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info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:29:00 +0000

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The Cove Wins An Oscar!

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:09:00 +0000

Congratulations to Louie Psihoyos on winning the Oscar for The Cove! If you still haven't seen it, rent it right now. This is an incredible example of storytelling, and a photographer evolving from still to moving image.

Tell Me What You're Working On

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:12:00 +0000

Since this has been a really slow time for a lot of photographers I'm wondering what people are doing to fill their time. What are you shooting? Do you have a personal project you're working on?

I’m trying to get a broader view of what people are shooting across the country that reflects our economy, their own communities, or the stimulus projects around the country. I’d like to hear from you and am asking for links so I can see your work (that's better than emailing images).

My idea is to pull together a project with strong, moving images that are both timely and universal. If this speaks to you, email me at info@stellakramer.com.

If you are outside of the US, yet are shooting similar things, I'd like to know. I haven’t decided the particulars of the project--I’m just getting started--and no matter how much work I look at, I don’t see or hear about everything.

Be sure to tell your friends as well. I'm happy to look at lots of work.

Daylight with Michael Itkoff

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:29:00 +0000

Michael Itkoff is the editor of Daylight Magazine which publishes in-depth photographic essays on important issues of the day. It is a part of Daylight Community Arts Foundation (DCAF), a non-profit organization that collaborates with established and emerging artists to re-imagine the use of documentary work.
I met Michael over a year ago and was fascinated by the work he is doing with Daylight, and with his own personal photography.

Give us a little of your background and how you came to photography

I remember going to see a 76ers game at the old Spectrum arena when I was about ten years old. As the players were warming up I snuck down to the courtside and stood behind Bill Cosbys' chair. When David Robinson (of the Spurs) jogged by I yelled 'Hey Davey' and held my plastic lens Vivitar to my eye. Robinson looked up and waved as I snapped the picture. I was ecstatic! A few years later I was unable to sleep one night so I picked up a camera and ended up shooting a bunch of rolls of stuff in my room. That night I became obsessed with the latent image, waiting to see what I had captured and trying to play with my perception and the limits of representation. Most images failed but it was the process that was important.

I ended up studying photography through High School and photographed extensively during a gap year when I traveled through Israel and Europe. At Sarah Lawrence College I was lucky enough to study with Joel Sternfeld who became an important influence and mentor.

Whose work do you admire/follow?

There are so many photographers I could name here but Brian Ulrich, Tim Davis, Brenda Ann Kenneally, Teru Kuwayama come to mind...

Tell us about starting Daylight and DCAF

Daylight was started out of a frustration with the lack of outlets for emerging photographers. My senior year at SLC I teamed up with Taj Forer and began what was intended to be a serial publication featuring our work along with folks we admired. When Alec Soth agreed to be involved (in November 2003) we knew we should pull our work out and make it a purely curatorial effort. We started a non-profit organization, Daylight Community Arts Foundation, and published the first edition in time for the 2004 Whitney Biennial where the edition sold out.

How do you choose your subject matter and your photographers?

This is my favorite aspect of what Taj and I do. There are so many things I am interested in and Daylight is an amazing way to study and learn about the world. Based on our interests Taj and I pick a theme and research which photographers have worked along those lines. Our printing schedule is quite slow due to a number of factors so it allows us the time to really dig in and find a diverse group of photogs that collectively illustrate a subject. Taj and I will bounce news articles, essays and websites back and forth, attend openings and art fairs and generally keep our eyes and ears peeled for relevant information and potential artists.

How important is it for photographers to be able to write about their work?

Daylight serves as an independent platform for photographers portfolios and we encourage the photographers to write their own opening statements. Although photography is a depictive, non-textual form of communication it remains a tool of expression that can be greatly enhanced by the written insights of the artist. While I do believe an image should be able to stand on its own, there is no doubt that the context within which an image is displayed will greatly affect its reading. The various permutations of text and image relationships will continue to evolve indefinitely so exploring this terrain is important for any image maker.

What should photographers know about submitting their work to Daylight?

We have an open submission policy but require the purchase of an issue of the magazine in lieu of a submission fee. Generally we prefer a link to a website along with a statement and CV.

Is your project “Street Photographs” still on-going?

Street Portraits is a project that I have laid to rest for now but I could very easily pick it up again at any time. My recent monograph (Street Portraits, Charta Editions, 2009) provided a certain amount of closure for the project.

There are so few women in the book, how come?

Street Portraits arose after I spent a summer interning for Annie Leibovitz. Working with celebrities in studios for three months, I developed a great desire to go out and photograph everyday people in the streets. I traveled to five cities around the world for the project, often alone, and found that in each place I would often identify with other men in the city, like 'that might be me if I was born here' or 'that could be my life'.

The project was a bit quixotic, looking at humanity as a whole and perceiving us all as members of an extended family. With this notion in my head I began to identify with people I encountered in the streets and tried to picture my life as theirs and the identification simply happened more often with other men.

People say Photojournalism is dead, and yet on the cover of Daylight, it says “Documentary Photography.” Obviously you don’t subscribe to that belief. Talk about why not, and what it means to you.

The photo industry may be changing thanks to the democratization of imaging and communication technology but there will always be a need for professional photographic depiction of events. I am incredibly thankful for and excited by the complementary coverage we have received over the last couple of years with Iranian, Burmese and Egyptian dissent (to take just three examples) being recorded and shared via the internet. This does not eliminate the need for professional photojournalists and documentarians who pursue in-depth stories with technical proficiency and a bit more objectivity than those involved in the scenarios themselves.

Although there has been a vibrant, and valid, critique on the veracity of the documentary photograph as objective evidence it remains important for individuals from within and without a given context to bare witness, share their stories and participate in the global visual dialogue. Daylight seeks to embrace this gray area and further explore the territory between straight depiction and personal truth.

Do you think photographers need to blog? Do you read blogs? If so, which ones?

Blogging is one tool among many that photographers can use to further communicate and engender a sort of repeat audience, fan base or clientele. As with any tool I think each photographer first needs to visualize a goal and see if blogging is a way to achieve what they want.

When I have time I do read blogs via an aggregator and I sometimes search them for relevant content for Daylight. Among my favorites are A Photo Editor, Verve, and Resolve. On that note the Daylight Daily blog is looking for contributors willing to regularly review exhibitions books and miscellany as well.

Michael Itkoff's reception for his MFA show Michael Itkoff: Each + Every
Friday Feb. 26th, 6-10pm
On View Saturday Feb. 27th 12-5pm

24-20 Jackson Avenue, 3rd FLoor
Long Island City, Queens

Peter Turnley's Life in Photography

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 19:20:00 +0000

I was down in West Palm Beach Florida last month, at FotoFusion, and amidst the portfolio reviews and panels, I got a chance to hear esteemed photojournalist Peter Turnley talk about his career while showing an amazing variety of photographs. I worked with Peter for several years when I was a photo editor at Newsweek, and it was great listening to him talk about his work and how he became a photographer. He even showed a photograph that I remember choosing for the cover of one of the international editions of Newsweek (below). Peter had 43 covers for Newsweek when he was a contract photographer there. Sometimes you can learn so much about a person that you never knew before.

