ThePuddlewonderPress, About

Photography Posting: Industrious Montreal, from the Train

2011-10-16T22:01:00.001+07:00

These were taken again on Amtrack's Adirondack route, from NYC to Montreal. As we got close to Montreal, I started to notice all the industrial structures and started shooting them. As usual the interesting thing for me is how the movement with the long shutter speeds makes things look sketched, as they must once have been imagined.

Click here to see the full-sized photographs on the PWP Photography page, or click on the title below to go directly to the post:

Industrious Montreal, from the Train

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Photography Posting: NYC Softly, Tryptichs

2011-10-11T20:14:00.000+07:00

Took these shots in the summer while spending a week in New York City. The first two sets were taken on West 44th, I think, and the last set was taken from the Highline one night we were visiting with some former students. I thought I would try arranging them in tryptichs, going into soft focus, like closing your eyes for the night.

G'night New York.

Click here to see the full-sized photographs on the PWP Photography page, or click on the title below to go directly to the post:

NYC Softly, Tryptichs

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Adirondack by the Hudson

2011-07-21T03:27:00.001+07:00

We recently took the Amtrak on the Adirondack Route from New York City to Montreal. Partway along, a guide got onboard to work for a tour group that was boarding a stop or so later. While he was waiting, he told us that it was the oldest still-operating railway line in North America, and that it was one of the 10 most beautiful train routes in the world. I can understand why.

These shots were taken along the Hudson River, which seemed either to have been a little flooded or to encompass some swampy woodland. The trees along the tracks grew up out of the water, combining two of my favourite photographic elements.

Click here to see the full-sized photographs on the PWP Photography page, or click on the title below to go directly to the post:

Adirondack Route from NYC to Montreal, Part I
Adirondack Route from NYC to Montreal, Part II

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Photography Posting: Cherry Blossoms in Tokyo

2011-07-15T00:29:00.001+07:00

Haven't posted in a while - things have been busy, but I have been traveling and I have been shooting a lot. I'll try to get caught up.

We were in Japan one month after the 9.0 earthquake, in time to see the cherry blossoms. As always beauty and tragedy arrive independent of one another.

I tinkered with these shots quite a bit, using a variety of brightness, contrast and sharpening effects. Hope you like them.

Click here to see the full-sized photographs on the PWP Photography page, or click on the title below to go directly to the post:

Cherry Blossoms

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Media Posting: Digital Photo Collage, Bangkok

2011-02-27T22:33:00.000+07:00

This is an image I made thinking of a piece I had seen in the market. The one I'd seen in the market was not for sale, and I couldn't find out who the artist was, but I loved the idea of it and started playing around with what I thought might have been done in it. This is the result.
The photos were taken on a Long-Boat tour off the Chao Phraya river and in Jatujak market. Each section of the image was treated through Poladroid imagining software (it's free!).
Hope you like it.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

Chao Phraya, Over Under

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Photography Posting: Night on Cape Panwa, Phuket

2011-02-17T22:54:00.000+07:00

Currently traveling a bit in Thailand with my partner and her family. Took these shots a couple of nights ago at Cape Panwa on Phuket. I recently bought a tripod to replace the one that was misplaced in a move between apartments almost four years ago, which explains the sudden love of stationary night photography. Hope you like the photos. Cheers!

Click here to see the full-sized photographs on the PWP Photography page, or click on the title below to go directly to the post:

Night On Cape Panwa, Part One
Night On Cape Panwa, Part Two
Night On Cape Panwa, Part Three

Media Posting: 10 Second Films

2011-02-05T15:41:00.003+07:00

I had the opportunity to work with Chad Calease when I was in Barcelona. He's a very interesting guy with a lot very cool stuff going on. One of his latest projects is 10SecondFilms, a site dedicated to sharing 10 second videos that pack a punch.
I started playing with the 10 second time frame and found that it was a lot of fun. So these are my 10 Second Films. These were made with video I shot in Paris a couple of years ago. I've added some Creative Commons music from ccmixter.org and dig.ccmixter.org.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

10 Seconds of Paris

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Photography Posting: Christmas in Hong Kong

2011-01-01T14:58:00.000+07:00

Here are a series of posts of photographs I took in Hong Kong this Christmas, mostly on Christmas Eve. Hope your holiday season was cheery.

