January 14, 2008
Starving Artist Needs Frames!
Well, I can hardly make the case for the first part of this blog title from a physical perspective. And financially I am far from it as well. Thanks be to the Lord. However, it is not necessarily the best time to lay out a great deal of cash, even for the sake of art, which is exactly what I will be doing over the next few weeks as I get ready for a photography show that I will be putting on in February at the seminary I am attending. At any rate, if you are in the St. Louis area and wish to be of help and have some old frames laying about that you are willing to let go at a low price (or no price :), well, I am your man.
I am looking for nice-ish, wood frames, with glass, of sizes 14" X 18" or above, though some a little smaller may be OK too. If you are willing and able to participate, email me, and I will come by and have a look, and then, if I want the frame, you can pick your price from the handy price chart below.
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September 25, 2007
On Its Way, Like Grey at the Temples...
...only the opposite.
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September 24, 2007
Mmm, Stella!
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September 23, 2007
When it Sparkles in the Cup
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September 22, 2007
One Ceiling, Two Kinds of Light
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September 18, 2007
Still Lifing: Afternoon Light
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September 15, 2007
Dog ::: Man ::: Beer ::: Man ::: Wine
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September 14, 2007
flower ::: vase ::: steeple ::: mall
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August 19, 2007
The Color of Rest is Green: A Vacation in 37 Pictures
It occus to me that I do not really write blog entries any more, a truth that I would like to remedy at some point in the future. I am not sure entirely all the whys and wherefores, but I am convinced they are not all positive. Still, until those posts come, here is a brief photolog of a whirlwind vacation that took me from St. Louis to Milwaukee (to see the Cards win 8-0) to Green Bay (to catch the end of the Packers practicing with the great Favre himself taking snaps) on Thursday; from Green Bay to Escanaba in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and back on Friday; and through Chicago (to spend the afternoon with Tanya and Heidi) and back to St. Louis on Saturday.
Needless to say it wasn't the most restful vacation, but it was full of wonderful sites. Including a lot of the great outdoors. And, my, it was great, indeed, and awesome and lovely. My host in Escananba, my friend Dan's step-father, said while I was talking to him about living in the U.P. that he has come to the conclusion that "The color of rest is green." And I think that is well worth quoting and true, unless of course you sandwich it between a great, great deal of traveling.
This past weekend was also a great culinary tour as well. Mmm, mmm.
Wednesday: St. Louis pulled pork barbeque at house church.
Thursday: Steak at the Texas Road House (with peanut hulls on the floor)
Friday: Whitefish, Perch, and Walleye platter at the Buck Inn (courtesy of my host)
Saturday: Chicago deep dish at My Pie Pizza on Clark Street and a fully loaded Chicago style hot dog.
Brilliant.
And adding to all the natural and culinary splendor was the opportunity to visit Goodwill in the U.P. Now you may think it rather silly to go six hundred miles to simply to hit a thrift store, but though they are very similar generally, it is interesting to see if there are any regional goods. For example, if I had more time to peruse, I could have tried on a pair of snow pants. As it was, I did not think I came away with anything uniquely regional, though I did get a blingerific green t-shirt. But when I got home, I saw that my $4.99 green, wide-slot toaster, had both English and French writing on it. Pretty cool, eh? The thrift-stores in Chicago along Clark street were surprisingly affordable, but, no, the real thrift stores of Chicago will have to be left for another day, when I can find an accomodating and knowledgeable native to help locate them in all their musty glory.
Finally, thanks, Dan, for helping provide me with such a thoughtful and well-planned vacation, and thanks, Heidi and Tanya, for the silly and fun afternoon in the city of broad shoulders.
OK, without further adieu, here are the 37 pics, which is a lot, but you must know, if you know me at all, that there are actually many more ;)
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August 16, 2007
The Gel Series and Haiku Contest Notice
I am sure there are better things one could be doing when one is leaving for a trip at 6am the next morning, like packing, for example, or sleeping perhaps. But I saw this cool angular pattern of bubbles the other day after I had used some gel and as I packed it tonight I wanted to capture it for posterity. The first two shots are sink shots, the latter with some extra lighting.
