Commercial Photography: Boston Marathon
I have never run any sort of race, let a lone a marathon. When I was actively running a few short years ago I found myself enjoying the hell out of it. For years my asthma prevented me from doing so. The closest I ever came to running any kind of marathon distance was the day my friend Kris and I ran a portion of the Charles River in Boston.
At the time Kris was living just south of Bean Town. I went out to visit him and we planned a swell run. We were going to do the entire Charles River loop, which totaled the sum of 17 miles. The day of the run we pounded an unhealthy lunch, something you wouldn't see a marathon runner doing. But, the commute we had from Canton Ma to Boston was enough to let our lunch set in and give us the energy we needed to tackle such a feat. We got off the train, walked from South Station to the Charles River as a warm up and began running the moment we set foot on the pavement that wrapped the river. It was one of the greatest days, one of the greatest moments, one of the greatest runs I've had. We were competing against ourselves. We were making our own marathon and running our own race. We set the pace and chased the ladies, flexed our muscles as we passed them, let the athletes pass us, watched as a cyclist made love to a fence when he didn't make the turn, as his handlebars caught the pole, we sweat, we ran, ran, and ran some more. We made a decisive turn, skipping the last leg. By that point we realized we would not be able to make the full loop. We would be shaving off about 6 miles and ending our run just over 11 miles. Why ruin a good run with over extended ourselves? Right? Welp, we ran a good race, had a blast, and it is a memory I will never forget.
Over the last 4 years my running has declined. I have had major set backs with running and have become incredibly frustrated. I have been trying to work through it and am in the process of making incredible changes in my lifestyle. Said changes will be enabling me get back to a place of comfort and joy. Amongst the changes I have been making, I have found inspiration in a project I worked on. Below is a photograph of my sister-in-law Alison. Today she is one of over 14,000 women running in the Boston Marathon. I am proud of her for the training and strength that she has show me, us, her family. She has taken her training seriously, inspiring not just me, but my wife as well.
Alison is a recent mother, as you will notice by the image below. Over the course of her pregnancy she came into the studio, discretely, not telling anyone but her husband. We were working towards the below image, a timeline of her pregnancy in a running pose. The idea, of course was born, PUN intended, because of the two pervious progression series I have composed. These kinds of shoots are so fun, so awesome to produce, and so enjoyable. I love the task of coming up with a concept for the series and will take them on in the blink of an eye.
For all the thousands and thousands of athletes, runners, new, young, old, seasoned, best of luck to you. You have been training hard. Maybe you have worked your entire life for this moment, maybe you have been running the Boston Marathon for years and you still get that adrenaline spark that defines every step you put on the pavement. No matter where you place, whether first, second, third, 18 thousandth or dead last, you are still completing a marathon. There are a lot of people who can not and will not compete in a race for any number of reasons, but there you are, running, winning a race. Yes, winning a race. Even if you are not the first person across the finish line, you still beat the biggest competitor, yourself. You have beat the odds, beat the doubt, and won. Congratulations to all who have run and will run. Your accomplishment is your reward and an achievement, which no one can take away from you.
Photography, Entrepreneurship, : Know your limits
I once had a business partner. Things did not work out and we parted ways. He moved away. I stayed here and continued running the show. In a way, I always ran the show and held things to a higher standard. The parting of ways was an eye opener. I was able to discover things about myself, my business, and most importantly, the direction I wanted to be going in. While we had a business and a studio and worked toward building a reputation and taking on larger studios in our area, I was building a reputation for myself. I was doing the work that I really wanted to do, which was most important to me. When the time came and things were ready to end, after a small messy battle, I kept moving forward and have made changes with my business.
You will not see me discussing the past business beyond how I did so above. I will not discuss past shoots that occurred under that business. By all accounts, I am that business, have always been that business and will always be that business, that is, until a time comes that I chose to follow other leads in life. I have a new partner now. A new business parter, my wife. She believes in me and wants me to succeed more that the former business partner did. She cares about my business, nurtures my creativity, and wants me to be the success that I am and will continue to be. She does so out of love and care, but also because the more successful I am, the more we prosper as a couple.
