My photographs try to convey to the viewer, in a visually beautiful form, what I experienced at a particular moment. The viewer should be able to see, through the images, as much as I saw myself, and experience the same emotions even from a partial representation. This requires careful selection and visual interpretation to reveal the subject’s essence. Often, I can not explain in words why a particular image moved me. I try to capture images that have some beauty, inspire some strong emotional reaction, transport the viewer to a different culture, time or place, or have a sense of humor. Having been educated as an engineer and a lawyer, it has been difficult, yet rewarding for me to try to see the world not in the logical constructs of my training, but in an experiential way. I license images for all manner of commercial and editorial use and sell fine art prints. I specialize in photo journalism, travel photography and my work includes subjects ranging from panoramic landscapes to people and local culture to abstracts. Some of my photographs are sold through a variety of channels: directly over the internet, by stock photography agencies (Shutterstock and Fotolia), and as photographic products (greeting cards, calendars, posters, etc.) through Zazzle.com (www.pshaw-photo.com). I am a retired intellectual property attorney living with my wife Lynn in Mill Valley, California.
Equipment and Software Used:
Nikon D3 digital single lens reflex camera, Nikkor lenses 24-70mm f/2.8G ED AF-S wide angle zoom and 28-300 AF VR zoom. I also use a Fuji X-T1 mirrorless camera with a Fuji 18-135 zoom lens. My images are digitally processed in RAW format using Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop and are printed using an Epson 3880 injet digital printer on archival paper.
Cuba:
Cuba has long been on my bucket list of places to see. I had very high expectations and was very much pleased that this trip met all of them. The people of Cuba were exceptionally friendly and welcoming. In how many countries could you expect strangers to invite you, along with several other photographers, into their homes and let you take pictures of them and their homes? It was extraordinary. Also, it was apparent that Cuba is a very cultural country, meaning that it invests a lot in the arts and in education. I urge anyone thinking of visiting Cuba to do so before the Yankees ruin it with wall-to-wall fast food and coffee joints.
American Flag:
Americans both revere their flag and, at the same time, use it as a pop-icon for everything from clothing to political protest. In these photos, I am not attempting to make any statement - just record the many different ways I've seen the flag or simulations of the flag displayed.
Salton Sea: The area around the Salton Sea is sometimes called California’s home-grown Bermuda Triangle because it contains “the good, the bad, and the abandoned,” of both natural and man-made scenes. These photos were taken during a workshop with the ImageFlow, of Mill Valley, and covered the Coachella Valley Preserve (of palm trees), the sinking neighborhood of Bombay Beach, the surreal folk art wonder of Salvation Mountain, the even more surreal recycled art colony of East Jesus, Joshua Tree National Park with its otherworldly vegetation and boulders, and California’s largest wind turbine farms.
Street Photography: There are many definitions of this subject. Street photography shows the human condition within public places and does not require an actual street or even an urban environment. While people are generally the primary photographic object of interest, there can be an absence of people as long as the image projects a decidedly human character. It is in contrast to both documentary photography, wherein the images are intended to facilitate social change, and photo-journalism, where the photos illustrate a story. Street photography is generally disinterested in its nature because the object is to deliver a true depiction of the world, mirror images of society, displaying "unmanipulated" scenes, with usually unaware subjects. Windows: The "window" as an artistic metaphor is well established. It reflects our voyeuristic and inquisitive instincts. It demarcates a boundary between the public, outside space and the private, inside space. Even more, there is the philosophical construct: the eyes are the window to the soul (or heart, or mind, etc.). Just Google "windows as a metaphor." Whole treatises have been written on the subject. I just like taking pictures of windows and can't really explain why.
I appreciate any comments or inquiries. I am traveling frequently and so may not be able to respond to all emails, but I thank you for your interest.
Email address: pmshawjr@pshawphoto.com.
Address:
Pshaw-Photo
11 Grove Street
Mill Valley
California, USA
How to use this website:
Click on the "Galleries" link at the top of the page and click on a gallery from the drop down menu. Click on any thumbnail image to view an enlargement. Page through the gallery with the arrow keys at the bottom left of the image page menu bar or click on the arrows that appear at either edge of the image. You can start a slide-show of the gallery by pressing the "play" button at the lower left corner of any image page. Clicking on the X button at the bottom right corner of any image page returns you to the grid view.
