A Piece of Americana

Our world has had more painful moments to contend with lately.  And there is a lot more that we generally don’t know about because it hasn’t come to the national stage yet but just as painful.  My family and I have been on vacation for the last two weeks though and we still made the best of it.  There was no comfort in reading about Minnesota, Louisiana, and Dallas.  But even here in Florida, we heard about the attempted child abduction back in Victorville.  We learned about the 3 murders, including the 9-year-old boy, in San Bernardino too.  We live, work and go to school in the high desert.  Those things (and more I’m sure that did not hit the national stage) happened while we were gone but we’re heading back today.  We are in Orlando: Pulse Night Club.  We are from the Inland Empire: San Bernardino mass shooting.  Just the same, we earned a vacation and a respite from all of this pain.  This image is a parting shot of our last outing yesterday – the crowd is just random folks.  We barely made it back to the car before the downpour.  We had a lot of fun these last two weeks but the heat was a challenge.  It’s very humid here.  Truth be told, we had a good vacation but it’s time to go home.

Brick and Mortar

So, I know where I’m going but I can’t work on it at the moment.  I’m on another mission at this time.  But that’s ok – I can still share with you these images from my Victor Valley Project.

H&A International

Downtown Victorville, on 7^th Street, is where H&A International used to be.  The building is still there but a new business has moved in.  That’s a good thing.  Change in the way of the community coming back.  It’s a long way to go but it’s the right direction.  But this is not about that.  I like this #image – its symmetry, its balance that is really asymmetrical, the colors, the over saturation of the colors, the use of the negative space – I like this image because I’m not finished with it.  I thought I was but realize that I’m not.  Truth be told, I want to see more than what we see at the moment because more is going on that what is seen.  And this is #California – so very much California but not the California known by most.  There is so much to see.

Eastern Sky

I am really drawn to images of the eastern sky at dawn in particular.  This image is from where I use to live in Victorville looking east towards Apple Valley – where I live now.  I wonder, did I know something but was not aware of it?

A Street and 7th

  I made this image of downtown Victorville back in August 2014 in the morning.  Photography is really a kind of therapeutic thing for me.  I don’t know if I’m mentally unstable or not (I don’t feel like I am) but I feel really good when I’m creating images.  It’s just something about #photography that challenges me to take what may pass as ordinary and to try to make it extraordinary.  I don’t think this image is that but that is always the goal.  But this image does is a part of my continuing Victor Valley Project and you can look as some older examples of that at my web site if you are so inclined.  Though not extraordinary, I think this is a strong image though.

Mount Baldy (or Mount San Antonio)

  I live in a scenic paradise – the Victor Valley.  I know, some people would say, “What? #Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Valley and so on, are a part of a scenic paradise?”  It’s all in how you form your own thoughts about yourself and your life.  You want crap and feel like crap – I guess you’re crap.  I see what I see and I see a scenic paradise.  This is Mt. Baldy as seen east of Deep Creek Road at the top of the hill on Bear Valley Road.  It is part of the San Gabriel Mountains in San Bernardino County.  It is above 10,000 feet.  It is magnificent.  And it is an image I like a lot.

Independence Day

Four days ago we celebrated our nation’s birthday.  I took a picture.  Actually, I took a lot of pictures as I was experimenting with the light.  No tripod, no image stabilization, just free hand with a telephoto lens out to 300mm.  I knew I would have movement but that was the point – I approached this similar to my Kinetic Ambiguity Project.  And, of course, there is some post production going on to get the appearance that I want.  I liked this photo quite a bit.  Enjoy.

Things That I Have Done, 2

Here is the second video I created in Final Cut Pro X.  This one is a little better than project 1, I think.

Things That I Have Done

I will graduate tomorrow with a bachelor’s degree.  This is one of the things I did to earn it.  It was the first video I created in Final Cut Pro X.  It’s a bit rough but I liked it.

