Charles Henry 4/13/26 Charles Henry 4/13/26

Beyond Awful

Whenever I see a perfect picture, I’ll think, surely this isn’t real.

Charles Henry 3/24/26 Charles Henry 3/24/26

A Thousand Tiny Diamonds

Out by a truck stop, work camp, and several oilfield equipment yards — trucks crack the pavement to hell under scarce rain, and when the sun returns, the damp road will sparkle.

Charles Henry 3/20/26 Charles Henry 3/20/26

Bumbling

I embody something infuriating — an average person doing something. The combination of being run-of-the-mill and doing something creative is a frontier.

Charles Henry 3/20/26 Charles Henry 3/20/26

Virtual Movements

With enough resolution, we can crop in, move a frame around, and simulate a view camera’s movements in post — including rise, fall, and shift.

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Basic Editing

Pull the contrast slider down to -100 and then set a tonal curve to one’s liking.

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Big Bend

A plan to construct a physical barrier across Big Bend would be unpopular.

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Nikon F Lenses

Nikon’s manual F lenses are worth considering because they’ll mount to just about any mirrorless camera today.

Charles Henry 2/17/26 Charles Henry 2/17/26

Going to Town

A black-and-white picture of small-town Texas is sort of what western swing music looks like — if that makes sense.

Charles Henry 2/15/26 Charles Henry 2/15/26

Film, Post 2020

Put film photography to rest. Digital is better.

Charles Henry 1/27/26 Charles Henry 1/27/26

Traveling Kindly

Go without want.

Charles Henry 1/9/26 Charles Henry 1/9/26

Poetry

If music is older than language, then that’s probably a large part of it.

Charles Henry 12/30/25 Charles Henry 12/30/25

Makeshift Rangefinder

By most metrics, we’re lousy photographers, and that’s fine. 50mm might be the best focal length, and 35mm the best lens if we crop in a little.

Charles Henry 12/19/25 Charles Henry 12/19/25

5600ºK

If sunlight’s temperature sits between 5000ºK and 6500ºK, then 5600ºK is a good custom choice.

Charles Henry 12/13/25 Charles Henry 12/13/25

Taken Seriously

If a picture is good enough for a view camera, it’s potentially good enough for a series, seriously. I love getting lost under a focusing cloth.

Charles Henry 11/16/25 Charles Henry 11/16/25

Aspect Ratios

Focal lengths and aspect ratios correlate. A 50mm needs a narrower 4:5 to emphasize relationships between foregrounds and back grounds, and on the other side, a 28mm does better with a wider 3:2 because it emphasizes side-to-side relationships.

Charles Henry 11/16/25 Charles Henry 11/16/25

In the Moment

It transitions from play to art as we age, and in learning, it continues.

Charles Henry 11/8/25 Charles Henry 11/8/25

Lightweight

The less we make photography about something, the more it accommodates.

Charles Henry 10/19/25 Charles Henry 10/19/25

Taking or Making

In photographing landscapes, places, and found environments, perhaps the difference between making and taking lives in the focal length, where a 35mm takes, and a 50mm makes.

Charles Henry 10/1/25 Charles Henry 10/1/25

Enjoying the Day

Interesting places exist wherever we look long enough. Odessa is a real place, nothing touristy about it, so thoroughly palpable that it’s utterly clueless about itself in a good way, and that’s why I stay.

Charles Henry 9/7/25 Charles Henry 9/7/25

Keep Going

If you think it’s bad now, it used to be worse. That’s why I’m not too worried. You are a part of the change you would like to see.