One of my favorite tools on the iPad is importing my images to the Photos app. The simple act of sorting, organizing these photos like I used to do on a contact sheet of film negatives. Find the keepers and then develop them in the lab afterward.
Tag: Photography
Due to a variety of interests, there has been less writing here in favor of being outdoors with a camera. I’ve been out and about capturing a variety of topics including urban art, neon signs and more. I’m thinking of capturing a few new things as well.
My philosophy when shooting urban art: If I see something that is .001% interesting to me, I’ll shoot it and figure out what to do with it afterwards.
This is a huge benefit to digital photography in that there is no downside to capturing extra images. Film photography has its own creative, artistic skill but leaves little room for error.
Errors are costly and time-consuming. If I am in a photo flow, I don’t want to think about it. I can shoot 10,000 shots of the same topic without repercussions when using digital.
So that’s where I’m at. Come along with me if you’d like at my photography website: Photo Denbow
Over the past couple of decades I have acquired a lot of images and have failed to document them properly. Now I want to take on the enormous task of mapping my finds.
There are three categories I want to photograph, map and geotag for future reference:
- Geocaches
- Murals, wall art and sculptures
- Neon signs
Geocaches
I’ve looked around a bit for an alternative to Google Maps and Google Earth but the fact remains- they have the best open-sourced mapping platform than anyone else. I can’t stand Google but damn, they make a good map system.
For plotting my found geocaches, I’ve downloaded all the .gpx files from geocaching.com and uploaded to Google Earth which can then convert to .kmz files for a map view of discovered caches. But, because importing and exporting data between two systems is hardly ever efficient as advertised, I am still doing some tweaking to format the data as I need to.
Murals, Street Art & Sculptures
I wish I was as organized as I want to be when out in the field. From here on out I promise myself to document names of the murals, artists, coordinates and any other bits of info to document. Because now I need to go in and add waymarkers to the map manually. This means going to Google My Maps, upload my image and plot it to the corresponding location.
Neon Signs
Just like the street art images, I need to plot the waypoints of my neon images on to a map by hand. I have almost 500 images of neon so this may take awhile.
If you loosely apply Lomography’s ten golden rules, you’ll do just fine.
- Take your camera with you everywhere you go.
- Use your camera any time, day, or night.
- Photography is not an interference of your life but a part of it
- Shoot from the hip
- Approach as closely as possible
- Don’t think
- Be fast
- You don’t have to know beforehand what you captured
- Or afterwords either
- Don’t worry about any rules.
Number 10 may be the most important. Don’t listen to others, stay true to yourself and your artistic endeavor. There are plenty of rules that can and should be broken.
To those 10, I’ll remind you of another 10.
- Luck, coincidence emergency and surprise are your friends.
- Experimentation is exciting. Expect the unexpected. Or don’t!
- Embrace the sensory effects of the street. Light, shadow, smells & sounds
- Leave the grind behind. Focus on you and your subjects.
- Street photos look better when printed. I prefer black and white.
- Look again. If something spots your eye, but you pass on it…go back. Your first instinct is usually correct.
- Let loose. Have fun.
- Analog or film photography is making a comeback. Buy a cheap film camera.
- Analog will seldom disappoint because it is unique and challenging.
- Trust your senses over an LCD screen and electric sensors.
Urban, or street photography, combines what I love best. Walking, working with people, courage, risk-worthy opportunities and timing. Now grab your camera and start shooting!
How is your digital life? Feeling overwhelmed by all the clutter in your inbox, hard drive and cloud service? I know I was.
Though I consider myself to be a minimalist essentialist, there does come a time when I get lazy and the discipline slides. Clutter, digital or otherwise, can get distracting over time. Now may be the perfect time to clean up your digital room, so to speak. If not daily, then weekly because a well-organized computer will yield positive results for your state of mind and your workflow productivity.
