I Love Simple

I love simple, probably because I'm not that complicated. On my first trip to Japan, I was working on a extensive essay with and extremely bright anthropologist. The articles that we did turned into a small book. We went up North of Tokyo about 150 kilometers to experience a Japanese tea ceremony/ Tea House, and also a Japanese garden. I was very taken with the fact that the garden, approximately 150ft long by 70ft wide, had three rocks and a bed of pebbles. After spending the better part of 45 minutes I finally got with the program, I figured out that within the simplicity of this garden was complication. It is all about allowing your mind to be part of the artwork, because that is true art. The experience drastically changed my attitude towards simplicity in my photography, and film making. Granted, there are times that my photos do not meet those standards, not because I haven't tried, they just didn't work out. The photo above is a photo that is specifically taken for me. I was thinking about that Japanese garden when I made the photograph. Tune in next week for Patty Smith. Signing off, Joe D.

Bert Sugar aka Bert The Great

Good friends try to keep their requests for assistance down to a minimum. Every time I've asked Bert Sugar for a favor, he's always come across. There is an old italian word for bert. He's a real "Mench" You can tell how good my Italian is. Bert joined me and Dylan yesterday as Gleasons Gym to interview Oscar De La Hoya. Bert being the profesional that he is, made a few executive decisions. We managed to get through the day unscathed and with all of the information we needed for our film "In This Corner". Oh my God, that's the name of the blog! What a coincidence! As day was winding into early evening, Bert wanted to go for a cocktail. Anyone who knows Bert, has to get used to three things; his fedora, his cigar, and his double Chivas Regal neat. I'm pretty sure that's scotch whiskey! So we left Gleason's and strolled over to a lovely little wine bar, 7 Old Fulton. It was way to early for dinner, and way to late for lunch. It was perfect timing for us to kick back and exchange war stories. Bert just returned from Miami, where he helped our mutual friend Angelo Dundee re-open the 5th Street Gym, after having been closed for 17 years. Boxing is coming back to Miami in a big way.The principles at the restaurant were of Italian heritage from Triest. The decor was beautiful, the food spectacular, and a genuine warm place to go with some friends  for a cocktail and dinner. I affectionally call Bert the "Bertster", and he calls me Uncle Joe (don't ask.) It was a great day, a hell of a lotta fun. That's it, Signing off. - Joe D.

All Images Copyright © Joe DiMaggio

Timex keeps on Ticking

It appears that the world is moving at light speed. Or maybe it's warp speed. I'll have to ask Bill Shatner which one is faster. Yesterday, my partner JoAnne Kalish found an old jewelry box. Yes i said Jewelry box, of mine. In the jewelry box was a fifty year old timex watch. So I looked at it, decided to wind it and guess what. It worked! So I set the time and checked it twelve hours later. It was dead on. In a drawer I very rarely go to, I have about fifteen plus watches. Guess what, I don't use any of them! Of course I keep time with my iPhone. Probably, my most expensive watch, $700. As we all know the iPhone can't make a decent phone call. Like a friend of mine said, "It's not the phone's fault it's AT&T" The bottom line is I can't make to many phone calls, but it does keep good time.
Joe D. Signing off.



All images Copyright © Joe DiMaggio

Montauk in September

All Photos © Joe DiMaggio 

Four days off after a major corporate shoot and film for Galvanic Printing, see my vimeo page. Anyone who's been to any of my workshops, lectures, or our DiMaggio/Kalish Learning Center knows that they hear the same thing over and over. Less is more. Both JoAnne and I receive many questions about the quality of photographic products. My answer is relatively simple. Whatever works for you, and whatever you can afford is what it's all about. Let's remember the photographer makes the photograph. One of my long-time assistants Larry Malang asked me "Are Canon and Nikon lenses better then Sigma's?" My answer was very simple. "Canon and Nikon make great glass, and so does Sigma" One thing about Sigma glass that is really impressive, is that the lenses work very well with severe backlight. I shoot a lot of  backlight because I love it!  I took three new lenses with me to Montauk for a well deserved four day busmans holiday. The 8-16mm , the 17-50mm  f/2.8, and the 70-200mm. I use all of these lenses specifically for video. As soon as I can cut some footage, I will post it on Vimeo. In the mean time, here are a few photos that are severely back and side lit.  Utilizing the new lenses. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that they have great color and great contrast. Great shooting.

Joe D.

All Photographs Copyrighted Joe DiMaggio  ©

To Blog or Not to Blog?

To blog or not to blog, that is the question. The reality is, I've had two major assignments in the last month. My first priority is to my clients. I love all of you guys, but business before pleasure. This is really great business. I had an opportunity to work with a dear friend, Dennis Wheeler, Dennis was not only the creative director but art director on a major shoot for John Moss of Galvanic Printing. Dennis was commissioned by John to generate a wall mural to compliment his new Hidelburg press. Dennis will do all the design work and the actually assembling of the collage in both the foyer and in the press area. My job was to photograph the stills and Dylan Michael will generate the HD video. There are very few times when you have all of the stars aligned in the right direction. Any time I can work with Dennis, John, & Dylan it's a great thing! The creative juices flow the way the ink flows on the paper. The combination of this assignment and my first four consecutive days off in Montauk Point, I feel great! So if anybody would like to borrow a lens, now would be a good time to get in touch with me. NOT! I was totally fascinated by the empty ink cans and we will incorporate those graphic designs into the final layouts. So thanks Dennis, John, & Dylan. It's all good. I'll have a lot more to say about this in the next few weeks.