Istanbul, Turkey

Recently I had the opportunity to present a paper on my photographic research at an international academic conference in Istanbul, Turkey. With limited amounts of free time during my short stay in this exotic and historic city, I made sure to avail myself of photographic opportunities at this ancient seaport. Formerly known as Constantinople, modern Istanbul still remains a mix of contemporary and ancient cultures. Once a major intersection of the world’s three major religious faiths (Muslim, Jewish, and Christian), Istanbul today is home to about 14 million inhabitants that mostly practice Islam. Istanbul is a cacophony of honking car horns, strange tongues, and roasting chestnuts at every street corner.

Frontal view of the Blue Mosque (also known as the Sultan Ahmet Camii), located in the Sultanahmet Square, opposite from the Haghia Sophia. This mosque was built between 1609 to 1616 CE. © 2012 Terry Ownby

Frontal view of the Haghia Sophia, also known as the Church of St. Sophia. Presently called the Kariye Museum (Kariye is the Turkish version of the Greek word “khora”, which meant “rural area” or “country”. Located in the Sultanahmet Square, adjacent to the old city market area of istanbul, Turkey. © 2012 Terry Ownby.

Olives, cheese, and sausage being sold at a small shop in the famous Spice Bazaar near the sea port of Eminonu, Istanbul, Turkey. This is located next to the New Mosque. © 2012 Terry Ownby.

Dried fruit and nuts being sold at a small shop in one of the back alley’s of the Spice Bazaar. © 2012 Terry Ownby.

Typical street vendor in Istanbul selling roasted chestnuts (kestane). At other times, his cart is used to sell the popular snack of steamed or roasted corn-on-the-cob (misir). In background is another vendor selling the ubiqutous simit (bagel) coated in roasted sesame seeds. © 2012 Terry Ownby.

At the crowed seaport of Eminonu, passenger ferry boats arrive to disembark their human cargo, only to repeat the process across the Golden Horn and the Bosphorus Straights. On the distant hillside are the rooftops of the Topkapi Palace. Light rail trains can be seen in the background. © 2012 Terry Ownby.

Panoramic view of the lower half of the famous Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii) in the Old City section of Istanbul, Turkey. The reference to “blue” comes from the use of the blue Iznik tilework throughout the mosque’s interior. This mosque, or camii, was built between 1609 and 1616 by Sultan Ahmet I. © 2012 Terry Ownby.

Vineyard book finally published!

Over the course of the past year, I have given my readers updates regarding the progress of my book project about a vineyard. Specifically, it’s about Baltimore Bend Vineyard, near Waverly, Missouri and the seasonal changes and activities over the course of a year. It’s been a fun journey!

Technology has certainly come along way since I started photographing three decades ago. But more importantly, this technology now allows the photographer or writer the ability to publish their books without the hassles and expense of finding a publisher willing to advance your work. On-demand publishing brings to anyone interested in publishing their work the ability to do so without printing thousands of copies. This new technology and business model allows one to print only one copy of their book, or hundreds. The author is total control, which I find very nice.

Below are the front and back covers of my second monograph: Journey Through The Vineyard: A Photographic Year At Baltimore Bend.

© 2010 Terry Ownby

Rewards of being a professor

Sometimes we go through life wondering if what we’re doing is worthwhile, or if what we do makes a difference. The enormity of the universe can sometimes simply be overwhelming when we consider how small we are in comparison. But, occasionally moments arrive which bring clarity to what we do and we realize we have been a part of something good. Such was the case this past weekend.

Several years ago while I was teaching photography at the Art Institute of Colorado, I had the pleasure of having an exceptional student arrive in one of my studio classes. He had just recently served in the Marines and he didn’t fit the stereotypic role of college students. He was driven to excel and that he did very well! As he neared graduation, he talked with me several times about his desire to study photojournalism and attending grad school. I wrote a few letters of recommendation and eventually he was accepted into the PJ grad program at Boston University. That made me very happy!

