Mountain cha cha

by Matt Neima

This is an experiment, I was kilometers away from these mountains. I walked a long way (can’t recall now, maybe 60 paces?). I have rubber eyes so this works for me. If it is badly mounted, let me know, I can take it!

Anachronistic Couple

by Lattie

This handsome couple is doubly out of sync with both modern times, and the medieval/Renaissance revelers all around them.  They were sitting at the bar, near a grounded Pirate Ship boutique, at the PA Renfest last year. If you thought you were viewing some Victorian Costumer movie outake starring Jane Seymour and Gene Wilder, you’re not alone!

Baby Vincent, 11 months

by Philip Steinman

Title       Baby Vincent, 11 months
Location        Van Nuys, California April 2013

Technical      Fuji GA645w (slide bar, F22, 2”, Kodak EPR 64)

Comments         He is my little star, my darling, my 4th child in 5 years, my second son, and my future.  The only way to photograph a baby cha-cha style is while they sleep.  Here he is shot with my Fuji GA645 closeup filter, with a Benbo tripod hanging over his body.  His eyes fluttered when I pressed the release on the 2nd and 3rd exposures.  I used the 1st and 4th  exposures and got lucky because the separation of 1cm was made for pairs 1&2 or 3&4, but 1&4 also had 1cm and created the proper separation for this  3D image.

Statue of Alfred Eisenstaedt’s V-J Day Life Magazine Photograph Aboard the USS Iowa Battleship

by Philip Steinman

Title:  Statue of  Alfred Eisenstaedt’s V-J Day Life Magazine  Photograph Aboard the USS Iowa Battleship

Location        San Pedro, California December 2012

Technical      Fuji GA645w (cha-cha no slide bar ), Fuji Provia F100

Comments         In 2012 the West Coast’s only Battleship opened to the public in San Pedro with the USS Iowa.   The self-guided tour takes you on a journey through World War II, the Korean War, and the Cold War to experience the life of a sailor on the lead ship of the last class of gunships.   The USS Iowa was the only ship of her class to have served in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II.   Despite the 16” guns, 5” guns, missile decks, bridge, mess areas, and world famous Captain’s Cabin – with the only bathtub installed on a battleship for a President, the most interesting item on the boat for me was this statue errected of the photograph of the nurse’s iconic kiss that marked the end of World War II.  The battleship alone is certainly a symbol of this and world peace but for a public display, they chose to combine the weapon of a battleship with the softness of a kiss.  The lasting power of a single photograph lives on.

On Aug. 14, 1945 New York City’s Times Square went dark at 7 p.m. and then at 7:03 p.m.,more than 750,000 people roared in jubilation as the words “OFFICIAL—TRUMAN ANNOUNCES JAPANESE SURRENDER” blazed across the news scroll.  Elated by the news, people in the crowd were hugging and crying tears of joy, but it was a far different experience for Edith Shain, a nursing school student.  “This sailor just grabbed me and kissed me,” she said. “Any female closes her eyes when she’s about to kiss so I never saw the guy, and then I walked away. I was kind of embarrassed. I didn’t say anything about it to anyone.”  What Shain didn’t realize, until a week later, was that her “indiscretion” was caught on film. While browsing a copy of a Life magazine, Shain, then 27-years-old, recognized herself in what has became an iconic photo titled “V-J Day” (Victory over Japan) of a sailor slightly dipping a nurse in a white uniform and kissing her.  Of the kiss, Shain said, “It was very nice, and of course, it was in the days before you’d scream and go to an attorney. It was the best of times.”  The famous photo was taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt, a photojournalist for Life Magazine. In his memoirs, Eisenstaedt explained, “Suddenly, in a flash, I saw something white being grabbed.  I turned around and clicked the moment the sailor kissed the nurse….People tell me that when I am in heaven they will remember this picture.”  Though Eisenstaedt died in 1995 at the age of 96, the celebrated picture has not lost its significance.  In celebration of the 60th anniversary of V-J Day, Shain flew to New York City where a slightly larger-than-life-size statue titled “Unconditional Soldier” by J. Seward Johnson based on the Life photograph was unveiled on Aug. 11, in Times Square.

 

View from the Shoin Building of The Japanese Garden

by Philip Steinman

Title       View from the Shoin Building of The Japanese Garden

Location        Van Nuys, California April 2013

Technical      Fuji GA645w (cha-cha no slide bar ), Fuji Provia F100

Comments         Major architectural entities in the garden include the Shoin building which projects over the lake and adjoins the teahouse. Shoin was the residential dwelling developed for aristocrats, upper class monks and samurai during the 14th and 15th centuries. The exterior of this building is authentically shoin style, but the interior has been modified to provide a place for meetings and special events. While the room does survey a panoramic view of the garden, notice the white window blinds that slide horizontally.  The Japanese garden style is to reveal only portions of the garden at a time from a seating and not the entire panoramic view at once.

View of The Japanese Garden

by Philip Steinman

Location        Van Nuys, California April 2013

Technical      Fuji GA645w (cha-cha no slide bar ), Fuji Provia F100

Comments         The Japanese Garden, dedicated June 18th, 1984, is a 6½ acre authentic Japanese garden fashioned after “stroll gardens” constructed during the 18th and 19th centuries for Japanese Feudal lords.  The trees are manicured to reduce any dense foliage and promote three dimensional views that allows one to see the pines, lake, and administration building in the background.   The foot path allows two people to enter together in order to encourage courtesy and to allow the viewing of small portions of The Garden from different vantage points.