Figure 1 – Folded-fan, IPhone photograph. (c) DE Wolf 2016.

The other day at the mall, I came upon the unfolded paper fan of Figure 1, and it really took me back to my youth in the fifties and sixties. Life was simpler then, at least as I remember it. But memory can, indeed, be fickle. The reminder here was of the toy folding-fans of those days. We delighted in simple objects like folding-fans, and sparking wheels, and, of course, yo-yos. Life was, in general, simpler back then, well with the exception of nuclear annihilation. I heard recently that we are closer today to nuclear annihilation today than we have been since the Cuban Missile Crisis. Of all the things to bring back! What moron did that? Ooh, I guess that I kinda know…

But there were no cell phones or computer games, and really there were only three channels on American TV. We did not know that we needed these things. I delighted once in the thought of 200 channels. But what has come of it, just a lot more pablum.

We are told in 1 Corinthians 11: “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” I remember very vividly sitting in my room and wanting to play a game, but thinking, “no you are too old for that!” Well, let me tell you that, right now, I am very sorely tempted to step back and search EBay for either a folding-fan or a sparking wheel. I could sit happily in the dark, ignore the election and the fear of nuclear annihilation, and delight in the retro whir and colorful sparks. And these themselves would spark a reminiscence of childhood and perhaps the realization that the virtue of adulthood lies in the power to make one’s own choices.

It is, dear friends, as Eeyore taught us:

“A little consideration, a little thought for others, makes all the difference.”

Figure 1 – The photographer (note camera in hand) dressed as Cthulhu at the office Halloween party, 2016.

Well, I make no bones about the fact that Halloween is my favorite holiday. I won’t go on again about why. But, tomorrow is the fun night; so I thought that I would post today a picture of me at my office’s Halloween Party. As long time watchers of “The Big Bang Theory” will recognize, scientists certainly know how to have fun, even if some of the humor and costumes require explanations that use the Calculus. I am here dressed as the god Cthulhu. To really know Cthulhu is to know how to spell it. Good luck with that!

As for the drawing on my chest – here comes the Calculus. It is a Minkowski diagram that depicts Einstein’s vision of a four dimensional universe. That is how Lovecraft tells us the ancient ones traveled to the Earth. They truly dwell, not in our three dimensional world, but in a four dimensional universe. And just as it would be hard to explain a three dimensional object to a flatlander – one who dwells in a two dimensional world, so too is it hard to explain to us dwellers in a three dimensional space the meaning of four dimensional objects and deities.

I did learn that when you wear a Cthulhu mask, you do not need to smile underneath. Of course, smiling for the camera is kind of instinctive, and you do feel a bit embarrassed underneath.

But Cthulhu himself is nothing to smile at, or to trifle with. He is described as a massive hybrid of human, octopus, and dragon. He is usually depicted as being hundreds of meters tall, with webbed, humanoid arms and legs, tentacled face, and a pair of rudimentary wings on his back. Gulp! So it is best to be cautious. And if you find yourself being a bit silly this Halloween, it is best to remember that whatever you say, you must never say:

“Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn“

(“In his house at R’lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming.”)

Figure 1 – Pooh in a snow dome. IPhone photograph. (c) DE Wolf 2016

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?”
“What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?”
“I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet.
Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said.

Following up on yesterday’s “light in the October forest them,” I wanted to post another image that I took of the forest at the Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge that shows a fallen tree in the woods illuminated by some of those mid-autumn sunbeams.

On a windy day scenes, such as this, are a great reminder of why you need to stay on the path.  If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one there to see it happen, did it really happen. Of course, it did.  But it soes speak eloquently to the ephemeral nature of our world. Also there is the important point that in nature sameness is an illusion. There seems to be a clockwork going on, but there are always small variations. The forest evolve toward climax and on a longer time-scale the plants and creatures that we see evolve as well.

It is not so very long ago, perhaps 10,000 years,  that these lands were flooded by glacial lakes Assabet and Sudbury.  And before that it was covered with a mile thick ice sheet. And all of that is merely pittance in the geological history of the world. When I walk in the woods, I think about these forces. It is ironic that the very systematic periodicities that seem to defy change, in fact, accentuate it in our imaginations.

Canon T2i with EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM at 105 mm, ISO 1600, Aperture Priority AE Mode, 1/500th sec at f/7.1, with -1 Exposure Compensation.

Figure 1 – October on the marsh, Maynard, MA. (c) DE Wolf 2016.

October foliage time has always seemed to be a time for color photography. And this is even more true than ever in an age of digital photography, when you can get just the color, hue, and saturation that you want. But as the unstoppable progression towards winter progresses, the light in the forest opens up and has this wonderful way of illuminating the woods. And this is especially the case when forest meets water.

I find myself drawn more and more back towards black and white. I say back because that was my beginning – a first love. So now as October draws to a close, I find myself rejoicing in subjects like that of Figure 1, where the whole effect lies in form, structure, lines, reflections, and, of course, the wonderful “range of light” as Ansel Adams called it.