Click here to see the full-sized photographs on the PWP Photography page, or click on the title below to go directly to the post:

HK Christmas, Part 1
HK Christmas, Part 2
HK Christmas, Part 3
HK Christmas, Part 4
HK Christmas, Part 5

Photography Posting: Midnight

2010-12-30T16:03:00.001+07:00

I took these shots from the window of the taxi as we pulled into our neighborhood on the way back from the airport after our most recent trip to Hong Kong. These are some of my favorite photographs that I've taken in this style. I think sometimes, that they don't look like photographs at all, and partly that's what I like about them, but they are just photographs. The adjustments I've made are to levels and contrast and a bit of sharpening, but nothing in terms of artistic filtering or manipulation.

There will be more shots of Hong Kong coming soon.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Midnight

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Photography Posting: Clarke Quay

2010-12-11T21:02:00.000+07:00

I took these photos last spring on a trip to Singapore. We had dessert at a restaurant at Clarke Quay, and I took these from our table. They are mostly the same subject, but each shot seems to communicate

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

After Dinner, Before Dessert - Part 1
After Dinner, Before Dessert - Part 2
After Dinner, Before Dessert - Part 3
Clarke Quay

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Photography Posting: Under The Eyes

2010-12-05T22:08:00.000+07:00

This is one my favourite shots from our trip to Hong Kong. The billboard reminds me of The Great Gatsby, the spectacles that watch over all that happens in the story.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Under The Eyes

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Photography Posting: Hong Kong SAR, China

2010-11-29T22:02:00.000+07:00

We made our first trip (I suspect it won't be the last) to Hong Kong early in October. It is a remarkably easy city to get around, especially if your hosting friend gets you an Octopus card - good for transit on metros, buses, trams and ferries. These are some photos taken on the move.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Street Snap, Hong Kong
Hong Kong (On the Move)

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Photography Posting: Cheung Chau, Hong Kong SAR, China

2010-11-29T21:29:00.000+07:00

Early in October, we had a chance to visit Hong Kong. My partner had a conference to attend, which left me a little extra time to explore. A friend who was a great host and guide had recently moved onto Hong Kong Island from the smaller island of Cheung Chau. I decided to take the ferry over the island and fishing village and took these photos.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Cheung Chau, Streets
Cheung Chau, Center
Cheung Chau Red

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Photography Posting: Hong Kong

2010-10-11T21:39:00.000+07:00

We went to Hong Kong for the first time recently. My partner came for a conference and this is the view from the hotel. It is also my first photo-stitch, combining three photographs. I know there are automated stitch functions, but I did this one manually to understand what's involved. It took a while, but it was fun.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

From the Hotel Window

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Photography Posting: Carousel Mothers

2010-09-13T08:05:00.002+07:00

I was taking long-exposure photographs of my favorite carousel across the street from the Eiffel Tower, when these women stepped into my shot in order to photograph their kids on the carousel. Made it a better shot, really.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Carousel Mothers

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Media Posting: Poladroid Collages

2010-09-10T08:58:00.004+07:00

Here are three new digital photo collages. I was sifting through a folder of poladroid images (Poladroid is free software that takes your photographs and processes them as though they had been taken with a Polaroid camera. Much fun. Get it yourself here.) and I started to see interesting possibilities for collage.
Weather Girls is so named because it reminds me of a short story I am currently writing.
I have another version of Winter Palace in which there's a silhouette of a person walking through, but I thought maybe it was too much for the image. Maybe you can tell me what you think.
Budapest Calling started out with a bank of phones I shot in the metro station near our hotel in Budapest. It's one of my favorite cities in the world, and probably my favorite from this collection.
Hope you like them.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

Budapest Calling
Winter Palace
Weather Girls

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Media Posting: Reflections of Hoi An

