Project 365, Day 83. I bled for this shot...

I didn't post yesterday, but I took my shot.

Several in fact.

If you keep up with me, you know I sliced the shit out of my finger while trying to make a softbox for my strobes. If you don't know about it, read Day 82's post. Don't drink milk while you're reading, it's liable to come out your nose from laughing.

I did end up getting the softbox built and I tried it out last night.

Let's just say it's not of the highest quality. No surprise there. I got a text message from Image Doctor, Jason Odell, saying I could have used a shoot through umbrella and saved myself getting stitched up by Doug.

Yeah, but Jason, I'm an artist. I gotta suffer for my art. Besides, Doug got some practice stitching and Emily got practice shaking her head at me. Just being around me, they should be experts at both by now.

And they got a few laughs. Apparently, I was sharing my beer with my dogs, Angie and Sera at one point and arguing with my other dog, Tess, because....well...I have no idea why I was arguing with the dog...

Moving on...

I talked the lovely wife, Emily into posing for me. It took awhile, since I don't fully have the hang of flash photography, but I got the shot I wanted.



That's mostly lit with the softbox. Not too bad for some random shit around the house. I bled for that shot.

Then I talked her into doing a bare shoulder shot. Very provocative! (She's hot!) No nudity, but the picture sure makes your mind wander.

She won't let me use that one on the blog. I show that one, THAT'S the shot I'll bleed for.






So, if you want to see it, email me....


Music for tonight:
Don't Stop Believin' by Journey
I Don't Need Love by Sammy Hagar
Too Much Time On My Hands by Styx
Speak To Me/Breathe by Pink Floyd.
Primal Scream by Motley Crue
Hold Me Now by The Thompson Twins
Body Language by Queen

Pics O' The Week #12

So it is indeed true: I spent a fairly brief amount of time trying to persuade Brian to NOT have his finger sutured at the kitchen table before I went for my camera and joined in the fun...and I do have pictures, but I've got to get caught up on last week's post first.

If you've been following the blog, you'll know that we spent last weekend in Colorado Springs visiting with Brian's family. We also got a chance to do a surprising amount of shooting while we were down there - and I got my first chance to put together an HDR photo!

Ok, it's maybe not the most exciting HDR pic in the entire world, but I've got to start somewhere, right? It's actually a pretty interesting technique that I suspect I'll have a tendency to overdo if I really get into it, so enjoy this tame introduction while you can.

After working on HDR in Aunt Nanc's backyard, we headed over to Colorado College to snap a few pictures of their outdoor art:

Of course it's not always easy to get the angle you want on things.



This is an installation by artist Patrick Dougherty. The picture doesn't really do it justice I think, but it's pretty cool stuff.


And here are a couple of pics from our last stop - Shove Chapel, also on the Colorado College campus:























Who knew the family weekend would turn into a mini photo safari?

Project 365, Day 82. I Am The Reason I Can't Have Nice Things...

First off, if you're a bit squeamish, bow our now. You won't like the picture. No one will hold it against you.

Are all of the sissies gone? Ok, good. Now down to business.

I've been learning a lot about flash photography recently and one of the modifiers all the pros use is called a softbox. It's a big, collapsible tent-like cloth device that fits on the end of the flash to create a larger surface area which will result in softer light.

I can't afford one at the moment, due to lack of a job. So, I thought I'd make one out of crap laying around the house. More on that in the post tonight.

While cutting a cardboard box, I sliced through the web part of my index finger. It didn't hurt much or even bleed a lot. But being a medical professional, I knew it needed stitches.

Just because I know how to suture doesn't mean I like having it done any more than you do.

Doug said he still had Lidocaine, instruments and syringes from Afghanistan and I still had suture and a head lamp I brought back. Emily wasn't too hot on the idea of not going to the ER until she realized I had no intention of doing this sober. She quickly understood that you can't PAY for entertainment like this.

So she poured me another beer and grabbed her camera.

Three pints Guinness and a small glass of Doug's rum later and I was ready to go. The booze did nothing to deaden the burn of the Betadine used to clean the wound. Oh, but the Lidocaine worked like a charm.

I am, apparently, quite the happy drunk, which made the whole process go a bit smoother. And hey, it was free!

This is the cut in question:


And Doug stitching it up...


And the results...


And yes, I took all of these pictures myself. The last two were with my iPhone proving that I always have a camera handy. Even intoxicated.

My cousin, Susan, confirmed my original question. I am the reason I can't have nice things.

I didn't even get to try out the softbox.

No music today, but I might have started with Have A Drink On Me by AC/DC.

Until later....

