Cloud Gazing

Yesterday I spent most of the afternoon downtown, first meeting with a group from the organization Docomomo for a tour of the Police Headquaters and the former Daniels Building (both by William Morgan) and then heading out to the Springfield neighborhood to scope out some shots. It was incredibly hot and miserable (don't we all love to complain about the weather?). I decided not to wait for the sunset and as I was driving home I remembered that we were going to take my mom out to dinner at the Blue Bamboo. Seems like my memory is being challenged these days. As I drove into the driveway I was eyeing this incredible set of clouds overhead. The sun was beginning to set and these clouds began to light up. Dorian was in the yard with a neighbor. I parked the car, said a quick hello and grabbed the camera out of the trunk. For the next 20 minutes I was entertained, while Dorian contained her annoyance (thank you dear!) at our late dinner engagement. Funny how the most interesting shots of the day come when you least expect them.

      

Treaty Oak study

Most residents in Jacksonville are familiar with the Treaty Oak, a massive tree situated in a small park on the South bank.  It's a wonderful tree and there are always people there enjoying the shade from the overhanging branches. Today I was trying to catch the Harvest Moon from the Acosta Bridge and the clouds rolled in and blanketed the sky. So I spent some time with this beautiful tree. I realized that many of the forms were human-like, and upon careful study you could find arms, legs, hands , and entwined appendages. I lost the light quickly and will return on an overcast day to discover more about this magnificent creation.

This was officially Day 10 of my Jacksonville 400 project.

Wordpress update

Wordpress 2.8 was released a few months ago and I've been putting off updating my site. When things are working well, especially software programs, then why update? Recently a user reported that my Portfolio galleries were not displaying the individual images properly. I checked on the Wordpress.org forums and started reading about these horror stories of hackers hijacking your Wordpress site and bringing it down. Supposedly the new release was more secure in addition to several other improvements. Since I am hosting Wordpress on a server, I first had to back up the site, which meant making a copy of all the files on the server and exporting a copy of the SQL database that held all of the site's content. Having never done this before I consulted with the documentation on the Wordpress Codex and found it to be remarkably complete and simple. I also had to update several plugins that I use (NextGen Gallery, Widget Logic). After backing everything up, the updates area a matter of pressing one button and that was it, or so I thought.

The first problem resulted from many of the widget settings being lost. Make sure you copy down (with a pen on paper) your settings because these get wiped. Wish someone had told me that. Also I noticed that the sort function on the NextGen Gallery was not working, which really stinks because there is no way to order any new images in the galleries. Again the support forums revealed that several other users were experiencing this problem after upgrading, but it was basically unresolved. I fussed with it for about 2 hours and gave up. The next morning I updated a widget that I was not using and then noticed that the sort was working! Whether this really fixed the problem or whether the software spirits decided to have pity on me I will never know.

I have yet to update my Wordpress Theme which also has a new version...I'll leave that until next weekend. Until then all seems to be working well. At least I feel better that my site has a backup and I'm safe from the hackers (at least for now).

Horrors...Pbase is down!

I went to update my Pbase galleries and found this nice message:

I suddenly realized that this is a BIG deal not only for me but for thousands of other photographers who rely on Pbase for image storage. My original images are saved on multiple hard drives, but my entire sorted collection of lo-res images for reference, review, and feeding this blog are all on Pbase. This ends up being 273 galleries and 7900 images. Pbase has been around for years and my fear is that they have not kept current with the technology required for managing such a large database. Apparently they are based on Oracle, and they lost their server. This can be some serious stuff. I feel for the owner of this business, because I'm sure every user is going to re-evaluate their decision to use the service.

Update: the service came up after about 3 days of being down, not a very good turnaround. I'm rethinking my options, Flickr and Picassa are free and basically can offer the same functionality that I'm paying around $70 a year for, hmmm, looks like a change may be coming.

