© Joe DiMaggio
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that ALL of my brothers and sisters would like to thank you for your service. Without the heroism of all of the armed forces, we would not be able to live in the greatest and freest country in the history of mankind. I thank you and everyone in the country thanks you. To all the ships at sea, the next time you see a man or woman in uniform, thank them for their service. They will give you back the warmest and kindest smile you’ve ever seen.
Peter Fiore and Phil Rachelson
Paul Fiore and friend
Amy Bridge Publisher and Editor of Milford Journal, JoAnne Kalish & Eileen Rachelson
Eileen and Phil Rachelson
Toshi Seeger © Joe DiMaggio
There comes a time when my words are just not important . The last time I saw Toshi Seeger was June 9th at the Strawberry Festival in Beacon. She looked absolutely beautiful next Pete’s side as she’s been for almost 70 years.
I did not know Toshi but respected her. In an interview on Thursday Pete Seeger called his wife of almost 70 years “the brains of the family” and said it was she who figured out how to turn his artistic concepts into a commercial successes. “I’d get an idea and wouldn’t know how to make it work, and she’d figured out how to make it work,” he said.
My dear friend Jerry Beaver who is the director of the Black Bear Film Festival and owner of the Milford Theatre, after a Pete Seeger concert at his Theatre came across a piece of rolled up paper with words on it by Toshi, which he believed belonged to Pete. He knew how much I loved Pete and gave me this piece of paper on loan to be used for a future blog. When he gave it to me he did not know it would be used for my blog tribute to Toshi Seeger. I am posting it for the world to see.
Pete Seeger © Joe DiMaggio
Words by Toshi Seeger
Toshi Seeger & JoAnne Kalish © Joe DiMaggio
© Joe DiMaggio
Intro by Weir McBride
© Joe DiMaggio
For veteran New York photographer Joe DiMaggio, July 4th remains a time for gratitude. “I am one of the luckiest people in the world. Many of my friends are artists, whether they be painters, writers, poets, musicians photographers or what have you. What’s the term that is used- starving artists? Every once in a while, I tend to complain and moan about the state of the union. Several friends have reminded me if you don’t like the state of the union you can go somewhere else. To be honest, I’ve been lucky enough to travel around the world a couple of times. Every once in a while, I remember to get on bended knee and kiss the ground as I’m fortunate enough to live in the greatest country in the world. Think about it…
“The photograph of the model’s hand was a silhouette done on a transparent white background with 4 electronic flashes on the white background. The photo was originally done on Kodachrome 25 with the Singh-Ray UV Filter. The film was rewound and reloaded back into the camera and a 2nd front lit image of an American Flag with a fan blowing on it was shot over the silhouette. The original photo had no help from photoshop because it was actually done before photoshop existed. Well what do you know — this older image has just been selected as a magazine cover and the client asked that the transparent white background be changed to blue as it would not work well with their logo. Hmm, have we heard this before? My photoshop skills are minimal at best and I intentionally keep it that way. Twelve to fourteen hours a day is enough work. An assistant gave me a hand and we dropped the blue into the background for the client.
© Joe DiMaggio
“This second photo was inspired as I was splitting wood for my fireplace and saw the inside grain of one particular piece of wood. I picked up a my EOS 5D Mark III, 100mm Macro with the Singh Ray Hi-Lux filter and made several frames. I then shot one of my small American Flags and my assistant was kind enough to blend them together.”
To keep track of all that Joe and JoAnne are currently involved in, you need to visit their frequently up-dated website You can also learn more about their workshop projects and fine art photography. http://www.dimaggio-kalish.com and http://www.dimaggio-kalishworkshops.com
© JoAnne Kalish
While I was in Australia, I decided to do a walk about. Invariably, when you start a trek like that, you’re going to run into inclement weather. In a rain forest very close to Cairns, Australia, JoAnne captured me during a storm on my walk about. Ok, if you don’t believe that, raise your hands. Wow, thank God you all raised your hands. JoAnne was shooting an ad campaign and needed a model for a test and used me. Never going to be on the cover of GQ! It was shot right outside the studio, the studio lights were still inside, obviously being protected by the rain????? It’s a special type of rain, it’s called hose rain. Sometimes a photo isn’t what it appears to be. But I do try to keep my sense of humor. I did get the hat and coat in Australia. It’s pretty amazing stuff, it’s an oil cloth. I hope it still fits. To all the ships at sea, keep your powder dry, your legs crossed, and a bit of lip gloss never hurt anybody.
© Joe DiMaggio
While teaching a class that started at Grand Central Station and ended at Times Square I had one camera and one lens, a 16-35. Did not imagine I’d be doing any portraits. Even though the 16-35 is not a portrait lens, this is an environmental portrait of a gentleman from London. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
© Joe DiMaggio
© Joe DiMaggio
To all the ships at sea, I have an assignment today; no other words.
To all the ships at sea, I had an old friend call me and ask if there was anything I could do to help his daughter make a few contacts on the west coast. That old friend was Gary LaFranco. Gary is an extremely fine photo instructor at Sussex Community College and has maintained an ongoing photo business for the last 25 years in Newton, New Jersey. Over the years he’s been extremely kind to me and now I’m going to take the opportunity to see if I can repay him just a little bit. Gary, Amanda LaFranco, JoAnne, and I had a meeting on Monday morning and discussed the lay of the land in Los Angeles. Obviously, we concentrated on the positive aspects of a relocation to the city of angels. There’s no doubt that it takes a little bit of getting used to, but Amanda wants to be part and parcel of the world of film. The last time I checked, Hollywood was still the film capital of the world, followed rapidly by New York, Toronto, and the list goes on. As soon as I finish this blog, I’m going to write five or six emails to some good friends in LA and see if we can give her a little bit of a jump start. She’s an extremely bright and dynamic young lady with a great work ethic and dedication to her art. I can’t wait to see her credit on a feature film. Hey, another good day! Two in a row? That’s scary.
http://amandalafranco.wix.com/website
Joe D.
“Took this many years ago when he was an assistant manager for the Oakland A’s – wish I would have sent it to him.”
© Thomas Sceurman
So you sent it to me, the real Joe D!
© Michael Hartnett
To all the ships at sea, last week ranged from brutal to inconceivable, and back to brutal cubed. I was suffering from negativity, which was probably my doing because I allow things to bother me. Well, enough of that. A young man showed up on our doorstep with a number 2 pencil and a tape recorder and interviewed JoAnne and myself. Separately, as a matter of fact, which I thought was a pretty innovative way of doing it (“no white lies, you’ll get caught!”). There’s something about a consummate professional; there’s an aura about them. In my experience, they’re bright, intelligent, soft spoken, and honest. I’m talking about Michael Hartnett. I normally have some minor defense mechanisms in place, but Michael was able to have me drop them in about ten seconds. Great interviewer, again I was totally impressed. We talked a little bit about some of his art and he showed me this beautiful illustration with which I fell in love. Then he explained that he makes them in the woods. Makes a record photograph and within hours it disappears. The initial concept threw me for a loop. You mean I can’t take it home? I can’t put it on my wall? It’s not archival? It’s here today, gone tomorrow? Then I gave it a little bit more thought and realized how brilliant it is. Just like us; here today, gone tomorrow. He’s written a novel called Tales of Allamucha; expect to see it on Amazon in the upcoming future. What a breath of fresh air! This is Joe DiMaggio signing off. PS, he was writing an article on JoAnne and myself for The Milford Journal. Check out the July issue.
Joe DiMaggio 