%20Boy%20in%20the%20ruins,%20Sicily_%20Arnold%20Newman%20Prize%20Entry.jpg)
To be a good image maker, one must also be adept at listening to the hints that are proffered in one’s direction on a consistent basis. As the protagonist of Carlos Castaneda’s groundbreaking book The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge noted, one must learn to “stop the world.” And in order to do so, one must silence the monkey chattering in the brain so as to be able to receive the visual gifts heading in one’s direction. As well, with wine, and all of the world of wine, obeisance to that which is greater than oneself - and which is the font of inspiration, knowledge and manifestation – is of paramount importance. A wine, a winemaker, a vineyard, a barrel, a grape, a cork, a bottle, a cellar – all have a story to tell. So, my inner Ansel Adams, tells me “Pipe down and listen.” It works for both disciplines. And being more of an introvert than an extrovert, it seems as natural as a cold beaker of Ca' dei Zago’s col fondo Prosecco.
There can be a good amount of down time in the life of a photographic wanderer. And if you have ever made wine, there is a commensurate period of waiting as well. Learning to breathe, be patient, wait for the moment. Hey, wine learned it – it too is a living thing, no? So, breathe. It will come. The picture. The efflorescence. The moment. And when it opens up and invites you in, it can be a holy and sacred occurrence. Look for it. Be patient. It’s there. Breathe. Imagine a 2015 Le Chiuse Brunello 10-year library release. Give it a wide swath, eh?
Some folks call it luck. Some call it a fluke. Ask a street photographer and they might tell you; it’s an exercise. You do it enough times and it becomes innate, visceral, second nature. But you have to have – oh there’s that word again – patience? Absolutely. Rome wasn’t built in a day. So, take another turn around the vineyard, crawl up the tower and look out over the fields, get your white sneakers good and filthy traipsing up and down the Etna pathways. It’ll show up. What did Lao Tzu say? “When the student is ready the teacher will appear.” Yeah, I know, it sounds corny in the era of TikTok. But it will still be fiercely true long after the TikTok clock has stopped running. And for those of you who have been holding that particular wine for a special occasion – what are you waiting for? Pop the damn cork, already! See? Timing.
In analog days, we’d head into the dark room and see what developed. Now we can sit our keisters down on our gaming chairs and loll away via Photoshop or any number of image refiners. Hey, you can even bring the AI devil into your safe space, it matters not to me. What does matter is where you arrive at the end of each particular exercise in seeing and wine appreciating. You don’t need a medal tacked to your lapel. Just pay attention. Ok, now here did we come from, what did we see (or taste) and what impact had it had on the experience?
From my perspective it is all part of a never-ending process. Well, I don’t know if it will continue after corporeal cessation, but for the sake of living in the here and now, I look for a thing of beauty – whether it is a captured image or an epic bottle of wine, or even a pretty good bottle of wine. I just want to know that I’m taking advantage of being alive. And photography gives that to me, as does the occasional wine.
I’m closing in on 800 words here. I also have to get back to my current preoccupation – which is curating 60 years of a photographer’s life (mine) into book form, which will hold somewhere between 60-100 of my best shots in that time. I’m having a helluva time with it. And there you have it.
