Willamette Humane Society Photography

It was another glorious morning at the Willamette Humane Society. Glorious because I got to give and get some love from some amazing animals. Also, it was glorious because there weren't that many cats. Oh, don't worry, there are plenty of cats for you to choose from, but there weren't nearly as many as the last time I visited which means more people are giving these loving animals good homes and that makes for an exciting day for me.

There are some wonderful cats at the Willamette Humane Society right now, here is a select few from this morning.

Penelope

Penelope is a sweet kittie that was a little camera shy at first (aren't we all), but then warmed up to me and came in for some loving coupled with some purring action. 

Schnider

Schnider isn't up on their site as of yet, he is that new, but he was a fun, loving and handsome guy. If you want a cat that can be both snuggly and playful, then Schnider is the one for you. 

Sweet Melinda

Yup... that is her name. Sweet Melinda lives up to her name. She is sweet as sugar and loves to lay in your arms and have her head, right between her ears, rubbed. Sweet Melinda can make any home a lot more loving.

Wallace

Wallace is a little shy at first, but once he warms up to you, he bend over backwards for some attention. I truly love his strong jaw line and deep yellow eyes.

Last but not least, is my Cat of the Week. Each visit I pick one kittie that gets a little extra special attention. I set up a small studio, bring my favorite kittie in and do a little something extra-special. This week's pick is... 

Simone

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Simone is a very loving kittie with some beautiful features. She sat in my arms for close to fifteen minutes before we began the portrait, and she never once tried to move. She was happy and content. Once I put Simone in the studio and snapped the portrait, she hopped down and began exploring, returning to me every few minutes to get a little more loving. She quickly becomes attached to people and like to get some love frequently. She is also a fun kittie, lying on the floor rolling around and crawling on her side playing with me.

Simone is waiting for a good home, but I doubt she will have to wait too long because she is quite a catch and will make a great addition to someone's loving home. Could that someone be you? Could be if you hurry.

That's all for this week. Take a trip down to the Willamette Humane Society and see what new family member is waiting for you. Better yet, head on down and ask how you might be able to help make all the animals' short stays a little better.

Until next time... Be loving to your animals, because they deserve nothing less.

An Afternoon Creating with Others

Yesterday afternoon I spent a few hours with Nathan Smith, Michael Conkey and Chris David. Only, for the most part, I wasn't shooting. I was the subject. The guys, plus Chris Sabato who was out of town for this shoot, are working together to deliver portraits for each other that communicate the essense of who each of us are... a project that originated with Nathan.

It was cold. It was dreary. It was amazing. It was fun. Spending time with these guys is always entertaining, educational and a huge collaborative super nova of creative energy. I didn't shoot much, since today I was the subject, but afterwards... I was sent loose and had a little fun with my camera.

The location is a building that looks like a abandoned warehouse, but in fact it is a working foundry. The owner, Jackie, was in this day and invited us in to look around. Jackie showed us around and told us stories about the foundry, which he started working at in 1964 and then purchased in the 80s. Jackie was a friendly man willing to take time out of his busy day to talk with us and show us around. 

I walked around capturing some HDR series of the interior for reference in planning a future shoot at the location.

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Since it was cold, Jackie fired up a natural gas torch for a little heat. Well, being the 12 year old that I am I was drawn to the fire like a moth to a flame but because I have a slightly bigger brain than a moth I stopped short of getting burned. I got some cool fire textures. One of the things that I love about photographing fire is that with every frame captured, fire is different. Fire is a living and breathing creature that is in a constant state of change. Fire is awesome!

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Also... check out my new watermarks for my images. I have developed eight new watermarks for lightroom. There is one for the right, left top and bottom of images in both light and dark versions.

Can't wait to see the results from Nathan, Chris and Michael. Thanks guys for the fun time. 

2012 Goal Setting

As 2011 comes to a close and 2012 opens its doors, I am planning my goals for the year. Yes, if you believe the doomday sayers, 2012 is the year the world is supposed to end, but that isn't any reason to think that 2012 isn't going to knock 2011 out of the water for awesomeness. I mean imagine the great, unique photo ops right around the 21st of December. Complete Epicocity.

So after giving it much though and deliberation I feel that this year I need to focus on three things this coming year, after tonight's spirited celebration which will include the following imbibements:

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 My focus in 2012 is:

• Educating
• Giving
• Execution

Educating: 

I have picked a person, who has agreed to participate, in a one year mentoring program I have been developing. In addition to the mentoring I will be focusing on teaching others through free and low cost workshops.

Giving:

Giving is one of the few things that allows us to contribute positively to others selflessly. In addition to the above mentoring I will be consistently giving throughout the year by:

• Continue to volunteer to photograph animals at the humane society.
• Participate in help portrait and help portrait like events.
• Guide others, who ask, in becoming successful in thier goals.

 Execution:

I have had several ideas floating around in my mind for photography projects, but have completely failed to execute on them. This will be focused on executing four of my large scale projects. Why only four? I want to make sure I have the time, money and other resources to actually execute on the projects.

How do I measure the success of these goals, by defining the measures of success:

Education: 

• Complete the mentoring program I have started.
• Teach 8 workshops during the course of the year (before Dec 21 since that is the end of the world)
• Hosting one shoot event for the photography group each month (at a minimum) and ensure that at least one person learns something from each of the events.
• Teach at least one workshop at the State Fair.

Giving:

• Photograph animals at the Humane Society twice a month, blog about the animals, and post the image to the Humane Society's website.
• Participate in the annual help portrait.
• Participate in Kevin Kubota' s Picture in the Park.
• Participate in at least one other giving event

Execution

• Pick and execute one of my photography projects each quarter. That is one project every three months.

That's my goals and how I am going to measure their success.

What are your photography goals for 2012?