Gordon Smith is a Photographer Based in Sanibel, Florida, USA
I first met Gordon in Miami as we prepared to take off on a Complete Cuba trip. Gordon was ALL IN on the trip, willing to enjoy every experience from bright and early in the morning until the last glass of beer in the evening. Gordon came to the Complete Cuba trip from his relationship with Dan Tamarkin at Tamarkin Camera. As I’ve said before, this is the great part of photography and our community. Random people you would never meet but can learn so much from and have so much in common.
Gordon has published books of his photography and is an avid Leica shooter. He is also an LHSA International Leica Society member.
Thank you Gordon for taking time to share with RedDotBlueDot readers! I’m thrilled to have you as a Photographer in Focus!
Five Foto Facts
First camera: Kodak Baby Brownie
Favorite camera: Leica Q2
Photographer who has most inspired you: Elliott Erwitt
Favorite travel destination: Singapore
One place left on your travel bucket list: Vietnam/Cambodia/Mekong River
Photograph by: Gordon Smith
The Interview
RDBD: Tell me a little bit about yourself. What do readers need to know about you to get to know you? What is your personal, professional, and photography background?
G.S.: My wife, Nancy, and I grew up in Swarthmore, PA. We married there 61 years ago. We now move seasonally between Sanibel, FL and Moorestown, NJ.
For 55 years I was a valuation consultant. In later years I focused on the business aspects of intellectual property (i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights) and my travels were often overseas and concentrated in Asia. I also lectured overseas and joined the faculty of the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law. Retirement has been a long process, but it is pretty much concluded by now.
Since I was 12-ish with the Baby Brownie, I dabbled in photography, getting more serious about it as time and $ permitted. My father-in-law used a Leica III-G and it went on my wish list. Years later I was able to purchase the first of the many Leica cameras that I cycled through as new models came out and my skills improved.
I always had a camera with me on my travels and, as I was trying to learn about the places and people I was visiting, taking photographs made me more observant and “immersed”.
RDBD: What type of photography do you consider your primary genre and why? What does it mean to you? How did you become focused on this area of photography?
G.S.: When I began imaging my travels, I would proudly show my wife the fruits of my labor. She would say, “that’s nice, but there’s never any people in your pictures”. “Well no”, said I, “that’s why I get up at dawn – so the images wouldn’t be mucked up by a lot of people milling around!”. I came to realize, of course, that it is the people that make a place, not the statues, monuments, parks and scenery. And in time I came to realize that wherever one goes on the globe, we are more alike than we are different.
So a broad version of so-called street photography became my primary interest. I am not great at it, but I like the challenge. It forces me to be observant and pay attention to what is going on around me. And my Leica Q2 is a wonderful tool for that style of photography.
RDBD: When the light isn’t right or you aren’t getting great shots what motivates you?
G.S.: My primary motivation has been the challenge of creating better images. Photography is both art and science. One can point a camera in any direction and capture an image. But some art is necessary to be able to select a pleasing image out of that circular panorama. The science is making the camera behave in a way that records that image the way you want. As in any creative activity, you must know how your tools work. Neither of those ingredients is easily acquired, so becoming proficient can be a lifelong pursuit, as it has for me. I don’t anticipate running out of motivation.
In years past, my photography competed with sailing, woodworking and competition pistol shooting. But at 83, photography has won out.
RDBD: So one way or another you are shooting! By the way, I’ll join you any day on that trip to Vietnam…that bucket list item is the same for me!
RDBD: Please tell me why you chose the image to submit as your one image. What meaning does the image have to you?
G.S.: The locale is the South China Sea, near Singapore. I was sailing with friends, so it means pleasant memories. Furling a sail when it breezes up is always a bit exciting and physical, and I feel the image captures that. I also like the soft, creamy tones of the sail in this monochrome rendering.
RDBD: In an era where everyone has a smartphone and selfies and micro-blogging daily activities are quickly becoming the norm, why does traditional photography still matter?
G.S.: It’s dawn, and I am pointing my new AI Special camera at a bridge with the sun rising behind it. I begin to press the shutter and my new camera says to me, “move to your right so the bridge is a diagonal starting at the corner of the image…it’s better composition…and I’ll zoom in a bit to take out that bush in front of you…and wait for 90 seconds and the sun will be right behind the tower for a dramatic shot”. I mumble “OK”, count off 90 seconds, push the shutter the rest of the way and walk on. Job done, little or no thinking necessary.
Fantastic? Not at all, we are practically there. And whatever new feature comes, someone will figure out how to cram the required hardware and software into a smartphone. The tsunami of images fired by social media will be with us for quite a while, I think.
However, I believe that there will always be folks who are willing to immerse themselves in the art and science, either because they make their living from creating photographs that must stand above the multitude, or because they simply wish to pursue excellence for the personal satisfaction of doing so. This traditional approach to photography will remain with us, in my view.
RDBD: What is one question you thought I should ask but didn’t?
G.S.: What was the most interesting property you ever appraised? Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
Contact Gordon Smith:
email: ahab67@gmail.com