"… an austere and blazing poetry of the real…" -Ansel Adams

I sometimes lay awake at night and think about great artists who are now dead, who might've loved to see the flourishing palette of creative tools that available today.

Ansel Adams, one of my fave photogs, passed away in 1984, the same year the Apple Macintosh was introduced to the world. Gosh knows how he would've enjoyed Adobe Photoshop. Sometimes, I also think about whether my late heroes would've approved of all the non-linear editing abilities we have with these digital tools; would Beethoven would've really rocked out to synths, like Bill & Ted portrays him to do? I think so… and if not, then they shouldn't be my heroes anyway, because foremost to my beliefs is embracing change — not just one wave of it, but cresting atop like a skillful surfer, drifting to the next beach, and getting ready to ride to further islands of our minds' eyes…

This snapshot could only be a product of the present. And yet, what is it about black & white photography which paints such a compelling warmth, a scene from memories long ago — even when it was only taken yesterday?

This subject matter is what I shall explore next.