Jacksonville 400 - Day 6

I've made the trip downtown 6 times now (actually 7 if you count the total bust when it rained) for my Jax project. This Saturday was my most fruitful outing. It seems that I am getting into the swing of things. It takes time to find a path, and some diligence to keep on it. Right now I am taking a lot of the obvious shots, the landmark buildings, what I call the "stock" views of the city. There is a lot of work in doing so, as one needs to capture the sense of place, spirit, and lighting. This takes repeated attempts as the weather does not always cooperate and the light in the morning or afternoon usually favors certain views of the buildings. Take for example the skyline from the Acosta bridge. This is the classic Jacksonville sunset shot, it's been done thousands of times. So what will be different in my version? The light, the clouds, the time of day? I resign myself to taking what is present at the given time and moment. There are no other choices. Here is what I found on Saturday September 19 at 7:45 pm. I had to wait until they turned on the lights for the Jacksonville Landing sign. Is this the shot?  No but it will do for now. It is a pan of 3 - 21 mp images, so I'm going to make a big print.

After walking around on Saturday, which was so incredibly hot and humid, there were many times when I was ready to just pack it in. I'm glad that I stuck with it. I arrived around 2:30 and first hit the South bank River Walk, then headed to the new courthouse construction site, then around Hemming Plaza, and finally back to the south bank and the Acosta Bridge to catch the sunset. Six hours. I found that I needed walk-around time just to be comfortable and to start seeing things that could be easily missed, or having the light and clouds change. Just being awake and present at the right time and place allows the serendipitous to happen. I love the weekends downtown because Jacksonville is almost abandoned. I have the whole city to myself so it seems. A few people passing by with smiles. Almost like being out in the woods.

 

My Jacksonville 400 project gallery can be found here.

My new 5D Mk II

Well I took the big plunge and ordered the Mk II. Everyone is raving about this camera and I cancelled my order back in October of last year due to the economy. I came to the conclusion that at some point I needed to print larger with quality. This was evident in the project for Shands. Blowing up a 5D1 uncropped image to 20x30 is not really a problem, but with a crop, handheld, and going to 24x36 and 30x45 and higher would be impossible. I will be selling one or both of my 5D1 bodies. My original 5D1 served me well. She is a workhorse and has plenty of clicks left in her.

The new body feels the same as the old. But the images were different. I could just sense the difference and when I pulled them into Lightroom for processing I could see the extra oomph those new pixels were providing. I little more clarity and sharpness. It's probably mostly in my head but it's almost like getting a new set of wheels for your bike, you can feel the difference but will it make you a better rider? Yes and no. Equipment is equipment. But since I am a gearhead, equipment gets into my head so yes, it affects my thinking. Since my images have the potential to make larger prints I think about that potential and look at my subjects with a slightly different perspective. I'm looking forward to seeing the prints. I am very fortunate to have the opportunity to get this camera but I had to dig deep to make the justification. We all need to make choices. Selling existing equipment to replace with new seems to make sense. I thank my friend Bill Yates for making this obvious to me.

Giving new life to a remote

My trusty RS80N3 remote has been through the war, and it finally showed signs of imminent death (a remote allows you to release the shutter via a switch instead of mashing your camera with your finger). Symptoms: push button - no shutter release, push button harder - no shutter release, slam remote against tripod 3 times - shutter releases. This begins to look rather awkward when you are in the field, slamming your remote before you take a picture (a strange ritual at best). B&H showed $49.95 for this remarkable, high tech piece of electronic wizardry. Why was it so expensive? One way to find out, tear it apart.

Easier said than done. On the back are two tiny Phillips screws. I mean these are so tiny you need a magnifying glass to see that they are Phillips. Of course I tried to losen them with tool that was one size too large. You get that sinking feeling when the tool begins to turn a little too easily...nice, a stripped head. Two weeks later Dorian found a nice miniature screwdriver set at the "Shack" for 8 bucks and I gave it a go again. This time it took a small pair of vice grips around the screwdriver to finally break these bad boys free. And voila, it was opened.

