This was a pretty decent year for me, gift wise. I'm not one to want or need much, so my expectation are not terribly high. Nice little life lesson for you there - expect nothing and enjoy the little surprises life hands you.

This time of year, book stores like to cram photo books out in the main aisles in an effort to get you to pick them up. Notoriously, many of these are of shit quality, but I'm happy to say that the book I got, Lillian Bassman - Women, is really a great book. And what an excellent gift for me. Anyone who knows me, knows that if it's visual arts or women/beauty, you can't go wrong with me. This mid-1900's photographer's work is iconic in the fashion industry. Although her style is, at times, a bit too processed and abstract, overall I love the way in which she depicts women - elegant and glamorous.

The jacket of the book contains a nice quote and it really struck home with me. And mind you, remember the era in which she was photographing. Certainly not 'demure', but where certain societal latitudes may have been a bit less permissive. The quote is "The most desirable models of her time loved to work with her, and even agreed to pose in lingerie and in the nude, because they wanted to see themselves as she would see them." I've often been asked why some models choose to work with me. My work, in my own opinion, falls into a weird chasm - it's not men's magazine, and it's not Playboy. I don't want to sound all "art-eest", but maybe it's just art. Any way you see it, I hope that ultimately, the models I am lucky enough to work with enjoy and choose to work with me because I'm not trying to photograph them looking like someone else, but I'm trying to make a real portrait of them and how beautiful they are to my eyes.

Well, enough of my soap-box. It's a great fashion/photography/photo book. Paw through it, if you get a chance.


Next up, I got a Flip Mino Ultra HD. I had gotten a mini cam before my son was born, but the quality's always been shit. I'm really impressed with the image quality of this little device that fits in my jacket pocket nicely. Mostly, it's going to be used for family-type captures, so don't expect me to be embracing video as an alternative form to video. I've got the Canon 5D Mark-II if I want to get artsy. But despite the convergence of video into newer SLRs and every photo magazine talking about the death of photography in favor of video (Seriously guys? Do you know who reads your rags? Photographers, not videographers), I plan on keeping my feet firmly planted in the realm of stills for the foreseeable future. I'm not dissing video. In fact, I think that this is an incredible time to be able to capture my son on video. His language is coming out and I believe that video allows me to capture personality. Film, on the other hand, allows me to tell stories and capture character.



Finally, although we have a shelf full of old TLRs - some working, some crap - none of them shoot conveniently available 35mm film. So this little Blackbird.Fly, perhaps the smallest of the bunch, is going to be fun to play around with. Along with my Holga, I intend to make use of a bit of film this year, along with my digital pursuits. There's a nice byproduct of shooting without a viewfinder or even a light meter on the camera - you have to slow down and think your way through the shot. Understanding what you are seeing and how to properly gauge the exposure based on what is in front of you. Today's pro cameras are amazing. They take so much of the guess work out of the game, freeing us up to concentrate on artistic merits like composition and lighting. But that also makes us a bit lazy in regard to some of the mechanics we now take for granted.



Now, on to New Year's resolutions. I have a little confession to make. This may come as a shock to some of you, and for that I apologize. For quite some time - years to be truthful - I have been addicted to Coke. But it gets worse. I've also been addicted to Pepsi. Oh sure, on occasion I'd slum it and pick up a root beer or something - only if I needed a quick fix. But the big two have had me cocked good. I've got a goal to get into pretty decent physical form by summer, so it's back to Planet Fitness for me. But as I get older, I become aware that we have to account for our addictions. And cola is mine. It so bad, and everyone knows that. I've quit before, and I know that the weaning approach doesn't work. The last time it worked, it was cold-turkey or nothing. The real trick in beating a caffeine addiction is that this stuff coursing through my veins acts like an internal dehydration system. Meaning the more I drink, the thirstier I get. And what do I use to re-hydrate? More of the same. So it's going to be PLENTY of water in my near future (over-hydrating can combat the headaches and many other side effects), but still I'm looking forward to some grumpy days and a loss of energy while my body flushes itself clean. Wish me well.

I hope all of you had safe and happy holidays and that your new year brings you lots of success and happiness.

Almost as a complete contradiction of the journal post I wrote about this morning, today I got an email that I debated on sharing. Or maybe, how to share. It's hard for me to express, really, the way this email makes me feel. Validated? Proud? It's hard to put words to some feelings, so let me say in the briefest terms, filled with joy. But I didn't want to post this and have it received as "look how great I am". I am flattered. Beyond flattered. I'm really blown away by the story and I hope you are a little bit too.

Now, I can't say that I'm proud of war. Me? I'm a lover, not a fighter. But I love a soldier. The brave men and women of the military forces are incredible. They earn the right to be called "citizen" and by the selfless acts of bravery anyone who's not been in the danger zone can even fathom, they provide us with that same liberty we take so casually. Hate the politicians. Hate the motivations of war and war itself, if you must. But love your soldiers. I hope when you read the below email I received, your pride in the men and women of the military forces grows like mine did. Not simply that my work is referenced, but at the intellect level exhibited over in war-torn lands, amidst what must be some very psychologically hard conditions.

It's a bit of a read, but I hope you still read it all. I've omitted names because I've been asked to by the author, and I would also not want to show favoritism to any of the models I have worked with before. It's not about those particulars, anyway. I hope this doesn't come off as boasting. I've always had a silent respect and admiration of the men and women who serve. I just now feel somewhat personally connected to them.

