Inspiration – Page 10

Category: Inspiration

Snow In The South

I’ve only been living in the south for six years, and I’ve witnessed two snowstorms within the last year. Prior to that, it was ten years ago that snow stuck to the ground in Charleston. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I’m glad I kept one of my snow shovels from New York.

The snow froze overnight into an icy, dry, & powdery mixture which created a great texture to photograph. As I was waiting for my car to defrost, I grabbed my camera and shot these pictures with an emphasis on the texture and contrast.

Turn Up The Volume

As we approach the coming Christmas holiday, we rapidly run right into the new year almost as an afterthought. It usually feels like the wrap-up party of the holiday season. I’m taking this time between now and the day the ball drops as a time to focus on reinventing myself. I have nothing scheduled as of yet for 2011, but I plan on doing just that as soon as possible. If I’m going to keep myself sane I need to obey the voices that are not only in my head, but also coming from the people who really know and are close to me.

So, the biggest thing early on will be to increase my volume of artistic photographic work. I will begin with defined personal projects. I will also invite and include anyone who wants to join or help me on these as they will be huge learning experiences. I want to network myself to find good contacts who are photographers, make-up artists, models, designers, agents – anybody in the business that is working for the love of the art.

In order to facilitate that, I will need to hire people for my other business to lighten my own personal load as well as grow it and support its growing customer base. It’s no longer a passing thought that I will get to at some point – it is a need that must be fulfilled in 2011. I don’t need to talk about the details of that here because it isn’t within the scope of this blog, but it’s something that will help my artistic work in the long run, so it must be addressed.

Finally, I am determined to open my own creative doors to photographic assignments by the year’s end. What I mean is I want to get hired to do something really cool. I want my personal projects to be a foundation for other work – work that an art director will sit down and say, “We want to achieve this and you’re the person who can deliver it”. Once that starts to happen, I can use all of the skills I’ve acquired through my diverse lifetime of creativity and technical skill and do work that is meaningful to me (and hopefully to others as well).

That’s it in a nutshell. Now I’ve got a business plan to revise and another one to create. 2011 is going to be the best year ever!

Lucky Man

The more I read photography and gadget blogs to keep up with the latest technology, the more I dream about the ultimate rig of camera bodies and lenses, or the most eclectic lighting system, or how I would load up a computer to do the things I do at breakneck speeds. I admire how far we advance technologically with each passing year and pine over the newest of the shiniest electronics. Who hasn’t wondered what a 65″ TV that’s less than an inch thick would look like over their fireplace?

I often will price out the ultimate photography setup – from lighting modifiers down to the fastest glass money can buy. The number isn’t pretty either, so I usually end up pricing out the budget versions of the same equipment just to see what it would cost. I know I will eventually move to a full frame camera and get the Nikon 70-200 F/2.8 VR II as well as the 24-70mm f/2.8. In fact Adorama has a great kit of a D700 with those two lenses, but I just can’t justify that price (yet).

For now, I’m more than happy to use the tools that I’ve got. In fact, I’ve played with a 70-200 f/2.8 and compared the shots with my much more affordable 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G and the results are identical when shooting with adequate light. My Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 is the DX equivalent to the 24-70mm, and it performs perfectly well. Ever since I got that lens it’s been the one that stays on my camera the most – it’s a versatile workhorse. Sure I’d like a 50mm f/1.4 AFS lens, but my classic Nikon 50mm f/1.8 that my wife bought me for Christmas a couple of years ago works like a champ. I could go on an on – don’t even get me started about lighting gear!

The point is that I really want this stuff but I don’t really need it. I’ve never found myself thinking that I couldn’t create something because my equipment wasn’t the top of the line stuff. Prestige is a very slick thing. It makes you desire the stuff you think you need, but you really only desire it because of it’s forbidding price or scarcity. Sure that full frame camera that shoots clean files at ISO 6400 coupled with that fast zoom lens that lets in a whole stop of light more will let you get shots you just can’t get with the cheap stuff, but the masters of years before got the job done with much less gear and relied on their skills to make things happen – not their wallets.

This all comes down to a simple fact about life. If you’re in a position where the things you dream about are not critical to your survival, then you are in a really good place. My mind goes back to our most recent event at the children’s hospital. I asked a mother if she would like to get her picture taken with her child and she said, “I don’t know if I can – it’s been a really rough week”. Well, little did I know at the time that her precious child had been diagnosed with the big C just four days earlier. This was all fresh to her and here she was, trying to cope and be strong for a child who was still all smiles and as sweet as can be, wishing that she could have a healthy child again. That’s a dream worth pining over. It’s moments like that that make me realize that I’m a lucky man ’cause I just don’t need what I want.

