PixelatedImage Blog

I usually do this on Fridays. That is to say I used to. ‘S been a while.

Gavin Gough posted a guest article over on Matt Brandon’s The Digital Trekker blog, click HERE to read it.

While we’re on the topic, I will be discussing the Illusion of FREE on Matt’s blog tomorrow - it’s a crucial starting point in your thinking if you want to shoot for NGOs for a living and not go bankrupt. Click HERE to head over there.

Rounding out the theme of guest blogging, my friend RC posted a great article on Scott Kelby’s blog this week - check it out HERE.

In other news - it looks like Canon is on target to ship the 5D Mk2 and accessories for end of the month. This is good news for those of us waiting, cause, oh, say, one of our other cameras died.

The POGO Giveaway contest has been pulling alot of traffic to this site, and the comments and emails just confirm for me that ZINK and Polaroid are onto something great. Deadline is tomorrow, the 7th of November, and I will accept comments/entries that are posted up to midnight, Vancouver time (GMT-8). Go to the post and leave a comment to enter (read the rules first) - HERE.

The VISION COLLECTIVE launched this week and I’m thrilled with the attention it’s getting. It’s becoming a nice gathering place for humanitarian and world photographers, along with others. If you haven’t checked it out yet, please do. We’d love to have you on board and part of the discussions. Learning is an organic process that happens best in relationships when we can draw from the well of others’ experience. Check it out HERE.

This post marks my 499th post. The next one rolls over 500. When I first started this I worried I’d run out of things to say. And then I started making an effort to post daily during the week - it’s amazing I don’t just completely dry up. Anyways, thanks for being with me on the adventure. A writer is nothing without readers, a teacher needs students. Y’all are a huge part of my life, and I’ve met so few of you. We should get together for a week sometime, plan a Pixelated Image get together. Say, Guatemala?

Change is good. Matt Brandon (the ruggedly handsome bloke pictured left) finally kissed Blogger goodbye and has migrated his blog to Wordpress. You can find his blog HERE now. Update your bookmarks, folks. The Digital Trekker’s added more content recently than he has in a while and that’s good for the rest of us. One of the highlights of my year is the time I spend shooting, teaching, and smoking the odd cigar while travelling with Matt. Head over there and give him some lovin’.

I got into Kathmandu yesterday afternoon to torrential rains, the dying fury of the monsoon, and a bandh. Arriving back in Bhouda was like coming home, though we were greated with an immediate power outage and a long walk down puddled streets in the dark to get dinner at what last year was the Cafe New Orleans and is now just called Flavors. Walking through the streets, monks backlit by the occasional passing car or motorcycle, candles lighting the shop stalls, and all the while the scent of incense and rain - I love it here. Feels like coming home.

As I write this I am posting images from a series I did while in Ladakh. I’ll be posting more over the week but this one is how I felt about the place. It includes images from Leh, Tingmoscam, Chemray, Wanla, and spots in between. The treatment reflects the very earthy colour palette of the place - an impossible range of browns - and suggests the relationship I saw everwhere between people and the earth, even their faith-life was earthy, not divided into compartments as it so often is in the west.  Ladakh is progressing, and while that brings good changes, it also brings lamentable ones, not the least of which is their loss of culture and the creeping sameness of the west. All the same, it feels ancient, stuck in time.  Check out the series HERE on my portfolio site - follow the gallery link to Ladakh.

Near the beginning of my photographic journey I was given two books - both of them by Freeman Patterson. The first I have recommended several times here, Photography and the Art of Seeing, the second is Photography For the Joy of It. Re-reading them now I suspect they are at the very centre of who I’ve become as a photographer.

I want to leave you with a quote from Patterson, and the recommendation that you add Photography For the Joy of It to your reading list. Here’s the Amazon link. And here’s the quote:

In making photographs, two things are important above all others - the subject matter and you. Photographs are what happen when you and the subject meet, and you use a camera to describe the meeting. A photograph is a visual description of the relationship between the subject and the photographer; and a good photograph is one which clearly shows the character of the subject while revealing the photographer’s response to it.

If you think of a photograph in this way, you’ll find your personal direction as a photographer emerging and becoming clearer. Sometimes it takes a while to understand what’s happening, and to decide upon what you expect from the relationship. Good relationships require a lot of give and take, and a lot of hard work. But the process of coming to know yourself through interaction with someone or something else is very satisfying. In the end, you get the picture - of both of you.