Oh, and the haiku contest deadline is extended till next Wednesday. So, far we have only four entries, and with such great prizes on the line. Plus, I am going to be out of town for a whirlwind vacation, so that gives you haiku procrastinators some extra time. Come on now, we really have some quality judges in the wings, so lets get them a little more material to work on.
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August 15, 2007
Orange Red
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August 13, 2007
Wedding Number Five - The American Side
I don't think I have been to as many weddings of a summer as I have been to this summer. In addition to two friends having gotten married, three of my cousins' daughters have gotten married. At the beginning of the summer, the daughter of a cousin on my Mom's side of the family was the first. Then a few weeks ago it was the wedding reception of a cousin's daughter on my Dad's side of the family. This past weekend, to complete the symmetry, the sister of the first cousin's daugther got married.
Looking at the pictures from these last two wedding posts and knowing that I deeply appreciate and resonate with the aesthetics of each, but more deeply with the latter, should go a fair ways in helping you understand my outlook on my cultural heritage and the dance my blood cells do within my veins.
Actually, for this wedding I was asked to be the informal photographer for the reception. Eek! I have as yet to get an external flash and was very nervous about missing key moments. And, alas, a few did go flittering by in the banquet room darkness as my little flash recharged. My cousin-niece (in Pakistan, I would simply call her my niece), in response to my worried banter, was as gracious as she is lovely in the pictures below, and that's pretty darn gracious. Most of these shots I got just before she walked in (sometimes it pays to be a little late to things) and just after the wedding, respectfully staying out of the way the real photographer, which is an imminently sensible practice. Musn't interfere with the professionals doing their work.
Enjoy!
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August 12, 2007
Susans
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August 06, 2007
Some Color From a Pakistani Wedding Reception
There were even more examples of lovely Pakistan dress than these but it was rather tricky to shoot these and maintain a level of propriety. Even these required a certain amount of surreptitiousness. Not so the shots of my cousin's radiant daughter below, who got to wear not one but two wedding dresses during the course of the evening. Please pardon the slight lack of focus.
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Bug
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Blue in Clayton
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July 29, 2007
Green
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Coming Home at Dusk
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Courthouse
This is not really a commentary of any sort. I was just intrigued by the shape of the razor wire and the Federal Courthouse happened to be in the background.
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That Game Was Awes!
...as my flatmate Nathan would abbeviate it. Could I have witnessed the turning point of the Cardinals season? Hmm. Not likely, but one can hope. And I will take three runs in the bottom of the ninth to win the game any day. The boys ran out of the dugout at the end of the game like it was the World Series.
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July 27, 2007
An Evening in the Garden
On Wednesday evening our house church went to the Whitaker Music Festival in the Missouri Botanical Gardens. Good music, good food, delightful company, and, of course, the garden itself at dusk. This photo shoot was on a quick run through and on several of the pictures I did not get the focus right. Still, there are some nice shots. Click on the picture above to see more.
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July 21, 2007
The Big Day...What's a Groomsmen to Do
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A Little of the Far East Along Manchester
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July 19, 2007
Thunderhead from the Park
A couple of weeks ago, after some stirring games of racquetball, I walked with David Lim over to the Muny, and despite my general sweaty and stinkiness which seemed to stand out all the more for walking amongst fresh Muny goers, I persisted in getting some shots of this stunning cloud before heading to home and cleanliness. Now, that's dedication to one's art.
I need to get a better photo editing program so I can work on the dark bits of the picture whilst leaving the light bits alone. These look fine, but still I have lost a fair bit of detail from the clouds. Here is the cloud over the course of about half an hour as it changed its shape, though the first picture may have been a different cloud. There are slightly different color effects on each of these pictures. Apologies.
