Project - F R I E N D S

First - Background

Last summer, I was in San Francisco and was able to see the Richard Avedon exhibit at the SF-MOMA. If you haven't seen it, it'll stop you in your tracks and you should keep an eye out to see if its coming to a city near you. The exhibit is comprised of the most amazing black and white portraits of essentially everyone who's played a significant part in 20th century. Writers, composers, artists, models, actors/actresses, politicians, musicians, heads of state...average Americans in their own back yard. I HIGHLY encourage you to spend a few minutes reviewing Avedon's work HERE.

Seeing his work, full size - I'm talking, the size of your front window - was hugely inspiring to me and got me thinking about how I would like to complete a project inspired by Avedon's work.

I'm not proclaiming to be an original with my approach but I'm confident that I'll be able to accomplish, and create something special. The project is inspired by Avedon and it is not my intention to copy his work. This is about more than just taking pictures; its about getting to know you and capturing our conversation.

So what is this about? How are you involved and how does this work? Whats the end result?

This is about you and me and a couple hours together, a conversation that covers the good, the bad and everything in between...maybe a drink or two. I plan to record our conversation while we talk and I snap away. The goal here is to draw out emotion, capture it and learn a bit more about each other in the process.

All you need to do is sit on a stool, and have a good time.

Once I have all the content, it will be time to sort through the shots, edit them and select a choice line from our conversation to companion the selected photo. The goal here is to add a little more depth and meaning to the image.

How will this be presented?
My vision is to ultimately create a book once I have everyone's photos. Each page will have a photo on one side, and the selected text on the other. Clean and simple. As the work evolves, I may elect to present the work in progress on my blog just to keep interested parties up to speed on the progress of the effort.

I've done a proof of concept for the look and feel that I'm targeting. You can view that HERE

So who's interested?
Drop me a line, let me know you want to be a part of this project with me. I'll be reaching out to folks individually HOWEVER DON"T HESITATE TO RAISE YOUR HAND! This is about getting to know people better than I already do and creating something together. I'm happy to work with anybody - so don't sit and wait to hear from me if you're itching to be a part of this.

We'll be in touch!

rick.donohue@gmail.com

Teaser

I grew a beard in December and I've since shaved it off...however not before a little inspiration. I shaved it off in phases, taking a few pics of each phase and each look. Liz and I are working together (she's the photog this time) on putting it all together. This is just a little taste of what's coming.

Also - This was also a test session for another up-coming project I'll be putting together - interviews with close friends with pics along the way. More on that later!

Working on Black and Whites

I've been spending more and more time scouring flickr and my eyes keep landing on black and whites that really pop. So I've been trying to get my own black and whites to get closer in quality to those that really catch my eye on flickr.

Queue carrying my camera with me more often... So I was driving to my grandparents and my camera was in the passenger seat...so I decided to get a couple self portraits while behind the wheel...dont try this at home.

So this is what I got - I'm pretty happy with my black and white conversion.

A few comments -

I used the channel mixer to get to black and white, and spent a fair amount of time fiddling with the sliders finding a combination that I liked. I wanted to boost the general level of light without blowing out the detail in my face and keeping the blacks nice and dark.

I used some vector masks for curves, levels and the channel mixer as well. I created a new layer for my eyes since they had become pretty dark and repeated the same process to the layer for my eyes and a little dodging for a touch more light. My right eye looks weird with the reflection and it being out of focus but I like the outcome with my left eye.

I threw a high pass filter to add some kick to the detail/sharpness of the entire picture.

As for the composition, I was just guessing, setting the camera on the dash... so on that front, I like what I got - Its not perfect which I think makes things more dramatic and interesting to look at. But I don't like how blown out the rear window is. It draws the eye away from the subject of the photo (your eye is generally drawn to the brightest spot in the photo) and my goal is to draw attention to the subject of image rather than the most boring part...more work to be done, more learning to be had. Next time.

