Brave New World

Book Cliffs from the Under A Big Sky portfolio

Making the short list of 30 for the upcoming Contemporary Art Taos/2020 show at the Harwood Museum put some bounce in my step. I wouldn’t exactly say I’d been languishing in the minor leagues of photography, but I hadn’t felt the love for a while. A while meaning 2010 when I had my work all over the place. It was shortly after 2010 that I trimmed my sails, stopped advertising and for the most part stopped entering shows. The result of those austerity measures was that name recognition and sales fell with equal alacrity.

Lines of Defense from Sketches of Winter

Then, during this shelter in place winter and with plenty of time for reflection, I shook off the cobwebs and entered a couple of shows. When I got that congratulatory mail from the Harwood my lengthy to-do list sudden seemed less daunting. Forty must-dos every week can elicit a why even bother response in the most deluded of planners. But two weeks ago with the wind of the Harwood short list in my sales I looked the number one item on my list right in the eye and said to it, “I’m not afraid of you, you son of a bitch. You’re toast.” Or words to that effect.

Book of Solemnity from the Divine Light portfolio

With that I began to build and launch a new website. “New website” had topped my to-do five years. I kid you not. My clunky old site was built my friend Jeff Fongemie, now a noted web developer, fifteen years ago and while pretty trick for the time. But it had become, let’s face it, a relic befitting a relic.

Standard Oil from The Edge of What's Left

Most of all it wasn’t web friendly so you couldn’t see the full page on the screen of your smart phone or tablet. And in a time when most site visits are done on one or the other, you’re hosed unless folks can actually use the site.

Lenny Foster from Monumental Headd

With that in mind I have been reviewing template-based web hosts for this big change. There are a myriad on choices. Photo Shelter, Zenfolio and WIX to name but a few. I liked WIX’s templates best. But all the while Peggy was hawking me to use FASO, Fine Art Studio Online. That’s a one she’s used for a decade and absolutely glorifies. She raved about its ease of use and, more importantly, she touted the hands-on technical assistance she knew I’d need.

Harjula's from The Fog Series

Two weeks, ladies and gentlemen, is what it took to build the new website, to get it recognized in the web world and to maintain my email, contacts and my website and address. And that two weeks was hell.

When I Say Jump from Street Music

I can’t express how timid I was about creating the new website. That's why it took me five years to try. I was close to panic at the start and pull my hair out anxious by Friday night. Had it not been for the resolute Becky Reynolds at FASO it absolutely would not have happened. Poor Becky held my hand like I was a four-year-old till the moment I could actually see the site on the net, that was Saturday, and I could retain my hundreds of contacts and continue to receive emails at my fifteen year old address. That finally came to pass Saturday at noon when my blighted efforts to accomplish it finally bore fruit. 

I have two bits of advice. Follow the instructions and be precise. I don't ever do the first and precise and patient are not my most apt descriptors. 

So far there are seven portfolios on my new website with The Last Shepherd to be added the first of the week. It’d be today but my article for the May-June issue of Shadow and Light is due tomorrow.

I’d love to have you take a look. Tell me what you think. Please click on the Steve Immel Photography link to the right of Book of Solemnity.

Tell me what you think.