hildreth

There is a romantic air about California that has encompassed my life since I was a teenager.

I went out for a few summers with my grandparents to visit family and go to Disneyland. Nothing I can remember in great detail: my grandfather in all his medicated fury; fold-out couches, interior design with blends of oranges and browns; my first encounter with Donald Duck excitedly miming and showing off a single facial expression in a stiff over-sized costume. There isn't much in my memory bank on this, but once in a while when I read a novel like Steinbeck's, East of Eden, or tap into the journalistic musings of Joan Didion in her collection, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, I feel a connection. I dream of California in the taste of red wine, calm sunny days, and a blonde haired woman, though I certainly never experienced that as a child. Joni Mitchell's music is another culprit of awakening this strange connection. And, whenever I capture the wind's movement across fields or through a woman's hair--especially if she is back-lit by the sun--I feel the connection again.

When I am editing my photos, I gravitate to placing blues and yellows over them to achieve that sun-faded, vintage look. This hasn't happened too often yet, since most of my work needs to be recognizable. I want to move into experimenting with textures, saturated colors, and give some element of mystery in my artistic images.

I was given a link to this site by a co-worker: http://www.abduzeedo.com/

In particular, he showed me an artist he thought I would relate to and possibly find inspiration from. He was right. This artist taps into the very dream that is 60s-70s California in my mind, placing a very vintage feel on modern photos.

Have a look.

Neil Krug, vintage photographer on Abduzeedo

Music Recommendation:

Home by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros