'Genuflection Before Mother and Child' - Limited Edition of 20 Photograph

This image is one of my first taken soon after I purchased my first camera and took literally my first photo a short time prior , in 1968. I walked Manhattan streets photographing and simultaneously learning to frame or compose an image while also learning camera functions. Lenses then all were manual focus. Expensive Nikon lenses worked 'with aperture mechanism wide open' allowing 'match needle' metering and a bright viewfinder by using a spring mechanism to constrict the aperture when the shutter was open, and in a fraction after shutter close, brightness reappeared. Not so cheaper lenses with no such spring mechanism. Use in darker conditions was little different than with expensive lenses, when exposures were taken with the aperture 'open'. The problem occurred when shooting in brightness which caused the aperture to be decreased, leaving the viewfinder dark making camera viewfinder dark, barely useful shooting. At the first, my unfamiliarity with the entire process, often required I use guesswork to make vital decisions in a rapidly changing environment. I often saw far too much 'darkness' through the lens, and that caused me great worry and consternation, that I no longer feel with 'auto' cameras with modern, auto focus lenses. When I was required to use glasses for the first time, they so interfered with viewfinder use that -- along with other problems in using my cameras, I literally 'gave up' photography, spurred also by an insecure wife I loved, who worried that if I took a photo of a pretty girl/woman, that somehow was akin to 'cheating' on her. Eyesight better, glasses gone, newer generation 'auto' equipment allowed me to begin actively photographing again about 15 years ago. With much success. To make images has become a life style. The image above -- taken in first months after my first photo ever of any kind-- i now understand tells a lasting story well, and remains among my best. john (John Crosley) released, the for composition, timing, and proper exposure.to its smallest opening and before the instantaneous 'stop down' process was triggered, aiming and focusing were done with the aperture at its most 'open' allowing adequate light to frame and time shutter release. That provided no advantage in brightness as 'stop own' was not required of any lens. Shooting in bright sunlight might require use of the smallest aperture opening, with the largest aperture number, for illustration just next to complete darkness. That was not an issue.and the aperture was f16, the stop down opening would be barely more than a pinhole. Later I acquired adequate telephoto lenses cheaper than the initial Nikon 50 m lens that had no such spring mechanism and all framing and focusing was made AFTER the aperture was manually stopped down, which meant in bright sunlight, generally the aperture would be a pinhole and result in an extremely dark focusing. Because of my experience and lack of training at taking photos I literally had to learn the process of manipulating the camera and trying to frame a worthy photograph as I had ambitions for my work -- to make photographs worthy of that being published in best publications and exhibitions. I lusted to create 'worthy' photos, and lack of experience and training, even in winter, made taking photos 'hot, sweaty work.' Here I was walking in the West Side near NYC west Manhattan Riverside drive on a cross street and looked into a church at Lent, revealed here bu the shrouded cross. When I saw the priest kneel (genuflect) before mother and child, I immediately realized the paralledl between what I was observing and Christian doctrine -- particularly adoration of Mary, mother of Christ. I knew that if the very low light image was properly immortalized, that it had the making of the type of photo I sought. That iniitl feeling has been borne out over the following halfd century/this image is one of my best regarded by critics. john (John Crosley) © 1968 - 2019, John Crosley/Crosley Trust, all rights reserved. No reproduction editing, rewriting of image and/or text without express prior written permission from copyright holder.

Photography:Black & White on Paper

Artist Produced Limited Edition of:20

Size:31.7 W x 40 H x 0.1 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.