Blue Planet

Another planetary body of light discovered in the solar system inside a glass bottle stopper. Another experiment on another day yielded this image. I used the same cut glass bottle stopper under similar lighting conditions and the same equipment, minus the close-up lens (see previous post).  Upon seeing the image I decided to clean my camera’s sensor to make sure the irregularities on the surface of the planet weren’t caused by grime on the sensor.  After repeating my shot and seeing the same irregularities, I’m thinking they may be caused by imperfections in the glass; tiny bubbles. It may be somewhat vague, but I was still struck by the resemblance of the apparent landmass on my newly discovered planet, to that of another blue planet. Maybe I’ve been inside too much lately.

Prismatic Sphere

This image is the result of pure play, and a little experimentation. The root of the idea was planted in my mind some time ago by Freeman Patterson, who wrote that he could sail through the universe while photographing auroras of light in a glass paperweight, in his classic book, “Photographing the World Around You”. I recently discovered I could sail through the solar system at least, photographing reflections of the sun in glass bottles in the kitchen window sill.

This image was captured in a cut glass bottle stopper under bright midday light. I used a 300 mm lens with a 1.4X teleconverter on a camera with an APS-C digital sensor, to reach the 35mm equivalent of a 600mm lens. Then I attached a close-up lens.

Weston Beach, Point Lobos, California

Edward Weston is a photographic hero of mine. His, Pepper #30 is a favorite example of a photograph that achieves the level of timeless art, which is rare in any medium. Pepper #30 is inspiring on many levels. What is it that makes this one, that much better than the others; did he finally find the right pepper? Was it the fact that he photographed peppers more than 30 times? Or, is there some other magical ingredient involved? Is it a combination of composition and exposure; inspiration and execution?

 I’ve also been inspired by several of Weston’s images showing the details of his Point Lobos backyard; the cypress and stonecrop, and of course those pebbly beaches. I’m quite certain repetition is one of the ingredients of his success. It also occurs to me, the images that are most memorable often show rather intimate details in near abstraction. The most successful of his images transcend design and subject matter, to connect with the viewer on a universal level.