Autumn Leaves Series

I've been playing with Photoshop as a drawing tool, inspired by the autumn leaves on the poplars down by the river, where I take my dogs to play with a tennis ball most days.

At the same time, I've been catching up on photography documentaries on Youtube.com, including June Newton's fond portrait of her husband, Helmut by June, in which she depicts a photographer who, tongue-in-cheek, confessed to being a "pornographer" as a lovable ruffian. It's convincing stuff ... making Helmut Newton's complicated images even more so.

 Helmut Newton was a big fan of long legs and
a rather large dose of bondage

Going Where I've Never Been: The Photography of Diane Arbus flows like automatic writing. Her eldest daughter, Doon, starts the ball rolling with personal memories, followed by narration from friend Mary Clare Costello, who re-speaks what Arbus said in classes that were taped by a student. The photographer's insights are compelling ... she used photography almost as a kind of therapy and the camera definitely as a tool to mediate her experience of the world, very much aware that every aspect of picture-making is subjective. 

 Diane Arbus used her camera for adventure, to take her

places far beyond her privileged upbringing