,

Oh, Harbour Bridge

,
Oh, Harbour Bridge

One of my favourite things about Don McGlashan's songwriting (and there are many) is this - the choice he makes about the perspective, or point of view, of the characters in a song. 

Harbour Bridge is a perfect example - it's a song about parting, about breaking up with someone you love; but the person singing it manages to pin all their problems on the various failings of...the bridge they're driving across.

If only bridge weren't so grey / long / high / convenient, he'd have been able to think of, and say, everything he wanted to tell her; and, maybe, she'd have stayed...

Scism

RASK9797.jpg

Photography by Jonas Rask

“I know the pieces fit ‘cause I watched them fall away
Mildewed and smoldering. Fundamental differing
Pure intention juxtaposed will set two lovers souls in motion
Disintegrating as it goes testing our communication
The light that fueled our fire then has burned a hole between us so
We cannot seem to reach an end crippling our communication

I know the pieces fit ‘cause I watched them tumble down
No fault, none to blame, it doesn’t mean I don’t desire to
Point the finger, blame the other, watch the temple topple over
To bring the pieces back together, rediscover communication

The poetry that comes from the squaring off between
And the circling is worth it
Finding beauty in the dissonance”
— Maynard James Keenan

Outside The Wall

011_CLARK_Outside_The_Wall.jpg

PHOTOGRAPHY BY DEREK CLARK

“All alone, or in two’s
The ones who really love you
Walk up and down outside the wall
Some hand in hand
And some gathered together in bands
The bleeding hearts and the artists
Make their stand
And when they’ve given you their all
Some stagger and fall, after all it’s not easy
Banging your heart against some mad bugger’s wall”
— Roger Waters - Pink Floyd
015_CLARK_Outside_The_Wall.jpg

I Knew The Bride When She Used To Rock And Roll

Photography & text by Kevin Mullins

This month we are tasked with the theme "music".  

I've had a very busy February and March including long-distance travel and weddings so I'm running behind on my storytelling essays.

However, I have interpreted this theme to coincide with one of my favourite Nick Lowe songs..... and it all ties together nicely I think. 

7x021

Dressing Room PianoDerek Clark | X100F - 23mm - ISO2000 - f/2 - 1/125 sec

Dressing Room Piano
Derek Clark | X100F - 23mm - ISO2000 - f/2 - 1/125 sec

Hilltop Silhouettes, Sydney
Robert Catto | X-T2, 35mm f/1.4. 1/250 at f/11, ISO 200.

StatuesqueJonas Rask | X-H1, Laowa 9mm f/22, 1/1000, ISO 800.

Statuesque
Jonas Rask | X-H1, Laowa 9mm f/22, 1/1000, ISO 800.

AuxaneVincent Baldensperger | X-Pro2. | 56mm 1/125 at f/1.8, ISO 100.

Auxane
Vincent Baldensperger | X-Pro2. | 56mm 1/125 at f/1.8, ISO 100.

While Reading Patrick La Roque | GFX 50S, Pentax 50mm f/1.7, 1/125 at f/1.7, ISO 100.

While Reading
Patrick La Roque | GFX 50S, Pentax 50mm f/1.7, 1/125 at f/1.7, ISO 100.

A Snow DayKevin Mullins | GFX 50S, Minolta MD 1.7/85mm Rokkor Lens 1/2,000 ISO 200

A Snow Day
Kevin Mullins | GFX 50S, Minolta MD 1.7/85mm Rokkor Lens 1/2,000 ISO 200

,

Reclaimed

,

BY BERT STEPHANI

STEPHANI-desert-02.jpg

I'm supposed to have a slow morning before I'm flying back home but instead I was up at 4 am and now I'm on my way to the desert, outside of Dubai. It's a last minute opportunity that I just can't pass on. The night before I was invited to join a team from Gulf Photo Plus for a trip to an abandoned town in the desert. They are doing some filming to promote their upcoming Photo Week event (check it out, our buddy Kevin Mullins will be one of the teachers there). 

The camera is with me, but basically I'm going simply because I like being in the desert. The first remains of the small abandoned village don't bring the sadness that I usually get in deserted places. It doesn't disturb me and it doesn't seem to disturb nature either. It's just there, peacefully and calm.

On the edge of the settlement a small mosque glows in the morning sun. I sit down on the wall that surrounds it and can't help thinking that it is more spiritual place than any active religious place that I've ever visited. 

STEPHANI-desert-07.jpg

I sit there for almost an hour and I look back at an amazing trip and an amazing year. I look forward to become a better photographer, a better boyfriend, a better dad, a better man. And I look inside to see what will drive transition. 

Inside ... loneliness, sadness, frustration and insecurity orbit around me but can't quite get traction. My gaze turns outside and just like these buildings I accept the flow.

It's time to head home, face demons and embrace angels. 

Happy New Year everyone, I'm looking forward to see what 2018 will bring for KAGE. In case you were wondering: most of the pictures in this story were shot with the GFX50S with the GF63mm lens. I used the panoramic crop mode for these pictures and for a couple of pictures I used the X100F in 16:9 mode and cropped them a bit tighter in post to match the GFX shots. 

,

Life on Mars

,
“
 Mars, Antarctica or Mount Everest Base Camp might be warmer alternatives for some Canadians on Thursday, as the country faces an epic cold snap that has plunged the mercury to record-setting lows in many regions. ”
— ctvnews.ca

Last year it was polar vortex. This year it’s bombogenesis. Out here in the northern lands, away from sensationalist headlines, we just call it bloody damn cold.

Of course, some clueless fool will surely jump at the opportunity: “See! Global warming=total hoax! Fake news!”. It’ll probably be on Twitter and Twitter won’t care, probably followed by the word sad and a few spelling mistakes. And weather patterns will keep shifting, and hurricanes will keep blowing...blow, blow, blow the house down.

But hey...we’ll get a few fun words out of it.

- - -

Addendum: a week later and the rain hasn’t stopped for two days. It’s 10ºC. In Quebec. In January.

,

seven suns

,

BY VINCENT BALDENSPERGER

Noëllia et Gaël ont une passion commune, la liberté. Concepteurs, créateurs, artisans, tous deux réalisent des longboards haut de gamme aux finitions exemplaires. Matériaux, design, tonalités graphiques, performances, rien n'est laissé au hasard. De la découpe aux finitions manuelles, ponçage, peinture, vernis, assemblage, les deux artistes de la glisse démontrent leur savoir-faire. 7 suns, leur signature la plus lumineuse, magique, positive...

- - - 

Noëllia and Gaël share a passion: freedom. Designers, creators and artisans, they both produce exquisite high-end longboards. Nothing is left to chance: materials, graphics and performance are all top notch. From the very first cut through each finishing step, these artists shine. 7 Suns, their luminous signature, magical, positive...