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By Roger Russell
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Photography
Other pages about my work
I never spend much time taking pictures, perhaps only 125th of a second and maybe as long as a second. I spend lots more time trying to compose an interesting picture. A question often asked is "What kind of camera did you use?" It reminds me of a statement by Harlan Ellison, a science fiction writer, several years ago. Someone said to him "Wow that was a great story, Harlan. What kind of typewriter did you use?" And so it is with photography. Good pictures can be made using all kinds of cameras and ultimately they are limited only by the visualization of the photographer. I do not consider my works to qualify as anything that a critic would look at twice. It is the view of my world and ideas as I see them. The only pictures I have had published are the ones I took for various magazine articles that I have written over the years.
My earlier work in the 50’s and 60’s was primarily for subjects and perspective that contributed to interesting composition. Later, as I learned more, I also tried to include more careful exposures that provided better tonal quality. I used a Weston Master II for many years and it was fine. However, the Weston was an averaging meter and, depending on what was in the scene, negatives could be easily overexposed in the brightest parts. It was not until I bought a spot meter that I could account for the brightest parts correctly and, depending on the film, set the exposure within the linear range of the film. I learned that ordinary TRI-X film tended to compress the brightest parts and was ideal for bringing out bright areas without washing out. Combined with the spot meter, the brightest parts would be correctly exposed and the rest of the values would fall as they may. Of course, the larger the negative is, the better the gray tones for the same size print. I still continue to learn.
Midnight Sun
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This is one of my early pictures taken in a field on a hillside in Milford, New Hampshire. I didn't realize at the time that I would get such a dramatic effect. The light rays are reflections from the shutter blades in the camera.
Taken with a 35mm Argus C4 in the early 1950’s. The display print is 11 X 14" |
Beach Posts
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I found these pieces of driftwood arranged like this. It's obviously not a natural formation. They were placed there to keep the ocean from washing away a small shack on an otherwise deserted sand bar at Chatham, MA. It's sort of like a group of random people gathered together for a common cause.
Taken with a Rolleiflex in
2-1/4” medium format in the mid 1950’s. |
Dune Tracks
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Just curious, but who made these tracks and why does one set wander so much and the other one doesn't. Is this Everest, the Sahara or what? Taken at the dunes at Provincetown, MA
Taken with a Rolleiflex in
2-1/4" medium format in the mid 1950’s. |
Seeds
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I began to notice this flower-gone-by on my daily walks. It looks like a dandelion but isn't. It's larger and has fewer seed umbrellas. In a wildflower book it's described as a noon flower. It gets the name because the flower is known to close it's petals by noontime. Later, the seeds with umbrellas emerge. I carefully carried some home and photographed them away from the wind and other disturbances. The umbrellas come off very easily.
The original negative is 2-1/4" medium format. The display print that is 11" X 14" |
17 Cents
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Killdeers lay their eggs among the rocks. Because there are so many rocks, they blend into the surroundings very well. In this picture there is 17 cents, which may be hard to see in this smaller version. Have you ever dreamed of finding money? Psychologists suggest that money may be a symbol for love. What elation there is to dream of finding what we seem to be always looking for. Along the Chenango river in Hillcrest, NY.
Taken with a 2-1/4” medium format Kowa Super 66 and TRI-X film in the late 1970’s.
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Franklin Falls
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It's amazing the effects that can be created with a slow shutter speed. The motion is conveyed in one second at this waterfall in Franklin Forks, PA.
Taken with a 2-1/4” medium format Mamiya C330 in the late 1970’s |
Old Fence Post
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I frequently walked across the field behind plant 5. In the fall, I came across these three remaining pieces of an old fence one afternoon. No other posts could be found.
Taken with a 2-1/4” medium format Kowa Super 66 in the mid 1970’s. |
Ice
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Ice found in a field in Hillcrest, NY. After the water drains out, this is all that is left. It may be random art made by nature—or just random.
Taken with a Nikkormat 35 mm with Plus X in the late 1970’s. |
Spring Ice
I discovered this ice after a spring flood had started to recede.
The picture was taken along the Chenango River in Hillcrest, NY.
Taken with a Nikkormat 35 mm with Plus X in the late 1970’s.
Miller Farm
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Summer scene in the hills of Binghamton, NY
Taken with a Sinar Alpina 4X5 large format and TRI-X film in the early 1980’s. |
Mist
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Early summer morning at Lake Petonia in Greene, NY. The mist still hovers over the surface as the sunlight begins to spread and dissipate artifacts of the night.
Taken with a Sinar Alpina 4X5 large format and TRI-X film in the early 1980’s. |
Lake Petonia
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Later that same morning at Lake Petonia.
Taken with a Sinar Alpina 4X5 large format and TRI-X film in the early 1980’s. |
Snowtrees
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One of the more difficult scenes involves snow. It was snowing and blowing fairly hard at the time. The field and hills beyond the line of trees are completely blotted out by the storm. The exposure is correct and if it were not snowing, the trees would be much darker. In a heavy snowstorm, nothing is dark, unless something dark is close by.
