Richard Vanek - Black and White Photography

In the first twelve hours after my web shop is reopen two free prints are already gone! I have expect that free prints will be quite the thing, but not this fast.
There are still three of them available.
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Yesterday we had very nice evening with friends. We spoke, among other things, about photography. It was quite nice discussion and at the end my friend order from me two big prints.
After that I was wondering, maybe the whole point why people do not buy more from Internet is really the fact that they can't really see how such a print look. It is maybe difficult to imagine how such a thing will be looking at the wall of their living room.
I have also set prices now much lower that it used to be before. Some people are telling me that it is not good move. That people will not look at it as they should of price is too low. Well I shell see. I mean, now price can't be the problem, if somebody like to buy a print it is possible. And you can have one for free as try out!.

Time is flying. When I was small boy, two month of summer holiday was never ending time. Today I have look at this picture I made six years ago. It looks like yesterday. Is it because of monotony of our live when we older and activity of discovering when we are young?

I was thinking about similar idea a bit earlier. Similar to what I have listen in one of the Brooks Jensen's podcasts (yes, I am again driving to work so I have time to listen) today morning. I was planning to publish separate prints once a month which would create a calendar for 2007. It is a bit late now, but it is never late to start next experiment.
What Mr. Brooks Jensen is suggesting as idea, is to create series of photographs, similar to series of stories in magazine. These parts are together creating one piece of work. Something like you subscribe to magazine and every Sunday you read a story. Those stories are creating small novel as many did and I guess also doing now.

I am curious what you, as possible buyer, think about it. please let me know.

Well as my memories comes back I have discover that I borrowed my friend digital camera at that night as well. I took few shots and forgot about it. Just in Christmas time I remember that and here is one more shot where you can see Kazinski. I do not like that look!

I hope I didn't sound too serious from start of this year. All this talk and journal entries about shop, selling prints. You know by re-opening my web shop I only like to make available my prints to who you like it. For me it is also way to see if my work is appreciated and little income to support my next steps and projects.
For who you like to have even smaller prints, I am thinking to produce some 15x20 (6x8") prints for even less. You can see them as cheap way to see every of my photo if you like :-) But I really didn't decided yet. Let's see first how it goes like it is now for a while. And if you think that it is a good idea, just write to me.

Almost on day exactly I have written few lines about Czech photographer Taras Kuščynskyj. I have three postcards of his prints on my wall. I visited exposition in summer where he has few photographs. I know his work for long time. He is not between us anymore, he died in 1983 on deadly illness.
I met his images here and there when I was younger. I always like them very much, so lyric and gentle images always full of great feel. I never did any nude photography, but still I enjoy his work. Look at first two photographs. Don't they look like great painting? They both are date in seventies. More than any of these I like the last photo on this page from 1963. It is made the way I really like, It is exactly something I would love to make. Image has showing only gentle symbols. Few beam of light makes all we need to start our imagination. This is what I like on great photographs. They showed you hints, they trigger your imagination and your own creativity is doing rest. Isn't that great! Observer need to give something from him/her/ He/She is the person who should create, be active when viewing this artwork.
Not like a consumer, who is expecting not to think, who is expecting to consume and acts as pre-programed by media.

The other day I have very long telephonic conversation with my friend from childhood. Among the other things we also spoke about this. How our children are exposed to the culture of mind driving by media. I hope I will get one day with my photographs into the stage when my work will trigger active creation in other people's minds.
Taras Kuščynskyj is doing this for me for years. Thank you very much!

Today I have received today print named Cape Perpetua #32, Oregon Coast, 2005 from Brooks Jensen. I order as I liked the print and I also was curious how print from him look. Packaging was great. I received big box where one print with hard carton was placed in nice transparent sleeve and all was wrapped in that kind of air bubbled paper. I must say packaging perfect.
The print was rather small, well exactly as advertised, 6.8x9" warm-tone image on 11x14" paper. But it feels anyway too small for that paper size. And quality? As you look first time, nice print. After little bit more detailed look you notice no details in black, where one would expect them and at the sky on top of the picture I can see traces from printer or maybe it is some other pattern, but it is surely there.
I do not want to judge and not like to look as super hero, but I can tell you I surely can make better print. I am glad that I have seen how print from him look. Now I am bit more confident about my work :-)

Sweden, Stockholm, Södermalm, 2005.

it is while I have wrote or update my article section. So I have decide to do something with it. Today I refresh description how do I develop negatives. It is rather simple description, but maybe can be used to find what I do and maybe find some useful hints.
I am still listening old podcasts from Brooks Jensen. Now I am at the first month of 2006 :-) Slowly I am starting to having little different opinion on these podcasts. Seems like he was at that time a bit loosing breath or maybe he said all he had in huge urgency and now it slowly going to normal daily chatting. I mean it is not a bad, but I was so excited with first year and half of his texts that now it feels like a bit diluted tea :-)
Nevertheless some of them carries quite strong opinions and with some of them I fully agree. For example the idea why he didn't put passe-partout (mat) on his prints. The reason is the same why I stop with it even before I listen to his podcast about it. I can do nice prints, but when I put it in passe-partout it is loosing a bit. I can't do this work that perfect. So why not leave it for people who can do that best? You buy print for me, perfectly crafted, perfectly packed. Than you take it to professional who can perfectly frame it.

