Flaunt The Imperfections

Entry # 2020:43

Issue #5 is out now

I’m excited to share my newest self-published project with the world. I created my zine series “Flaunt The Imperfections” a few years ago, when I dove deeply back into film photography. I wanted an outlet for the work I created using my old cameras, all shot on film, showing the grain, contrast and the roughness that I love so much about non-digital image-making. I also wanted to make a strong commitment to the rejection of perfection. I had (and continue to have) a gnawing disdain for the flawlessness of a digitally captured and manipulated photograph. The use of film in old cameras allows for the introduction of happenstance, surprise, and yes, shortcomings and what some might deem as “failure.” The denial of these challenges can so easily be done when you can simply “delete” an image from your camera. Instead, I found these were attributes to exploit, and even celebrate.

The current issue of my zine is a radical step for me creatively. As many of us have felt through the past year…or four years… or even more… I have been afraid, insecure, worried, and angry about the state of the world, and the state of the union. The pandemic has of course weighed heavy on my mind, but so too have other pressing political and environmental issues. The world literally has been on fire. My artistic output has reflected this upheaval. And as I wandered through the remaining “burn scar” in the Rio Grande bosque earlier this summer, I had an abrupt realization that this damage I was witnessing could be reflected in my photography. I somehow decided that the subject matter, nature in general, and the forest and trees in particular, would be a platform for me to explore an intentional destruction and degradation of the film negatives I was creating. I started slowly, experimenting with different film stocks and sources of flame and heat. Then I went further, scraping, piercing, sanding, and then, finally stepping on the strips of film. The metaphors are obvious and need no further explanation.

As is my usual approach, I moved quickly to bring this body of work to publication. I had time to focus on the production (and destruction) of the work, and I worked on the final layout with little hesitation. As such, there are probably elements of the final piece that I might have changed or adjusted, but again, the purpose of this zine series is a celebration of imperfections. It’s all there on the page, like it or not.

I have started taking orders for the zine, and will ship in early November. I you’d like to order a copy, please click the link below. I am proud of this work, and hope to share it with as many of you as possible.

2020: 40 (For What It's Worth)

The bosque continues to be my “go to” spot to shoot, as it has been for the past few years. It is constant transformation, seasonally for sure, but really it’s almost on a daily basis. As the official start of autumn is with us now, I’ve been enjoying longer treks through the woods near the Rio Grande, and with the lower temperatures, even midday shooting has been fruitful. This week brought with it yet another round of self-inflicted struggles. This time, it was my grandiose thought of shooting with the ultra-unreliable Kiev 6, a medium format camera that shoots square 2 1/4 inch negatives. This thing weighs a ton, and has a haphazard (in)consistency when it comes to advancing the film. No built in meter, no internal electronics at all. A Cold War relic, that I just happen to have some amazing glass for. Those East Germans could really kick out some fantastic lenses back in the days of Yuri Gagarin and U2 spy planes.

But enough about the gear chit chat, as it was my lack of planning by bringing along a 120 take up spool that had me waste one roll of film right out of the gate. This was followed immediately by a failed film counter rest, that saw me advance an entire roll of Tri-X through the camera with exposing a single shot. Thankfully my shooting partner was pleasant enough not to razz me about my follies. I did manage to expose one roll of Foma 100 properly. The Eastern European combo must have made the photo gods happy, because I got some really nice results from the roll. Even so, I still feel drawn to the first two frames, shown above, which suffer from the aforementioned advance issues. But the half-frame, complete with backing paper tape still present, really makes me love the results. I’ve made a mantra out of “flaunt the imperfections” even to the extent that it is the title of a series of ‘zines I’ve produced. (Insider hint, there’s a new issue brewing.) So of course I find myself the most satisfied with the stumble out of the gate on my only “successful” roll of the week. There are a few more images from the roll that I’m feeling an affinity for, so maybe rolling out the “Russian tank” might become a more regular occurrence.

Tribute to Andrei Tarkovsky

2020: 32 (...August...so much to answer for...)

