NICKPHOTO

A NEW HOME - BLOG.NICKPHOTO.NET

2011-01-31T18:52:00.000-06:00

Hey all, I've made a switch to the blog. You can now view the current blog and current posts at: blog.nickphoto.net Please be sure to update your feeds, or whatever you need to do.

Thanks!

INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2011-01-25T07:29:00.000-06:00

From SYZYGY: "We've teamed up with artist/director McBess to produce this exclusive, limited edition artwork print illustrating 20 things that 'happened' on the Internet in 2010. More details below... This picture is, like the Russian national interest, a riddle wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. The picture contains 20 ‘things’ that happened on the Internet in 2010. These ‘things’ include industry events, memes and great web projects. We invite you to leave your ontological, semantic and grammatical objections to one side, and guess what these ‘things’ might be."

Very cool. I'm working on my guesses. Here is a link to the full post and a chance to win one of these prints: SYZYGY.

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MOBILE VISUAL SKETCH THING

2011-01-24T22:45:00.002-06:00

Winter sunset on the back porch.

I had a brief conversation the other night about mobile images and how I was posting them on the blog. Got me thinkin' more about how I'm really using sveral apps and shooting "techniques" with my camera phone to not only snap moments I want to look back on, but also to enhance my visual vocabulary. This visual inspiration is more and more crucial in helping me with "real" shooting.. makin' sense? Bare with me. By crushing blacks, blowing out whites, loosing focus, blurring lines, capturing off beat moments, or pick yr poison, I'm seeing things I might not typically see. Things I might not think about, or even have rolling around somewhere in my little brain. I'm by no means trying to make a "perfect image".. but then again, what does that even mean? I know, I know, I've ranted before. Plus, these images I'm shooting on my mobile phone serve as wonderful visual diary type entries, if you will. Snapshots. Moments. And when you're thinking about pure moments (personal, c'mon, I'm not talking photojournalism) and thinking about that moment in time that you want to look back on, who really cares if your homie's black shirt is showing detail? I don't. I'm more concerned with what we were laughing at.

Michael's birthday.

I-90 East to Cleveland, OH.

Sunset on the road.

Midnight at my Dad's house.

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A NEW APPROACH

2011-01-19T12:19:00.000-06:00

I've been wrestling an idea for a portrait project in my head for quite some time now. Writing a lot, sketching, scheming, and dreaming. But nothing was getting done. No shoots, no images. After working on a 15 week project last semester, the idea of shooting though problems quickly became a great way to yield results. Just do it. Stop thinking about what could happen, what might happen, what could go wrong, and the lot on a list goes on forever.

This idea clicked for me when shooting the image above. I was doing some lighting tests and made this image. It was for a client shoot, I wasn't even thinking about my personal project. But when I was looking through the shoot later that night, I liked what this image was doing. I got on the phone and scheduled a shoot with someone I knew I wanted in the project and bam! I'm underway with the project, which I'll try and share updates along the way.

You can sketch, write, think, all you want, and I still will do all those as part of my process, but the best way is to get out, get up, and shoot, or whatever your chosen medium is. Paint, record, design, dance, whatever. Oh, and if you do any of those, shoot me a call, I wanna talk!

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2011-01-18T21:52:00.002-06:00

Matthias Clamer photographed a beauty pageant in Texas. Some really amazing work.

Check out the rest of the images on his blog: [here]

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GUEST POST W/ JENNIFER AVELLO

2011-01-12T15:25:00.000-06:00

I met Jennifer my very first photo class of my college career. A black and white darkroom course where, after a couple of critiques, I thought to myself, cool, Jennifer is one of the couple kids in the class making some good work at the level we were at. We stopped talking for a while after that class. One day, maybe a year and a half later, I stumbled upon her flickR page and thought, "damn!". The work she was making was so good! Just in that small time frame, her work went from point A to B.. that's impressive. Anyways, for those who have followed my blog, I'm by no means a fashion shooter. While I think it's pretty awesome, and agree, how Jennifer talks about not placing herself within the box of "a fashion photographer", her images certainly have that sense of fashion. I thought it'd be really great to get some fresh, different work shown on this blog, and have a conversation that doesn't show up here very often.. A trend that will hopefully continue throughout 2011..

There has always been a long term debate whether photography was considered an art form since it was invented around 1839. I feel that throughout time and the development of technology and increasingly refining the tools of photographic processes that answer is a pretty obvious yes, especially when it comes to digital photography. Within the digital age, photography is not just about clicking a shutter anymore. A photographer is able to control so many aspects of one’s own photograph; whether in camera or out of camera in a photo editing software program like Photoshop. In Photoshop, a photographer can choose to enhance their photograph minimally by adjusting things like color balance, contrast and sharpness or they can choose to completely alter and manipulate their photograph in any way, shape, or form. Photographers now have the tools to express their own visions and act like painters, abstractionists, sculptures, designers, even plastic surgeons! The possibilities are endless within the world of digital photography.

As a photographer, I am interested in creating stylized imagery. My work is influenced by fashion and beauty photography but I do not consider myself a fashion photographer. I feel as if that label has too many standards and guidelines that I do not want to box myself in with. I hope that viewers see my work as a collaboration of ideas and inspiration. In my opinion, a good photographer pulls inspiration from all genres of photography and does not single out their views. I feel like too many photographers get stuck in this label genre, in which they end up restricting themselves to what they can do with a camera. And I refuse to limit myself.

I have mixed feelings about the fashion and beauty industry which I find myself constantly battling day to day. I too fall victim to the ideas of what is beautiful. I constantly struggle with the notions that I am not pretty enough, skinny enough, and perfect enough. But what is perfect anyway? No one is perfect not even the models we rip out of fashion magazines and plaster all over our walls and refrigerators for motivation. We too can look that way, (and not by starving ourselves and spending thousands of dollars on plastic surgery.) There is a new age, 21th century form of plastic surgery, and yet there is no “going under the knife,” or recovery time. It's called Photoshop. Even as a fashion inspired photographer who knows all the tricks of the trade and even though I know nothing you see should ever be taken for face value, I still too fall victim to these fabricated and embellished images. It is like even though we know magazines are retouched, misrepresented, and fabricated we have this notion in our heads that a photograph must capture a moment in time, the real moment.

As a photographer, hoping to one day work in the fashion and beauty industry I find myself forgetting the power of the image. I always have to remind myself that the photographs I see and even the photographs I create are not real. You can never trust a photographer. I think that is why I am always doing these side projects that focus on the fabricated beauty within the fashion industry as well as just within photography in the twenty first century. I too, am fascinated by the fictional, made up and stylized world of creating your own reality within an image through the digital media. But I am constantly reminding myself of this false sense of reality by studying the effects of this altered and unattainable perfection we all seem to lust for. Through whatever means it may be, I am just trying to wrap my head around it all and study human behavior and the human mind. I am in no way trying to change what the fashion/beauty industry has built nor am I really passing judgment since I too am practicing the art of lying. As an artist, I can only create; learn from it and recreate. But even with how much time, effort, and thought I put into creating these elaborate photographs I still too am lost within them. I seem to forget the before image and focus on the afters.

Within fashion photography there are a lot of restrictions and guidelines that photographers, models, and the studio teams must abide by from model measurement, beauty lighting 101,retouching, etc

Usually, for fashion photography the model must be very tall and thin, and even so they will become thinner and taller through post production. Fashion photography usually always starts with the clothes and everything else just reinforces that.

For swimsuit or lingerie, you are either selling the form, the function, a fantasy, or sex. The women are usually shorter and have the ideal shape of the hourglass. The shorter height, balances out a more proportional model. Males have large shoulders, a slender waist that tappers down from the shoulders and boxy hips.

Lighting and make up is very important when it comes to beauty photography. Since beauty photography is mostly shot from shoulder up the detail and closeness to a models face is very important, especially in post production when a retoucher must remove blemishes and smooth skin which can take many hours. The easiest way to remove a large portion of skin blemishes overall is by using a very flat light. The light will flatten out skin, effectively not putting any added emphasis on blemishes. However this flat light will remove all contrast and flatten and widen a models face. This is where make up is very important. A good make up artist will build up contrast and can reconstruct a face just by physically painting in highlights and shadows. What is lighter will appear closer and what is darker will recede. If a photographer decides to use a harsher light for their beauty photographs a lot more time will be spent in post production removing blemishes, pores, and smoothing skin since the added contrast from the light will uncover all of that models "imperfection."

Regardless of my mixed feeling about the reality of the fashion and beauty industry I really cannot imagine myself doing anything else with my life. If I can be surrounded by beautiful models, beautiful locations and beautiful clothes and take photographs, I am pleased. If I'm able to go back to my roots of painting and recreate a photograph how ever my mind sees it through photoshop, then I am happy. And when I see a final image that is a collaboration of ideas, inspiration, and a team of talented individuals, I am just ecstatic. If an image in a magazine can make you feel anything, then we have all done our job.

I cannot deny that creating an idealized world can be exciting at times. But there is no bigger reality check then retouching a beautiful models face at 100%. ;)

More Jennifer:
Portfolio: www.jenniferavello.com/
Tumblr: jenniferavello.tumblr.com/
Facebook: facebook.com/jenniferavellophotography

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2011-01-11T10:36:00.000-06:00

Really inspired by these images Nino Munoz made of Raoul Bova for Vanity Fair Italy.

Rest of images here: [LINK]

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DAY 5 - DENVER TO CHICAGO

2011-01-10T00:05:00.000-06:00

Woke up to snow.

Zoli was certainly enjoying it.

Drove to grab some breakfast with Derek and Ashley.

Heading to the Denver airport.

Some last glimpses of the landscape.

Picked up some of this amazing salsa Derek introduced me to to bring home.

You were good Denver, heading back to Chicago now. I'm terrible at goodbyes.

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DAY 4 - BACK IN BOULDER, CO

2011-01-09T13:46:00.000-06:00

Back in Boulder after a long, long night. Lots of good people, good times. Spent most of the day recovering after going 110mph ever since arriving. It's good to remind myself that it's okay to have a relaxing day, kick back, nap, read. Caught up on a little work. Got some good things comin' in the next couple weeks, so stay tuned.

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DAY 3 - DENVER, CO

2011-01-08T22:18:00.000-06:00

Kind of a late start, breakfast at Espresso Cafe.

Headed to downtown Denver, hit a spot called Tarantula's Billiards.

My friend Dustin moved here a couple weeks ago.

Downtown from the cool trolly type system.

Good friends.

Skateboards a flyin'.

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DAY 2 - BOULDER, CO

2011-01-07T11:40:00.001-06:00

Started off right with Derek's breakfast burritos.

Then drove up the mountains.

Peaks.

Around 10,000 feet up, pretty gnarly wind and cold.

Headed back down.

Stopped for lunch at an awesome brewery called Oscar Blues.

Adam made an awesome dinner before we headed out for the night.

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DAY 0/DAY 1 - IN TRANSIT

2011-01-06T08:40:00.000-06:00

Day 0 - Cleveland to Chicago - Sunset

Day 1 - Chicago to Chicago O'Hare

Day 1 - Airport food via Billy Goat Tavern

Day 1 - Chicago to Denver

I'm going to post a small section of travel diary images each morning while I'm out on the road. Here are a couple from the first day(s) or traveling. Be sure to check back.
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HERE WE GO

2011-01-01T23:23:00.000-06:00

I laughed at myself as I thought of posting the above photo with a title of "leaping into the new year"...

In reality, that frame is from my very last shoot of 2010. An unusually warm (57 degree) day here in Cleveland. Ran up and down the beach. Had a shot in my head, think I got it.

Anyways, I'm stoked on the new year. The past 5 months have lead me to a place where I'm really excited to make work. I really feel as though I know a direction I want.

I wanted to shoot a quick thank you to all those who have been following my work, this blog, and me. This past year I've had more discussion, more thoughts, more views from readers than ever before. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Thanks to the new people I've photographed, new people I've worked with, new clients. It's been pretty amazing and I'm excited about future work.

