Most “octopus” trees that I encountered, are Sitka Spruce trees that are growing atop a stump of a logged tree. Here in the coastal environs of northern California and southern Oregon the stumps are usually redwood or spruce. In my opinion, the best examples are of trees that rooted atop an old spruce stump. The spruce stumps are less resistant to rot than the redwood, and so they can decompose under the growing tree that is on it. Eventually the stump will decompose into the forest floor, leaving the spider tree as its memorial. If the tree that grows atop a redwood stump is a spruce, it may not last as long as the stump, and so are less common to my eyes*.
*I am not an expert, but these are my observations.
Stump atop a stump atop another stump. Canon 5dmIIA land octopus, Canon 5dmII at 20mm
When I took this photograph the business had already closed its doors, and soon it was to receive a makeover. I have not gone back to photograph it as it is now. I think the morning light (or is it the glow from high-pressure sodium lights) makes the image. Speaking of lighting, ten years ago there were very few LED street lights. I recall flying from San Francisco to San Diego one evening. Looking out the window, I watched the gold-colored lights of the cities along the coast. They looked like sparkling gems. Nowadays, they must look like sparkling diamonds.
Mad River Ferry House 1993. Mamiya 645 with 45mm lens
I do not recall where I got the information that this place was known as the “Mad River Ferry House”, but I think it was a good source. This is a good example of the work that I was doing in the pre digital age of my photography. I recall thinking back then that this image was a good candidate for hand-coloring. I think it still may be.
I normally scan my old work from negatives. This photo was scanned from an eleven by fourteen print that was to large for my scanner. I had to scan it twice, moving it on the platen so that each scan covered one-half of the print. I then combined them to make this composite image. It may not be obvious, but the original print was pretty good for me to pull this much detail.
Mad River Ferry House, 2012, Canon 5dMll
The setting changed quite a bit during the almost twenty years since the first photograph. The interesting fence and mailbox were gone, but I was bathed in some nice warm evening sunlight. This makes me want to go back and see how it is doing now.
Moving up to 2012 I want to share three interpretations of the same image. By this time, I was becoming more competent with my photo editing skills. I was fortunate to have access to work with the local Photoshop Users Group, and with the Redwood Camera Club. Both venues provided me with the tools to unlock the potential within my photographs. There were (still are) many challenges with learning and practicing the seemingless unlimited potential these tools provided.
I practiced what I learned in the actual taking of the photographs, and with the tools available for editing and interpreting imagery. The first photograph is the “digital negative” from which the following three interpretations are made. I did clone out some of the reeds in the foreground, and the backside of a sign (in the tree on the right).
I initiated a self-directed project to document the business districts of both Arcata and Eureka. I often photographed in the early morning pre dawn light. I started this in 2010, and have worked on it through to the present time. I stayed busy with this through the first five or so years. Nowadays, I only work on the project a few times a year. The city scapes are slowly evolving, and so it seems that I could work on this until I no longer can get out there.
RSVD, Downtown Eureka, 2010, Sony R! (best of show Northwest Eye)
The Sony R1 had some great innovations. The articulating LCD could be positioned to allow it to become a waist-level camera. It also made it easy to take low-level compositions. I like this feature so much because I used twin-lens cameras in my film days. I always liked the waist-level view for certain subjects. It was handy for street photography and candids.
As much as I liked the R1, I felt that I was moving beyond its capabilities. The fixed lens was great giving a 24-120mm equivalent focal length. That range was enough to handle at least 80% of my needs. If I needed a wider view I was out of luck as the lens could not be changed. There were numerous other issues, and I thought that Sony should update the camera to something with image stabilization, a higher pixel count, and a much faster buffer.
Dance Macabre at the Lloyd Building, 2010, Canon 5dMll with 17mm tilt/shift lens.
In the summer of 2010, I convinced myself that I “needed” a tilt/shift lens, and the camera to attach it to (a Canon 5dmII) if I were to continue with architectural photography. In my film days, I used a four by five view camera. That camera had all sorts of movement possibilities for distortion and perspective control. These were, and may still be, the ultimate tool for “correct” perspectives of this type of subject. The tilt/shift lens mounted on a SLR provides for some of these controls. Of course, nowadays, software can correct a lot of those issues, but at a cost of image quality. The TS lens on a modern high pixel camera can make some highly detailed and accurate photographs.
Lloyd Building, 2020, Canon 5dmII with Canon 17mm TS lens.
"I AM"- are the two most powerful words in the dictionary because the ending determines your destiny....so join me in my fight against PD to make sure that everyone who suffers from this chronic progressive degenerative disease can develop the courage to shout to the wind- I AM Fierce and Courageous ....
