Esprit Decor Gallery & Framing Blog
Odds and Ends
January 9, 2019
ONCE UPON A DRONE...
Technology, as we all know and have experieced, never sleeps. Siri, Alexa, Google, self driving cars, Instagram, Whatsap, Twitter, Facebook all seem to be extending and deepening the digital divide. On the one side are the techies, the hipsters, the early adopters, and on the other side are the ludites, AOL'ers, dialup users, etc. To the younger generation, each new advance is eagerly awaited and welcomed with open arms, to the rest of us, well, as they say, "not so much."
In photography, the distinction is quite clean cut: film or digital? Film cameras have almost becoma a curiosity; most of the manufacturers have switched over to digital cameras, and billions of pictures are taken each year with phones. Digital camera manufacturers are now transitioning to mirrorless cameras, which make them lighter and more compact, and with fewer moving parts. All this new technology allows us to record images that might have seemed impossible just a few years ago. Sometimes the new technology is pretty harmless, and at other times it can be the subject of great controversy.
Take drones for example. On the one hand, they allow photographers and cinematographers to take images and footage the previously would have required hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars of equiment. On the other hand are the issues of privacy rights, and the impact on general aviation, as well as potential hazards to the public.
As a photographer, I'm always looking for a new angle, a new point of view. The truth is, drones allow me to tell stories visually in a way that was previously impossible. Here is a sample, which I hope you will like:
Phoenix at Sunset from Granada Park
Where the Hell is Riga?
I love my dogs. Anybody who has ever been responsible for/owned by/caretaker for dogs/cats/ferrets/turtles/iguanas/fruit bats/T-Rex's etc. understands this completely. I have a friend who unfortunately works for the Humane Society, and she keeps sending me pictures. Dog porn, the worst kind. Sweet, warm, cuddly puppies and dogs that needed a forever home. Normally I can resist, but my steely resolve melted when she sent over an image of Buddy, a five year old Queensland heeler. It was a weak moment; I was probably in my favorite browsing location (the can), when the image came over on my phone. I swiped out of Wordle, and was immediately overcome by feelings of love, tenderness, caring...in short, all the emotions that would make me the perfect mother caretaker. He fell out of a truck on the freeway? Fine. He had to have several teeth pulled? No worries. His right paw is almost twice the size of his left? Great. His chest is all scar tissue from multiple surgeries, and he has Valley fever? OK. It sounded like a perfect match, so the next day we met at the Humane Society, and it was love at first bite. Buddy was good natured, enthusiastic, and happy, despite all the trials and tribulations he'd been through. We left together, and I introduced him to Stella, my nine year old Blue Heeler. If they got along, great, otherwise it would be a deal breaker.But they got along great. Buddy was a typical male. First at the water bowl, first in the car, first through the door. It wasn't personal. It wasn't that he just didn't consider Stella. He didn't consider me, either. Stella, sweet girl that she is, acquiesced. My plan was to give Buddy so much love and affection that he might start thinking outside the envelope of his own ego. We've made some progress, but it's slow going. What makes it all worth it is that Buddy persistently wags his tail in his sleep. It's a good sign.