Shot on my 5D w/ 50mm 1.8 processed in Photoshop CS3

AP1 Honda S2000

What started as one rather upset dude, has turned into a rather happy guy.

Long story short, I was forced to do a little paint work on the hood of the car due to a leak in the garage and I decided to document the damage to my car in case I wasn't able to repair the damage. That led to about 20mins in the garage (post paint fix) snapping away.

My building has many vacancies so the garage tends to be pretty empty so I took full advantage and really spent some time thinking about my subject and the details around it.

I've taken pics of my car a million times but I always feel that when I'm shooting a car, I need to take some alone time with it and just drink in the details of the machine. Mind you this isn't a detail shot, I still like to consider all the different angles - all the shapes and curves of the body and find the perspective that is most flattering. This one works for me big time.

Yes, I did spend a bit of time with this in photoshop and I'm pretty pleased with the result. Its got a pretty commercial feel to it which I like a lot. I was toying with some new tricks and am pleased with the outcome.

Car is 100% stock.
OEM Front lip/OEM Rear Wing/Factory Hard Top

The Market

I've been pretty absent lately - not been shooting much and really miss it. I can make some decent excuses though: I've been sick for a couple weeks, I've moved and the weather's been $hit...all excuses so I'm not happy with them or myself for not getting off my ass and shooting. Its weird, I can feel myself moving backwards, and by all measures, that bothers me. We all work hard at the various things we do in life, and it really makes me feel guilty whenever I have this feeling of regression. All is not lost however! ...I'm feeling the winds of motivation :)

On Saturday, I spent the day with my girlfriend and we made our way to the market in Seattle to pick up a few things for dinner. I had brought my camera up for the weekend as we had a busy schedule with many friends so I lugged my camera bag with me.

Although I wasn't able to get any solid time to shoot with my friends and work on my people work, I was able to take a few random snaps as we wandered around the market and enjoyed a little dry time between rain storms.

Many of the shots taken during the day were from the hip, literally. It makes me want to start working on a whole set of 'street' work that is all shot without looking through the viewfinder and just guessing on composition. The results are pretty encouraging so far and will show up here in the future.

A few words on the fist shot below -
I have a general interest in a photo journalistic style however I feel my skills in this department are VERY lacking and I feel this REALLY detracts from the wedding work that I do. This really bothers me and I feel an obligation to myself and clients to hone this skill. Cartier Bresson talked about "The Decisive Moment" and I think most would hold him as the master of capturing "The Decisive Moment," which is essentially the critical mass of a moment frozen in a moment in a photograph. I've felt myself really needing to work on this side of my shooting and feel like I'm on the right track with this first shot....the eyes of the man working the news stand. Note the people playing soccer in the intersection of 1st and Pike in the distance.

Bresson if you don't know:
Henri Cartier Bresson

Tacoma

Thought I'd take a minute and post a few of my shots from around Tacoma. Enjoy -

The right song at the right time

Music makes all the difference. In all my infrequent internet ramblings, I don't think I've stopped to talk about the importance of music. I think we all know that exposing music to children at a young age helps to develop their infant brains but that's not what I'm hear (ha!) to talk about.

You're in the car...there's a stretch of open road in front of you despite the fact that you just got off work and its 5pm. Everyone is out, and so is the sun. Its Thursday and the excitement of knowing that tomorrow is Friday has you pretty amped (its the little things in life right?). Naturally your music playing device of choice is on random, cause, well why not on a nice afternoon like this? As the gap in traffic appears just before your favorite stretch of the drive home (the one with the sweeping corners and nowhere for "the man" to hide) THE BEST song comes on. It could be any song, but its your favorite song of the moment, or perhaps an old favorite that the "random man" inside your mp3 player dusted off. Suddenly, your perfect afternoon has just become somehow, more perfect. Oh the power of music, how it compels us. Without it, surely there would be no air guitar, and certainly no air drums. I'm pretty sure that back in the day, there was something called the "air harpsichord (not very rock and roll I admit)." Without music, how else could we embarrass ourselves? I digress... we're in such a good mood now that the odd look from the aging blond (look past the gray roots; she's a so-cal wannabe version of Cruella DeVille) in her Mercedes (its a bit too old, she's just pretending to have money) only makes us feel happier to be in this moment with this song....carry on with the air drums, shift gears, switch to air guitar as appropriate.

