Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was born on November 18th, 1787. He is credited with the innovation of daguerreotype process of photography. Daguerre took the first known picture of a person with the camera exposure of 10 ten minutes.

According to Encyclopedia Britannica, Louis Daguerre, along with Nicéphore Niépce, found that if a copper plate coated with silver iodide was exposed to light in a camera, then fumed with mercury vapour and fixed by a solution of salt, a permanent image would be formed.

Nicéphore Niépce is another important figure. Niépce  made the first permanent photograph, but he was born in March, so I can’t write about him now.

There is your daily fact! Well, I don’t actually do daily facts, but this one is relative.

I arrived early morning on October 1st. The president of the church gave me instructions, giving me permission  to photograph the priests commencing the ceremony around the altar. Not many people get to go there, and it was quite a tight place.

I remember going to church when I was younger, wondering what goes on behind those closed doors where all the golden objects reside on top of the altar. As I got to see what goes on behind the scenes I realized that photography is like a license. It allows the photographer to see places
he/she otherwise would not get to see.

In 1424 there were only 122 books at the university library at Cambridge. Only the wealthy could afford a dozen volumes, which became their most prized possession. According to Megg’s History of Graphic Design, the value of a book was equal to the value of a farm or vineyard.

Last week I got on the train to go to work. Across from me sat a frail man in his early 70s’.  It was not his appearance that struck me, but the device he held in his hand. A Kindle.  Instantly I thought to myself, “What would Gutenberg say”? Johann Gutenberg printed the first typographic book in 1450-55, which is still the best seller. Can you guess the name of the book?

So what is this essence I speak of?  This is a subjective matter and subjectivism possesses a myriad of answers. Some will say that the essence is holding a book in one’s hand, others will claim it is writing notes in the page margins.  Mark Twain was a scribbler who wrote one-way arguments with authors of some of the books he had read. Twain’s penciled in lines made those books priceless.  In 2007, J.K Rowling’s hand written and illustrated book, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, sold at an auction for $3.98 million. Could she have done this with her Kindle? Let’s move on.

Ever had your copy signed by your favorite author? Well, these tactile qualities might vanish very soon. Your favorite author will not sign Kindles and iPads, libraries might no longer exist, and bookshelves will cease to exist in private homes. So what are we leaving behind? Those of you who use e-book readers, how will you preserve the e-books that you download? Will you have the will to perserve your downloaded material. Will you even care to transfer them when the new device comes out shortly after you had purchased your current one? Too many wills. Quite inconvenient. No?

I am not against technological progress, I have an iPad filled with e-books, but those same e-books are on my physical bookshelf.  I’ve had one book signed by one of my favorite authors; there are plenty of notes in all of my books as I am a marginal scribbler as well. None of this could be possible or authentic with an e-book-reader. Or could it? Enlighten me.

Last year, in our county, we lost Barns and Noble. Earlier this year Borders closed at the Westfield Mall. In a few weeks Borders in Highland will close. We will no longer have a bookstore where people can gather around, drink coffee and discuss their favorite titles. As I took a few snapshots of Borders with its large GOING OUT OF BUSINESS sign, a lady walked out, she looked at me and said, “It’s a sad day.”

So what would Johann Gutenberg say? Perhaps that convenience is not only about what we gain, but also about what is lost…and this is something we need to become aware of. Who is the master and who is the slave?

On June 13th, 2011, I gave a retouching demonstration at the White Hawk Country Club in my lovely town. Many customers come to me with plain images asking whether anything can be done to enhance the look of their not-too-exciting images. Therefore, I decided to take a simple snapshot of a friend next to the window in my bedroom. In less than an hour I was able to show them a few basic tricks so that they can do the same…. It was a fun experience.

We had two other speakers, David & Alley McKay. They are a couple of very successful photographers. David and Alley are on a tour teaching people about what they call fusion marketing.