Sue, cliff side, Cannon Beach area, Hiking to Indian Head Beach, Oregon
My wife, Sue, is always quick to point out the importance of downtime and knowing my limitations. Sue has endured her share of physical set backs. Her health at times is like a roller coaster, up and down, peaks, highs, and lows. She is always encouraging me to rest and get better sleep, which I am finding out makes a huge difference. I have cared for her when she has needed it, never giving her many opportunities to reciprocate. Her mother is a retired nurse. Sue grew up in a house with two other sisters, her father, and the best possible kind of caretaker there is, a nurse. She learned to be more compassionate, undoubtedly, from her mother, who I may add is a sweetheart, and if she is reading this, I'm sure she is now blushing.
Photo Credit: Sue, my wife. Landscape, Oregon.
Yesterday, while running some errands for the house and picking something up at the Home Depot for a project I am starting, I experienced a pain in my back. It was familiar, yet strikingly new. By the I made it home, I could not walk up the driveway. I attempted to help with a few minutes of yard work and found it to be a challenge. I retired to my new leather chair and ottoman. I fell harshly into it and painfully began to find a spot of comfort. With minimal strength to even lift my legs, I was able to sit into some sort of contorted position that was as pleasant as it was painful. I texted my uncle to let him know I would be unable to join him that evening. I closed my phone and laid back watching season 7 of Californication. I had no idea the rest of the night was going to be a painful spiral downwards.
By the time I was able to get into bed, wiping the tears from my eyes, I was near delusions. Some how she managed to make me laugh, which amplified the pain, which increased the tears and laughter. Oh I was more of a train wreck last night than anything I have seen in a while. After some pills and a few sips of water, I checked out for the night.
12 hours later I rose like the holy man himself. I was in pain, yes, but had to get up and stretch out as well as empty the bladder. Today was a new day with a new possibility of gaining some mobility. Around mid-night I had texted one of my long term clients, whom I am friends with and informed her I had to reschedule the shoot. That is something I do not commonly do. As a business owner, there are times when meetings and shoots have reschedules, and things need to be adjusted. Happens in all industries for countless unforeseeable issues that arise. Today mine was a physical limitation. I was upset and concerned that I would either end up in the hospital or worse have to cancel the first few days of my week.
While I was seeing the light and nearing the level of pain that induces a coma, my first thought was my business, my second thought, was my business, my final thought before passing out, was my business. This is where knowing the importances of your limitations are and knowing how to shut off from time to time comes into play. This week was not horribly crazy, compared to the past. Friday was fast paced day, day before injury, and was not super, over the top crazy. However, the fast movement from place to place, shoot to shoot, in some way contributed to my Saturday collapse. Not that I fell, but that metaphorically I did collapse. It was time to rest. The biggest bummer of all, Sunday, today, was one of the most nicest days we have had this spring. I was looking forward to a successful shoot in the morning, a nice road trip with my wife and our fur kids, and a grilled dinner, with a fire to top it off. So far I have managed to sit in the sun, read 8 pages from a book I am in love with, and barely eat a frozen mash up of rice and beans cooked by one of the finest microwave ovens Best Buy has to offer. However, during all of that, my new partner has been there by my side, holding me as needed, walking with me to loosen up the tight muscles, and tend to the yard work that so desperately needs it.