So whats the point here? Music keeps us young. What song, or album for that matter, doesn't in some way define a period of our life or perhaps a fleeting moment? Our favorite songs then in some ways, are like familiar smells, drawing out a full buffet of memories and emotions.

For me its hard to imagine not having music with me, especially when I'm out with my camera, or on the computer editing photos or, writing this entry for that matter. From where I sit, music is a critical part of the creative process. Queuing up the right album or favorite internet radio station, can set the mood and be a launch pad for great things.

Recently I did a shoot with a friend of mine who at the time, I hardly knew...friend of a friend of a friend situation. We got on well in social gatherings but never had a one on one. We found ourselves on a hot summer afternoon in the studio sorting out a loose ended shoot to get her started modeling again. We were making our way reasonably well, picking through a suitcase of clothes and discussing friends, the weather...nothing substantial.



She changed as I finished setting up the lights and we began to make our way through the first few shots. I could tell something was missing; something to make her feel more comfortable, more at home. I really wanted her personality to show through and I needed to connect a bit more with who she was and understand her person a bit differently. So I began to ask about music, and suggested we try a different station on Pandora. Queue my Old Skool Hip hop station and BAM! (think Emeril) things began to come alive. You can't not get excited when you hear Rapper's Delight; I'm talking the full version here, not the radio edit. Her eyes lit up and we were on our way, taking turns reciting each verse.



Music levels the playing field and allows people to open up a bit more and be themselves, which is exactly what you want if you're trying to draw out the emotion and personality.

The same goes for when I'm shooting alone or editing photos. With my headphones on, I can zone out and focus on looking at things from a different perspective and absorb the reality that is around me. Focus on the details that perhaps I've not noticed before...sit and stare at my subject and digest what is appealing about it to me and how I want to capture it. What else is around? How is it affecting the subject? Where is the light? Whats the STORY? All these things blend with the music to make the moment and define it through my lens.

So if you don't already, take your music with you when you shoot, and when you're working with people and its appropriate, get the right music going. It makes all the difference in helping to set the mood and the tone while you're shooting.

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Details. Post. Subtlety.

When I was young, I spent many Saturday afternoons building model airplanes. I began with the SnapTite ones that took like 5 mins to put together but I quickly realized that these well, sucked. They looked like crap and didn't do justice to the aircraft it was intended to portray.

So I sucked it up and started building the more complicated ones and spending more time on them and I learned one really important thing that bridges into most aspects of my life.

DETAILS MATTER

The little things add up BIG TIME! A little detail here, another one there. Suddenly things are beginning to look really nice. Same goes for anything really. It could be woodworking.

...but you're not reading this because you're into woodworking, or building 1:48 scale Spitfire fighter planes.

Details matter in all aspects of photography. Period.

From the composition, (are any trees or buildings growing out of your subject's head?), the subject, the light, the location and the post processing all contribute to the final product. I think we can all agree that we don't like to look at way overdone Photoshop work. But as with every other aspect of the shot, the post work is CRITICAL.

Now I'll not get into the debate about whether or not using Photoshop helps or hinders the foundations of photography because the reality is that nearly every image you've ever seen on a computer screen has been touched in Photoshop in some way.

The key is to be subtle and pay attention to the details. While the spectrum of possibilities in Photoshop are nearly limitless they are within reach thanks to the countless tutorial sites out there. See an effect you like? Google it or youtube it and you'll find multiple different approaches to achieve what you're looking for.

