Rod Raglin's Blog

Thanks to Lumen Art Gallery for the “Emerging Virtuoso Award” for my photograph, Hastings & Carroll, in their Street Stories 2026 Competition. Check out the eclectic offerings from other talented artists from all over the world.

Lumen Art Gallery is a platform that invites talented artists to participate in monthly competitions.

See more of my street photography at https://rodraglin.smugmug.com/The-Street

Hastings & Carroll

Winners Gallery

https://www.instagram.com/gallery.lumen.art/ https://www.facebook.com/lumenartgallery

It’s a special moment when the student surpasses the teacher, especially if you’ve been the teacher.

I fell in love with Bibianna the first time I saw her, blindsided by the biggest blue eyes and something else I still haven’t figured out. Up until that point (that point being about sixty years old), I was “not a kid person”, despite being the uncle to legitimate nieces and nephews and having the title honorarily (?) bestowed upon me by a few of my friend’s children.

B was the neighbour’s daughter, and we were only too happy to pick her up, drop her off, have her visit on the weekends.

Our relationship was never one of an adult and a child, we were friends, and like friends enjoyed many of the same things. That included photo-walkabouts.

We’d head out, her with my  old Canon Powershot, and me with the latest digital version and spend hours in parks, back lanes or just the front garden taking pictures and being comfortable in each other’s company.

On one such excursion, she stopped shooting, turned to me, and, rather emphatically for five-year-old said, “Rod, don’t tell me what photos to take.”

At that point, the suggestions stopped, but the learning didn’t. After each session, I’d download our photos into the computer, and we’d critique them. Having never treated her as a child, I spoke frankly on how they could be improved, both hers and mine. Even as kid, she wasn’t beyond defending her own work–and criticizing mine.

With today’s advanced camera technology, anyone can take a technically good picture. What makes some better than all those stored on people’s cell phones is subject matter and composition; knowing what will make an interesting photo and how to compose it. The one thing that became apparent very early with B was she had “a good eye”.

B’s now sixteen and she’s graduated from the .5-megapixel Powershot to the Canon 6D, 20.2-megapixel full-frame digital SLR camera. We now set challenges for each session, like shooting in low light or capturing a different perspective of a common subject.

Here are four of her photographs, two from each session. The amazing thing is, I was there, standing right beside her and using a better camera.

The student has surpassed the teacher.

The teacher is immensely proud.

More of Bibianna’s photographs can be viewed at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/albums/72177720328759881/

Low light – back lit winter willow

Low light – crows at dusk

Perspective – patterns, shapes, shadow, colour

Perspective – worm’s eye view

My long poem, Cake Night, is being featured on Open Arts Forum

https://openartsforum.com/cake-night/

As an extra bonus (?) you get to see and hear me read it – or mute the sound and read the text below.

#CakeNightpoem#livereadingofCakeNightpoem @OpenArtsForum #RodRaglinreadspoemCakeNight

The test for creativity, in my opinion, is you produce. You don’t think about art, you make it.

It doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good or you’ll be successful, you just can’t help yourself. There’s a desire to interpret, replicate–to understand the world you inhabit. You find an outlet and fulfill that desire.

Currently, I’m restricted to very short walks around the neighbourhood. I was feeling disheartened about the lack of creative stimulation until I read about some of the great artists of our (my) time and how they adapted to the tribulations of aging.

Paul Cezanne often revisited the same locations and painted the same subjects as age diminished his capacity to travel. Interestingly, he continued to interpret the subject differently as he matured as an artist and as a man. Similarly, with Claude Monet, who painted and repainted (up to 250) versions of waterlilies in the same water garden.

Perhaps the “clearest example of adaption becoming invention” is Henri Matisse. At 77, he took a major health hit but rather than allow it to be the end of his artistic agency, he redesigned the act of creation to adapt to his new reality. In doing so, he discovered a new artistic territory that previously had not existed for him.

True creatives don’t have trouble finding inspiration. It’s just the opposite. The challenge is what to choose and then to maintain a focus. Neither do they need ideal situations for the muse to visit them. When circumstances change, creativity isn’t put on hold, the artist adapts.

Adapting. That’s what I’m doing now.

These examples gave me the motivation to try things differently. Since I can’t spend time wandering through parks and wild places in search of autumn tableaux, I’ve brought them indoors.

