Terezin: Small Fortress

Announcing: 

Results of the PPD Photo Book Essay Contest

By Larry Cowles FPSA GMPSA/s

This is the second year for the Print Division Photo Essay Book Contest.   This year we had 17 books from 4 countries.   Congratulations to all the winners which were announced at the Photographic Society of America Conference in San Antonio on September 9, 2016.

1st Place Terezin: “Small Fortress” James David Phenicie

2nd Place The Wild and Woolie Sheep Rodeo Viki Gaul

3rd Place The John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon Michael Todd

Judges Choice Exploring China Lynn Troy Maniscalco

Judges Choice Cats of Beaufort Sandy Dimke

Judges Choice Old Car USA, A Photographers Paradise Bill Buchanan FPSA

HM Devesh Devkumar Gupta

For those interesting in entering the 2017 contest, all the information, requirements and entry form can be found on the PSA website in the PPD section.

This summer I entered the Photo Book Essay Contest which is part of the Print Division of the Photographic Society of America.  At their annual conference in San Antonio, TX, it was announced that my entry had won first place.

The idea for this 75 page book was developed from my 2015 visit to the Terezin Small Fortress Concentration Camp located outside Prague, Czech Republic.  It was a happen-stance visit, as we passed through on the way back to Germany.  And there it was, in the afternoon that I walked through this small fortress with its connection to Nazi evil.  I paid the small fee for the privilege of photographing and as I self-toured each room, the impact of the place was great.  I took each image knowing that it had been a horrible and torturous place for those placed in the cramped prison.  The suffering and agony weighed on my heart at each click of the shutter.

When I returned home I was unsure exactly what I would do with the images.  And then a local photographer told me that the PSA had a category for a Photo Book Essay Contest.  So I decided to design a book around the images.

At first I was unsure as to how to tell the story, but after extensive research for a short documentary video on the Small Fortress, I decided to use old, historical photographs on the facing page of each of my images to help tell the story of the "Nameless Ones."  Here are several samples of the pages:

I appreciate the judges rewarding me for the work I did and selecting my entry as the first place winner.

Here is a link to my video:  https://vimeo.com/143300885

Helping a Friend

I have a friend who is trying to start her own business here in California; she recently had a successful Kickstarter campaign to launch her Cozy Chic Fashion for a Cause.  The name of her company is Tillage Clothing Company.  She designed a sustainable, wrinkle-free pant for ladies to wear on just about any occasion.  The thrust of her vision is to help combat human trafficking in our own back yard and in the world around us.


Abby Farr has worked diligently on her project and has recently begun shipping her product to those who invested in her Kickstarter project. To help her promote her company, we recently photographed several models wearing her design.

 The pants are classy and can be worn on different occasions without feeling overly or under dressed in "California Casual" situations.

Here's wishing her all the best in her new endeavor and great success!

Anatomy of a burglary!

So what does a burglar look like?  What does he drive?  How does he operate?  In the middle of the night or during the day? 

 

On June 9, 2016 at approximate 10:45 am, a burglar struck my neighbor’s home on Paseo Tapajos.  On the same date between 8:45am, and 10:31am, a home one block away (as the crow flies) was burglarized on Paseo Carreta.  The location of the homes was not unusual.  They aren’t located on a corner, they have neighbors on either side and across the street.  The rear of one home backs up to Rancho Bravado; the other one backs up to the canyon.  From the home on Paseo Carreta you can see the roof line of the one on Paseo Tapajos.   And perhaps a coincidence:  both houses are the third in from the corner and on the left side as you enter off of the main street.

At 8:44am, the alleged thief drove slowly down our street, made a U-turn and then unhurriedly  retraced his movement back out to Rancho Bravado.  The bed of his pickup truck was empty.  But the future victim’s car was still in the driveway.  At 10:44 am, the same pickup returned and drove back down the street but this time he had a bicycle in the bed of his pickup.  And the upcoming victim’s car had left for the morning.  The thief  turned around somewhere down the street then returned and pulled to the curb in front of the next-door neighbor’s house because a waste container blocked the parking area directly in front of the victim’s home.  

And what did Mr. Burglar do?  He simply got out, went to the sidewalk and hung out, leaning on the passenger side of his pretty truck with no plates:  the rear plate appeared to have an auto dealer’s placard. 

So what did the alleged burglar look like:  well, he didn’t look like the “Hamburglar,” that’s for sure. 

He didn’t wear a ski mask or a bandana to cover his face.  He didn’t have a black hoodie or camouflaged clothes.  He didn’t try to hide from those who walked past him while he lounged next to his shiny new black Dodge Ram pickup with those gleaming, chrome, custom rims parked in front of his victim’s neighbor’s home with a possible stolen bicycle in the bed.  

No, he actually looked outrageous:  he was wearing a bright orange, long-sleeved shirt with blue jeans and a baseball cap:  kind of looked like someone who wanted to be seen, to look like he should be there for some reason other than mischief.  After all, what thief would draw that kind of attention to himself?  But no one paid him a look.

Was he building up courage to break in?  He probably didn’t need to!  After all, he had just broken into the home down the street and stole a bunch of stuff, including the bicycle openly hidden in the back of his big four-door “Ram.”  And then… well the camera stopped so it is unknown which side gate he entered to go into the victim’s back yard. 

The camera suddenly keyed-up at 11am; the full-sized white van with the square Amazon logo on the side drove up and parked directly abreast of the burglar’s truck.  Working from his truck the delivery driver ran up to several of the neighbor’s homes and dropped packages, passing within a foot of the tailgate of the thief’s truck.  At 11:06 am, the Amazon truck left, the housebreaker still inside. The camera timed off. 

At 11:08 am, the camera re-energized revealing the alleged thief coming around the corner from the front door area of the residence pulling a roller suitcase.  He stopped for a moment to look down the street as a young lady walking her dog was approaching from the other side of the street. 

So, what would a normal person do that wasn’t doing anything wrong?  He did just that!  He continued pulling his stolen suitcase full of pilfered goods toward the side of his truck and then he lifted the suitcase up and deposited it into the bed next to the stolen bike.  The alleged thief walked casually around the front of the truck toward the driver’s door, while holding a white clutch bag which he had just swiped from the victim’s home.  He hesitated just a moment and looked over at the young lady and her dog:  no problem, he casually entered and sat down, shut the door as she slowly passed by.  

Then the camera turned off.

Just a property crime the police blotter will say:  two victims in one morning… not a bad day’s work!  The alleged burglar drives a fancy, brand new Dodge Ram probably financed by selling his ill-gotten gains:  the victims are traumatized and violated with a loss of their possessions.  The alleged burglar targeted his prey; it wasn’t random – but the connection is unknown.  At one house he displayed his adroitness by carefully breaking a window pane, unlatching the window and slipping in side.  At the other house, he simply crawled through an open window.  He showed no fear of his surroundings:  two runners passed him, the young lady and the dog passed, the neighbors were home on either side and he literally waved a red cape at the bull with his iridescent orange shirt! 

It’s just a property crime… with victims.