52 Weeks Photography Project

The March Edition.

The March Edition of the 52 Weeks Photography Project presented five open-ended concepts for inspiration. How would I visually interpret them? Let’s see:

9. Window. To the soul, or not.

10. Negative Space. You are allowed to be positive.

11. Levitation. Go ahead, float your boat.

12. A song title. Got a favorite tune?

13. Pure Luck. Interpret that as you will.

So, let’s go…

9- Window

I have photographed hundreds of windows during my lifetime. I even wrote a story about that experience. This image of the sun rising over the coastal mountains of southern British Columbia is special to me. Not because it’s a particularly great photo. It is not. It is because of the fresh experience, and the vivid memory.

It is an old photo, with an old story attached.

I had stopped the car to photograph a ferry boat silhouetted in the sunrise. I had little time as I was trying to catch a ferry to cross to the mainland.

I raced to the beach to set up the tripod to take a few photos. After that event, I turned around to return to the car. That’s when I saw the sun reflected on the boathouse window. I had not seen that window on my way down to the beach. I had one frame left in that roll of film.

It was meant to be.

10- Negative Space

There was a period of time when I decided to post one photo per day on Instagram. It was during the pandemic, so setting a goal seemed like a healthy way to remind myself to continue creating even if the world seemed to be in crisis mode.

I set the bar low. Just quick snaps as I went through the day. The plan worked for me. It made me search for quirky, fun stuff to photograph. This image is a good example of what I was finding.

If four large red NOs don’t describe a negative space, then I don’t know what does.

11- Levitation

I’m a scientific skeptic (who has seen a ghost.) So I figured levitation must have some sort of trick that I have yet to comprehend. So I played with a vase for a while. This is what happened. Are you transfixed?

12- A Song Title

My Old Vancouver is a song by Oh Susanna from the 2017 album A Girl in Teen City. The lyrics paint a nostalgic picture of Vancouver that takes me back to my youth.

It mentions Black & Lee where I rented my high school graduation tuxedo. It describes venues where I attended concerts — the fabulous Richard’s on Richard, colloquially known as Dicks on Dicks. Also the bowling alley on Granville street where you could roll for five bucks.

It also references Hastings and Main, the intersection three blocks away from where I worked for a decade. The place where I met my lovely wife.

So this photo of old Vancouver seems appropriate. I photographed the city skyline from Jericho Beach in 1971 with my Mamiya/Sekor 1000DTL loaded with Ilford HP5 film. To think that it has been over fifty years since then, seems incredible.

13- Pure Luck

I have enjoyed thoroughbred racing since my teen years. The sounds, the colors, the spectacle, the anticipation, the excitement. A nice summer afternoon, at the track, with friends, is a real treat.

I have learned how to handicap a race. Yes, I know how to read the Racing Form. Yet over the years, I’ve been wrong as much as I’ve been right. I can calculate age, weight, class, pedigree, jockey, fraction times, workouts, and past performances and be wrong, while my partner will bet on a horse named Waffle House — because she likes the name — and be right.

Trust me…it’s pure luck.

The April tasks are:

14. Minimalism. K.I.S.S.

15. Shadows. Keep it light.

16. Upside Down. Turn the World on its head.

17. Leading Lines. You know…like railroad tracks, or not.

Feel free to jump in at any point. Share your vision.