If things have gone the way we’ve planned, I am still in Ladakh. We overnighted in Leh last night but will be heading out to a more remote village today, overnighting there after photographing in the village for the evening, then back to Leh tomorrow. We fly to Delhi on Saturday ending the Lumen Dei tour. I fly to Kathmandu on Sunday, the 28th, and will be - should be - back online shortly thereafter with an actual update. Thanks for hanging in there with me through this last few weeks.

Chase Jarvis’ blog is in on my list of weekly reads and yesterday he posted some really sage wisdom. I got my best photography job, in part, because another photographer was so arrogant no one wanted to work with him. I assured the advertizing executive that is now my favourite client that my images might not always be in focus, but gosh-darnit I’m friendly. I won’t steal the wind from Chase’s sails, so click through and read his post - What You Can’t See Matters -  HERE.

Hey folks, thanks for being patient with my rant yesterday. Canon did little to help, but my local drug camera dealer - Leo’s Camera’s in Vancouver - went above and beyond, getting me a new 85/1.2L lens that is not only perfect, but here in time for me to not stew about whether I will have it for the trip. Mad props, as they say, to Leo’s. And that’s why I buy my important gear from a brick and mortar store staffed with people who know my name.

In other news - Chase Jarvis, of whom I am a fan - has put out a post asking you and I to be his photo editors. Check it out HERE.

Strobist links a cool video from another “trash the dress” shoot HERE and as a follow up there’s a post about the kite-mounted remote-controlled G9 HERE.

Is getting one of your images onto the front of a Lonely Planet guide one of your career goals - read on HERE.

Looking to put up a fast and slick online portfolio? You get portfolio space as part of your NAPP MEMBERSHIP, but here’s another one, and it’s even free-er. Though way less benefits than NAPP. Check out CARBONMADE.

Want a few minutes to work on your chops and take some great images of a Sumo wrestler washing his Subaru? C’mon, you know you wanna. Subaru Canada has a really fun interactive campaign that allows you to shoot and post-process your images - too fun. Check it out HERE. (See, we canucks are fun. Subaru US site? Boring. Subaru Canada? Sumo wrestlers and interactive photo shoots. We OWN fun. I don’t know what it has to do with selling SUVs…)

Adobe will be announcing the new CS4 on September 23rd. I always approach these  things with a mix of joy and pain. More learning just as I am finally coming to grips with CS3. Stay tuned.

Photokina is nearly upon us and with it the unleashing of more can’t-live-without-it gear that only two months ago we all lived just fine without. Sony is announcing a new SLR, Canon - we hope - will be announcing the follow-up to the 5D, and all kinds of makers will be announcing new bags, tripods, and gadgets we’ll all drool over. So it’s good to take stock now of your gear and appreciate it for these last few weeks. Because at the end of the month you’re going to hate it. Remember, if the current gear can’t give us the images we want, it’s not likely the new batch will get us any closer. Faster, bigger, cooler, shinier - yes. But images that more closely match your vision, not likely. Let’s keep it in perspective. Together we can get through this time of mass hysteria. Now would be a good time to lock up your wallet.

I’ve got posts planned for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. And then I leave and after that it gets thin. Brace yourself.

A week ago I wrote a post for Scott Kelby’s blog. You can read it all HERE. While there are so many things I could add to it, there’s one I left out, so this is the bonus.

6. Be An Assistant

Assisting another photographer is not only a great deal of fun, it’s a chance to learn technique and vision from a photographer with more experience and a different skill set than you. For the last two weeks I’ve been putting on my location assistant hat and working with my friend Kevin Clark on a print campaign for a high-end fitness studio in Vancouver. I don’t shoot this kind of stuff. Ever. I photograph children in Africa, or Yaks in Mongolia. Ferrari’s in Vancouver? No idea what to do with that. But Kevin does and working with him allows me to learn new skills, all of them transferable. It also, and this is key, gives me a chance to do some exciting creative collaboration and learn a little more about this whole craft.

The moment you put on your big-man hat and are too good to assist another photographer, you’re depriving yourself of the chance to learn, to branch out and learn transferable skills.

The shot above is a composite of a number of images taken over several hours and transformed by Robert Marks, Kevin’s brilliant studio manager and photoshop guru. I just mostly carried gear and took mental notes, and every time I’m out schlepping gear I learn something new about lights, or process, or vision. Or I get sore. But I also get to play, and to contribute my own vision and thoughts. I love it. It’s hard work, but a great deal of fun.

