The photos in this book were taken at the Portland, Oregon, Japanese Garden (actually several gardens in one place) on July 27, 2009. The camera used was an Olympus E-P1 "Digital Pen" with a 17mm pancake lens set in full auto mode to record black and white. Each photo is uncropped and appears here "as is" from the camera - unmediated by Photoshop. The several hundred photos are presented in the order taken and include every one taken during my visit that day.



This 7"x7" version is not only smaller and more "affordable" than the giant 12"x12" square edition, but displays each photo in its uncropped state.



I think that the summer sun and high temperature combined with the "primitive" black and white camera settings to reveal the bones of the garden and lay bare some of the structure the designers intended. Normally this structure is best seen in winter. However, this day of searing sun provided an extra dimension - a kind of "borrowed scenery" reversal where intense shadows and round, burning sun spots projected themselves onto the garden and illuminated structures in unexpected and sometimes brutal ways.

The few humans seen in the garden that day appear almost as ghostly design elements.