I fully expected to find a few integrated circuits and a fancy reed switch inside. But to my surprise, three wires and three pieces of metal, with the button forcing contact between the metal pieces. Wow, Canon manages to turn $3 worth of materials into a $49 accessory. So what could be the problem with my intermittent firing? The solder joints looked good, must be the wire where it enters the case. On more than one occasion I managed to catch my falling camera with the remote. Or I've grabbed my camera body in haste only to find it tethered to the remote stuck deep in the camera bag. Ouch. I managed to reproduce the behavior by bending the wire, so I decided to amputate a section of the cable that could be bad...snip. I cut the cable about 2 inches from the plastic case.

The grommet that holds the cable where it enters the plastic case is rather tenacious. Takes a good yanking with the vice grips. After that is free you have to reattach it to the cable. I ended up using a bit of soap and water to slide it on, with some vice grips pulling it through. Then you need to get out your soldering iron to remove the old wire and attach the new one. Three connections, that's it. Takes about an hour. Now I am back in business, although my remote is about 6 inches shorter. I figure I have enough cable to do this at least 4 more times!

Zipcar Rentals - Why didn't I think of that?

Just when you think that no one can come up with any more creative solutions to transportation in the city, enter the Zipcar rental system. We were just in Boston to help my son move and he arranged for us to get a Zipcar for the day, and then two other times for runs to a picnic and to Costco. The cost? $7 and hour, which includes gas. How does it work? You apply for an account. As an MIT student you get a discount. This has all your pertinent info. Everything is done online. Zipcars are parked at most major parking garages, near the dorms, etc. Just a few cars per spot. Reserve online and pick up at the designated time. Key entry is with your card through a sensor on the front windshield. This unlocks the car, the key is always inside. Drive your car for the time you reserved. If you are running late you can call the reservation system and increase the time if there is no one waiting for the car. If you are late...major penalties, like on the order of $75. Need gas, there is a gas card included, just return the car with at least 1/4 tank. Problem with the car, just call in, to report a dent in the door at pickup or to report that your car is not available. Whoever came up with this is brilliant. Sorta like FedEx, a change in the paradigm of how we think of a service like car rental. I can see that this is the future of rentals in the city. Instead of a 6 day rental at Avis ($465) plus all the associated gas and parking fees (say $150), the Zipcar ended up costing less than $200.  Ok, enough of the advertisement...try to rent one if you can. Boston is also home for the Institute of Contemporary Art. We found the exhibits to be excellent and were surprised to see the entire works of Shepard Fairey (the creator of the Obama Hope poster). The building is also quite unique and we enjoyed the quality of the interior spaces and the views of the waterfront from within. There were also very nice public spaces on the exterior facing the water. Worth a visit.

      

     

The nature of Acadia

 

There is something about Acadia National Park that draws you in. It isn't the throngs of tourists crowding the roads and beaches, the screaming kids at the visitor's center, the ravenous mosquitoes, or the rainy summer days (I do happen to really love crummy weather!). There is something that connects you to the rocky coastline and deep forests, crystal clear lakes, and breathtaking vistas. Two days is not enough to take this in, but we do with what we have. When planning these trips it's always hard to anticipate what the "mood" will be when the end of the week approaches. We always feel rushed to return home, to tend to "things", to handle business. Why? I wish I had reserved a few more days of my life to enjoy this place. Will there be another time? I hope so.

      

Acadia image gallery

"High season" in Acadia (July 4 - Labor Day) means you will have to deal with people, kids, and high prices. There are a few decent places to stay that won't break the bank. I found a nice clean room at the Sunnyside Motel and Cottages just at the turn when you enter Mt Desert Island on Hiway 3. It's about 10 miles from the park entrance.