Jackson, Giving, & Jordan’s Socks

I was having a conversation about dogs with a client of mine and I started to show her some pictures of my furry friends when I stumbled on this shot of my dog Jackson. Poor Jackson has been robbed of his daily walks because I’ve been trying to rest my back for the past week (he has a habit of suddenly jerking me in the wrong direction every time a truck or squirrel goes by). This picture made me sad because I know how much Jackson loves to be outside, especially when we go for a walk through my neighborhood. Don’t worry buddy, we’ll be out walking before you know it.

I was listening to my favorite radio show while driving between jobs and a guy called in and told the host that he was having a hard time coping with the loss of his daughter who died during a bone marrow transplant shortly after she had beaten cancer. He said the only thing he could remember about his child was how she had to suffer and then die – he couldn’t remember anything about her before she was sick. I can’t even imagine that kind of pain. It makes my back pain seem quite trivial. Tomorrow, I will be heading back over to the children’s hospital again to take portraits of the kids and their families that are stuck there during this holiday season. The older I get, the less I care about getting and the more I care about giving. Whatever I can do to make these kids and their families lives a little brighter is a million times better than getting the latest gadget or the shiniest hunk of a meaningless product. That random doohickey you get will be outdated and you will probably forget when, where, or why you got it. The look on the mother’s face when I showed her the shots of her little boy playing up to the camera and looking like he could be anywhere but in a hospital, like he was just being a regular healthy kid waiting for Santa to arrive, will be with me forever.

It amazes me when I think of what one of my daughter’s softball teammates, Jordan, has done this holiday season. She started her own charity called “Warm Feet Happy Hearts” and collected 3,640 pairs of socks and distributed them this past weekend at the Convoy of Hope to kids in need. When I was 11 years old, all I cared about was what time GI Joe was on in the morning! There is nothing you can give that kid that will match what she has done for others (but you can donate a package of socks which she is still collecting). Her heart grew with each pair of socks she handed out on Saturday, and she’s shown the kind of leadership and gumption that presidents are made of. It’s truly inspiring how an idea can grow into a movement, even in the hands of a young child. Thank you Jordan for your inspiration! Check out the photos of the event on their Facebook page.

Cellphone Inspiration

Saturday night my wife and I were driving home from a Christmas party and as we crossed over the Ravenell Bridge the fog was engulfing the tops of the suspension towers and they looked downright mystical. I was armed only with my iPhone for the evening, but that’s never stopped me before. The idea of iPhonography (or any cell phone with a camera and the ability to edit photos directly on it) is to exploit the scene using the strengths and weaknesses of the cameraphone to your advantage. If I had my NIkon with a tripod and remote shutter release I would have taken a more traditional long exposure of this scene. Because I was sitting in the passenger seat of a minivan and only had my iPhone, I attacked it with a much different style.

I knew the resolution and low light capabilities were going to be less than ideal, so this is an instance where I need to embrace the onslaught of digital noise. I wanted the suspension wires to come at me like laser beams while still fitting the first tower into the frame. I tilted the camera sideways and shot through the windshield. The light from the lamp posts reflected unpredictably in the dirt on the windshield, but I think it adds a bit of excitement and unpredictable movement to the shot. The fog is better defined towards the back tower, and the green tint from the lights are contrasted sharply by the brake lights of the car in front of us. All of these elements came together in a matter of seconds in my head and then in my hand.

After I “tapped” the shot, I used an app called Camera+ to brighten and saturate it a bit, and then applied the cool frayed border that I feel accentuates the grittiness of the shot. I did this before we made it to the entrance of i26. Within minutes, I was uploading it to Flickr. This is the kind of creativity that just wasn’t possible a few short years ago. I’m not saying that it is necessarily better than what could be done if you take your time and use “the right” equipment to capture this scene, but it is something different and new. It’s a sign of the times – many of us have this ability nowadays and it can be used as a way to quickly express ourselves with little room to second guess our intentions. For me, iPhonography is raw, bold, and beautiful.

What I Want For Christmas…

This morning I had a very meaningful conversation with my wife. The last time I had a conversation with her like this was over five years ago. Shortly after that conversation, I started Charleston Tech Support. This time, Amy is convincing me to go pro already with my photography and to stop pussy-footing around with my many excuses. This morning I told her that I still needed more experience. She of course said the magic words, “You will always be striving to be better, that will never stop”. She’s right.

