I think it is impossible to visit Niagra Falls and not become a tourist. There is something about the boom of the falls, the rumbling that you can hear from far, far away and the release of energy caused by the hundreds of thousands of gallons of water rushing over the brink that you feel it deep down in your stomach. It’s thrilling.
I visited the Falls with my mother. It was one of my favorite trips this year.
© Sarah Girner
Every year I forget or maybe repress the memory of the unbearable heat that descends on New York City in the summer. The city becomes an oven – the heat reflects off of the buildings and the sidewalks. Descending the subway stairs feels like descending into hell. I thank my lucky stars that the parents of my brother-in-law have a house in Sagaponack and welcome us there with open arms. We brave the train, the beer-swilling meatheads and sun-charred bimbettes that are all heading to the Hamptons and clench our teeth at the two hour train ride (this time at sub-Arctic temperatures). We disembark with smiling faces because we know that for the two next glorious days we’ve escaped.
© Sarah Girner
Two of my greatest passions in life are photography and food. This coming Saturday the 17th of July is going to be a happy day for me! I am one of the featured photographers at CPW’s Slideluck Potshow in Woodstock, NY. Read all about it here.
If any of you are in the neighborhood, I’d love to see you there! And just in case you were wondering… my culinary contribution to the evening will be Manchego-stuffed dates wrapped in bacon and roasted in the oven. They’re really good.
I was invited to show my work at LOOKbetween in Charlottesville, VA. The LOOK3 Festival of the Photograph took this year off and in its stead 81 emerging photographers were invited to spend three days at Deep Rock Farm, share their work and join in on discussions with industry professionals about the future of our business. This was the first time they attempted something like this, and I loved being a part of the process. You can read my favorite write-ups about the three days on Deep Rock Farm here and here.
I can be a bit of a Luddite and the shift towards video is not one I necessarily welcome. However, the video work of Erika Larsen, Simon Biswas, Maisie Crow and Susan Worsham really knocked my socks off. In the case of Simon and Erika I appreciated that the videos were made up of a series of beautifully lit and composed stills that just happened to be moving. In the case of Maisie and Susan, I loved the integration of stills and video which had the end result of creating a harmonic and symbiotic whole. In both cases, the stories were captivating, heart-breaking, and fascinating… all at the same time.
In the end, one of the things I enjoyed most about the weekend away, was being truly away. Jessica Nagle put us up on her beautiful property. There were donkeys and hammocks and lakes and hay bales and bonfires. Best of all, there was no cellphone reception and no e-mail access.
There were moments I wanted to pinch myself.
©Sarah Girner
I’ve been on the road a lot these past weeks and one of my travel destinations happened to be Rochester, NY. I was excited, because I had always wanted to go to the George Eastman House and to see where the story of my favorite film began. I did not know what to expect. My camera bag was weighing me down, so I left it in a locker at the entrance to the museum.
The second I set foot in Mr. Eastman’s beautifully restored Dining Room, I turned on my heels and retrieved my camera. The people who run the museum arrange the rooms in a way that you feel like George Eastman just stepped out… Biscuits are placed next to tea cups. Fresh flowers fill the rooms. It’s eerie. And wonderful.
I am terrified of air travel. Mainly because I always imagine scenarios like this:
I shot this photograph with my flip flops firmly planted in a little flowerbed. I felt grounded and happy.
I am having trouble sleeping lately. I don’t think the reason for this is that it’s the city that never sleeps. I think it’s the fact that it’s the city that never gets dark.
If we turned off all the lights I’d probably be able to get some shut-eye.
Or maybe not.
©Sarah Girner
I minored in history in college and get a kick out of stumbling upon remnants of the past. On Maui one of the things that fascinated me were the World War II bunkers strewn along the Mokulele Highway. I’m always surprised that decades later these structures survive blending into the landscape. People driving by probably don’t even notice them anymore, nor do they think about their historical significance. I find them incredibly unsettling. They speak of war and fear and survival.
©Sarah Girner
Paia used to be a major sugar town in the late 1800’s. To this day it is surrounded by fields and fields and fields of dense sugar cane. The mill where this sugar cane is processed is located in Puunene. It is the last operating mill on Maui and one of the largest in the world. I really like the way the mill looks and always made a point to drive by it when I got the chance. The first time my windows were down. For a place that produces something so sweet it’s incredibly how funky-foul the surroundings of the mill smell… the local dump is just down the road. From that first time on the car windows remained stoically up.
©Sarah Girner
This may seem morbid: But surely, if you must die, this is the place to do it!
©Sarah Girner
