Tropical Color in Black & White, Revised Edition

Utuado, Tree Fern in the Rain

Tropical Color in Black & White Photographs of Puerto Rico by Ronald C. Flores-Gunkle.

Revised Edition

Rinc贸n, Desecheo Island

Carolina, Pi単ones

Carolina, Pi単ones, Sunset Couple

Utuado, Lake Guajataca

Maunabo Light

RĂo Grande Beach

Old San Juan, San Felipe del Morro Fort

Guaynabo, Historic Home

Old San Juan, La Mallorquina

Cata単o, El Morro From Across the Bay

Dorado, Man and Boat

Carolina, Plazoleta Pi単ones

Old San Juan, Plaza de Armas

Carolina. Pi単ones, Fisherman

Culebra, Zoni Beach

Old San Juan, La Fortaleza

San Juan, Condado

Bayam贸n, Parque de la Ciencias

Río Grande, Traveller’s Palm

Cayey, Guavate Forest

Old San Juan, Quincentennial Plaza

Carolina, Cultural Center

Carolina, Plaza de Recreo

Carolina, Casa EscutĂŠ

Ponce, Caja de Muerto Light

San Sebastiรกn, Hacienda El Jibarito

Mayag端ez. Experimental Station

RĂo Piedras, Botanical Garden

Old San Juan, Paseo La Princesa

San Juan, Puerto Rico Convention Center

Salinas, Albergue OlĂmpico

Cayey, Central Mountain Range

Old San Juan, El Morro

Carolina, Hacienda Campo Rico

Naguabo, El Yunque South

Orocovis, Municipal Cemetery

Ponce, Old Civil Cemetery

Ponce, Plaza Las Delicias

RĂo Grande, El Yunque Rainforest

Carolina, Market and Old Town Hall

Utuado, Catholic Church

Adjuntas, Guilarte Forest in the Rain

Old San Juan, San Felipe del Morro Fort

Vieques, Malec贸n

San Germรกn, Catholic Church

Vieques Lighthouse

Gurabo, Villa Flores About Tropical Color in Black & White When you live on a tropical island, as I do, it is easy to be dazzled by color. Each day the sun bursts from the night sky, swings swiftly along an arc to the western horizon and then sizzles into the sea—as if in a hurry to give our eyes relief. In the course of its journey, it reveals a gamut of hues impossible to name, achingly diﬃcult to perceive. In the tropics, the sky is closer than at any other latitude, and it is not just blue—it vibrates violet and vermilion. The jungle shimmers green and gold. What camera can capture that? I remember these lines, translated from the French of Baudelaire: “My burnt out eyes can now decry only the memory of suns.” Tropical Color in Black & White is my vision of tropical Puerto Rico, stripped of the dazzle, but seeking the memory of suns. Ronald C. Flores-Gunkle

Maunabo, Lighthouse

Río Piedras, Jardín Botánico Tropical Color in Black & White is dedicated to Olga Flores, my wife, model, driver and manager who has assisted me on all my journeys around the island—and throughout my life. The photos in this selection were captured with Sony digital cameras F828, A100, A55, or RX100 with Carl Zeiss and Tamron lenses. They were edited in Aperture, Silver Efex Pro and Viveza 2. For copies, prints or publication rights, contact rcfgunkle@gmail.com. Ronald C. Flores-Gunkle, Gurabo, PR 2015

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Tropical Color in Black & White, Revised Edition

Published on Oct 20, 2015

Ronald C. Flores-Gunkle

When you live on a tropical island, as I do, it is easy to be dazzled by color. Each day the sun bursts from the night sky, swings swiftly along an arc to the western horizon and then sizzles into the sea—as if in a hurry to give our eyes relief. In the course of its journey, it reveals a gamut of hues impossible to name, achingly difficult to perceive. In the tropics, the sky is closer than at any other latitude, and it is not just blue—it vibrates violet and vermilion. The jungle shimmers green and gold. What camera can capture that? I remember these lines, translated from the French of Baudelaire: “My burnt out eyes can now decry only the memory of suns.” Tropical Color in Black & White is my vision of tropical Puerto Rico, stripped of the dazzle, but seeking the memory of suns.