A transformative week in Maine

How would you define personal transformation? Fundamental change? Enlightenment? Increased understanding of self? A new direction? All of the above? Last week I attended a workshop at John Paul Caponigro's studio in Cushing ME. It was a gathering of JP's alumni group called Next Step. As the newest member in attendance I really didn't know what to expect. I had meet many of the members online through Facebook and our Yahoo Group. It's amazing how well we can get to know someone through an online experience. The group was also there to attend an opening for their work at the Maine Media Workshops. This was a project all had been working on for almost 2 years, and included generation of a body of work, an artist statement, a book, a website, and 2 framed pieces sent to the show.

 

Through 5 days of discussion, review of work, creative exercises, and plenty of Q&A with JP, I learned a lot about my work, where I was with respect to my growth as an artist, the areas I need to work in, and the questions I need to constantly ask myself so that I can be effective in attaining my goals. My BIG suggestion to all of you who are reaching out to grow and progress in any endeavor - find a group, find a mentor, find resources, find support. There is power in the collective thoughts of like minded people. Ideas, encouragement, constructive criticism, advice, etc., etc. The most profound aspect is the power of your own contributions to your group, by contributing you get more. It's the universal law of giving and receiving, the more you give, the more you receive.

One of the highlights of the week was a visit to the home and studio of Paul Caponigro (JPs dad). Paul lives deep in the woods in an ideal creative environment. Paul presented to us several of his original prints included in his Megaliths monograph. It was an amazing experience. We watched in anticipation as each print was pulled from boxes of archived prints. And then we received the full explanation of when, where, and why each image was taken. Paul is deeply connected spiritually to his work. I gained a new appreciation and insight to this dimension of art...the relation of the work to the artist. Typically this is the part that I begin to glaze over. For the first time I began to see how fundamental and important this connection is.

Cruising Alaska's Glacier Coast

We just finished a 7 day cruise with the family aboard the Princess Sapphire. This was my first "big ship" excursion. The thought of taking a jacket, tie, and dress shoes was disheartening. These items would take up valuable space that could be used by "essential" photo equipment. Hauling around 50 lbs of gear, a tripod, and laptop really doesn't leave a lot of room for extra clothing, much less more shoes. I guess I'll never travel like a normal person. I can't imagine having TWO pieces of luggage just to carry clothes and stuff.

We left Jacksonville on one of my favorite 6 AM flights. Boy how I hate getting up at 3:30 in the morning...maybe if I went to bed before 1 AM I wouldn't be so grumpy. We picked up my mom and had an uneventful flight to Memphis, then Seattle, and on to Vancouver where we met the kids who few in from New York and Boston. Vancouver is one of my favorite cities. It was great being back in Canada. People are friendly and seem to be happy with life, unlike walking around Boston or New York where people always seem to be yelling at each other.

Our hotel was the Blue Horizon on Robson St. Very nice accommodations. We had a corner room on the 23rd floor with a great view.

Day 1 - Heading north out of Vancouver

The next day we headed over to The Hudson Bay Company to pick up some souvenirs for the Winter Olympics. It will be crazy in Vancouver next year.  Then on to Canada Place to catch our ship. The whole embarkation process was impressive. A long line but very orderly and things kept moving. Reminded me of queuing up for Space Mountain at Disney. Checking in 3000 people is not an easy task but these guys have it figured out. Our "state room" was very nice, the ship being less than 5 years old. We had upgraded to a room with a balcony which I highly recommend.

So what are the expectations of a photographer going on a family cruise ship? To be honest, they were low. I mean really, you are out in the ocean in a huge boat moving at 20 knots, going shopping, and eating 24 hours a day. I came for the ride, to relax, eat, and enjoy some family time. I had no real strategy for shooting or adding to my body of work. I was in for a surprise.

Day 2 - The Inside Passage

The weather in Vancouver was perfect, sunny and 70 degrees. As we headed north the clouds started to roll in. The weather report called for intermittent showers. Most of Southeast Alaska is within the boundaries of the Tongass National Forest, which is considered a rain forest, so what do you expect, Florida sunshine? Yes it did rain, mostly drizzle, with nice clouds and fog, and all those extra weather features that photographers love. We cruised all day as we made our way up the coast. From the balcony it was like watching the Discovery Channel live. There was a calm and peace to the passing water and coastline. Small inlets, groups of trees, rocks, and the absence of any evidence of man.

