Hello everbody;
What do you all think of Michael´s latest image, is it just too simple for some tastes and perhaps reminiscent of Michael Kenna´s Japanese work?
I personally find it´s simplicity is what makes it work for me and it a could be subtle move, style wise from other images he´s presented us over the years. Now I was wondering if the M8 has anything to with this or is it just coincidence.
Michael, would you have taken the same shot with your P45 back?
Cheers Paul

I would have taken the same shot regardless of the camera that I was using. I just happened to be taking a walk in the woods, and so the Leica was the hiking camera of choice that day.

Michael

Ps: I'm a great admirer of Michael Kena's work. His latest book, Hokkaido, should be on every landscape photographer's coffee table this Christmas.

Hokkaido is very good indeed!

So is the place by the way.

Cheers,
Bernard

Michael;
What about getting Michael Kenna interviewed for the next video journal?
Paul

Wouldn't that be sweet?

Michael

I like the image very! At this writing I am unfortunately not familiar with Mr. Kenna's work. But Michael's image is similar in style to a large body of work produced by the late Harry Callahan during the 1940's and 1950's. (A small sample is shown on the cover of this 2001 exhibition catalog, titled "Elemental Landscapes".) Callahan pursued this minimalist nature theme in his work over many years and, at least in my eye, perfected it. Seeing some of the prints from this work is almost hypnotic.

And this, of course, is the huge problem, the poisoned chalice that is photography: we think we are being original only to learn that it has all been done before, over and over and over again - and often better. It's part of life: each teenage generation thinks it has just invented sex, which leads to the other depressing thought: if youth but knew and age but could...

In the Coffee Shop section, under the Edouard Boubat thing, I mentioned Frank Horvat's site. Believe me, if one reads the interviews a couple of times, it opens ones eyes to this fact and also to the understanding of the futility of trying to recreate anything in the style or genre of something from the past. Magical moments, please share them if you truly love photography. And, while so doing, shed a load from weary shoulders.

Ciao - Rob C

Too soon old, too late smart.

There are several threads about Michael's images, but apparently no URLs to find them. Can someone give a URL?

Sure

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/1photo-pages/

Enjoy

Rich