After rainy ride on bike, it is now resting with the friends. Doesn't need to ring anymore. He can enjoy the silence...

As a small boy I loved summer clouds. In hot summer days after whole afternoon of burning sun, suddenly clouds came and half hour thunderstorm cool down whole meadow. We were dancing in the rain and enjoying its smell.

Well, it seems something has happen last night. My site has lost google rating. I use to have 5 from 10 now it is on zero. I have no idea what has happen. I hope it is only some kind of mistake. I didn't like google very much for quite some time. They juts become too big and concentrating too much information. And a lot of people are using them. So sites actually depends on google to be found. If something like this is happening, your site can become completely forgotten and lost.
I am curious if this happen only to my site or it is more common. Do you have any experience with such a behavior? If yes please let me know.

I have received couple of notes from friends on my last journal entry. Today morning I noticed PR rating of my site in Google is back. So some strange things are happening. Also Alexa rating is fluctuating, probably as a result of Google drops.
Dirk asked me, I hope he doesn't mind that I mentioned it here, why I am so bothered by these things. Well, frankly I am not bother very much, but as the web site is the only medium, so far, by which I present my work to public, I like to be found as easy as possible. And good PR rating and good position in search engines in general makes that possible. I mean it doesn't have effect on my work or my artistic feelings :-), but I find it nice if my work is seen by others as well.

There is a dawn on the other side of the wall. We all now it, we feel it, it is surely there. We dream about it, never saw it. Something we never had, something they have every day, something we love to have, something they do not care about...

All these games, we had fun. No matter what the weather, it could rain old the time if we had a friends and we were out. We did everything and give a shit about TV.

I would like to thank you all for your comments and nice email. I must tell you how much I appreciate that. It is rather heavy now when I change work and have to drive 30 minute there and 30 min back. Not only that, most of you do that I suppose, but as a new job it requires little bit more energy. I have to say that I like it a lot. Feel very nice, like back at university time with little bit more professionalism than before. I am still learning a lot.
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I have received first order after reopening my web shop. Nice on it that is order for two big prints. I would like to thank that person as that way he supports me very much and I appreciate that a lot! Thank you!
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Last week I have made little change on top page. That one is not directly visible, but I get rid of javascript which was loading haloscan comments and my delicious links. I like it now much more as it contains the text directly and therefore is searchable and visible to the search engines.

I do not know what is happening, I just expect something else I guess. From five free prints for January I still have two. It is more than two weeks and only three people asked for free print. Tell me why is that? Is it difficult to find that I give away prints? Or is it just more simple and people do not like my photographs?

Some year ago I lived for over year in Wien. Great city! I love it! I spend a lot of time there with my very good friends Stefan and Thomas. One summer was so hot that you had to leave window open all the time. We lived in rather old kind of guest house. We had a great times there! This picture I made on completely different place reminds me that time a lot.

It is interesting how things can suddenly get moving. I have just printed two orders and pack one order for free print. (BTW: last one from January's free print is still available :-) One of the orders is for two big prints, it is first time somebody order big print. I used Ilford Smooth Pearl paper for it. Both of the big prints look very good.
Yesterday I have also ordered new A3+ pack of Epson Premium Semi gloss paper. I was already using it in small format and some people like more its semi gloss surface. I personally really prefer matt surface. For A4 prints I am using PermaJet Alpha paper. I liked to buy pack of A3 size of it, now after these last orders I can do it. Thank you all who bought prints for me and this way allowing me to go further. It is great to see that other people like my work! Once more thank you!

Winter dull day, walking in a quiet place. Time is running fast, days are shade and quiet...

Nothing is going to help, even forced group sessions, nothing. As far as it based on money, nothing is going to help people...

One of the first shot I printed using carbon pigment inks back in 2003. Over this weekend it come to me again as I have got order for it. I was printing it again after three years. Very nice experience and interesting to see how different these prints are. Note from 2003: This shot was done in those two hours I was renting 21/4 Color Skopar lens from Voigtlander. I can't see any distortion of lines or anything similar. Shot is quite sharp as I can see it also on print. It was done on Ilford Delta 400 in xtol 1:1.

Sunday early morning, cold autumn weather with sharp sun. Most of the people are still sleeping. While walking with camera around some old school I found this boy skating on the U ramp while his dog was running around in grass.