Day 3 - Ketchikan

Population 8000, Alaska's 5th largest city. Makes you realize how desolate this part of the country is. Without the cruise ships (I counted 4 big ships anchored) there would be almost nothing here. We had no planned excursions, so we just did a walkaround the city. I also for the first time felt the presence of the size of the ship. It is an enormous vessel, dwarfing everything around it. All of the docks and facilities are fairly new and built by the cruise lines. All of the big stores in the ports are owned by the cruise lines. Hmmm, makes you wonder about this. One thing is for sure, this is a BIG business and someone is making lots of money.

The incredible scenery continued to unfold as we cruised to Juneau.

Day 4 - Juneau

Alaska's capital. Population 31,000 (half of a football stadium). One Wal-mart, one McDonalds. Also home of the Mendenhall glacier, which we took an excursion to see. My very first glacier! Amazing. A living, breathing, river of ice.  The viewing areas were a good half mile from the glacier. We had only 1 hour to view. The helicopter tour was $400, so the bus tour will do for now.

Day 5 - Skagway

Skagway was the point of departure for those heading north to the Yukon Territory during the gold rush. A narrow gauge railway was built to haul people and supplies inland. We took a ride on the train, 20 miles uphill to the White Pass summit. The construction of the railway was an amazing feat of engineering through some amazing scenery. I hung out on the platform between cars, freezing, and loving every minute. I've never shot from a train before. Judging from the number of images I had to toss, it was clear that the speed, the bumps, and the lack of a tripod (r u kidding?) would offer some challenging shooting conditions.

 

Day 6 - Glacier Bay

What's nice about this cruise itinerary is that you are gradually exposed to more amazing views. The scenery was really getting interesting, and the entry in Glacier Bay was nothing short of amazing. There is something special about seeing and experiencing things for the first time. The shipboard viewing was ideal. Maybe a smaller vessel would be better but I was doing just fine on my balcony, watching the views unfold. The ship was perfectly silent as it slipped through the water, delivering new visuals every minute. I brought 2 bodies, and it was convenient to just switch to wide angle and then telephoto. At one point I switched out my 24-70 for my 300. There was almost too much to digest.

 

Day 7 - Prince William Sound and College Fjord

Back in the day glaciers were named after colleges. So there are the Yale and Harvard glaciers, Barnard and Smith, etc. I'm sure the Native Americans had names for all of these things. Why do we insist on re-labeling everything once we have "discovered" them? It's arrogant and disrespectful. Western civilization has its way of putting its mark on things. As we cruised into the fjord there were at least 5 glaciers in view. The ship parks itself in the middle of all this and slowly rotates, offering everyone adequate time to view the sight. After 3 rotations we made our way out towards Anchorage.

 

Day 8 - Anchorage and the flight home

It's always sad to be packing your bag to head back to civilization. We disembarked at Whittier, and took a 6:30 AM bus ride to Anchorage where we toured around until our flights at 4:40 PM. Flew to Seattle, then the red-eye to Atlanta, then on to Jacksonville. It was a long day(s). Good to be home to 95 degree heat and 90% humidity!

Overall the cruise was wonderful. A great time with the family, ate way too much great food, and the service was excellent. My first exposure to the beauty of Alaska was perfect. We covered a lot of ground at a reasonable expense. Would I do another big cruise to Alaska...possibly if the family factor was involved. Cruises are nice because it brings everyone together, but allows each person to do their own thing. A great vacation model. If you want a Disney-esque Alaskan experience take a cruise, otherwise train for the Iditarod.

Click here to see more images in my Alaska Cruise gallery.