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July 13, 2007
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhoods of North St. Louis
This past wednesday, I took the day off of work to take some pictures for Harambee, a youth training program affiliated with my church. Youth are given training, and work either mowing lawns (for the younger children) or doing tuckpointing (for the older children). The children are given a decent wage, get to interact with mentor/supervisors, receive Biblical wisdom for life and work and salvation, and get to be a part of an effort to provide widows and the poor with important services to demonstrate the love of Christ through the church.
Here are some pictures from journeys through various neighborhoods. These neighborhoods are full of photographic possibilities, from architectural details to lovely urban gardens to human interest shots. I want to resist the impulse, which is definitely there, to simply get some artsy shots and to take from the neighborhood. Not that such picture taking is necessary wrong, but it would be better to have a care for and connection with the people who live there. Here are just a few shots that I managed to get that were not part of my main mission, along with several of the children's handiwork.
gordon's house
message is a bit off, but good artwork
"
an old photographic subject of mine
may refinement never quash the impulse toward beauty
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July 10, 2007
More Dragonfly and Their Surrounds
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July 05, 2007
Summer
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Glory Above the Strip Mall
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June 29, 2007
By Special Request, Some Pictures
Here you go, brother. How do you like them apples...er, only its a dragonfly, in two views, with one highly stylized.
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June 19, 2007
Some Night Shots, And Then It's Off to Bed...
...early for a change. Tomorrow, I'll post a poem on John 8, which I wrote a while ago, to supplement the discussion which continues apace.
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Things That Are White and Yellow and Creamy, And I Don't Mean Creamed Corn
More photos from this past weekend. And you really must click on the last three to view them at a larger size, particularly the last one. You won't be sorry.
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June 08, 2007
Lunchtime Shoot
I have been wanting to photograph the walkway below (which was once used as a greenhouse) since when I first saw it 5 years ago. I had better get the shots in before I leave. I do regret now not having the opportunity to shoot it in all types of weather as I had wanted.
hallway chandelier
self portrait I
self portrait II
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Fountain
I once stove to be a what I then considered a purist in digital photography, to only fix a picture to what it looked like when I took it. After realizing that manipulating the image through processing to get different effects has a long history in analog photography, I chilled a bit. Still, sometimes when I come up with two different takes on the same scene, as with the colors in the first two pictures below, I begin to wonder again about my finaglaing. For the record, I think the true color of the trees that day was closer to the second picture.
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June 06, 2007
Glow
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June 03, 2007
And Now the Sun is Setting ::: And Now the Sun is Set
__________________________
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June 01, 2007
Wow! Now That's What I Call Photography!
First let me say that Facebook is an amazing connector of long lost friends, even as it is a massive Black Hole sucking in vast swaths of time. Here are some photos of Shahesha Lock who was a junior in high school when I went back to volunteer at my high school in Pakistan during the 1992-93 school year. Yeah, I actually was her husband Josh's house father for 6 weeks or so. Me as a house father at 23, now that's a scary thought. Actually, I did very well, thank you very much, and it was a lot of fun.
Oh, and I would highly recommend viewing the slideshow and looking at all of these as there are some amazing shots, especially of many of the lovely folk of Pakistan. At the very least, you have to go up to the shot of the goat wearing the sweater.
Oh, and Facebook is amazing. So much more visually pleasing than Myspace and so much better at creating social networks. Myspace still has an edge in sharing multimedia, music, videos, etc. if you don't mind the aesthetic nightmare in whic it is wrapped.
Correction
Shahesha informs me, via the aforementioned Facebook, that the photography is Josh's principally, though she does doe some protraiture.
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May 30, 2007
Visions of Speed, Vicariously, Courtesy of David
A couple of years ago, I ran the St. Louis half-marathon, only I didn't. Having registered but not undertaken the requisite training, David chose to run the race in my stead. And I finished quite nicely, thank you very much. What's that scripture passage about building a tower?