Nearly three years ago, after he completed all his course work, he set off to pursue his graduate thesis project, which was a lengthy cultural photo essay, in China. He’s had many adventures living, working, and photographing in mainland China, specifically in a city called Jiujiang. In order to immerse himself in the local culture, he accepted a teaching position at Jiujiang University and has produced an excellent book. So when he sent out an email stating he was coming home (in the St. Louis area) for a short vacation, I was excited when he agreed to take time from his hectic schedule to have lunch with me! To be able to sit down and share a meal with my young friend and listen to his stories and his excitement as a photographer was one of those sublime moments in my life. It made me realize why I got into teaching photography and that indeed, being a professor is absolutely worthwhile!

You can see his work at his website, by clicking here. His book, Jiujiang: 九江 Nine Rivers, can be reviewed and purchased by clicking here.

In this photo, Chad Owsley on left, and Terry Ownby. © 2010

Vineyard in Winter: Update

Just a quick update. The vineyard book project that I’m shooting at Baltimore Bend Vineyards is still moving along. Since the project visually investigates life in the vineyard over the course of a year, winter is no exception for photographing. Fortunately just a few days ago we had a nice snowfall, so I ventured north for some shooting. Since the university is on winter break, my students working with me on this project were off on vacation. My colleague and friend, Wilson Hurst, came along and we decided to try our hand at shooting star trails that evening. This was my first attempt and I have a ways to go before I’m comfortable with type of shooting. But it was fun!

Here’s a quote from my working project journal: “The vineyard was snow covered under a nearly full-moon, with crisp, cold night air at about 18^° F, accompanied by beautiful white and black snow geese on the wing overhead. Enchanting evening to be out photographing the vineyard.”

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Terry Ownby

Life in the Vineyard: A Book Project

Vineyards. For me, being in the vineyard is like a fish in water, it’s completely natural. In a previous life I was a Frenchman and I really think my work back then (1930/40s) was in the vineyard and winery. Now, fast-forward to the late 1990s; I owned a 60-acre farm in southern Wisconsin and on a gently sloped ridge to the southeast I planted my vineyard. The wine grapes I grew were French hybrids designed to withstand the prolonged cold temperatures of the northern-tier states. Foch, Millot, and Seyval Blanc were the red and white varietals for wine; I did have some table grapes in there also, such as Edelweiss and Concord.

Working in the vineyard was hard work, but mentally, it was a time of meditation and mental relaxation. Often times I think it was the only thing that kept me sane while I photographed food for my livelihood. Everything about vineyard life I enjoyed, from the fresh smell of plowed earth to pruning and tying the vines on the trellis wires. Speaking of trellis systems, the one I used was called a GDC—Geneva Double Curtain.

Ever since I had that vineyard in Wisconsin, I’ve had this driving desire to publish a book that would combine my passion for photography with that of vineyards and wineries. This past summer I met the owners of Baltimore Bend Vineyard, near Waverly, Missouri. After a couple of conversations and knocking around some ideas, I’m photographing and writing a book about their vineyard and winery. I’m following the yearly circle of life in their beautiful vineyard, not far from the Missouri River. When it’s finished, I plan to publish a book of about 80 pages mostly of photographs, but also of text telling their story. What’s also been great about this book project is that three of my students (Matt, Rosie, and Phil) from the university are working with me, learning about the complexity of book publishing.

Every time I go into the Baltimore Bend Vineyard, it’s like a sense of déjà vu, taking me to a time when I was a grape farmer in France, or Wisconsin, or wherever reality may be!

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Terry Ownby

Fort Scott, Kansas…Another Road Trip!

The old army fort in eastern Kansas was called Fort Scott and was originally constructed in 1842. There were no walls built around this pioneer army post since three sides consisted of natural, steep bluffs, with the southern side opened to the expanse of the tall grass prairie. This old army post was the last destination for Wilson and I on our short road trip last week through SW Missouri and SE Kansas. Eleven years after its founding, the Army abandoned the fort in 1853 and its buildings became the center of a new frontier town, bearing the old fort’s namesake: Fort Scott, Kansas. This would later become the hometown for renowned African American photographer, Gordon Parks.

