Into The Woods

Miwok cliché

All is well back here in NYC. The portfolio is printed and now it's just a waiting game with House of Portfolios as they finish off my actual leather embossed book.

The timing is pretty good as tomorrow I head off to Caliornia for a week-long nature awareness, tracking and wilderness survival school. I'll be back with something to share on March 6th. Until then...

Take pictures.

Digital Decadence

Playa Coyote

I awoke this morning in a lovely levitating loft with a view of Kansas City thanks to my friends here at the Digital Labrador. I've made mention of these folks before and I'll do it again. I've actually flown out here just to spend a few days printing and making my post production alterations under their watchful eyes. They are really onto something here. The same way post-production houses for commercials have a great vibe and top of the line gear, so does the Digital Labrador except it's for photographers. I love it. It's pure digital decadence.

Coyote Ugly Ft Lauderdale posted a whole bunch of my night images. Check those bad boys out.

This sunny image is from my extra day in Florida when a few of the Coyotes and I went out to make some pictures just for the heck of it. I told them I'd be happy to shoot additional shots for them so long as we were outside. I had never shot on a beach before. It was a treat.

I could start sounding like a broken record but natural light rocks.

Take pictures.

Failures abound

Reject Romina

I started this blog to share but I've done little sharing of my failures. Perhaps because that could be a whole other blog by itself ;-). Seriously, I am increasingly frustrated by my mistakes. The streetstudio, for all its glory, is the source of many many screw-ups. Most notably, out of focus shots. I shot a bunch of Ft Lauderdale Coyotes in it last week and much to my chagrin, the focus is off or my shutter speeds were too slow to hold the camera stready and the shots are no good. Such is the hazard of shooting with natural and limited light I guess.

This seemingly lovely shot of Romina looks almost acceptable in low res but is in fact only focused on her lips. I had intended her eyes to be sharp. I checked the shots around it and there was nothing like this one. The way she turned her head and my angle lasted for one frame, this one. It was a one of a kind moment that I can't recreate. Darn. I really wanted this shot but didn't notice it's limitations until review hours later. I am almost certain I was shooting at ISO200 at 1/250 f2.8 but that wasn't enough. I needed more depth of field. It's always a balance between shooting a higher ISO and getting less noise.

So anyway, every picture ain't perfect. I fail more than I succeed and I am always learning. Such is the humbling joy of photography. I really need to learn to slow down when I am shooting. Maybe if I wasn't trying to photograph 66 women in two days I could find that time. No complaints, but it's just creating bad habits on my part.

I'll try to share more mistakes going forward. I'll be sure to make 'em.

Take pictures.

Ft. Lauderdale Night

Money Maker

They make money so I can make money. That's pretty much how it works and it's all good.

I spent fourteen hours shooting Friday and when I got back to my hotel I was just tired enough to go out and shoot for another six hours. It's a wonder what a hot shower can do for a guy.

Money Spender

I hadn't shot my night stuff for a while and I had enjoyed shooting the Ft Lauderdale Coyotes so much that I thought I'd go see them in action. True to form, they didn't disappoint. My D200 worked like a charm and it is now my official Night camera. Rock on.

I need a bigger hard drive on my laptop. Ugg.

I spent yesterday on the beach and today I'm wearing long underwear inside and my nose runs when I go outside. You gotta love air travel.

Take pictures.

Ft Lauderdale: Day One

Ft. Lauderdale Coyote

You never really know if you are shooting what the client wants. Sometimes they are looking over your shoulder and sometimes they leave you to your own devices. Such is the case with my Coyote Ugly shoots. I'm on my own from the moment they agree to hire me.

Today I spent the entire day in Ft Lauderdale's store; the newest of the bad-ass bunch. Technically, I stuggled with the amount of daylight pounding through the windows. Becasue I shoot with hot lights most of the time, that's an issue. Sometimes color temperature can be your enemy.

Anyway, we're talking about clients. Because I was raised to be "customer-focused," I am always curious how my work is going to be received. In the case of Coyote Ugly, of course, Lil has the final say. But in the moment, my utmost concern is the Coyote in front of me.

This evening, after a full day of shooting, I was sharing some of the images with the staff before they went on the clock. One woman "has been modeling since she was eight years old" was curious to see her photos. I let her scan the thumbnails in iPhoto and went off to do something else. When I returned she paid me a lovely compliment by saying, "normally when I look at contact sheets I see struggle to find a shot I like, with yours I've found like thirty." That makes me feel great. While they haven't passed by corporate, it's gratifying to know my subject is happy.

Just for the record, the Coyote pictured isn't the one quoted and I spent a beautiful 78 degree sunny day in a bar.

Take pictures, forget sunscreen.

Snow Day, Etc.

Fashion Show Model

I had the pleasure of helping a friend last night. She was having a fashion show in her store down on the Lower East Side and I was asked to shoot some of the behind the scenes stuff as well as the show itself. I made this shot while one of the models was waiting to go out on the "runway." Nothing much, just sharing a recent one.

I've been thinking about all the photographs people lost in New Orleans.

I read a neat article in The New York Times called Pixel Counting Joins Film in Obsolete Bin. Read it while the link lasts.

I've been enjoying the size and feel of my new D200 compared to my D2X. I shot with them both last night and it sure is nimble. How quickly we adapt.

I made some snow pictures in the city today. My mom actually called to tell me that we broke some long standing record and that I should go take pictures. I already was. The best part about snow in the city is that cars are few and far between so you get to walk in the middle of the streets.

Take pictures.

