Stephen Johnson Photography News
September 2021
Milky Way, Meteors, and Planes. San Luis. 2021.
Seeking Meteors and Dark Skies. The dark skies alluded me this year, but I did catch the Milky Way, a few meteors and many aircraft tracings.
Upcoming Workshops and Prints:
September 22, 2021
Many Views: Twenty Print Set
a fine art boxed print set
Welcome to the September 2021 Edition of the Stephen Johnson Photography Newsletter.
I was ready to hit the road, careful of the Delta variant, and now the wildfires…probably still going to go, just delayed a bit. I’m planning new classes and I hope my virtual classes, Photo Chats and appointment visits will all help us share out photography and give me an opportunity to help.
— Steve
This month's View From Here column illustrates my recent photographic work, some local art, and ponders some questions along the way. Our Virtual Classes are continuing to broaden with the Virtual Seminars offering Preservation, Scanning and Restoration September 22, Flora and Form October 22-23 and the new Fine Art Photograph from Raw, to Photoshop to Print October 30-31, 2021.
I am very proud to offer my new 20 print set Many Views: Twenty Photographs, emerging from these last 18 months of work during very challenging times.
I hope you find the column interesting and will consider sending me some comments. As these Newsletters can cover many subjects, let me know of topics you would like to see addressed.
Workshops are currently balanced between virtual class and field workshops starting again late this year. All workshops currently scheduled are subject to necessary corona virus spread prevention logistics.
FEATURED PRINT September 2021
Cloud Shadows. San Luis California. 2021.
A cloud shadow sky show broke out as I was leaving Dinosaur Point, San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area. I was amazed by the drama, and spent a few minutes working with compositions of just the clouds, the road and sky (which required an HDR set) and both verticals and horizontals.
We're offering an 11x14 inch print of the photograph for $195, matted to 16x20 inch board. This print at this price is offered through September 30. We'll be taking orders until then, and shipping them out by October 15.
NEW PHOTOGRAPH
Ferns. Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA 2021
Canon EOS R5
Wandering the Aids Memorial Grove in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park last month with one of my best friends, brought many nice experiences, among them this play of dancing ferns. In color, the photograph was fine, and realistic. But a black and white version seemed to give a graceful and kenitic sculptural quality to the image.
I'm proud to add it to my ongoing work on Golden Gate Park.
LATEST NEWS:
As anti-virus caution continue to tell us to avoid unnecessary exposure to others, masks and social distancing remain a good idea as the variants emerge. Our general gallery masked/distance appointment policies are now allowing some limited gallery visitation.
I continue to photograph, most every day, and work to stretch my comfort zones and subject matter, even when I’m been mostly local for the pandemic.
Gallery Appointments
The Covid-19 restrictions and now cautions that have kept the gallery mostly closed, do allow me to open for special limited viewing appointments. Write to inquire or call 650 355-7507 about an appointment.
Blog Restarted and Growing: Subscribe
As I have mentioned in my last few Newsletters, I have renewed more frequent postings on my Blog derived from my Newsletters and Facebooks posts. You can view or subscribe at: https://sjohnsonphoto.wordpress.com
Virtual Classes
During the virus, I have naturally shifted most of my education programs to online experiences. This is frustrating and rewarding. The new virtual experiences are certainly stretching out my geographical reach. I am very pleased by our new Virtual Classes Program.
My 2021-2022 Workshop Schedule continues to evolve to accommodate the virus precautions and very limited ability to gather indoors.
Some plans are now being made on the assumption that the vaccine is ever more available and will then become a prerequisite for the class.
I remain committed to offering great courses whether in person or virtually. See what a great experience students have had on my Workshops by exploring Workshop Testimonials.
Stephen Johnson Photography Blog.
The 2021-2022 Workshop Schedule is evolving, continuing with the Preservation, Scanning and Restoration of Phtotographs September 22 and the Flora and Form October 22-23. I have now scheduled the first of my pandemic cautious field workshops, Highway One Coastal Journey in December, Death Valley in Winter and Yosemite in Winter for 2022.
