Spent the morning shooting Old Sacramento with my Leica M6 with Kodak Tri-X film (expired).

After getting my film developed and scanned, I have to say, I’m in love with this film The colors are nice and bright and the grain is smooth as silk. I only have one more roll left but you can be sure I will be ordering some more.

Did I get the exposure right? Did I get the shot of the interesting street scene? I had no idea, and that’s what brought me out of my funk. I had to work for my photography again. Become a part of it in a way that I felt was lacking using my digital cameras. I came home feeling like I had done something meaningful. It was the experience of shooting and not the final product that gave me joy.

Shooting Portra 400 film on the Golden Gate Bridge

After an interesting and eye opening chat I had with Reuben Redding a few weeks ago, I have been shooting various subjects with different cameras in an effort to try and find my way. One thing that came up in that discussion was that I seem to want to label myself a “street photographer” or a “landscape photographer” instead of just a “photographer.”

We’re humans, so we’re imperfect, so why should we expect our photography to be any different? Imperfections are what make photography such a magnificent art form.

During the holidays, the park is transformed into a winter wonderland of festive decorations and classic holiday music. The celebratory mood of all the families, the the aroma of baking treats, mixed with the holiday-themed decorations, evokes a nostalgia of days of Christmas past.

Things got a little crazy for me in 2023 photography-wise, and that is reflected in my top ten pictures from this year.

The class started with Gus discussing his various exercises for the street. These included some common street photography tips such as fishing (staying in one location for a while) and following (pursuing an interesting subject). He also talked about having shot lists and wish lists before going out and also forcing yourself to take half a dozen head shots if you’re feeling nervous or timid. But the real star of this lecture, and the most useful, was his idea of Sketching.

I asked myself, what are my strengths? I love black and white photography because of the play between light and shadow. And there was my answer. Could I approach color flower macro photography the same way I approached my black and white shots?

I recently acquired a Leica Q2 Monochrom to see how I like it compared to my M10 Monochrom. As I'm getting older, autofocus is something I'm becoming more interested in having, especially for candid and travel photography.

Making a living with photography is my goal, but am I willing to kill my love of the art form to achieve it? And if I’m not, am I really going to make any money? These are questions I’m constantly wrestling with and are likely behind my periodic bouts of burnout. And when I burnout on photography, I mean it.

A behind the scenes look at my post-processing techniques for Leica Monochrom image files using Lightroom, Silver Efex Pro, and Photoshop

Shooting middle of the day "Street" Landscape Photography with the Leica M10 Monochrom with a red filter to create high contrast black and white images.

Street photography is a bit of a mystery to me. Probably because its origins are surrounded in mystique and filled with famous names and even more famous photographs. But what sets an iconic street photograph apart from just an average or a not very good one?

Everyone with a phone or camera is out shooting. On the whole, this is a good thing. But with images flooding everyone’s brain on a daily basis, one question remains. How do you stand out?

When we would travel down to San Diego every couple of years, we would take our daughters to the San Diego Zoo, mostly to see the Pandas. My oldest is especially nuts about them. Show the girl a Panda TikTok and she immediately gets those Puss in Boots endearing eyes.

Shooting in black and white forces you to look for different subjects and aspects to shoot. When looking for a black and white photo, you look for textures, contrasting light and shapes. It was the latter that I was on the hunt for that day. I wanted to make the perfect silhouette against the dramatic sky.

At one point, there was a subtle cacophony of squealing and we realized that we were hearing bats up in the darkened ceiling out of eyesight. Creepy. Where was Bruce Wayne when you needed him?

I had my student setup her tripod a few feet behind where we stood so that she could get a better view of the water, bridge and surrounding rocks. As she stepped away, I noticed a group of geese in the water. And as the sun was setting, a large sunspot appeared on the surface of the water just a few feet away from the geese.