Graduation MIT Style

On June 5 Donald graduated from MIT with a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. This was a dream he pursued all through middle and high school, which goes to show that you can accomplish great things if you put your mind to it. There were over 2300 undergraduate and at least that number of graduate degrees awarded that day, yes it was a long ceremony. Commencement was given by Deval Patrick, the governor of Massachusetts. Donald said he fell asleep. Great...so much for our future in the hands of these kids.

As I was watching these young people fill the courtyard I felt a sense of pride and hope for our ability to work through the current crises surrounding us. There were some pretty smart people here and I'm sure most of them will contribute solutions to many of our problems. Let's hope they get to it quickly.

 

 

New York fieldtrip

Dorian and I flew to New York to meet with my old boss from 20-20 and his wife to be tourists. A good time to re-visit some of my favorite sites: Statue of Liberty, Wall Street, Ground Zero, Times Square, and the Brooklyn Bridge. New York is a wonderful place for walk-around street photography. There is always something interesting to see. It's interesting to return several times to a place to see what new images can be captured. The differences in season, time of day, our own disposition, and random occurrences all help to create variety and serendipity. As we build our bodies of work around certain subjects, it's always good to have different perspectives...it gives some depth to your collection.

We also managed to spend an afternoon at the NY Photo Festival in Brooklyn. I enjoyed touring some of the galleries but my boss was not into some of the "fine art" photography on display. To be honest, I really don't understand some of the photography that is shown these days. I can really appreciate a landscape or photo journalism project, but the images of a dumpster in an empty parking lot and the x-rays of a toy (a whole wall full of them) just doesn't resonate with me. Well, I'm not about to get into a rant about the state of contemporary photographic art...maybe I'm just not there yet on the cerebral level. I look for images I can relate to and be inspired by. I don't have to like it, but if it communicates a message or emotion, then I enjoy the viewing experience.

Some goodies from Times Square, this place was really hopping on a Friday night:

 

 

Click here for my Spring in New York gallery.

Details, details...

Don't sweat the details? I think not. Execution on the details is critical to getting a business going.

Sales Tax: If you are selling any product in FL you need to collect sales tax. It's the law, there's no way around it. Just because you are a staving artist doesn't give you a reprieve from the tax guys. So you need to apply for an ID, pay your dues, and report  every month (don't forget) your sales tax collected, even if it is zero. Yes, this is a pain. Don't forget you can give your local suppliers your resale certificate and ID to avoid paying sales tax on supplies you are reselling, like frames and mats, stuff from Staples, etc. Every bit helps.

 = OPEN FOR BUSINESS

Merchant Account: Do you use a credit card? And do you think your potential customers use credit cards? There's nothing more convincing to a prospective customer that you are a total amateur than an inability to do a basic credit transaction (I know this from experience). Cash or check only? I don't know about you but I don't carry $200 in cash nor do I carry blank checks. So what makes you think your customers do? I called my banker to get a Merchant Account set up through First Data. I know I could have probably saved some money by going online and finding Joe's Credit Card Clearing House, but when it comes to swiping cards and having money being transacted, I want the security of knowing I can call my banker when there is a problem, and have funds deposited directly into my account. I will probably be going through PayPal for my online sales, but my bank is fixing me up with a small terminal to swipe or enter cards for $15/month. I'm ok with that.

How much photography did I get done today?

Learning by printing

It's been said many times before, your best education on fine tuning your images is by printing. I don't mean 4x6s at Costco, I mean printing at least 10x15 or larger. Everything is evident at these sizes - color, tonality, detail, shadow, highlights, sharpness...I mean everything. Prints don't lie. They are the moment of truth for your work. Plan on spending a lot of time, paper, and ink on getting the output the way you want it. Every variable imaginable comes into play...color management, paper, your mood...so get ready to be schooled!

