We were walking through a large food market–some brick and mortar buildings, some tented stalls–and someone was photographing this man in the doorway of his shop. As that photographer finished and turned away, I asked if I could also take his picture. He said no and turned to go, hesitated, and then said OK. A couple of quick frames, “Thank you,” and I walked on.

There is often something magical in the way a quick grab of a composition can turn out to be very formal, and clean. In this shot I like that he is “framed” by the doorway, and again by the glass door, opening to the spotlit wine bottles. And all the repeated rectangles. And his relaxed comfort because I did not give him time to think about posing. It all happens too fast to preview the three dimensional aspects and layers of the composition, and I sometimes wonder how much of my response comes from some subconscious “seeing” and how much from dumb luck.

For more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index.

The first photograph of a Marine Iguana I remember seeing was in a book published in 1971. “The Creation” by Ernst Haas, is a visual telling of the Genesis origin story. I wanted to see such a prehistoric-seeming creature. I finally did, this year. Fascinated by the book’s pictures, I absorbed much more about composition, visual story-telling, and seeing beyond the literal than I realized back then. Some things need a long maturation period.

Haas is a name anyone serious about photography should recognize. Several elite level photographers and their work have served as role models, heroes, and inspiration to me, although they would not generally be known to the world outside our industry. Haas was one of the most important.

He was one of the first photographers to work seriously, rather than dabble, in color, but with technical limitations which might be impossible for most smart phone and digital camera users today to appreciate. Haas’ film choice was Kodachrome, first with an ASA (ISO now) of 10, and then 25. With those slow emulsion speeds, anything moving in less than very bright light was going to be blurred. You just could not get a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the subject. So…”when God gives you lemons….”

He would photograph rapidly moving subjects at intentionally slow shutter speeds, creating stunning, story-telling images of blur and color (rodeos, bull fights, rushing animals) that expressed so much more than a traditional rendering. They have an energy and mystery most photographs never achieve. (https://ernst-haas.com/)

To see more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index

I was visiting some friends at their Vermont summer house in late July, and they very graciously included me in their busy social calendar. It’s an area with a lot of summer performing arts showcases, and my friends were active supporters. There was an up and coming young tenor they were helping host and I was invited along to a garden dinner party for him.

There has been something of a vagabond character to much of my life which has led to such a wonderful variety of experiences like this scene, and memories of brief, luminous moments, separate from anything before or after, eternal in their perfect stillness.

To see more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index.