Thursday, June 30, 2011

Broken

When you try your best, but you don't succeed
When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse

And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

And high up above or down below
When you're too in love to let it go
But if you never try you'll never know
Just what you're worth

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Tears stream down on your face
When you lose something you cannot replace
Tears stream down on your face
And on your face I...

Tears stream down on your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down on your face
And on your face I...

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Sunday, June 26, 2011

An Afternoon With Keshia

World, Keshia. Keshia, World. Now that the introduction are done, let me tell you a little about Keshia. She has personality pouring from every inch of her. She had Nathan and I laughing from get go. Keshia is from Brittian so she says fun words like hooligans and mum which just sounds so cool when she says it. Keshia is also a ball of energy and that energy is catchy... in a big way.

This was Keshia's first time in front of the camera... but it didn't take her long at all to get comfy and just be herself and when she did the magic just happened. Take a look for yourself.

Thank you Keshia... I look forward to working with you again very soon. 

 

Friday, June 24, 2011

Air

Sometimes air can be felt. Sometimes air can be smelled. Sometimes air can be heard. And sometimes, if you look real close, air can be seen.

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Friday, June 10, 2011

Dealing with Creative Disappointment

Last night, I was prepared for an amazing shoot with a new model that Nathan arranged to have come in. I had shots planned in my mind and ideas for setting up shots that could be expanded on in future sessions. 6:00 came and went. The model didn't show up. Nathan made a phone call and learned that the shoot wasn't actually scheduled until the following week. Talk about disaapointment. But it happens and there is no need to cry over spilled milk. Move on. Some times that can be harder said than done, but it is simple when you have Nathan around.

We went in the studio and played. He posed and I shot. That little mini-session made it so much easier to cope... I still got to experiment and create some fun images. 

When we walked outside, near sunset, Nathan I were greated with the most amazing sky.

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The above image is nearly out of camera. So rather heading home, Nathan and I piled into his truck and headed to the hills to capture the amazing sunset that was about to happen.

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Using the blue graduated tint built into his truck's window this too is nearly out of camera, meaning very little post processing. The sunset was gorgeous. How could one not recover from creative disappointment when you have such inspiration distracting you.

Yeah... by the time I got home I was more focused on the excite for next week than the date goof. Disappointment? What disappointment.

Then when I got home, I found some love in my dropbox from Nathan from a play date we had a few weeks ago.

In the end, the day was never a disappointment, but more of a delay followed by a series of alternate opportunities. Big weekend coming... looking forward to a full day of various activities tomorrow.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Another Evening with Christina - How It Works

It is amazing when you get to work with someone who knows what they're doing, even if they're not sure they do. Christina is a natural. She knows her body, knows her limits and is amazing in front of the camera. Her stamina is astounding as well, as you are about to learn.

It all started at 6:00 PM. We arrive at the studio and Christina breaks out two bags of costumes and props. She shows me all of the outfits and props she brought with her, and that number is in the upper double digits. 

At 6:30 we start with simple; goggles and a hat. Head shots are the focus.

You'll notice that the first two images look similar, that's because they are. I shot the second image with intent of producing it into what became the second image. At this point in time, Chris arrived at the studio and joined in the shoot. We kept her busy until 7:30 with the hat and goggles. After that we took a break and discussed the rest of the evening as Nathan showed up.

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The sun began coming into the studio and it was time to take advantage of that golden light.

I fell in love with this mask the minute she pulled it out of the bag. So I took advantage of the natural golden sunlight and the mask... What I was seeing was simply stunning. I made lots of noises as I shot these. Now just to clarify... when things are going well, I don't usually speak, mainly because I can't. Instead, I make noises, like gutteral-animal sounds. There was a lot of these sounds as the mask shots were happening.

After Nathan and Chris took their turn in the light, we took another break. 

At 9:00 we moved into the studio with a fresh new costume. I took my turn behind the camera. Then Nathan and Chris took their turns. And then I had an idea...

I like it when I have ideas and Christina liked the results as well. I bet you can imagine... even more sounds were coming from behind the camera.

At 10:00, Christina changes into another costume for a couple of shots.

Yup... That is a skeleton costume and that is a back bridge... something she showed me she could do the very first time we worked together. At 10:25 one last costume change and Chris David took over the shooting role. He had waited all night for this costume which I didn't shoot, but I did paint a mask on Christina's face for it. Let's just say... Wonder Woman would have met her match.

