Steven Willard

Marc at home

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven

Marc at home © Steven Willard

I’m glad to call Marc my friend. Former Marine wounded in Vietnam, photographer, camera repairman, a true polymath with more books than some town libraries. I made this portrait of Marc while he was sitting at his bar, lit by one overhead light fixture, one of those hanging things with a large frosted bulb with a white shade.

I don’t take enough portraits of my friends. It’s something I should do more often. You probably should too.

Pentax K5IIs with legacy 50mm f1.4 lens processed in Snapseed.

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Fond Memories

Photography

Fond memories © Steven Willard

Some images you just like because they bring back fond memories. This photograph was made when my very good friend Dave Woodruff, whom I had known since high school, came for a visit from Austin, Texas. He died, not long after this trip, of brain cancer. He never complained. One of the nicest guys you would ever hope to meet. We were good friends for over fifty years and I still miss him.

Canon G10.

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A Place In The Sun

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven

A place in the sun © Steven Willard

I marvel how Hollywood manages to adapt novels into screenplays and then into movies. It’s hard for me to imagine Theodore Dreiser ever dreaming that his novel “American Tragedy” (1923) could be transformed into the movie “A Place in the Sun” (1951) starring the ever moody Montgomery Clift and the translucent Elizabeth Taylor. The general plot is the same, or similar enough that there has been no argument about attribution, but just about everything else, location, names and title have been changed. That doesn’t mean it isn’t a terrific movie, it is, but it argues in favor for the talent of the screen writers (Michael Wilson and Harry Brown) and director George Stevens. Worth watching.

For me, a place in the sun, means something different. It’s a place to sit and enjoy a few quiet minutes in the warm glow of afternoon, and someone interesting to share it with.

Pentax K5IIs processed in PS Cs4.

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Never Too Old

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven

 

Never Too Old © Steven Willard

Friend Giles invited me to his fly tying class under the belief I was interested in learning to tie flies. I may have given him that impression, but what I was really after was the opportunity to make some photographs. Most of the group, which numbered about a dozen, were near my age, and extremely friendly, even sharing their snacks and wine. Who knows, I may go back and give it a go. Never too old.

Olympus OMD EM5 with Panasonic 42.5mm f1.7 lens.

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United We Stand

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven

United We Stand © Steven Willard

Just not HERE!

OLYMPUS OMD EM1 with 40-150 d2.8 zoom processed in LR and Snapseed®

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Needs Paint

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven
Just needs paint © Steven Willard

Just needs paint © Steven Willard

The realtor must have had a sense of humor, or had never actually seen the property.

I was reminded of the wonderful movie, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948) staring Cary Grant and Myrna Loy as a couple tired of living in Manhattan who buy a run down house in Connecticut, only to find out they are in over their heads. Melvin Douglas plays the role of the “suffering” architect who tries to give everybody what they want. Don Brodie in the role of the painter knows a thing or two about handling a client without them knowing it, and Louise Beavers, the family cook who saves the day. Cary and Myrna at their best.

Olympus OMD EM1 with legacy 50mm f3.5 macro. Black and White conversion with Nik Silver Efex Pro 2.

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Slept Late

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven
I slept here.

Slept Late, Maine © Steven Willard

Vacations. The luxury of sleeping in late, and the guilt of knowing you’re wasting time. What to do, what to do? Today I slept late.

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Moonshadow

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven

Moonshadow, Kent, CT © Steven Willard

We are used to seeing our shadow and the shadows of things cast by the sun. There is directness here, a linear path; sun, object, shadow. But, to see the shadow of something, not the thing itself, cast by the light of the moon, whose light is a reflection of the sun becomes complicated. As in other things in life, things are sometimes more complicated than we imagine at first.

I was taken by the organic shape of the tree’s shadow projected on the barn. There is symbolism here; the shadow of the living tree overlaid on the dead wood siding, illuminated by light reflected from the moon. And Cat Stevens singing in my head, a song that doesn’t make any sense to me.

 

Fallout

Black And White Photography, Photography, Steven
Pine and needles, Woodbury, CT © Steven Willard

Pine and needles, Woodbury, CT © Steven Willard

We get so interested in Fall colors it’s easy to overlook what else is going on around us. I had Wally, my dog, out for an afternoon stroll, and he surprised me by taking a different path than usual. No doubt he had caught the scent of a stranger, maybe a deer or a turkey, perhaps just a feral cat. At any rate, we were walking down a trail that wasn’t on our normal dog walk, when we came upon this pine tree standing in the middle of a bed of pine needles. They looked completely undisturbed, unusual because the grounds crew hadn’t swept them up.

It didn’t occur to me to make a photograph at first. Truthfully, I couldn’t imagine how to compose the subject, if there really was a subject. Here came Wally to the rescue. He found something he really liked the smell of and he refused to leave. I was stuck there, waiting while Wally had his nose to the ground, so why not make an exposure? So that’s what I did; I made one exposure while standing on his leash, and then he was satisfied. What a smart dog he was. I still miss him terribly.

Panasonic G3 with 20mm f1.7 lens, processed in Photoshop CS4 using Silver Efex Pro 2.

Please visit my blog at www.stevenwillardimages.wordpress.com