2010-08-21T14:32:00.004+07:00

Wasn't able to sleep, so I spent a few hours doing this instead. The flowers are from a photo taken in Phuket, Thailand. The rest come from a trip to the small town of Hoi An, Vietnam, reputed to have the highest number of tailors per capita in the world. Hope you like the images.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

Reflections of Hoi An, Part One
Reflections of Hoi An, Part Two

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Photography Posting: Beach Ghosts

2010-08-20T14:41:00.002+07:00

A good friend came to visit us at the end of February and we all went spent a few days in Phuket. Didn't spend as much time on the beach as we probably should have, but these are a few shots from the night we stayed to watch the sunset.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Beach Ghosts

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Writing Posting: Short Fiction

2010-08-12T18:10:00.008+07:00

I wrote this piece as the prologue for a short story that turned out not to need a prologue. But I like it as a piece on its own, so here it is.

Click here to go to the PWP Writing page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

Seven Years Before Tuesday

...He’s seen her on television, emerging from the dust of tornado-toppled houses in those prairie towns where the lightning and rain go straight up and down and happen all at once. He’s seen her carried on the shoulders of uniforms, clutching a discordant lollipop someone’s plied into her hand so she’ll stop screaming for who’s numbered among the missing, for the hand or foot that implies the rest of a body lost in the cracked earth. She is the girl on the news, pulled out of the well, or found alone in the woods, the girl exhausted from being suddenly without...

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Media Posting: Mirror Mirror

2010-08-11T22:42:00.004+07:00

I've been thinking a lot about creating visual contexts for poetry. This one's a prose poem. If you are having trouble reading the text, click on the image once you are on the Media page. You'll get an enlargement that you should be able to read.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

Mirror Mirror

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Media Posting: The Delta d'Ebre

2010-08-09T17:44:00.002+07:00

Continuing to experiment with layers of transparency. This time I started with a photo I took of the grasses at the Delta d'Ebre in Spain.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

The Delta d'Ebre

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Photography Posting: Banff, Alberta, Canada

2010-08-05T21:25:00.003+07:00

While visiting Calgary this summer, I was able to take a day trip into Banff and up to Lake Louise. These are some black and whites that I took in the part and on the way there. There was some rainy weather that adds some nice light and texture to the photos, I think. Hope you like them.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Landscapes
Tall
From the Trans-Canada Highway

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Media Posting: Digital Photo Collage

2010-07-28T15:44:00.003+07:00

While walking in the local market, I saw a piece of work that got me thinking about how to use my photographs as raw materials to create other works. So I started playing a bit, based on the idea of the piece I saw in the market. These are the first experiments, and I am sure that more will follow.

I've been meaning to do this for a while now, and I am excited that today's posting marks the opening of the Media section of The Puddlewonder Press, where you can expect to find work like these photo collages, as well as other kinds of mixed-media and video.

Click here to go to the PWP Media page, or click below to go directly to the newest post:

The Station
Seasons
Red Ship Studies

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Photography Posting: Tokyo, Japan

2010-07-27T11:27:00.003+07:00

We stopped in Japan for a few days to break the trip from Bangkok home. These are photos I took over three days in Tokyo.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Shibuya and Ginza
Crosswalk
Salarymen
Street Locker
Cleanse
Prayers and Fortunes

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Photography Posting: Belgium, Impressions

2010-07-14T12:44:00.005+07:00

These shots were taken on a train from Paris to Amsterdam, somewhere in Belgium in between. As ever, I love the effect that motion has in creating a resonance of impressionist painting.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Belgium, Impressions Part One
Belgium, Impressions Part Two

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Photography Posting: Puddle in Paris

2010-05-08T19:37:00.002+07:00

One fall in Paris. Sometimes, when everyone's looking up, it's fun to look down.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Puddle

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Photography Posting: Ayutthaya, Thailand