A big thank you to those who have stuck with me. Helping me in many more ways than one. You know who you are, and aren't.

With that in mind, cheers to the new year, and here we go!...
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GOIN' FOR IT, A NEW YEAR

2010-12-31T13:18:00.004-06:00

Sunset from my brothers car, passenger seat.

Seth Godin (blog here) wrote this morning:

"Maybe next year...
The economy will be going gangbusters
Your knowledge will reach critical mass
Your boss will give you the go ahead (and agree to take the heat if things don't work out)
Your family situation will be stable
The competition will stop innovating
Someone else will drive the carpool, freeing up a few hours a week
There won't be any computer viruses to deal with, and
Your neighbor will return the lawnmower.

Then...
You can ship, you can launch your project, you can make the impact you've been planning on.

Of course, all of these things won't happen. Why not ship anyway?" [cont. reading]

This got me thinkin' about what I've been thinkin' about the past couple days and reiterated last night with my closest friend over a couple games of pool and a couple of beers..

"I need to just start going for it... every time."

I'm tired of over thinking situations, thinking to myself "hmm, will this be good, or fun, or new, or exciting". The reality is that I just do not know. And thinking something might not be cool is no reason to not find out first hand if it is or not. I now know that by not acting, I'm losing every time, rather than only a couple times had I jumped and gone for it every chance I got.

What's the old saying, "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."

Here's to bringing in the new year with taking as many shots as I possibly can.

Cheers.
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INSPIRATION TUESDAYS

2010-12-28T22:47:00.000-06:00

I'm always super inspired by friends who are doing and/or making really cool things in the creative sense. Design, video, painting, music, etc. It's a good feeling. Makes for interesting conversation, ideas start flowing, and I feel, for me at least, that you, as a creative, benefit immensely from it.

My friends in Ohio have a video premiering January 7th in Akron, Oh. Unfortunately I'm going to be in Denver, Co, but if you're in the area, be sure to check it out. Details on the flyer and at their website www.alykcru.com. Stoked to see good things.
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2010 IN PICTURES

2010-12-27T12:39:00.000-06:00

2010 seemingly went by in a blink of an eye. I went back through the archives from 2010 and picked an image from each month, trying to post some, or most rather, that never saw the light of day. I'm also working on another "year end" post in words. That'll take a bit more time though. So, here we go, In 2010...

... photographed my homie playing music in my basement (January 2010).

THE REST OF THE IMAGES AFTER THE JUMP!

... braved the cold and shot some landscapes at Montrose beach with Tom (February 2010).

... Learned a great deal from John H. White, one of the kindest souls I've met (March 2010).

... Laid in the grass once it got warm and soaked in music and sunlight (April 2010).

... Shot a ton of product in the studio this entire month (May 2010).

... Watched the sunset with my brother and father in Arizona (June 2010).

... Rode bikes with old friends (July 2010).

... Had a blast shooting in the studio with beers, friends, and good tunes (August 2010).

... Spent time in Cincinnati with my brother and friends, old and new (September 2010).

... Traveled more, worried less (October 2010).

... Photographed our "family holiday card" again (November 2010).

... Enjoyed every minute of spending time with my brothers (December 2010).

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL

2010-12-25T15:32:00.001-06:00

Hope everyone is having an amazing time over the holidays. I know I have so far. I'm going to have to keep this short and get back away from the computer. Here are some snaps I made at my family's party last night.

Cheers!

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A NICKPHOTO SHORT: CLEVELAND TO CHICAGO

2010-12-22T11:21:00.003-06:00

It's no secret that I've been hugely influenced by Jack Kerouac. I read "On The Road" when I was in 10th grade and have been devouring his books ever since. When I was in high school, before I began pursuing photography with passion, I wanted to be a writer. I still read a ton to this day, and find that books, the story telling, the lives, influence me sometimes more than photographs.

I've been working really hard on my sort of personal side project. Well, I guess it's not really a side project, but I view and think about it differently than I do my more "commercial" feeling work. I can't wait to share a ton of work I've been making for it in the new year. Anyways, it's common thread, without delving too far into it, is basically travel/story telling. So, I was experimenting a couple of months ago and made this video featured above.

My homie @tony_miceli recorded and edited the audio for the clip.. thanks dude!

Stay tuned for more of this personal type work, and check out the photos below for some behind the scenes type content..

Yours truly.

For easy access to fire the shutter, I used an a-clamp to ensure my cable release would remain in the same positon, that way I wouldn't have to take my eyes off the road looking around for where it went.

I configured my tripod legs so the camera would be level as possible. I then took my backseat seat belts and wrapped the tripod, which worked surprisingly well, keeping everything sturdy and level.

Detail of the seat belt set up.

For the images, I set my milage to 000.00 when I left my driveway. I then kept an eye on it here and there for every time it would go up 1 mile. As soon as I saw the 001.00 I would fire the shutter. Once on the highway, It was pretty easy to get the timing down as speed wasn't really varying. So my shutter would fire at 001.00, 002.00, 003.00, etc. By the time I parked on my street in Chicago, the meter was somewhere around 350 or something like that.

Be sure to drop me a line with questions, thoughts, ideas..

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INSPIRATION TUESDAYS

2010-12-21T12:35:00.002-06:00

Kind of amazing. Kind of hilarious. Keepin' it short today, enjoy.

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ON THE ROAD: GEAR/PACKING

2010-12-20T08:26:00.001-06:00

I have a quick meeting in a couple hours and then I'm hitting the road headed to Cleveland. A mix of a quick holiday break, family, and friends in town will do wonders for me. It's been a crazy last couple of weeks, so this is welcomed, to say the least.

I also have a couple jobs to shoot while I'm in town. With that in mind, I figured I'd share what gear I'm bringing with me and some ideas of what I'm thinking about when traveling with gear, especially when there are a couple jobs to shoot.

1 - (pictured above) - The DSLR bag: This is a lowpro photo trekker aw or something like that. I forget exactly. But it houses camera bodies, lenses, cf and sd cards, a sunpak flash, sunpak battery pack, chargers for just about everything, cleaning things, paper work, etc., etc. Basically, I have enough in the bag to get good shots with no matter what else is with me.

2 - (pictured above) - Light Kit: This is in a Calumet WS hardcase. Not sure, like 3434 or something like that. This houses two strobe heads, pocket wizards, all sorts of cables, reflectors, grids, and a battery pack for the strobes.

3 - (pictured above) - 21" iMac: Since I'm spending a good chuck of time away from homebase, I'm bringing my big guy computer with me. One of the reasons I went with this 21" iMac instead of the 27" was portability. I knew I could get away with packing it all up in one box and having it ride in the car without too much of a hassle.

4 - (pictured above) - 22" Beauty Dish: This has been my sort of go to light mod. lately. The one downfall is that it's so big, it's kind of a pain to carry around. It doesn't weigh much, but I haven't found a real easy way of traveling with it yet. Got to have it though.

5 - (pictured above) - The Misc. Bag: This is a Tamrac pro 6, I think? Something like that. A smaller bag that sort of carries all the miscellaneous 'stuff' that gets me through shoots. Everything from hair ties to extra batteries, a lint roller to a-clamps. I also have a 45" 5 in 1 collapsable reflector clamped to the bag. I use this guy on almost every shoot.

6 - (pictured above) - Personal Bag: I don't know what kind of bag it is. It's red and rolls. Have all my clothes in here. I also have a small AP Press duffle bag I won somewhere clamped to my suitcase. I have a couple books, shoes, and other random crap I bet I'll want when I'm on the road.

7 - (pictured above) - Stands/Support: Lightstands, umbrellas, tripod w/ pistol grip, arm bracket, etc. all clamped together in a bag that is too small for everything. Still looking for a good travel bag for all my stands.

8 - (pictured above) - C-stand and Sand: Pretty self explanatory.

Basically, when traveling somewhere far (6 hours), I kind of over pack. I don't want to be in town somewhere and think "oh shit, I really could use ______ right now." It's kind of a fear. So I suck it up, make a ton of trips up and down the stairs to the car, and pack it up.

Stay tuned for the next ON THE ROAD feature: SCOUTING.

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COMFORT? NAH, NOT FOR ME

2010-12-19T16:24:00.001-06:00

Test #2

I was recently asked to shoot a series of images, a sort of editorial that will be showcased online. More on that later though. The subject and concept we've been coming up with is something I'm super into. But the overall 'style' in which the photographs are to look is pretty outside of what I'm used to. Recently, after weeks and weeks of portfolio development, I've come to a place where I have a sort of developed idea of what my images look will be like. Be that lighting, color pallets, contrast, etc. Yet, for this assignment, it's almost the opposite my of said look. This poses some serious challenges that I'm working though right now.

One of my favorite things about being a creative is problem solving. So, I'm really into this project I'm working on. I've been shooting tests (above and previous post), working new post techniques, taking these test shots, emailing them to my collaborator, getting feedback, making adjustments, over and over. I really feel I'm growing as a creative. Pushing myself outside my comfort zone. Working with new people, different sets, different ways of thinking. Sure, there are times I'm stressing because something isn't quite working, or I'm struggling to figure out a look, but that's because this is all sort of uncharted water for me. There have been countless times where I want to give it up and say "let's shoot it 100% my way and look".. but I stop short every time on the phone. I was asked for a look, I need to figure it out, right? It's going to benefit myself and my work 100 times more if I figure out these problems, work through it, work with new people, and yet, still find away to leave my stamp on the images.

I can't thank the gang that worked with me on this shoot enough. Heather, Lisa, Tony, Lauren. Makin' my life easier.

Next up will I'll be in Cleveland for this shoot. Scouting locations this week and hopefully shooting the final images shortly after. I'll be blogging the whole process, so stay tuned this week before the holidays.

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SHOOTIN', NOW REFLECTING

2010-12-18T11:14:00.000-06:00

Shot yesterday. Feel like it's my last of the "year". And by year I mean, I'm going to spend a couple days/weeks reflecting on what's in my portfolio and really dive in and think about the direction I want it to go. Of course, I'll be shooting, but I think it's really important to step away from shooting, and reflect, and think. I'm also going to be spending a good portion of the next month or so coming up with goals for myself and my work that I'd like to see happen in 2011.. I've been making mental notes of some things here and there, and already I see I'm going to have a big, big list. I'm going to make 2011 a monster year. Have to, right?

Anyways, here's a shot of Heather. Thanks to Lauren for helping out and hooking us all up with pizza, Lisa for hair and make up, and Tony for being my right hand man. Shouts to TB for providing a much needed C-stand, some sand, and the camera body we ended up shooting on.

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STAYING SANE

2010-12-16T14:27:00.000-06:00

Mobile Image, Chicago, IL, November 2010

I've been working like a dog lately, mostly pre-production stuff, writing a hundred emails, editing, web development, coming up with concepts, printing, on and on. But not really shooting. Gee, I thought I was a photographer.. Well, I'm learning more and more about that whole idea that running a photography business is 20% shooting, 80% other work. It's easy to get bogged down and frustrated, at least for me.

I've found that making mobile images is a great way to keep myself (somewhat) sane when I'm feeling beat down. With my phone, I can make images while I'm picking up gear, running to a store for props, even just sitting out back taking a break from writing emails. It keeps a steady feed of creativity coming in.

What keeps ya'll sane in the not so "glamorous" times of being a creative?

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I'M NO EXPERT

2010-12-13T19:12:00.001-06:00

This is kind of an interesting approach to marketing cameras by a camera company. I mean, I get it. The target audience using these cameras primarily to capture memories - point and shoot type stuff. They don't care about f-stops, shutter speeds, light, etc. That's well and fine. Perhaps this is an attempt to combat mobile phones having such great cameras now.

