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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Thirty Eight: The camera as time machine: linking the past to the present > Signs of the times, Flagstaff, Arizona, 2006
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11-JUL-2006

Signs of the times, Flagstaff, Arizona, 2006

Advertisements come and go on the side of this old building in downtown Flagstaff. The abstracted layers of painted pleas for attention speak of the ebb and flow of business over the years. It is all about time. I add context to this patchwork of paint by including the old clock in the foreground, which is all about time as well. It not only tells us where we are, but it also tells us approximately when this block of buildings was built. And of course it tells us the exact time I made this image. Once again, the past and present merge in both space and time.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30
1/200s f/5.6 at 39.1mm iso80 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time11-Jul-2006 13:46:26
MakePanasonic
ModelDMC-FZ30
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length39.1 mm
Exposure Time1/200 sec
Aperturef/5.6
ISO Equivalent80
Exposure Bias
White Balance (10)
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality (6)
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis22-Jul-2006 01:57
Thanks for coming to this one, Catriona. I was waiting for someone to tell me what they saw in it. You pretty much summed up my hopes for this image. It is a layering of "time-slices." I like your take on the colors -- the tree is vibrant and alive, while the fresh gold paint around the clock, the clock itself, and the red trim around the sign next to it, speak of the present time (pun intended.) Meanwhile, the past is represented by layer upon layer of faded paint in that old sign. Glad it works for you.
Guest 22-Jul-2006 01:02
Your layers work perfectly here Phil. The background shows the past fading away while the foreground layer shows the present. The background layer has several layers in itself showing highlighting that the past is complex. Time is alos represented with the different vividness of colours - past being faded and present being string solid colours. The composition is interesting as you lead the viewer's eye from top to bottom. I like this image - for me it is a strong representation of time.
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