written by: Bruce BarnbaumIn last issue’s Master Printing Class, I wrote about my impressions of Machu Picchu in Peru, and the photography I did there both prior to and during a workshop I instructed in April 2009 (specifically the first photograph I made there). This article deals with the final photograph I made at Machu Picchu, as the workshop drew to a close. I’m already looking forward to adding to the Machu Picchu portfolio when I travel down there again next year for another workshop. Machu Picchu lies at the head of the Amazon rainforest. It sits atop a knife-edge ridge 1,400 feet above Read more »
written by: Bruce BarnbaumIn the 1980’s fine art photography went through a wrenching period. The numerous excellent fiber-based enlarging papers manufactured by several companies were suddenly facing a huge threat: RC (or Resin Coated) paper. RC paper was quicker to work with, developing fully in just about a minute and was a fast way to fully process and dry prints. Plus it dried perfectly flat, not rippled or curled up like fiber based paper. It quickly became popular. So popular that it appeared possible that all the excellent fiber based enlarging papers would disappear under the onslaught of RC. In the midst of Read more »
Cottonwood Sawtooth Ridge illustrates the advantages of radical surgery when required
written by: Bruce BarnbaumOne of the most spectacular roads I have ever driven is the Cottonwood Road in southern Utah, heading north from Highway 89 about 18 miles west of Page, Arizona, to arrive, approximately 75 miles later at the tiny town of Cannonville, Utah. Along the way—particularly the middle 35 miles—lies some of the most remarkable, ever-changing scenery anyone could imagine. But Cottonwood Road is a rough dirt road that is virtually impossible to traverse if wet. It crosses several streams, it gets washed out once in a while, and it often has other unpleasant surprises, so few people ever drive it. Those Read more »
Sometimes Images and Emotions Emerge from Photos When We're Not Expecting It- Be Ready to take Advantage
written by: Bruce BarnbaumThroughout the 1990s, I led a huge environmental battle relatively near my home in the North Cascade Mountains of Washington State. A sand and gravel mining company wanted to put in an enormous gravel pit and hard-rock quarry in an extraordinarily sensitive area: The two-square mile proposed project was bordered by a salmon-spawning river on one side and a designated national scenic byway on the other. The gravel company had strong local political ties; other companies involved had very deep pockets. So despite winning a landmark legal victory in 1995 (when the project’s Environmental Impact Statement was found inadequate on 10 Read more »
written by: Bruce BarnbaumMy entry into photography came via hiking and backpacking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The monstrous river canyons with crashing waterfalls and cascades below 14,000′ granite summits and forests of enormous sugar pines, themselves dwarfed by giant sequoia trees, were so exciting to me that I was inspired to “capture them” on film. That was in the mid-1960s. Today my attitude has completely changed. First, I don’t think you can “capture” anything. I think you can document where you’ve been and what you’ve seen. If you’re really serious about things, you can go beyond mere documentation and try to convey Read more »
written by: Bruce BarnbaumOn Jan 1, 1980 I walked into a whole new world, one that I could never have imagined. Entering Antelope Canyon was so alien and unearthly I was dumbfounded …literally from the moment I took my first step into it. In fact, I was rendered speechless. Antelope Canyon, to my eye and mind, was totally unbelievable, unquestionably cosmic and absolutely perfect. Although it’s a tiny place by any realistic gauge, it is a whole universe unto itself. Holding degrees in mathematics, I have always been fascinated by both the cosmological forces that shape the universe and the subatomic forces that Read more »
