been bulldozed into a wider more civilized section.

In the back country there used to be the adage "The rougher the road, the finer the filter" and I always found that to be true.  It proved to be reinforced here as the results of easy access revealed themselves. In the past year since I last drove the road,  rocks over the lovely creek have now been vandalized by cretins who, in my opinion, ought to be buried under the new roadway clutching their spray cans. No one who thinks you need a hoody in southern California (or who has not yet figured out which way the eye shade on a cap ought to be pointed) should be allowed to buy spray paint, drive, or vote.  Oh well...  We stopped to look, chatted with a very friendly little bird and then headed on up the road.

The light was all mostly cloud cover with only an occasional and brief moment for the sun to find a hole in the clouds to look through.  And that gave us even less time to realize it was there and try to scurry out like squirrels out of their dens, to catch in that fleeting moment. 

Sometimes it actually worked.  But most of the time, instead of the dramatic lighting on the fall foliage we had expected based on the ever so reliable weather forecasters, it created a huge county-sized light tent.  We had to rethink our 'vision' for and approach to the photos.

Once in a while the clouds would break apart, swept by an unseen hand, and reaching into the now reticulated sky would be a lone tree trying its best to touch the faces that sometimes flitted by to taunt it with promises of play and fun.

As confusing as the local weather can be to some of us humans used to places with real seasons, it must be even more so to the flora and fauna.  Here it is, the end of December with temps in the 60s even here in the foothills.  It has rained but so far not snowed. But to the east, plunging temperatures and vast crippling snowstorms have virtually shut down cities according to friends who live there.  Some even had to postpone Christmas parties and other festivities because no one could get out to attend them.  Here, however, the only indication that some changes are afoot are the leaves of some trees like the live oaks that cover some of these slopes.
 

Here, some still green leaves chat amiably in the breezes with their elder cousins creating a really interesting tapestry of colors and textures even in the flat light that dominated the trip.

Regardless of the light, images are everywhere to be found, hiding in plain site, needing only an open eye and willing spirit to see them.  We found shots all along the road. 

We then headed north to some rock formations and trees along the road on the far east edge of what used to be Lake Henshaw.  This once great lake is now a forlorn pond because the dam, built apparently by people in hoodies and backwards ball caps, is not deemed safe to hold the water.  Apparently no amount of spray paint will make it water tight either. 

But on the eastern edge, along the road to Warner Springs, are some interesting places.  The clouds filtering the sun were getting thicker so catching the right light was nearly a matter of luck.  However we gave it a valiant try both there and along the road south to Santa Ysabel.  I have a shot or two that might work when I get time to play with them and if so will add them here.

But the light, even such as it was, was fading fast so we stopped at my favorite restaurant in Santa Ysabel to end the day and then head home.  Overall a pretty good shoot day. 

Now, alas, it is time to get serious with all of the stuff I need to get done during this long break from classes.

December 25, 2009 - San Diego: Christmas with Avatar

It is Christmas Day, well, evening really.  I spent too many Christmases in snow country to easily get in the spirit where it is in the upper 60s, with clear skies and palm trees waving in the breeze.  Besides it really needs family to make it work and that is no longer an option for me.  Nevertheless I got some nice stuff from some friends and was invited to go with my old friends, the Fiske family, to see the new movie, "Avatar."

We saw it in IMAX 3D which is the best way to do it.  The effects were so well crafted that you quickly forgot you were seeing things and creatures that do not exist.  In fact the couple of editing errors I caught were all in the live action portions.  And, for once, the effects were integral to the story rather than a way to try to make you forget there really was neither acting nor story happening in front of you.

The story really is a metaphor for the American West and the treatment of the American Indians and I could not help but wonder whether the same outcome would ultimately result in this future fantasy world and for the same reasons.  History is built on the backs of conquered people and places.  There is no reason to doubt it will always be the same and that the Star Trek vision of the "Prime Directive" is simply a warm and fuzzy pipe dream.   But at least for a time in the far off planet of the movie, the locals won over the invading resource thieves.  But ask the Pueblo based Indians of New Mexico about their success at rebelling and pushing the Spanish out of their land.  This piece loving, agrarian culture was the only tribal collection to succeed in pushing the Europeans from their lands.  Not the warrior cultures of the east, the plains, or the southwest, all of whom were beaten at every turn.  But, alas, they did not understand their enemy and were blindsided when they came back bent on revenge and re-conquest.

