Brown paper bags were a staple when I went to school. We would use grocery size bags to cover our textbooks. The little monster drawn on the cover is one of two things I used to draw routinely. Sometimes still do. The other is a snail. Of course there was the prerequisite lunch bag. Advertising pencils were popular, such as the Wonder Bread pencil in the photo. They were free and we could save our money for other things.

The Earth is Slow but the Buffalo is Patient

Photography has always brought me a great deal of peace. When the troubles of the every day wear on me I pick up my camera and look for such a place as pictured above. Photography has been an important part of my life since 1964, when I got my first camera. Dora has always recognized the importance of this expression in my life and has been generous to make sure I had what I needed and more. Much to the dismay of many of my friends, including some of my photography friends, I can find such a quiet place as this and sit on a rock for a long time. I can almost hear them saying, "Take the picture already!" Dora is patient with me and fortunately so are a number of my photography friends, some of which are exactly like me in this regard.

We started working with still life during the Covid pandemic to find expression when we couldn’t get out and explore. We found that we enjoyed the challenges it brought and artistic expression it provided. Still life challenges what we know about composition, lighting, and storytelling. It will continue to be one of our photographic outlets.