Here’s how to get started:
Backups
When was the last time you backed up your data? If you can’t remember, then it has been too long. I set a calendar reminder for once a week, then plug in the dedicated external hard drive, flip on Apple’s Time Machine and let it do its thing-creating and preserving a snapshot image of everything on the MacBook’s drive. Before all that, I suggest sorting through your Downloads folder and assign to a proper folder or delete. How are your other folders? Photos, Music, Videos, Documents all need to be sorted. Toss what you have been holding on to for some reason. After all that, then take out the Trash and delete everything in that folder.
Cloud
Just as the computer gets cleaned up, so too your Cloud backups. My Cloud mimics the desktop with everything in place. Run Time Machine again and ensure good backups.
Software
If you have dozens of software programs and apps, it is time to have a think about what you are actually using. If you haven’t used a program in say six months, then uninstall and free up space on your machine. It will thank you for it. Do you really need four calendar apps, two music players, three browsers and who else knows what? Pick the right tool for the job and stick with it. Uninstall the rest.
Desktop
A cluttered desktop can be overwhelming and distract from your focus and productivity. A messy computer desktop is akin to a messy physical desk. Nobody wants to see that. Sort that clutter into their respective folders, empty your Trash can folder and enjoy the serenity.
Web Browser
Now, wait just a damn minute, Chris. This is sacred. If I don’t have multiple tabs open or bookmarked, I run the risk of losing and forgetting them. I might even return to them…someday.
That mentality is an old way of thinking that needs to be corrected. You won’t go back to them. You don’t need it. One of these days, your browser’s memory will slow to a crawl, and you’ll be forced to reboot the thing and potentially lose all those open tabs you’ve been saving.
Inbox and RSS feeds
If you cringe every time you access your email inbox, then you are doing it wrong. Email should be assigned from an inbox to a folder, replied to or deleted. Don’t forget to take the trash out again when done. If the mail is piled up, and you are overwhelmed, most email applications have a search feature.
RSS feed readers are a remarkable resource to stay current on the websites and blogs you enjoy. Shameless plug inserted here- https://chrisdenbow.website/feed But how does your “Unread” count look? Either read the article or save it to the “Read It Later” folder. Everything else can be deleted. The same can be said for podcast episodes!
One Password To Rule Them All
I dislike passwords, and captchas and just about every modern day credential grabber. Who can keep track of them all? I used to and failed. Then I tried a third-party password manager. I only needed one password to log in to that, and every time I needed to sign in elsewhere, that application would pop up and log in for me. That was fun until their data center was hacked and everyone’s passwords were in the open. I currently use Apple’s Password manager.
I’m already signed in to an Apple account, so I don’t have to remember a password there. Any website I visit, the Password app is ready to log me in, or help me create a new username/password. Once credentialed, Passwords will retain the info and be ready to use again. All it requires is my Face ID or Touch ID.
The Takeaway
Our digital usage over multiple devices can overwhelm us, and we open ourselves up to clutter. Who has the time to organize when we just want to scroll a feed or watch a video? I find that currently we need to be more mindful. Digital simplicity, essentialism, and minimalism is more important than before.
“Being a writer is like having homework every night for the rest of your life.”
– Lawrence Kasdan
This quote could also be used for any hobby endeavor we choose such as photography, crochet, micro electronics, Ham radio, etc.
A hobbyist is constantly researching techniques, going over best practices and learning how to apply them. You don’t just sit down at your keyboard and start cranking out paragraphs without research on the topic. You learn to see the world through the lens of your hobby and wonder how your craft fits into it, or what you can glean from the world to use it. A hobbyist is always shooting, writing, sewing, tinkering and noticing. A photographer is constantly tilting their head looking for angles and composition or color coordinating. Then act on it. A writer is frequently attaching verbal descriptions to a situation and then document it.
“To write, I first must world”
– Laurel Schwulst
Any experience that can be seen as possibly mundane suddenly has meaning, such as grocery shopping, sitting in traffic or walking through the streets. This means they are alert, focused, awakened and deliberately taking their findings to be applied later as homework. Though this homework is not graded, it does help advance our self-induced education, and we are all the better for it.
If you think technology will solve your problems then you don’t understand technology – and, you don’t understand your problems.
