August Splash
Playing and getting soaked at the Monumento A La Revolución in Mexico City.
Jugando y mojandose en la fuente ubicada en el Monumento A La Revolución Méxicana.
The summer heat has decided to come back with force since mid July of this year; it had been fairly, and unusually cool, until then. Above is an image that had been "incubating" on my hard drive since August of last year. Wow August, that's eight months into 2015 with the fall just around the corner. Enjoy what's left of the summer, folks.
Hugo & Ignacio
I took a long stroll downtown last Saturday with nothing in particular in mind to photograph. Quite frankly, there was a lot more more aimless wondering than actual shooting, but it felt good to simply go with the flow and not burden myself with the obligation to come home with "the shot". I've discovered this allows me to be more aware of what is going on around me while ensuring I don't miss more meaningful moments.
Anyhow, I was walking from a leather shop when I noticed Hugo (on the left) with an instant Polaroid camera pointed across the street. This got me curious so I approached him and his friend Ignacio (to the right) asking what they were up to. Hugo enthusiastically explained that they were visiting from Monterrey to give a photography workshop the following day.
Further into the conversation both Hugo and Ignacio showed me their work on Instagram and Flickr --I was very impressed and inspired. Both are professional photographers with exceptional body of work. Hugo also operates a Lomography embassy store in Monterrey. You can see links to Hugo's work here and Ignacio's work here.
La Banda
This image made in April of 2013 exemplifies some of the reasons I enjoy street portraiture. Regular candid street shooting involves no connection or involvement with the people being photographed. In a strict sense, it's almost --or well could be-- defined as exploitative, but this is obviously debatable and I won't get into a senseless discussion on the subject here. There are, however, street tog purists who will outright reject any photography that involves posing individuals. The claim is the photography lacks authenticity. I would rather not be called a street photographer if I am to be bound to certain rules that will keep me from enjoying something I do greatly: connecting, understanding, and getting to know others while following my passion for photography
Corner Shot
Here's an image from circa 2006 when I first delved into the use of an ultra wide lens (Sigma 10-20mm). Around 2013 I started to experiment more with other focal lengths: 24mm, 28mm, and 35mm. Yet 15mm is pretty much how my mind likes to see the world: wide and inclusive as to not lose context. It sort of reflects my obsession with drawing meaning about a fact or piece of information from the environment in which it is found. I had backed away from using the wide for fear it was becoming a gimmick and not allowing me to grow my vision. The aforementioned concern disappeared upon realizing that photographic vision is nothing less than how we perceive the world and how we choose to convey that which our mind's eye sees.
Old Red
I enjoy contemplating the past through its artifacts. We call these things old connoting a discard of that which is now obsolete. The old can take on a whole new glory when we take the time to explore those details that define the time and place that gave them birth. Funny, for all our attempts to move on and find solutions in our future, the answer can sometimes be found if would just tale a small, yet attentive, glance into our past.
Happy 4th of July U.S.A!
Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain't goin' away. --Elvis Presely
A Mixed Pair
This image had been on my hard drive since last year. I had forgotten all about it until I was going through keepers and rejects . I shoot way more than I post on the web primarily because of my work schedule. Besides, I enjoy the shooting experience itself more than rummaging through photos on my computer.
Photography involves a sense of discovery either during or after an image is made. This one in particular involved detection a detail I had not noticed when I shot the image because I had responded so quickly to the moment. As I took a closer look at the photograph almost a year later, I realized the man was also wearing a mixed pair of shoes in addition to whatever he was doing in his VW Beetle. Why the mixed pair of shoes? I don't know no. Perhaps he didn't realize; maybe he doesn't have the financial resources; or he just doesn't care. For me, it added a greater sense of presence to the moment and certainly made the image a keeper.
Clowning Around
I ran into this guy while exiting the Nativitas Metro Station. He was getting off the VW and I just started taking photos of him while he was fixing his bag. He was OK with it. I waved goodbye and that was that.
Clowning around outside Metro Nativitas, Mexico City.
Mezcla
I had been struggling with the title of my blog for some time. There was something about it that bothered me as being too long missing the point. It also felt a bit unoriginal. I did not want to lose the quintessence of my personal obsession with the concepts of transcendence and brevity, so I did some research and rested on the Greek word for ephemeral: ephemeros.
I had been struggling with the title of my blog for some time. There was something about it that bothered me as being too long or missing the point. It also felt a bit unoriginal. I did not want to lose the quintessence of my personal obsession with the concepts of transcendence and brevity.
Last year I noticed that a photography in India had decided to use the title I had started this blog with in 2009: Ephemeral Visions. She had also used TopLeftPixel as part of her domain name. TopLeftPixel belongs to a Canadian photo blogger whose work inspired me to pickup a camera again in 2006 after so many years. You can see his work at Daily Dose Of Imagery.
That someone would not take the time to be the slightest original in the choice of a domain name and the title of the blog is one thing, but it was as if she were trying to piggyback on the success of my blog and that of Daily Dose of Imagery. Thus I was motivated early last year to switch to My Ephemerality, but I was never happy with this title. From now on, I am sticking something similar but smaller: efímero which is Spanish for ephemeral.
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Morning Grin
Kicking off the week after some unexpected weekend headwinds. Here's to a better one...
Morning Shadows
A morning shoot as I took advantage of what little time I had heading to work. I love how the sun brings out life in Mexico City at dawn and dusk. The shadows, the colors, the textures take up a character of their own mimicking the idiosyncratic personality of this urban scape. There is a magic to it, one unique to this city that has attracted me to it since my initial years in Mexico.