The key is to be subtle and look for every detail you can that detracts from the image. Stray hairs? bad white balance? Levels off? Minor blemishes? Dust spots? Dead pixels? An interesting trick I've picked up is to flip your image 180 deg and look at it upside down. You'll be amazed at what pops out at you that you may have not noticed before.

What details did I miss in this edit?



Personally, I think the intent is to correct any mistakes from your original shot (crooked much?) and then use the tools available to ADD to the appeal of the image. Remember, its about the details. ...the subtle details. Easy does it, don't overdo it, you don't want to appear (unless you really do) heavy handed and contrived because (in my opinion) that detracts from the appeal of the image. The last thing you want is someone to look at your image and say "I wish they didn't overdo it with the post, they had a nice image to begin with."

SO - As with my model planes, its important to pay attention to the details and not just throw a quick coat of paint on it and call it good. The same applies in the post processing of your photos. Take the time and put the thought into the right amount editing that will allow your photo to stand out for the RIGHT reasons. Remember, we're looking for quality, not quantity...


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The most important lens

I always hear the phrase "the most important camera is the one you have with you." I'm not here to dispute that in any way. This phrase has sold a whole pile of iPhones in the photography community I suspect.

What I would like to discuss is, what is the most important lens for your SLR/Camera?

I'll contend that the most important lens to have in your bag (edit) *ON YOUR BODY* is a 50mm prime lens.

Most importantly its a fixed focal length. Without a zoom, you're forced to THINK (gasp) about your shot and move YOURSELF to achieve the composition you desire. I believe this is a fantastic passive creative mechanism. Anyone can stand in place with a zoom, machine gun and say "aren't I amazing?"

When you are forced to stop and think about your shot, you're much more likely to get it right, and get it the way you want it rather than just ripping off 100 shots of the same thing and hoping for the best. For me, this alone is reason to have a 50mm or 35mm (well any fixed focal length for that matter) lens.




Speed: My 50mm is a 1.8. That's almost an aperture the size of a sewer pipe...ok not really but its BIG. Sure you can get a 1.4 or even a 1.1 but those are 3-4x the price for a 1.4 and like 15x more money for the 1.1 With 1.8 you can shoot at shutter speeds in low light that are fast enough to stop motion without having to crank your ISO speed and loose quality.

Image Quality: Like most things in life, lenses are a give and take between image quality and flexibility. You can have a wide focal range, say 18-200mm (Nikon has a great lens in this range) but the laws of physics and the need for a reasonable (whats that mean anyway?) price make it difficult for a wide focal range AND a super wide, constant aperture across the focal length at a price people will pay. With Nikon's 18-200mm lens, its F5.6 at the long end, thats DRASTICALLY less light than our little prime lens. At a fixed focal length, the construction of the lens is far more simple and provides much better image quality at the prescribed focal length. ...the compromise here is the lack of zoom. But in this instance I'm viewing that as a benefit as well :)

Depth of field: At a very wide aperture you have a VERY narrow depth of field. This creates a great effect (bokeh they call it) where one thing is spot on focused while everything else fades further and further out of focus. The 'sweet spot' of the lens where it gives its best performance is also at a wider F/stop, again, allowing you to shoot faster shutter speeds.



Price: My 50mm 1.8 was less than $100 and is TACK sharp. What else do you want? (I'll argue sharper than the Canon 24-70 2.8...that's fixed focal lengths for you) Sure the AF is archaic, its a plastic mount, certainly doesn't have Image stabilization but that's not the point here ...is it?

I would say without question that a fast prime lens is the best student/beginner lens. Not only is it cheap and sharp, but it really does feed the creativity and force you to put a little thought into your composition...something that will make a MASSIVE difference in your end result.

If you are just starting out, or maybe have been shooting a while and have found yourself in a rut, pick up, or perhaps dust off your prime lens and really experiment with what you see through the viewfinder. Remember - YOU are the zoom!

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