I’m uncomfortable with the notion of mastery. It’s not that I don’t believe we can’t, in some broad way, master a craft – gain a level of comfort and expertise that the tools become an extension of ourselves and we wield them purely through muscle memory. I do. In fact if it’s that comfort that’s an indicator of our approach …
Stirring the Paint
It’s been a long time since I did one of these posts, but aside from a biography about Vincent Van Gogh that’s as entertaining as it is depressing, I’ve got very little on the go right now. I’m just past my 4th week in a cast and on crutches (catch up with that story here), and going a little stir-crazy. …
Automatic Art, A Rant.
A year ago I walked by a place that does framing here in Vancouver. The sign in the window said something like, “Get it framed! Turn your photos into art!” I pulled out my iPhone and made a quick photograph, shook my head and walked on. I only just remembered this because yesterday a banner ad online said something that …
Better Questions
Prevailing wisdom says there are no stupid questions. But some questions are better than others, lead us to deeper inquiry, raise new, stronger questions, and better address the reason we asked the question in the first place. I hear a lot of questions. In emails, at live events, on my blog, and through social media channels. I suspect, with few …
Yukon Ablaze
Here is a small body of work that I brought home from the Yukon, before cutting my trip short with an axe to the leg*, which has proved not to be one of my better ideas. When I headed north last year I was blown away by the colour, even though we’d missed its peak by a good week. This …
Postcard from Dawson City, YT
A quick hello from Dawson City, Yukon. We pulled into town an hour ago in the middle of one of the craziest storms I’ve seen in years, after a beautiful drive from Keno where we spent the last couple exploring days the hills and chasing beauty. Been on the road for 16 days, with plans for another two weeks. Tomorrow …
Getting UnStuck
The late Steve Jobs once said that creativity was nothing more than connecting dots. Ignoring for a moment that creativity is more than just idea generation, and necessarily includes idea execution, I like the metaphor. The more divergent those dots, the more unusual and interesting our ideas and the solutions to the problems we’re working on, whether that’s a new …
Winning at Yoga
One of the best things most of us can do right now is stop asking so many people what they think of our art, whether that’s photography or not. Art is not a democracy, it’s a way of sounding your voice and when you allow others – especially unknown or anonymous others – to determine the direction of that art, …
Left & Found
Left & Found I and II, Liguria, Italy 2013 I started a new project this weekend, excited by the possibilities and driven by the need to just get my work out there. So often I think we pull back from sharing our work for fear of the cost, fear of a loss of control, fear of theft, fear of rejection …
Different Ways to Point
We had an interesting conversation in Hokkaido one evening, and it stands out because when you put 15 photographers together for a meal, and there’s no shortage of drink, conversation tends to end up with everyone telling lies about how long they can hand-hold their long lens, or how Ansel Adams was a total hack. This time it was about …