I told her that I still feel like I’m developing my own style. I want to have my own voice. I want people to look at a photo I made and say, “That looks like a Nienstedt shot”. I want to find that unique signature that makes me me. The reality is that it’s already there. We all have our own unique voice buried in our soul. The trick is to trim down the distractions that are obscuring it. This involves peeling back the layers of your subconscious mind and listening to what your voice is saying.

Day 319 - Modest Mouse at the Music Farm

So I’ve been listening to my inner voice real hard and it’s been telling me a couple of things. The first is that I love shooting people now more than ever. I recently wrote an article about it, because it intimidated me at first. Now, I find it absolutely inspiring. Making a photo is one thing, but making a human connection is, to me, a much bigger thing. The other thing my voice is telling me is that I love music. Actually, it shouts that one pretty loudly.

Less Than Jake At The Music Farm 6.11.2010

So, after doing the math, it is obvious that my voice wants me to shoot creative people. I love to write about creativity. I love to create. I love the process. I love the feeling of that moment of zen when you get into the zone of creation. I also like to connect with creatives. With that said, my vision for my work is based on capturing creativity.

My signature is still a bit harder to define – that comes with the maturing of my technique. I realize that if I pursue my vision, the signature will define itself as long as I don’t consciously take on the styles of the artists that I admire. That’s a tough thing to avoid because we take in so much unconsciously that it’s hard not to mimic something that your mind has absorbed from all of your creative inputs.

I can no longer put off my aspirations because I don’t feel like I’ve established myself enough yet. That’s just silly. Going back to what Amy said about never being satisfied, I don’t know if I’ll ever be comfortable with whatever style I’m embracing at the moment – it will always morph into something else. The second record I put out with my band back in the day sounded nothing like the first record. In music, people are less forgiving of that kind of change, which is why so many bands suffer from the “sophomore slump” and probably why it was somewhat easy for me to walk away from it all. I wasn’t feeling what people expected from my band anymore. On the other hand, with photography and fine art, I think people expect you to grow artistically.

The photos I’m sharing with you are some of my favorite shots I’ve made at some of the shows that I’ve attended in recent years. Up at the top is Bryan from the Bouncing Souls, followed by Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse, Buddy from the punk-ska band Less Than Jake, an overhead shot of the Gaslight Anthem with a focus on their set list, a close-up of Robert Randolph, and below is a shot of the band Weston. These are a good representation of where I’ve been within regards to shooting music, but I want to expand on it more. I think these all capture a specific moment during their performances, and I want to further define those. I need to put myself into position to capture that moment when an artist and/or their fans enter that zen state and is completely one with creativity.

So, what do I want for Christmas this year? I want to put it out there that I want to creatively capture creativity. I want everyone who’s reading this to pass it on to someone who might be able to facilitate that need. If you’re a musician, or a painter, a dancer, a chef, an actor, a writer, a comedian, or if you know somebody who creates anything, then I want to capture it. I want to be hired to document the moment that something is made and the people involved in making it. If you know art directors, agents, designers, or anybody who is looking for photographic services please point them to this blog. I’m very serious about this and will not sit around just waiting for someone to hand me an assignment, but I believe in the power of putting yourself and your goals out there. Not in a “The Secret” type of mystical way, but in a spread the word enough so that the right person will hear it type of way.

Thanks for reading this – I’ve been trying really hard to define where I am on this journey for a long time. I have written about going pro recently, and the more I explore it here on this blog and with my camera, the clearer the map to my next destination becomes.

Practicing For Help-Portrait

Last night I setup my white seamless background and umbrellas and invited some friends over to be models so that I could test all of my equipment and setup for the Help-Portrait sessions I’m leading. Since one of the key points of Help-Portrait is to give the photos you take of a person in need back to them and not publish or use them for your own personal gain, I thought it would be nice to share the type of photo’s I’ll be taking by using my friends’ shots as an example.

The photo above our family’s friend Krista’s children. Below is our neighbor & friend Melinda & her daughter McKenzie.

Here are a few other shot’s of their families that stuck out for me. We had a lot of fun making these, and if I hope the kids at the hospital can get a few minutes to escape their surroundings and feel a bit of normalcy.

Lola, our Pomeranian princess, was interloping on quite a few shots!

McKenzie is adorable!

Lola knows who the star of our home is, doesn’t she?

The all-American family shot. Anthony looks quite proud, as he should!

Yoga with a giggling prop!

I’d like to thank our friends for helping us out as we prepare for today’s event. They were awesome and their families are beautiful!

Raw Talent

I got to witness some really talented kids today. My children are lucky to attend an arts-infused school, and my daughter is part of the school’s chorus team. Today, they performed two showcases in the area and included dance and painting as well as singing in their performances.