Nevertheless, the movie is, I think, one of those turning points in the craft of movie making.  The combination of the quality of the effects and the inclusion of very good 3D on the huge IMAX screen brought the audience right into the film's world.  The story will still work on TV in 2D,  but if you have any interest in the film, go see it in the theater at least once.

December 18, 2009 - San Diego: Truth and Factual Relativism

This is the final official day of Fall Semester, 2009, although my last class was last night.  Now it is down to processing grades and getting them into the school's computers.  This was a weird semester in some ways.  It was definitely the semester in which critical mass was finally reached and I lost all patience with BS, on virtually all fronts; at school and personally. 

I've always admitted proudly that I've been in a state of some culture shock since I arrived in southern California, and further that I hoped I'd never get over it.  Although there are holes in this upcoming blanket statement as there are in all such statements, it does correspond to my own experiences.  I've already spoken elsewhere about the twin driving powers of 'fear' and 'convenience' that instruct peoples behaviors here.  However the thing that REALLY bothers me hits me on a deeper level.  Perhaps it is the creeping influence of the liberal philosophical base that permeates thinking and posits that there are no real "rights" and "wrongs" and that it is all a matter of perspective; but for whatever reason it has come about, one of the things I cannot abide is that "fact," as a concept, has escaped any requirement for objective reality.  And as a consequence, so have the simple matters of honesty and truth. 

I was raised obviously in a different time and very different culture.  This flowed from the clear 1st generation memory of a time where it was necessary, partly as a matter of survival needs, to be able to rely on people and news, and that when given seriously, a person's word was their bond. 

I was taught, for example, that while there may be reasons to fight with someone, there was never a reason to lie to them.  Friends deserve the truth, even when it hurts, and why waste the time and effort on a lie to an enemy unless it is part of a strategy.  The only people you could lie to without opprobrium, and even then but rarely and for specified purposes, was a clearly defined enemy. 

That attitude and collective ethic unfortunately works well only when all abide by it because in that case violators are quickly shunned as not just untrustworthy but as dangerous to group and personal survival.  That ethic permeated my entire environment including family and friends alike.  It was part and parcel of the definition of our culture and who we, as individuals were as well as who I, as an individual, am.

So arriving here I was completely blindsided culturally because here "truth" has become, more often than not, defined as "that which results in the desired outcome."  Despite the inconvenient reality that any close observation of events supports only a very contradictory account, THAT reality is also seen as just relative, and the truth, one's own truth, is what one says it is in order to make them feel good, avoid being embarrassed, avoid consequences of bad choices, avoid having to do something undesired, or forms an excuse for failure to do assigned work for a class. 

In fact the concept of truth is so malleable here that half the time I have come to believe the teller of the altered reality tale actually believes what they are saying.  And why not?  If it accomplishes the desired goal then by localized definition it must be the truth.  It is the "white lie" concept writ large on a document designed to cover ALL of life's little unpleasantries.  One's own truth is seen as being as good as anyone else's truth since everyone is free to avoid reality and see truth as works best for them.

And when, God forbid, someone has the temerity to point out some unpleasant REALITY-based truth about another's behavior, then the response, supported by local definitions of relativity, is to get completely indignant.

Well, among other things, the end of this semester and year will see an end to my tolerance and acceptance of that.  I'm done with it.  I cannot fight it, I cannot seem to successfully beg people to stop it; I cannot, in short, have the slightest effect on the behavior of those around me.  But what I CAN control is how I will respond to it and let it effect me.  And I can do that by the simple expedient of accepting that I do not have to continue with it as part of my life.  I do not have to start or maintain relationships of any kind with people whose perspectives on truth are relative in any fashion. 

Errors of conclusion or mistakes of perception are something we all fall prey to from time to time.  But conscious spin for a personal goal when the fact-based reality to the contrary is known, is something quite different.  Without even being aware of it, and in spite of denying it to the death, it is part of a huge game that the locals seem to be so used to and play so naturally -- and so well -- they do not even see it as a game.  it is just the way they relate.  I do not want any part of it and I certainly do not want to ever get so used to it that it seems natural to me.  And besides I am at a huge disadvantage. 

