Photographers submit past work to jury into the 48 spots for Alameda on Camera. The chosen ones show up on a rainy Friday night in February, and draw a number from a hat, that corresponds to one of 48 sections drawn on a map of Alameda. For the next 48 hours, each photographer combs her 1/48th, in search of worthy material for art. The rules:  show images must be taken within those hours, that 48th.

At the end of the weekend, I’d combed the waterfront, braved the rain, spent some tired hours, and I had NOTHING.

I mean, I had become fascinated with a huge piece of blowing plastic, and tried (in vain) to make something of it….

I’d also studied raindrops and reflections on cars, and my usual peeling paint, to no avail.

Finally, I had a big stack of images of the cut ends of a big stack of wooden loading timbers.

Desperation struck. I’d signed a contract promising to offer at least ONE image for the show. And I had nothing I was willing to let out of the house.

So I did what I usually do, when I can’t figure out what to do next: I went to bed, asking my sleepy head: “How can I make a silk purse out of THIS?”

The image you saw at the beginning of this blog, “Building Blocks”, was the result. I offered it with more relief than pride, and considered myself lucky. Amazingly, it won Best in Show. You never know what will come of desperation, and dreaming.