The biathlon (which more correctly should have been called a duathlon) at Highland this Memorial Day was one that I had also thought of under taking, but couldn't quite manage to train for the five mile run in time. I did, however, go along for moral support, and to take pictures. I am still getting the hang of sports photography.
The 5 mile run and 15 mile bike route was lead off by a gentleman in a wheelchair. Amazing. I can't imagine how he handled the hills.
I managed to catch the frontrunners...
...but didn't manage to catch decent shots of David until the end of the run and the transition to the bike.
Here is the specialized bike of the gentleman in the wheelchair which is pedaled using one's hands and, I think, his everyday wheelchair. I am not sure if he had any help in the transitions, but I imagine he is pretty self-sufficient.
Here is David finishing along with another rider who seems to have hit the pavement somewhere along the rainy course.
The end of a 19 mph average bike segment. Nice.
In this final shot, David represents his cycling club, which in turn represents Christ. In a cool story, during the run a fellow runner remarked how the ICCC put on the best post-race food for the races they sponsor. There is a point for doing everything well as unto Christ.
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May 29, 2007
Twilight on Lewis and Clark
Well, today I tendered my resignation at Lewis and Clark Community College in order to attend seminary this fall to pursue a Masters in Divinity. This has been a decision I have taken a long time to come to and which I have not taken lightly. If you are the praying sort, I would appreciate yours, that I will see this through and listen to see where God may be taking me.
At any rate, after visiting a dear Uncle who is very close to going to be home with Jesus and his sister and after the day's events, I was a bit pensive and just relaxed by taking some pictures of beautiful Lewis and Clark at twilight. These are sans tripods, but still convey the beauty. It was perfect night.
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May 28, 2007
For the Scots
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May 25, 2007
My Sister's Garden
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Taraxacum 2
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May 23, 2007
The First Day
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May 15, 2007
From the Hard Drive ::: Outdoor Miscellanea
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May 11, 2007
From the Hard Drive ::: Fire and Feathers and One Tiny Flower
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April 17, 2007
ReFreshment
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April 13, 2007
Eastermath
I don't know if people get post-Easter blues the way that some get post-Christmas blues, but this week has been rather grey. Even some of my friends who are self-avowed winter lovers seem to be getting a little tired of the grey and cold. I may be getting a little tired of it too. Though, generally, this is a favorite type of weather and very nice for creating startling contrasts in photos. Here is a selection from Sunday afternoon until this morning.
ah, the catholics kick our aesthetic kiesters everytime
(well most times, some of the statuary, etc. is as horrid as the worst protestant bookstore kitsch)
"when i grow up"
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April 11, 2007
Pelicans on the Mississippi
Are you looking for a nice little day trip from St. Louis? Do you like birds? Well, you might check out the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary near Alton, Illinois. You don't even have to go to the center, just come up to the Missouri end of the Clark bridge and explore the wetlands around the river. There are an amazing number and variety of birds. Of course, in the winter their are the eagles, but just now there are masses of pelicans and other ducks and, yes, the ubiquitous Canada Goose, which has to be the most equisitly beautiful pest in the world.
While you are in the area, you might also want to check out the Confluence Point State Park. Pretty cool, to see the rivers mixing.
I will leave singing the praises of the Great River Road and Grafton and Pere Marquette State Park and Calhoun Countyfor another day, but those are also cool sites in the area.
Addendum: A flying pelican for Jill.
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April 04, 2007
Wikipedia! Paint! Powerpoint!
Where to begin this entry? Well, as a librarian I feel compelled to tell you that Wikipedia is an encyclopedia which is created by Internet users who may or may not have received formal education about the topic upon which they are writing. It is a collaborative encyclopedia, so the facts articles present may be challenged, etc. There have also been some instances of hacking. Moreover, many college professors (and I think rightly) will not accept articles from Wikipedia for college papers.