Arts N Fashion Magazine

Wow, the year’s end is upon us.  Well, I have an assignment tonight in Beverly Hills – cool.  2014 will be a great year I know.  Here is something cool that happened in 2013 – got published in a publication not associated with my university – cool.  Enjoy.

http://issuu.com/artsnfashion/docs/winter2013/1?e=2296489/6035979

Oh, I updated my website too.

http://www.edwardlancemontgomeryphotography.com/

Happy New Year!

Victorville’s Blue Dawn

I think I have said this before but the Victor Valley is a scenic place.  When you look around the place, you see how it could have easily been a vacation spot if it was approached that way years ago.  This blue dawn is another example of how amazing the views can be.

In this photo, I’m looking east north east, if you will.  It is a quarter past 6:00 am and you can see Apple Valley in the distance.  I think the layers of mountains are what really make the image.  Enjoy.

A Time of Great Happiness

You have to live up here in the Victor Valley in order to appreciate the significance of this bridge opening up.  They have had it planned for years.  They have been working on it for over a year.  Today they had a big “whoop tee-do” celebrating its initial opening.  That’s what the pictures are about.  You still can’t get on the interstate from it but you can cross to the other side (La Mesa Road) from Nisqualli Road.  You’re not forced to endure the standstill on Bear Valley or try your luck on Palmdale Road.  To get to Wal-Mart or the mall will only take 5 minutes instead of 15 to 20 minutes depending on what time of day it is for the same distance.  That’s a lot of gas idling away as you sit and wait.  And the freeway entries and exits should be operational within 30 days.  Just in time for the fall quarter.  Enjoy.

Joshua Tree and Sky

Hey, Happy New Year!!  So, when should we stop wishing people “Happy New Year”?  Never.  I read somewhere that you should start each day with expectation.  So, let’s wish everyone a happy new year all of the time.  My expectation is that I photograph wonderful things all of the time.  This is one.  I took this photograph of a Joshua tree way back on Sep 2011 not far from my kids’ bus stop.  You’d never know that I was in the middle of Victorville.  Well, if you live here you might.  Just the same – it’s cool, huh?

Flowers and a Sunrise

Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve been here.  The end of the school year coupled with various vacation and visits – crazy busy.  I should really think about doing this by phone.  Anyway, I’m still behind – even more so now.  You know I never stop photographing stuff.  I better streamline my processing though.  So, here’s a couple of shots from June last year.  Some flowers and a sunrise.

Huck Finn’s Jubilee Setup

We’re still bringing up the rear to get this photo blog current.  The sad thing is when its current I won’t have nearly as many post going in.  But that’s some time away and for now I have a year’s worth of photos to show you.  These photos were taken on June 15, 2011, at the setup for the 2011 Huck Finn’s Jubilee at Mojave Narrows Park here in Victorville.  The stage company belongs to one of my cousins and though he wasn’t on site (at another event) my brother and crew were there (along with another cousin who works for him too).  The company is ProfoundEntertainment – that’s a plug for my cousin.  Since they were in Victorville, they thought it was a good idea to call me over to record their activities.  And I did.  I did not attend the Jubilee though – I missed Roy Clark – because I had other plans but the link to it covers pretty much what goes on during the event.  I photographed this with my Canon Rebel XS, with the kit lens, and did my minor corrections with Photoshop.  Oh, on some I used the lens correction feature to eliminate the geometric distortion and the chromatic aberration.  How they do that stage and lights frame is pretty cool to watch too.  Have a look.

Grocery Shopping in Victorville

Oh look, it’s time to go grocery shopping.  Well, at least it was back on June 14, 2011. 

Victor Valley Sites, Victorville

As I often do, I will reshoot someone or someplace many times.  Sometimes I’m just testing and other times I’m trying to get it right.  And still other times I’m resurveying a site just to get a different look at it.  Like the difference between how it looks at sunrise versus sunset, for example.  Take this place that’s right off of 7^th Street (part of old Route 66) heading towards old town Victorville – just a few steps away from the library.  I’m captivated by this place.  I shot these photos on June 10, 2011.  By now, today in 2012, I have shot here probably 10 times.  Including photographing here twice for model photo shoots and once because I was showing a friend around the place who is also a photographer.  I have used the location for my Victor Valley Project also.  It is like the buildings are speaking to me, trying to tell me what it used to be like here.  Or I am just attracted to decay and aging.  I don’t know but I’ll shoot here again and again until I feel like I have had enough.  So, have a look.

