London, 1997

I'm not a big royal watcher. Won't be getting up to catch the wedding in London tomorrow. Robin encouraged me to share that last royal event I witnessed, the funeral for Princess Diana. Even got the cover of People Magazine with the profiles of the princes. Hope this isn't a downer.

Photo Safari 4.16.11

The class members for Saturday's Digital Photo Safari, held at the nearby Cedar Covered Bridge, were (l to r) Marnae, Patti, Rich, Pam and Nicole. Nicole came all the way from South Sioux City, Nebraska!
It was a blustery day, with very little sunshine, but the results were above average in every way.

Pam continued to grow in her understanding of light from the Digital Studio Safari class she took here two weeks ago. A fine sweet-spot of light for me to stand in just inside the bridge opening.

Pam also did some trouble-shooting, figuring out how to get the greenery around the bridge to jump out and even tried using her on-camera flash. The proper exposure here in ambient light was a winner. Pam will be getting paid to make pictures sooner than she thinks.

Patti has a very non-traditional eye. She found dozens of interesting designs in her overall take that we discussed during a review in class back at Madhaus Gallery. She made a wonderful study of this dry plant against the planks of the bridge.

And in the nearby standing waters in the area around the bridge she found this subtle distinction of color of the red leaf in the amber muddy puddle. Patti has an extremely individual eye, which is a rare thing to find. I enjoy looking at her photos.

Rich made a nice study of the "verticality" of the surrounding vegetation almost swallowing up the bridge from this angle. It is a startling photo and well done.

I also like how Rich likes to change angles, here going low in the nearby parking lot to make the bridge almost look like it is rising from earth to greet us. Rich has a great energy and was a positive participant who added valuable insights to discussions in the class.

Marnae is probably the least experienced photographer in the group, but her take was very solid. What she might have lacked in time with the camera in her hands did not impair her ability to make striking photos.

Marnae's natural tendency to composition that leads the eye in the top photo and then holds it dramatically in the one above, is outstanding. She could also apply that talent to sculpture, painting, print making or several other visual arts.

And then we come to Nicole. She is confident and put herself on the spot by choosing to shoot with a telephoto zoom lens on her camera for the entire class. Though risky the payoff was wonderful. The way the bridge goes into almost pure abstraction behind the branch is HUGE! A very fine image that stands on its own.

I also like the down home nature to this photo of Gordon and I making our way out of the south side of the bridge. The road just leads the eye back and forth. Well done.

If you are interested in our continuing education in digital photography or many other disciplines, go to the link below to see if you find a class that interests you:

http://www.madhausgallery.com/madhausgallery/Adult_Education.html

Hello Ansel

Yesterday I was driving back home from a trip to northwest Iowa, when I captured a moonrise over a line of trees in west central Iowa. It was nice in color... better in black & white. What do you think? I do my black & white in Adobe PhotoShop under calculations. I set the green and red channels at 80%. Not bad. Click on the image to see it bigger.

ANSWER to the question... What was that photo?

In the preceding entry I asked if anyone knew what they were looking at... Gupta Mahajenish, of Allahbad, India answered incorrectly that it was a puddle of water in the rain.
The correct answer is... drum roll... the photo is of the heavily hail damaged hood of a very blue pickup truck in Eldora, Iowa, later one evening in August of 2009.

What is this?

Let's have a few guesses? Anybody know what they're looking at here? It has been a very successful part of my fine art portfolio for two years.

The answer will be posted this evening.

PowerShots Ep 1

It's the fifth anniversary of the pilot episode of Power Shots, a television program I hosted on Mediacom in Des Moines. Here is the final segment of the episode, when a cat didn't want to be in the show.

The Studio Safari Bunch

Click on image to see it larger...

On Saturday, six students spent six hours in our Digital Studio Safari Class. It was truly one of the best groups we've ever hosted. I did this little class composite in their honor. Left column, top to bottom: cousins Nina and Terra Baccam, of Des Moines and Greg Punelli, also of Des Moines. Right column: Chrystal Bower, of Urbandale, Pam Bair of Ankeny and Tracy Elings, of Des Moines. They were energetic, smart and very engaged.

They spent the afternoon learning primarily about light, outdoor, indoor and in the studio. They learned to recognize what types of light, indirect, back and so on, appealed to them. This photo is by Pam, a beautiful example of stepping the model into indirect light and using the positive and negative fields of the background to provide balance. A real pro move.

The photo below is by Chrystal. A very nice example of seeing window light and using dynamic composition. She really captures a moment and makes a run-down middle aged guy look like he's interesting. Well done.

Nina uses Terra as her model also. Here she finds that perfect light that makes her cousin look like a fashion model — which is not a stretch. Look how sharp and well composed, how natural Nina is with a camera in her hand.

Terra turned the camera on Nina and made use of an aluminum foil reflector to be able to photograph her in a deep dark area of a nearby alley. She sparkles in an urban setting. A quality portrait.

Tracy made possibly the moodiest portrait of the class. In the ever-changing shadows of a pine tree near the Madison County Courthouse, she found a moment. It makes the instructor look like he's either contemplating a bank heist or world domination. By looking at her take I could see she has the "knack" for photography. With some luck and hard work she will succeed. You can see it in her eyes.

And finally, the funniest picture of the day goes to Greg. He really caught a great moment of me and Gordon on the walk just off the square. Photography is about rescuing moments from eternity. Greg seems to be at ease with the camera in his hands. He is truly a photographer and I look forward to seeing more of his work. Maybe he'll e-mail the blog and share with us in the future.