Project 365, Day 81. The Secret Art of Trespassing.

Private Property.

If it's a top secret military base, I can dig it. Guns, tanks and other cool stuff you don't want me running off with. Someone's house, yup, got it. You don't want me in there to see how dirty your kitchen is.

Believe me, I understand.

In the middle of nowhere? Come on now. Up here in the mountains, you don't want me in this huge, empty field that you reserve for your cows to shit in?

Please.

I am not here to poach the scraggly deer that are running around or do donuts with my Jeep through your hay fields. I....uh...grew out of the donuts phase.

I came out here to empty my head, chill out, enjoy nature and snap a few pictures and you're gonna refuse me that? Oh, don't worry, I promise not to throw my Blue Heeler over the fence and let her herd you cows. Probably.

Still no, huh?

Fine. Time to be naughty. And tonight I am going to pass onto you my secret of trespassing. Believe me, I've been plenty of places I wasn't supposed to and never got into trouble. (Crap, my mother is probably gonna read this. Oh well. What is she gonna do? Ground me? Ha!)

Here it is.

Just act like you are supposed to be there. From military bases in Afghanistan to Las Vegas hotels to the middle of nowhere. If you give off the vibe that you BELONG there, no one notices.

Of course, I am not advocating breaking the law, however, it really does work.

I have a plan if someone stops me, but that's my little secret.



Oh, look! I'm stepping on your dead grass!


Here's a little tip for photographers. Shoot from a public venue such as a street or sidewalk if you're trying to get a shot on private property. Public domain, you're Constitutional rights protect you.

Just remember, if you're up in the mountains most of these hillbillies probably can't even spell intellectual domain let alone know what it means and they tend to shoot first and ask questions later and them deer bite.



Music for tonight:
Cherry Pie by Warrant
Already Gone by The Eagles
The Kids Are Alright by The Who
19th Nervous Breakdown by The Rolling Stones
She Drives Me Crazy by Fine Young Cannibals
Thunderstruck by AC/DC
Runnin' Down A Dream by Tom Petty
Purple Rain by Prince
Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Leppard
Little Dreamer by Van Halen
Livin' On A Prayer by Bon Jovi
Don't Forget About Me by Simple Minds
The Final Countdown by Europe
Black Dog by Led Zeppelin
Hells Bells by AC/DC

Project 365, Day 80. Star struck!

I didn't forget to shoot yesterday. Quite the opposite in fact.

Photography was all I did yesterday, in a way.

I was able to scrape enough money together to go to "The Flashbus" tour when it hit Denver. It's a countrywide tour of two photographers, David Hobby and Joe McNally.

I know of David Hobby through my mentor, Dave Tejada. He is an amazing photographer and does wonders with small strobe photography.



Joe McNally? You might not know who he is, but I guarantee you've seen one of his pictures at some point. He has shot for National Geography, Time, Life and so much more.

Imagine the person that really sparked your passion for something you love to do. A hero. Then imagine getting to see how that person does what they do, pass on their secrets... Then imagine meeting them in person. Oh, and then letting you take a picture of him!



On top of that, I got to meet one of the Image Doctors, Rick Walker, yesterday. I listened to that podcast every two weeks while in Afghanistan. It was a taste of home. Not only did I get to meet him, we had lunch. Sweet!

I also got to meet a Facebook buddy in person. Meh, you say. Well, he is Moose Peterson and Joe McNally's personal camera salesman. The guy that they get all their gear from. That's a great resource to have!

I got a chance to drool over Joe's gear...
He travels with a lot of stuff...



Joe and David are traveling the country in a custom bus that has amazing artwork on the side. I wanted a picture of the bus.

But it wasn't on public display yesterday.

I asked the photo assistants if I could get a picture of it.

"Oh yeah, sure! We'll take you down after the show."

Which they did.

As I'm shooting this thing, Joe McNally's first assistant, Drew Gurian (who is a great photographer in his own right) walks up to me and asks:

"You wanna see the inside of this thing?"



Hell yeah I do!
Thanks, Drew!

What a day! I was just too tired to post last night.

Music for today:

Why Cant This Be Love by Van Halen
Miss You In A Heartbeat by Def Leppard
Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd
Nobody's Fault But Mine by Led Zeppelin
Turn The Page by Metallica
Poor Twisted Me by Metallica

Project 365, Day 79. The Sarge.

On occasion, I get asked how I did one of my pictures. How did I know how to do that?

Sure, I have a few friends that are really great photographers and I read just about any book I can get my hands on.

But often, it's just...instinctual.

My grandfather was a photographer in the 3rd Army in WWII. He was one of the first guys in the gates at the first concentration camp the Allies liberated. He took pictures of General Patton giving the order to take pictures of everything. Patton thought at the time that no one would believe the atrocities that they were seeing.

I've seen the pictures.

Most of my early memories of my grandfather involve a camera around his neck.

It's in the blood.

He died before the advent of digital photography. I often wonder what he'd think of the whole digital thing. Would he turn up his nose as most film shooters did when digital made the big breakthrough? Or would he realize the creative possibilities? Would his brain go into overdrive rethinking all of the shots he was never able to take due to the quality of the gear at the time.

I really wish I could hand him one of my cameras and my bag of lenses and take him shooting with me and see what we both come up with.

This is the Michael Garman statue titled "The Sarge" (Grandpa was a sergeant as well) that was given to him when I was too young to remember. It was given to me when he died, along with one of his old film cameras.



This one's for you, Grandpa, wish you were here.



Music tonight:
Best Of Both Worlds by Van Halen
Money Talks by AC/DC
Thinking Of You by Joe Satriani
Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd

Until tomorrow....

Project 365, Day 78. Picture Smoothie...

Have you ever had one of those days that felt like you had your whole day thrown in a blender and turned into a smoothie?

That was my day today. By the way, have you seen what they are putting in smoothies these days? Kelp...soy...wheat grass... I don't know about you, but if I want hedge trimmings in a drink, I'll go munch on whatever comes out of the lawnmower. If it doesn't come in a flavor of a Slurpie at the 7-11, I ain't gonna drink it. But I digress...

My day started at 05:20 today. I had planned on shooting the "Supermoon" setting over Pikes Peak as the sunrise illuminates Garden of the Gods. Emily mumbled "I love you, have fun on your own." as I crawled out of bed. Even the dogs had taken my spot in bed before I had a clean pair of underwear on.

If you follow me on Facebook, you'll already know what luck I had with that. The moon set 20 minutes before the sun rose.
Shit.
I figured I might as well shoot while I was there and the light was nice. Until I was almost blown off a rock formation that I ought not have been on by the wind. Perhaps Mother Nature's way of saying "Piss off" ?

Still, I got a few nice shots:




I got back to my mother's house and started my traditional post shooting nap on her living room floor where the sun hits....only to end up in a turf war with one of my dogs who wanted the warm spot all to herself.

"Hey daddy, get bent."



Damn dog.

Later I went over to my Auntie Nanc's house to see if she'd managed to save her eternal soul overnight. She was proudly waving a printed picture of her in her confirmation outfit proving that she had indeed done it. Sounds like she spent all night looking for it.

I asked my Uncle Glen if it kept him up while she tore through stuff.

"Hell no, I went to bed. I know my Christian name, I slept like a baby."

I had to inform her that without her name, that picture is not much more than a boarding pass to the Pearly Gates. She called her other brother and sister back in Iowa. They both knew their confirmation names. She's screwed.

But on a positive note, it sounds like her pecker problem is getting better.

Auntie Nanc and I are both collectors. While I prefer rare action figures, comic books and camera gear, she collects angels, carousel horses and...pigs. (Don't ask, I don't know.) While she was enjoying her pecker-free morning and raking me over the coals for selling my Star Wars figures as a kid at a yard sale (yes, you were right), I turned her living room into a photo studio and shot her full sized carousel horse with a flash I had brought with me.



I had also promised Emily that we'd go shooting at Colorado College campus today too. There are some wicker-like sculptures that she wanted to shoot. Ma also suggested a chapel on campus as a location to go shooting. So we hit that up too. I got some nice stuff there.



I'm not much of a church man, but damn, those Holy Rollers sure know how to build some cool buildings. I guess I should have prayed for Auntie Nanc while I was there. Oh well. I'll sleep like a baby tonight either way.

We get back to Auntie Nanc's house and what do I find? Uncle Glen playing with his nuts out in the backyard again. I'd already shot about 8 gigs of pictures today. I was too spent to take any pictures of the bluebird that showed up to enjoy his treats.

Whew. What a day! And guess what? I got more family showing up in two weeks! Lord only knows what will happen then. But I'll be there with my camera, if I don't have a job by then.

Love Bites by Def Leppard
Surfing With The Alien by Joe Satriani
Body Language by Queen
Blue On Black by Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Cabo Wabo by Van Halen
Rock And Roll Ain't Noise Pollution by AC/DC
Heavy Metal (Takin' A Ride) by Don Felder
Where Have All The Good Times Gone by Van Halen
Beth by Kiss
Rock the Casbah by The Clash
Hey You by Pink Floyd
Good Times, Bad Times

More fun tomorrow...!