At 11:00 we packed up and headed home. Christina was, with the excption of the frequent breaks we took, posing the whole time, hell she was even posing during breaks. I will just say... this young lady can out model three photographers and still have energy to keep going. The best part of working with Christina is that she is so comfortable with herself and she is generous with her time. The fact is that all of the poses you see, that look so good, is just her being herself. When she is forced into a pose, it doesn't look natural, it looks forced.

I have learned through working with Christina that some models have to be posed sometimes to the point of micro managing each and every one of their body parts, but when working with someone like Christina, if you let them do their thing, the magic is natural and free flowing and it shows up in camera. Don't restrict the magic by micromanaging like some cubicle dwelling ass-clown. Let go. Let it happen. When you do the results will come.

Happy birthday Christina. I can't wait to work with you again. 

 

 

 

Monday, June 6, 2011

Inspiration at the Abby

My photo group went to the Mt. Angel Abby on Sunday. I shot less than 30 images on my digital camera. My intent with this shoot was to shoot film. A friend of mine, Merlin, was heading back to Afghanastan and he left me his Pentax K1000 with a half a dozen rolls of film. One of the rolls is an ISO 3200 roll which I am saving for a special undisclosed purpose. My lens choices on the K1000 are limited to a 50mm prime and a 70-120mm macro. I love prime lenses so I doubt that I will ever snap the zoom on.

One of my intents with film is to gain an appreciation of shooting with intent, thanks to Nathan. Don't snap it unless I mean it. In an effort to understand the cost of shooting film and shooting digital, I did some research and found that with my digital camera, it costs me $0.02 per shutter click over the lifetime of the camera. That $0.02 includes body cost (150,000 rated shutter actuations), memory card cost (assuming I lose one, or drop in the toilet), lens cost and the cost of charging the batteries. It was very scientific calculation and while $0.02 per click of the shutter doesn't sound like a lot, especially compared to film, it can add up. So if I shoot 10000 "Not Good" images over the course of a year that equates to $200 per year thrown away. I know there are better things I can do with $200 a year, how about you. 

Anyone not familiar with the K1000, I will say this... it is full manual. Manual aperture, shutter and focus. I spent a lot of time focusing on making sure the exposure was right. I spent a lot of time making sure the depth of field is what I wanted. I spent a lot of time making sure my focus was dead on. I spent a lot of time prepping for the shot and ended up only shooting 15 exposures. Next weekend I plan on shooting an entire roll of film and no digital. I want to slow down and film is going to help me do this and help me be a better photographer. I did have to laugh at myself that day. After each shot, like I do with any new camera I work with, I looked at the back of the camera to review the image. Laughter came after each shot as I re-realized, looking at the back of the camera, that this wasn't digital. Yup, I laughed outloud each time... and it was frequent all the way to the fifteenth shutter click.

So I didn't burn through the whole role of film, which means I have more to shoot before I can share those image, but once I shoot through the roll, I will get it developed and then scan the negatives with my new (used) negative scanner I got from Michael of nine22.com.

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Inspiration was abundant as always at the Abby. This time I was more reserved with what I actually shot than my previous trips. In previous trips, I was so overwhelmed with the plethora of subjects to pick from I was intent on shooting everything. Thanks to a seed my good friend Nathan Smith planted a while ago, this time I went with an intent... textures, minimalism and perspectives. This shot incorporates both texture and perspective... gotta love those clouds.
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I have always loved this door, but I just now figured out how to shoot it and more importantly, how to process it.

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I am so tired of shooting flowers, but alas, this is my first Lily.. so I had to shoot it... and I chose to go minimalist on it. I was pleased with the results.

Again, film results coming soon so stay tuned. My goal is make Merlin proud... but not with this first roll. This was a test to get acclimated to film again and I truly don't expect the results to be anything but haphazard chaos theory put into practice. But I am still hopeful.  

 

Saturday, June 4, 2011

An Evening on the Bridge

Last week, my photo group had a shoot on the Union Street Walking Bridge. It was amazing.

Yup... my shots are a little abstract, but that was my intention. Like them or not, this is what I meant to create.

Friday, June 3, 2011

Memorial Day Outtakes

Here are some fun little outtakes from our happy Memorial Day roadtrip. 

If you're sitting at home feeling uninspired, I highly recommend filling your gas tank and getting your butt off the couch. You aren't going to inspiration on your couch. Get out and find it.