Archive for
April 2010
Last week was a particularly long one, and all in a good way. I can’t say that it didn’t wear me out, though. In fact I spent a large part of Sunday catching up on sleep.
The Northwood Middle School Follies Talent Show performed for the first time Thursday and Friday, and one of the kids’ moms, a good friend of mine, asked me to come and take photos. It turned out to be a pretty good show, with the kids showcasing a lot of music and dancing skills, and even some acting. Being around so many kids reminded me how energetic and restless they are. It made me wonder if that was how we really acted when we were that age.
They got treated to an after-party where a hypnotist came and tried to hypnotize a bunch of the kids. Needless to say, that was interesting, and it reaffirmed my thoughts that kids don’t have enough of an attention span to be hypnotized and that hypnotism is just a parlor trick.
The following day had me go over to Yakima to check out a wedding venue for another friend, and help her out with setting up. The chance to get out in the open fields and away from the city was welcoming, as well getting excited for a wedding shoot in a very pretty apple orchard. They planned their wedding in time with the apple blossoms, and it looks like it’s going to work out perfectly, barring any weather conditions.
The Top Pot Doughnut Dash was a nice punctuation to the week. These runs, races, and triathlons are part of the work I do for fotojack.com, and it really puts my gear to the test, having to shoot pretty much continuously for a couple of hours, if not more. Happy to say that the 1D4 didn’t skip a beat, aside from some occasional user error.
A couple of Storm Troopers made getting up early for the mini marathon that much more worth it, too…
Don’t forget, Fotos for Food is next Sunday!
Not only am I ruining the art, photography, and design world, but now I’m delving into ruining the reputation of the video industry.
One of the advantages of my *ahem* new toy is that I can now take high quality HD video. Having never really delved into video production other than the occasional editing and dubbing that my day job required me to do, I’ve found a new creative outlet to experiment and kill hours upon hours of time with. Subsequently, this will make me want to share EVERYTHING with folks – anything from videos of my cat’s fat ass to blurry, shaky, grainy shots of indecipherable shapes while out in the Seattle night.
This new undertaking prompts the appropriate medium in which to share my oh-so-valued future creations. I considered YouTube at one point, but aside from the popularity of the application, I’ve personally come to hate it due to how much I’ve noticed videos degrade over time. Most other resources weren’t popular enough to be supported by anything, so the happy medium I came to is Vimeo.com. It supports H.264 (think Quicktime) but doesn’t require that silly Apple product, full 1080 HD viewing, and the site’s not as full of crap as YouTube is.
Not yet, anyway… I’m sure I’ll screw that up for them.
Anyway, there’s now a Vimeo button at the bottom of the page! Check back once in a while to see what random things I’ve recorded or how many people I’ve managed to annoy… Like these folks in what pretty much is the first time I’ve recorded anything with the new camera. Ignore the two dorks talking about video in the back. They don’t know what they’re saying.
I’ve always browsed through other folks’ portfolios on a regular basis, always looking for inspiration, something new, and ideas to try. Lately, I’ve noticed a trend in a lot of portraiture: making the photos look aged. That bit of faded color, as if the photos have been sun-bleached or been sitting around in a forgotten album for ages, and the photo paper has started to lose its luster. Which is ironic since the majority of folks these days are working in digital format.
Maybe it’s not anything new, and I just haven’t been paying attention. For all I know the method has been around for ages, and I just never thought twice about it. I notice it now, and I like it.
Whether the photos have that faded pinkish or bluish touch, or it’s a moody, grainy black and white image, the aged effect seems to give the photo a little more of an authentic feel. I don’t see it so much in commercial shots, but more in faux photojournalism or candid shots, or more personal portraits. It can make the photo feel anything from retro (think those shakey camera shampoo or clothing commecials) to very authoritative and genuine (documentaries).
If you step back for a second, it’s kind of ironic, considering how far and fast photo technology is going, with ISO’s now reaching six digits and megapixels continually growing all to try and obtain those high quality, super detailed photos. Then folks bring it all back by degrading it with grain and faded colors. There’s nothing wrong with it, I just find it funny.
Whether it’s a photography fad or not, who knows, and maybe I’m late to the game and it’s already passing, but it is something I’ll try on occasion. Let’s hope it works out.
Ever since I read about what Brook Pifer did with her Portraits for Food project, I’ve been itching to do something similar. Albeit, it won’t be a studio setting, but an outdoor event, and it won’t be limited to portraits. So on May 2, bring your car, bike, even your pet and get some snazzy fun photos out at Hamilton Viewpoint Park above Alki Beach in West Seattle.
Think of it as a very casual senior portraits session, with anyone that knows about it welcome to join in, as long as you bring some kind of appropriate donation for Northwest Harvest. I’ll even do my best to provide drinks (sorry, no booze at the park) and snacks in case people end up having to take turns for their pictures.
Important: Since this is going to be held outdoors, the event is going to be weather dependent, so you’ll have to keep checking back either here, Facebook, or on Twitter for updates.
So wash your car, wash your bike, wash your kid, wash your dog. Fix your hair and look your pimpest, and put on a smile and I’ll see you there, yeah?
What: Fotos for Food
When: May 2, 2010 – 3:30pm to Sunset (and beyond?)
Where: Hamilton Viewpoint Park above Alki Beach
Why: To gather donations for Northwest Harvest, and to get you awesome photos
Who: You and your friends and family, myself with a disposable camera, Orhun from TurkPhotos.com and Jason from JayTPhotos.com
What can you bring? (more info…)
Oatmeal
Whole grain pastas
Brown rice
Tomato products
Canned vegetables
Canned fruit, especially with low sugar (but not artificial sweeteners)
Canned fish or meat
Shelf-stable milk
Beef stew, chili and similar meals with low sugar and saturated fats
Infant and baby foods:
Baby formula
Canned milk
Infant cereal
Jars of baby food
Powdered or canned milk
They also accept baby diapers
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