And I have to say that I only rarely resort to an increase in contrast either by cranking up a photograph’s contrast or by changing its gamma with “curves.” All of that tends to squash the dynamic range, I guess by definition, and that is the glory of black and white photography.

But here is the important part. There is the experience of seeing a landscape and being part of it. In the same manner you may experience a photograph of a landscape. With a good photograph, when you see it, you experience that as well. But there is something truly extraordinary in seeing a landscape, envisioning it as a photograph, and then accomplishing that goal. It is the act of photographing, It is the meaning of being a photographer,

Canon T2i with EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens at 87 mm, ISO 1600, Aperture Priority AE Mode, 1/1250th sec at f/7.1 with no exposure compensation.

A basket of cranberries, Concord, MA. Iphone photograph. (c) DE Wolf 2016.

Well under the assumption that poisoned mushroom tea is not your thing. I thought that I would post something a bit more appetizing today. Here is a basket of New England cranberries, lusciously red. Like everything else this year of the El Niño drought, the cranberry crop is suffering here in New England. Water levels are low and there is not enough water to flood the bogs around Cape Cod. Some growers are dry-picking their berries and some have even resorted to handpicking.

Still the cranberry remains as a great icon – a symbol – of the fall harvest, cranberry sauce, cranberry juice, and cranberry stuffing. And of course all of these herald the coming Thanksgiving feast. Nothing speaks to Massachusetts like the cranberry.

Photographically I was so taken by the shiny redness. Despite having my Canon T2i with me, I opted for taking the close-up with my IPhone and then deep cropped the image so that there was no distractions from the field of crimson.

Figure 1 – Amanita muscaria, Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge, Sudbury, MA. (c) DE Wolf 2016.

Mid October is fungus time in the woods. As I walk about I am intrigued by the mushrooms which take so many forms. Particularly beautiful are the lemon yellow Amanita muscaria, the Fly Agaric, of Figure 1. The photograph is meant to be more of a record than a work of art. I have tried most to capture its appealing color and the little warts on its surface. This is a highly poisonous mushroom. It is referred to as a Fly Agaric because people would cut pieces into a bowl of milk to attract and kill flies – hence the muscaria.

But it’s history is even more interesting than the mere killing of insect pests. We are told that in Siberia it was used to make a hallucinogenic tea. Here is where it gets even more bizarre, some people would actually drink the urine of those who drank the tea. Yum!

But let’s talk about the Viking Berzerkers. These were warriors who were so taken by the blood-lust that they would kill uncontrollably in battle. I have read that sometimes the only way to stop them was to kill them. But what does that have to do with Amanita muscaria? Well, apparently there is evidence that berzerkers also made use of the mushroom’s halucinogenic properties to induce a state of trance and blood-lust.

I’ll ask of the berserks, you tasters of blood,
Those intrepid heroes, how are they treated,
Those who wade out into battle?
Wolf-skinned they are called. In battle
They bear bloody shields.
Red with blood are their spears when they come to fight.
They form a closed group.
The prince in his wisdom puts trust in such men
Who hack through enemy shields.

The Hrafnsmál Ninth Century Norweigen skaldic Poem

Figure 1 – The path in black and white. Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge, Sudbury, MA. (c) DE Wolf 2016.

There are few sights more alluring then a path not trod. Where does it go? It beckons with a warm and joyous light. In Figure 1 I have such a path. I promised myself that I would do it in black and white and that I would not succumb to the temptation to flood it with noise and making it pictorialist. What I wanted was the full tonal range, and, of course, that is the very problem or challenge. Leave in all the shades of grey from darkest dark to lightest light. Don’t get carried away with dodging the midtones. Leave them to tell their own story, to create a sense of mystery. Emphasize just slightly the beckoning light. Give it a subtle selenium tone to add a sense of warmth. It is in the end a metaphor for so many possibilities that lie just beyond sight in the next glade.

Canon T2i with EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens at 100 mm, ISO 1600, Aperture Priority AE Mode, 1/400th sec at f/7.1 with -1 exposure compensation.

Figure 1 – Rain on the pond. Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge, Sudbury, MA. (c) DE Wolf 2016.

It was a rainy, foggy day here in Massachusetts. But at lunch time the sun came out and I headed to the pond in the hope of catching the peak of the foliage. When I got there the clouds had come back. As i walked through the woods marveling at the damp silence, I ran into another photographer and chatted with his for a while. When I made it down to the pond the rain had started in earnest; so I tucked my camera beneath my rain coat. But then I decided to experiment with the image of Figure 1 of the rain on the water. I was quite pleased in the end not only with the rings on the surface but also with the vertical rain drops. Vertical as a result of the fact that the shutter moves vertically as well.

And speaking of rain drops. I dried them off my camera with a Kleenex and when I got back to the car with a cloth that I keep there. Once home I carefully further dried the camera with my wife’s hair dryer. No damage done and I am reasonably happy with the results. Rain is tricky with your camera but it can be rewarding. But it’s always important to plan on how you would keep your camera dry in a pinch.

Canon T2i with EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens at 184 mm, ISO 1600, Aperture Priority AE Mode 1/200th sec at f/7.1 with no exposure compensation.