Wimpy was a name of a chain of burger restaurants that were popular back in the day in England (I believe the Wimpy chain began life in South Africa). Wimpy burgers could aptly be described as deplorable. There really is no way around the poor quality of the food at a Wimpy.

Take Home a Wimpy © Harold Davis

I took this photo around 1968 in front of a Wimpy in London, England. In the rear is my mom Virginia and my dad Martin. In the middle row, from the left, my brother Nathan, Monica Hughes, and Steven Hughes. The front row has three younger Hughes children. The Hughes were a family we spent time with. I can be seen as a shadowy reflection in the plate glass window of the Wimpy taking the photo.

My father says that when he brought all these kids (my brother and I and the five Hughes children) inside the Wimpy for a treat he was asked if all seven children were his and my mom’s.

Of course, he said “Yes,” and enjoyed watching the jaws drop.

The apple, they say, doesn’t fall too far from the tree. I have enjoying taking my four kids to a playground with a couple of other friends of the children along, and replying in the affirmative when asked if they were all mine!

Self-Portrait of the Artist from the Disco Era © Harold Davis

Starting to scan some slides. This one is circa 1980.

Petal Fractal 101 Inversion © Harold Davis

Petal Fractal 101 © Harold Davis

Some related reading (helps to explain where I am coming from): On Art and Beauty.

Related images: Floral Mandala; Petals of the Rainbow; It starts with a photo; It starts with a petal and ends with a twist of fate.

This year, 2018, has been a little sparse for me photographically so far (but see Red Tulips and New Year’s Day Design). I think of this as a “pause that refreshes” after the whirlwind that 2017 was for me, with some exciting plans for 2018!

I’ll discuss an additional reason for this sparseness, and also outline some of my 2018 plans, below a few images I have made already this year. One is a sunset from Indian Rock looking out towards San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate. But instead of the expected landmarks, what you see are bare branches, with the sunset behind. The other two images are of camellias in our garden, photographed using the Lensbaby 85mm f/1.6. We have an old-fashioned camellia bush that always flowers right around my birthday in January (lucky me!).

Sunset in Winter © Harold Davis

Birthday Camellia © Harold Davis

Camellia © Harold Davis

In my New Year’s Greeting, I wrote “with the world standing on the knife’s edge of authoritarianism, it is important to remember that a kindly civilization that values people and their differences is ultimately better for everyone. To paraphrase John Donne, no one is an island apart, and when one person is diminished so are we all. For the sake of our children and our children’s children, we should not passively accept a world that is less than it can be.”

I believe this fairly anodyne message is worth repeating because it brought me hate emails, and folks who wanted off my email lists. So I am herewith doubling down. As a patriot, and someone who loves his country, I cannot be silent, because silence is being complicit and borders on collaboration. I am entitled to my viewpoint on the events of our times and the festering evil of our “not my President.” I am prepared to accept that there are divergent viewpoints, but if someone cannot accept mine then I don’t want them on my email lists or in my workshops.

Here are some of my plans for 2018: In April I will be leading a small group of photographers in the southwest of France. Following this destination workshop I am going to spend some time solo walking the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail. From Santiago de Compostela, I’ll head to Menorca as one of the Masters for PhotoPills Camp.

In June, I’ll be leading the only session of Photographing Flowers for Transparency in 2018 here in Berkeley, California (there are still a few spaces left).

In August, I’ll again to Maine to teach a week of garden photography at Maine Media, then to Germany to teach once more in beautiful Heidelberg.

Also please keep in mind the Dark of the Moon night photography workshop in the eastern Sierra (in September, with a few spaces left).

I also want to highlight my early November destination photo tour to the ancient country of Malta in the southern Mediterranean. 

My full upcoming Workshops & Events calendar can be found here.