Still Kicking And Clicking!

Most of you know that last week I was diagnosed with Chronic Leukemia. Treatments are going well and Anna has created a special blog to keep everyone up to date on my progress with the disease, "How's Dave Doing?"

I want to let you know that I'm doing fine and still photographing and looking forward to getting serious about some new projects. Thanks for all the warm wishes you have been sending in, they are greatly appreciated.

So here are some recent images I have been having fun with. I'd love to hear your comments. More to come...




The de Young Museum, early morning,
Golden Gate Park.
©2007 David W. Sumner









Homeless man sleeping at the Band Shell, Golden Gate Park. ©2007 David W. Sumner














Old riding stables, Golden Gate Park.
©2007 David W. Sumner









Anna's reading glasses in her studio.
©2007 David W. Sumner











Plant in a bottle in Anna's studio.
©2007 David W. Sumner
















Fun shooting one of Phylis Diller's costumes,
now on display at the San Francisco Performing Arts
Library & Museum. ©2007 David W. Sumner

The Urban Wilderness?

Taming Mother Nature?
The Lucasfilms complex
on the Presidio.

(Photo: ©2007 David W. Sumner)

"One World, One Lens"

In the May 2007 issue of The Digital Journalist, Donald Winslow's article, One World, One Lens, takes an interesting look at the career of photographer James Whitlow Delano. The article's opening statements really hit home:

"To look at a photograph by James Whitlow Delano is to peer inside a meticulously crafted poem. Viewing a gallery of his images, each one as concise as haiku, is like traveling through scenes from Marco Polo's dream-world. But the eye and the art are Delano's – and only his. The Tokyo-based American-born photographer once told an interviewer, '"I don't change anything for anyone.… I have a point of view and a reason for each undertaking."'

Knowing this, one might find it hard to believe that he shoots everything, regardless of what it is, with one – and only one – lens.

"Much as a poet finds and polishes his voice, Delano has found and polished his singular lens. '"I have two Leica M-2s and two 35mm f2 lenses. They are likely older than me," he told News Photographer. "One lens means speed. Very simple operations. That is critical. If you miss the moment, you cannot get it back. I shoot exclusively with Leica. On the few occasions that I have used a Hasselblad, which is a wonderful camera, I feel like I am driving a Mack truck. But the Leica makes the work possible. You can suggest the energy rippling just below the surface."'

"The absence of an overstuffed camera bag filled with the latest, greatest gadgets is not only evidence of an artist with a clear vision who has found and mastered his essential tools, it's also a reflection of his intent. "

Read the full article here.

The First Person

Thanks to Eric Brizee for sending this image to me...

The first photograph of a person. Boulevard du Temple, by Louis Daguerre, 1838.
(A 10 minute exposure.)

Food For Thought

Here's a quote from Bill Jay's introduction to Michael Kenna's book Night Work, published in 2000:

"I can remember the very moment that marked the beginning of art-photography’s demise. It was in March of 1975 and Ansel Adams was asked to give a presentation at a national conference of photographic educators. His opening sentence affirmed that fine photography was inseparable from craftsmanship – and the audience of young academic “artists” erupted into boos! What unmitigated gall! The hubris . . . Still, Ansel was right, and it is significant that you have heard of Ansel Adams but everyone of the booers never rose above oblivion so were incapable of sinking back into it.

"How refreshing, then, in this era of vapid posturing, that Michael Kenna reaffirms the truth that revelation of the subject is achieved through careful craftsmanship which can only be reached through painstaking attention to detail."

I like that.

Spread the Word

Last Tuesday when I phoned in an order to B&H, I was surprised to get hold of a rather chatty sales rep.

When I added the usual sis rolls of Kodak BW400CN to my order he launched into a passionate plea for help in getting the word out that film is alive and well and for sale at B&H.

He said I couldn't imagine how many calls he's received from people all over the country who have been told by the people in their local camera shops that no one is manufacturing film any more. He said it's ridiculous, but it's happening: there are a lot of people who are being told and believe that Kodak and Fuji are no longer manufacturing film.

The sales rep implored me to spread the word, and insisted that a "grass-roots" movement is needed to counter this misinformation. He said half of every dollar Kodak makes is from the sale of film and that people need to know that.

I'm not certain of the actual figures, considering the diversity of Kodak's business, but I do know that film is still a profitable item for Kodak. Here's a quote from an e-mail I received from Kodak's PR department last February:

' A January 31, 2007 Kodak press release noted, "Film and Photofinishing Group earnings from operations were $77 million, compared with $51 million a year ago..." '

Another thing to consider is that both Kodak and Fuji recognize China and India as being two of the biggest markets for film products. There is still a considerable demand for film around the world. We sometimes lose sight of that here in the US.

I told the B&H guy I'd do my best to spread the word. Of course, when it comes to film, I tend to do just that every chance I get.

By the way, if you have never heard of Freestyle Photographic Supplies in Hollywood, CA. check them out www.freestylephoto.biz . They're really committed to silver.

The Bang Bang Club

The Bang Bang Club: Snapshots From a Hidden War
by Greg Marinovich & Joao Silva
2000, Basic Books


The Bang Bang Club is more than a book about photographers addicted to the rush of covering conflict. It's a revealing account of the social and political turmoil of South Africa in the early 1990's.

Greg Marinovich, Joao Silva, Ken Oosterbroek, Kevin Carter and Gary Bernard were five photographers, five friends covering the final years of South Africa's bloody struggle to establish democracy and majority rule. They formed the core of a group of photojournalists that became known as "The Bang Bang Club."

Authors Marinovich and Silva, give us an up-close look at what it takes to be an effective photojournalist in the midst of the grossest brutality of which humankind is capable. They dispel the myth of objective journalism and testify to the reality that no one survives war and conflict unaffected: not combatant, civilian, journalist or photographer. To a large degree the book is about, "paying the price."

Although this group of photographers may be little known in the U.S., they are are held in the highest esteem in the international community of photojournalists. You may not recognize their names, but you know their Pulitzer Prize and Ilford Award winning images.

I would certainly recommend reading The Bang Bang Club. It is at times a bit self indulgent and the book's photo reproductions are disappointing. However it provides a unique perspective on a most troubled period of our most recent past,s and it really is an eyes-wide-opened look at an often too glamorized profession.