Having said that, I dig Wikipedia. I still think there are better choices for college level research, but it is an excellent place to find basic information, especially about topics which are either not traditionally covered in encyclopedias or will not appear in a print encyclopedia until the publishing cycle catches up. Need information on the meteoric rise of the Arctic Monkeys? Need the box scores for last year's World Series? Wikipedia is your place. And even though I am strong supporter of formal education and degrees, etc. etc., especially now, hobbyists and fans often may know a great deal about a topic and have done incredible amounts of research on it. Also, Wikipedia will tell you when a particular part of an article is under dispute or when information in a particular article is still developing. I think this displays an admirable intellectual humility or transparency.
At any rate this article was not intended to be about Wikipedia at all, but about Paint, a graphics tool which has come free with every version of Windows. I just read the Wikipedia article about Paint and was so excited to discover secret features in Paint that I had to toot Wikipedia's horn. Actually, that was not even the real impetus for this article, but we'll get to that in the last paragraph.
I like Paint because, together with PowerPoint which is not free but is readily found in offices, schools, etc., I can come up with a poor man's graphics suite. I am too lazy to go into all the hows here, but PowerPoint allows one to layer items and add text easily and Paint allows one to work at the pixel level. And by carefully bouncing pieces back and forth (though each time one saves, one loses details I think) I am able to make such things as blog banners. My masterpieces, in my opinion, are the banners for The Moon is the Spoon of the Sea, Guinea Pig Voices in the Night (though this actually entailed some sketching and pencil coloring), and my latest creation for Sweet Chicken. I am really excited about the Sweet Chicken one just now, but well The Moon is the Spoon took the most crazy Paint/PowerPoint mashup skills.
Even though I am proud of my work, I must simply say I am not worthy to examine the pixels of the artist who created Mona Lisa in Paint, in 2 hours and 30 minutes, no less! Enjoy and be amazed! P.S. The video has a soundtrack.
Afterwards, pull up a picture of the real Mona Lisa on Google, the Paint version is not nearly as fine, but it is not bad. If you are really a geek, hit print screen on the Paint version when it is done and paste it into Paint, enlarge it, and examine the pixels. Wow.
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March 30, 2007
in rain and from the right
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March 29, 2007
The Same Dandelions by Headlight
As I was leaving work tonight, I noticed that the dandelion on the left which I had photgraphed earlier in the day had already bloomed. Pretty amazing, but I guess they grow fast. I really tried hard to get a steady picture by headlight, but this was the best I could manage before I grew weary of the process. Still, I think it has a kind of cool, ghostly kind of vibe to it.
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And, I'm Back...
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March 26, 2007
The Rest of the Shoot
Well, though I am taking a needed break from taking pictures, here some that go with the ones I recently had published in Catapult and which I promised to post today.
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March 23, 2007
A Lunchtime Walk or Proof That Lewis and Clark Community College is Extraordinarily Beautiful
A major reason our grounds are so lovely is that we, along with SIUE, are part of the Missouri Botanical Gardens East program.
It should be noted, that the most delicately beautiful flower of the bunch, the first one, is natural and would not survive in most suburban yards, having been killed either chemically or by the mower.
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March 19, 2007
Three Views of a Flag in Snow ::: St. Patty's Day
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Hike ::: Castlewood
the album cover (yeah, go ahead and name the band)
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March 17, 2007
Welcome, Lucy!
Well, the long saga is over and Lucy is finally here. I must confess that this was not the first picture I took. Perhaps I'll blog that one at a later date. No, actually, Lucy took her first shot somewhere around 2:15pm yesterday and this one was her 235th, taken earlier this afternoon. So, I do get good use out of my cameras, to say the least.
As for the outfit (though, I must insist I don't really wear outfits), well, I thought I would go with a Pakistani-American theme, with a black kameez and jeans.
Seriously, though, I am very thankful for this camera as it is really nice, and also thankful for the reminder to hold all gifts loosely. I hope that makes sense. If you want to know more about the details of the camera and a trustworthy place to get one yourself, just shoot me an email.
I am also thankful for good, and generously giving, friends, like the author of Bacon's Great who very kindly provided a great camera case, which can easily go around my neck for safer carrying :)