Laurie Anderson
Find the best tool for a specific job and stick with it. This is better said than done for me since I enjoy trying all the new shiny tools to play with out there. I am getting better at this and narrowed them down to a select few for writing, post-process photography, etc.
“We learn by doing.”
This is the way you master your hobby, by getting on and doing it. Learn, practice, re-learn and practice some more. This goes for writing, sketching, photography, painting, or everything else. You don’t get good without practice, keep your head down and move onward.
There are no shortcuts to becoming a good photographer. Just go out and take photos. You don’t need a specific lens or a new camera because you cannot buy skill. It does not matter whether you share images to your website or Instagram because all the “likes” will not help you improve. If you want to take good photos, you have to take numerous photos first. The majority will be crap, and that’s okay. I’ve come back home with maybe 5 usable images and been happy.
With your writing, it does not matter what software application you use, what blogging platform or newsletter publisher or what type of personal computing device you do it on. If the goal is to become a better writer, then just write. A lot of it will be crap, and that’s okay too. I’ve cranked out possibly 5 good articles a month and been happy.
Consistency and constantly. If it isn’t worth the time and effort to put into it, then perhaps it isn’t relevant for you.
You cannot buy in and expect dramatic results with your new gear. The gear doesn’t make you better. Only you can make yourself look good by trusting the process. It’s time to go out there and get it.
There are many things in my life that I don’t need. I don’t need half the technology I have, nor most of online services that I pay for. This includes the hosting for my website. I don’t need it, but it does serve a purpose deeper than the amount it costs me each year and gives me value.
My website(s) have been up for more than two decades (learning from a file error mistake, the earliest post I still have is from 2013) and it has been through various iterations. The most recent of which was going back to a personal web server host. The benefits and hours devoted to the setup and install outweigh the costs.
This website has been many things over the years such as, attempted portfolios, business ventures (photography) and a lot of design coding, but still provides an outlet for me. In reality, this website provides very little to me, it doesn’t receive accolades or followers as much as it used to, my life would remain unchanged if I didn’t have this outlet, but I still want one.
This is a journal, a hobby for sure, but writing gives me something that nothing else provides. I love networking with people and I enjoy journaling. Long form and short form both help me document my life as it is currently. Sometimes other people join me here and that is fantastic. Just because I receive nothing in return (on the surface), it doesn’t mean that this doesn’t have value. I believe everyone needs to have their own space on the world wide web.
No one or their website, should focus on follower count, advertising, tracking or page views. You won’t recoup your costs, let’s be honest. This is a personal website and are beholden to no one. You publish what you want, when you want and how you need to.
I don’t need this but I want this.
It is street photography season in this part of the world and I am jotting down ten top tips as a reminder to myself and anyone else that may happen to stumble upon this humble little website. There are some obvious tips but as always, user experiences may vary.
Gear
It doesn’t matter what you use, as long as you know how to operate the damn thing. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen friends on photo walks struggling with their settings on the go. It’s frustrating. You miss shots, the shots taken are out of focus, or underexposed and sometimes a flash drive was not installed. Before going out, clean your equipment, ensure the battery and drive is installed. Fire some test shots to dial in your settings. You have to know when to compensate for lighting, shadows, motion and focus until your camera is a part of you.
Gear Pt. 2
Keep it simple and lighten the load. No, you aren’t going to use that zoom lens, nor the wide-angle. That 50mm is great if you are shooting portraits, but not for a street shoot so leave it. Get your adjustable lens and call it good. Again, keep it light, so any extra lenses and gear will weigh you down and that sucks if you are covering a lot of ground. On asphalt.
Grab Your Comfy Shoes
Did I mention that prolonged exposure to walking on asphalt can hurt? Grab your comfy shoes because if you forgot to lighten your gear bag, you will start to feel it in a few blocks. Blisters suck. Sore knees and back will suck. These issues will take away your ability to concentrate on your image taking.