I will be paraphrasing some of what he said, but I think Peter’s career and passion are examples people can really learn from. He grew up in a family where “the notion of public service” helped to shape the way he looked at the world. Due to being laid up from a sports injury as a teenager he was introduced to the work of Henri Cartier-Bresson, and it opened his eyes. For Peter Turnley, photography is “sharing a response to the world.”

Peter and his twin brother, David, were influenced by Bruce Davidson’s “East 100th St.” project, and while in high school they were drawn to shoot in their own Ft. Wayne, Indiana backyard, on McClellan Street. They got to know the neighborhood and the people, and with one camera traded off photographing them. When the brothers published a book of this work recently they went back to their hometown to show the work. And although the neighborhood no longer exists, the people they photographed 39 years earlier came out to see the photographs and reminisce with the brothers Turnley.

Peter really seemed to find himself when photographing people. They “offered texture to the world,” and so he began his lifelong fascination with the people of the world, traveling to nearly every country on the planet, and covering the range of human emotion and experience. The most exciting moment of his career was photographing Nelson Mandela’s release from prison after 27 years.

Peter’s desire to “pierce the soul” of a person in the news compelled him to shoot, especially someone who has been photographed by so many others. Looking at his work you can see the arc of history from the late 1970s through the 1990s. From Princess Diana’s funeral to Mother Teresa’s funeral; Nixon to Gorbachev and the Pope; and from Nelson Mandela to Richard Nixon.

For Peter Turnley there is no such thing as “objectivity” in journalism. You pick moment to photograph, you point your camera—you’re making a choice. He totally defends the “right to a point of view, as long as it’s honest.” I couldn’t agree more. Just the decision to do one thing over another, or choose one person over another, or one line of thought over another is an action denoting a point of view. So let’s not debate the trivia, and make our judgments based upon the integrity of the information.

From covering wars and famine around the world, the “family of man” has always influenced Peter and his view of the world. He strives to show the “universality of grieving death from war, and the universality of the suffering of war.” It is the juxtaposition of these two sides of an issue and the juxtaposition of two photographs that has captured his interest.

Peter penned a piece for The Online Photographer, "Notes from a Life in Photography" and I encourage you to read it. After such a long and distinguished career it's great to hear someone still filled with such a sense of wonder at the world. He also runs photo workshops around the world and sells his black & white prints of Parisienne life.

Peter has recently been producing eight-page photo essays for Harper’s magazine, where Louis Lapham offered him the chance to be treated "like an author with photographs.” It's a remarkable gift for a photographer, and one of the few places left where someone can show so much of their work in such a respectful way to so many people. And we are all the better for it.

Peter's 50 image photo essay from Haiti, just completed, can be seen here

Look, It's Great Photography

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:55:00 +0000

Opening tonight, February 4:
Lydia Panas
The Mark of Abel
Foley Gallery
547 West 27th Street, 5th floor
Reception: 6-8pm

Catch feature artist Barbara Alper's underwater photography on view at Griffin Museum of Photography’s virtual gallery until March 28.

And don't forget the latest show at Danziger Projects: ‘The Year in Pictures – from the blog pictureyear.blogspot.com‘.

When: January 22 – February 27, 2010.
Danziger Projects
534 West 24th Street

Featuring the work of: Jowhara AlSaud, Chan-Hyo Bae, Thomas Bangsted, Mandy Corrado, Stephen Gill, Joseph Holmes, Alejandra Laviada, Greg Miller, David Schoerner, Patrick Smith, Tommy Ton, Scout Tufankjian, Oliver Warden, Katherine Wolkoff, Tsukasa Yokozawa.
And in remembrance of: Evelyn Hofer, Helen Levitt, Irving Penn, Julius Shulman, Bettie Page, and Charis Wilson.

Help Haiti And Buy Prints

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 19:30:00 +0000

It's easy with our busy lives, to lose track of the fact that the people in Haiti are still suffering to a massive extent. The media is moving on, and it can be overwhelming to look at the destruction over and over again. The photography community has stepped up, selling prints through a number of places, and I thought I would list a number of them here. So if you haven't donated money yet, or if you want to do more, here's your chance.

WallSpace Gallery in Seattle, is selling $50 prints by such photographers as David Bram (bottom), Emily Shur (top), Lydia Panas, Aline Smithson, Liz Kuball, Jordan Tate, and many more. All proceeds go to Doctors Without Borders and their efforts in Haiti.

Soul Catcher Studio is also offering prints to support Doctors Without Borders. Photographers included are Laurie Lambrecht, Heather McClintock, Ann Pallesen, Sarah Wilson (top), Natalie Young, Jennifer Shaw, Sarah Small (bottom), and others from around the country.

Cameron Davidson is selling prints of his aerial photographs and donating the profits to the the Community Coalition for Haiti, to benefit farmers and children in Haiti. The money will help buy seeds for farmers whose crops were damaged by hurricanes and provide food for needy children. Davidson has been shooting photos for this NGO since 1999 and serves on its board.
You can see much more of Davidson's work, and order prints, on his AerialStock site.

Big Cartel is offering prints from emerging photographers like Rachel Hulin, Rafael Soldi, Kate Hutchinson (below), Alex Leme, Sarah Sudoff, and others. Proceeds go to Doctors Without Borders. Many of the $50 are already sold out, so don't waste time.

San Francisco photographer Jeff Singer will be donating 100% of the proceeds from the next ten print sales* from his etsy page to The American Red Cross or Oxfam (buyer choice) to help with the Haiti disaster relief. Print prices range from $50 – $200 depending on the size of the print, so the larger the print the more money will be going to Haiti relief. All prints are individually custom printed.
*100% of the print sale will be donated after any paypal/etsy fees or taxes. Just mention this blog post or Haiti disaster relief when ordering. Good through the end of February.

Images Without Borders provides stunning images from world class photographers working around the globe offered to the public at a special price for this project. All profits go directly to Doctors without Borders, less only the cost of printing.
(Gallery Prints $50-100 : iPhone prints $32)

A Photographic Benefit for the Survivors of the Haiti Earthquake
All proceeds go to the American Red Cross International Response Fund for Haiti relief.

Several photographers, including the iconic photojournalist Mary Ellen Mark, have donated photographs to help create this special fund-raising collection of captivating images to benefit the people of Haiti. The title Haiti: Onè Respe comes from a traditional Haitian greeting meaning "honor and respect."
Since MagCloud has generously offered to pay for the printing costs, your purchase price of $12.00 will be donated in full to the American Red Cross International Response Fund for Haiti relief.
Photographs by: Chet Gordon, Kari Hartmann, Mary Ellen Mark, Peter Pereira, Lindsay Stark. Edited by Lane Hartwell and Michael Biven

Last Night's Panel Was a Great Success

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:47:00 +0000

Thank you all for coming out last night for the "Multi Platform Editing-Presenting Your Work to the New Media Landscape" panel. Thanks to our great panelists: Chris Owyoung, Alex Wright, Alison Zavos, Erin Rabasca, Joe Pritchard and Roberto De Luna. Thanks to Kaia Hemming of APA and John Dessereau of Calumet Photographic for pulling it all together, and to Tony Gale for the photo.