My immediate reaction was frustration. "Yeah, 'cause it's that easy, anyone can just click a button and make an amazing picture". But then I thought more about it. It doesn't really matter. F-stops, shutter speed, ISO, all just a bunch of tools you can use to create vision. And you can't press a button to give yourself vision. That's what matters. Let's face it, the days where photographers were known for their technical precision are over. It's the vision that matters. The best photographers are obviously technically sound, they know how to rock equipment like no other. But when I'm loving an image, I'm rarely thinking "man, what a brilliant f-stop.."

So climb down from the elite tower, and create vision.

On the other hand, I can't stand the text saying "you don't have to be a great photographer to take great photos." Um, yeah, you kind of do. It'd be like saying to a basketball player "you don't have to be a great free-throw shooter to make a ton of free throws".. Yeah, you do. They go hand in hand, right? If you make great photographs, you're in turn, a great photographer.. If you make a ton of free throws, you're a good free throw shooter..

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A NICKPHOTO SHORT: TONY MICELI

2010-12-08T11:53:00.000-06:00

I rolled some video while my homie Tony was recording some guitar tracks for an upcoming stop motion video I've been toying around with. I feel like I'm getting more and more comfortable with this series, ANICKPHOTOSHORT and with creating video content. Stick with me as I'm at the early stage finding my "voice" in terms of video content on nickphoto.

Anyways, here's the latest installment, ANICKPHOTOSHORT: FEATURING TONY MICELI.
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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-12-07T17:54:00.000-06:00

© Alex Katz

I've been really digging other mediums lately. Stumbled across these gems done by Alex Katz. I think it's a good thing to wander outside whatever field you're working in. I do, a lot. I can't draw, paint, design, or play music, by any means, but I find a ton of my inspiration comes from those mediums, among others.

Alex Katz [WEBSITE]

© Alex Katz

© Alex Katz
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FB ARCHIVE

2010-12-06T16:39:00.000-06:00

Derek Walter, Summer 2005.

I'm working on a really cool project right now that's taking me way back in the archives. Figured a perfect time to shoot a reminder out there to become a fan on facebook, or at least check the page periodically to catch a FB exclusive series From The Archives. Every so often I'm posting photos from the past that probably never saw the light of day, or computer screen, or whatever.. Maybe some of them, but a few gems snuck by.

Stay tuned for a big (possibly real big) update Wednesday.. Stoked to share. I'll be sharing a sneak peak on the FB page tomorrow.

Become a Fan on FACEBOOK: NICKPHOTO.

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A NICKPHOTO SHORT: BMX

2010-12-01T10:37:00.000-06:00

Went out on Black Friday and captured some clips with Kyle. The temperature was hovering around 28 degrees and the wind hand my hands turnin' red. Regardless, we bundled up and managed to get some clips at a couple places around Cleveland. It was my first time using the Canon 60d out in the field. Handled great and was super stoked on the camera. There's a few tweaks I need to figure out, but that's just a matter of learning more and spending more time with the equipment. Hopefully more vids will be a comin'..

Stay tuned!
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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-11-30T20:28:00.002-06:00

It's no secret bmx and skateboarding have been huge influences in me and my work. I've followed the guys down in North Carolina for a couple years now, and they're still doing amazing things. This trailer for a film by James Tupper is just so dope. A clear example to put to rest this idea that bmx and skate media is somehow inferior. Amazing captures, amazing edit.

Check their website, POST 22, here: [link]
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RISK

2010-11-29T14:28:00.002-06:00

Detroit, Mi - 2005

I woke up around 4am this morning thinking about RISK. Nah, not the game, but the act. I was thinking about how from quite an early age, at least for me, I wasn't ever really taught to take chances, to take risks. Think about it. How many teachers encouraged thinking outside the parameters of say, a book report. "You can choose from these four books, read one, and write a two page double spaced paper that talks about X, Y, Z, and A." Nothing else, nothing more.

That's just one off beat example. I was then thinking about career advice. Why does everything seem to be so cut and dry, laid out in this way. If you stray from this path, you're cast as an outsider, and that's putting it nicely. Why aren't we encouraged to gain experience? You go to high school and need to maintain a grade point average of __.__ in order to "be successful" and go to "a good college". What is success? What is a "good" college? Once you're at this "good" college, you must now maintain a g.p.a of __.__ in order to "get a good job". What is a "good" job? Who dictates this?

Okay, let's swing this to art, and/or art school. I think it's so weird that there is even a g.p.a at my art school. What does that even mean? You can go through the motions, make a specific amount of prints each week, and as long as they're properly exposed, properly printed, etc. You can get an A fairly easily. Does that mean success? What if I tried something way out there, failed, and learned a great deal about my work and myself, but received a D. Does that mean I'm not as good? Not as successful?

I'm asking a lot of hypothetical questions here, but think about it. I fear that fear of "failure" will kill creativity and growth. Or maybe I'm wrong. And that that fear drives and motivates us. Who knows?

All I know is that I'm going to start taking more risk. Happy Monday.

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A THANKFUL HOLIDAY

2010-11-26T10:23:00.004-06:00

Home for a quick holiday break with ol' friends and family. Yesterday, spent the day with my brothers, my parents, my grandfather, and family that came in from the D.C area.

This year I'm thankful for so much.

My Brothers
My Family
Community
Technology
Good Health
Learning

The list goes on and on. But I'm going to get my arse off the computer and spend the rest of the weekend with friends and family. Hope everyone is doing the same.

Cheers!

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY (2) IPHONE WAR PHOTOGRAPHY

2010-11-23T18:50:00.001-06:00

© Damon Winter/New York Times

Two posts in one day.. not bad. Had to share this though. Damon Winters photographed "the day-to-day trials of the First Battalion, 87th Infantry of the 10th Mountain Division in northern Afghanistan" using guess what?... an iPhone. The images graced the cover of the New York Times yesterday.

The purists who are still around must be red in the face!

But as the New York Times Lens Blog reiterates, it's about finding the right tool. "Few people care what kind of typewriter Hemingway used." And anyone who has followed or even just seen some of Winter's work, you know he's the real deal, and knows what he's doing. Another instance of the ol' "gear doesn't make the photographer" idea.

Via the [New York Times Lens Blog]. (View the gallery of the images as well over there).
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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-11-23T07:57:00.001-06:00

© Larry Clark

© Larry Clark

I've been looking at a lot of Larry Clark's work this past week. I've been on this sort of black and white, raw, grainy kick lately, so what better way to find a little inspiration than to look at some mid twentieth century photography made by guys working in a raw sort of fashion.

Clark's work has been described as "exposing the reality of American suburban life at the fringe and for shattering long-held mythical conventions that drugs and violence were an experience solely indicative of the urban landscape". Pretty brilliant.

You can view Clark's website here: [link]

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I'M HAVING FUN

2010-11-22T16:33:00.001-06:00

Lakewood, Oh. Summer 2005.

"When did taking pictures become so serious?"

I scribbled that late the other night after working on editing images for a mini book project. More on that later. Anyways, one thing I noticed happening in all of these images, particularly the images made in 2005 and 2006, was how much fun I was having making the pictures. The most important thing in the world was being there. And then capturing the moments.

Now the "there" is usually a set, with lots of equipment, lists, talent, clothes, computers, etc. You name, it's probably there. And there is an agenda. Why are we making this image. What's it for. Portfolio? Client? Marketing?

Hmm, not shooting today? I should work on writing that marketing plan. I should think about some target clients. I should really make a copy of that model release that has been sitting in my inbox.

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not talking down either of these. I love big sets, collaborating, and making smart images. I dream up schemes, ideas, concepts that will ideally serve a purpose. No harm there. I actually enjoy reading about marketing, love social network marketing ideas, thinking about portfolios, and don't mind (too, too much) paperwork.

I'm just thinking about how I'm going to start having that sort of pure innocent fun again. And that's not to say I'm not having fun right now. I mean, look at the [video] we made of TB dancing his arse off. By fun, I mean, I'm going into shoots, ideas, places wide eyed again. As if everything is new. Fresh. 'Cause it's not worth it if you're not having fun, right?

I'm having fun again. What about ya'll?

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GIVE ME THE WHY!

2010-11-18T12:30:00.000-06:00

I've been thinking a lot about the "why" when it comes to making photographs. More so recently then ever before. Why am I shooting a photo in this way? Why not another way? What is the function or the placement of the photo? Am I shooting for my portfolio? Am I shooting for my subjects image? Am I shooting as a personal sort of visual journal? These questions keep bouncing around in my head. While I'm making the image, while I'm editing the image, and after, when I'm looking at my work as a whole.

This way of thinking has lead me to finally understanding the difference between shooting "technical" images and, for lack of better word, "portfolio" images. Bear with me. I don't mean technical in the obvious way. Where you're using a light to see what it's all about. Or learning how to light white seamless. Those, to me, are exercises that will help get to the place I'm thinking about. Basically, what I mean is that in the past, I'd think to myself, "I want to shoot an image, at night, with strobes, on location". That was the premise. But I wasn't really thinking why. Now, I'm thinking of the scenes or the sets or concepts as a whole, at a much larger scale, and then thinking about how to make that scene or set look the way I want using my tools. Be it a lens, a light, aperture, etc. I hope this is making some sense. I don't think it's enough, at all actually, to have a series of pictures and when someone asks you what it's all about, you say, "well, they're 4x5 portraits shot in the studio". Okay.. so what? Your project is about how well you can use a camera? And a light? That's not very interesting. But, if there's a lingering idea, a linger concept, and you need to use a 4x5 camera in the studio to make that concept come to life.. now we're somewhere.

Our gear is really just a bunch of tools. No different than a construction dudes equipment belt. I bet if you ask him about the project he just finished, he won't say it was built using XyZ brand whatever. Now, that's not to say we can't geek out over how images were made. What lens, what light. I love that stuff just as much as the next guy.

But give me the "why"!

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-11-16T19:02:00.000-06:00

Had to post a shout to my boy Derek out in Denver, CO. for today's inspiration since he posted for the first time in a while. Always love his work, his ideas, his point of view. It's great when you have people in your address book who you can call about girls, life, school, whatever, and then also talk creative. I'm also planning on being in Denver in January. So I'm hoping we'll be able to work together on a short project or cook up something wild out there. I just found plane tickets, so I better call and make sure his floor is available for me and my gear ; ).

Derek's Blog here - (link)

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SOCIAL, SOCIAL, SOCIAL

2010-11-15T09:54:00.000-06:00

Thursday, Chase Jarvis wrote "I heard it again yesterday for the billionth time: “Digital Photography”. Isn’t it time we drop the word ‘digital’?" And proceded to explain.

I couldn't agree more.

As I continued to think about it, I started wondering if it was also time to drop the "I'm too cool for facebook or twitter act". Seriously. If I hear "I don't want to know what people are eating for lunch" as the reason for not using twitter one more time, I'ma loose it! Get over yourself. It's a powerful tool that, when used correctly, or responsibly, is quite amazing. You can stay connected with friends, clients, potential clients, family, etc. On both platforms. You can share information and gain information. I can't tell you how many good reads I come across. How many great images. How many great stories. And on and on. And on.

Yet, please note I'm not recruiting. Or saying join in (well, I kind of want you to join in the conversation). What I am saying is give it some thought. Think before you make fun of, attack, or write off. "Come on!" (In Gob Bluth voice).

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COLD WIND = STUDIO TIME

2010-11-11T09:15:00.003-06:00

A new studio work I thought I'd share this morning. A leftover frame from a shoot I did Monday. I am beginning the editing process as I write this, so be on the look out for new work. I have a gnarly head cold, so bare with me if I start ramblin' or fall asleep at the keyboard.

I'm really looking forward to dialing in some techniques and experimenting in the studio as the weather here in Chicago gets colder and colder. While I do have some winter location ideas, you can't beat the studio with a cup of hot chocolate w/ baileys. Mmmmmmmm.

Some more pre production stuff this week. As well as some boring non-shooting stuff that's super important, yet always gets put off. Looking to have a pretty productive and inspiring next couple of days. Lots of things I'm getting excited to share and make happen.

