[Leica] cropping

["Robert Appleby Personal" <rob@robertappleby.com>]

>>>
Rob,

>>How can you improve
on a stone?<<

I can't. But Michelangelo sure could.

Dave

>>>

No, I don't think he could. He could make something with it, but then it
wouldn't be a stone anymore. Which was pretty much my point.

I think natural objects can't be improved on, almost by definition. Of
course we can adapt them to our uses.

As I said, I don't have enough faith in my craftsmanship or artistry to
think I can improve on what just comes out of the camera. And I find the raw
product of this little machine (with all its industrial backup) interesting
enough by itself, without me fiddling with it any further. In the same
spirit, I really don't mess about with dodging, burning and so on.

Despite all the above, I'm no lover of the _medium_ itself (I'd be just as
happy shooting digital, for instance, if it met my needs) but rather of the
_mechanism_. I love the potential of the little black box to work its magic,
and I try not to get in its way too much. I don't feel I have much to add to
what it can already do. A slide to me is a finished product.

Rob.