iris study 1

iris study 1, originally uploaded by Joseph Orsillo.

I had quite a bit of free time this weekend and was able to do a fair amount of shooting. Lately I have been on this trend of shooting flowers in my small and over crowded office. It has been very rewarding and I think I have produced some good images, but one comment on my flickr page said something like 'all of these flowers would make a good coffee table book'. I'm not sure how to take that. Is that an actual compliment or a thinly veiled jab at me for not expanding my photographic horizons? I don't know. I have been trying more and more to not seek the approval of others and create images just for my own enjoyment, but I guess I'm still insecure. Maybe I just have to admit it; the bulk of my photographic life has revolved around some fabulous flora.

hello from Massachusetts

..., originally uploaded by Joseph Orsillo.

So I was near Boston for most of the week and didn't get much time to do any shooting. It was pretty grey most of the time, but in keeping with my self imposed weekly assignments, I felt the need to shoot.

joshua tree sunset

joshua tree sunset, originally uploaded by Joseph Orsillo.

Talk about going way back. I shot this image when I first visited Joshua Tree way back in the 90's. I can’t remember the exact year, but I was still in college so it must have been '93 or '94. I was so excited. It was the first serious use of my beloved Speed Graphics I purchased at the Trade Tech garage sale for a whopping $5. I used Polaroid type 55 film and the resulting negative was a little thin. My first prints of this image were very dark and had next to no shadow detail. It wasn't until I discovered Photoshop half a decade later that I could really play with this. All of a sudden I could see detail way down into the shadows and still keep the sky all dark and gloomy, just the way I like it.

once a week

untitled, originally uploaded by Joseph Orsillo.

So, obviously I don't have much to say. My new goal for the year is to do a new shoot at least once a week. I've seen a number of folks on flickr with their 365 assignments, but there is no way I could ever match that pace. I'm far too lazy and unmotivated for that, once a weeks even seems daunting now that I think about it...