Photo Gallery

In the following posts you will see a collection of photographs I have taken over the years, around the world and in remote corners of the United States. Many of the pictures I took when I was in the U.S. Army in Europe, 1969-72, and a few are taken since then when our children were in High School and college and we started doing a lot of travel again. This is only a tiny part of my massive collection, and I selected these because I think they show definitive and interesting aspects of the art of photography. A few even show the genius of Photoshop and Picasa!

My military experience, despite having to endure 13 hellish weeks of basic combat training at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, at the very height of the Vietnam War, provided a major impact on my photography, primarily because I got sent to the famous Signal Corps Photography School at Ft. Monmouth New Jersey, and from there ended up in Europe as a “Cold Warrior” for the rest of my three-year enlistment.

The Signal Corps school taught me a lot of good technique, and my own love of history and interest in art (developed prior to the Army at Duke University where much to my own chagrin I earned a D in Art History but retained nonetheless everything I learned in that class along with an appreciation of the value of going to museums, historical landmarks and great works of architecture) taught me about form and design. Of course it didn’t hurt that while at Duke I met and attended small seminars with Ansel Adams and Ernst Hass and have since met Eddie Adams in another workshop setting.

The collection below, as it now stands, is selected and annotated for viewing and discussion by my J210 Visual Communications class, but I would like to think that it can stand on its own merits.

Imitation through Derivation

What photographer do you think I had in mind when I took this photograph? What difference would it have made if I had used color film? (WHW, Korea)

Rule of thirds?

Although I centered the subject, did I follow the rule of thirds? What else is going on in the photograph? (WHW, rural Georgia, 1969) 

Rainy day color

This photo had a lot of help from Photoshop and Picasa; North Carolina (WHW) 

With a little help from our friends (at Adobe)

Color can be great on a rainy day (particularly with help from Photoshop); North Carolina (WHW) 

Thirds

Notice I'm on my knees to get these "thirds" to work. And this picture is oh so photoshopped! North Carolina (WHW) 

Lines and Thirds

Notice how the subject matter is in the bottom third of the picture, and the stains on the cliff point right to the ruins. I sepia toned the picture to remind of the historical photograph by Ansel Adams; Arizona (WHW)

Thirds

Even the lighting creates the "thirds" effect here; Korea (WHW) 

Timing

Timing is everything - I waited for a person to walk out of the doorway; Korea (WHW) 

Subject matter

Of course, it never hurts to have yummy subject matter; New York City (WHW) 

Thirds

Notice how the bottom third of the picture creates a diagonal that leads to the subject; Greece (WHW) 

The diagonal

Notice how the diagonal creates movement for the eye; Greece (WHW) 

Simplicity

This is a combination of lines, simple shapes and muted colors - an example of where less is more; Crete (WHW) 

Looking for those lines

Check out the diagonal in this picture; Crete (WHW) 

Function follows form

The light on her bent leg creates movement towards the single area of color in the picture; Germany (WHW) 

Less is more

Notice the thirds again, and the subtle colors created by the soft light; Germany (WHW) 

Thirds

There are three topics of interest in this picture, arranged like a check mark. The focus and lighting help too; Germany (WHW) 

Rule of thirds

Thirds - and lighting, of course. Notice how the grain is picked up by the sidelight; France (WHW) 

Depth of field

Focus (or lack thereof) is everything; Germany (WHW) 

Lines and Diagonals

The array of lines, and the diagonal created by the castle, produces a dynamic tension for the eye; Germany (WHW) 

Contrast

Contrast often refers to lighting, but in this case, to subject matter; this picture of hoar frost would have been weak without the church steeple in the background; Germany (WHW) 

Focus

Another of my favorite pictures - notice the focus and the rule of thirds. This photo has been enhanced with Picasa; France (WHW) 

Shapes

Another of my favorite pictures - notice how all the shapes make sense, and all the space is filled; Germany (WHW) 

Combination of Factors

There are at least three important photographic issues going on here - name them; France (WHW)

A question of ethics

One of my favorite pictures, for a variety of reasons - but look closely at the grimace on her face; Yugoslavia (WHW) 

Timing

Timing - without the gondola there, this would have been a bland picture; Venice (WHW)