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Hi!
Hello my friends. When I sent out the
last photo essay my email was shut down for "technical" reasons. I took it as
another manifestation of my disconnect
from the world after all that had happened in the last few months. Thanks for
all the messages that you sent that I never had the pleasure to
receive. Everything is working again, I'm finally back home and, once again,
back in my body. After getting home for a few days after being with my brother when
he died I brought my nephew from San Jose back to his home in Salem, Oregon.
This trip was the route I took to get me back
home. |
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On the way north we stopped in Corning, CA,
where I took one of my favorite images, Olive Grove at Dawn. I was
happy that I had been there when I was "in the perfect place at the
perfect time." Patrick and I had a great time together and celebrated getting to
Crater Lake National Park just as the sun was
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We spent the night at a nearby motel and greeted one of the
most magical places on the planet just as single star began to illuminate the
landscape.
I like how the ruggedness of the place works
so well with its inherent sensuality. On our way to Salem we stopped at a couple
waterfalls that cascade down the Cascade Mountains.
Looking at the picture I can still feel the mist on my face. It was cool.
We reach Salem in time for me to visit my 17
year old niece driving a combine. She stopped long enough for me to hop
aboard the giant machine. We drove along at 1.9
miles per hour picking up Bent Grass. This is what the type of grass
used on golf greens looks like when it's not cut and goes to
seed. Kiera show me all the buttons and levers and we made plans for taking
her Senior Portrait after I returned in a few days.
The next morning I drove to Trout Lake,
Washington beneath a still snowcapped Mt. Adams. This beautiful location would
be the site where my friends Rebecca and David would
be married. I've know Rebecca since she was 9 years old when I dated
hermother, Kate, who has remained a close
friend.
Take a close look at the image on the left
and you'll see that the cowboy boot is a birdhouse and the home of a family of
swallows. |
Though I rarely shoot weddings I admire those
who do. I looked forward to shooting this event because I knew it would be
unique given the playful, creative nature of David and Rebecca. During her walk to the "alter" with a giant red balloon, sultry
samba sounds filled the air and she made the most of every beat. The crowd got a bit of comic relief when Rebecca asked David if he
would accept a rose ala The Bachelorette TV
show. The wedding "cake" was
David's delightful handmade donut design.
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I was honored to be so warmly welcomed into
the group of such loving family and friends. It was good for me to be with
people and witness the care and
closeness of our human connection.
The party went on for two and a half days.
One night I shot this picture of The Father of the Bride. I was, at
first, trying to see if I could make an exposure using just the illumination of the nearly full moon. The
camera had a hard time focusing so I burrowed the flashlight to light the
face to be able to focus. Then I saw that looked pretty cool so I went in
that direction. I had Kate "paint" in his face by moving up and
down his features with the flashlight. They hadn't seen one another for
15 years. It was great to see how they treated each other lightly
and shared each delightful day with their darling
daughter.
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The days were warm. During the day many of
the guest took a break and cooled off in the river. That is Kate, The Chief
Goddess herself, doing what she does so well: warmly welcoming
in the world with open arms.
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On the way back to Salem I stopped at
Scheiner's Iris gardens. I had stopped there years before and took pictures when
the 200 acres of Iris were in full bloom. I left one of my
cards with a flower on it and later Liz Scheiner, one of the third generation of
Iris growers gave me a call. I ended up selling her a few
pictures for cards and advertising. She also started receiving these emails and
always responded with enthusiasm and support. We were both
genuinely excited to meet each other in person. Her bother Steve, who is also
interested in photography, had been seeing the emails for
years and was just as pleased to welcome me. It is always a great pleasure to
meet, in person, the people who are a part of this
shared journey. The bloom season was over but I still found a bit of magic in their beautiful display garden. The four
foot Alliums stood tall and graceful against the Oregon sky.
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Because I am the closest Downs I get to see
my brother Shawn's (who died 5 years ago) family.
I love being Uncle Jerry. Lena; Ryan, Keira and Patrick's mother
played location scout for Keira's Senior Portrait. Not far from the family
farm, vast fields of flowers are grown for seed.
Together we created a whole series of images to mark this moment in
time. The following evening I went back with Lena
to shoot the sunset in those same fabulous fields of flowers.
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After the sun had set we came upon this these
beautiful stripes of color. While I was taking pictures Lena went to the
farmer's house next to the field who she knew and
picked a few buckets of blueberries in their yard. Because the sun was down
there were no shadows. I set up a tripod, used a
telephoto to flatten the fields together, set the camera at the smallest
aperture to get it all in focus, and made four second
exposure to capture the colorful even glow.
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The next day we made dinner with beans and
potatoes from the garden and Lena made a pie from the blueberries she picked the night before. I felt nurtured
and cared for as we all shared a home cooked meal and warm company.It was just what I needed.
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Thank you for sitting down and spending this
time with me. I greatly appreciate you letting me stop by for a visit and
for inviting your friends to join in our shared
adventure. I look forward to seeing you again in person
or meeting you in the flesh for the first time. I'll leave you with
another poppy picture that I spotted in the garden at
David and Rebecca's wedding. Life keeps growing on, all the
while seeding Itself
for the future. Enjoy this fine day my friends
and.....
Keep Growing!
 Love, Jerry |
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Jerry Downs Photography
P.O. Box 1082
Larkspur, CA
94977
415-686-2369
website: http://www.jerrydownsphoto.com email archive: http://pizap.com/jerrydowns/ Facebook Fan Page:http://tinyurl.com/2vq5vu3 A picture must possess a real power to generate light and for a long time
now I've been conscious of expressing myself through light or rather in
light. Henri Matisse Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the
candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared. Buddha |
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