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CANON 60D AND 'BURBS

2010-11-10T08:52:00.002-06:00

Drove out to the suburbs of Chicago on Sunday afternoon for a shoot. My basis was pretty simple. Find me a BMW to shoot with! Thanks to my "do all" buddy Kim, that wasn't going to be a problem. After about a week of pre-prod. we made it happen and everything lined up. Showed up, and went at it. We figured out a pretty cool set up. Had some amazing coffee. Shot a ton in limited time. And tested/used my friend Tom's (thanks buddy) newly acquired Canon 60d.

The camera is pretty wonderful for an $1100 piece of equipment. Has a decent feel to it, which I'm sure will rock even more with a battery grip. The auto focus was quick, and smooth. The LCD is beautiful. And the images produced were at a pretty stunning quality. Not bad at all. What I don't like is the obvious. The 1.6x crop factor being the most notable. Other than that, not a whole lot to complain about. Plus, I'm not even close to the guy to ask about cameras or review them. I kind of know what I like, and that's that.

More pre production type stuff this week. Will hopefully have a slew of shoots to post in the coming weeks before holidays. Cheers!
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SOCIAL ART

2010-11-09T08:27:00.000-06:00

I was thinking about what my biggest inspirational moment was over the past week while my morning coffee was brewing. I looked at a ton of beautiful work and met some great people. But nothing left me feeling like I needed to get out of my computer chair and do something,Make something, more that this keynote.

Talk about a pannel of rock star talents. Chase Jarvis gives a keynote for about 25 or so minutes on "social art" and how "this is the most exciting time to be a photographer" at Photo Plus Expo NYC. Then the group, consisting of Zack Arias, Vincent Laforet, Joey Lawrence, Rob Haggart, and Jasmine Star, share their thoughts and ideas.

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CHICAGO HAPPENIN'

2010-11-04T09:26:00.004-05:00

Part of the reason I moved to Chicago was because so much was going on in the world I wanted to be apart of. But, just like the 'burbs, it's so easy to fall into convenience. Electing something closer to your apartment because you don't want to wait for a train or bus. Simply staying home because it's too cold, or because you have beer in the fridge. Sure, it's a lot easier, but usually nowhere near as rewarding. So, as I try to get off my ass and go to more openings, more events, more lectures, I figured a great way to help with this would be to incorporate it into my blog. So here it goes. Join me, in getting off your ass, and bettering yourself.

Jared Moossy speaks at The Chicago Council on Global Affairs event. Moossy is a documentary photographer, working with a primary focus on Afghanistan and Mexican drug trade. His work has been featured in Newsweek, Time, and The Wall Street Journal.

6:30 pm
Museum of Contemporary Photography
Columbia College Chicago
600 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60605

Elizabeth Ernst: "Smoke and Mirrors"

Opening reception with the artist Friday November 5 from 5p - 8p. Artist talk in the gallery Saturday November 6 at noon.

Catherine Edelman Gallery
300 W. Superior St.
Chicago, IL 60654

"Larry Volk is an Associate Professor of Photography in the department of Visual Communications in the School of Visual and Performing Arts at Endicott College. He holds an M.F. A. from Rhode Island School of Design. Larry worked in the editorial and commercial market for 10 years. He has been a photographic educator in New England and exhibiting photographer both, regionally and nationally for over 20 years.

Danielle Currier is an Associate Professor of Design in the department of Visual Communications in the School of Visual and Performing Arts at Endicott College. She holds an M.F.A from Parsons, The New School for Design. Danielle has worked as an educator, designer and artist in the Boston area and New York City for over 12 years. She has received numerous awards, grants, and fellowships and exhibited her digital art nationally."

Thursday, November 11th / 10am-12pm
Columbia College Chicago
600 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60605

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IPHONE 4 FOR TIME

2010-11-03T10:47:00.000-05:00

© Nicholas Hegel McClelland for TIME

Nicholas Hegel McClelland made a series of images called "Souvenirs from the Tea Party" for TIME. This isn't a political blog, so I'm not really talking about the content. What I am talking about though is how they're wonderful captures and what I think is really cool, that they are shot using an iPhone 4. Breaking new ground, staying current, keeping it fresh.

Pure awesome.

View the rest of the images here: Souvenirs from the Tea Party
Check out more of Nicholas Hegel McClelland here: website
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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-11-02T10:23:00.001-05:00

I thought I'd share some of my favorite intros or opening credits to a handful of tv shows. Dexter's opening sequence is so great. Smart, beautiful, somewhat haunting, yet cool. Anyways, I don't know why I've always been super into opening sequences. Perhaps it comes from my BMX days, where intro video parts were so dope and super important (in my mind). I also really, really enjoy Mad Men's opening credits. What are your favorites?

Mad Men Title Sequence

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SELF ASSIGNMENTS: "hALLowGOOD"

2010-10-28T13:54:00.003-05:00

I hear it all the time. "Always be shooting". You can read all you want about photography, about images, know every technical aspect of XY piece of equipment, but if you aren't shooting, you aren't getting better. So, clients aren't streaming in through the door? Make your own assignment.

Which is sort of what we did.

My homie Tom has been making mixes on the side as a fun sort of project. They're actually quite good and if you bounce over to his blog, you can find them for download. For his latest mix, we collaborated and made some images he could use as a "cover". We fired up the mix on his iPod and blasted it on my home stereo. Set up a small seamless background, three lights, and went at it. Tom killed it after a few and went nuts dancing away. We decided before hand to make a square composite of multiple images, so I fired away at every move knowing I'd have lots to choose from for the final composite. Fired off around 6gb worth of images, made some video clips, laughed, and drank. That's what it's all about right? Creating awesome content and having a blast. Sure, the parameters of the "assignment" allowed for us to get loose, but you know what? The images reflect that loose atmosphere, which went hand in hand with the concept, and the results were dope.

The video is quick clips my homie Tony made on my mobile. Sexy quality? Not at all. But that's okay. Content is the forerunner here. And when the concept calls for sexy, we'll be right there with an HDSLR making it happen. Learning to create with motivation.

Here's the final composite used for the "cover":

Links:
Tom's Blog: [Here]
YouTube Vid: [Here]

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-10-26T23:06:00.000-05:00

In spirit of the NBA season tipping off today (yes, I'm so stoked), I thought I'd share this brilliant commercial for those who haven't caught it yet. So smart, savvy, and beautifully shot.

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RETURN FROM THE ROAD

2010-10-25T15:19:00.001-05:00

"Just Imagine Road, Avon, Ohio". October 2010.

I've been really enjoying and exploring making images while on the road. It started as a way to keep me sane out there, but has slowly evolved, and is evolving, into something more. I'm having conversations, looking at the images more critically, and figuring out how to form them more cohesively. It's so much fun. Anyways, I'm working on some projects right now that were motivated and inspired by my trips and by the making of images out there. Those are still under works, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, I thought I'd share some images I made on my last trip from Cleveland to Chicago.

"Conversation and Fire with my Dad". October 2010.

"Lear Nagle Road, Avon, Ohio". October 2010.

"My Mom, Avon Lake, Ohio." October 2010.

"I-90 West, Ohio". October 2010.

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COME ON, CONTENT

2010-10-21T16:07:00.000-05:00

Perhaps I should tread lightly on this.. nah, that's no fun. I've been saving up this rant, or discussion rather, for a bit now. Really giving it some thought. Taking time to form my own thoughts on it, rather than completely reiterate someone else's idea.

Anyways, I've been thinking aboout how content rules all, to me. You can make a picture on a 8x10 view camera, light it with 10,000 dollars worth of grip and lighting, then print it on the most expensive paper, and make it 600 feet by 500 feet, but at the end of the day, if the content, if the composition, isn't bangin'.. guess what? The picture isn't bangin'. Just because you make an image on a hasselblad doesn't make it a dope picture. You can have the most shadow detail in the world, a "perfect" histogram, with "just the right" amount of sharpening done "the right way", and the image can still suck.

I'm loosing more and more interest in these "rules". Shadows gone completely black? Awesome, if there's a reason. Made an image on your droid or iphone? That's cool as hell.

Now, don't get me wrong. I think it's important to understand fundamentals, sure. To know how to light "the right way", absolutely. On and on. And I'm not saying one platform is better than another. Or saying that "perfect histograms" are lame. Or that I hate shadow detail. None of that.

I'm just saying.. As creatives, we should be pushing all boundaries, all "rules". Not following.

Now that's interesting, to me.

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24HRS OF DETAIL

2010-10-20T11:55:00.003-05:00

I participated in a weekend workshop the other week about photo styling. I feel I've come away with such a better understanding of how important details are. I mean, I've always been pretty particular with what's in my frames, but my thought process has transformed to a new level. Why do those Mad Men episodes look so frickin' beautiful? Well, aside from the light, they are meticulously styled.

#1

We were given professions from the 1940s and were asked to create a portrait of that person without having that person in it. My occupation was a 1940s sports coach. We were asked to get into the head of what that person might have been like. This is all pre-production, by the way. Sketching ideas, researching the time period. The occupation.

We then went to a wonderful prop rental house on the north side here in Chicago, called Propabilities. Amazing place. I could get lost in there for hours. Once we had our final props picked out and loaded up, we headed back to the studio. By this time, it was a 8:30a - 6:30p day. A little beat

#2

The next day was another 8:30a - 7:30p day of styling and shooting. I've never worked so long on a single table top set up. Getting everything just right. Light, props, angle, etc. Meticulous. Details, details, details. I mean, details, in the sense of how many ice cubes in a glass. Trying lots of different things to see what works. Not settling for what comes first. I dig.

#5

#8 - Black and White polaroid. (Close to) final shot.

It's a learning process.

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INSPIRATION TUESDAYS

2010-10-19T22:08:00.001-05:00

Feels like I've been sleeping on the blog for a bit now. My homie Tom called me out on my Inspiration Tuesdays post, saying it's been over a month since I've posted. A combination of running around and working like a mad man, paired with being sick for a week, being on the road, having my camera go down and shipping it to Virginia for a week and a half, etc. etc. Excuses, excuses.

Well, all of that is (mostly) settled now, and I have a list of blogs to create for the rest of the week that should be pretty cool. Anyways, I haven't lost inspiration this past month, quite the opposite really.

I'll start of the weekly post again tonight with some really amazing new work from Alec Soth. His website, [click here], got revamped and now features a new series of images titled Broken Manual. Seriously stunning work.

© Alec Soth

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CLEVELAND BOUND

2010-10-15T11:03:00.000-05:00

Making my way to Cleveland for a weekend of friends, family, and lots of shooting. Have a couple things lined up, so I'm stoked to report back with what I get. Have a good weekend!

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BANSKY DOES SIMPSONS

2010-10-14T11:04:00.001-05:00

I saw this a couple of days ago and had to share for those of you who haven't seen it.

From [Wooster Collective]: "In what has to be one of the most closely guarded secrets in TV history, the "couch gag" opening of tonight's episode of The Simpsons was storyboarded and directed by none other than Banksy. It's the first time an artist has been invited to storyboard part of the show and when you see it, you'll be shocked that it made it past the network executives."

Smart, dark, current. Good stuff!

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NEW HAPPENIN'S

2010-10-07T12:53:00.001-05:00

I wanted to quickly point out some fresh things happening on the website. I added a new feature I've been working on all morning. Basically my Cincinnati trip in 10 images. In case you've missed the [FB] photo posts or haven't checked out my [flickR], there's some fresh work in the feature column.

I also added two portfolio images. One fresh from the trip I've been saving for a bit. That can be found in the ACTION portfolio. It's an image of homie Scotty from the Akron area killing a ledge down in Cincinnati. Dope.

The other image can be viewed in the PEOPLE portfolio. It's an older image from a shoot I did of hip hop artist Really Doe. You can check out his music here [link]. He seems to be doing big things these days, including signing with Kanye West's G.O.O.D music label. Dope.