Make Levees Not War

Found Hammer

I'm back from New Orleans and digging in on my portfolio again. Nothing much to post outside of my thoughts on New Orleans rebuidling. They have their work cut out for them. Let's all hope the political wrangling doesn't continue to get in the way of letting the people rebuild. That is too special a city to see disappear. If New York is having problems rebuilding twelve acres of prime real estate, imagine what almost an entire city is dealing with. It's overwhelming.

This shot was taken in the Streetstudio when we set up in Jackson Square. A man had found this hammer and was now looking for work in demolition.

Take pictures.

Bicycles and Beer

We're finding the Streetstudio a tad impractical for daytime New Orleans. The nature of this city these days and our general lack of knowledge of what is going on where makes it a little hard to set up somewhere with a lot of pedestrian action. Nighttime however, is a different story.

New Orleans Woman

After getting the DL from Tyler, my "brother-in-law once removed" and clearinghouse for all things festive, we set up in front of the Maple Leaf bar uptown. The Rebirth Brass Band was playing and a perfectly diverse crowd of folks was in attendance. We saved two parking places right in front of the bar and did our thing. If fatigue hadn't gotten the better of the group, we'd could have stayed there 'til the wee hours of the night despite the rather cold temperatures.

Lakeview Barbies

My day had been spent tooling around on a lovely frilly girl's bicycle. I rode around Mid-city and Lakeview checking out the damage and devastation. I went on my own to see if there were any landscape or mundane pictures to be made. At one point I entered a home that was, for the most part, untouched since the waters receded. It had been the home of a family. Toys and videos gave that away. The water line had reached about two and a half feet into the second story and mold was growing on every surface. The refrigerator was still in the kitchen and even though it was closed, the smell was unmistakable.

Mundane Lakeview

I was attracted to the textures of the mold and made these two photos with a diptych in mind. At first it looks like four photos but when you look a little closer, you can see that it is two open doors and the walls behind them.

We'll see what today holds.

Take pictures.

Streetstudio New Orleans (Night)

NOLA Man

I had the pleasure of sharing my streetstudio setup with all the folks from KC right in the heart of the French Quarter. The weather wasn't particularly cooperative but the spirit was there and in the end, we won. That and because we had lights, nightfall didn't stop us.

I hadn't shot Streetstudio at night in longer than I can remember so it was a treat to set things up and plug in some strobes. Instead of the love-you-baby light, we used a beauty dish. And instead of dirt and canvas, we kept the white thing going. The gang found a nice local enclave with an endless array of characters, some locals, others just passing though, In the end, New Orleans provided.

Take pictures.

Vicksburg, MS

Hotel 1

The night found us in Vicksburg, Mississippi in a random sub-branded hotel of the Marriott family. I walked into my room and couldn't resist making pictures. There is something about hotel rooms that always strike me as interesting fodder for photographs. Initially, I think it's the lack of clutter I am so accustomed to in my own home. Then it sinks in that it's also the color, fabric patterns and light that all combines into a wonderland of neutrality. Beige, you really gotta love it.

Hotel 2

I popped around the room turning on and off lights to see what worked and what didn't. I struggled a bit without a tripod for some of the longer exposures. All in all, I spent about 10 minutes staring at things in my room. You'd think I would have noticed that there wasn't a phone. I awoke this morning to a friend's knock at my door having overslept by about 40 minutes and wondering why I didn't get my wake up call. Now I know.

Take pictures before bed.

From the Road... Literally

Mundane Taco Bell

Well this is a first. I am blogging from a moving car in the middle of Arkansas. Safe to say, I'm in the most technologically tricked out Excursion in America. DVD players, radar detector, GPS on steroids, a wireless internet router, and four laptops (3 macs and a Dell) one of which is loaded up with Final Cut. In the car traveling with us is an equal amount of laptops sharing our internet connection so long as they stay within range. This is one heck of a way to road trip.

I shot this little pairing when we stopped for lunch at a Taco Bell/KFC combination restaurant thing. I had chicken fingers so I guess I ate from KFC. A first! I got laughed for taking the shot of the salt and pepper shakers by some kids eating at the table next door. Such is my bain.

Take pictures.

39.11N -94.54W

Big things are going on here in Kansas City. I have had the good fortune of hanging with my friends at Digital Labrador the past day as we prepare for our road trip south. It is with them that I will head to New Orleans to make Streetstudio portraits and see what else is going on down there. We're actually going with three Streetstudios (including my own) and boatloads of other gear packed into an Airstream. Very cool.

I haven't been shooting so there are no pictures to post but I have been throughly inspired by these folks' technical savvy. I am really excited to see what kind of printing capabilities are out there and the timing couldn't be better considering the state of my portfolio. I'm already thinking about coming out here again just to do some printing in their soon to be complete digital oasis.

Kansas City is on the map.

Take pictures.

Photographic Memory

Found Photo

I found this photo among my hundreds of thousands of photos. It was sitting with some other random stuff in a folder within another badly labeled folder. I think there are three different computer's worth of photos sitting on my RAID. It ain't pretty but they're safe. (And another 250 gigs arrived this evening).

About the image, the point is, it's fun to stumble upon a nice photo you've taken and to see it with fresh eyes. I remember taking this shot. I remember who and what it was for. I can hear the conversations and voices of that day. I remember setting up the light, a tota, in the hallway of a friend's apartment. I remember other photos we took that day with a cool 70's lamp. All that information and memory is connected with one little photo. It's mind-boggling, inspiring and humbling to think similar and equally dense memories are attached to all my photos.

My portfolio efforts continue and I think I've come to a reasonable solution to my website simplification issues. With any luck, those changes will upload before I head to New Orleans.

Take pictures and remember.