My studio is the dining room table, where I position leaves, branches and props on various coloured backdrops. I can control the light naturally and artificially and arrange my subjects accordingly. This has given me the opportunity to try different photographic techniques as well.

It’s not like going for a photo walkabout in nature, but it beats bemoaning my current situation. And who knows, as Tennyson wrote,

Old age hath yet his honour and his toil;

Death closes all: but something ere the end,

Some work of noble note, may yet be done

Moving from the sublime to the ridiculous, here are some samples of my dining-room-table-studio work.

You can view more at https://rodraglin.smugmug.com/Tableau-Staged-Photography-

#adapting #creativity #aging #Stilllife #SoftFocus #IntentionalCameraMovement

I am a member of the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism’s (FAIR) International Writer’s Group and want to encourage local writers to join.

The FAIR Writers’ Group is a monthly online, discussion-based community for early and mid-career writers hosted through Fair for All (FAIR in the Arts). Here’s the link for more info

Writers’ Group

The Group provides a space for writers to share and talk about their work without self-censoring. Writers shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not they have the right to pen a novel about a Latino protagonist if they themselves aren’t from Latino roots. They shouldn’t have to ask “will I be accused of being antisemitic if my short story’s villain is Jewish?” 

Neither should they have to worry about being categorized and criticized because of their religion, ethnicity, sex, physical abilities, politics (or perceived politics), and personal experiences. The only thing that should matter is the writing. To find out more or get involved, contact me at rod_raglin@yahoo.com

Bus stop moments. Photos of commuters waiting for the bus at a stop outside my window.

These images were taken randomly over a period of a year (note the different apparel). On reflection, the work is a testament to the  multicultural nature of the neighbourhood.

When Dying Seems Inevitable. Installment 10 of Cold-Blooded, the second book in the Mattie Saunders Series is now a free read on Wattpad.

https://www.wattpad.com/1659144953-cold-blooded-book-2-in-the-mattie-saunders-series?utm_source=web&utm_medium=facebook&utm_content=share_reading&fbclid=IwY2xjawUe9qdwZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR7njrqWHlG_OAoFJwAvlTpn1gfCkcAxY_LIc58-sIi6EYZLSPbDSsekCFvNng_aem_2JtDl-bNqgEzaDSOpnmDwA

Emma has a new cousin – a few times removed. And it’s not only new to her but the world!

For the first time in a century, researchers say they’ve identified a new species of wild cat previously unknown to science.

Leopardus tilcayo — or the tilcayo tiger cat — is slender and spotted, with rounded ears. It is smaller than a typical house cat and lives in the Bolivian Yungas, the cloud forest where the Andes mountains meet the Amazon basin. It measures about 18 inches (46 cm) long and weighs around 3 pounds (1.4 kg), making it smaller than the average domestic cat (and a lot smaller than Emma – no judgement).

Emma’s anxious.

Tiger cats — small, wild cats native to South and Central America — face stiff conservation challenges. All of them are in habitats that are vanishing fast. The mountain forests face growing pressure from deforestation, agricultural expansion, human-caused fires and mining.

Restoring forest patches damaged by fires, protecting remaining native forest and maintaining connections between habitats are urgent priorities.

Emma has heard this before – and a lot closer to home. Some days she gets depressed and slinks around the house with a scowl and her tail down. She wants to remain optimistic but then she reads (right here) of yet another cat that has died because of the action (or inaction) of their irresponsible human companions.

But on the bright side….

DONATIONS TO VOKRA WILL BE MATCHED ‘TIL SEPT. 30, 2026

This year’s VOKRA’s Walk for the Kitties has so far raised $170,000! That’s still short of their $275,000 goal. but the good news is that until Sept. 30, 2026, every individual donation made to the campaign is matched 1:1 by an anonymous donor. For example, a $25 donation becomes $50, and a $100 donation becomes $200. The matching pool is capped at a maximum total of $100,000.

To ensure your contribution qualifies for the match, donations must be processed directly through the official VOKRA DonorPerfect Match at

That’s put Emma’s right tail back up!

https://www.wattpad.com/1658410760-cold-blooded-book-2-in-the-mattie-saunders-series

Awesome Autumn – Limited edition fine art pieces at Reduced Pricing. Eight selected works capturing the magic and majesty of the season at reduced pricing.

Framed and delivered to your door. Only ‘til Oct. 15, 2026

To view this limited time offering visit

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