Greet The Dawn 2Day

I missed a chance to speak to a class of journalism students at the University of Iowa last week. It was out of my control as I was off my feet for a day and a half. I'm sorry to have missed the opportunity because I tend to get on my soapbox with the young and impressionable. The photographers always get this message, "Greet the dawn."

Most of them already know that dawn is when you get your first opportunity for some quality light to shoot a landscape or dewy forest scene — or even downtown Winterset, Iowa. (Click on photo to see it bigger)

But pretty pictures are almost a dime a dozen on ETSY. The real point of greeting the dawn is that by doing so you have made a commitment to yourself and to your particular passion in life. I have several things that possess my soul. I enjoy writing, but need more practice, which is one reason for the blog.

I enjoy photography on many levels, which keeps me sane. News photography is my passion, but I have the affliction of an amateur when out looking for abstractions in nature. I love reading which is easier to accomplish when the phone isn't ringing or people are stopping in the gallery, or the dog wants to run. Early morning is the gold in your life, if you'll just earn it (get to bed at a reasonable time) and accept it (get out of bed.)

It is a simple message, but one I have to repeat to myself from time to time. Greet the dawn. It sends the very first message of the day to yourself. Its you telling you to take up the good fight, to be armed, arroused and pointed in the right direction for the next 12 to 16 hours.

Here's a little of my greet the dawn approach:
There is no situation in life where — as a photographer — I am overmatched. This is not conceit or arrogance. News photography is a humbling experience. My confidence is the result of 30-some years of challenging myself at every turn. I don't always succeed and still fail sometimes, but my failures would seem like successes to the untrained eye.

Failures breed successes. Trying greatly, taking big chances, means you are up for the task. It means you understand the low odds of high risk photography. (Anyone who shoots sports understands this concept. High risk, low probability of success, high reward) Here's an example:

 

Not the greatest photo, but made in a Super Bowl, and something you don't see every game. By staying behind the line of scrimmage I took a risk that paid off on this occasion. So here's my point, which I wasn't able to make on the young folk studying at the Journalism School at the University of Iowa. Greet the dawn is the first step. You really only need a handful of things to be successful, but the habit of greeting the dawn is key. 

I define my success as being able to following my passion — in this case photojournalism — and making a very good living at it, sitting in my gallery/studio in Winterset, a lovely golden retriever snoring at my feet as I type away.

The two feet of success are inspiration and motivation. These are what are going to carry you forward. 

Inspiration: It is what people seem to think happens when they hear Beethoven at the right time in their life or see the photographs of old Life Magazine photographer W. Eugene Smith. Well, that's partially right. Inspiration basically comes from outside you. Whatever moves you to do something that is aesthetically justified — creating art that evokes an emotional response in another — that is the ignition point to success.

Motivation: It is the car, driving by the engine of inspiration. It can be as simple as the need to sustain your lifestyle by making money. That's not terribly sexy or inspirational to others, but it can be enough on a cold winter morning to get your achy body out of a warm bed and into the shower to greet another dawn.

I am motivated by many things including bearing witness to my life & times, rescuing important moments of humanity from eternity and sustaining my lifestyle by paying bills and saving money.  It's important to know what drives you, because when inspiration is in short supply, motivation will take over the forward motion. Trust me, no one is greatly inspired every day. Your inspirations will come and go. Motivation will make that one dose last until the next one comes along. Make a laundry list of things that are important to you and remind yourself of why you are going down the path before you.

Beyond inspiration & motivation are the hands, what articulates your inspiration and motivation — skills & habits.

Skills: This is easy, really. You have certain skills, in a certain package, that are different than anyone else. Develop what you are good at, find the right instruction, read and explore. Build up your skills to a level that allow you to have an independent life as you approach independence as an adult. Good at photography — find a way to be the best. Good at math — get a PhD.  Good at cooking — study to become a chef d'oeuvre.  Never stop developing your particular skills.

Habits: Here's the hard part. Of all four, this is where mastery of a craft, art or simply life, comes in to play. You can be an inspired, motivated and skilled news photographer, but if you have not worked very hard, over and over, to be almost automatic in your approach, you will be frustrated over and over again. Who hasn't seen the skilled professional athlete who, when the clock was running down, just couldn't hit the big shot or make a meaningful play when the game was on the line?

It's the same here. Like a good solider who can tear down his weapon and put it back together blindfolded, you have to conduct yourself, in all things related to the passions in your life, with a discipline and urgency that produces good habits. That doesn't mean you won't fail from time to time. Only the mediocre are always at their best. You don't learn unless you fail and you won't fail unless you try things you are uncomfortable with. But simply work hard — outwork everyone in your field — which is something you can do.

Start out by doing something very simple, like greeting the dawn.

Digital Studio Safari Today

It's 5:30 a.m. and I'm up and ready to greet the dawn.
That's sort of my catch phrase that Jim Deitchler dug up a couple of blog posts ago. The importance of being up early is that 1) There are fewer distractions.  2) You get the best light of the day as the earth wakes up for another go at it.  3) Three Stooges fans can usually catch re-runs on cable that early in the morning.

The photo below is of Elle, a student in the last Digital Photo Safari Class held here at Madhaus Gallery (www.madhausgallery) last January in Winterset. It is a very simple photo, which is usually the best. Since she has a winning smile and that blonde hair, high key was the best route to go with light. Find a little backlight, make sure the background is simple and pretty much eliminated by f 2.8 and a 200mm zoom on the telephoto lens. All that was left was to have someone hold a reflector up to fill the shadows and there you have it, a nice winter portrait.

Below you see a friend holding up a reflector while I was taping some video for a sequence of my old cable televsion show. I was cancelled for Three Stooges re-runs. Have a great Saturday.