For those of you who couldn't get in, we are discussing the possibility of doing it again soon. And hopefully you can see an edited version shortly online (more details to come).
Kristina Feliciano who writes the Stockland Martel blog reviewed it here

Where Will Your Photos Appear Now?

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:24:00 +0000

I’ve been reading a lot and thinking a lot about the new media platforms that are being touted: from Kindle to the Nook to the Manhattan Project of Time Inc. to iPhones to the Skiff and the like, and wondering what that means for photographers. And that’s not even mentioning Apple’s upcoming entry into this sweepstakes. So, are photographers thinking in terms of new technology and how it will affect their work? Will people be composing their images differently if the medium changes?

When you look at an image on an iPhone or iPod or other small device can you see the image and get what the photographer wants you to understand? As with thumbnails on a website, do all images translate to that small screen? And if not, what does the photographer do? How do you edit for this new world of content?

It seems to me that photographers needs to think in these terms, just as they hopefully thought about how their photos would appear on a computer screen, as the transition from solely print portfolios shifted to include images on the screen.

To this end I will be moderating a panel produced by APA on January 27 to be held at Calumet Photographic. For more info and to register go here.

There will be these great panelists:
Roberto De Luna, photo editor at TimeOut
Joe Pritchard, photographer’s rep at Vaughn-Hannigan
Alison Zavos, independent curator of featureshoot.com
Alex Wright, co-creator of Dripbook
Erin Rabasca, head of art buying R/GA
Chris Owyoung, music photographer

A raffle for valuable gifts and a chance to talk and think about what’s coming down the pike for you. Be there.

The People of Haiti by Les Stone

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:39:00 +0000

Les Stone, multi-award winning photojournalist first went to Haiti in 1987 after the Duvalier dictatorship fell. Since then he has visited to Haiti dozens of times to document that religious life of the people. You can read more about Les and his incredible career in an interview I did in July here. I thought it was fitting to show you some of the beauty of the people of Haiti at this devastating time.

If you haven't done it yet, please donate to help the people of Haiti.

Help Haiti And Give What You Can

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:58:00 +0000

I have spent the last few days glued to the TV watching the news and images come out of Haiti. My blog is focused on photography, but this trumps that, so I am asking everyone to give what you can. As a supporter of Doctors Without Borders, I suggest them, and you can donate here. But there are dozens of good, dedicated organizations who need your help.
So don't just watch, give.

Judith Fox, I Still Do

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 15:09:00 +0000

I met Judith Fox at last year's ReviewLA portfolio review. When she opened her portfolio and I got a first look at her photos I found myself tearing up--a most unusual reaction. Judith told me she had been photographing her husband Ed who has had Alzheimer's Disease for the past ten years. I was so moved by the intimacy and rawness of the photos, and by the way she faced the subject head on.
In October, powerHouse published her work in a book, "I Still Do". On Saturday, January 9, "I Still Do" opens at the Andrea Meislin Gallery in New York.

There is nothing coy or precious in these photos. We see how frail the body really is, and how it can betray us. When you look into Ed's eyes you can't help but think about the photographer and her subject and how intertwined they are. There is a fierce honesty in Judith's photographs. This project is about both of them, and gives us a lesson in how to look unsparingly at the world around us.

Tell me a little of your background and how you came to photography

I grew up in New York (where I won, in third grade, a New York City art contest.) In hindsight, I was an artist and an entrepreneur from childhood. When I was nine, I combined my interest in art and my skills as an entrepreneur and successfully sold packages of seeds door-to-door so that I could “win” a Brownie camera.

A fast-forward summary of my career highlights: I was a freelance writer for national magazines; I owned a photography studio on Long Island; I started and ran a temporary service in Virginia and New York (18 years later I sold my company to a New York Stock Exchange firm); I exhibited and sold my fine art photography; I created a book of photographs called "I Still Do: Loving and Living with Alzheimer’s” which was published by powerHouse books in October, 2009.

Tell me about how and why “I Still Do” came to be
When I started photographing my husband, Ed Ackell, I thought I was doing so as an artistic challenge to myself in response to a book I’d read called “The Model Wife.” Where, I wondered, is “The Model Husband”? Then I realized I was married to him. So I started seriously photographing my husband, my model, my muse.

Ed had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease three years after we were married (I was widowed, he was divorced) and I started “I Still Do” three years after his diagnosis. In time, I realized that my project was also about living with AD and that I was photographing Ed as he was leaving me.

When I first saw the project earlier this year I was so moved by the intimacy of the photographs. How hard was it to begin, and has it been difficult for your husband and for you?

It was easy to begin the project, in part because I didn’t initially relate it (consciously) to AD.

Photographing the man I love was an intimate process. When I watched Ed through my camera lens, despite the distance of several feet between us, I felt as though I was caressing him. My camera wasn’t an obstruction, it was another way of touching him; and my photography helped me stay sane while the demanding role of caregiver continued to balloon.

What made you decide to show the work and to create the book? Has this been difficult?

When I showed the first group of photographs I’d taken of Ed to Arthur Ollman, the founding director of the Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) and the author of “The Model Wife,” he told me I had a book. Before going forward with that as a goal, I thought about what it meant in terms of giving up our privacy; and I discussed it with Ed. My husband supported my work and believed in me, and I knew that the only way to create the kind of book I believed in was to be honest and open. Once I made that decision, the rest was relatively easy.

Talk about making the contacts to get the book out there

For many years, while I was making the photographs that would become part of “I Still Do,” I was focused on my husband and the world of Alzheimer’s. I didn’t think about marketing the work, or my photography, or connecting with a photography community until sometime around 2007. I started by meeting with Mary Virginia Swanson (a very good move) and then I started attending a few portfolio reviews.

As a result of attending reviews, my sample book was seen by a number of interested publishers and reviewers. Because of that process, I received two offers to publish “I Still Do” and I signed a contract with powerHouse Books. Less than a year later, my book was released.

Of course, nothing is quite that simple—there was an agent who told me he wouldn’t take my book on because there wasn’t a publishing house that would print a book about such a depressing subject, no matter how beautifully done. After talking with three prospective agents, I decided it would be easier to find a publisher myself than to find an agent. I was right.

Is this still an ongoing project?
Marketing and publicizing a book is a full-time job; it’s part two of creating a book and getting it published.

I’m no longer photographing Ed—at least as I write this. But I’ve become an advocate on behalf of AD as a result of writing “I Still Do.” I’ve been invited to travel the world to talk about my book and living with AD. The book and photography are leading to amazing opportunities, including several gallery and museum shows.

I have several other photography projects in process (photography that’s very different from the work in the book—and work about which I’m very excited.)

Talk about adding the text—usually people add too much, yet in your book it is almost haiku
The text came about towards the end of the project. I knew I didn’t want to provide traditional captions for the photographs, nor did I want to write so much that it distracted from the images. I started writing in a spare style and found that it enabled me to say what I wanted to in a manner that interested me. The writing became a very important, fulfilling and enjoyable part of the process and project.

What do you want people to take away from seeing your work?
I want them to better understand the human beings who are dealing with Alzheimer’s—and to know that it’s a disease that can happen to anybody. I want people to understand the pain that’s involved in living with AD, and the desperate need to find better treatments and an eventual cure for the disease. I hope people reading “I Still Do” will have a better understanding of the importance of family caregivers and how difficult and isolating that life is. I want people who see my work to recognize that, while much is taken away by Alzheimer’s, a person is still left behind; a person who deserves respect, dignity and love. And I hope that people will recognize that there are gifts and moments of joy and beauty that come with even the most terrible of diseases.