Sitting outside in a dark after midnight. Absolutely quiet cold night. dimmed light, Moon behind clouds. Nothing is moving, no sound. Feels like void.
After seeing Krótki film o zabijaniu (1988) directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski I am empty. Nonsense of killing for any reason goes through whole movie. All images are clouded like views from darkened mind. This movie is not only about killing is about ending of existence of a human been. About ending of existence of your own you. Why is that? Why all has to end, is there any sense to all this? I am very skeptic. Is this all only waiting room for the end? And as a time goes we are pretending with the smile that there is a sense, that there is a reason? Reason to use our time, is it really?

I really need to switch to UTF-8 encoding, seems more and more often I am using characters which just do not fit into 8859-1 encoding. I will have to really look at it.

I am restoring all my software and setting on new computer. The old one which was running from year 2000 was recently loosing breath. I had opportunity to buy other, also second hand machine but few years younger than my old one. It is not more powerful, but also much more quieter and that seems to be one of the most important features these days.

After moving my DVD burner, USB 2.0 card, 160GB hard disk with all my image DB I started to install all the software I need for my photos. One of the most important is Picture Window Pro (pwp). Most of the people are using Photoshop, for me Photoshop is too complex and too expensive. I am happy more than enough with pwp. I bought it long time ago some time in 2000 I guess. Last year I have bought upgrade to the new version and already that time I had problems to read my old install CD to confirm my upgrade license. This time old CD is totally unreadable. I know it is only bit more than six years, but you see, it is just empty when I place it in my DVD drive.

As a result my license serial number for upgrade was no accepted as old CD didn't work and I do not have email from 2000 with my old serial number. So what is the nest step? Well I wrote to Digital Light and Color company which produce pwp. I didn't get it too much chance so I was busy with installing other software, vuescan, IMatch,... and I have got to the point I like to make image of my installation for emergency situation when I need to restore whole computer. But I would love to do it when all soft is correctly installed and configured. But pwp was not running. As I wild action :-) I check my mail. And? Kiril from www.dl-c.com answered my email 15 minutes after I send it and it is Saturday and he provided me with my old serial number!!!

Isn't this great. I really enjoying software from smaller companies, who really cares about their products and customers. Where one customer is important. Software is great, support is perfect and you do not feel like one from millions. So pwp, IMatch, vuescan, all this software is made by small, sometimes even one man companies. I am using them for years and still happy. Todays experience only insured me even more that this was good choice.

Can you see what I think?

After rather longer period of time (few weeks) I have developed six rolls of film again yesterday evening. I must say it was very relaxing experience and how I hate it sometimes when I have 40 rolls to go, same way I loved it yesterday. I still have about ten more rolls to do and I am planning to develop them this week.
My new old computer is running now, but sometimes things which were working before gave me bit of a headache until I find again the way I configured them before. Like yesterday I can't really figure out why script for uploading from IMatch to my web site giving me errors. It was access denied. Well it took third fresh look until I found out that I didn't import my web site certificate, as I am using https connection for my XMLRPC code.

Now it is early at the morning and I am running off tom my daily job. I wish you nice Monday.

Long long time ago summer day. We two sitting on the hill above the town. We were talking while I was taking pictures. Great day, sunny day, future in front of us. We never saw each other anymore, Now over twenty years ago I have found these negatives. Where is she???

New month started and here it is new free print. You can order it from my web shop and you have to pay only shipping costs. Please note that to one address you can ever order only one free print.

Last month I made edition of five free prints and only four where ordered. This month I decided to make only edition of three prints.
I am planning to place not ordered print from Free January edition to the eBay and to see how it goes there.

Today it was spring! We have got first all day Sun and blue sky day. It is amazing how much energy such a simple, but powerful thing can give you. I am like reborn. Again looking at days in front with joy and expectations.
In last few days, base on suggestion from Dirk I am listening podcast named "Camera Position". I am now at #31, but going every day further. It is really interesting to hear other people talk about photography. I exchange few emails with its author Jeff Curto.

I have this strange problem. If somebody is ordering from my web shop and he/she choose PayPal as the way to pay, than PayPal presents them its page in Dutch language! I have no idea how to change that. I set my preferred language to English (it is not possible, I can choose it but it went back to Dutch after I click Save). I have also wrote to PayPal about it, but no response yet.
Anybody had something similar?

I have finished scanning all films developed last week and new sic rolls is ready to be developed, maybe tomorrow

Fellow from US has order free print for February.

