No, it's definitely not easy being a comic book hero... You have to live up to your loyal fan's expectations... On the contrary, it's wonderfully easy to be a comic book hero's photographic investigator. Because when comic book heros find themselves outside of a comic book they are subject to a certain number of restrictions: for example, they cannot use the 90% of their super powers for obvious reasons (one of them being that most of the people around them, actually believe that they see some weird guys dressed up like comic book heroes - which is very convenient). The only super power that is allowed in full force is the power to disappear -for the ones who possess it of course. Not being able to use their powers makes comic book heroes easy subjects to photographic investigators such as I, although this time I must admit defeat, since I lost 2-3 of them by disappearance. Ah well... maybe next year!
One of my subjects once told me that the secret to longevity is "good thoughts, good company, sunshine and a glass of red wine -or maybe a good coffee"... I don't know if it's the secret to longevity, but it certainly makes my photographic investigations a lot more fun...
A photographic investigator creates consciously her reality. So, it was a sunny spring Sunday, these guys were there, I wished we were all in LA, J Lo's "My love don't cost a thing" was playing on the radio... You get my point...
A relatively new field of philosophy that comprises Zen, positive thinking and stoicism, that photographic investigators, such as I, just can't get enough of... The secret to engage one's subjects of the investigation in coffeelosophic chatter is to present them with a problem of the human existence or situation. And then shoot, trying to be a part of the chatter. It's not easy, subjects tend to get frustrated when the realise it's just a trick. An experienced photographic investigator always participates convincingly!
In between photographic investigations, random shots of Venice. Sunday mornings I always visualise of moving there... And I always wanted to make a post with the word "untitled" in the title!
There is something in common between Mona Lisa and my subjects: no matter how many times they have been "investigated" they never lost their essence. After infinite variations and approaches, they remain their beautiful, amazing, unique self... Always different, always unchanged.
Something that stayed with me since I first read George Mc Donald's beautiful story, "The Day Boy and the Night Girl"(The Romance of Photogen and Nycteris). I quote: "She followed the firefly, which, like herself, was seeking the way out. If it did not know the way, it was yet light; and, because all light is one, any light may serve to guide to more light. If she was mistaken in thinking it the spirit of her lamp, it was of the same spirit as her lamp and had wings". An excellent weekend reading that I strongly recommend especially now that light works it's way to gaining more ground every day...
MM had secret powers. Powers one would call magical or supernatural. When extremely pressured, she could see -simultaneously- visions of 8 different versions (or "parallel realities") of the life of the person that was sitting in front of her. My job was to investigate her thoroughly -therefore to put great pressure on her, psychological or otherwise. I didn't have much time to prepare, so I had to improvise with what I had handy that day. I locked myself in an empty room with her and started to sing all my favourite bluegrass songs -with vigor! (These first shots were taken at the beginning of my performance, which is why she looks so courageous and cool...) Of course she cracked after 25 minutes, while I was in the middle of one my Alison Krauss and the Union Station's favourites: "Oh My Lord"... It's true I was merciless but at the same time merciful and kinda compassionate... I released her after she revealed to me that in one of my parallel lives I was working as a photographic investigator -and a surf teacher- in the beautiful Caribbean island of Guadeloupe... I needed no more. I released her, knowing that I had to concentrate immediately to my next project: "Switching realities". More about that on a future blog post...
Homage to the favourite series of this photographic investigator's adolescence and to an amazing music theme sung by Al Jarreau, who died today. "Since I fell for you" on the radio and the moon shines super bright tonight...
Magazines rime with routines mostly because you read a magazine whilst you get on with your usual routine... Having coffee, smoking, laying on the beach or in bed, commuting on a bus or train... Simple things that a keen photographic investigator notices...
A good year to achieve photographic investigation goals and to investigate interesting, mysterious people... But this is also a year that a photographic investigator like me, who is born under the sign of the Rooster, is supposed to wear always something red -with the option of red underwear that someone gave her as a present- to avoid bad luck. What can I say... I don't like to wear red, so it must be the underwear option. Life was unbelievably much easier when I thought that this would be my lucky year. Now I must ask someone to give me my birthday present in advance. Red underwear...
It's a freelance photographic investigator's -like myself- dream... Temperatures are ideal for photographic investigations, subjects are more open and the aloha spirit flows through everything... That's paradise.
Another time travel assignment for Angie Stergio Photographic Investigations, but this time I brought my subject to my current timeline instead of going in hers... Too much time travel can mess with your energy levels, and mine where at a critical point. She was kind enough to come to my bleak reality and I am grateful to her for it... Plus, she brought with her some of the ambiance of her time and that could never go wrong...
Predictions show that 2017 will be exciting and unpredictable in a good way, kinda like a new dance with no registered steps. With strong elements of instant decisions, faith in one's partner (or partners) and free will which will allow us to choose or create the steps, along the way. But, like any new dance, it will need space, otherwise things may be broken and the dancers may get hurt by an unfortunate placement of furniture... So, I guess, let's dance and see what happens...
She was working on a top secret "James Bond" style kind of tracking device that could be attached to a cigarette... Her code name was "The Golden Girl" because she loved James Bond movies and in her leisure time she liked to experiment with golden paint -that explained the fact that all the furniture in her house were painted gold and her shoes always left a golden trace wherever she went. I would like to tell her that she should probably adopt a lower profile -maybe a silver one- while she was working as a spy, but my job was to track and photographically investigate her. Golden vibrations are very powerful, I thought, so she wasn't without protection...
Many times a photographic investigator thinks of her investigations and her subjects as dancers in a musical or participants in a mystical party... And the question arises: In case the DJ puts the Age of Love on, would it be the Jam & Spoon or the Stella remix? One more great puzzle awaits for an answer.
In between investigations, listening to the Xanadu soundtrack and drinking black coffee, dreaming of Christmas magic, miracles, abundance of all good things and seeing guardian angels shining their sparkle all around me... But most of all, being grateful... Someone should seriously think about introducing Thanksgiving instead of Black Friday in our little place of the world. My photographic investigations are certainly more fruitful around subjects that are thankful as opposed to subjects that are fighting in order to buy very cheap things...
