Around Town

Around Town is an anthology of photographs that I’ve taken over 35 years. Sometimes I like to go for a walk, camera in-hand, just to see what I can find. This takes some photographic discipline because it forces me to see the ordinary, the things I see every day, in photographic terms of shape, texture, and form. Another discipline I sometimes add is lens choice. I don’t bring my whole kit of lenses but pick one, often a prime focal length, and force myself to make photographs with just that lens. This sometimes means that I miss opportunities or just have to leave a scene for another day. The challenges of finding design in ordinary scenes and exploring the possibilities (and limitations) of different lenses keeps my photographic muscles in shape.

These photographs have been taken over a long period of time. I don’t remember my lens choices or camera settings. I do remember than the earliest photographs were taken with Nikon FE on Ilford FP4 film. Those with darkroom knowledge and sharp eyes will notice that some of these images were reticulated during development. Reticulation occurs when there are wide temperature variations at some point during development, often during washing. In this case, I classify the reticulation as a “happy accident” because I feel that the effect adds to the abstract, grainy feel of the photographs.