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ALEXX HENRY TMRW IN CHICAGO

2010-10-04T18:21:00.001-05:00

I've been looking forward to this for the past couple weeks. Should be awesome! I've been following the amazing things Alexx Henry has been doing and am stoked to see him lecture tomorrow night at Columbia College Chicago. You gonna be there?

Date
Tuesday, October 5th

Time
Social / 6:30pm
Presentation / 7pm-8:30pm

Location
Conaway Center / 1104 S. Wabash, Chicago, IL

Free and open to the public.

Alexx's Website: [HERE]
Alexx's Blog: [HERE]

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LUCK FAVORS THE PREPARED

2010-10-01T12:53:00.002-05:00

A nice behind the scenes video of Kelly Kline making some cool work. Wild, wild set up. Love seeing people solve problems and go places no one else has gone in terms of set up and gear. The best part? It's done for a reason. Not to be cool. Not to show off. But to make good work.

Kelly also offers some advice and really smart words about photography and photographs. My favorite being "luck favors the prepared". She talks about how if you don't have a paid assignment, go out and make work that you love. Perfect for a student of the industry like myself.

Now, if only my camera wasn't in Virginia being repaired...

View Kelly's work [Here]

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RELATIONSHIPS

2010-09-30T09:52:00.000-05:00

Man, over the last couple weeks, I've just been hit in the face so much with the idea of networking and building relationships with people. Something I'm working super hard on. Such a learning process. I've been pulling resources from a wide variety of sources and trying to figure it out. Just trying to be better today than I was yesterday.

What also got me thinking about relationships was this image above. I shot this in a client's downtown fine art studio. I had completed the assignment I was commissioned for and then we started talking as I broke down some gear. Anyways, I was talking about a (secret-ish) project I've been working on and my client ran over and "had to show me this" (pictured above). Amazing! So we found a spot on the other side of the studio and set it up and made the picture. Nothing serious. Just fun, smiles, and laughs. The result of building a relationship with this client over the past year and a half.

All about people.
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KEEPIN' FRESH: A WKND IN CINCI.

2010-09-28T19:26:00.000-05:00

Well, I made it to Cincinnati and back to Chicago over the weekend. Had a blast. Exhausting, but every minute well worth it. One of those experiences you'll never forget. Met a ton of new people, was able to chill with friends I don't see often, including some homies from [ALYK] that are doing some serious things, and was able to spend a bunch of time with my brother.

I think little weekend get-a-ways are so important. Keeps things fresh. Every time I start feeling a little stale, a little unmotivated, and little uninspired, I find time to take a weekend, even just out to the suburbs for a day, and have a little 'me' time. My 'me' time usually includes hundreds of photos, but I'm more relaxed about the subjects I'm usually photographing. BMX, road shots, snap shots, etc. All smiles. Once I get back to home base, I find, after a recovery day, myself fresh, ready to put in work.

Big thanks to my brother, homies in Cinci., and the BMX house down there.

Also, be sure to check out the FB fan page for a dozen one-off inbetween shots posted in a photo album.

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ON THE ROAD.. 299 MILES TO GO

2010-09-24T10:32:00.001-05:00

Heading down to Cincinnati for the weekend. Chill time with my brother, see some friends, and shoot a ton of photos. Looks to be a pretty BMX filled weekend, so I'll have some fresh BMX work to show. I'm also excited to make some images on the road. I've been toying with another idea, a sort of spin off of Disposable Inbetweens (if you haven't seen that series, it's in the portfolio section of the main site). That's for another time though. Enjoy the weekend!

Oh, I also wanted to thank everyone for the great feedback on the new main site. Lots of good vibes and comments, made me a happy camper on the launch day. Thanks homies!

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NICKPHOTO V. 1.9.9 (GOING LIVE)

2010-09-19T10:52:00.000-05:00

I'm pumped to share my newest website with everyone. I've been working on this update for the past couple of months and am stoked to see it go LIVE. I've already had some really great feedback, so go ahead and take some time to take a peak around. I wanted to point out a few new additions, as well as some fresh work I've been holding back from sharing.

First you'll notice new portfolio work. I worked a ton the last couple weeks of summer shooting in Cleveland and Chicago. Some fresh bmx work, portrait work, environmental portraits, sports.. All of it! Take some time to view the new portfolios and be sure to let me know what you think.

Secondly, on the index page you'll find a NPFEATURED section. I'll be updating this regularly pointing everyone in certain directions. Various BTS videos, images, new projects, and blog posts will find their way here. Makes it easier to keep up with major updates.

Third, I'm so pumped to share a new series of images I've been working on for, well like a year. A fine art project that holds very close to home for me. 15 images made with mobile phone cameras, iPhones, point and shoots, whatever I have at my disposal. A sort of study of seemingly small moments, landscapes, and light study taken on the road between Cleveland and Chicago. So fun to make, and I'll be updating regularly with images.

Last, but certainly not least, STAY CONNECTED. Join the conversation. It's so easy now, and everyone is doing it. Become a Fan on FACEBOOK to join the conversation, get a look at behind the scene images, and off beat images from shoots. Follow me on TWITTER.

So enjoy, and be sure to check back regularly as I'll be working on my portfolio intensely over the next 15 weeks and posting regularly to this outlet.
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THE(E) PORTFOLIO

2010-09-17T16:09:00.001-05:00

Sorting through, studying, thinking about these work prints of my current work.

Couple o' things on me mind. First, as you can sort of see by the scene in the image above, I've been working like a mad man on a lot of really cool things that I can't share just yet. Soon. Anyways, I've been thinking a great deal about portfolios lately, and I sort of pin pointed my issue with them for myself. It's essentially what sports photographer Corky Trewin said when asked what his favorite photo he's ever taken was, "My favorite photo is the one I'm about to take. I never feel like my best work is behind me because every photo I take informs the next photo I'm about to take. It's a learning process.”

I relate so much. It's one of my favorite quotes. It's very hard for me to put together a book because of that very idea. With each new shoot, each new final image, I feel my work is better. Yeah, I know this is a good thing, a great thing, and I strive for it. And it doesn't mean the previous work is bad, I just feel like what I'm shooting, say, tomorrow, will look and feel stronger. Of course, this doesn't happen every single time. I fail, a lot. I learn, a lot. Etc. Some new shots suck. Some are okay. But it's when I do get that new bangin' shot that I feel the most pressure for the older images in my book.

Which relates to my next thought, regarding my refreshed website. At least this platform is more easily updated, but it's still hard to put together a collection of images online when I feel the past three shoots have been my best. It's a process/thought I've been dealing with. With this in mind, I'm going to launch my refreshed website tomorrow (pretty sure) and think of it as a version 1.9.9, rather than a 2.0. I don't know if this even matters, but it's keeping me sane. As I work my ass off this semester and really dig into my portfolio, images will be changing, some in, some out. This will push me to update the website more frequently, which I think will be awesome.

I'll be writing a lot more regarding portfolios in the coming weeks. Maybe make some kind of a series, a personal documentation of my portfolio's growth over the next 15 weeks. Hmmmm!?!

Whew, is it happy hour yet? ;)

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-09-14T11:46:00.000-05:00

Some eye candy for Tuesday. We all love Philip-Lorca diCorcia's work. Or at least know it. But this stuff is fresh! Shot for W Magazine. Man, some seriously bangin' work.

Check out the rest at his agencies website: [The Collective Shift]

Via: [A Photography Blog]

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FRESHIN' UP

2010-09-13T21:25:00.001-05:00

I've been feeling a little stale lately about making new work. Ideas running somewhat dry, motivation, where are you? That sort of thing. So I decided to embark, I think, on a semester long project dealing with a concept I've been banging around my head for the past month or so. The images will be like none I've ever created. I have pages of scribbles, writing, thumbnails, ideas, shopping lists, and phrases for this project. The images I'm seeing in my head should be bangin', now I have to execute. Spent all day Sunday in the studio working at it. Not a bad first run. I have a lot more work to put into this first run to get a further idea on the project, so stay tuned. It's good to break the comfort zone. Learn some new things, yeah?

I'm beat from shooting and printing all day. Pardon the rant and rambling of thought. Stay fresh!
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BEFORE/DURING/AFTER

2010-09-12T11:48:00.000-05:00

So, I was going to sit on this post 'till after I launched my new website, but I thought it would be cool to sort of talk about, and blog some of the key updates the launch includes. So, up first, some fresh BMX work.

I always dig seeing before/after images, or lighting diagrams, or whatever, the sort of guts that make up an image. I love to deconstruct images, figure them out. And why. Never forget the why. A friend of mine was talking about attention to detail and perfection in creative. I thought about the image above and sort of laughed because as I was shooting it, I was attentive to, seemingly, every detail, big or small. So, I put together a little diagram, almost, of how I tackled this image. Why I did some things, what I was paying attention to when shooting, etc. To me, it's all these little tweaks, little compositional element, that make the great photographs great. Sure, the average set of eyes may not realize half of what's going on in an image, but I always thought that subconsciously, the thoughts are rolling.

Here we go:

#1: The Rider: Obviously, the subject was my main focus. The rider, Kyle in this instance, was the key to the piece. I prefocused him holding his bike where he was going to do the trick as soon as I established the angle I'd shoot at. The angle was dictated by a few things. One, he wasn't stationary in the position above. He was riding from the right of the scene, jumping up, sliding across from right to left, and landing at the end of the left side of the frame. Next, I just love this spot because of all the picturesque elements available. Graffiti, trash, cement, sun, shadows, on and on. I wanted to show as much as possible while still focusing on the BMX.

#2: Foreground Element: I knew this little element would look killer in post once I pushed my blacks and boosted contrast. I've also been working on pulling more elements into the foreground. I think it adds a little rawness to the image, and I knew shooting at f/3.2, it would be a nice out of focus piece. It made shooting a little more difficult, because I had to get into a sort of weird position to get everything framed right. It also helps draw the eye and allow it to focus on the rider.

#3: The Sky: I was a little worried about the sky in the upper corner being too overexposed. Out of range. But I fired off a few test frames at different exposures and found out that I could burn it in and with a vignette and a bit of hue/saturation, it would pull in nicely. Small, subtle, but an important aspect. A big white chunk would have looked annoying.

#4: Shadows n' Sun: I looked at the sun poking through the trees towards the right of the frame and noticed these lovely shadows it was casting. I made sure to include these, knowing that as I pushed my blacks, gave it a little burn, and upped the contrast, it would add a nice visual element. Again, small, but it adds another layer to the image.

#5: Details, Bush: This ties right into #4. Same sort of mindset. The final, final, image has a little more detail in the bush, but again, knowing how elements will react in post is crucial.

#6 The Scene: All this cool sh*t going on in the right half of the frame. Trash, dirt, water, graffiti. I wanted to balance the trick on the left with the scene on the right. I also knew that as I pushed blacks and gave a generous amount of sharpening, everything on the right would pop. There's just a ton to look at, and to me, and I could be wrong, the image doesn't feel too busy.

So, by knowing how my image would react in post, slowing down and slowly building layers within the frame, I was able to pull off the image below from the image above.

Let me know what you think!

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HDR HDSLR VIDEO

2010-09-10T12:40:00.003-05:00

HDR Video Demonstration Using Two Canon 5D mark II's from Soviet Montage on Vimeo.

The guys over at Soviet Montage Productions have unleashed HDR in video. They used two Canon 5d MkII cameras and a beam splitter, allowing for two exposures to be recorded simultaneously, one in each camera. I can see some real cool work being made with this, but also some really bad work. Just another fad? More glimpses of the future?

Either way, it's wild and I'm loving living how I live in a time where technology and art are evolving at such a high rate.

Read the full store via WIRED: [link]
Soviet Montage Productions: [link]

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-09-07T17:39:00.001-05:00

© Matthias Clamer For FOX.

© Matthias Clamer For FOX.