Here's to the New Year

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:35:00 +0000

I’m finally over the end-of-the-year/holiday nightmare and I enter 2010 with a sense of guarded optimism. Everything seems to stop at the beginning of December, and I lose any momentum I might have had. So, good riddance to 2009 and welcome to this New Year. Let’s get to work!

Here’s what’s happening this week:

Thursday, January 7:

Resource Magazine is having a silent auction from 6-11pm at Milk Gallery, 450 W. 15th St. Featuring work by such photographers as Danny Clinch, Henry Leutwyler, Martin Schoeller, Patricia McDonough, Walter Chin, Vincent Laforet and many more.
RSVP not required, but preferred

Saturday, January 9:

The Andrea Meislin Gallery presents Judith Fox's poignant and moving photographs of her husband who has Alzheimer's. The opening and signing of her PowerHouse book, I Still Do will be from 3-5pm at the Gallery, 526 W. 26th St. #214.

Check back here later in the week when I will be posting an interview with Judith Fox, a totally fascinating woman.

The Photographer Project by Brian Ach

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:43:00 +0000

Brian Ach has been shooting celebrities for the past four years: walking the red carpet, attending invite-only events, and on occasion even vacationing with them. After a fellow shooter fell ill, Brian came up with the concept for this coffee-table book, turning the tables on the photographers and asking them about themselves and their work.
What I love about this project is it's simplicity (it was something right in front of him), the clever questions and the funny answers.

How did you come to photography?
I had always thought photography was an interesting art, but never did much involving it. When my grandfather passed away in 1988, I decided that I wanted his Canon AE-1 that he always has with him. I got it, and it sat on a shelf for over ten years. One day, I took it out and decided I needed to learn how to use it. A friend of mine showed me the basics. When I got that first roll of Tri-X back, I was hooked.

Michael Loccisano:

How did you become a celebrity shooter? Are you one of the paparazzi?
I was obsessed with photography, and shot so much film I almost single-handedly saved Kodak. I had taught myself graphic design and was doing that full-time, but was getting bored. Through a film I worked on, I became friends with James Gandolfini, and did a couple of jobs for him and his family. I went on vacation with him and shot his son’s birthday party. I then went to the Venice Film Festival with him and shot some of it and some behind-the-scenes stuff. When I got back to the U.S., I thought, I could do this for a living. I cold emailed Wireimage, and they called me in the next day. I showed them my books, my fine art and celebrity stuff, and I was working for them within days.
Seems easy, but you really have to know your stuff, and be in the right place at the right time and have the right personality for this. The job is not easy, and new photographers are often chewed up and spit out in months. I am not a paparazzi, although I have taken some unplanned shots here and there. If you need the shot for a client, sometimes you are left with no choice but to shoot first, ask after.
Mike Coppola:

How do you feel about celebrity?
Celebrity, in general, is an interesting thing. Maybe only 2 or 3 times have I been “starstruck,” and I have shot basically everyone. Usually it is someone from my childhood that I grew up respecting, like Neil Armstrong or a hockey player like Pat LaFontaine, not some big Hollywood star. For me, it all has to do with the work someone does, whether I respect it or the process. Reality TV and American Idol and MySpace etc., those have really changed the idea of what a “celebrity” is nowadays. People now are famous for literally doing nothing…it is an interesting concept. I try not to judge, but before, to become famous, there had to be something of substance, a body of work, an accomplishment, which brought the person some stature. Today, people are overnight successes, literally. Before, you had to build a career--lay the groundwork, promote yourself, and have a body of work, to become somebody in your field.
I find that these overnight stars sometimes do not know the proper etiquette, the way to handle themselves in their career. Sometimes they have to be reminded. In the end, the one thing I have learned (and actually knew before I started) was that celebs are just people who happen to have a somewhat different job than most people. Generally, though, I find almost everyone fascinating in some way. This is what I believe makes a good photographer--unless you are shooting food.

What made you do this project?
I started the project almost exactly a year ago. The project was started because a friend of mine and fellow photographer, Paul Hawthorne, had become sick. No one really knew how serious it was at the time, but the medical bills were mounting for him and his family. He was also not able to work anymore. Paul (and I) belong to a small group of entertainment photographers in NYC. We shoot all of the red carpets, concerts, and parties for agencies like Wireimage and Getty. Not having Paul around every night was kind of sad.
The reason the project seems personal, is because it is. Paul was a mentor to me when I broke into this business over 4 years ago. He gave me tips and advice when other people would not. This is a small group, and breaking into the business is hard. I appreciated that about Paul, if you were a good honest person, he would help. Paul was diagnosed in the fall with amyloidosis, a rare blood disorder.
I started the project in December of 2008, shooting it out of my Brooklyn studio. The call went out to all the photogs in NYC who do this type of work- from the big names like Kevin Mazur to the street paps. I was going to shoot full-length portraits of them, have them fill out a questionnaire, and put the end product together in a book. The book would then be sold to raise money for his family.
Paul was touched and excited that such a fuss would be made for his benefit. I was glad to be working in my studio on something important. Sadly, Paul passed away right before Christmas. The shock was palpable, no one really knew how sick he was. I vowed to go ahead with the project and see it through to the end, for Paul. It has taken me a year, while working for my agencies and doing other work. All the portraits were completed in January, but the surveys were difficult to get people to fill out-some of the answers are very personal. I also designed the entire book myself.
In February, I pitched the book exclusively to the features editor at PDN. I showed him about 30 of the portraits, and described the questions I was going to ask the photographers. No one else had seen the pictures or heard the concept. He was enthusiastically interested, and said he wanted to do a feature on the project in the December entertainment issue. Off and on we conversed by email for months, with me sending him samples of the work and questions. Imagine my surprise when the issue comes out this month, and they have their own “version” of the project, with very similar questions.
Lesson learned, keep your great ideas to yourself. The amount of work that went into the project was huge.
Bryan Bedder:

The book was finally finished this past week, and has 64 photographers in it, as well as outtakes and an irreverent glossary of terms that we use in this specialized industry. I am hoping that people share my enthusiasm for this project and the book. it really is totally unique and gives a true glimpse into one of the more interesting jobs in photography, one that most people don't know anything about. It also gives that rare look into the lives of celebrities, with some answers to questions that will surprise a lot of people! As I have stated, a portion of the proceeds after printing costs go directly to Pauls' family.

How did shooters react to having the tables turned on them? Were they difficult or cooperative?
Most were very cooperative, if not a little uncomfortable. A lot of people who do this work feel very comfortable with having the camera between themselves and the subject-- it offers a certain sort or barrier or protection. Turning the tables, I had to reassure people what the goal was--to have an accurate portrait of themselves showing their personality and how they differ from the others who do this work. Knowing most of them very well, it at first appeared to be simple. But after 20 or 30 people, you have to be very quick on your feet in coming up with new things to capture that are true.
One photographer, who was coaxed into doing the project, I only took 5 frames of—but I got what I needed before he said, “OK, I am done.” In this job, you often only have 3 seconds to come up with the perfect shot before a celebrity, publicist, handler, security, or fan ends the shot, so I have learned to think ahead, plan, improvise, and push to get what I need while leaving the subject feeling like it was a collaborative effort.

