Photo:Engage

  “ The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. ”  - Marcel Proust     Our old friend Marcus Aurelius's favorite poet, Heraclitus, once said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man.” We all change throughout the years and who we were once is not who we are now. Neither are the places we've been before. Change is the hallmark of time's passing. May we all accept that change with gracious kindness and hopeful anticipation. As I wrote in my post on December 31, 2022...      Out with the old and in with the new, just like the rising of a vibrant dawn after the darkness of night reveals fresh possibilities. As we cross the bridge from one year to another, may the joys and heartbreak that marked our lives in the past year yield happily into the opportunities for love and growth possible in the new one. Happy New Year, my friends, and peace be with al...

  “ Photography, as a powerful medium of expression and communications, offers an infinite variety of perception, interpretation, and execution. ”  - Ansel Adams      So many passionate winds blow against us. One wind could be the stress caused by the underachievement of a colleague at work. Another might be the way our spouse is acting, or the way our kids are pushing our buttons. The buffeting wind from above could be how upset we are about the government, maybe having to do with the pandemic and vaccines. Whatever the winds you're personally dealing with may be, they can make you anxious and unhappy, if you let them.      I'm here to tell you that you do not. You cannot control most of those things. Truly, you probably don't even have much influence on them. You can only do your best at work, perhaps compensating for the weakness of a coworker in the same way that they may compensate for one of yours. Your spouse and kids are unique beings with...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Anyone can shoot chaos. But the most perceptive photographers can make compelling pictures out of uninteresting moments. ”  - Alex Tehrani     As we grapple with the consequences of the events in Afghanistan, it would seem clear we have disengaged with our many partners in the far mountains and deserts. By leaving behind so many in such chaos, what example have set? What will future partners think of our promises? It's so important to be clear about our mission, accomplish it, and return unentangled. But there is still much we must remain engaged with, interested in, committed to. Let's never lose the meaning of our collective sacrifice, the purpose of our enterprise. We must remain with an open hand outstretched, not a clenched fist cocked back. We need to keep the bridges we've built in good repair and constantly used. As I wrote in my post on August 7, 2021...     ...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Only photograph what you love. ”  - Tim Walker      For whatever reason, this was my worst performing social media post so far. Perhaps the image was weak. Although I love this view of wild beach grasses glowing with golden hour sunlight, maybe it just didn't resonate with my audience. Personally, I am tired of seeing the same basic photograph of the beach at sunrise or sunset. They're beautiful, of course, and some photographers capture them better than others, but the look is repeated ad nauseum. I am trying to move my audience to something fresher... something unexpected. And perhaps by doing so, I am falling prey to my own pride.     Because maybe my images just aren't what my audience wants to see, good intentions and good writing be damned. Or maybe the photography I'm currently producing isn't that good, no matter what I think. The new editor of Sidetracked ma...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ Seeing is not enough; you have to feel what you photograph. ”  - Andre Kertesz      Few man-made structures stand the test of time in both beauty and function. It's r are when design and engineering unite in perfect synergy. When I think of beautiful architecture, places like the Taj Mahal, the Chrysler Building, the Sydney Opera House, and the Golden Gate Bridge come to mind. Locations like these have not only enduring beauty but also perfect function.     The Taj Mahal was built as a glorious tomb for the wife of a heartbroken Indian emperor. It is resplendent like no other. For admirers of Art Deco, the Chrysler Building in east-central Manhattan is unequaled in elegance. Sydney's Opera House, with its famous silhouette of soaring "shells," is an archetype of modern expressionistic design and a symbol for Australia's most populous city.      And the ...

  Photo:Engage     a photography blog you  want  to follow “ To me, photography is an art of observation. It's about finding something interesting in an ordinary place... I've found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them. ”  - Elliott Erwitt      Written shortly before the new year began, the day after Christmas in fact, I tried to describe how the years pass connected to each other but also commemorated by themselves for their significant events. 2020 doesn't stand out as a particularly good year considering the pandemic, the continuing racial strife, the uneven policing, and the polarized political environment. I was hoping to see better things in 2021, but perhaps I was too naïve. The more things change, the more they stayed the same. One can only hope that we see things get better especially with the COVID vaccination program ramping up. As I wrote on December 26, 2021...    ...