Really digging these two images Mattias Clamer shot for a new FOX show. Simple, fresh.

>> Read and view more over at the StocklandMartel blog: [link].

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LABOR D(PL)AY

2010-09-06T12:43:00.003-05:00

2007.

Bare with me through a holiday rant:

I was looking for an image in my 2007 folder and found the picture above. I've been contemplating the idea Derek touched on at the beginning of the year (goodness, this year has gone by fast) about remembering to "play". I looked back at a ton of my "portfolio" images from 2007, before I left for college, and love them. They're fun, goofy, colorful, playful, sometimes serious, etc. But the common undertone in them was play. I just shot. And shot. And shot. On my way home from shooting bmx with friends, keep shooting as we hung out at another friends after. I didn't care. I wasn't thinking of my portfolio, or what I could use XXY photo for. Or what YYX's target client would be. I just loved making images. Creating. All. The. Time.

I'm not sure when I sort of lost a bit of that flair. That fire. The edge. By no means do I think I've lost it. It just needs sparked a bit more right now. Now I get it, as we grow older, more mature, whatever, new factors present themselves. I'm not in high school anymore screwing around with friends and cameras (now I'm in college doing that, aha! ;) ) and I need to be thinking about things like the future and career, etc. But that doesn't mean I need to forget to play. I think, perhaps, just the opposite is needed. Take risk. Experiment. Create.

I guess I'm learning how to balance play and seriousness. I want to create bangin' portfolio images that will target certain markets, but I think in order to make that happen, I will need to play.

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EDIT WITH ME

2010-09-04T13:46:00.000-05:00

A.

As I'm gathering images, old and fresh, for my portfolio update, I've been getting real picky about what is making the cut. I started by flying through images seeing what works and what doesn't. At first, all these images were in. Now that I'm getting deeper in the process, I need a little help.. Some fresh eyes. So, let me know what you think about these four. I'm on the fence. Should A and C make it? How about B? How about none? Thanks!

B.

C.

D.

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FRIDAY HAPPENIN'

2010-09-03T12:20:00.002-05:00

I wanted to share a few happenin's that caught my eye before the weekend starts:

I've been following this blog for awhile, so I was stoked to see a post about the first gallery showing of the collection. Should be really cool. Who wants to car pool to the reception?

Full details: [Here]
The Blog: [Here]

Also, I caught this on WTJ? [link] (One of my favorite blogs I frequent).

Unite Bike 2009 from Unite Bike on Vimeo.

Looks awesome. Click [here] for the full details on their website.
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WHAT TO DO NOW?

2010-09-02T16:27:00.000-05:00

Wax. Late night session.

Anyone who kicks it with me or travels with me knows I'm a little too lax sometimes. Go to Cleveland, thinking I'll roll back to Chicago on a Tuesday, I'll end up leaving Friday. "When do you want to kick it?" I'm usually thinking, "I don't know, I'll let you know 15 minutes before I want to". It's fun, and a curse at the same time. Anyhow, last trip back to Cleveland I had limited space. This meant not being able to lug every piece of gear with me. Not a fan of that in the first place. After a rush morning, I was on the road. Once I was there, you could imagine what went through my head when I was driving to a location and realized my pocket wizards were back in Chicago in my hard case lighting kit. Great. No Sunpak to PC cord either. The sun was blasting and I was really looking forward to using a fill. Oh well, let's go all natural. That's fine. But later that night, I got a call to shoot some bmx. Well, that's fast rolling bikes, night skys, super, super low lights. You get the picture. Well, luckily the shot called for a sequence. So, I propped my camera with a 15mm fisheye at 2.8 on my wallet sitting on the ground. I grabbed my Sunpak 544 that lives in my go to bag with a TR-II pack and set the power to like 1/16th or so so I could get fast recycle times and bursts. Set the shutter speed to around 3 seconds and as the shutter stayed opened, I popped off the flash manually as the trick was done. Got some killer results and had a blast.

(Saving the shots for mass update, stay tuned).

I like the idea of always getting the shot, no matter what.
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INSPIRATION TUES.. WEDNESDAYS

2010-09-01T10:14:00.001-05:00

2010 HDDSLR Gear Video from Vincent Laforet on Vimeo.

So I forgot to post the weekly inspiration post yesterday. Completely slipped my mind. I wish I could say it was because I was on an all day shoot and blah blah. In truth, I was feeling a little under the weather and was pretty much in bed watching movies or rescue me all day. I'm back at it today though, so, pardon the one day delay. Right to it.. this is kind of an interesting inspiration post. Real different from the previous.

Vincent Laforet has updated his 'gear' section on his blog and made a 13ish minute video explaining two rigs he brought with him to shoot a TV pilot in Italy recently. As I'm sure most of you know, and if you don't, get familiar fast, Vincent Laforet produces some of the most epic video work and is sort of the HDSLR guru. He reels are stunning. He runs a great blog that is jam packed with information he generously shares. Give it a read, for sure.

Yet, what I found so inspiring, and perhaps this struck personally to me as an achievement, was the fact that as I watched the video of Laforet talking gear, I wasn't thinking to myself, "man, if I had that piece of equipment", I was thinking more along the lines of "Oh, that could totally make X idea I've had look sooo dope!"

So, what was really the inspiration for me this week was the idea of using what you have to make your vision or concept come to life. Gear doesn't make the photographer or the videographer.

Link to Vincent's gear: [HERE]
Link to Vincent's blog: [HERE]

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A SERIES OF IN BETWEENS

2010-08-30T17:05:00.001-05:00

Confused?

I wanted to share an image and a bit of an update. I'm still not back to full editing mode since I'm waiting on my software/OS back up harddrive to ship from Cleveland. With that in mind, I've been working on other things that I can do without the drive. I finally got around to creating a page on Facebook. I'm kicking that off with setting up a album of images that will be pretty much exclusively posted there. I'm calling it (for now) a series of in betweens. Essentially shots that I'm snapping in between the real deal shots I'm working at. Some are funny, some are interesting, some are whatever. Kind of a dumping ground for a bunch of shots I like but would normally never see the light of day. Or computer screen. Hmm?

Anyways, be sure to check in on the new page, and stay updated with ramblings and images.

--> Become a Fan on Facebook

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PUTTING IN WORK - BMX

2010-08-28T10:32:00.003-05:00

Kyle clearing out space for a run.

Back in Chicago after a week of Cleveland. Spent a good chunk of time working on some bmx shots. So much fun. After all these years I still get amped going to a new spot or shooting a new trick. Love it. Anyways, now that I'm back at base camp, I'm working on editing the final images and making final selections for my portfolio update. Need to get these bmx shots finalized and a couple other images, and I'll be set! Other than sharing this bit of an update, I also wanted to share this dope video my friends Rob and Damian cut together. This is probably the best edit I've seen from them. A ton of hammers. Makes me a little mad that I wasn't in town for all these shots. Awesome work though.

Cleveland TRV900 from Rob DiQuattro on Vimeo.

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BTS - ON SET

2010-08-26T08:15:00.000-05:00

I posted a lighting test shot from a recent shoot of Tom Burnett a few posts back. Well, he did a follow up post about the shoot and cut together this cool BTS video. Shot on the 5d Mk II, I can't wait to get my hands on that camera again. Beautiful. Anyways, you can peep the video posted above to catch a glimpse of yours truly at work and give TB's post a read [here].

Enjoy.

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INSPIRATION TUESDAY

2010-08-24T10:15:00.000-05:00

Photograph by Dan Saelinger for the Annual Report for Loews Corporation.

I've been reading Dan Saeliner's blog for the past couple of months and I think I enjoy his work more and more every time he posts. I'm not a big product photography guy, but I absolutely love his work. Incredibly inspiring images, he shares great information on his blog, providing great learning opportunities. A perfect combination in my eyes. I think what draws me most to his images is the way the images balance this beautiful, clean, smart, and sharp light with this sense of simplistic form. Hmm, sounds like art school critique, can you tell I'm going back to school in a couple of weeks?

But for real, be sure to check out Dan's work here: www.dansaelinger.com and give his blog a read, it's well worth it: www.dansaelinger.com/blog

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AT SUMMER'S END

2010-08-22T15:26:00.001-05:00

Sneak peak at a new series I'm working on - "Ohio Turnpike"

I wanted to share a new image before I hit the road for about a week. I'll give more information in a couple weeks, but I'm pretty excited on the new series. It hits pretty close to home for me and I think everybody will enjoy and perhaps relate. Anyhow, I'm heading to Cleveland for the last trip of the summer. Working on final portfolio images and kicking it with friends. Golf, party, relax, shoot, eat. That's a perfect week in my eyes. I'll keep the blog updated and stay tuned for the big, big updates. My target date is September 2nd, maybe the 3rd. It really depends on a few factors, obviously.

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GETTING TO 'THAT' PLACE

2010-08-21T17:50:00.000-05:00

Light test before shooting - Processed in Aperture 3.

The last couple shoots I've done of Tom have been some of the most challenging. I've been finding my ideas landing me in places where the lighting schemes are getting more and more complex, the styling more critical, and every detail of the composition becoming more and more extreme. My pre-production workload has increased a ton in the past month or so. I'm sketching like a mad man and relentlessly testing lighting schemes, ideas, post techniques, etc. It's been pretty hard work making these ideas come to life, but the rewards have been fantastic. Not only do I feel a great sense of progress in the images, but I feel as though I'm finally getting to 'that' place where I'm figuring out exactly how I want my images to look and how to make that happen. Every time. Learning how to light a scene, expose it in a certain way, and know how these elements will react in post. Critical as I make my way towards the professional industry.

Good things a comin'.

BANG, BANG! EDITING A PORTFOLIO

2010-08-18T18:21:00.000-05:00

W. 25 - Cleveland, OH

As I work on compiling images I've been making over the past couple months for a massive update to my portfolio, I stumbled across an awesome post from @wizwow on his website here: [link]. I thought I'd share a link to the piece for anyone working on portfolios. I think what's discussed can transcend photography and apply to a number of creative industries.

What really struck me, and I wrote it down above my desk, was the idea of running through the batch of images quickly and not sitting there studying and starring at a particular image. Sort of, if it works, boom, if not, see ya, type editing. I find this real helpful if I'm on the fence with a particular image (like the shot above). The images in my portfolio should read right away as bangin' images. You shouldn't need to sit there and think, "well, I rode all day and I really like the background, but, maybe not XX. But I do like YY. But not XZ." You get the point. A new viewer shouldn't need to sit there debate if it looks hot or not. It needs to smack them in the face.

Of course, after this initial type edit, I will sit and really get into an image. Why does it work? What works? What doesn't? What could I do to get my vision across in a more effective way? Things like that have been coming up as I've been editing. The editing process gets different every time for me. A learning process I guess.

(Oh, and this absolutely applies, perhaps even more, to me sorting through a shoot.)

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INSPIRATION TUESDAYS

2010-08-17T11:08:00.000-05:00

Every time I talk with Derek, or hang out, or see some of his new work, I always want to push to make myself better as a creative, which is pretty awesome since I've known Derek for around five years now. I had a fantastic phone call with him the other night and I'm just amped on the future and the work that will hopefully be made.

I have above here a new series he just posted, which I absolutely love. When he was in Chicago a couple months ago we talked a lot about the concepts he's displaying here so it's really cool to see where the work is at now.

Check out the rest of this series and more of Derek's work at: www.derekwalter.net
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PASSION AS INSPIRATION

2010-08-16T13:28:00.000-05:00

No matter the medium, I'm always inspired by passion. I've been thinking a lot about keeping the passion for your craft alive and well lately. I saw this video (my gosh, I wish I could have been there for the day) and the word passion immediately hit me. Regardless of how you feel about Conor, or even what he's saying in the video, there's no denying the passion he is displaying right now. He's been doing this for so long and still firing away with a passion so great. That's truly inspiring. I want to achieve that. I try to, everyday, even if it's simply studying work and reading about the industry. Anyways, I wanted to offer some thoughts and what I do:

Seek out other's work. Always keeps me fresh and motivated to contribute, to create.

