My Grand daughter Alexi

Everyone loves their children. I have had a lifelong love of photography.

Those two statements dovetail nicely into a photographic history of my children from birth through adulthood. My daughter Rita and my son Leonard have been photographed throughout their lives and we now look back at their early photos nostalgically - of course we're proud of the wonderful, intelligent adults each has become. But parenthood, and dealing with young children is a wonderful experience that is difficult to appreciate as you live it. In retrospect is where you really feel the power of that time in your life. This is why grandparents dote on their grandchildren. Most of us wish we could go back and do things better, avoid mistakes we've made because of our work schedules, or lack of maturity.

When I began my hobby of photography, I was in high school. I learned on black and white film, because it could be developed in a process that could be done yourself and cost a fraction of what it took to develope a set of color prints. Developing my own film and making my own prints also taught me a great deal about light, shadows, effects of contrast and the limitations of film (which, compared to the human eye, are significant). What we see with our eye - variations in bright areas of a scene to dark areas - has detail throughout. With film, you must sacrifice either the bright detail or the dark detail, or add artificial light for the dark areas (a flash) to lighten the dark area to show detail. Your eye can see it all crisply and clearly.

EUREKA!!!.... the advent of the digital camera and the cost free photo.

My daughter has taken up photography and has usurped me as the photographic genius of the family. Between the two of us, no one in our family can do anything without being immortalized in a photo. I remember fighting with everyone wheneverr I wanted to take a photograph. NO don't take my picture! Mostly my beautiful wife - who has always been modest. The kids were willing (more accurately - unknowing) subjects and pretty much oblivious to it. It was always the adults who were either unhappy with the way they felt they looked and didn't want a photo. Never stopped me. If they didn't like the shot, it would be destroyed when viewed later.

We have a problem, however. Alexi, my grandaughter is no longer oblivious. With the advent of the digital camera, every aspect of her life has been photographed with zillions of photos. She is asked to pose constantly. We only get to see her a few times a year and one thing has become obvious to me. She is beginning to act (at the age of 3 1/2) like a celebrity in hollywood avoiding the papparazzi. She withholds her cooperation when she is unhappy. It is difficult for her to have fun without being asked to stop and smile for the camera.

Our recent trip to hawaii proved my point. Here are a variety of photos of Alexi avoiding the Paparazzi in a her own little ways ranging from subtle to blatant. I think she's trying to tell us something.




So she has reached her breaking point in being the model. OR she's found a new way to exert what little power she has over the adults around her.



Here we are waiting for a table at a restaurant in Haleiwa. Lucy and I have driven by this restaurant for 30 years and never went in, thinking it to be a tourist trap. turns out it was excellent.



There are times when my little grandaughter is the perfect subject. this photograph, I've entitled "frank look", gives me an insight into what she is going to look like as an adult.



This is what flying coach looks like. If all the passengers were the same size as Alexi, it would be perfectlyh comfortable.



this is the beautiful clear water of Waimea Bay. A real treat. the only downside is slugging over a half mile of soft sand to get to the actual water. Easy on the way down. Much more difficult on the way back up.





I'm not sure whose idea this was. Lenny was an unwilling participant, and his brother in law Justin pointed out after the fact that being kissed by your wife is okay, but your sister kissing you is kind of creepy (I think it's cute!!)


My grandson and the fourth in the namesake Line. He loves the water.