Keep It Moving

Sometimes change is a difficult thing to handle. I know of a few photographers who have decided not to embrace the fact that we have to change our way of thinking and their work will suffer because of it. During this economic downturn it is, now more than ever, essential to have a plan that can guide you and help you understand where you have been and where you are going. Why some don’t get this I couldn’t tell you.

I’m trying to take advantage of the downturn – shooting more, calling clients (both new and existing), setting my yearly promotional schedule, visiting New York City at least once per month and creating a realistic budget. Thinking positively is essential for my survival. Without it I feel I will just shrivel up and fad away. For me the glass is Always half full. Be proactive – Be positive – Look at the future and see how bright it is.
This is what APA/DC is trying to instill. Our latest Brown Bag events are geared towards the Business of Change where the focus will be on how to adapt and survive. This is one of the most essential skills photographers now need.

Here is one of my favorite quotes from Will Rogers:
“Even if you’re on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there”

Once we stop changing and adapting to our environment we cease to exist.
We have to “Keep it Moving” even in bad times.

As Time Goes By

It’s slow for most of us right now, but I don’t think this is necessarily a bad thing. It gives us time to reflect on what has been, as well as what the future holds. During these “down” times I really try to take advantage of looking at other photographer’s work, reviewing what I have shot and most importantly planning out a course of action for the future – planning self-assignments, reworking the portfolio, etc…
Time is something not to be wasted. With the economy the way it is we can't sit back and get depressed, feeling sorry for ourselves and not knowing from where the next assignment will come. We have to understand that all of this is in our control, not out of it. We have the ability to change our course of action, to turn time in our favor so that it starts working for us and not against us.

Time can be a funny thing. It can either go by in a flash or take forever getting to that magical 5 o’clock hour (when it’s “okay” to have a drink). By dividing up the day with assignments, time starts to work in our favor. It all starts to look more manageable.

What we really need to understand is that no one really knows what time it is (yes I know a song by Chicago - sorry). For example look at the above photo of the clock. It is a famous clock on the corner of 5th and Broadway in NYC. The Flatiron Building is in the background. I shot this about two weeks ago on a visit with my photo friends Renee Comet and Randy Santos. It was in the afternoon around 1:30 pm. What I’ve recently noticed is that the clock doesn’t work. Now, to me, that’s strange. A beautiful ornate clock in a very public place has stopped and no one notices. Or maybe they do and they don’t care, or know what to do about it. We are so obsessed with time, but yet no one really notices it until it matters. How many times have we sat at the end of the day wondering where all the time had gone, why we didn’t get more done? Planning what we do is crucial to success. My new year’s resolution is to have a better control of my time. Write more on this blog, create more self-assignments, take more photos.

And “As Time Goes By” I will be a better photographer.

Like Music Written on the Paper

During the photo shoot with the dancers I wanted to try some movement shots, which turned out not to be as easy as it looks. The timing had to be right, focus had to be predetermined and I had to make sure all the light in the studio were kept to a bare minimum. We have a lot of white walls in the studio so I wanted to paint the walls black, but was advised against that by Tina Williams (studio mate and fellow photographer) because it would have been much too difficult to keep the tone consistent. So I hung two large black curtains instead. Which was much easier and less messy. Here are a few images I took of Jenelle jumping. I kept the same theme as before (see my last post) - having them do unnatural, or un-dancer like, jumps. We had a lot of fun, but I think they got a little tired after the 10th jump.

These set of images are the reason I wanted to photograph the dancers (see below).
I wanted to show their movement but not have them frozen in time. The idea came from a recent photo shoot of art work. One of the pieces had colored lights behind them, giving off a glow. I asked the artist to hold up one of the lights and move from side to side. This was the perfect way to show the flowing movements of the dancers. So I hooked them up with lights and asked them to perform their favorite jumps, turns, twists or anything they wanted.
The first is a dancer jumping without a strobe, just showing the movement. She was doing the Baryshnikov jump. The second is her doing the same jump but with the strobe. The grace in which the light moves through the air reminds me of looking at music on the paper without hearing the sound. This is what the jump really looks like - the subtle hand movement, the position of the legs - all in perfect symmetry.

