Mushroom, Palo Alto, California, US, April 2006
Found in the morning in the Stanford campus.
Simon Griffee
Design consulting, art direction, photography.
February 2007
Trunk and Numberplate, Palo Alto, California, US, April 2006
California, land of dwindling trees and proliferating cars.
Air and Cathedral, London, UK, July 2003
Like nicotine, organized religion is an addiction, also a set of false beliefs that bound, incapacitate, and ultimately, destroy.
Man, Woman and Statue #2, London, UK, July 2003
Another shot taken in the Tate Modern, along with the previously published Man, Woman and Statue (Tate Modern Turbine Hall.), Still Life (Going up the escalator.), and, on a different visit, Reflection, Turbine Hall (Weather Project). More to come from this location.
Reflection, Turbine Hall, London, UK, February 2004
An artificial half-sun is reflected off the ceiling in Turbine Hall along with spectators at the Weather Project (Olafur Eliasson.) in the Tate Modern (Museum.).
Curtain and Television, Taft, California, US, January 2007
Captured in a hotel room. I hadn’t watched T.V. for a long time and the amount of garbage on still surprised me. I remember reading that people in the United States spend an average of thirty percent of their lives watching television (Google search: average time us person spends watching commercials on television.). Maybe it is not that much, but any time watching commercials is too much wasted time. I am glad I moved away from advertising (Brand Bonfire.).
Road and Tree in Fog, Tehachapi Mountains, California, US, January 2007
Driving down hills west of the Mojave Desert, the landscape reminds me of Mendocino County in Northern California. Taking backroads brings rewards.
Cloud, Joshua Tree, California, US, January 2007
Clouds and contrails mix above the Joshua Trees in the high desert.
Desert Trees, Joshua Tree, California, US, January 2007
Eventually, I photographed some trees at Joshua Tree national park. The cloudy skies gave the place an eerie, outlandish feel.
Bush and Rocks, Joshua Tree, California, US, January 2007
Taken in Hidden Valley, Joshua Tree national park.
Rocks in Moonlight, Joshua Tree, California, US, January 2007
Twenty-five second exposure at around eight p.m. in Jumbo Rock campground at Joshua Tree national park. Mirror lock-up (Understanding Mirror Lock-Up - Luminous-landscape.com) was used. I believe the bright constellation on the top-right is Orion.
Plant and Contrails, Joshua Tree, California, US, January 2007
The surprising amount of contrails over Joshua Tree national park were a reminder that another kind of desert (Desert of the soul.) was not far away.
Dawn at Jumbo Rock, Joshua Tree, California, US, January 2007
The high desert (Joshua Tree national park.) glows with the sun’s first rays.
Oil Field at Night, Near Taft, California, US, January 2007
On the drive down to Joshua Tree I passed through the Mordor (Wikipedia - Mordor.) of California.
I got out of the car and could see the relationships in the image; the movement of the pumps, the light of the refineries obscuring the stars and even the moon, reflected off the roof of the car, the red and yellow glow on the bushes from the car’s blinkers.
On a technical note, I was surprised by the 5D camera sensor’s ability to record the faint stars. It was a 4.9 second exposure.
Joshua Tree Gettogether
Update April 2015: I’ve gone back to the photos and put together this edit.
Here are some photos from the lovely weekend spent at Joshua Tree national park with Per Volquartz and several other photographers. More about my experience in the desert is forthcoming.
The group and Per Volquartz with his characteristic white hat!
Another view of the group at Jumbo Rock Campground.
Per Volquartz and Jan Pietrzak, holding Per's Leica.
Per Volquartz and Simon Griffee. Photo by a very nice, tall man whose name escapes me!
Zoroaster Temple, Grand Canyon, Arizona, US, July 2005
After spending the first night in Bright Angel campground, and most of next day in the creek, the ascent back to the other world began.
The hike on Bright Angel trail was in two stages. The first in late afternoon, to Indian Gardens campground, arriving in the dark and going straight to sleep. The second in early morning, up to the top of the South Rim.
This is a view of the Zoroaster Temple rock from the south-west, shortly after departing Bright Angel campground.
Canyon Wall Detail #2, Grand Canyon, Arizona, US, July 2005
Near the top of the Bright Angel trail, Grand Canyon south rim.
Tree and Canyon Wall, Grand Canyon, Arizona, US, July 2005
Various different types of vegetation live and die at all elevations in the Grand Canyon. I almost always remember why I shot an image when looking at it again, even years later. The diagonal lines in contrast with the twisted tree branches had caught my eye here.
Humans are pattern-deciphering creatures, and, I believe, naturally attracted to patterns. Photography lets me be attracted to and explore patterns in a natural, instinctive way rather than in a forced, contrived way.
Working in a job you don’t like, doing things that you don’t care about, finishing school to go to college to get a job to make money to have ‘security’ in retirement and then, die—not doing what you love—these are examples of forced, contrived patterns.
Canyon Wall Detail, Grand Canyon, Arizona, US, July 2005
The shapes and patterns of the canyon are beautiful whether viewed up close or from afar.
Colorado Near Bright Angel, Grand Canyon, Arizona, US, July 2005
The cold water from a creek flowing into the Colorado River was pure joy and relief. In mid-afternoon, the thermometer in the Bright Angel campground showed 38 degrees Centigrade in the shade, which meant mid-to-high 40s in the sun.
The ranger there recommended sitting in the creek, with clothes on, soaked, to keep body temperature normal.
These sands on a beach near the campground are bathed in light reflected off the towering walls carved by the river.