Taken in the early 1980’s with a Hasselblad 500 CM and TRI-X film up in the hills of Binghamton, NY
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Binghamton
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Binghamton, New York as seen from the Miller Farm, one of the many farms just outside of the city.
Taken with a Sinar Alpina 4X5 large format and TRI-X film in the early 1980’s |
Castaway
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New Jersey roadside in early spring.
Taken with a Nikkormat in 35mm format and plus-x film |
Castaway
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Early morning and low tide at Chatham on Cape Cod. You never know what the next tide will bring in.
Taken with a Nikkormat 35mm format and plus-x film. |
Abstract
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A field in Hillcrest, NY. A prism filter was used to create this unusual effect.
Taken with a Nikkormat 35mm format and plus-x film. |
Contrast
A flooded woods in Hillcrest, NY
Taken with Mamiya C330 medium format camera and tri-X
film.
The snow–filled water adds an interesting gray tone to the surrounding woods.
I took slides for many years and they came out excellent. The dynamic range of slides is almost two stops better than Kodacolor prints, which is mostly due to the limited dynamic range of the printing paper. In addition, the printing machines, at least for 35 mm prints, were almost never calibrated well. After taking a carefully metered subject and then having it printed on a typical machine that averages the whole scene, it is only luck if the print is satisfactory. Typically, the light portions of most pictures are washed out. This is true regardless of how expensive your camera is. Perhaps a few, taken under certain lighting conditions, are fine because they don’t have any very light or dark areas. In this case, the contrast range may fit within the limits of the printing paper.
However, larger format pictures with better film and processed by custom labs can come out beautifully. Of course, this costs a lot more but if you are after good pictures, this is a more reliable way to go.
Fantasy
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In your dreams, perhaps, money is a symbol for love—and this is fantasy money in a fantasy purse.
Original image taken on a Canon S50 digital camera in late 2004 |
The Way
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Is this a path to enlightenment for all, or just to a nice view from the dunes near Provincetown on Cape Cod?
Original image from 1977 taken on a Nikkormat in 35mm format and Kodachrome. |
Yellow Bird
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What kind of bird or tree this is, I do not know but they both reside in Bermuda.
Original image taken on a Canon S50 digital camera. |
Orange and Blue
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You never know when a good photo opportunity is going to appear. Sometimes it is good luck but only if you keep your camera ready. Taken in Progresso, Mexico
Original taken on a Nikon Coolpix digital camera |
Siesta Key
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What better way than to spend an evening on Siesta Key in Florida?
Taken with a Nikon Coolpix digital camera. |
Monument Valley
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A nice sunny day at Monument Valley, Utah.
Taken with a 2-1/4” medium format Rolleiflex and portacolor 160 film. |
Palm
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Gray Bismark palm frond close-up in Nassau, Bahamas.
Taken with a Canon S50 digital camera |
The Far Side
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Another beautiful day along the beach on the island of Cozumel, Mexico. Most people visit San Miguel on the other side but is isn’t crowded on this side.
Taken with a Canon S50 digital camera. |
Lieu Gardens
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A nice place to sit and rest while touring the beautiful Leu Gardens in Orlando, Florida
Taken with a Canon S50 digital camera. |
Rain
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Another heavy rain from one of those 2004 hurricanes in Central Florida.
Taken with a Canon S50 digital camera. |
Ladder
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Pictures are where you find them. I saw this from a restaurant parking lot and knew it would be a good shot. Catching the right light makes a big difference. Taken in Altamonte Springs, FL in January 2007
Taken with a Canon S50 digital camera. |
Sabittaie
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I first saw this mysterious entity from many miles away but it was another day when a Navajo Indian woman showed us how to get closer to it.
Taken with a 2-1/4” medium format Rolleiflex and portacolor 160 film. |
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The road to the sacred Navaho site called Sabittaie (The rock with wings) later named Shiprock. This ancient volcano core, located in Shiprock, New Mexico, is 1700 feet tall and 3 million years old.
Maybe this was the inspiration for the movie Krull.
Taken with a 2-1/4” medium format Rolleiflex and portacolor 160 film. |
The View From Goulding’s
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Portions of the 1939 movie Stagecoach were made near Goulding’s Lodge in Monument Valley, Utah. |
Upstate New York
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Taken with a Nikkormat 35mm and kodacolor film. Winter 1992 |
Alien Landscape
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When you look closer than normal, things do not look like anything you may have ever seen before. Then it might be difficult to relate what you know from past experience to what you see.
Things take on an entirely different appearance and perhaps look like some kind of new world for a new experience.
Taken with a Canon S50 digital camera in August 2010 |
Sara
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A creative portrayal by Joan. Taken with a Canon S45 digital camera plus Photoshop. |
Danale
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Danale Bluffs Hotel, Danale, Alaska. Taken with a Canon S45 digital camera.
The Tour
Tortuguero Park, Canal Cruise in Costa Rica. Taken with a Canon S45digital camera. |
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