The Dancers

This past Sunday I started a personal project that I've been thinking about for some time now. Dancers can be a favorite subject of photographers. I think it because of their grace and classic curves. I wanted to get away from that - having them in poses that seemed unnatural or "unclassic". I wanted attitude and unflattering jumps, but with a touch of grace.
Here are a few. I'll show more in the coming days.

Collaboration

This past Friday I had the pleasure of not only taking photographs of one of the leading consultants/lawyers in America, Elizabeth Birch, but to also work with art directors Neal and Brian Ashby. What I really love about photography is collaborating with talented people who have a vision. Most creative people do have a very vivid imagination, but to be able to translate that into words can be quite rare.
The photos taken of Elizabeth are for her web site, which Neal and Brian are designing. They wanted the photos to evoke a feeling of relaxation, familiarity and engagement. To do this we had Brian stand just off camera and listen as she told some amusing stories, which brought laughs from everyone on the set. We caught some great expressions and reactions. Below are some of the photos.

Personal Projects

I think what really keeps me going in photography (blood flowing, that type of thing) are personal projects. They are vital in helping me stay fresh and excited about photography. For the past month I have been working on a few - some are being shot as we speak and others are in the works.
I've been working on one of the projects for a while now and thought I would share some of the latest images. I am taking portraits of high school students. It started about ten years ago with my photos of students writing their thoughts on a blackboard. Now it's just the student against a white background - similar to the style of Richard Avedon.
To see more of my personal work click here
Below are some of my favorites.

What Do You See?

During a photo shoot this week one of the items to be photographed was a candle. Fairly simple item to shoot, but being black caused some problems with reflections. But my assistant, Rachael, and I worked it out. Where my creativity was really sparked was when we blew out the candle. The puffs of smoke that rose from the candle was mesmerizing. We just had to take a few minutes to play. Here are some of the results. The shots were taken moments after the candle was blown out. The more I look at them the more I see - letters of the alphabet, faces, a horse...
What do you see?

Characterizations

The portrait is a wonderful thing. Probably my most favorite assignments are portraits. The photographic possibilities are endless. You can shoot in the studio, in a chosen environmental, get close or pull back. Revealing the character of a person is what it's all about. Being able to capturing their mood or showing an emotion inspires me to keep shooting.

Fortunately many of my assignments are portrait related. The wide range of personalities and the variety of advertising concepts produced by clients keeps it all fresh. There's always a different way of portraying an individual. Capturing the character of a person is what keeps me in photography.

A Time to Explore

"If a day goes by without my doing something related to photography, it's as though I've neglected something essential to my existence, as though I had forgotten to wake up." -- Richard Avedon

This is how I feel most days. There is always something to photograph, something to explore. That's why this past summer has been one of personal projects. It was a great opportunity to work on new lighting techniques (at least new to me) and to get out of the studio and away from the computer. From shooting with the 30ft ladder to photographing horses the summer forced me to find projects to shoot. Now with fall approaching, I'll to find new opportunities, new projects to work on.
To me, being a photographer is not only working for clients, but exploring and creating work that helps me grow as a person as well as a photographer. It's about creating a style that matches my personality.

It's in the Details

This little point-and-shoot camera - my trusty G-9 - continues to amaze me. Here are three images taken during my week long stay in a cabin on the New River is southern Virginia. All taken in different types of light, they show the G-9's ability to capture detail in the earliest morning light (photo of tree), the fog coming off the New River and a spider's web (using the macro setting). All images were taken straight from the camera with only minimal Photoshop work (some levels and curves) and no sharpening.
I think it's pretty amazing for a small point-and-shoot!