I've just finished printing 9 - 11x16.5 prints for my Art Walk opening on Wednesday. Worked on it all weekend. I guess an artist's work is never done. I can keep iterating on these prints forever. Knowing that each trip trough the machine is costing me about $3, that's as bad as Starbucks. I need to find a way to sell these "artist proofs," more like "artist goofs" if you ask me. You hate to throw them away, maybe a gift for Uncle Stanley, he won't notice that there is a slight red cast on the bridge image...

Here is the little promo piece I made for the showing. Since I'm tucked back in the closet I need some signs so my friends can find me. Next item to tackle is the pricing. Need to factor in the cost of the goofs for sure, and the mats, frames, time for printing...oh and the trip expenses to get the image, all the workshops to learn how to do this stuff, my camera equipment...looks like $3,000 an image should cover that nicely. How's that for recession pricing?

How is your printmaking coming along? Don't settle for "good for the web". If you're making images as art, your art is your image...your PRINTED image. That printer in the corner of your studio is probably pretty lonely. Fire it up and make some prints, improve your images, and have something to show all your friends (and most importantly YOURSELF) that yes, you can produce a print.

My first gallery showing

"Please join me at my first Art Walk showing at the Greenleaf Gallery, 212 N Laura St, this Wednesday, May 6 (across the street from the new library). I’ll be there with 20 other local photographers and artists from 5 to 9pm, rain or shine. Drop by to say hi and have a glass of wine." How did I get into the gallery you ask? It's an interesting story and shows the power of networking, leaning on your past, and having a website. When I attended the Riverside Arts Market 2 weeks ago I met an interesting photographer, Bill Yates. Bill and I hit it off immediately, being that he was a graduate of RISD same as my daughter, and his wife was a big fan of Diana's on Project Runway. Bill and I got together that week to explore some ideas and view each others work. Bill is setting up a new gallery called Flat File (more on that later). Bill also mentioned that he was having an opening at a gallery downtown and invited me to attend.

The gallery is named Greenleaf and located right across the street from the Jacksonville Museum of Contemporary Art and the new library. It is in at the center of the art district in Jacksonville, if there was such a thing. Greenleaf Gallery is run by a small group of artists named Southlight, and they found this great space temporarily, and invited about 20 other artists to show for the opening. Little did I know that one of the Southlight artists is an architect named Michael Dunlap who is also a very accomplished photographer. Dorian and Michael worked together at her first place of employment (MacDonald and Gustafson Architects) over 30 years ago.

I spoke to Michael and he asked me if I was still doing my computer things. I pulled out my card and said no, I'm embarking on a new career. Michael was a bit surprised and said he would take a look at my work on my website and we might talk later. I received an email from Michael the next day and he told me to come in during the week so we could talk. When we met that Monday he said he wanted me to show some prints for Art Walk in May and June. BINGO!

This validates some important lessons for me:

1. Get out and network with other photographers. You can't get anywhere through isolation.
2. Draw on your past contacts and associations. Everyone comes from a unique background and situation. Use it.
3. Your website is your calling card. Someone can spend 2 minutes browsing your site and determine whether they want anything to do with you. Make sure it represents who you are and the work you do.

I think this is going to be a turning point for me for my future as an artist. I'm excited about it. I'll let you know how it goes, right now I need to print and frame 9 prints...and my desktop computer's power supply just died!

Family snapshot time

There comes a time when a photographer needs to be in the family snapshot mode. Family and friends depend on you to be the documentor of events, vacations, and other good times, so the shooting never ends. Not that we would want it to, but it would be nice to just enjoy a family outing without camera equipment, right? I've begun a habit of using my Canon G7 more on these occasions simply for the reason that I love to take family snaps and really hate lugging all my camera gear around Disney World. I've done that too many times. Besides it's a different skillset and mentality when you are using a point-and-shoot, in fact I enjoy the change. But you have to get over the fact that you won't be making any 20x30 enlargements of those snaps. The kids came home for spring break/vacation and brought friends so we headed south to Disney for a few days with my mom. Disney is a great place for the ultimate in artificial reality. It's the antithesis of a national park. Theme park/National park. Expensive/cheap. Crowded/secluded. Man-made/all natural. Wait in line/no line. 3 minute thrill/all day meditation. Fast food/bring your own. I enjoy the experience of both. Disney does an excellent job and the entertainment and accommodations are first class. I'll give them credit for that. We also visited the Kennedy Space Center. This is always an amazing place nestled in the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge. Again, an example of opposites, co-existing and in harmony.