Every week I have sale, it is great, not much money but the fact that it is going is nice. Maybe one day I will have not only money to buy new paper, but maybe some good, equipment. You know I am thinking about one, but well I will keep it for myself. It is anyway dream until I am not going to sale for hundreds a week :-)

It is nice that orders are rolling. I like to support those who bought print from me and therefore I am introducing some new actions and discounts.
Shortly they look like this:

• Free postage on orders above 150 euro
• Once order of free print.
• 10% off after free print
• 20% off after your last regular order
• 10% off for writing review
• 10% off being referred by new cutomer

More information about these discounts, delivery, payment and shipping you can read at my shop information page.

If you read that little bit more detail description you find out that some of the discounts are time limited based on your last order or other factor like that. I do not like to put aside my older customers and therefore for those who bought print before 1.Feb. 2007 you can apply these discounts as if you would made your last purchase at 1st February 2007.

The Photobloggies are now open for nominations! If you like my photographs and the way I present them, consider please nominating www.piskoftak.com.
Thank you very much for your help!

I have received some feedback from PayPal today and hopefully when you decide to pay using PayPal you will not see PayPal in Dutch language. It shoul dbe in English same as this web site.
I have did some changes and tested it so hopefully all is correct now. In any case, ff you encounter this problem please let me know. Thank you for your help!

Hot summer, sitting in a garden between all that noise of nature. Under the nice tree, playing cards. What do you want more?

Finally all the problems with showing PayPal in non-English language are solved. This is done thanks to PayPal response, osCommerce support forum for PayPal IPN module and great help from my friend mafo.
Second of the free prints seems to be soon gone. I hope, that soon, also not free prints are start selling. I should receive very soon papers I have ordered and I will be printing some nice 30x45 prints on PermaJet Alpha paper.

Today we are getting some nice snow, maybe I just go to the fields if there will be some light at today afternoon. Than I will make some of those lyric images I always loved when I was fourteen. Nostalgic feeling this snow is bringing to me. Is it nice, to forget about orders, actions, eBay and just go and dive into lyric landscapes?

I just realize I have in my galleries 285 photographs. Maybe it is a time to make some additional way of browsing through them. Some top ten or favorites or even searching. What do you think? Leave a comment with you opinion if you care :-) Thank you!

Yesterday I have discover work of Tom Chamber and that let me again thinking about kind of photography I actually like and even more what I would like to make. It is also interesting how my opinions and my favorite photographs are changing. There were times when I like very much those melancholic landscapes with touch of mystery. I also very much liked documentary photos catching up a moment and telling a story. Now I more and more inclined to the photos which are actively created by the photographer. Photos which are not only observation, but also creation of the author.

I believe that it is for me time to really try to make some my own creations. I did few experiments, like this one, but all of them limits creativity only on post processing part. I would like to add more creativity at the time of exposure so actively create a scene. And I do not mean studio settings, but putting components into scene, which I would like and the way I would like.
As you know I really prefer people in my photos, so I would need somebody with who I can do this really easy and who do not mind the starting problems. Well let's see how it will go. These are ideas and now it is only up to me to fulfill them.

Do you remember time when you really enjoy playing in bath. You do not mind that water get colder and you would play for hours if only mam wouldn't come the third time and force you to wash and leave the bath.

You may know that I am working now with Foma (fomapan) films. It has couple reasons. One is that that I have difficulties to find Kodak 125PX here and if that it is terribly expensive, second is that my favorite Fuji Neopan 400 is not sold in bulk anymore. Therefore early last year I have found that Foma 200 developed at 100 ASA in Aculux II is perfect if not far better than Kodak 125PX. Especially in grain is much better and tonality is exactly same or very very close to that feeling from Kodak 125PX which I like.
The other reason is price. I could go to Ilford films, but they are very expensive. I can buy Foma films in bulk very cheap and that is why I using them. There are some problems which I solved on the way. For example the Foma films are more sensitive to mechanical contact than Kodak or Fuji films so I need to handle them bit more careful.

I had troubles with Fomapan 400. It is far from the feel of Neopan. I am fighting with it for really a long time. I must say that after I developed few rolls exposed in low light I am starting to like its own tonal reproduction. You can see Foma 400 on these three bath photos. The soft tone and gentle grain (visible only on prints from 20x30cm) is really adding atmosphere to it.

Beautiful stones in my hand. Cold fingers, but happy face. I showed it for a moment, that run back to the river, happy dull cold day.

The Photobloggies is an annual award ceremony celebrating photoblogging around the world. Every year the editors select photoblogs around the world in different categories.
Nomination is closing in two days 15th of February. If you like you can add your vote and nominate my web blog Europe in Black and White photos into different categories. For example: Best Western European Photoblog, Best Black and White Photography, Best Kept Secret, Photoblog of the Year
This way you can help increase popularity of my site so more people can see what kind of photos I am producing.
I thank you very much if you would find those five minutes to fill form for nomination.