The pandemic dog days are upon us. August brings melancholy. It is my birthday at the end of the month. This is usually the month where travel and beach time beckons. Monsoon season brings needed rain, but also not needed hail. The light is beginning to change. The summer is close to its breaking point. I continue to plan new projects, as my Japan book makes its way out into the world. Branching out into new formats, thinking of new zine ideas, thinking about another long-term shooting project that will most likely need to wait until interstate travel is safe again. And, of course, the bosque beckons. Short and sweet this week. Welcome August, bring what you will.

Kick In The Eye

KICK IN THE EYE

My new self-publishing project

After a few pauses, I am a thrilled to announce the release of my new self-publishing project. “Kick In The Eye” is a multi-format photo book. I will be releasing three different formats of this collection of photographs. The body of work is from a trip to Japan in 2019. The book layout is a continuation of my desire to depart from a reliance on and the sanctity of the “single” photograph. Each page of the book is a grouping of images meant to work as a whole. These pages I then envisioned as “visual songs.” I followed this quasi-musical approach to the packaging of each format. Being a vinyl collector, I wanted to replicate the 12” LP format, which seemed an appropriate way to package the main book. I then created a smaller “CD” version of the set of photos, as a small booklet in a CD jewel case. Finally, I produced a small number of “cassette” versions of the work, creating a deck of smaller cards that come encased in a classic cassette case.

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ABOUT THE PHOTOS

How well can one prepare for a place they have never been, where none of the words make sense, where activity never ceases, with all senses on hyper-alert? In Japan, you either surrender to it and let the flow take you where it wants you to go, otherwise you could easily be pulled under the current. As much as you could hope to be a traveler and not a tourist, there are some hurdles that are not so easy to overcome. Weeks of being completely adrift in a never-ending maze of commotion and confusion are sure to shift one’s comprehension of what is predictable... what is recognizable... what is understandable.

EXPLORE THE DIFFERENT FORMATS

GRAB YOUR COPY NOW

All three formats are limited editions, so once they’re gone, they’re gone.
Don’t miss out, order your copy today.
Click on the button below to visit my online store.

2020: 14 (Back To The Bosque)

Spring is in the air, even if this is a spring like no other. Nature doesn’t pay much attention to the trials and tribulations of humans. The birds are chirping every morning, the plants and trees are sprouting, the temperature is warming, the days are getting lighter. Thankful for all of this, as I spend most of my time in my house, at my computer.

Working from home is a luxury, but it is also a challenge to set boundaries, and conference calls and answering emails, and Zoom sessions are tiring in their own way. So it is that time outside that really feeds me. I’ve started running in the mornings again. The park is almost always empty, a nice chill in the air that dissapates as the sun rises.

I also had the opportunity this week to head back to the bosque, along the Rio Grande, to continue my year-long project. Wandering the woods along the river, right after sunrise, was inspiring and restorative. The light was gorgeous, the ducks and geese where flying and calling overhead. Some trees and grasses were showing their green again, but the mighty cottonwoods have yet to come back to life and color. That will be a treat for another visit.

It is a great joy to shoot one roll of film, 72+ exposures via the half-frame camera, in one outing. It is liberating, especially not giving much concern to each individual image. Instead, treating the entire roll of film as its own thing. I look forward to the 5 more months I have on this project, and really look forward to making a zine of this work when the project is completed.

If you can, get outside and breathe the fresh air, feel the sun on your skin, and listen to the birds.

2020: 10 (Proof It, Dummy)

Shifting into high gear on my next self-publishing project. I’ve been keep my cards close to the vest on this project. It will be a departure for me in number of ways. I plan on hand binding the main book, but I am also working on two additional versions of the release. The proofing and dummying up process has consumed me this week, and with so much hand work ahead of me, there is only a small glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Persistence. So much persistence needed.

I was also struck with a small hint of spring fever this past week, as the temperatures in New Mexico have been hovering around 60 degrees most days. I took my monthly walk through the bosque to work on my year long, half frame project. The Kyocera Samurai is transforming my creative approach to this project, in a really good way. I also popped off a roll of black and white last weekend, playing around with architectural details and shadow play. Always be looking.

