Loveliest of Trees

Cherry tree outside my window.

More than anything else, I have photographed a single cherry tree. The tree stands right out my office window. Every year it blossoms, and every year I take a photograph. With the first photo, I was young. Now I am not. The tree remains.

Loveliest of Trees

A. E. Housman - 1859-1936

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now

Is hung with bloom along the bough,

And stands about the woodland ride

Wearing white for Eastertide.

Now, of my threescore years and ten,

Twenty will not come again,

And take from seventy springs a score,

It only leaves me fifty more.

And since to look at things in bloom

Fifty springs are little room,

About the woodlands I will go

To see the cherry hung with snow.

I drove 4 hours off road for one picure.

Mysteriously rocks deep in the Death Valley wilderness move across the desert floor, scoring the cobblestone shaped clay. Scientists and mystics alike ponder how and why it happens. Photographers from around the make the pilgrimage to get their images. Not wanting to miss this, I rented a Jeep one morning.

Four hours later, I found myself semi-lost in the desert. Spotting another jeep off in the distance I thought I’d ask directions. As I got closer, it was evident that they were very naked. They waved me to come closer. I kept going. Strange what you find in the desert.

Eventually, I found the spot. The light was failing. I should have been there hours ago. Quickly, I grabbed my camera and got precisely one exposure, and then the sun disappeared behind the mountain. The light was gone. I’d have to wait years to return.

I packed up my gear in the Jeep and headed back. Along the way, I took a few exposures. But nothing can truly capture the solitude of the desert hours from civilization.

Off-roading in Death Valley.

On the way. Before I got really, really lost.

and there is always the moon if you miss your shot.

A Solar Eclipse.

I tried to think of something to say about the eclipse. I couldn't. It seemed more than just a celestial event to viewed with sterile scientific aloofness. I like how Ella Wheeler Wilcox put it nicely nearly 100 years ago.

A Solar Eclipse

Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850-1919)

In that great journey of the stars through space
     About the mighty, all-directing Sun,
     The pallid, faithful Moon, has been the one
Companion of the Earth. Her tender face,
Pale with the swift, keen purpose of that race,
     Which at Time’s natal hour was first begun,
     Shines ever on her lover as they run
And lights his orbit with her silvery smile.

Sometimes such passionate love doth in her rise,
     Down from her beaten path she softly slips,
And with her mantle veils the Sun’s bold eyes,
     Then in the gloaming finds her lover’s lips.
While far and near the men our world call wise
     See only that the Sun is in eclipse.

BTS — "I Want to Tell You" photoshoot.

Kenny and Natashia posing for for silhouettes.

Can you imagine having a little girl or boy who is unable to tell you that they love you? Can you imagine the frustration of the child as the are unable to express clearly what they want or need? That's what 25% of autistic children and their parents face today (One in 45 children are born with some form of autism). Natashia Kletter is looking to help. 

I think she's had enough

Recently I photographed images for a book series entitled, "I want to tell you..." by Natashia Kletter. The books teach non-verbal autistic children and their parent's sign language. The assignment was simple - photograph a young girl signing in ASL on a white background. Corresponding photos on the opposite page will show the action. Also, there will be a button that can be pressed, that "says" the word aloud.

Currently, there are apps that do this. However, as a mother of a non-verbal child, Natashia found that the technology often got in the way. The screen was too appealing and frequently the attempt at communication was abandoned in favor of playing. So, she created a series of books for his son so he could point to what he wanted. Others parents have asked her to create books for them... Since then the books have evolved into teaching them to communicate with signs as well. 

Sometimes you take photo and years later you realize it was extremely important. Other times you know that you are working on an extremely important project from the start - that your humble contribution could actually do some good in the world. This project was one of those moments. 

The first interactive book in the series, "I want to tell you.." should be available in the last quarter of 2017.

Natashia with Kalei practicing 

Selecting from hundreds of photos taken that day.