Patriotic barn in smogbank, Fresno CA.

I shot this coming back from Yosemite last month. Stuck the camera out of the car window at 60 mph. Wish I had had more time.

A woman stuck her head into the door at the Monochrome show today and inquired about getting in next year. Said that she was better than anyone there. I tell you, she is off to one hell of a start.

I was thinking a bit about the process of creating art, be it painting, writing, acting, music, what have you. In photography I see that there are two defined schools and an occasional middle ground. On end of the graph are the people who structure their work, pose everything according to plan. On the other end are the people like me who are on the hunt for "happy accidents." Both approaches are valid, if they are valid for you. All a matter of taste I suppose. Humans seem to be evolving in regards to the creative process, or devolving, depending on your point of view.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, it was normal for artists to paint in museums, making what is known as "academic copies" of old masters. It was a corollary, I suppose, of playing compositional music, but probably lacking somewhat in terms of scratching one's own creative itch. Like me trying to write another Steinbeck.

Listen to John McLaughlin above. Peerless musician. Fast as they come, consummate tasteful gun slinger. Does he ever jam? As great as he is, he is locked in an idiom that may not leave that much room for improvisation.

I was amazed a few years ago when I was interviewing classical musicians for an art opening. I ended up hiring a cellist with the Redlands Symphony. I told her to just groove and have fun and she was horrified. She was unable to create on her instrument without a score.

I remember an interview on NPR with Mitch Miller. Might have been Fresh Air. Mitch Miller was so good that he did two albums with Charlie Parker. But would not, could not improvise. Told Charlie to write it down and he would play it. These people almost become technicians, albeit masterful technicians. And improvisation usually works best when one actually has something to say.

I always think that the universe is going to throw some inspiration my way greater than my own ability to conceive. It usually does.