Tell us a great celebrity story—good or bad.
I was working a private party for Wire, a while ago.It was a big event, with many a-listers. I was working inside, and then a certain teenage tabloid queen entered and was whisked straight back to the back, to a private table. PR came up to me and said it would be a bit before she would do photos. After a half hour, he came to get me and bring me back to her table. He got my attention, and said, “Only this” (indicating from the waist up) “and none of this” (indicating the table in front of her). I looked down and saw all types of alcohol and illicit contraband sprawled out on the table. I had a 17mm lens on my camera, so I could have gotten it all in the frame. However, I was house, and it was exclusive, so they would have known it was me even if I did somehow sell it under the table. She stood up and posed, I took three frames, and she sat down. The PR guy checked my photos on my camera to make sure they were ok, as I saw $100,000 flitter through my hands.
Patricia Schlein:

Which celebrity do YOU think has gotten a bad rap?
I can only go from personal experience, but I have photographed Tom Cruise multiple times in many different circumstances, and it is no surprise to me that, in the book, more photographers name him as their most favorite celeb to work with. He is a true pro with fans, photographers, and everyone else, making sure that everyone gets what they want and need. Nice to a fault, he knows how the game is played. I’d buy him a beer.

How are you dealing with the changing photo industry?
It seems like it is probably obvious, but diversifying appears to be the way to go right now. I think the celebrity market for agency photos is going down the tube now, with most of it going to the internet and rates for pictures going to new lows every day. Providing value to your clients while holding the line on your rate is the angle I am taking. Quality customer service can go a long way, and is an art that is being lost in this digital hurry-up and do it, use it, throw it away world. I think you will see a lot more cross-over, from commercial to editorial, editorial to advertising, as clients try to capitalize on the next big thing. Staying up on technology is something I have been striving to do.

What’s next for you?
Maybe a part 2 of The Photographer Project, but with a big twist. I am possibly directing an unrelated short film, and I am looking at shooting a studio project on stereotypes. I like to do things that sort of scare me. I don’t want to give too much of it away, though, I learned that lesson already.

This book can be purchased through Blurb.com, and part of the proceeds will go to the family of the late Paul Hawthorne, entertainment photographer.

Catherine Ledner's Glamour Dogs

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:46:00 +0000

Catherine Ledner was born into a creative New Orleans family where "no two walls were parallel and no ceilings were flat," owing to her architect dad. Growing up in a home full of dogs, rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, fish and turtles led to her lifelong love of animals. After graduating from NYU with a degree in film, she worked in television for a year and a half. She then worked as a studio manager for a photographer in New York, which led to her eventual move to Pasadena to study photography at Art Center College of Design.

Catherine's work has appeared in numerous publications including Travel & Leisure, Dwell, New York Times Magazine, and Vanity Fair. Her first book, "Animal House" is available through Welcome Books and Amazon.com. Catherine currently lives in South Pasadena with her husband Kyle, their dogs, Dodger, Gracie and Little Bear, two cats and several rabbits.

I met Catherine in 1998 when she shot two covers for me when I was DP for a women's start-up financial magazine (EQUITY). Both shoots were tons of fun, and I loved Catherine's zest for her work, and her ability to find something wonderful no matter how sterile the environment. I visited her this last January and saw the beginnings of her newest book, "Glamour Dogs." I knew immediately that I wanted to interview her for this blog.

Tell me when and why did you start shooting animals?

I started shooting animals in the studio against wallpaper in 2001. I was shooting a fair amount of advertising at the time and finally had the funds to realize my dream. I could hire wild animals and buy any wallpaper my heart desired.

How did Animal House come about?

Basically, it came from my head. I love animals and thought it would be great to shoot them in the studio on crazy cool wallpaper. I’d never seen that done before and it looked good in my head.

Was it hard getting your book deal?

Not at all. PQ Blackwell, out of New Zealand contacted me after seeing the animal images on Getty. They were interested in pitching a book. That first book came out in 2007 and is called Animal House.

What made you decide to do Glamour Dogs?

I wanted to do a second book and needed a subject that was more accessible and less expensive. I could no longer afford fancy animals and trainers. I love dogs and thought it would be fun to shoot them in a glamorous way. It was great working with all “real” dogs. Only the afghan was an agency dog with some training. Every other dog was just a regular dog, having his or her day! The owners and I had fun. The sets were similar to Animal House because it worked with the theme and it’s what my publisher was looking for.

Can you tell us any stories about shooting particular animals?

Well dogs are the best. I can relate to them the way I relate to people. They are very intuitive and fun. One of the owners (also a vet) brought 3 of his 15 dogs. They were crazy fun jumping off the walls and all begging for attention. Getting a shot where all 3 sat still (for a second) was quite a challenge.

As for the trained animals from Animal House, they were all a joy to behold. The Flamingos arrived in special crates that held their long necks up without getting hurt in the drive. When they walked on set it was a beautiful thing. I love the way long necked animals like flamingos, ostriches and swans move. They move in a constant ballet. So graceful to behold.

I see Little Bear is in the book, what about Gracie?
Little Bear is in the book. He was shot against an old fashioned looking paper that brings out his natural regal look. His long hair was freshly washed and he sparkled. Gracie was shot on the same pink sofa that the French Bulldog (on the cover) was shot and she got lost on the cutting room floor. I needed a new photo for the book jacket so I posed with a freshly cut Gracie so she would make it in – even if it was just at the end with me.
Dodger, of Animal House fame, is also in the book. I can’t believe she made it in. Being almost 11 years old and turning a bit grey – but she is the consummate poser so of course she did well and became a “Glamour Dog”. She is on a beautiful ivory inlaid chair that I rented from a prop house.

How are you faring in today’s market?

I’m getting by. It has been challenging. I try to adopt the attitude that “necessity is the mother of invention” and I am working on myself and my work in a different way than I did before. All and all things are doing well. I am extremely grateful to have Glamour Dogs coming out. Dumont (a European company) has made a stunning 2010 calendar with 12 of the images from Animal House and they have plans for two 2011 calendars, one with more Animal House images and another with 12 Glamour Dog images. I am also selling fine art prints from Animal House and am planning on getting involved with Etsy and selling smaller prints that are not in limited editions. I am also shooting assignment work for magazines and am chasing the ad work as best I can.

What would be your dream job?

I would love to be sent to a remote place and shoot a stock library for a great client like HP. I love traveling and meeting new people. I also love to shoot many different types of things. I would make a visual diary of the place. That would be my dream job for sure.

What’s next for you?

I am continuing to keep my head above water first and foremost. Then I think I will start shooting a seriously fun book about Gracie, my standard poodle. I don’t want to give away my plan – but it will be different than the wallpaper series. I see it in my head so clearly – now I just need to make the time and shoot it!

The Americans by Robert Frank

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:22:00 +0000

I finally got myself to the Robert Frank show at the Metropolitan Museum (The Americans), and if you haven’t seen it—GO! If you have, see it again. I know I'm late on this, but I was really wowed by the show. What I never realized was the incredible care and time Frank gave to editing the images he chose, juxtaposing to create context and sub context for the viewer to contemplate.