2010-04-27T15:15:00.005+07:00

We had the opportunity to return to Ayutthaya, one of Thailand's ancient capitals. The site consists almost entirely of ruined temples, littered with headless Buddha statues. Apparently, the heads were cut off by invaders as a sign of disrespect, and are now housed in a museum. There are a couple of temples that are still in use, one of them housing the largest sitting Buddha I've seen. It really is a beautiful site.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

On the Grounds (Part 1)
On the Grounds (Part 2)
Hands
Gold Leaf

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Photography Posting: Sardinia

2010-03-23T19:53:00.005+07:00

In Barcelona, we started a Travel Club to take students on short trips to expand their cultural experience and learning. One of the places we proposed but did not get to go was Sardinia. So we went by ourselves over a weekend. We stayed in Cagliari, on the south end of the island, and rented a car to drive east and then west along the coast. The driving was fun and the views were mind-blowing. Here are three posts to show you what I mean.

You'll notice towers in several of the coastal shots. Each is within sight of another, all the way around the island. Apparently, they were erected without any mortar; gravity and mathematics have kept them standing for thousands of years. Though it looks like maybe some mortar's been added for the sake of preservation, particularly on their lower halves, it's still pretty impressive engineering.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Along the Southern Coastal Road
Magic Hour in Cagliari
City

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Photography Posting: Singapore on the Move

2010-03-14T13:25:00.003+07:00

I took these shots over a long weekend in Singapore. It was my first visit to the city-state, but I suspect there will be more. These shots were all taken with long exposures to create an effect of motion. There are four posts in this series.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

On the Move
River Boats
Colours
On the River

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Photography Posting: Bicycles in Amsterdam

2010-03-08T14:20:00.002+07:00

My last trip before moving away from Europe was to Amsterdam, where the light is extraordinary. I walked around a lot, and sometimes I just sat and watched the bicycles go by.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Bicycles in Amsterdam

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Photography Posting: Cadaques

2010-03-03T21:59:00.008+07:00

A kind friend took us to Cadaques, just a few weeks before we moved away from Spain. It is a beautiful town, and I was fortunate enough to discover it with great company. There are two sets of photos here, one in colour and one in black and white. Hope you enjoy.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Cadaques
Cadaques in Black and White

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Photography Posting: Venezia

2010-02-25T15:33:00.004+07:00

These shots were taken over a weekend in Venice. The first day, a thick fog sat over the city, providing for some really interesting photographs and great diffused light. The next day it was clear and bright (and cold), giving some high-contrast light. It's difficult sometimes to imagine a photograph of Venice you haven't already seen on a postcard somewhere, but with these lighting conditions, it was great fun to try.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Venezia

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Photograph Posting: Cold Thoughts on the Train

2010-02-21T18:02:00.005+07:00

I find riding on the train meditative. So does my partner–that's her journal in the corner of the photo. For a peek inside some of her train-thoughts, check out her blog at Monna McD {stories from four continents}. It's good reading, and some great photography, too. As for my train-thoughts, well, I think in pictures. Cheers!

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Cold Thoughts on the Train

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Photograph Posting: Frozen Landscapes

2010-02-21T17:55:00.002+07:00

These shots were taken on the train from Vienna, Austria to Krakow, Poland. I was struck by the frozen lakes we hurtled past, and how smooth and reflective they seemed at that speed. As the sun went down, the light was exceptional, in the sky, and reflected in the mirrors of ice.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Frozen Landscapes

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Photograph Posting: Impressions from Vienna to Krakow

2010-02-21T17:44:00.003+07:00

These photographs were take with panning and long exposures on the train from Vienna, Austria to Krakow, Poland. I love the way motion can turn a photograph into an impressionist image. Hope you like them, too.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Vienna to Krakow, Impressions

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Photograph Posting: Suttisan

2010-02-16T22:24:00.003+07:00

I took this shot while chaperoning a field trip with some students who were gathering data for a study of sustainability on the Sois of Bangkok. They made written observations and took photographs. I did too.

