chris_rutkowski's photostream  

#125 on Explore, 26 May, 2009


61 years of seeing down, many more to go :-)

Worked as a pro in the late 1960s for the NJ Department of Transportation photographing traffic jams, car crashes, landslides, and assorted official events. Used my own Nikon F (no numbers, just 'F'), various medium format setups, 4x5s, and on one occasion, an Arriflex 16mm movie camera. Just a summer job for a few years, but I learned the zone system and loved that darkroom.


#401 on Explore, 2 November 2008

Bought a 1.2MP Kodak a few years back to do all the art and illustration for a company website, www.cyclemetrics.com.

Next digital camera was a Sony R1; loved that lens, but really wanted (needed!) image stabilization! (ok, I'm an old guy and I'm not as steady as I once was). I've put a few images made with the R1 up here on Flickr; the image quality is just lovely.


#481 on Explore, 29 July 2008

First (and only, so far) DSLR is my D300 which produced the majority of what I've posted so far here on Flickr.

I am not shy about either cropping or retouching photographs. This is a pretty big change in my viewpoint; Edward Weston, one of the founders of the f64 group, who espoused and specialized in revealing what he termed “the thing itself”, had an enormous impact on my life (heck, I named one of my sons "Weston"). So, no surprise that my first efforts in photography were black and white attempts to capture the world with a crystal sharp lens, using every square inch of film to extract maximum detail and texture. But the much older me proceeds from a different set of values; first there is how something looks; then there is the visual reality that straight photography manipulates to reveal the thing; then finally there is how something feels. It is this last that now fascinates me most; inner reality; perception; how the inner world is created from a distillation of visual and emotional data.



Often, the photos I love most are quiet and might not immediately elicit a click when viewed as a thumbnail. A “strong composition” and brilliant colors may catch the eye, but the most Infinitesimal details often provide the deepest delight (alas, the viewing size and color fidelity on Flickr are not conducive to extracting the visual potential of an image).

Visual sound bites have their place; but I believe seeing requires one to stop - spend some time with an image - and discover that which is not entirely obvious. There are many beautiful photos on Flickr. But some photos demand - and deserve - repeat viewing - I return to them again and again – because on each viewing I find myself drawn to their inner place - and somehow caused to experience – to deal with – to learn more about - some aspect of my self (or our selves). Such images transcend the photographic medium and are simply "art".

BTW, I make NO claim that most (or any :-) of my photos meet this standard. But of this I am certain: a goal not attempted will definitely not be achieved.