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2020: 8 (No Judgement)

Wrapping up quite a week. Here’s a re-cap: pre-production for a commercial shoot, improv rehearsal, Tuesday night photo book meet up, camera club judging (more on that) a 12 hour day on set yesterday, followed by two improv sets in Santa Fe last night. Oh, yeah, a visit to my doctor since I am still sick with the crud… four weeks and counting. Good times… I’ll sleep when I’m dead.

Thursday night was an event that I had booked many months ago… something that had almost fallen off my radar, honestly. A local group of photographers called the Enchanted Lens Camera Club had asked me to judge their monthly photo competition. The theme was “Taken on a Smart Phone.” I was excited to review the work, especially since I was curious about how a group of serious photo enthusiasts would tackle the challenge of only shooting with their phones. Truth be told, the commitment to be their judge took me more time than I had anticipated, but my passion for photography pushed me to give the work the time and consideration it deserved. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the submissions overall. And there were a handful of real gems in the almost 90 photos I reviewed. Amusingly enough, the photo I chose as my favorite of the night was a shot of fishermen taken in Porto, Portugal… a very special place to me personally.

Part of my obligation was to critique each photo as part of a talk / presentation to the group. I have a bit of a problem giving criticism to anyone photographically, but I also wanted to provide constructive feedback to the group. I hope I struck a balance in my critique. A few members personally thanked me afterwards… and no irate shutterbugs were waiting for me in the parking lot, so I guess all went over well. They also gave me the chance to give a 10 minute presentation of my own work. I focussed on my self-publishing efforts, as I thought it was a topic many in the group would not immediately consider as an outlet for their own photography. It was a nice chance for me to reflect on this journey of photo book printing that I find myself on, and it came at a good time, as I’m prepping my next project as I write this.

I quickly edited a short 15 second video of my books to include in my presentation. Thought it would be fun to also share it here. Life is short… print your photos.

2019: 44 (Flaunt The Imperfections: Issue #4)

Very excited to share a sneak peek at my next project. A collaboration with my friend and fellow Latent Image Collective photographer, Francesco di Marco. The next issue of my film-based zine; this time ALL instant photographs. More details and pre-sale information coming soon.

2019: 34 (Instant Gratification)

I have a term for my somewhat manic desire to keep working. I call it “sharking out.” Just like a shark needs to constantly be moving forward through the water, always swimming, always devouring things in its path, I often feel that I have to be working on something. Though I may be in denial, I don’t consider myself a workaholic. This urgency somehow goes deeper into my soul, my existential core. I feel that life is short, and I need to be justifying my existence on a daily basis, through my art. Through creating something.

Case in point, I just recently completed a project that was two years in the making; the exhibition is still hanging on gallery walls here in Albuquerque. A perfect time to pause and reflect. But I am restless already, and I’m looking at what the “next” thing will be. I will be traveling overseas in the coming weeks, and I have ideas for a new project to shoot while I’m away. I also started a layout of my next zine, which will be a collaboration with a fellow photographer from Italy. The zine will focus on instant film photographs (Polaroid, Instax and Fuji peel apart.)

There are unique qualities to shooting instant film. In some ways it is liberating, knowing that there is only one copy of the photo I made. A unique artifact from a unique moment. In that regard, it is the quintessence of photography itself. At the same time, I struggle somewhat when I shoot instant film. There is additional weight, additional expectation I place on each photograph. The film is not inexpensive, and in the case of the Fuji peel apart film, it isn’t even being made anymore. When I expose the last sheet I own, that’s it. I’ll retire my Polaroid 360 for good. How’s that for putting extra weight on each photograph?

Regardless, I will continue my sharking way, no matter how deep the ocean waters may be, or how dark the depths become. And my quandary will no doubt continue. Perhaps I am incapable of taking my foot of the gas, or perhaps the constant engagement with my creativity is what makes my life worth living.

2019: 27 (Swim with the Current)

Now that the GoFundMe campaign is wrapped up, it’s time to get this show going! Ninety prints need to be framed… slow and steady and I will get them done. Really looking forward to the show and book release, which is a little less than a month away. Full details for the exhibition opening will be shared very soon.

A huge thanks to all of you fine folks who supported out fundraiser. Although we didn’t meet our ultimate goal, the funds were enough to cover printing and frame costs (also thanks to a few holiday sales at the Mpix and Michael’s!)