See what a great experience students have had on Steve's Workshops by exploring Workshop Testimonials.
Other Worldly is up in our galleries having joined the 50 Years of Space Photography Exhibit with the Life Form Exhibition. Hopefully you can visit soon by appointment, socially distanced, masked and limited to two people. I hope to be able to open the galleries to general visitation in the not too distant future so you can see what is on display at Stephen Johnson Photography.
Upcoming Events & Workshops
Cloud Shows at Sunset. Pacheco State Park. CA. 2021.
THE VIEW FROM HERE
by Stephen Johnson
Chasing Dark Skies, Lighter Spaces and Wonder
The way I think about the Earth and moving around it is changing. Heading down the road feels ever less like the freeing experience it once did, despite the freedom feelings that arise when I head out. Other than walking, travel has always had a negative Earth impact, I now need to look at that each time I plan a trip.
It feels like there is consequence everywhere. Increasing examples of Climate Change and the ongoing effects of the pandemic contribute to growing ill at ease feelings. I’m not yet ready to say I can’t go anywhere, for either reason, but it is no longer a simple decision based on the traditional limitations of time from other projects and cost.
There is now such a matrix of concerns that weigh on my heart. I am not happy about this state of mind, but these thoughts are now in my head and I feel the responsibility for my individual actions and impact. For too long, we’ve been able to live in an illusion outside of consequence. I’m not sure I can anymore.
This is not a new topic for me. On our 2009 Antarctica trip, a wide ranging discussion ensued as we were returning about the carbon footprint of our trip. We all pledged to work to give back to the Earth as a kind of repayment for our travel. It didn’t seem enough, and is a debt I still need to repay by highlighting that work.
I have defined much of my professional life by my exploration of the world. I do not want that exploration to stop, despite growing awareness and a sense of responsibility.
It is also true that local discoveries continue to delight.
Pinnacles Fire from Highway 101. August 2021.
So how can I ask all of you to join me for a field workshop, with the travel it will entail? I am not ready to say that the great experiences of the workshops, and the stories I hear from people about their lasting effects, is something I can no longer do. These workshops must always consider virus safety, so are different than they were, but the landscape interaction/wonder remains the same and I believe the real world engagement helps our sense of well being in some very profound ways. Perhaps that is particularly true in troubled times.
From the Cliffs
Lines on the Surf. 2021.
For a very few minutes, each clear evening at sunset, I’ve witnessed an interesting phenomena. From the cliff heights along the coast, the waves break in such a way as to streak out abstract orange lines of surf behind the wave crests. Again and again, the dance of line repeats itself in what seems unending wild design until the sun gets too low to back-light the waves.
It is really quit strange and beautiful.
Lines on the Surf. 2021.
A Walk Through Some Evening Fog
Parking. 2021
Sometimes the fog encourages me to stay in, it is almost always better when it pulls me out into it’s eerie scenes, muted sound and somber light.
As the light drops, color fades, the atmosphere of foggy air becomes more real than objects before me. The character of the scene becomes the photographic subject.
In early September, I got pulled into a dusky fog stroll that became a dark mist with occasional lights.
It was a good little walk, just down from my house, and so transformed from the scene I witnessed just hours earlier coming home from my studio..
A Pacifica Street. 2021.
Trees and Field. Pacifica, CA. 2021.
Birds on a Wall
Cliff Swallows. 2021.
Cliff Swallow Nest
On August 4, I heard some voices outside my studio. I was delighted to find three young folks eyeing with wonder this Cliff Swallow nest in an eave of the west wall. I had not noticed the birds before that moment. They had obviously been there some time and were overflowing the nest.
I got out the Canon R5 with the RF600mm lens (my 800mm was at home) and keeping some distance, made a few photographs of the cramped but wondrous scene. I figured it might be my only chance to photograph them because they seemed very ready to fledge. A little research indicated Cliff Swallow (apparently the proper name rather than Mud Swallows) eggs hatch in 13-17 days and fledge after 18-24 days. I was amazed at the miracle of all of that happening in only a little over a month. But still, I had driven past them every time I went to my studio and never noticed.