So from now on when a student comes to me with a tale that fractures all connections with logic or reality, they will be seen by me as "fair game."  When they openly, brazenly lie to me about it then all positive connection will be severed at that point, all leniency of grade or deadlines will be reduced to precisely zero tolerance.  My connection with them and, when possible, my presence as well will evaporate with the same ease as was used to tell their relative truth du jour.

And now, with that off of my chest and a whole new approach defined that makes me much more relaxed, I'll get on with the grading process and planning my work over this upcoming break.  Sorry for the rant, but I am now utterly done with the whole concept of ethical and factual relativism.  If it works for the locals then good for them.  They are welcome to go around lying to one another, accepting it as "normal" and never realizing what levels of trust and reliability are being lost in the process. 

It does not work for me, however, and I am now officially done with it.

December 6, 2009 - Borrego Springs, Clark's Lake, Field Trip

A surprising number of students in the Portrait class showed up at the rendezvous point in Borrego Springs for our non-field-trip field-trip to demo lighting in the middle of nowhere.  Usually I try to sell the class on the idea and 4-6 show up.  This time I said I really didn't care if anyone came to it and a bunch showed up.  I think I need to change my approach...

Anyway, Our first stop was in the abandoned Thompson Seedless Grape vineyard on Borrego Valley Road.  There we discussed flash fill using portable flash and shot for about an hour.  I love this spot as it is so surreal.  But the light was moving quickly and so I hustled us on to our next stop, the dry lake bed of "Clark's Lake."

There we set up the battery, inverter pack, and lights to demo how to use studio lights when there are no normal power outlets within range.  I brought my monolights and inverter set up and a former student, Clayton Karas came along and brought his set up of battery operated monolights.  I did a quick demo of relatively normal "studio" style lighting using the sun as a main light and two of the mono lights as fill and accent/kicker.  You can link to this in the portrait section on my demo page under "desert lighting." 

Clayton set up a "Joel Grimes" style lighting approach and shot some great and as soon as I can get some samples from him will add those to the demo page along with a light plot.

It was a really fun and successful trek.  I need to go back and do this again for the video camera for the collection of tutorials I'm starting to create.

December 4, 2009 - San Diego: Another CTC Visit

Dave, George, and I had the chance to visit the CTC site again to check some space figures we needed and also to see the progress of the construction.  it is truly amazing how it is beginning to fall into place.  I again shot some video and as soon as I have a chance to edit it will put it on the CTC page and link from here.

Bottom line is we are going to have the most amazing photo-educational facilities imaginable.  The crying shame is that it is coming on-line in the midst of this State's idiotic budget crisis and City College is being forced to cancel more and more class sections.  Our job will be to figure out how to create workable alternatives so we can not lose this great momentum to be ready for when the budget system smoothes out and we can again start offering a full load of courses.

December 03, 2009 - San Diego: Sickie

What a ghastly report I have today.  Sometime on Monday afternoon my body lost a fight against some form of food poisoning.  By the evening, after I had picked up the Montero from being serviced, I thought the cramping in my stomach was from hunger since I had little to eat that day so I fixed a nice dinner of pot roast and trimmings.  What a major error that turned out to be.  By evening I was like a balloon, in extreme pain, and then it started... like clockwork about every 40-50 minutes all through the night, I made the pilgrimage to worship and sacrifice at the porcelain God.  I saw food I hadn't eaten since the start of the semester.  There was no way my stomach, combined with the stomachs of several other large friends, could have contained all of that without bursting.  The last trip was at 5:20 am and then my alarm went off at 6 am to get up and start the day.  The pilgrimages tapered off, mercifully, by the time I had to go to school, but my stomach muscles felt like I had taken a few too many body blows in a serious altercation. 

Tuesday and Wednesday were misery but the nausea had tapered to minor queasiness and other than feeling like I had been run over by a herd of buffalo who then all came back to see if I was OK, I was hanging on.  Now it is Thursday and I've managed to keep down the last two attempts at eating: two pieces of toast last night and a small bowl of cereal this morning.  There was a questionable moment after the cereal but it passed fairly quickly.

Sunday I have the desert trip with the portrait class so I am really glad I will apparently be over this completely by then. 

I have discovered I will never be in danger of bulemia.  I could handle the binges but the purges would be out of the question...