I have just dispatched last free print for February. This month it went much faster. I have discovered that new packaging I am using is able to fit into letter box opening. That means I can send A4 prints as letter and not as packages. This is decreasing postage even further. I need to rework my postage calculation module in my web shop for this.
I hope that after free prints I will get also some orders for normal prints. In a weekend I have made two beautiful prints on Epson semi gloss paper. That made very nice deep black with that pearl surface. I may print new free print for March with that paper. I have bough this paper also A3+ size and my PermaJet Alpha in A3 size should be here any day now.

I have just get message from Alexis in Brazil.

I really like them! They are great, in all senses. I think they respect "fragile" sign. Not a damage.

I was so glad. I never shipped to Brazil before.

I am so excited that I just list print on eBay. I will do more. I have some prints I made before and I have discovered them this past weekend. I'll list them all in next few days. So Charle's cat is first. Last time it sold on eBay as well. You can read more about me on eBay.

It seems like Wednesdays are not my days. I am always so tired and so much work. I find myself walking like a zombie around 22:00 and still busy almost until midnight.
I have those few film's rolls prepared to develop for more than week on my desk, but I like to put some more photos on eBay tonight.
I also had idea Monday about next picture, how to make bring light and how specially illuminate part of it in early dusk light. It strikes me Monday when I was standing still in traffic jam and looking into fields. I realize that this special light before sun rise can be very nice on picture if the other objects are illuminated by some other light source. Later the same day, at the evening I remember that I did something really similar and I have found that picture. I will post it maybe tonigh, but it is still rather far from he idea I have now.

I have forgot to tell you. I have updated my eBay page and it now includes also new blog. That blog will be rather specific about my experience on eBay. But some of you could have interest in it. You can subscribe using alternate RSS link on pages of www.piskoftak.com as well from my eBay page or directly using this RSS link

Game has started :-) I have put additional three prints on eBay and now I have totally four prints there. Thanks to fact that eBay offers RSS feed to my items, I included that information on my web page. Now on top page you can see what I am offering on eBay and what is the current price. Updated is once a hour.

In the middle of the night, sitting alone in th middle of the fields. Same like sitting in the middle of the day in between millions of the people. Nobody notice you, nobody know what is in your mind.

That last photo I put on line few minutes ago titled "In The Fields" is the one I wrote earlier this week. It was attempt last summer to do something different with light. I surely will try some more with early light and maybe something even with painting with light, who knows.

One of my latest customer who bough my print printed using carbon pigment inks wrote me this:

It seems more delicate than the B&W print process of old!! You do know of course that if you get these digital type prints wet it is ruined altogether!

Frankly I never did this to my print. I am very careful with them as I was with my darkroom prints before. So I handle them with care. Today I was doing some cleanup and found some older test prints which were done the same way. Cotton Rag paper and printed with carbon pigment. So I said let see and let water in pour onto print with full power in my sink. When print was totally soaked I softly move my finger over the printed surface. And? Nothing I was amazed nothing somehow I expect that pigment will blur. So I pressed harder and only when I really pressed I saw some blurring on edge of print. Than I took small cloth handkerchief and try to dry surface just brutally moving on surface of the print. There was no traces of pigment on the cloth itself. I believe same brutal pressing and scratching wet surface of classical darkroom print would have same effect.

So conclusion? You can pour water on my prints when they will dry they will be same as before maybe little bit like wet paper, not perfectly flat anymore, but image will be not touch. Even if you touch wet surface in normal way, so not brutally hard you will see no effect on it. Only in very abrasive scratching or brushing of wet surface you will see some effect, but still only slight blurring of pigment.
Frankly I am positively surprised. That is one of more effects which carbon pigment gave me to comparing with common dye inks.

In a hot summer day I was driving in south of Czech Republic. Choosing small rounds between small villages. Very rarely I met a person. And than at the end of one place I saw this. Alon in the fields under The Hot Sun. There must be reason why they build it. Does anybody know these days?

Passing by I stopped the car. Look at statues with memories for people which died in 1st world war. Than I looked at building behind it. Old as well, also memories...

We are leaving tomorrow on one week holiday in Ardene. I am looking forward to it same as our kids. They are crazy now with packing all they like to take.
My all eBay bids are ending Thursday and Friday I am back. I just schedule one more to start Thursday as well. Now it will be whole portfolio of Night Mood. Well actually only five prints from it.

All this eBay feels like game, but so far I am loosing money I invested now around 30 euros to eBay fees. I wonder if I sell at least for that amount :-)

We were with kids from Monday until today on small holiday in Ardene in Belgium close to French boarder. We had a great time.
In this period I sold two prints on eBay. They sold for starting price so very cheap, but never mind I sold 50% of offered prints.
I have there new offer this time for whole small project of five prints.