This place, though at the time was empty, is being used for something periodically now.

For rent, I wonder for how much?

This place has a new name now and looks like the hall is once again being rented out.  I’ll have to get back with you with the new name but it’s no longer the California Banquet Hall.

The “La Herradura Night Club” sign has long been gone.  “Reflections” is still painted on the side of the walls though.  I read somewhere that the place was used to film a scene from Quentin Tarantino’s movie “From Dusk till Dawn”.  I should ask George Clooney if he remembers the place.

I am a huge fan of California style Chinese food.  I wonder if this place was good or not.  Nonetheless, I’ll never know.  But I’ll be back with my camera’s in hand.  Oh, these were shot with my PowerShot S5 IS.  Though its old it’s still an awesome little camera, especially for a “point and shoot”.  There’s that aging thing again.

Oh, and a big thank you to Robert Ivan Langdalen for following my blog here.  If you’re a fan of all things make up, you’d probably like to check that guy’s web site out.

Site Survey, Storage Place

Ok, June 5, 2011, I was at our new storage facility (we’re in an apartment so we still have too much stuff) just looking around the place with my Canon PowerShot A540 in hand.  What I saw was a lot of stuff that you had to wonder why someone would pay to store – you know storage places are a relatively new thing.  Do you remember any in the 1970’s?  Just the same, these things also made for an interesting photo or two.  And today, I decided to “cross process” them in Photoshop.  I just redid the post production this morning.  I’m getting very interested in the cross process look.  I think I will use it in my project for school this quarter.  I’m not sure yet but I’m thinking about it or a couple of other looks.  But that’s something else.  Here are some of the outside things stored at my local storage spot here in Victorville.  Have a look.

Site Survey, Victorville, Part 2

Here I am in Victorville.  This was shot on June 4, 2011, the same day as the previous entry.   And a correction on the previous entry – that’s not Victorville, its Apple Valley.  But this entry is what we’re on.  Wow, I’ve been living here for almost a year now.  I like Victorville though; the air is a lot better and I’m back in the high desert.  Plus, something is happening here, a sort of regrowth.  It’s slow in the making but things are starting to happen.  This town is in the right place for the future.  The whole of the Victor Valley is, for that matter.  And I’ve been capturing parts of it.  But these are photos from last year (remember, I’m catching up to the present).  And again, I’m laying the ground work for my “Victor Valley Project” but I’m not aware of it at this time.  I call these survey shots for future projects.  This day was my first real Victorville/Victor Valley survey.  I have done many site surveys since these.  I have done quite a few actual photo shoots and project work too since then too.  I’ll be posting some of that in this blog too but these are from last June.  I shot it with my PowerShot A540 too.  Have a look.

Snowcaps from Victorville, CA

The next day, I rode up to Victorville to talk to some folks at Victor Valley College because I wasn’t sure if I was going to go to school there but knew we would be moving to Victorville.  Again, I had my workhorse in tow, my PowerShot A540.  All of these pictures were taken in program mode utilizing my patented “drive by” photography method I perfected in Iraq during my tenure in the war.  Wow, that just makes it sound cool doesn’t it?

This is what it looks like right before you make a right turn on to Bear Valley Road coming off of the 15 from the pass.

This is staring eastbound down Bear Valley.

After my fact finding mission at Victor Valley College is done, I’m returning to the 15 on Bear Valley westbound.  I’m shooting southwest at Mt Baldy.  Even in Victorville, the setting is idyllic – though most of us are still hustling for gas money.

Speaking of gas money, look at those prices from Jan 5, 2011.

You’d think this was some sort of resort town.  The dichotomy of life here – it’s kind of surreal, unless you’re on the low income side of the equation.  In that case it is very real.

As I said, all photographs were taken with my Canon PowerShot A540.