WHAT DO I MEAN?

Driving back from Toronto yesterday I was wondering
what I might write about on drool.

Lately I’ve been posting stuff (advise on APPROACH,
thoughts on POST PRODUCTION, etc.) that has to do
with how I view certain aspects of photography. That’s
because I’m pretty sure I don’t want drool to turn into
a weekly listing of where-I’ve-been-and-what-I’ve-shot.
Of course there’s got to be a certain amount of that,
after all…..that’s an aspect of what I’m about. Hype.

But then I thought of a question Cindy often asks
me when I say some stupid thing. She asks: “What
do you mean?”.

Well, intercity driving on foggy days has a way of
making the good-old brain stretch out and get all
metaphysical. So I extrapolated that question, “what
do I mean?”, into the larger than life question: What
is the meaning of being alive?

Wow.

foggy drive back from Toronto. click to enlarge

Well, you’ll be happy to know that I don’t have
a clue. So you won’t be treated, here, to some
rambling, navel-gazing treatise on the meaning
of life.

Whew.

I’ve always believed that the most perfect state
of being alive is to be aware….to be aware of
that’s happening, while it’s happening. Every
so often I achieve this state of grace, and it
makes me feel good. And powerful.

I think that this relates to photography, or at
least the kind of photography I try to practice,
because being out in the world with a camera
in hand and a purpose, seems to heighten my
awareness. I get some kind of clarity that makes
me feel like I’m making sense, discovering meaning.

Which is good, because, mostly, when I ask myself
that metaphysical question: “What do I mean?”, the
honest answer has to be: “NOTHING”.

SPEAKING OF TORONTO

There were a few reasons I went there….the main
one being the VIP Preview for the SNAP! ‘09 auction.
I had a piece in it.

SNAP! is held every year as a fund raiser for ACT,
The Aids Committee of Toronto. And, let me tell
you, it’s a class act (no pun intended).

Here’s a few snaps of the catalog they publish
to go with the auction:

To be in the auction you must be asked by
the curatorial committee, which this year
was comprised of:

Maryann Camilleri
Kelly McCray
Brian Clamp
Sophie Hackett

The preview was held at the gorgeous Edward Day Gallery,
on Queen Street West.

studying some photos

a SNAP! ‘09 waiter

TOBIN GRIMSHAW

While I was in T.O. I also managed to squeeze in
breakfast with one of my ex-assistants, Tobin.

Tobin, breakfast, The Mars, College and Bathurst

Tobin started out as a graffiti dude. He’s now living and
shooting in Toronto. He just got a puppy.

Heath Ledger by Tobin Grimshaw

Tobin’s new puppy, Ollie