More later I need to get shower and unpack. And I am tired after driving :-)

I have developed another six rolls and while I was doing them I listen all album from Pink Floyd - The Wall. It was a while I was listening this my the most favorite band. In my twenties this was my life. And now it strikes me so strong again. Listening this music and understanding lyrics brings me again to that mood I use to have. Today it brought me huge inspiration. After I was done with films I sit and listen with pen and notes in my hand. I wrote dozen of images which came to my mind. Now it is only question to make them. Maybe it doesn't have to b so difficult how it seems to me now.
Somehow I need to brake that factor of language and foreign country and just make first of the images I want. Than I hope it will go much easier.

So after week of holiday and developing six films I am kind of full of energy even after first day at work :-)

I am experimenting with eBay even more. using now Turbo Lister which allows much easier to edit and place even single item on eBay. Discovering some more features.
If you miss final bidding for my Charle's horse and Fish, you will have soon second change as I re-listed them. Now you do not have no bid or even accept my price, you can suggest what you would like to pay for it.
This is, I think quite nice idea also for my shop, just let customer option to say how much one would like to pay. Could be interesting to know how people value my work. On other hand of course it easy to abuse with nonsense offers. But let me find out how it is going to work :-)

The other day and not only that day, but also days before I had a chat with two of my friends. It is not as those older time chats that you just meet down town and go for beer. Than you spend time together talking, feeling and enjoying that time. No, it was that kind of communication when you sit in front of your computer and you typing characters across half of the world.
Nevertheless, it is not directly important, but it surely has effect.

Every one of us has family and has to work in daily job to make money to support it. We all try from our early time express our feelings by creating things. One by writing, other by drawing and designing and myself by creating photographs. We have very little time for it. And as all creative people know, you can't just sit and produce something you will be satisfied with. It needs time, time to get into the mood, time to get inspiration and situation to want to say, express something.
And this is rather hard when time for your self is limited to late night hours when you so tired that only thing you can think about is some kind of relaxing activity. You brain is totally dried.

Even in those moments each of us, time from time make something which he really likes. It is not often, it is accident most of the time. This let me think, why is this always like this. How many great people are tortured by this every day mill. Or is it only decision to be made?

I felt it very strongly this last Sunday. We had week of holiday only for ourself. Week when my mind was focus on different things, than wakeup at 5:30 a.m. and got work. After this few days I was immediately full of energy and full of ideas.
Today only second day in the mill of life I had such a strong feeling morning when my watch was beeping at 5:30, to just let it go...

So every time I talk with these two friends of mine, I try to convince them to not give up and write that nice little poem, just for satisfying yourself and draw that great picture, to make your soul happy. What I am actually doing is trying force myself to not forget that there is something else in life than mill. I would be very very sorry to lose my friends.

I have made another step to more interactive site. From now you can comment also on posts in journal and not only on pictures.
I must say that I am very happy how haloscan is working with commenting. I am not getting and spam and those comments which I have got to pictures are very helpful and inspiring.

I thank you all for your opinions and support!

Old city of Stockholm, Gamla Stan, winter early moring, February 2003.

Some time ago my friend ask me to print for him few shots I made in Prague. He had a plan to give it as a gift to his friends who were opening bar in south of Spain. I believe somewhere close to Portugal border.

Yesterday my friend send me few photos from that bar and here I can let you see my pictures on the wall of the Spanish bar.
BTW: If you ever bought and got print for me, why you do not take picture where you have it and I will place it here. I think it is a great idea. I even can make separate page something like My prints around the world.

Just a small node. Five prints from my Night Mood portfolio for very nice price is ending in less than 10 hours now on eBay. Take a look. They are printed at Epson Premium semi gloss paper, in a way I do not use often, with some text on them. They are unique as I printed them only once except the bigger version which was on exhibition last year in April.

Scream to the night!
Last sixty second for my Night Mood portfolio on eBay...

Even my Night Mood portfolio didn't sell just few minutes ago, at the same time I have received great feedback from person who won two of my prints on eBay last week. This is what I have received:

I received my prints today Richard - I love them! I can't wait to get them matted and displayed. They are amazing.

It is such a good feeling to hear this from somebody who invest money and who really likes my work.

I am focusing on eBay these days more and more. It is like a drug, but a lot of fun. I shouldn't forget that we have new month so new free print should be available. I will make it available tonight and I have some interesting ideas about that as well. But about that later when all free prints are gone. :-)

If you are watching my eBay blog you may already know that I am buys last few days with creating my own ACEO cards. If you do not know what it is, don't be. I didn't know few days ago as well.
ACEO = Art Cards, Editions and Originals.

I was really amazed by the ones you can find at eBay. Really great variety of material, motives and quality as well. So I decided that I will make some based on my photographs.

