Michael Schmidt

12/29/2021

12/29/2021

Brooklyn ~ An Italian American story

12/29/2021

“When you go out into the woods, and you look at trees, you see all these different trees. And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever. And you look at the tree and you allow it. You see why it is the way it is. You sort of understand that it didn’t get enough light, and so it turned that way. And you don’t get all emotional about it. You just allow it. You appreciate the tree.

The minute you get near humans, you lose all that. And you are constantly saying ‘You are too this, or I’m too this.’ That judgment mind comes in. And so I practice turning people into trees. Which means appreciating them just the way they are.”

- Ram Dass

12/22/2021

Series: Monochrome City

On some days I tune out the colors

There is something that happens when the viewfinder turns black and white

I can focus on the soul of the city

A battle of dark and light brings geometry into full clarity

My eyes jump rapidly, identifying the shapes that encompass my frame

In monochrome my compositions come naturally but the shutter is only pressed when there is a feeling in my gut

Photography is as much about feeling as it is seeing

It is not about working without color, but going beyond it

12/11/2021