I got a note overnight from a watcher (and a very clear-minded & intelligent one), to notify me of a journal post out there that, in brief, calls me a pervert coward with a camera. I'd link you to the article, as it's a funny read of a young boy gone way off the deep-end and thinking his intellect is superior to others, while claiming the others suffer from the same delusion, but to link to it would only fire this young boy's need for attention in order to validate his sense of superiority.

While making blanket critiques against models, beauty, and some plastic surgery and calling those women barbie-dolls, a quick browse through his favorites shows tons of cartoon porn, some women drawn as though they were nothing but silicon, cartoon child-fetish porn, and a peculiar bias towards anime-con girls. Sorry, mate, but it's really hard to go throwing stones when you live in a glass house like that.

I'm not on DA to pick fights or start squabbles. Quite frankly, I come on here, post work for you to see, and roll on. I do my best to respond to people's comments and leave comments on peoples' work on occasion. But I don't "live" here. Think of it more like a rest area on the highway. I'm not being a prick when I block people, but I'm not doing it randomly, either. This person in question had made a bunch of niggling comments on my work in the past. Some veiled, some back-handed compliments, and some more obvious. So he was blocked. Simple. We don't all have to get along here. It's not a democracy.

So play nice, have fun, enjoy. And if you don't have anything nice to say, that's okay. Just don't say anything at all

I suppose that a lot of people who are not intimately familiar with the kind of shoots that I do may not understand all that goes into a photo shoot like I do. Most of the work you see, as I've previously noted, is not specifically for a client. It's built for my portfolio in order to encourage business, and keeping fresh, consistent ideas in front of potential clients is just part of how I market myself. But even though it's not for a specific client, it doesn't mean that I just shoot from the hip and see what we get. These shots are concepted, discussed, planned, etc. So having a shot list not only helps in the preparation of the shoot, it makes sure on the day of the shoot that the intended images are accomplished and nothing is missing.

I'm not going to lie, I like kicking back and just hanging out with the models and having fun, too. If my job wasn't fun, I probably wouldn't do this. And I don't mean hanging out with nude women, but I become friends with these people who contribute their art to our images. They are funny, vibrant, intelligent, engaging, and interesting women. I have, in the past on occasion, screwed up and gone into a shoot a bit unprepared. (Typically, this happens on first shoots, when I had not yet met the model, so didn't understand her personality). As charming and good-looking as I am (insert laugh-track here), if I don't actually produce work for these models up to the standard they are expecting of me, I'm certain it wouldn't take long before I find my willing participants a bit harder to find. My shoots cost anywhere from $50 to several hundred and models have driven up to 5 hours each way to work with me. So it's important that that time and money is not wasted.

So that's the importance of having organization going into a shoot, but what exactly is a shot list? Well, simply, it's a list of all the images you "must get" during a shoot. My shoots typically encompass several hours, make-up changes, and many different themes or concepts. Some concepts have to come later in the shoot for lighting reasons, or perhaps the model is going to get messy, etc. It's a lot easier to end on a messy note, than to spend the time and effort making the model look fresh, clean, and beautiful after, say, covering them in baby oil or water. Even if you only had one concept a shot list can help you stay organized and make sure you get what you need out of the time spent.

A few weeks before a shoot, the model and I will discuss a number of different ideas. These can often times get very involved and numerous, so it's good to try to reign them in. For me, 4-6 is really the most amount I like to try to tackle. Even if time isn't a factor for the model, fatigue can be. Once we've got our ideas together - sometimes as a result of images we've seen - images supporting the ideas will be gathered. This is a normal part in the creative process. I've read a number of funny quotes on deriving inspiration from other people's images, but the bottom line is that our ideas - whether we are conscious of it or not - are driven from all the things we have seen with our own eyes (or ears, etc) in our lives. If we have not seen it (even in your imagination) it does not exist. The images will serve to piece together details for the shots - focal lengths, lighting, make-up, props, poses, etc. While I'm happy to derive and build ideas from images seen, it is important that each model/photographer take that as a starting point and express their own creativity in the concept. (i.e. there is very little value in simply copying another piece of work).

I very often will put the concepts on my iPod touch or laptop and bring that along to the studio for quick reference. Lately, I've gotten into the habit of printing out the supporting images and placing them in a notebook along with notes - materials, lighting diagrams, make-up changes, etc. This is somehow more tangible and allows for more depth than a simple image on a screen. I typically work alone in the studio with a model, given the nature of my work, but on occasion a make-up or hair artist will be present. If you needed to have assistants on a shoot, having this kind of written out shot list would help everyone stay on track, allow people to anticipate the changes, and keep a shoot moving within reasonable time.

I wonder how many other people do similar things. Even when I did landscape photography, which admittedly does not require as many materials, etc., I still had an idea of my location, lighting direction, etc. Those planning steps are what allow you to make better images more quickly and consistently. And yet, while important as all the planning is and that you get the minimum shots that you planned on, it's important to play around and still let your creativity flow. Sometimes (many times, actually) some of my best images come from "happy accidents". But having that shot list allows you to get back on track and keep getting those solid shots when you feel like you may have stumbled off course.

I'm really not one to feature artists. There are simply too many great ones on here, and to single out one seems unfair. All the same, I just now looked at the latest piece from (I'm a huge fan of his work) and I have to say it's really an example of excellence and mastery at his craft.



Do yourself a favor and go look at this piece and familiarize yourself with this amazing artist's work.