Perspective, I mean, I could be selling car insurance out of a cubicle. I've been lucky enough to be in the situation I am in, I best be taking advantage of it and create.

Knowing how lucky I am to have a great group of family members and friends who support me and what I'm doing.

Back to the basics. Why did I start snapping shutters in the first place? Keep it simple. Real.

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A SUNDAY CATCH UP

2010-08-15T14:43:00.000-05:00

Flying down I-17 North, from the AZ book.

Just wanted to share a bit of an update about what I've been up to and what the next couple of weeks before summer comes to a close looks like:

AZ photo book: I've managed to edit down my Arizona trip to about 35 photographs. I just finished up the layout of the book, so I will be sending it off for a couple copies tomorrow. If anyone is interested in getting a copy, let me know. It's been really fun working on this set of images, since they are all very close to me. Travel type photography isn't something I do very often, but this has been a lot of fun. And the feedback so far has been really awesome.

Tom 2.0: Readers here got a taste of a mini project I've been working on with Tom Burnett. (See his guest post). Helping each other in gaining portfolio work for me and helping toward Tom's rebranding. Looks like a shoot tomorrow may wrap it up. More coming soon, for sure.

Portfolio update: I've been working like mad lately thinking up concepts, looking for models, experimenting with new lighting and techniques. All of this is working towards generating a fresh update to my current portfolios. So far I've got some killer work I'm real excited to share. I'm still working on a couple things in the next couple of weeks and one more trip back to Cleveland where I'll make a lot of new work as well.

Rebrand/Website: I'm sure many have noticed the layout and color scheme change to the blog. That was a step one towards the rebranding I've been working on this summer. All the goodies, promo cards, business cards, paperwork, etc. will be ready as I launch a fresh website to go with this blog. I want to have all the portfolios updates ready for the launch, making everything fresh. Once I feel I have enough work to show, I'll update. My target is September 1. (Of course, we'll see where I'm at closer to the day).

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C'MON! GET REAL.

2010-08-11T16:28:00.003-05:00

How can you expect someone to come on board a shoot with experience, knowledge of software, equipment, etc. for a day rate of 50 bucks. That's 5.50 an hour. Come on. I get, perhaps, not wanting to pay a full day rate for someone you've never worked with, but at least be reasonable. Where's the respect? Would you go out and shoot a nine hour gig for a fraction of your day-rate? The bummer thing is that someone will probably bite, lowering the standards even more in an industry where photographers are being taken advantage of. Sure, times are rough, but let's be real. How can we, as photographers, expect fair pay when we won't pay fair ourselves?

I'll spare more ranting. I think we all get it. Well, obviously not, as this garbage continues.

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INSPIRATION TUESDAYS

2010-08-10T12:12:00.000-05:00

I'll keep it short n' sweet today. Saw this piece last week and it's still in my head. So good. The artist's name is Zed1 and the piece is titled "All you need is love". Dope.

(via wooster collective)

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VISUAL DIARIES, BREATH

2010-08-09T16:06:00.000-05:00

I've ranted quite a bit about keeping mass sketchs, visual diaries on mobile phones, inspiration tumblrs (more recent), etc. But, if you don't do anything with all that inspiration, what's the point? I've made it a point over the past couple weeks to get up and get going on ideas. Tired of leaving notes and not doing anything with them. Who cares if the shot doesn't make a portfolio, I bet it was fun as hell hanging out. The shot above, and I hesitate to call it an outtake (more on that in a minute), is a good example of taking an idea, a basic sketch, and running with it. My original idea, which I'm still working on, was against a white seamless and super low contrast. That was the base. Above is what I turned out from the shoot. I woke up in the morning and was digging the curtains and though about them as a backdrop. I remembered a lighting scheme I learned a couple weeks ago and wanted to test it. Check out some sketches below. Allowing myself to breath when shooting. Not just stick to a strict plan, be open. Something I'm for sure working on, and so far, I couldn't be happier with it. Some sketches below...

The original sketch and ramble.

The set up for the shot posted above.

In unrelated, well sort of, ramblings, Tom brought up the idea of using a different word, or title, to describe photos that I post, photos that aren't shitty outtakes, but aren't banging enough in my eyes to make a portfolio. Any ideas would be awesome.
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GUEST POST W/ TOM P BURNETT

2010-08-06T10:39:00.000-05:00

Tom outside his apartment close to midnight.

In an attempt to get the guest writings, the guest posts, going again, I've asked one of my closest friends to share a bit. I've known Tom for six or seven years now. In that time, I can honestly say that he's been one of the biggest influences in getting me to where I am today. From sitting down and talking about 'the future' over coffee, to letting me crash at his apartment in Chicago before I moved out here, to figuring out a lighting scheme outside his apartment for the photo above. For that, I thank him, and thank him for sharing a bit to all the readers here on the blog. Above being one of the most talented people with light, the stories, the shoptalk, the ideas, and the vision, leaving a mark, are the things that stand out most for me. So, enjoy the bit here, and hopefully share a smoke and a drink with this guy sometime.

Working a job you cannot stand is never satisfying nor is it healthy. We, as a society, spend a great portion of our lives at work. Usually end up working extensively just to survive. Seriously, how likely is it that we actually land that dream position immediately?

The key that I have discovered is to work a job that is somewhere between “work” and your “passion.” This allows me to not go completely mad. Working in the video industry to eventually transition to full-time filmmaking completely allows a chance to stay fresh with technology and technique while still providing income. Capturing testimonials, commercials, medical symposiums, even the occasional real estate video doesn’t necessarily fulfill my “itch” but it allows me to stay current with the industry.

This wasn’t always my outlook regarding my current work – I once looked at working this side of the field as a failure until more recently when I weighed my other options - I could be working a day job. I could be working a 9-5 shift and knowing the type of person I am that would suck all the energy out of me. I traveled down that route when I was just starting out and most people I’ve come across in similar situations would agree with how exhausting it is. You need to work hard to survive this battle. Working all day packing boxes, painting houses, killing bugs, temp positions, etc; and when you get home or your studio you are completely gassed. Or, more often than not, you’ll become attached to that daunting “day job” and you need to unwind at the end of the shift preventing time to get creative. It’s a vicious cycle and I’ve witnessed many casualties.

Having the opportunity to work on a project that may not necessarily be the dream job but affords the ability to not only sustain a living but also can keep you fresh with the ever evolving trends in the fashion/photo/entertainment industries are crucial. I’ve been constantly trying to incorporate the latest advances into even the smallest corporate project. I’m out there right now using HD-SLRs for projects that traditionally have been generic and stale. Why not push the limits? If it’s your bread and butter you might as well enjoy it the best you can, no? Leaving your mark on that standard talking head – getting crafty with lighting, angles, even post processing – will really add a bit extra to the otherwise ordinary video. Using my filmmaking experience and knowledge has really pulled through on what may be considered just a typical “videography” project.

Constantly focusing on how these jobs can benefit your art is the only way to not fall into a serious rut. It’s also a chance to experiment while being paid rather than when you are paying out or collaborating with a Producer that actually allows you to create freely (those are next to impossible to come by). I like to know that my creative project is technically sound so I can channel all of my energy into creating the piece. Knowing equipment limitations from a prior shoot will help with experimentation and you can really push the piece to its full potential. That’s what turns me on. A personal project may take weeks, months, even years to complete but by working the short form projects that most corporate assignments present, your piece is now able to evolve without stutter. Why not shoot tethered to your edit rig if you’re going to at the same location all day? You could have an assembly cut before you leave the location and know if you have it or need to stay a few hours late and re-shoot. Ultimately, a few hours overtime versus another day of rigging, talent and crew will save a great deal of resources and you learned this on somebody else’s expense! You now have more time to break other rules! Push the bar and technique thanks to those wonderful clients. You couldn’t get that sitting in an office five days a week answering phones.

Which leads to networking. As we all know networking is key to survival. Working with people from all different industries is basically free marketing and research. You get to pair up with the client for the duration of the project and if you’re good at interacting socially – which you should be since freelancers depend on it to land their next gig – you may discover that many people you encounter can be valuable assets and could help contribute in your creative endeavors. I’ve landed side gigs - after offering to the studio first, of course - and have developed great relationships with people throughout the business, both creative and not. Why stop at end of the gig? Why not continue the relationship? People are investing in you most of the time anyway.

I didn’t think I would be content working “corporate” more than “creative” after five years but I found a healthy balance. Incorporating art and forcing generic corporate videos to evolve almost feels like fueling a revolution. I love when various projects that are completely unrelated clearly scream my style and name. It’s a reminder that I am still finding a way to leave my mark.

Tom P Burnett is a freelance video professional located in the city of Chicago.

His professional website is: www.tompburnett.com

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INSPIRATION TUESDAYS

2010-08-03T10:27:00.006-05:00

So in the spirit of yesterdays brief discussion regarding inspiration, I was up thinking about the subject more last night. I keep most of my inspiration in a RSS feed, but what happens when I'm done reading whatever article or viewing whatever work. It's gone, well, not gone, but gone from my view. Unless it really sticks me, I won't bookmark, or write down, or whatever. I'm thinking about starting a tumblr. I still don't really understand the platform, but Nick Onken is using it as a way to place all his inspiration in one place. Pretty dope idea. Not sure if I'd feel the need to share it with everyone, but who knows. Could be cool.

Anyways, for now, I'm going to post something on the blog every Tuesday that is kicking me in the ass with inspiration. Today, perhaps since I've been on a Mad Men kick, is a couple of vintage beer ads I found via a link posted by @aaronlindberg.

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THE PERFECT MIDDLE

2010-08-02T14:44:00.000-05:00

Golfing, 8:30 AM, Sunday morning.

I've been thinking about staying focused a lot lately. How to balance social and work, when it's okay to take a break, do I ever take a break, inspiration, and etc. Homie Derek and I always talked about finding the perfect middle ground, the perfect balance of work and social. Sometimes I feel I'm in that perfect middle ground, but more times than not, I'm way too one sided. Either putting in mass hours of work, or putting in mass hours of hanging out. I'm going to be paying attention to this more and more as school comes to an end. Finding ways to make sure I'm making work constantly. Staying fresh. Staying current. Yet, I did not go to school to pretend that I'm working a 9-5 in a cubicle. This should be fun. Yes, stressful, but fun. Making images. Staying humble.

Here are some of my favorite ways to stay motivated, stay inspired, and keep making work:

Look at other work. Browsing all the photo blogs, video blogs, going to galleries, museums, watching films. You name it. I get amped to make shit happen when I'm looking at work.

Snap, snap a ton of photos. Mobile phones, point and shoots, holgas, polaroids, big guy dslr, whatever. I went golfing yesterday and brought my camera with a small 50mm lens and snapped some 200 photos. I got two killer shots that I'm considering for a portfolio update. No plan. Just shoot, shoot, shoot.

Take a break, I always find that after stepping away from the camera (other than the mobile) I come back fresh and ready to go.

How does everyone else get down?
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RAIL HOP AT SUNSET

2010-07-31T10:42:00.000-05:00

Two sessions in a row at sunset. Not bad. This time I was shooting some bmx with Kyle, Damian, and Perz. Good time, for sure. I'm bummed I no longer have a bmx bike to cruise on with them. Gave that up awhile ago, but the more I think about it, the more I want to start putting one together this winter. Have it ready for next summer. Anyways, cruised a few spots around west side market, ate at Ohio City Burrito (link) for the first time (amazing spot), and then made our way to this rail hop spot I wanted to shoot something on. Nailed it. For now, here are some outtakes.