His intent was to “compare disparate objects with thematic ties,” according to the exhibit statement, and he did that brilliantly, beginning with early photographs before his seminal book that put a photo of radio tubes across from a photo of musicians. By juxtaposing people with objects, he created a new way of thinking about their relationship.

“I am always looking outside, trying to look inside, trying to say something that is true. But maybe nothing is really true. Except what’s out there. And what’s out there is constantly changing.”
--Robert Frank, 1985.

Frank used the flag to essentially separate parts of the book, and this was a tool to create categories. Used quietly, yet effectively, we cannot see the faces, and so it is the abstract of the symbol of America that we see. In the way he put images together, he created a relationship between them that was not always readily apparent. Yet the longer you look at the images, the more you see and understand.

Frank was not just photographing America, he was commenting on race, class, and culture. He wanted to allude to the way in which Americans communicate with each other and with the larger culture. This amazing book is thoughtful, deep beyond the surface, and exciting for the layers you can peel back to discover a more caustic comment on this country.

The photo of Detroit assembly-line workers above was across from this photo of back room politicians at a Chicago convention, commenting on class and the distance between men working side by side. Contrast that with the physical closeness of the power brokers. The physical comfort of the politicians versus the coldness between the workers. One group is on the clock, one has all the time in the world.

The thought that went into culling thousands upon thousands of images into 83 and putting them into a book is something few photographers seem to think deeply about. Too often I think a book becomes just a place to showcase a number of images that may or may not be related, but are frequently related only by subject. The time Frank took to edit and sequence his work, to THINK about his work, his intent, and his audience needs to be studied and celebrated.

With The Americans, Frank examined his work by printing out images and playing with their order. He took the time to discover which images HAD TO be together. And by doing this, Frank created a body of work which still surprises and educates.

How many photographers can really say the same?

A Review of FPS Fest

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:12:00 +0000

If you didn't make it to FPS Fest in Williamsburg Tuesday night, you missed a great bunch of people and a terrific show of photographers' films.

The evening began with Shinichi Maruyama showing a short work reel full of dripping, dropping, and splashing liquid that was hypnotic, yet calming. It made me think about how difficult it is to shoot a perfect rush of liquid.

Alexx Henry's "Living Art," was a behind-the-scenes look at a shoot of Ironman Chris Lieto for Outside Magazine. What I liked best was the discussion of the future ways in which printed media will incorporate moving image. It was totally fascinating to me and I'm still thinking about that.

Noah Webb showed "A Thousand Bees," assembled from 4,500 still images. It was completely different from all the other work, inventive and full of vibrancy. It was like a collage come to life.

Andrew Hetherington brought a great dose of humor with his short "Meet The Hetheringtons,"a verbal/visual back-and-forth between Andrew and Tim Hetherington (no relation). It just goes to show that an idea is the most important element you can bring to a project. It's not always about crews and equipment. Kudos to him for that.

"Sleeping Soldiers," Tim Hetherington's multi-media piece followed, incorporating a triptych to juxtapose sleeping soldiers with the battlefield, in this case Afghanistan, where Tim was embedded with a U.S. platoon.
At times it was as if we could see the dreams of the soldiers, as landscape blew across their sleeping bodies, until we were shocked awake by a frantic, stunned soldiers' pain. It was beautiful, inventive and powerful.

I introduced the trailer of Louie Psihoyos' "The Cove" and will say again: See this documentary! You can read my two part interview with Louie Psihoyos here.

There was more humor from Bob Scott and his camera review. Clever, funny and a great use of short film with numerous possibilities.

It was distressing to me that two of the women presenting films, KT Auleta and Candace Meyer were the only ones who interjected sex into their work. I am disappointed that all they offered up was that Madonna-influenced "if I treat myself as a sex object then I'm the one with the power" bullshit. Where are the strong, interesting, accomplished women? Where is the content with real value, instead of portraits of girl-women in baby clothes?

All in all, congratulations to Dripbook, Resource Magazine and all the others who made this possible and presented something that speaks to the future, and more creative possibilities for photographers. Maybe it's Brooklyn, but I felt like this was the opening of a dialogue that will continue for those creative people who are moving forward with the desire to make themselves heard.

Next Week's Important Events

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:28:00 +0000

Monday, November 16

ASMP presents "Presenting Your Work to the Fine Art Community"a Mary Virginia Swanson Lecture and Food Drive to be held at Studio 385
In this lecture, marketing consultant/educator Mary Virginia Swanson provides an overview of the fine art market for photographers.

Updated frequently, this lecture is a must for all photographers considering exploring the fine art market and provides current insights on marketing and details of upcoming deadlines and events.

During this presentation, Mary Virginia Swanson will provide insights into the most efficient and effective avenues for introducing your work to industry professionals towards presenting your work in the collectible fine art market.

She will discuss the strategies surrounding submitting work to national and international juried exhibitions and portfolio review events such as FotoFest, Photolucida and European festivals. Art fairs such as AIPAD and Photo LA will be discussed from the standpoint of assessing market trends and helping artists determine which dealers will be most appropriate for their work.

Swanson will also cover the professional practices necessary to effectively present your photographs in the market, as well as sharing examples of effective self-promotion materials in print and on-line formats.

Handouts with related information will be shared with participants.

COST:
ASMP members: FREE but are encouraged to bring a food donation
Non-ASMP members: $20 or $15 with a food donation
Students with I.D.: $5 or free with food donation

The food will be delivered to one of the needy food pantries in NYC. Please bring non-perishable food!

Studio 385
385 Broadway—bet. White & Walker
New York City
6:30 - 9:30pm

Register here

Tuesday, November 17

FPS Fest, presented by Dripbook, Resource Magazine, and ROOT Capture is a film screening event that explores the transition from still photography to motion.
Dripbook is announcing support of HD video across Dripbook’s promotional platform, continuing a leading-edge commitment to advanced promotion for today’s creative professionals.

The work of Andrew Hetherington, Vince Laforet, Philip Bloom, Alexx Henry, Noah Webb, Amber Gray, Bob Scott, Candace Meyer, F Scott Schafer, KT Auleta, Alex Buono and Louie Psihoyos will be shown.

ROOT Capture provides premier digital services for Drive In, TREC, & ROOT Brooklyn by working closely with photographers and DP’s to create customized, versatile still/motion capture packages for both location & studio.
Resource Magazine presents RETV, an online video magazine presenting photo and video industry content to help creative professionals bridge the gap between stills and motion technology.

Root Brooklyn
131 North 14th St.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
Doors open at 6pm
$5 entry fee. Beer and popcorn will be served.
RSVP

Next Week's Events

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 23:16:00 +0000

I was hoping to write a wrap up of PhotoPlus Expo, but found I couldn't sum it up at all. I enjoyed the seminars I went to, noticed fewer exhibitors, and wondered about the people who attended: were they mostly from out of town or New York?
Now that it's over, there are some cool events to attend and look forward to next week.