Explore More
We work with what we have. But that doesn’t satisfy us. How many times will we walk the same path we did before hoping for something new? And we’ll do it again because THIS time will be different. It’s the possibilities that keep us coming back. The fact that we may have missed something the first few times. And we are right. I’s time to explore more. The light and shadows are different because we chose a different time of day. The angles are different. Composition is different. The people we encounter are different, or are wearing something different. A new shop opens up giving a chance to explore it with a camera. We are explorers and our camera is our passport. Explore more!
People Person
Photographers are isolated. We roam alone with nothing but our thoughts and our gear. Eventually we’ll come across muggles. There can be some interaction. You may want to photograph them. Be bold but courteous. Other times, you’ll come across someone telling you not to be there. Now’s the time to be courteous again. Develop your people skills as much as you develop your images. The adages are true: smile, be polite, and doors can open to you that have been closed. Remember, explore more.
Explore…and Observe More
Photographers move around and observe the world as it is. Notice the vibe of the area and integrate yourself. You are here to observe, not change. Observe people and surroundings in the habitat. Position yourself right in the middle of the action to take advantage of the opportunities in front of you. Then, you’ll be able to capture candid moments, a still shadow hitting a building just right, or how the area interacts with each other.
Tell A Story Instead of Documenting
I am just learning this myself and need to create opportunities to practice. Instead of looking for that one “banger shot”, create a series of images that tell a story. It is increasingly rare to find that one image that will go viral. Who cares? People will scroll through their social feeds even faster looking for more and more. No, best to find and capture multiple images that will bring you satisfaction overall. I’d rather come home happy with what I have, rather than be disappointed because I didn’t get that one shot.
Be Original
Yep, that town’s monument has been captured thousands of different ways. Now what? Try your hand at it but move on to something fresh and hopefully undiscovered by someone else’s lens. Focus on what you want to capture, not what everyone else has.
Enjoy It All
Take the pressure off right away. We’ll have some good days and some shit days. But we keep going back out. Expectations suck the joy out of photography. Work with what you have in your bag. If the shot isn’t up to your standards, either change your angle or change your standards. It’s a process to be enjoyed from stalking the shot to developing it in Lightroom behind your iDevice. Along the way, hop into that pub to relax and enjoy your day. Street photography can work up a thirst after all. Pop onto that public transit to stop and have a think, review your images. Get off at the 4th stop and explore there. Experience everything and enjoy it.
Anti-Boring
Boring images stem from boring subjects or a bored photographer. Change it up. Liven it up and expose yourself to something new, you are an explorer with a passport after all. Find the interesting, become interested and your images will be more interesting.
Conclusion With A Bonus
Running out of things to shoot? Try some of these next time you are out:
- textures
- patterns
- color
- shadows
- negative space
- minimalism
- perspective
- murals
- neon
- urban decay
- humans
- security cameras
- utility poles and the graffiti stickers
- shop windows
See this image and more street shoots on the photography website.
When I am not capturing portraits with my camera, I am documenting where I have been, what I am doing and the people I am with.
I want to start focusing on creating stories. Sure, there are a few photos that tell a story in themselves, but what about a montage of photos documenting the times individually and as a whole?
Then I started to think about that montage and how to combine a photo series to tell a story. And since video is all the rage these days, what with short attention spans, I looked for inexpensive video creating software that is compatible with my ignorance.
That is when I remembered I already have it installed on the iPad- iMovie, Apple’s stock video software application.
Dropping images into iMovie was so simple even a dummy could do it. I threw a couple of images in and the proof of concept is complete.
Now I cannot wait to capture more images and combine them either into a digital zine or a video. Probably both if the images are worthy!
Click the link to the Video page of the photography website.
I am working toward keeping all of my web properties here under a single domain.
New long-form posts will be here. Previous posts (2022-2002) are now in the Archive. I don’t do social media anymore but I do like to fire off some quick posts, mostly to myself and they are now in the Micro page of this website.
The only web property not hosted on my web server is the photography website. I’m okay with that because I prefer the free hosting there and the way it displays images better.
Is this the perfect solution? I don’t know yet but the tinkering has been fun.
As of now, not everyone can see this website due to my domain name chrisdenbow.website being transferred from one domain registrar to another. 5-7 days they say, which is an eternity in tech time.