the literate lens

photography, writing and the spaces between

End of the Road: An Interview with Jeff Jacobson

Provia, Agfapan, Kodachrome, Plus X, Polaroid Type 55. In the last few years, the list of films being discontinued has gotten longer, prompting cries and groans from desolate photographers. Imagine, … Continue reading

Featured · 1 Comment

Selective Vision and Photojournalism

If you believe the hype, the next great technological frontier will be in the realm of vision, with digital tools embedded in glasses or in contact lenses to record, analyze … Continue reading

Featured · 4 Comments

Into the Light: Robert Burley’s Book on the End of Analog

Ah, the old darkroom days. Giving up daylight hours to hide away in the dark, like a mole in a burrow. Shuffling from enlarger to sink, breathing in a noxious … Continue reading

April 29, 2013 · 1 Comment

A Novel of War Crimes and Punishments

“If everyone could be there just once, to see for themselves what white phosphorous does to the face of a child, or what unspeakable pain is caused by the impact … Continue reading

April 12, 2013 · 6 Comments

Jack Kerouac, Middle-Aged Woman?

Imagine Jack Kerouac as a pretty, middle-aged woman. Can you do it? Is your brain boiling and steam coming out of your ears yet? Given Kerouac’s much-documented sexism and position … Continue reading

March 4, 2013 · 7 Comments

Flights of Fantasy: An Interview with Paolo Ventura

Nostalgia is a potent force. We long for lost times, people we’ve left behind, a former self. Or perhaps we fantasize about paths not taken, ideas left unexplored. Either way, … Continue reading

February 1, 2013 · 3 Comments

South Africa’s Disgrace in Words and Images

How do great literature and great photography enhance each other, and what can each do that the other can’t? Those of you who’ve been reading this blog for a while … Continue reading

January 10, 2013 · 7 Comments

Brilliance, Sex, Hubris: The Story of Polaroid

In his great wisdom, my ten-year-old son Nathan bought me a new photography-related book for Christmas. Never having been a big Polaroid fan, I probably wouldn’t have grabbed Christopher Bonanos’s … Continue reading

December 27, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Fact versus Fiction in a Novel Package of Women Photographers

As I’ve mentioned before on this blog, I’m currently writing a historical novel with a photographic theme. So naturally, whenever a novel about photography is published (which seems to be … Continue reading

December 13, 2012 · 5 Comments
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