Monday November 9

Bill Cramer, CEO of Wonderful Machine will be speaking at the Apple Store as part of the ImageMakers Series. He'll be talking about branding and marketing for photographers, and a little about his own photography and Wonderful Machine.
The event is at 103 Prince St. (between Mercer & Greene), from 6:30 - 8:00 pm and is free, though seating is limited.
There's more info here

And be sure to join everyone at the post-lecture social at The Cupping Room, 359 W. Broadway (between Broome & Grand) for a cash bar and some appetizers.

Tuesday, November 10

Aperture Gallery is presenting Michael Wolf: The Transparent City and Barbara Crane: Private Views, an exhibit showing the city of Chicago from different vantage points and periods of history.
There will be a book signing and artists talk with Michael Wolf on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 6:30pm. Barbara Crane will be doning the same on Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 6:30pm, and the opening of the exhibit is Wednesday, Nov. 12 from 6:00 - 8:00pm.
Aperture Gallery
547 West 27th Street, 4th Floor
Between 10th and 11th Avenues

ASMP NE Chapter presents:
An Evening with Eugene Richards
Mass Bay Community College
Wellesley Hills
50 Oakland St.
Wellesley Hills, MA
Register here

Wednesday, November 11

ADHESIVE NYC: Sticking Creatives Together is having a soiree at:
Sweet & Vicious
5 Spring St (Between Elizabeth Street and Bowery)
6:30pm - ???

Thursday, November 12

An Evening with Jay Maisel
Yale University is presenting an evening with this world-class photographer, starting at 7:00 pm (doors open at 6:30)at Linsly-Chittenden Hall Rm 102, 63 High St., New Haven, CT
$15 ASMP members & students, $25 non-members
Register here
They will be giving away door prizes from ThinkTank, Image Rights, and O'Reilly Media. The event is sponsored by Epson.

And rounding out the week:

Friday, November 13

SLIDELUCK POTSHOW XIV at The Aperture Foundation in Chelsea and will be co-curated by Lesley Martin, Aperture's book publisher. The theme of the fourteenth show in New York City is INSIDE OUT. For this show, all guests will need to purchase $10 tickets support of both SLPS and The Aperture Foundation. Due to spatial limitations, this event will be considerably more intimate than recent NYC Slidelucks. If you are serious about securing a spot for this show, we invite you to purchase your tickets immediately!
The Aperture Foundation
547 W. 27th St, 4th Floor
7pm Potluck | 9pm Slideshow

Jim Nachtwey at PhotoPlus Expo

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:22:00 +0000

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the talk Jim Nachtwey gave at PhotoPlus Expo, and the photographs he showed. Pretty much everyone acknowledges him as a singular figure in the world of photography (although I would argue the same for Sebastiao Salgado, and the breadth of his work is truly extraordinary. From Northern Ireland to the tuberculosis wards of Northern Thailand, Nachtwey has borne witness to the worst of the world’s conflicts and social issues.

As Nachtwey himself said, he “gives a voice to people who have endured immense suffering, who have no voice.” His classic composition recalls the paintings of such masters as Caravaggio and Goya, and in his photographs I have seen an incredible palette of black and grey, with more variations on those colors than I thought possible. Rather than making suffering beautiful, Nachtwey shows the incredible, inherent beauty of people, even at the worst moments of their lives.

It would be impossible to witness what Nachtwey has witnessed and remain uninvolved, so he took advantage of winning the T.E.D.. award and started a campaign against Extremely Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis (XDRTB). He turns his anger into “something that can clarify my vision, not cloud it.”

To simply see Nachtwey’s work as depressing would be missing so much. “My mission as a photographer has always been to have the pictures published in the mass media while the situation is unfolding.” It is because he knows the power of images to move people to action. That was the case with the famine he photographed in Somalia in 1992. After the photographs ran as a cover story in The New York Times Magazine the outcry made it possible for the ICRC to mobilize the largest aid effort it had undertaken since WW II and saved 1.5 million lives. Can there be any greater achievement than that?

I think everyone left Nachtwey’s presentation wondering what they had done and what they are doing with their lives. I know I did. And it’s going to take me a lot more time to sort that out. I am inspired by his example, and glad that he is working so hard to bring light to darkness.

Sari Talks Nachtwey

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:13:00 +0000

There are two ways to react to a lecture and slide show by James Nachtwey. One is to feel like you’re accomplishing nothing in this world, even if you ARE trying to add something good through your work or personal interests. Another is to accept your limitations, recognize that Mr. Nachtwey is some sort of a God, and simply try to emulate him in whatever humble ways you can. I’m choosing the latter.

It’s hard to retain faith in this day and age that photos really can and do make a difference to better our world and affect legislation like they did during the Vietnam war or for that matter the turn of the century when Lewis Hine and Jacob Riis’ photos were instrumental in helping to bring about child labor laws. But when you’re operating at the level of Nachtwey and his “comrades at VII” as he calls them, you really can and do have an impact on issues because there are editors who will believe in your images enough to take a risk and put them in print. Nachtwey mentioned three in particular who had been crucial to helping get the word out originally about the atrocities in Rwanda, Somalia and his current work on Extreme Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (XDRTB) – they are Kathy Ryan (NYTimes), Michele Stephenson and MaryAnne Golon (both were at TIME until recently).

In case you didn’t know (as I didn’t), the man won the TED prize in 2007 (http://www.tedprize.org/2007-winners/). This is huge. Check out the video (http://www.tedprize.org/video-1-year-later-james-nachtwey/) to see what he was able to accomplish with the $100K and mobilized resources to help him carry out his wish to bring awareness to XDRTB or Extreme Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

I’ve been very curious about this issue since reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracey Kidder, about Dr. Paul Farmer and the work he has done, now worldwide, to stop the spread of TB, a disease that is completely preventable, but incurable if people develop the most dangerous strain.

Other things Mr. Nachtwey mentioned that are worth repeating:

"Photojournalism is a service industry and awareness is the service".

"What we call daily life has an imperative to go on." -This said to the backdrop of his photo of a couple in the warzone of Northern Ireland walking their baby in a stroller, glimmers of a burning car just behind them.

In tackling the difficult theory of religion being a cause of so much suffering he suggested that God is the justification for war, everyone thinking THEIR God is the only right one. No argument there as far as I'm concerned.

He enlightened the audience to the fact that famine is often not a natural occurence, as I had naiively thought. Rather it's a deliberate genocidal weapon.

To rejeuvenate our faith in the power of images he explained that relief organizations can seriously mobilize their donors in a time of crisis based on photographs. As an example, after his story about the famine in Somalia ran on the cover of the NY Times Magazine, phone calls and letters poured in to such an extreme and coverage of he story was increased around the world to such an extent that the Red Cross told him 1.5 million lives were ultimately saved in that country. Because of HIS images. He said he was not telling us this story from an egotistical perspective but rather an inspirational one because he'd like everyone with a story to know they can have an impact. "I'm a witness," he said. " [my anger must] clarify, not cloud my vision."

He ended by showing his most recent work about the TB crisis in Cambodia and said that in the caretaking he saw by families and volunteers, he witnessed "love on an epic scale."

Thank God there's goodness out there somewhere.

Over'n out...

