Photography
Constantine Manos - A Great Street Photographer
Constantine Manos (1934-) is among the great street photographers of his time. I was a student in one of his workshops in Maine and learned so much about composition. He offered his students candid and fair critiques. Manos was born in Columbia, South Carolina of Greek immigrant parents. This video does a nice job of summarizing his work.
I just updated my list of Photographers Worth Exploring to add Larry Beckner, a talented photographer in Bigfork, Montana. Suggestions are always welcome.
Fifteen very useful tips from Christian Möhrle for using Lightroom masks.
I just updated my list of Photographers Worth Exploring to add Sarah M. Lee. Lee is also interviewed here. Suggestions are always welcome.
I just added James Rice to my list of Photographers Worth Exploring. Rice is interviewed extensively here.
I just added Stéphane Chung to my list of Paris Photographers worth getting to know.
I just updated my recommended list of Paris photographers. I added Fabien Ecochard and Jean-luc Abelin. I love their work.
I just updated my list of Paris photographers. It’s a work in progress. Suggestions are always welcome.
John Howard Payne's Memorial Stone, Oak Hill Cemetery, Washington, D.C. (2024)
John Howard Payne (June 9, 1791 – April 10, 1852) was an American actor, poet, playwright, and author who had nearly two decades of a theatrical career and success in London. He is today most remembered as the creator of “Home! Sweet Home!”, a song he wrote in 1822 that became widely popular in the United States and the English-speaking world. Its popularity was revived during the American Civil War, as troops on both sides embraced it. Payne died in Tunis in 1852 and was buried there in St. George’s Protestant Cemetery. Philanthropist W. W. Corcoran of Washington, D.C., arranged for Payne’s reinterment in his last home city. (He was the founder of the Corcoran Gallery.)
A memorial service marked the reinterment of Payne’s remains at Oak Hill Cemetery in the Georgetown neighborhood. (Corcoran had founded this cemetery, where many Civil War veterans were buried.) The memorial service was held on the 91st anniversary of Payne’s birth and was attended by President Chester A. Arthur, members of his cabinet, the State Department, and the Supreme Court; the Marine Band, and a crowd of 2,000-3,000 that included numerous literary and other prominent people. Organizers arranged for a full choir to sing “Home, Sweet Home.”
(Source: Wikipedia)
Wikipedia: List of photographs considered the most important
This is a list of photographs considered the most important in surveys where authoritative sources review the history of the medium not limited by time period, region, genre, topic, or other specific criteria. They are all considered key images in the history of photography.
Dorothea Lange at the National Gallery of Art, Washington
During her long, prolific, and groundbreaking career, the American photographer Dorothea Lange made some of the most iconic portraits of the 20th century. _Dorothea Lange: Seeing People _reframes Lange’s work through the lens of portraiture, highlighting her unique ability to discover and reveal the character and resilience of those she photographed.
Featuring some 100 photographs, the exhibition addresses her innovative approaches to picturing people, emphasizing her work on social issues including economic disparity, migration, poverty, and racism.
November 5, 2023 – March 31, 2024 - West Building, Ground Floor, National Gallery of Art
Results of the 2023 Ricoh GR Photo Contest
GR Photo Festival 2023: Three photos were selected by each of Ricoh’s ten judges from all over the world. There were about 7,000 total entries. This shows what a small camera can do in everyday life. There is no need to go to Mount Everest to make compelling photographs. The images are worth reviewing along with the comments of the judges.
A Nice WordPress Gallery Plugin
My hobby is photography and I’ve been looking for a WordPress gallery plugin I like to display image galleries in blog posts. I’ve tried many but they would not do everything I want or were cumbersome to use.
I just found GT3 Photo and Video Gallery Pro and it does everything I want it to do. It’s also easy to use. The free version does a nice job but the Pro version adds a lot of nice features and cost $19 for a one year license. This is an example of a gallery I created with the plugin. And I think the gallery looks great on mobile as well. All the settings are available in the block editor which I find ideal for me. This post includes another example a GT3 gallery.
’Photography is a way to be in life’
I have long admired the work of Sam Abell. This video is not just about promoting a new camera. It’s about life.
Abell is on Canon’s website as a Canon Explorer of Light so I was surprised to see him promote another brand of camera.
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress in Washington, DC is the largest library in the world, with millions of books, films and video, audio recordings, photographs, newspapers, maps and manuscripts in its collections. The Library is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office.
Congress moved to Washington, D.C. in 1800 after holding sessions for eleven years in temporary national capitals in New York City and Philadelphia. Also in 1800, as part of an act of Congress providing for the removal of the new national government from Philadelphia to Washington, President John Adams approved an act of Congress providing $5,000 for books for the use of Congress—the beginning of the Library of Congress.
However, in 1814, the British burned Washington, destroying the Capitol and the small congressional library in its north wing. Former President Thomas Jefferson offered to sell his comprehensive personal library of 6,487 books to rebuild the Library of Congress. Congress accepted his offer in 1815. Jefferson’s concept of universality is the rationale for the comprehensive collecting policies of today’s Library of Congress.
The Library of Congress is among Washington’s top attractions. Every Library of Congress visitor must reserve timed-entry pass. Passes are available here. It’s worth planning ahead as slots fill up.
Sources: Library of Congress, Wikipedia
Lake Needwood, Derwood, Maryland
Lake Needwood is a 75-acre (300,000 m2) reservoir in Derwood, Maryland. Located in east of Rockville, in the eastern part of Montgomery County, it is situated on Rock Creek. The lake was created by damming Rock Creek in 1965 with the goal of providing flood control and reducing soil erosion. The Rock Creek Trail begins at Lake Needwood and can be followed along the course of Rock Creek, ending at the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. It’s a great place for walking, biking and running.
You can see more photos of Lake Needwood here.
Be Careful if You Travel with Expensive Stuff
If you travel with expensive equipment, please be extra careful. This photographer — Manny Ortiz — was the victim of camera theft ($16,000) on a train in Italy. I am glad Manny shared his story.