The three painters that were participating started with a blank canvas and were given the duration of the performance (which was only about 20 minutes) to create something. I was particularly interested in them because I love to see a creative challenge like this. I’ve posted previously about the occasional benefits of boundaries, and I think it really separates the people who love their craft from the excuse-makers who aren’t quite there yet. These kids did not disappoint.

The painters were positioned right up front with the vocal performers, and the onlookers who were curious enough to walk around to take a peak were treated to an evolving trio of paintings. I can guarantee that if they were not forced to finish, they would have kept going and would have ended up with totally different paintings than what they created this afternoon.

It was a great display of raw talent. These kids are all about 10 years old, and are at varying levels with their arts, but they are mostly uncorrupted. There’s no agenda, just the urge to make something and say, “look at what I can do”.

I have to give the faculty members of the school that came out to participate on a Saturday great praise. They are an example of the right kind of educators that our children need to grow up in an enlightened and progressing world. A place without creativity would be a frightening one because it screams to be set free from the minute you begin to connect with the life around you.

I put up a set of photos from the events on my Flickr.

Time To Give Back

**UPDATE – 12/1/2010** – I have posted the notes from our first planning meeting here. We have our volunteers set for the December 6th event, but still need people for the 16th and back-up volunteers for both dates. We also could use a portable photo printer if you have one to loan us.

**UPDATE – 11/29/2010** – Our first planning meeting will take place on Wednesday, December 1st at EVO Pizza in North Charleston. The details can be found here.

**UPDATE -11/22/2010** – We have set two dates: December 6th & 26th 2010 – please click here for the details.

Original Post – 11/16/2010:

Last year, I saw a video about the annual Help-Portrait event in Charleston. I thought it was brilliant and put a reminder in my calendar so I could remember to get involved with it this year. Help-Portrait is the brainchild of celebrity photographer Jeremy Cowart. The idea is for local photographers to organize a way to use their skill to give back to their community by volunteering time and prints for those in need.

My wife and I have been talking back in forth for a long time about how we could help kids with cancer. She regularly follows the blogs on CaringBridge.org, and get very emotionally attached to the families and their stories. Recently, one of our daughter’s classmates, Jesse, got diagnosed with Leukemia after he couldn’t walk into the state fair with his grandparents. Just the thought of a 10 year old boy not being able to make it into the fair is heartbreaking enough, and to suffer through the horror of finding out that your child has been diagnosed with cancer is something I could never even fully imagine – but it happens to the most unlikely and innocent children.

So, when I signed up for Help-Portrait in anticipation of volunteering for an event that was being run by another local photographer, I was kind of bummed that nobody had anything planned yet for this year. Then it clicked in my head. I could do it. Why not? But what to do – who could I serve for this? The answer hit me like a ton of bricks – We could do it at the MUSC Children’s Hospital and we could take holiday portraits of the families who are in similar situations as Jesse’s!

Today, my wife Amy finally got to talk to the Child Life Manager at MUSC and explained our plan. Unfortunately, the day that Help-Portrait is planned for (December 4th) is not a possibility with their schedule. However, she did say that she was really excited about the idea and that there are plenty of other days that we can do it on! So I talked it over with my wife, and we both easily agreed that the date is really unimportant – we don’t have to do it on a specific day to be part of this. The idea is to give back, not to give back on only one specific day! I’ve created a group for this MUSC Kids project on Help-Portrait.com for anybody who wants to participate with me. It’s the same idea as Help-Portrait, just on our own schedule. Anybody can help – photographers, make-up artists, hair stylists, people who can hold a light stand – anybody who wants to be a part of this is welcome! I also signed up with the existing Charleston, SC Help-Portrait Group because I plan on helping out with whatever event pops up for the 4th of December.

This is what we are going to be focusing our efforts on in the coming weeks, so please, sign up at the Help-Portrait community site and get involved! Lets make this happen together, it will be fun and you will make someone’s day a bit brighter.

The End of No Shave November

After a month of growth, today marks the last day of November as well as the end of my beard (for now). It’s interesting to see how even a simple chore such as taking my own photo every day starts to make my mind wander into new territory. I started out just using the same lighting and spot and then started experimenting with the way I was lighting myself – changing the umbrella configurations, playing with gels, and using the walls as a giant bounce flash. I actually learned a bunch doing this because I let myself play around with it. If you find yourself in a personal project such as this one, by all means you should exploit it! I only wish I started stepping out of my element sooner.

You can check out the whole set on Flickr here. Here is today’s final photo. I half-assed it.

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