View of Pacific Ocean from cliff side, Indian Head Beach area/Cannon Beach area, Oregon
It is incredibly cliche to say, "don't take things for granted." In some ways, we are as human beings take everything for granted at one point or another in our lives. The flexibility to get in a car and drive anywhere and do just about anything, so long as we have the proper resources, enables us to take for granted what we do have, life. During my struggles and my pains over the last 24 hours, 12 of which we unmeasurable in terms of pain levels, I never kept my wife in mind and thought of how well she is doing with taking care of me. I am not easy to manage when I am in pain and she did a stellar job. While this blog post is more about the undertone, "don't take what you have for granted" and know your limitations and rest as needed so you can avoid injury and risk to your job, life, or business, it is also a way of me publicly saying thank you to my wife. Without her I would have suffered insurmountable levels of pain that would have kept me out for days to come. But her encouragement and support is what has gotten me up. She believes in me in ways I still don't yet understand. But the level of support and creative freedom she gives me gives me courage to fight on and be better than I can imagine.
Thank you Susan.
Commercial Photography: Portraits
Rome is the ideal client. He has a need for great portraits. While he has ideas of how he would like to be photographed, ultimately he leaves the creativity up to me. Back at the beginning of March I had the pleasure of having Rome in the studio for a shoot. I put together a working plan to photograph him against a white background, knowing he would want some full body shots. I also photographed him against a very nice muslin background that I bought for a trip I took to the left coast in February. Sadly it never got used on the trip, so I was very anxious to shoot against it.
I kept the lighting set up simple. For half the shoot I used a softlighter with my AB 1600. For the white, I used a parabolic with an AB 1600 and a bare bulb AB1600 to illuminate the white. I kept the background light off to the side a bit to add a bit of glare. With a few outfit changes, we navigated through the shoot with ease. I took him off the white and the other muslin for a few shots against the bare walls and window of the studio as well.
Rome is an R & B Artist, producer, and song writer. He is quite the talented chap. I first had him in the studio back in July of 2015. A mutual friend of ours produced a music video for one of Rome's songs. We were able to shoot the entire video in studio. During the shoot I popped off a few stills with the lighting having been set up for the video. I really liked the photos, as well as Rome did too.
Rome needed some updated images for his social media as well as for future releases of work. I was happy to have him in studio. You can see some behind the scenes as well as the results below. I will be working with him again in the next few weeks to create a different look. Of course I will share that shoot as well.
Travel Photography
The engine came to life as I turned the key forward in the ignition. I opened the sunroof and the driver and passenger window, looked in the mirror and put the car in reverse. I backed out of the driveway turning the wheel to pivot the car in direction of my route home. The heavily traveled dirt road conjured images of rally cars speeding up and down the winding curves. The gravel was lose in some spots, undoubtedly from someone taking the corner with enough speed to put their vehicle sideways long enough to crack a smile. The tires gripped the road with a crunching strength. Within moments I would be on the main road and heading up and down steep roads that cut through the quintessential New England landscape.
Prior to leaving I said to my wife, "there is going to be a nice sunset tonight." She looked outside as Zeus cleared his throat and let out a rumble of thunder that echoed through the mountains. Sure, there was pretty fierce thunderstorm outside in the distance, but the funny thing, the predicable thing about storms, they come to an end. Here in New England when a storm comes to an end, for the most part it is beautiful immediately following. I knew this would be true this evening.
I was leaving her behind to stay with her family on their vacation. I can make a few trips up through out the week, but nothing extended, as my work load is pretty heavy. On the way home I would stop and make photos, this I decided on the way up as I passed a few photogenic landscapes. Once I turned onto the main road I was greeted by a thick blanket of fog that was cuddling the tops of the trees. I was delightfully surprised. As I navigated the back road I occasionally stopped to make photos.
The house that the family is staying at borders a lake with a dock. I was surprised at the peacefulness that exists. It was so quiet, you could hear the tress growing. The lake is picturesque. I will be flying my drone around when I am back later in the week. The only down fall, the water is overgrown with lilypads and thick vegetation, rendering it impossible for such recreations as swimming, water polo, scuba diving, skinny dipping, jumping off the dock, or floating in a tube. While it was a warm day, I do not think I would have much interest in swimming regardless, so having a family sess of marco polo in the lake will not go missed.
I anticipate to be testing a new drone during the week, so hopefully I will have that with me up there. The new drone set up will allow a bit more creative flexibility, which will yield some more dynamic images.