Which goes to show that you can find images virtually anywhere.

Sports shooter?

Today I woke up at 4 am to drive with my friend Gray Quetti to shoot a triathlon in Orlando. I was about to get an education in the world of sporting event shooting. The idea here is to get individuals in the act of swimming, biking, and/or running so that they would have a souvenir photo of themselves. For first time participants, competing in this kind of event is truly an accomplishment, as many of them took difficult roads to get there. I used to do a lot of road running events and can remember getting those small pictures of myself usually in a state of pure exhaustion. The whole transaction takes place online, with the photos posted onto Printroom.com and people able to view and purchase. I had shot bicycle races before and realized that moving objects are not that easy for me to shoot. I have enough trouble composing objects that don’t move. It’s a whole different mindset, not too much different than bird or wildlife I suppose, but it’s the moving aspect of the subject that got to me. The lighting was also a big challenge as you don’t always have a choice where to position yourself especially when you are standing on the shore of a lake, with the sun rising in front of you. Well, I managed to squeeze off a few candids, as I circulated among the crowd at the finish line. Will I be pursuing sports photography? Not anytime in the near future. But it was fun getting out and doing something different, helping out a friend, and having fun outdoors. Can’t get better than that.

Cult of Done

Right now I'm struggling to get a new incarnation of my website completed so I can officially start conducting business. This is the digital age and you cannot expect to be in business without a decent site. So the perfectionist that I am, it has become a challenge to get something done. Better late than not perfect?...I don't think so. So I ran across this "manifesto" on a blog by Bre Pettis. Here is the deal: The Cult of Done Manifesto

1.  There are three states of being. Not knowing, action and completion. 2.  Accept that everything is a draft. It helps to get it done. 3.  There is no editing stage. 4.  Pretending you know what you're doing is almost the same as knowing what you are doing, so just accept that you know what you're doing even if you don't and do it. 5.  Banish procrastination. If you wait more than a week to get an idea done, abandon it. 6.  The point of being done is not to finish but to get other things done. 7.  Once you're done you can throw it away. 8.  Laugh at perfection. It's boring and keeps you from being done. 9.  People without dirty hands are wrong. Doing something makes you right. 10.  Failure counts as done. So do mistakes. 11.  Destruction is a variant of done. 12.  If you have an idea and publish it on the internet, that counts as a ghost of done. 13.  Done is the engine of more.

I'm not sure where an artist would intersect with this thought pattern. Where does 20 hours in Photoshop with the clone stamp fit in, or adjusting the padding on the heading text for the 5th time? Is this the bane of creativity, or are these things blocking the creative juices from flowing? Right now I'm into this and ready to shed some of the brain constipation I am feeling. How about you?

Better business through photography

I've started a project that hopefully will generate some income. I am photographing small business CEOs so that they can have a decent headshot (at least) for their web profiles and promotions. I remember as an owner of a business several years ago I never had any decent pictures of myself. Come to think of it I still don't! I used the same headshot in every submission. With the web being so visual, having some good images of yourself, your facility, and your business is very important. I have started to photograph the owners of businesses trying to get an environmental portrait that would indicate what they do. It's a tough assignment. I am hoping to build a great portfolio of images that will show the business leaders of Jacksonville. I'm working hard to improve my location shooting skills, and the ability to come up with a creative shot. It's not easy (at least for me) but I am having a lot of fun meeting people who typically are not in front of a camera very often. It's different shooting professional models and an entrepreneur/CEO. You can guess which one is more challenging.