Matt Day – ‘Social Distancing’

Back in the halcyon days of, say, February 2020, when I was busy traveling for work, flying and Lyft-ing without a care (or a mask), when most everyone else was mostly living however they had always lived, worried about whatever they had always worried about, the thought of suddenly waking up to empty streets, quiet skies, shuttered businesses was the stuff of dreams nightmares. Now, 17, 18 months later, well, it’s more or less normal and the novelty of it all wore off long, long ago.

But when it first started, there was a newness, a sort of optimism and wonder in some quarters. Many many people took the opportunity to start new projects: witness the uncommonly low stocks at garden centers and home improvement stores. And every photo/art/meditation podcast I listen to encouraged starting up a new project, take advantage of the time, etc. The Distant Zines I briefly reviewed earlier appeared quickly, but maybe the first—in creation if not publication—was Matt Day‘s Social Distancing.

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Distant Zine vol. 1 and 2

The Distant Zines (at time of writing they’re up to Vol. 5 and 6) arose from an instagram hashtag #socialdistancinglandscape, and each zine features images from two or three photographers. They’re all designed by Matthew David Crowther, and I think they all came through Nathan Pearce.

If Volume 1 is a sort of conversation between Emmerson German and Tim Carpenter, Volume 2 is a party line between Pearce, Rachael Banks, and Crowther.

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Sean Kennedy’s “Nature Connects” at the Botanic Gardens

A month or two ago, before we went back into virtual lockdown due to the Covid 19 Delta variant, my darling, adorable wife and I made a visit to the Botanical Research Institute of Texas and the Fort Worth Botanic Garden. I shot two cameras: the Olympus OM10 with a 50mm and +4 macro filter (some images were included in the Not Ninagawa post), and the Olympus XA.

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Louis Quail – ‘Big Brother’

Big Brother is a moving portrait of Louis Quail‘s older brother, Justin, who suffers from Schizophrenia. It’s a loving call to see beyond the disease, to see the humanity in difference, and a sort of love story, tracking the relationship between Justin and his long-term girlfriend Jackie, and it was the Charcoal Book Club photobook of the month for May, 2020.

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Jason Fulford – ‘Picture Summer on Kodak Film’

Jason Fulford‘s Picture Summer on Kodak Film came out more than a year ago now, right as the pandemic was really getting going. I didn’t plan on picking up a copy, as I was in debt reduction mode when it was announced, and to be honest I was surprised when it arrived. I’m not mad or anything: I have another book of his, and while my review of that one isn’t my best, and while I’m not entirely sure I get his work, I’ve come around to Picture Summer.

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Eid al Adha on expired film

Eid al Adha, the celebration of the sacrifice, begins on the 13th of Dhu al-Hijja and lasts for 4 days, and commemorates Abraham’s sacrifice. God willing, it serves as a reminder to be patient, generous, and willing to give of ourselves and our wealth. In 2021, it fell on the 20th of July* and I took the day off to worship and spend time with family.

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