I was anxious to see if they were still there the next day, and to my delight, they were.
This time I had my Canon RF800mm lens and felt very satisfied that I made some nice images.
On the morning of August 6, it was a different story, they were gone from the nest. But all of this avian family was now hanging out on the sports field chain link fence 25 feet away. I watched for quite awhile and made some more photographs.
I watched them for about an hour, went back to work, and when I looked again, they were all gone. Or so I thought. A walk up to my mailbox reveled they had moved to the rooftop of the West Wing of the Art Center complex, all neatly in a line along the edge, still being visited and fed by the parents.
I haven’t seen them since.
I only caught a glimpse of this wonder at the very end of its presence here. The whole sequence of events was a life-giving and visual delight over a mere three days.
Cliff Swallows. 2021.
Cliff Swallows. 2021.
Cliff Swallow on Fence.. 2021.
Rooftop Cliff Swallows. 2021.
A Few Seals in the Waves
A nice cliff and beach walk honoring my friend Fiona’s birthday led us on a great ocean side walk and to some playful harbor seals around Mussel Rock. It was very addictive to watch them bob around the surf, get knocked by a wave, disappear, and pop right up again.
Harbor Seals. Mussel Rock. Daly City, CA. 2021
Harbor Seal. Mussel Rock. Daly City, CA. 2021
Harbor Seal. Mussel Rock. Daly City, CA. 2021
Making Art “Protect What You Love” Mural
In mid-August I noticed a concrete retaining wall near my local grocery store here in Pacifica had received a fresh coat of paint. Soon after I saw a crew of young people out blocking-in the design for a new mural. The group calls themselves “Splash of Color.”
Mural Painters. Pacifica, CA. 2021.
As I passed, I couldn’t help but stop and ask about what they were up to. It turns out these young folks have worked quite hard to come up with the idea, create a proposal, design and get permission to make this piece of public art. I was quite impressed. See the video below.
Mural Painters. Pacifica, CA. 2021.
Mural Painters. Pacifica, CA. 2021.
Lauren Wu and Annaliese Phillips from Redwood City’s Design Tech High School. Video by Stephen Johnson.
San Luis
Receding Lake and Clouds. San Luis Reservoir. 2021. Canon R5.
Meteor Chasing led me to the nearest location to the bay area I thought might bring some night skies, somewhat free of city lights. I headed for the expanse around the San Luis Reservoir in western Merced County.
I have always been drawn to the lake’s nearby landscape, sculpted by time and the rise and fall of the California Water Project Storage Reservoir built in 1960. I was looking for night time distance from city lights. On my way I took in the unexpected site of a herd of Tule Elk, an expansive lakeside landscape and amazing cloud shadows.
City lights from Central Valley towns were too much for my hoped for dark skies, but the experience once again produced experiences I had not expected. The Pacheco State Park to the west, and San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area to the east proved for a very visually interesting day.
Tule Elk. 2021.
Lake Level Lines. Pacheco Sate Park.2021. Canon R5.
Male Tule Elk Gently Sparing. Pacheco Sate Park. 2021.
Elk and Hills. Pacheco Sate Park. 2021..
Short Tutorial
During a recent Photo Chat my friend Jeff Schewe was showing some restoration work he was doing on his family history. He pointed out a variation in a Photoshop technique that I had used for many years on over-exposed images. I thought I’d pass it along here.
There is remnant information in many over-exposed images that can sometimes be emphasized to the point of even describing the data as being recovered. A technique that make some of this information available is outlined here.
In Photoshop, Duplicate the image in the Layer palette creating a Background Copy. This will place copy of the photo on top of itself.
Change the Blend mode from Normal to Multiply. You will instantly see the image darken and possibly recover some over-exposed information. This effect will then likely need to be fine-tuned fro your needs. This new Layer can be masked or customized with Opacity changes and/or by double clicking on it to call upon the Layer Style palette, then adjusting the Blend If sliders to change highlight and shadow weight. Keep in mind the triangular slider controls can be split by holding down the Option key and essentially feathering in the application of the blended tonal region.