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SKATEPARKS AT SUNSET

2010-07-30T14:42:00.001-05:00

Here's an outtake, sort of, I kind of like the shot, from a session I was shooting last night as the sun was setting. Met up with Alex up at the outdoor park here in town after driving to the new(er) indoor park, thinking that was where we were shooting. Luckily it's a small town and the parks are maybe 5 minutes away from each other. The little kid in the foreground wasn't planned at all. It's actually kind of funny that he was there right at Alex's peak air. Timing and things lining up is always cool.

It's always kind of cool going back to places that are full of good times and memories. I remember dipping out of school one day to help build the park when it was just a slab of concrete in the grass. Riding, filming, shooting, hanging out. Good times had, for sure. Speaking of good times, I'm heading out in a couple of hours to shoot some bmx at a few spots out east. Should be dope. Stay tuned for an update of that. I'll post some more outtake type work as I collect the "real" shots for a much needed update to the portfolio that's coming (more on that later).

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ON THE ROAD

2010-07-23T10:50:00.005-05:00

I have a gig to shoot either tonight or tomorrow night, the time is still up for grabs. Once that's completed, and I have the post work done, and the images are delivered to the client's beautiful spot in the heart of downtown Chicago, I'll be looking to head out to Cleveland for about a weeks worth of shooting. Well, as long as it takes really. Test shooting and portfolio building. Also looking to meet up with some contacts. It's been awhile. Anyways, I've been banging out ideas like a mad man lately. Seriously, you should see my "doctor house" whiteboard, my notebook, and my desk area. So, my gear and my overstuffed notebook will be heading out soon. Maybe late Monday night. I'm looking to photograph a lot of lifestyle type work. I have quite a few things lined up, but be sure to let me know if you're down to help out. It'll be a blast.

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"CREATIVITY CAN SOLVE ANYTHING"

2010-07-21T11:08:00.003-05:00

I streamed this film through instant nextflix yesterday and was pretty blown away. Yeah, yeah, I know the film came out awhile ago and I'm late jumping on, but oh well. Anyways, I learned a great deal from the film, even though I wish it went into a bit more detail. Really got my mind going, thinking about the future, thinking about what I'm doing now. All around inspiration, and anyone perusing a creative field, especially in the commercial/advertising realm, it's a must watch. Even if you have a slight interest in the world of advertising, I'd for sure recommend checking the flick out.

Buy it on amazon [here].

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GIVING BACK

2010-07-20T10:56:00.007-05:00

I thought I'd share this with everyone. I stumbled across is on a blog this morning while sippin' my coffee and it started getting me thinking. One of my goals is to get better and better at helping out in the best way I can, finding more ways to donate, contribute, etc. Why not start not? And why not share it with the readers who frequent this blog. I think this organization seems really, really legit. I love what they're doing.

On their website, you can donate the 25$ to buy 1 art kit for a child. That's probably less than what you spend on beer in a weekend. They're trying to reach 3,000 kits buy the end of August, so if you can, follow me in helping them reach this goal.

Click [here] to visit the website and donate.

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PRE, VISUALIZING, AND BUILDING

2010-07-19T19:12:00.003-05:00

Kyle, snapped for a focus and lighting check mid shoot, June 2010.

I thought I'd briefly talk on "the before the shot is made" type process for me. I've found these two processes work best for me. First one is illustrated below with my notebook. I frequent a ton of blogs, capture hundreds and hundreds of mobile shots, rip out magazine pages, read books, new tunes, etc. all the time. This sort of collective inspiration evolves into the images that begin to brew in my head. I begin to build compositions in my mind, then apply what I'd like to see the lighting look like, and slowly construct an image. If a shoot isn't immediately at my disposal, I'll continue with the construction in a notebook I keep at my side. Sometimes the process is long, other times a final image just sort of pops into me and I sketch it then worry about how I'd make it come to life.

The other process is illustrated above with a "in between" shot of Kyle. I'll have a basic idea in my head and slowly construct it on the spot, mid shoot. This doesn't happen all that often, but when it does, it's usually for a sports or action type shot. I'll have a specific bmx trick I want to capture and then find the location to shoot it. Once we get there, I'll start pre-visualizing on location, begin to build the lighting set up, test shoot, see what works, what doesn't, and work in that sense. That process is a little more vulnerable to me being, sometimes, over critical and ending up with a final shot that doesn't quite do it for me. It is fun though, working on the fly, solving problems. Keeps me sharp.

These aren't my only two processes, but like I said, they are the most effective and the most frequently used. The process is also always subject to client, type of shot, etc. Certain processes are often required. I like to keep it fluid, keep it organic.

My notebook.

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SLICE OF PIZZA, NOT A PIECE OF CAKE

2010-07-15T13:18:00.003-05:00

Details, details, details. I love when I see that idea make sense and be brought to life. This video is a good timely piece regarding this idea that anyone with a 5D MKII is somehow a photographer. That rant I'll reserve since so many are (appropriately) ranting about it already. Super cool shit though, love it. Work, work, work.

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WE'RE PUTTING TONY IN A TREE

2010-07-11T17:55:00.002-05:00

Teamwork.

Made our way over to Tom's place on Friday night to shoot some photos of the man himself as part of an idea I've had cooked up in my head for awhile and also hopefully work towards a bit of rebranding for Tom. I'm still working on the photos in post, but have the selections nailed down. It's the best when shoots go super well and you have an absolute blast. One of those nights I'll remember for a long time. Drinks, lights, smokes, coca leaves, bikes, cameras, laughs - all the ingredients. This is sort of phase one of the Tom shots I'm working on. Part two was going to be tonight, but Tom wrecked on his fixie last night so he's a little out of commission. Enjoy a little peak into the behind the scenes of a very fun shoot.

Tom and I were sort of contemplating lighting schemes. I was telling him what I was looking for, somewhat, and like always, he found a ridiculous way to rig a light in a super effective way. Light stand through the bars of the fire escape acting as a hanging light. A little nerve-racking seeing my strobe head dangling in the air.

Pocket wizard and extension cable powering the hanging strobe were fastened to a pipe via one of Tom's A clamps. Those caddy holders I picked up for my pocket wizards came so in handy on this shoot - 14 well spent dollars.

G-taped a pocket wizard to a sunpak 544 with a tr-II pack that was put in Tony's bag. Tony, the human lightstand in a tree providing, at first the key light, then a kicker light. Second lighting set up of the night, past one a.m.

So much fun. I'll keep yous posted when the final images are done. It'd be cool to see how these various pieces of the set up translate to a final image. It's pretty dope.

A fun video. Tom was mostly running the video on my small point and shoot. I picked it up as I was laughing at Tony trying to get into a tree. Dedication! *Excuse the poor quality. It was a point n' shoot and Tom's lab has like no lights out back ;) *

DIG(GING) THE ARCHIVES

2010-07-09T17:52:00.001-05:00

My homie Zach and yours truly, March 2006.

A Friday rant -

I was trying to help out my number one homie @tomburnett today by digging through my archives looking for a, somewhat, specific industrial exterior shot. As I was looking through photos from 3, 4, 5 years ago, I started getting real sentimental and anxious. Time goes so fast! I've ranted about this and how it's such a fear for me to a lot of my friends and family, wrote about it in personal stuff, and have the thought and fear linger over me all the time. I started thinking about how many images, how many experiences, how many brilliant times I've had since I first picked up a camera. It's crazy. I feel so lucky, but I still get that nervous stomach looking at old times, old photographs - ex girlfriends I photographed who aren't in my life anymore, old bmx shots of friends I don't talk to or see anymore - so many stories, so many memories. I can recall so many details about each photograph. Remember certain conversations had while shooting, remember what I was thinking when I shot a certain subject. It's great, but also a curse. It got me thinking about how crazy it will be to look back five years from now and look at all the images I create in the next five years. To go through those 2011, 2012, 2013... folders and think back. Will I sit there, five years from now, and drink a red stripe like I am now? What music will be playing? Who will be with me and where will I even be? Chicago? Others have to have similiar thoughts. I'm sure I'm not the only one. I'm interested to hear if any of my creative homies do this from time to time. Look back at videos, paintings, photographs, writing? Let me know, I'd love to listen.

STILL THE LIGHT

2010-07-07T11:25:00.000-05:00

This video has been circling 'round the industry like mad the past couple of days. I first picked up the link through someones twitter who was actually critiquing the theory in the same manner I immediately jumped to. It'd be cool if I remember who post it, but regardless, I wanted to share my brief thought. I think we can all attest to hearing that "it's not about gear, but the photographer" or however one chooses to put the basic idea. I can agree. I do. Yet, for this video to say it's not about the gear and shoot a fashion shoot with an iPhone and a couple thousand dollars worth of lighting and studio equipment, professional talent, and professional hair and make up, is a little stretched for me. I'm sure there are plenty of others out there who agree and disagree, but either way, to me, this video just boils down to light. It's always about light. Lighting makes the shot. I've been into lighting since I shot my very first roll of 35mm film. I picked up lighting equipment before I picked up lenses. For better or worse. So this video, to me, isn't really proof of the "it's not about the gear" argument, but rather proof for an argument regarding the thought that "it's all about lighting". And we're not talking about lighting for lightings sake. More on that another time, perhaps a discussion with Tom in some sort of a cool set up would be adequate for that. Uh ohh! The brains a workin'. Better get to that white board. Be on the look out!

In a related thought, be sure to check out the post @wizwow did regarding the "gear debate". It's fantastic and probably the most well written piece on the subject I've read to date. [Click Here] to go straight to the article and see what he has to say.

TOO MUCH? I THINK SO...

2010-07-06T17:13:00.001-05:00

I don't normally comment on photojournalism ethics, mostly because I'm not too concerned as it's a direction I don't really wish to pursue career wise. I'm all for digital imaging technology and the fairly 'newness' of this technology, but when I read an article and saw this image in the news I decided to throw in my two cents (yuck, cliche). I'm all for enhancing photojournalism images, utilizing things like curves, color correcting, slight cropping, etc. Basically anything you can do in a traditional darkroom, and we're not talking crazy Jerry Uelsmann shit, I believe you should be able to do in post production. I tend to stray away from the purists of the industry right now, and stray away from what they're saying. Yet, this image deserves a little bit of talk. The post production done in this image, however simple is may be, isn't right in my eyes. The work done completely changes the overall tone and feeling of the image. A different message is conveyed, one in which wasn't there too begin with. I'm not down with that in news publications. Commercial, advertising, etc.. Awesome, if it makes the image more attractive. That's a different idea though. It'll be interesting to see how the PJ industry handles technology as it grows and grows. The organization gave sort of a weak statement regarding this if you wish to read that and the full story via Peta Pixel, [Click Here]...

DAMIAN BMX-NESS

2010-07-05T14:50:00.000-05:00

One of the positives that came out of my prolonged Cleveland stay was getting to chill and shoot a bit with my homie Damian. Felt good to shoot some BMX out in the streets and I even hopped on Damian's bike like old times. Hopefully as my summer frees up I'll be able to get out and shoot more BMX. A couple of summers ago, BMX and the friends that came with it were the most important thing in the world. I still dig getting out there - It serves as a nice reminder of a past I don't want to ever forget. Cheers to old times...

GROUNDED

2010-07-03T13:42:00.000-05:00

iPhone. 35,000 feet up.

Made it back from a killer vacation out in the desert. Still need to more attentively sift through a couple gigs worth of travel photos. Maybe a wrap up photo essay in the future. Had some things to deal with when I got back to Cleveland which prolonged my drive back to Chicago. It's good to hang with family and some people I don't get to see that often. Looking forward to getting back to the city though. Back in some sort of a routine. Back to @tomburnett and @tony_miceli. My notebook has been filling up with ideas. Looking forward to tackling that when school wraps a week from Thursday.

FATHER, VORTEX, & SUN

2010-06-29T20:36:00.000-05:00

My father, atop a vortex rock in Sedona as the sun was settling in for the night.

ENGULFED (DAY 04)

2010-06-27T19:28:00.000-05:00

The side of the road. Snapped a bunch of portraits. An offbeat moment.