A Chorus of Frogs After the Rain

The Rain Is Over

We know the rain is over --

the rain so hard it shook the roof,

blurred the windows,

and darkened the sky

till it was almost night --

We know the rain is over

because now

the choir of frogs

has grown

and reached a pitch

almost as loud as the rain

A chorus with that traditional song

and those old familiar words:

"I am"

"I am"

"I am"

Poem to Digital Photography

A POEM TO DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

Note: In 1999 in the darkening twilight, the coarse pixels on my first digital camera, a primitive Casio, changed back and forth on the monitor from color to darker color as the sky faded and as I framed the scene for my next shot. Crude as it was, to see a photograph in real time was a miracle -- as this had never been possible during my 30 years working with film photography.

REAL TIME

On the edge of darkness

I have seen the twilight sky

do it's digital dance

in real time --

pixels pulsing from

cerulean blue to black

on my LCD screen --

van Gogh's deepest colors

outside his cafe in the evening

or his starry starry night

Rick Doble, 1999

(An early selfie -- my face was lit with a neon light.)

Layers of Language

 IT'S ALL LANGUAGE 

 Literal: 

 This rose is red. 

 The sun is setting. 

 Abstract: 

 The sun sets later in the summer 

 than in the winter. 

 Many flowers display various shades of red. 

 Metaphoric: 

 A young girl is like a beautiful flower. 

 When the sun sets, it is like a door closing. 

 Creative: 

 The girl in her red dress dances 

 like the sun's last moments before it sets. 

 Synthesis: 

 At the darkest days of the year 

 our tribe lights fires 

 to prevent the sun 

 from being swallowed by the darkness. 

How To Shoot Camera-Movement Light-Painting Abstract Photographs

'Recipe' :) For Camera-Movement
Light-Painting Abstract Photographs

All photographs by Rick Doble.
Note: This recipe is like baking cookies, one cookie at a time.

We recommend 'baking' these photos for at least an 8 second shutter speed with a very low ISO and a dark environment. You move the camera to "spread, fold, chop, sprinkle and knead." You might also want to experiment using different white balance settings.

Find a piece of light

A crack around a door

a glint through a window --

it does not have to be large

as a little goes a long way

And remember each glimmer is different:

one can be smooth and limber

another sharp and brittle

Next hold that streak

then spread, fold, chop, sprinkle, knead

until the shutter closes

Then take a look,

take a bite

And go back and grab another piece of light

Living in the Moment

 LIVING IN THE MOMENT 

 For only a minute 

 once a day 

 turn off your cell phone 

 put your mental checklist aside 

 stop thinking about 

 what you're going to do next 

 and 

what you should have done earlier 

 and 

 just 

 listen 

What People Say And Do Is Different

  What People Mean  
  by Margaret Mead  

 What people say 

 What people do 

 And what they say they do 

 Are entirely different things 

 Margaret Mead 

Words Can Only Describe

 Words Are Not Real 

 Words describe

 but are not things 

 in themselves

 except for 

 occasional magic 

 when sound and rhythm 

 combine to make 

 an incantation 

 known as poetry 

An incantation or enchantment is a charm or spell created using words.The term derives from Latin "incantare" (tr.), meaning "to chant (a magical spell) upon," from in- "into, upon" and cantare "to sing".https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incantation 

Considered by many to be the most perfect poem in the English language, Coleridge's poem Kubla Khan sings with its own enchanting music.

 Kubla Khan 

 or  

 A Vision In A Dream 

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

In Xanadu did Kubla Khan 

A stately pleasure-dome decree: 

Where Alph, the sacred river, ran 

Through caverns measureless to man 

   Down to a sunless sea. 

...

...with music loud and long, 

I would build that dome in air, 

That sunny dome! those caves of ice! 

And all who heard should see them there, 

And all should cry, Beware! Beware! 

His flashing eyes, his floating hair! 

Weave a circle round him thrice, 

And close your eyes with holy dread 

For he on honey-dew hath fed, 

And drunk the milk of Paradise.

Complete Poem: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poems/detail/43991