First I needed to choose which photos I will use. I decide on lights from old city of Stockholm. GamlaStan. I made those pictures back in 2003, but I need to rescan and rework two quite a lot, one was easier.
Second I went for not so good paper, they were rolling a bit and not that dark black as I wish.

Well all and all it went really great and I produce pure carbon series in two prints with great light sepia tone. And I also made two series in neutral black. Here you can see the pure carbon once.

And by the way they are now for sale at eBay.

You can check new free print for March. I hope that this crazy activity will bring also some real sales. Unfortunately it didn't happen yet.

Today I feel like doing something special. To create something different that normally. Maybe it was from yesterday, when I made those very nice ACEO cards. Still jumping when looking at them as a kid.

I was printing free prints for March today and I really like that photo. I though maybe I can do something even more different. As you may know I have made this month free print on Premium semigloss paper. from Epson. That paper I use normally when somebody liked to have little less mat surface and deeper blacks. I like that also very much on certain images. Especially big prints look very nice.
But I though this image deserve something even more special. It has that kind of old look. We used to play a lot on an Old Carousel. So I though print it wit carbon only to get little warm tone. Looked good but still I was something missing. Than I add those old paper edges to it. And as a last I use my old great Ilford Smooth Fine Art Paper. Bloody expensive but with very raw surface, almost like canvas. And that was IT.
Now I have two great prints. I had only last two papers on this kind I bought when I was experimenting on different papers about four years ago. Now I finally found a great use for it. Well what I should write more take a look on it:

I am sorry, I must be writing bit more here. I am really busy on eBay these days. It is mainly because I just start the whole thing there from ground. Therefore I have decided that Sunday I will do all that basic stuff there. I have created my page, eBay blog and created new template for my sale listing. They all have similar design to these pages and I like it.
I use this new template to list "Old Carousel" photo in special edition there. You know this image is now offered as free print for month March in edition of three prints. Saturday when I made that edition I was looking at prints and had kind of feeling that this image deserves something slightly different. And I have spent over four hour to finding what it is. Now you know, I wrote about it in last blog entry here. So that print you can buy on eBay until Friday or so.
So basic design stuff is done there.
Now I can focus bit more here.

For you who likes to have something special I really suggest that one is great. Read on eBay listing more how it looks. Shortly it is on different paper (raw, canvas like surface), in slight warm tone (pure carbon) and has lower contrast than free print of this month.

I can stop writing these here, but I am really glad when I receive notes like this:

Paul wrote to me:

"Thanks so much for my free print in February. It really surprised me, what a great paper and the tones are gorgeous! I plan to buy a print soon..."

This is a second image showing my work at somebody's else wall. This time it is from Prague. If I receive the third shot, than I am going to make that special page for these images. Thank you all who submited your photo!

At high school every summer we went to work in summer. One of such summers I was working at farm. Every day early morning we were walking half sleepy around old farm buildings to the fields. This image I took in 2006, but reminds me a lot the way I walked more than fifteen years earlier.

From those two weeks ago, when I start more activity in eBay load on piskoftak.com is increasing quite a lot. In last two days I am having 200% of normal level page served. And the same two days first time in history the site who refer most to me is not the Google, but it is eBay.
Interesting on it is that my Google PR rating went down and also Alexa rating is decreasing. This is very interesting as I notice direct connection between decreasing these indexes and time when I open my web shop again.
Would Google and others have some kind of filter not preferring shops or at least that kind of sites?

Just for your information my site serves weekly around 12000 pages Which is close to 40000 hits every week.

Well, I didn't know until few days ago I saw some on eBay. Those are (as I wrote few days ago) small art creations. They are same size as trading cards, (pokemon as well). But they are, mostly!, hand made originals. People are creating them using, drawing pencils, oil, acrylic colors. Also often using mixed media.

There is huge offer of them on eBay and also quite a lot of demant. I decided last week create some myself. I create them based on my photographs. And I decided to make them in series and so sell it. As it is quite a work with them I will be making really limited editions. So far I made series called Lights of GamlaStan. I made two sets in pure carbon (very light sepia) and two in neutral black tone. And that is. I have planes to make some other series.

I believe, even it is quite time consuming to produce them, their serve as great way to see how my images look and allows people feel more how bigger prints could look. And that is why I will surely make more of them. Now I have in mind at leats two new series.

If you want to give it a try, my first ever ACEO series is ending on eBay in less than five hours. Here they are:

Yep, now I have to really create that page. These are two pictures from me hanging on wall of Rudo and Iva home in Prague.

This is a doorway of one of the empty houses in village called Doel in Belgium. In this village as far as I know people were more or less force to leave their homes because of plan for extending harbor. I visited it for few hours. They are still people living but majority of houses are empty and not a one public service is open. No shops. Nothing!

