I am a bit of a loss for words lately and also running frantic gathering things together before I leave town. . My ‘day job’ is sending me off to Germany and the Czech Republic for a week. . Probably no time for pictures though. Always interesting experiencing other cultures and lands – though I absolutely hate flying. . Airplanes simply are not designed to accommodate someone who is 6’7″. . . It is always a hassle trying to jockey for the seats with a bit more leg room against 300 other people probably with their eyes on the same seats – whether they really need them or not . Inevitably I end up in a standard seat and then battle with the person in front of me who insists that the seat really can recline past my kneecaps. . Did I mention I hate flying?
So this a bit more chaotic image of picasso marble not only describes how I have been running around everywhere tying things up, but also a bit like all the driving that will be done when I am over there . Plus, I think I could use some of the good things associated with picasso marble according to some folklore:
Self-control, Clarity, and total recall of dreams. Assists in meditation. Protects, nurtures, strengthens. Aids in mind expansion and manifestation of physical and material goals. Stability. Helps to heal viral infection.
Take care folks, and have a good week.
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Quite often when you read about new inkjet papers, most of the discussion is centered around characteristics such as DMax, gamut, archivalness, optical brighteners, feel, weight, durability, etc, etc. . It is disappointing that you don’t read a lot about sustainability. . Afterall, it seems to be one of the key environmental buzzwords of the time. “Recycled” is rarely a word mentioned when it comes to photographic prints, probably for a variety of reasons . As a consumer of fine art inkjet paper for both personal and professional uses, I have been thinking about this.
It is then a great coincidence that a reader of my blog, Dr. Joe Zammit-Lucia, introduced himself to me recently In this introduction, he pointed me also to a paper he authored about inkjet papers and how some are greener than others. I found it to be a great introduction to the subject and wanted to share it with his permission. . You can download this paper from his site here.
I was pleased to find out that my standard fine art papers, which are 100% cotton rag – as well as the mat boards I use – are rated very well according to the analysis in Green-in-Print. . It is also happens to be a nice benefit that cotton rag materials tend to be the most archival But Dr. Zammit-Lucia’s article cautions that labels can be deceiving, and possibly for marketing purposes above anything else. . The fine details of the processing are often not publically available, or perhaps not even known by some paper manufacturer representatives. . It is worthwhile to ask questions that might go deeper than the marketing materials.
The main intent of my post is to encourage reading of the paper linked above, pass it around (use the “Share This” icon below), and encourage others to generate questions to the paper manufacturers. Let them know there is a demand for green inkjet papers that have all of the other great qualities we are after. . Let them know that sustainability should be a key factor just as much as Dmax and gamut.
Below is some suggested letter text from Dr. Zammit-Lucia to send to your favorite paper manufacturer:
I am looking to optimize the environmental friendliness of our photographic papers. In this regard, I would like to inquire as to whether your company is aware of the recently published Green-In-Print report (it can be downloaded at the Green-in-Print menu option at www.jzlimages.com) and whether you intend to take up the use of the Green-in-Print labeling suggested in the report as this would help me tremendously in evaluating the suitability of your paper products.
Meantime, I would be grateful if you could please provide me with the following details about your individual 100% cotton paper products:
Does your company have systems in place to enable each paper product produced to be tracked back to individual mills and individual fiber source?
Are all the manufacturers involved in the chain of production of your cotton papers ISO 14001 certified?
For which of your cotton papers (if any) is the de-lignification process chlorine free and is it totally chlorine free or elemental chlorine free?
Are the mills certified by the Chlorine Free products association?
Do any of your cotton papers contain a resin base or coating?Many thanks for your assistance.
Kind regards.
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I have uploaded some new rock images to my stone abstracts gallery:
New rock pictures include:
Amethyst Sage (with dendrites that resemble trees)
All are available as fine art prints, canvas, and for rock stock! 
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While photographing this particular piece of pietersite, I couldn’t help notice a section of it that resembled a waterfall. . It seems to happen that way when we view abstracts. Our minds try to make sense of it by trying to associate what we are seeing with something familiar. . Normally just some interesting patterns are enough to make me want to photograph them. . But in this case, I couldn’t see anything BUT a waterfall. . It actually affected some of the compositions I was making, because I felt the need for the areas that look like water to be flowing downward. . . I even tried to break that perception by slipping the stone around in various ways, but nothing else seemed to ‘look right.’. . . So I succumbed to what my brain was telling me and made the arrangements look like segments of a waterfall.
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Sorry folks if you have seen the occasional strange comment post get in the blog lately It seems over the past 6 months there is a new type of spammer emerging – actual humans set on getting some type of advertising link into my post comments vs. some other type of automated spam They actually type some type of comment that might be related to the post, but with. ulterior. motives I think Since I can’t monitor 24/7, some of them slip through Since they appear to be posted by some random individual, they sneak past my spam plugin.
What a job that must be – just as bad as a telemarketer I wonder if they pay by the comment or the incoming links they generate?.
So if you see anything strange, or a comment show up to an old post – do not grant them the desired clicks they want I will mark them as evil spammers destined to spend eternity cleaning up cigarette butts on street corners or cleaning the filters of sewage plants as soon as I catch them.
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