This is a great small town photo destination. The main street area, which joins the old fort structure, has great 1800s architecture, which has been nicely restored. Lots of interesting antique stores and boutique shops occupy the storefronts. Also, as with any of my road trips, I found a really cool diner from 1946 that is still in operation, complete with its nifty neon signage…Nu Grille Cafe. My photo compadre enjoyed a really big cheeseburger and I sampled the Frito chili pie, for about five bucks. Cheap but good! After chowing down supper at the greasy spoon, we headed back to UCM, which is maybe a couple of hours drive…I really lose track of time on the road, but it was dark! But lack of light never stops Wilson from creating images! As you can see posted below, he pushes the envelop of image making with any amount of electromagnetic radiation he can find. In this case, minimal ambient light from the dusky sunset and the truck dashlights!

© 2009 Terry Ownby

© 2009 Wilson Hurst

Triptychs

Some images work well in and of themselves and need no supporting cast, whether that be text, audio, or other images. Yet other times, images seem to tell a better story when grouped as a package, as viewers sometimes find in photo stories or photo essays found in newspapers or magazines. But photojournalistic stories are not what I what to write about tonight. (Although I am a huge fan of W. Eugene Smith’s photo stories in Life magazine!)

Grouping images in pairs or trios is the topic instead. Specifically I am referring to diptychs and triptychs. In this blog I have already posted several diptychs, but tonight it’s about triptychs. The word triptych comes from an early writing tablet used by the Romans in which there was one central writing panel flanked by additional panels left and right, which were hinged to the central one. Eventually this configuration was adopted by early Christian artists and was used for both paintings and carved reliefs, such as the Byzantine Harbaville Triptych from the 10th century CE.

Today many photographers group photos as either diptychs or triptychs, including yours truly. Recently I had the opportunity to enter an international photo competition in Texas and the theme centered around groups of three (read triptych here). The exhibition is called Menage a Trois II , which comes from the French expression ménage à trois, meaning “household of three”. While typically this references a three-way sexual affair, which is not the case here for this exhibition at the Watson Studio Gallery, located not far from Austin, Texas. (However, for an excellent read, try Ernest Hemingway’s In the Garden of Eden, which I read during my grad school days.)

The triptych of images below are the ones accepted for the juried exhibition at the Texas art gallery. The images are: Tall Rancher, SuperMan, and Big John.

© 2009 Terry Ownby

Military Photo-J

I’ve had a very interesting photographic career. Even though for two decades, I shot food for advertising and other commercial assignments, I was fortunate to simultaneously pursue photojournalism while serving in the U.S. military. After looking at my blog, one of my Army buddies asked me where were my PJ shots? Good question, since more than half of my 22 years of military service was as a photojournalist. Even though I’m posting an image today, I may very well devote an entire page on this site to some of my more memorable PJ shots.

This diptych comes from my last tour-of-duty in the República de Panamá. We were based at Santiago, in the Provincia de Veraguas, which is located in west-central Panama; roughly a 6 to 8 hour ride on an old school bus! My best friend, Koby, and I were sent to the north-western corner of the province, in the mountains up near Provincia de Bocas del Toro, to provide newspaper and TV coverage of humanitarian work by U.S. Army National Guard engineers. They were rebuilding a clinic in a small mountain village. Our only access to this hinter region was by air, so we hitched a ride with a flight of Vietnam-era Huey’s from the Illinois Army National Guard. After completing our mission, our flight decided to practice “nap-of-the-earth” flying along the Río de Jesús, which had a real pucker factor, but that’s another story for another time!

© 1992 Terry Ownby, Huey’s flying along foothills of the Ande’s in western Panama.