Obscura and Obscura

Photo: Abelardo Morell

Remember my encounter with the link to the rather good National Geographic website after an unexpected sojourn in a hospital waiting room last week? Well, I've chanced upon another gem for you, The School of Life, a website from an organisation devoted to the exploration of living wisely and well.  When I peeked today I was rather taken by today's aphorism from Harrison Ford.

'I'm like old shoes.  I've never been hip.  I think the reason I'm still here is that I was never enough in fashion that I had to be replaced by something new'.

As is common I've gone off subject completely.  Back to National Geographic land where I've got rather overexcited by the photography of Abelardo Morell.  He uses a camera obscura, that old pinhole camera from physics lesson of the past, to created some rather stunning images.  Go and have a look.  It's amazing that such masterpieces can be produced from as simple a piece of equipment as a darkened box with a couple of holes in each end.  Okay it's a big box in the case of Morell. He uses a whole room for instance- a bit draughty but one must suffer for one's art!    Me? Well, I'm more of an insulation freak so won't be doing that.  But this wonderful image of Brooklyn Bridge projected onto a tar paper roof in a camera made out of a tent has given me ideas.  I'm wondering about a lino cut print onto wet and dry paper to give a similar effect.