If you can find someone to assist, and you have the time, do it.

Check out Kevin’s exceptional work HERE, and his food photography HERE. And his blog HERE.

I’m giving you another well-deserved break from my rants - not all of which, it seems, have been appreciated by others. I was accused, of all things, this week, of exhibiting sour grapes towards the very people for whom I freely labour by writing this blog.

My rant about gear being paramount to vision rubbed some the wrong way. Alas, the internet is a tough place to express an opinion, unless you clarify everything and put italicized caveats on every thought, you’re bound to be read out of the current context by someone. If I’ve been sour to to anyone out there, let me know and I’ll happily apologize. But if you think gear is a substitute for vision or having something to say, we’ll just have to happily disagree.

To be great, art must point at something. To be a good artist, one must have something to point at. The better your craft, the more clearly and powerful your pointing can be. Gear only makes it a little easier, a little faster. The hardest work is creative, getting what’s inside, out.

In an effort to give you all a break from my soapbox, and point you in the direction of another one - here’s an inspiring lecture by David Griffin of National Geographic on the power of the photograph. Follow THIS LINK to the TED page to watch it. Thanks to my friend Wes for pointing it out.

Sure, change is good, but it’s usually a hell of alot of work, and stress as well. Matt Brandon and I are gearing up for our Lumen Dei Workshop and Tour in Kashmir, India. Two weeks ago the relative recent stability of Srinagar blew up in a maelstrom of protests, rock-throwing, grenades, curfews, and people being shot in the chaos. Not the ideal situation into which to lead a photographic tour. So we’ve turned the itinerary on a dime and are now taking our team of photographers to Ladakh, the far east side of the Kashmir region. Ladakh borders on Tibet and is probably the most peaceful part of India - it’s also a photographer’s dream and one of the more remote places on the planet. I am very excited. But I needed to do a shout out to my partner in crime, Matt Brandon. Matt is not only an exceptional photographer but a remarkable guide and damn fine person. He’s also the poor guy picking up the pieces and re-planning an entire 2-week tour, and doing a great job of it. If you ever have the chance to travel with him, do whatever it costs to make it happen. He’s that good. I’m counting the days until I head to India. (21, since you asked.)

While on that topic, Matt springboards off my article/sermon/rant from yesterday in a post called Tech Vs. Talent. If you’re enjoying this recent round of sermonizing on my part, then Matt’s contribution to the discussion is worth reading.

I spent yesterday and will be spending today in the studio working with Kevin Clark on a magazine food shoot. I’m not a food photographer, but I tell you what, there’s nothing like spending a couple days on a food shoot to gain a new appreciation for the importance of nuance in lighting and the smallest details in composition. A healthy reminder that God is in the details.

The UPS guy came 8 times this week. I’m worn out with all the gear. So this week’s resource round-up is gear-free. If it wasn’t, and I was ok with showing you THIS, then I’d also be ok showing you THIS. If you ever wanted to see how a photographer packs for the Olympics, these links will make you drool. If you haven’t, these links will still make you drool.

Lovin’ the new filters in Lightroom 2.0? You should be, the graduated filters are superb. Sean McCormack has produced a whole set of grad filter presets - find them on his Lightroom Blog HERE. They aren’t free, but when’s the last time you got 30 filters for less than $8? And they’re presets, not actual filters so I’m sliding them in on this no-gear Friday on a technicality. My blog, my rules.

FreelanceSwitch, one of my daily reads, has an excellent article on 30 Ways To Create An Incredible Client Experience. A must-read for any of you doing this as a freelancer/self-employed worker bee.

Corey Barker has an excellent guest post on Kelby’s blog this week - read it HERE.

Like great writing? If you’ve never read anything by Ryszard Kapuscinski, you’re missing out on some of the best travel writing ever. Lucid, graceful, human, and a master wordsmith. Man, I love his stuff. I just got his last book - he died last year - called Travels With Herodotus. I’ve also read several of his others and without exception I’ve loved them in a way I reserve for truly exceptional books. His author bio from The Shadow of The Sun includes this: During his four decades reporting on Asia, Latin America, and Africa, he befriended Che Guevera, Salvador Allende, and Patrice Lumumba; witnessed twenty-seven coups and revolutions; and was sentenced to death four times. How can you not love a man whose author bio includes that?