The vendor was making his rounds late at night in Hoi An, Vietnam. It seemed strange at the time that he was on a deserted street with no potential buyers. The scene grabbed me because of the bright lights on the cart surrounded by the dark neighborhood. 

 The photo was taken in Golden Gate Park not far from the Academy of Science, where they have the African Room featuring many dioramas of African animals. When I captured the blue heron, it reminded me of the dioramas. The bird laid perfectly still, transfixed on a meal. Many wildlife photos are record shots. I was hoping to transform the scene from its literalness to something more interpretive and unusual.   

This self-portrait was taken during Covid in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. There is a feeling of loneliness and sadness in the image. The tunnel makes it more mysterious and the "I Am," written on each stair, reminds me of Descartes's famous quote "I think, therefore I am." The image is a statement about the isolation and reflection everyone experienced during Covid. 

 There is something mythical about this image. A magical forest. The image was taken somewhere in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Most visual interpretations happen in post. Capture is just a starting point,  beginning with a RAW image, lacking contrast, color balance, and sharpness. It's the post-processing that brings these RAW captures to life. 

 Another image from Alabama Hills. The landscape has been altered by man - primitive or modern? This area was once home to the Paiutes and Shoshone. This image reminds me of that time. 

 Twice a year I take a photo trip with two friends. Most times we find ourselves photographing the grand landscape which is extremely challenging. Nearly everyone owns a camera and nearly everyone photographs landscapes and nearly all of it is forgettable. There are a few talented landscape photographers who stand above the masses. Their work is unique and inspiring and will never end up on the walls of a Motel 6. 

Not only are landscapes difficult for me, so is the place where this image is from, Alabama Hills. Its magic and grandeur escaped me. I see it, I'm moved by it, and yet I have a hard time capturing it. The color and lighting with the fading mountains captured my eye. There is both warmth and coldness in this image. I like its mood. 

Though I did not post on this site during Covid, I was active with my art. There is a group of highly accomplished fine art photographers I belong to, Lightworks. One member, Dany Suk, was a major influence and gave me valuable guidance in "painting" my photos. Dany's work is sublime, with years of experience and natural talent. The process relies on Painter, a digital painting program. It allows photographers to go beyond the typical photo editing tools and provides infinite tools for interpretations. 

I captured this image at California's Salton Sea. The colors and brushes I chose were used to create an even more bleak and cold scene, a sense of abandonment and loneliness. 

 If I had to choose between photographing during the day vs. night, it would be at night. Most of my work is captured during the day because of convenience and because I'm a morning person. I need to push myself to do night work. San Francisco, where this image is from, has been a wonderful place to capture subjects after the sun has gone down. However, the City has become an unsafe place, especially after the sun has gone down.

I captured this image just off of 20th Street near the foot of the bay. It's in an old industrial area being preserved because of its unique brick and wooden buildings. Night photography can be moodier and lonelier than its bright counterpart. Lights from inside buildings give a sense of life. Compositionally, this image presents an array of vertical, horizontal, and diagonal lines directing the eye in several directions but coming back to the window - wondering who's inside. 

Those familiar with downtown L.A. would recognize this mural. What's wonderful about street photography is waiting for the scene. I knew the mural made a powerful backdrop. It was a matter of filling the images with people and in the right place(s). Luck also plays an important part. My preference is for busy scenes where the eye can explore several facets within one image. I'm drawn to the people walking along the sidewalk, going about their business. Then I'm directed to the three spaces on the right stacked on top of each other, each providing their own sense of space and activities. There are also many repeating forms throughout the photo. 

From here forward, I will no longer enter the exact time and date of when images were captured. I don't think this is important to the viewer unless one was publishing a photo essay like that of the Day In The Life series. It's also time-consuming. I want to focus on selecting images and writing the corresponding narratives. 

Taken in L.A. near Union Station, this young man grabbed my attention with his smile, style, and the way he was perfectly posed and not by me. His body and guitar case form a cross. His dreadlocks match the rosemary plant behind him. He is a story - that of a street musician, walking miles to various downtown L.A. street venues, working for tips. He enjoys what he does. I assume his music is as joyful as he is. The wonderful thing about street photography is the wonderful and interesting people you meet. The encounters are brief but memorable.  

 Collage

Periodically, I will post my collage work. There are two problems with this. One, this site is called click which is about photography and the moment in which I captured the image. Second, collage is best viewed live and not digitally. You lose the textures and depth of the artwork. However, the work is mostly based on photographs that were torn apart and then reassembled using several prints from the same image with various enlargements, sometimes. 

Collage offers a visual voyage to the viewer based on where I want them to go. There are wonderful discoveries along the way when you destruct and reconstruct images. This piece reminds me of stained glass.

 

January 20, 2008, 7:11:31 am - San Francisco

Graffitti and murals are a few of my favorite things to photograph. Colors, forms, shapes, textures and lines draw me into the work. The challenge is to claim a piece of someone else's art by selecting a portion of the work and adding my interpretation mainly through post processing. This image is a composite from the original capture. I wanted to create a cubist look. 

 April, 5, 2021, 7:13:17 am - Santa Cruz Mountains

This is the aftermath of the CZU Lightning Complex fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains. There is a subtle beauty born from a devastating forest fire. The landscape transforms into an array of earthy colors and eerie contrast. Nature has replaced the usual forest smells with a nostalgic sense of a family campfire. Standing there, I couldn't imagine what it was like when the fire swept through this wonderful landscape. 

July 30, 2021, 6:13 am - Cambell Gardens, Palo Alto

Gambell Gardens is a wonderful, serene city garden. Few people visit the park, making it a place to get lost in thought and creativity. In the early day, the light brings form and depth to its subjects. Nature provided the scene, and I gave further voice to it by casting it in blue. 

 

Two years to the day was my last click post. I have no explanation other than Covid. I should have been posting more, given how much isolated time we had. Covid turned our entire world on its axis and life, as we knew it, changed. Since March 2020, I have been more active with my art, working on new approaches, projects, and returning to collages made from my photos. Hopefully, time will tell if I return to frequent posting. As in the past, I will continue to provide insight into my images. 

I wanted to start out with a more joyous photo that I captured at Gazo Creek. The landscape was dark but I saw it as a brighter subject with near pastel colors, soft lighting, and an array of textures.