I took a class–with Heidi–at the Maryland Woodworkers Club; the Fundamentals of Woodworking class. I grew up with a father who did a bit of construction/roofing here and there, and the obligatory shop classes and boy scout projects. But I was long overdue for a refresher course.
I’d been to the shop once before and it tends to be full of extremely enthusiastic people, who border on a little weird. You know… the kind of people I like. The instructor was friendly from the start. Don’t mistake him for cute though; his inner hard-ass made several appearances. But that’s all the better in a teacher.
They walk you through basic concepts and most of the equipment in the shop, via some minor class time and the construction of a desktop bookshelf. Having done all those obligatory shop classes and such as a kid, I was still surprised how well everything actually came out. I attribute it to real teaching by a skilled practitioner, and not someone just walking you through a syllabus.
I had fun. I got reacquainted with numerous tools and methods. I built a book case. And I worked well with Heidi. It was a very good weekend. And I’m going back for a furniture class in a couple weeks.
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
The family reunion was at the bass club in San Angelo again this year. Same old everything, but that’s kind of the point. Took Heidi. Family likes her better than they like me. But they’re quite disappointed to learn i’m not gay.
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
I just love this photo. That is all. I saw them being cute on the hill above me, while I was taking some photos of the house, and when I pointed the lens at them, they posed. Normally I hate poses. But this came out very nice. And I had to laugh when I looked at it later, and realized how similar their poses were. I have a picture somewhere of my mother and sister unconsciously doing the same thing.
This is Rockstar Shannon. This is not Friend Shannon. Friend Shannon is not as angsty and full of venom as my show photos of her often look. Friend Shannon sits in her old apartment, playing a highly customized version of “horse with no name” on an acoustic guitar; wearing long, stripey socks. But Rockstar Shannon is pretty awesome too.
And to all my friends who are jealous of the attention these few women received? It’s just because you don’t pay me as much to do your PR as they do.
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
While overall, I can be drawn to a photo for many reasons, there are some obvious trends in my favorite photos (taken by other photographers); as seen by looking at my favorites on Flickr.
Japanese
Many of the Japanese photographers in my Flickr list have similarities in style. It’s a soft-focus, high-contrast style; often in black and white. It conveys an intense and intimate atmosphere. Bokeh is big; or at the very least, a short depth of field. Some of my favorite Chinese photographers are similar, but often with a deep, sharp focus, instead of the shallow soft of the Japanese.
You pick up a camera. You walk out into public by yourself; or with a friend or two. And you take pictures of other people, other places, and their stuff. It’s very hard for most people, because not only are you outside of your own comfort zone, but you’re invading other people’s. You might be capturing beautiful pictures. You might be documenting the every day around you. You might be telling stories and sharing moments. But it’s all coming from the public around you with minimal staging and equipment.
(Ironically, I had a hard time finding sample of “street photography” on Flickr that I could use. These people whose livelihood as photographers relies on an open, public space, had all locked down their photos and disallowed uses like this entry. Don’t share with me? I won’t share my audience with you.)
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
I did another one of the Latex Body Paint photo shoots, last weekend. Wonderful model… good time. I was told the privacy standard this time was basically “the model doesn’t want to be recognizable”. So I’m posting one of the few photos without a face in it. Click below to see it. (Warning: It contains nudity that may disturb small animals, children, and my mother.) If you’re my friend and interested in seeing the rest, let me know… Continue reading →
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
So one of my dream locations to photograph would be the shipbreaking beaches in India or Pakistan. When oceanliners, tankers, and cargo ships get too old to operate any more, they beach them in these places, and workers chop them to bits.
This isn’t clean, or safe, or tidy. These are people with no safety gear, in one of the most polluted places on earth, doing dangerous work. It’s the tail end of the commercial world. It’s the stuff every cyberpunk story is built upon.
Speaking of which, I missed a dream shot on Friday, in a decidedly less hostile environment. On the way home from seeing a movie — fittingly Bill Cunningham New York — I saw it. It must have been about 11:30 at night, when we walked past the H&M store in downtown DC. The business core of DC tends to turn into a ghost town around 6pm. So by that time of night — on a Friday no less — it should have been empty. But in the store, right near the doors, was a lone worker. She was sitting on the floor next to a white platform, and a little zone of light in an otherwise dark salesfloor. She was pulling white fluffy … things… out of a box. She’d puff them up, and place them on the platform. It was surreal and monotonous at the same time. And the sparse color palette and dramatic range of light made it all the more interesting to me.
Of course, for like the first time in forever, I had left the house without a camera. Poo.
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
Hello, babies. Welcome to Earth. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you’ve got about a hundred years here. There’s only one rule that I know of, babies—God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.
— Kurt Vonnegut
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
Just a quick update on the Faces Project. It is still alive and well. It was originally scheduled to be done by now. I gave people a month to write their stories. We had about 9 participants.
But at the deadline, only 3 people had gotten me their stories. Life was hectic, so it took me a while to follow up with everyone else. But I have, and so far, almost everyone has written back that they still want to participate, and pretty much everyone is promising something within a week. So we’re moving… we’re moving…
Finally processed most of the photos from the shoot a couple weeks ago. You can click on the photo below to see them. WARNING: There is nudity, and it’s probably not safe for small children, nor my family.
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
I really like this shot of Lenore, behind the scenes at the photo shoot the other day. She was done shooting for the day, and standing in the back, occasionally art directing.
Please keep in mind that this post is more than 6 years old. Who the hell knows what I was thinking back then?! Damn kids... get off my lawn!
