I'm sorry for your loss Melissa and thought of you as soon as I heard of Bob passed. That was a lovely tribute to a friend.
Getting critiques from him back in the early APAD days was always a highlight.
I remember one of the few times I got to work along side of him at the St. Pete office - he showed me how to tone the photos to make the pop in the paper. I can't remember exactly what the technique was. It involved some sort of high pass sharpening, which we weren't supposed to do. The real trick though was that you had to get it past the photo techs.
In any event, he did his thing, sent it to the techs, and then said something to the effect of "watch this, they're going to call me about it." They of course called and he talked his way through it convincing them to let it go to print the way he had toned it and to not mess with it. It was a fun little victory to celebrate. Sure enough the photo ran in the paper and had that extra "pop" that all his photos have.
HA, it was probably the custom "digital haze" Photoshop action he created, I still have it! he definitely taught me how to fight for getting b&w images in the paper on prominent section fronts, too.
This really describes who Bob was and the force of life he represented. I’m honored to have witnessed some of that, because he indeed was right- those golden moments are fleeting. Thanks for sharing Melissa. RIP my friend.
You were lucky to have spent quality time with him. I was a fan of Bob's work for a long time. I wish we had overlapped at UF, but I was gone from there years before you and Bob were students there. The only time I got to meet him in person was several years ago. I was selling my wife's Prius here in Jacksonville, and I must have put something online about it. He called me about it, and I dropped the price without him asking, hoping it would help him out. I picked him up when he flew into Jacksonville, got him to the county office to take care of the paperwork, and when he was done, he drove it home. I am now at the age when I keep hearing news of people I admired and looked up to passing. It sucks. I know he fought hard, and I'm glad he was able to walk his daughter down the aisle for her wedding. I'd count that as a final victory.
Well, this really puts things into perspective. It’s a lovely tribute to a friend. Life can be paradise, but it’s also a pair of dice — and we can’t control how things might roll.
Such a lovely remembrance of a good friend. We meet countless people in our lives who deeply move us and remind us of the blessing of being alive. He seems like just such a guy. We should all be so lucky. Thanks for sharing this.
I'm not sure how to make sense of this post. Thank you for sharing. My relationship with Bob was 100% electronic (APAD OG.) I thought of him recently as I hadn't seen or heard of his work in some time. (Now I know why.) His contributions to APAD made me realize there was life beyond newspapers. Without him and a few others, I'm not sure my career would have launched the way it did. It makes sense to me those last few bird photos are so powerful. I see him in there.
A lovely tribute. Nothing is better than when valued mentors become your professional colleagues and friends. Nothing is sadder than when they are taken too soon. I've tried to pay it forward over the years in honor of those who helped me along the way.
I'm sorry for your loss Melissa and thought of you as soon as I heard of Bob passed. That was a lovely tribute to a friend.
Getting critiques from him back in the early APAD days was always a highlight.
I remember one of the few times I got to work along side of him at the St. Pete office - he showed me how to tone the photos to make the pop in the paper. I can't remember exactly what the technique was. It involved some sort of high pass sharpening, which we weren't supposed to do. The real trick though was that you had to get it past the photo techs.
In any event, he did his thing, sent it to the techs, and then said something to the effect of "watch this, they're going to call me about it." They of course called and he talked his way through it convincing them to let it go to print the way he had toned it and to not mess with it. It was a fun little victory to celebrate. Sure enough the photo ran in the paper and had that extra "pop" that all his photos have.
HA, it was probably the custom "digital haze" Photoshop action he created, I still have it! he definitely taught me how to fight for getting b&w images in the paper on prominent section fronts, too.
That's great!
Love it. Classic Bob I depended upon.
This really describes who Bob was and the force of life he represented. I’m honored to have witnessed some of that, because he indeed was right- those golden moments are fleeting. Thanks for sharing Melissa. RIP my friend.
You were lucky to have spent quality time with him. I was a fan of Bob's work for a long time. I wish we had overlapped at UF, but I was gone from there years before you and Bob were students there. The only time I got to meet him in person was several years ago. I was selling my wife's Prius here in Jacksonville, and I must have put something online about it. He called me about it, and I dropped the price without him asking, hoping it would help him out. I picked him up when he flew into Jacksonville, got him to the county office to take care of the paperwork, and when he was done, he drove it home. I am now at the age when I keep hearing news of people I admired and looked up to passing. It sucks. I know he fought hard, and I'm glad he was able to walk his daughter down the aisle for her wedding. I'd count that as a final victory.
Every word is gold. Thank you for sharing these precious life moments and pictures.
Bob was the best. He will be very missed.
Well, this really puts things into perspective. It’s a lovely tribute to a friend. Life can be paradise, but it’s also a pair of dice — and we can’t control how things might roll.
Such a lovely remembrance of a good friend. We meet countless people in our lives who deeply move us and remind us of the blessing of being alive. He seems like just such a guy. We should all be so lucky. Thanks for sharing this.
I'm not sure how to make sense of this post. Thank you for sharing. My relationship with Bob was 100% electronic (APAD OG.) I thought of him recently as I hadn't seen or heard of his work in some time. (Now I know why.) His contributions to APAD made me realize there was life beyond newspapers. Without him and a few others, I'm not sure my career would have launched the way it did. It makes sense to me those last few bird photos are so powerful. I see him in there.
Lovely tribute, Melissa! Sorry for your loss and so glad that you shared this.
So so for your loss….a pure genius whose vision guided many ….
A lovely tribute. Nothing is better than when valued mentors become your professional colleagues and friends. Nothing is sadder than when they are taken too soon. I've tried to pay it forward over the years in honor of those who helped me along the way.
This was a beautiful tribute. Thank you for sharing these memories