I do not have great espresso with friends from my previous job anymore, so I need to flush it all here :-)
I am extremely tired, work load at my job is rather high, it is better now, but week before and first days of this week where pretty hard. Also the eBay thing is taking enormous amount of time. SO I have cut sleep time. Not a good idea. Headache which I have today is quite hard.
> I need to change something. I guess plan is to put on eBay every day one print to invest what I have earn and try to make more out of it. Than do not go in bad later than 22:00. And I really need to finish that "Remembering Childhood" portfolio.
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If I go back to eBay (yes I can't help it sorry) it is rather interesting that I sell there. In each of last two or three weeks I sold at least two prints. Prices are very low, but at least I am getting some exposure.
And there is still no interests about the free print of March.

I was just wondering, who is watching my del.icio.us links on front page of www.piskoftak.com? Write a comment, so I know that it has some sense.
I do not include them in my RSS feed, but they contains links to excellent work of other photographers. Please take a look!

This is few years ago. I was with my camera on kids playground. Kids were already gone, was later summer evening, still light, but Sun was very low. I was taking some shots when suddenly I saw girl in pajamas walking slowly on the street. She looked completely lost.

I just realize I didn't write anything over the weekend. It was rather busy time. Now after driving to work today morning I feel I need to share with you the beauty I saw.
After extremely nice and rather warm Sunday this morning had dark blue sky and low fog in fields. That kind of fog which is up top 40cm. As a landscapes rise or fall the fog is thicker or thiner. Beauty of wooden fences rising from white milk of fog.

Just great!

One early morning in summer 2006 I went to drive around the country in South part of Czech Republic. After first few kilometers I saw this bridge next to the main road. It was almost all in a fog. I made few shots and only now, after I realized, that I had light yellow filter on camera. This filtered out, most of the fog. So this bridge almost lead somewhere even that mooning it looks like way to heaven.

This picture was taken in France, close to the city La Baule, known as 'Pointe du Castelli'. I went there one day when was raining almost all day. I did quite a few shots there. I really like atmosphere of this picture. Heavy clouds still onthe sky with Sun trying to break in. I used Ilford HP5+ and developed in in Ilfotec LC29.

One of my favorite pictures Charle's Cat ends on eBay in few minutes for funny US$ 9.99.
Maybe you ever wanted to buy it, now is your chance.

So it seems, that everybody is fishing for my photos on eBay and nobody here. Even the free print is still available in all three exemplars. Well do not you worry, when end of moth will be here I will put them on eBay and than you can buy there for US$ 9.99 :-D

The day after day is flowing, each of them very much the same as the other. Only sometimes you have little excitement or some other nicer moments. Most of the time they are not created by yourself. And if than they are nice but two three days later you do not recognize them anymore as such a big things. When you are really out of the floating from day to day it is always by action or issue which happen outside of you. Which you are effected, but you are not creating it. Such a things one remembers for very long time.
Yesterday we get phone call that my wife's father had accident and his two fingers are partly amputated. You feel powerless and too far and on wrong place.

You will remember this.

Today I was ordering my new business cards from vista print. I decided to give it a try. What really surprised me in the process of ordering was, how they offer you other handy products. All these products they fit with what I was ordering even with design I was making. Even at the end after I already confirm order they offer me for 10 minutes additional discounts on other products.
It was actually very nice as I didn't know that they have such a products. On other hand they lost me as they raised postage without telling me. If I didn't look properly than I wouldn't save anything as the postage was increased almost by saving amounts.

I must admit that strategy of offering products which fits the style of product you order is great strategy. I may try this myself.

This week is my first teaching week of my new job. So I am giving whole week lesson. I must say yesterday it was rather tense. Especially first two hours. That I become more relax and things start rolling easier.
It is going now very well and I really enjoying it. I am just terribly tired. I have no time for any extra activity. I am on foot from 5:30 morning until 17:30 evening, when I come home. From 8:45 morning I am talking explaining. With some breaks.
It is very nice to do different thing and working with people, seeing how do they react to you as teacher and also to you as person. How do they react on a way you present things.

So take this as my excuse for not posting very much here. And do not worry, I will be back :-D

Just a short note that eBay auction for this photograph is ending in one hour. Maybe you like it, you can get it cheap on eBay now. This photo is not offered in my web shop.

Some time ago I was visiting open air museum and took picture of this kind of wood tool hanged on the side of very old house. I have no idea what it is, do you know?

This week was my first in the new job I have started from December last year, when I teach. I was giving one week lesson to the Philip's Engineers servicing medical viewing station. It was very interesting and nice experience. But it was very tiering.
I have now four weeks to prepare for next this time it will be even more demanding as next one is new course which I have created myself.
I also find out today that the date for my travel to Tokyo in Japan is fixed. They expecting me there to give course from 23rd of July. As I never been there I will come Thursday week before to accommodate a bit