I am very pleased with the above photo, however, if there was a human being posing within it, I would be over-the-moon excited. I will settle knowing it is a photograph I am happy with. Perhaps when I back up there I will remember and make a portrait with someone in the space. Keep an eye out for a future post with some more photos.
Aerial Video: Drone does snow
An aerial video shot with a Dji Phantom 2 and a Gopro Hero 3+
About a month ago I went and picked up a second battery for my DJI Phantom 2. Since October most of my shoots were short enough that I was able to capture what I needed with the life span of a single battery. I made the trek through Boston on the day we were getting pounded with a snow storm. I needed to get the battery as I was contacted and asked if I could capture aerial video for the marketing department of a Massachusetts based ski resort. We were to get a 24-48 hr snow storm and I was requested to be up on the mountain the day it stopped snowing. With some mismanagement on the part of the "would be client," I never shot anything for them. One word, "burned." Enough about that matter...
Aerial Still from the short.
We had an incredibly beautiful day following the snow storm. I was eager to get to a location that I knew would be just incredible with the right sunlight. I put my ski pants on one foot at a time, suited up in multiple layers, from a shell to an under jacket, to stay warm. I grabbed my Phantom 2, both batteries, my Gopro and drove to a location that I had been thinking about since the first snow flakes of the 2015 winter season fell. I chose two spots to focus on. Following about 14 minutes of filming I began a trek to the second spot within the location. I found a nice spot, cleared a take off spot, replaced the battery and powered up.
I noticed something a little "off." After setting the gps, connecting to the satellites and getting the green light to go I set the throttles into position to take flight. Nothing happened. I let go of the sticks and tried again. Nothing. I took my hat off, exposing my head to the cold, and scratched my scalp saying WTF? I was in the right spot at the right time. Literally. I could not have planned a better trip. I could not have asked for better conditions. I could not have desired anything more perfect for what I wanted to capture. The only problem, the only unforeseeable component that I could not calculate, technical difficulty. Welp, cant fly. Can't get it in the sky. There was not little blue pill to get this thing up. I was let down, very let down. I began the walk through the 2 feet of snow, head down, quadcopter in one hand and half a project in the other.
Over the next couple of weeks I spoke with tech support on the DJI side of things and the store that I bought the battery from. No one had any clue. No one had any idea why this was happening. With my schedule I was unable to get myself to the store until a week ago. The guy behind the counter tried 3 batteries. Nothing. Still the same thing. Would turn on but not fly. Replacing the battery didnt seem like it was going to be an option. The old battery worked just fine. Odd issue to have, ehh? The man behind the counter was eager to do the latest firmware update. After a few minutes the update was installed and we were ready to try again. I was able to get off the ground. It seems that the little blue pill came in the form of a firmware update. There was no trouble with lift off. Success!
Please take note:
In order to operate my Dji Phantom 2 with a brand new battery I needed to do the firmware update. The battery came ready to fly with the update or for the latest V2 Dji Phantom 2. The guy at the store had never seen this issue before. It was a guess that the firmware update would correct the issue, and it did.
Even though I was unable to complete the intended project I was still able to capture some stellar footage and have some stock video for a future project I am working on. I have compiled a short of the footage, which you can watch below.
Winter in New England: Photography
Winter is usually a time when I can sit down and plan the year out, get taxes done, work on some lingering projects, and spend some time outside. I have a tendency to get in the car when the snow comes and drive off into the foggy wall of falling snow. As much as I love the summer, the sun, the beach, winter brings with it a different light, different colors, and a unique set of contrasts that can only be found in snowy conditions. A few weeks ago we had the first snow fall of the winter season. Not the first snow fall of the year, (2014), but for the 2014-2015 winter season. I happened to be in a rural area heading out to visit a friend when I happened to see some elements in the landscape that I couldn't pass up. I just had to stop and make a few photos. Below is one such photo.
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