Until We Meet Again

It seems ironic, but I have trouble taking picture of the people that I cherish the most. Friends, family, classmates, it doesn't matter. I feel comfortable going up to a complete stranger, asking them a hundred questions and then shadowing them with a camera all day long. But it is so.... SO hard to take pictures of the people I know and love. When my Memaw passed two years ago, I hated myself for never taking a good portrait of her. Even in the past two years I still haven't felt comfortable taking pictures at family events.
But I got a call a week ago from today, regarding my Papa's delicate heart. I brought my camera... just like I always do, but was I actually going to shoot?
It was the hardest thing I have ever shot. It was so hard, but so therapeutic at the same time. I put aside the reality that these were my family. The light was beautiful. The people were beautiful. The moments were there. The love was so strong in that room you hesitated to step out of it.
Some of my family didn't see the beauty the way that I saw it. I was eventually asked to stop taking pictures. I didn't mind it at all. I needed to stop using the camera as a way to separate myself from what was going on. I needed to deal with what I was feeling. It was the hardest thing I ever shot. His funeral was the hardest thing I didn't shot. It was so powerful and beautiful. The images of that day I get to keep for myself.

Rodeo

It was one of those events that I went to just for fun. There wasn't a teacher or an editor who I had to please. I didn't have my face pressed against the back of my camera the whole time. I just walked and enjoyed the environment as a whole. It was one of those times where I could let my other four senses have some fun. The unforgettable taste of soda and buttered popcorn. The smell of hay, leather and horses. She sound of shoed hoofs rhythmically beating against the dirt and asphalt. The bitter chill of February sneaking past my gloves, and breezing my cheeks. The smile you get when your eyes find something you may not have found if you were had been shooting inside the whole time. The patience, the steady hold of the camera... waiting... waiting... waiting for that moment when all the pieces are in the right place.

Antonyms

In my APJ class we have these really awesome assignments called "Thought Projects." You are given a theme and then you develop a journalistic story off of that theme. For this thought project in particular, we drew antonyms out of a hat, and I got "Good/Bad." I made sure that I didn't direct my ideas towards good people and bad people. I wanted it to be something more. (Plus, can't just walk up to someone, say "Hey, I am a college journalist, and I am doing a project on good and bad people. Could I use you as one of my "bad people"?)
So I started thinking about the economy and what is good and bad about America's economy. One of the good things that I personally enjoy are parks and playgrounds. I don't mind it one bit when our taxes go toward something that brings people and the community closer together.
The bad? Well in America (it seems to me, is more prominent than other countries) there is this constant need for money. Whether it is our culture or the combination of inflation and minimum wage, what we have is never enough. In many cases, women can get college degrees and still not earn a salary comparable to what they could make in a few months at a gentleman's club. This lady in particular had a 3.8GPA, and two scholarships offered to her after high school. She gave them up because she suddenly had to start supporting both her and her mother.

What You Make It

There is one phrase that I never like to hear, "boring assignment." I heard it just the other day when I ran into a photographer from a newspaper at the same assignment. I think that an experience is what you make of it. If you go into a situation assuming that it is boring, you just might produce boring work. If you go into the same situation curious, interested in the people and what is going on, you may have a better chance to shoot something different. I don't think you should go through life assuming that everything is boring, or great things may just pass you by.
Here is something that I shot for what my editor told me was a "boring assignment." I surprisingly had fun, I learned a whole lot and I think I got a decent pictures from. And I have to give credit - light was on my side.

The Horse Whisperer

Amazing people can be found anywhere... even in Victoria's Secret dressing rooms.
JeanneMarie is one of those people whose presence can change your life. She connects with people and animals with out saying a word or doing anything. Its amazing thing to witness.

The Epiphany

We are called storytellers. We are granted this amazing access into people's lives. We live their life for hours, days, weeks and months at a time. It is our job to tell their story.
Something about "storyteller" doesn't stick right with me. Dictionary.com defines story as:
1. a narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale.
2. a fictitious tale, shorter and less elaborate than a novel.
Etc.

With writers tweaking details in stories, with photographers toning their pictures to suit their imagination rather than the truth, the word "story" scares me a little. What is fact and what is fiction?
I have thought about this for a while. I don't want to be a storyteller. Everyone has a story to their life. EVERYONE. Some show it more than others. Some peoples' stories climaxed in their past, some right now, some have yet to see that time. Everyone has something they have experienced, they have a lesson to teach, and lessons they still have yet to learn. I don't want to think of myself as a storyteller. I want to take other people's lives, just as they are and show it to those who may not have the same understanding or concept of what it is like to lead a different life. Storytelling isn't for me. I want to be a translator.

Perseverance

This is one of my favorite portraits. I had tried this same shot once before during the ACP workshop in eastern Kentucky. It wasn't sharp the first time, so I drove four hours back to give it another go. We set up the lights, and had everything ready, and before I could snap a picture, I tripped over the cord to the guitar light and shattered it.
I was determined to get this photo one way or another. Derek Price, who is a guitarist and singer in the band Stellar Kin, just so happened to have a guitar lamp, and thus I finally got the portrait I wanted.



This is the original. Scott Nantz was in the band Farewell to Yourself at the time. Thanks Scott for having a good sense of humor. RIP guitar lamp.

New Years Resolutions

I created this blog account this summer and neglected it once school started. Among other things, tending to this photo blog is my New Year's resolution. My hope is to catch you up on the old and update you with the new. Please Please critique!! I look forward to hearing what you have to say and seeing what you have been working on!