The variation on this technique from Jeff is that the Multiply effect can be generated even without the overhead (and file size increase) of Duplicating the image. Just add a new Adjustment Layer to your image and change it to the Multiply mode and you will have much the same effect.
Masking works in either scenario.
Recently at Stephen Johnson Photography
I am proud to offer for sale a boxed set of original pigment prints from 2020 through May of 2021. A view of my photographic endeavors and fascinations just before and during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Twenty 14 inch prints in boxed set. Signed and sleeved. $4500.
Virtual Educational Experiences
Steve in his Life Form Gallery. April 2021.
Virtual Classes and Lectures have now become a regular part of my workshop program. Critiques are now virtual. In fact, as you might imagine, most all teaching is virtual at the moment. To flush that out, here is a list of the virtual educational opportunities we are offering.
Virtual Classes and Lectures. A series of new online live classes on various topics with limited space and Q&A sessions.
Preservation, Scanning and Restoration Wednesday evening September 22. 2021. 6pm-7:30pm PST.
Flora and Form October 21-23, 2021. Thursday evening through Saturday.
Fine Art Photograph from Raw, to Photoshop to Print October 30-31, 2021. Saturday & Sunday. 9am to 5pm PST.
Photo Chats
I’ve been doing weekly virtual Photo Chats with groups of photo friends to keep everyone encouraged to keep working, share and problem solve. I’ve now built a webpage on the chats. Let me know if you would like to join us.
Come Visit the Exhibitions (masked visits by appointment)
Check out my 50 years of Space Photography Exhibition joining with my Life Form Exhibition as Other Worldly for a mind-blowing journey from the living world close-up to the depths of space.
Although the gallery is not open to regular visits with the corona virus regulations, limited visitation can be arranged by appointment.
Come see the shows when you can. Space and awesome life! A dive into cosmic extremes.
The 50 Years of Space Photography Gallery with the five extra Apollo 11 prints.
In front of the Apollo 14 Panoramic, 3rd. Graders from Ocean Shore School in Pacifica visiting the Space Exhibit. 2019. Photo by Sheila Gamble.
Class Visits
Post-virus, when school is back in classroom, we will again welcome teachers bringing their classes by, kids and college students. The kid’s reactions have been inspiring to me, both for the space exhibition and Life Form.
Links to custom reproductions Steve has created because of his love of the work, with the skills to make beautiful copies, and to let more people enjoy these beautiful photographs and maps.
Life Form Exhibition
Life Form opened in the Main Gallery at Stephen Johnson Photography in July 2018. The show has been extended into 2021. We have had many visitors come by the gallery since the opening. Many have then joined workshops and certainly helped build community. Please come see the show after the virus. Pass the word.
Seeking Good Venues for Life Form
We are seeking good venues to show the Life Form Series. The series is now available for museum and gallery exhibition.
Life Form Announcement. 2018
Don't forget to Check out our next workshops
Next Virtual Workshop
Next Virtual Seminar
The Studio, Scholarships, Mentoring and Tutorials
As part of our ongoing commitment to photographic education, there is one student scholarship spot in many of our classes. Please pass the word along.
For discounted time studying with Steve, keep in mind our Mentoring Program.
With all of our busy schedules and limited budgets, destination workshops or classes become a challenge, but many of you still have questions you need answered, or feedback on some new work. We want to remind you of our Virtual Online Consulting Program. This service allows all of you out there around the globe to consult online live with Steve on technical, aesthetic and workflow issues using Skype and your webcam.
Our Essays and Tutorials from the past couple of years can now be found on our Newsletter Archive and some on my neglected Blog.
We hope you can come by the gallery after the virus and see the original prints in the new Life Form Gallery and its new Life Form Portfolio, the Exquisite Earth exhibition with its accompanying very special Exquisite Earth Portfolio 1. We invite you to join us on a workshop, rent lab space, or just say hello and let us know what you are up to photographically and what you might like to see us offer. We value your input.