Click here to go to the PWP Photography page, or click below to go directly to the post:

Suttisan

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Photograph Posting: Oia in Black and White

2010-02-12T13:02:00.002+07:00

I've just posted a series of photos taken in Oia, Santorini Greece, taken in April last year.
Most of the photos I see of the Greek islands showcase the whitewashed walls and bight blue accents. To see Oia in a different way, I set these in black and white. Hope you enjoy them.

You can see them in the PWP Photography section, or you can click below to see the new posts individually:
Oia in Black and White, Part One
Oia in Black and White, Part Two
Oia in Black and White, Part Three
Oia in Black and White, Part Four

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Photograph Posting: Moon Over Oia

2010-02-11T18:04:00.005+07:00

I have just posted a shot I took last April in Greece. It was a clear night, with a full moon and the city of Oia stretched out from the near edge of the caldera. There are more shots to come from this trip. Cheers.

Click here: Moon Over Oia

Flame Spinner Photographs Posted

2010-02-07T22:29:00.003+07:00

New posts to PuddlewonderPress Photography -
Two sets of shots of a flame spinner taken on the beach in Koh Samet, Thailand.
Check them out at PuddlewonderPress Photography,
or to go straight to the posts, click below:
Flame Spinner, Part One
Flame Spinner, Part Two

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The Puddlewonder Press

2010-01-23T14:56:00.000+07:00

"and eddieandbill come
running from marbles and
piracies and it's
spring

when the world is puddle-wonderful"

- e.e. cummings, "Chansons Innocentes: I"

The Puddlewonder Press is an online space for the creative work of Damien Pitter and guests whose work he loves. The work presented here is a sampling of photography, writing, and mixed-media and video.

Damien Pitter completed an undergraduate degree in Film Studies before embarking on career in international education. Over the last decade, Damien has taught English, Drama, Photography and Digital Arts in international schools in Colombia, Mexico, Spain and Thailand. Currently, he is completing an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia.

Content License

2010-01-22T15:37:00.001+07:00

I've been working with the digital arts for a long time, and have been inspired by the works of many other artists, famous and unknown. I thank those who have made their work available as raw materials to be reshaped into new works by people like me, and I respect those for whom the creation of their work represents too great an investment of time, skill and passion to give to others without compensation.

Personally, I fall into both camps. Happy to contribute the community of artists who use each other's work as raw material or springboards for their own creations, I offer the photographs found on The Puddlewonder Press, in the size and resolution you find them here, for use under Creative Commons license, Attribution–Non-Commercial–Share-Alike. Mixed-media and video pieces are similarly offered under Creative Commons license, by-nc-sa. If you do use some of my work in the creation of yours, please contact me and let me know how I can see what you have done. It is always a revelation to see one's own work through someone else's eyes, and inspiring to participate, however peripherally, in another's creative process.

However, I would also like be able to afford to do more creative work and that requires deriving some income from it, so I reserve all rights and protect under full copyright, the original photographs and enlargements made thereof, as well as the writing that is published here. If there's something you might like to have for yourself, or might like to use in the making of something else, please contact me, and we'll talk about it.

License for the Work of Guests:
Unless otherwise stated, the work of guests published on The Puddlewonder Press should be assumed to be protected by copyright and is used here with the permission of the artist. If you are interested in owning or using their work, please contact them.

The photographs in this post were taken of a wall of graffiti in the Chatachuk Market in Bangkok, Thailand. Thank you for honoring the creative and commercial aspirations of artists.

2009-12-29T15:01:00.001+07:00

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Contact

2009-02-04T19:57:00.004+07:00

Damien Pitter can be contacted by email at:

damienpitter at gmail dot com

Damien's work has also been featured at:

14 Lenses
The 14 Lenses photo blog publishes the photographs of seven students and seven teachers who once shared the same multi-coloured school, the American School Foundation of Monterrey, in Mexico. The photographers now live in seven countries on four continents. Although they have dispersed, a connection remains. 14 Lenses tells the story of what happens when you take things from different worlds and place them side by side. This is the ongoing record of their planets colliding.

Photo Assignment Exchange
A bi-monthly photography assignment and exchange of photographs.

*Photo above by Monna McDiarmid, ©2008