Print Mentor Program
Many of my mentoring students have wanted help with their printing, often to make sure they can produce a specific print. Consequently, I am starting a Print Mentoring Program that sets up a 2 hour time slot and the production of a finished print, all with the tutorial video of how we did it together. Prints can be up to 16x20 and on either Hahnemühle Museum Etching or Photo Rag Pearl paper. Fee is $500. Email for more information and to set up times.
Free and For Sale
Free Stuff (a few items still left)
I have been printing out nice copies of the Constitution and Bill of Rights on rich cotton paper. You are welcome to a copy when you can come by the gallery.
Additionally, I rescued a few Beseler Enlargers, a 23c and 4x5, hoping to find good homes for them. Make an offer.
Equipment for Sale
None at this time.
New Space Photography Products
Apollo 11 Collectors Portfolio
A suite of photographs from Apollo 11 including twelve pigment inkjet prints on letter-sized paper selected, edited and printed by photographer Stephen Johnson, in a portfolio box. The set includes a Mission Summary book, original US Postal Stamp commemorating the Mission, the Mission patch and a schematic of the Lunar Module. $250
Apollo 11 Collectors Portfolio examples.
50 Years of Space Photography Exhibition Catalog
The Exhibtion catalog featuring photograhs from Planetary probes, the Hublle Space Telescope, Lunar explorations, the Apollo program and Space Shuttle/Space Station images. Includes an exploration of the imaging technologies emplyed by the spacecraft.
68 pages, 8.5x11 inches
Other Worldly Exhibition Catalog.
Apollo 11 Photography Book
A 96 page 8.5x11 inch collection of Apollo 11 photographs from launch to recovery including contact sheets for every surface Hasselblad photograph.
It’s the collection I wish I could have bought, so I made it.
-96 pages
-7 sections, Lunar Photo Equipment, Preparation, On the Way, Lunar Orbit, Tranquility Base, Heading Home, Relics
-Film Magazine proofs
Life Form Folio
The Life Form Folio
When we premiered the Life Form Exhibition, I wanted to have a collectible item and record of the show prior to the full book I plan. So, now available is the 36 page 11x17 wire bound book, 5 years of work from 2013 to 2018 exploring these magnificent lives.
Photographs from 2013-2018
36 pages
11x17 wire-bound book
$40
Exquisite Earth Exhibition Catalog
Page 41
page 13
The Exquisite Earth Exhibition Catalog
As I've been on a roll on fixing bodies of work into POD books, I decided before the Exquisite Earth show could come down for new upcoming show, I wanted to create a printed record. So, now available is the 56 page 11x17 wire bound book, 5 years of work from 2005 to 2010 traveling this wondrous planet.
Photographs from 2005-2010
56 pages
11x17 wire-bound book
$40
Pacifica Book
A collection of photographs in and around Pacifica California. Include a trail map.
74 pages
11x17 wire-bound book for full lay-flat opening and enjoyment
Pacifica Trail Map
32 years in Pacifica
10 years of calendars
$50
Page 7
Page 27
Pacifica Trail Map by Pease Maps special to the Pacifica Land Trust.
11" x 17" folded
$10 (free shipping) proceeds go the Pacifica Land Trust a non-profit 501c3.
Gift Certificates for Prints and Workshops!
Emailed or shipped with beautiful gift note card.
Life Form Note cards
5x7 inches (sold-out, on backorder)
$25
12 image Note card set with envelopes featuring photographs from Steve's new Life Form work.
Printed by Steve in his studio in very limited numbers on a color laser digital press
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After a few years of working intensely on my Urban Eden Golden Gate Park project, I am excited to offer a two-day photographic workshop in this complex and beautiful landscape. Now 150 years old, this park symbolizes parkland engineering and the earth itself taking its own course of life and fecundity. The park will be explored over two days with a blend of photographic opportunity, assistance, and my growing knowledge of its own back woods. This springtime weekday workshop will avoid some of the weekend crowds.