-Sari

Sari Goodfriend Part2 of PhotoPlus Expo

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:59:00 +0000

OK, so back to Tyler Stableford lecture: Other tips I learned in no particular order (and forgive me if this is all old news to those of you reading this)

*There’s a preset in Catalog Settings that allows you to set a time to discard your 1:1 previews if you don’t need them anymore after editing the job, thus allowing you to save a little space in your Lightroom catalog, not to mention your hard drive. Julianne Kost today said, however, she doesn’t bother having her computer discard the large size previews because she likes to have them available to go back to and she’s got something like 4.5 terabytes of HD space. Lots ‘o space there…

*Reducing contrast reduced clipped exposures

*For outdoor shots, you don’t need to be as concerned with white balance, just make it look good on your calibrated monitor – outdoor shots these days for all media are showcasing such a variety of color and different saturation levels that it’s completely subjective for this genre anyway.

*Check in the Histogram chart by mousing over the spots on the photo you are concerned about to see if you are losing blacks. It’ll show percentages.

*Only go within +/- 15 on the TINT slider.

*Fill light is the most pixel damaging tool so use it sparingly.

*A good way to work an image with two widely varying exposure levels like a landscape where you want the deep blue sky in the background and the shadowed foreground with flowers is to process the image two ways, export it into photoshop and then merge the two layers by using a layer mask and the brush tool and brushing in the layer underneath which has the exposure you want. If this is unclear, email me! (sari@sarigoodfriend.com)

*”tone curve” is similar to Brightness and contrast but it’s better. Brightness basically lightens the middle tones of an image.

*Clarity affects the midtown contrast and creates texture. For example in the clouds of a sky shot. Just be careful of extra haloing in clouds

*Vibrance boosts the saturation in the least saturated regions and mostly affects blues and greens.

*Saturation hits the oranges, yellows and reds. It’s a heavier tool than vibrance so keep it under 20 on the slider. It’s also not so great for skin tones.
*To eliminate haze in a sky, crank the vibrance up and then bring the color temperature down to make it more blue and work in the HSL (Hue, Saturation, Luminance) dialogue.

*Speaking of HSL module (I don’t know if that’s the official term, but that’s what I’m calling it), if you’re not using the little target button to adjust the density of color on your images, start doing it. You just click it (it’s under HUE) in Lightroom 2, then put your cursor somewhere on the photo that you want to darken or lighten and move the mouse literally up and down on the image and the color will be affected. You’ll see the sliders on the right moving in accordance with these shifts. You can also of course, move the sliders manually, but this might be “smarter” since the computer knows exactly which colors it’s reading.

*If you’re going to need to make black and whites or sepia versions for a client (or your own artistic fulfillment), do all the corrections and adjustments to the image, then make a “virtual copy” (CTRL click) and make THAT copy the B+W or sepia or whatever.

*There are several different ways to make a B+W image, the easiest of course is just by clicking the “Grayscale” button in “Treatment” under BASIC in LR2, but Tyler prefers to make them by going into the Saturation slider and taking it down almost, but not quite all the way. He likes to leave a little hint of color and sometimes to make sepias, you’ll need that color. His recipe for Sepias was to adjust the sliders in SPLIT TONING to the following: under highlights, set the Hue at +40, Sat 0 (I think), then shadows: Hue +240 and Sat +22 (I’m sure).
Basically, just keep your highlights warm and your shadows cool. I had never realized that was so effective before, but it really looked good, even on the huge projected screen. Kind of blueish shadows but with a warm glow overall.

*The last thing he showed us was how to sew images together. I know this is pretty basic, but I’ve still never done it. Apparently if you have three images to stitch into a panorama (and this can be horizontal or vertical, by the way), you just select all three at the same time, then CTRL click on one image and when the list comes up, choose EDIT IN and then MERGE to PANORAMA in Photoshop. It’s best to have bracketed the image so you have exposure options and also overlap your compositions by about a third.

OK folks, I think that’s it on this one…
-Sari

Day 3 and PhotoPlus Expo Is Over

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 19:28:00 +0000

This last day began with a panel on White House photographers, moderated by Debra Weiss. It was a fascinating and historicdal look at the position which was originally done my military photographers who kept their distance and pretty much concentrated on official events. JFK was the first president to bring in outside photographers--Jacques Lowe, Stanley Tretick, George Thames (of The New York TImes) and we began to see the first glimpses of the work of the president as well as the president as a person in such photographs as John F. Kennedy Jr. peeking out from the door under his fathers' desk in the Oval Office.

Lyndon Johnson brought the first official White House photographer in--Yoichi Okamoto.

David Hume Kennerly, who photographed Richard Nixon, and especially Gerald Ford (who he became very close to) showed his work, saying he had an "upstairs, downstairs" relationship with them. Like other photographers he had top secret clearance, and showed photographs of President Ford at a planning session for the military response to the Mayaguez incident in 1975 that hasn't been seen before.

His favorite photograph was taken on the final day of Ford's administration when he was with Betty Ford and she got on top of the table in the Cabinet Room and started dancing. She was his favorite.

Robert McNeely worked for presidents Carter and Clinton, and said Carter was uncooperative and as a result there is little historical documentation of his administration. "Carter was just impossible", he said.

As for Clinton, McNeely photographed him during the campaign and went to the White House with him. Wanted full access and to shoot in B&W. Only twice in six years did Clinton ask him to stop taking pictures.

Pete Souza was working for the Chicago Tribune when he met Barack Obama on his first day as a Senator, and took a photograph of him with daughter, Malia. Obama was so impressed he asked for prints, which began their relationship. Souza says he had it in the back of his mind that maybe this guy is worth watching, and he was shooting for history.

Having photographed Ronald Reagan, he was familiar with the job, and says he spends a lot of looking for interesting photographs. Where Reagan was formal (always wore a jacket in the Oval office), Obama is more relaxed. Even with top secret clearance, when he shoots in meetings he has to be careful not to show the writing on the paperwork, and everyone has to look good. This White House puts out lots of photos, from the White House website to their Flickr stream.

Souza told of how they cover a wall in the West Wing with "jumbos", 20 x 30 prints (about 80 of them) that they change out all week for Obama and staff to look at. That's sort of like how a magazine puts an issue up on their walls while they are working on it so they can see it as a whole, make changes, substitute photos, etc.

All of the photographers touched on the propaganda aspect of their work. For McNeely, "What you do is see as propaganda, it’s just a fact of life. What you try to shoot for is history. You have to live with the factor of how those photograph are seen. You’re going to reflect who the man is. You’re not going to change him.”

Pete Souza said this: “It’s a lot closer to photojournalism than what the wire services photographers do—they’re shooting photo ops.”

When asked about wether it is the pinnacle of photojournalism, McNeely said, "It’s an amazing thing while it exists. It’s hard to do anything else in Washington. That access is intoxicating.”

For David Hume Kennerly (a Pulitzer Prize winner for his Vietnam War photographs), “I know what I’m missing when someone else is there.”

Sari Goodfriend Part 2

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:01:00 +0000

Didn’t finish writing about Friday’s workshop with Tyler Stableford last night so working on it now on the crosstown bus over to Javits. The guy has some amazing images and is a Canon Explorer of Light. He showed us a bunch of images he shot with the Canon 5dMark II (a fab camera, I can attest), and then he walked us through his processing workflow in Lightroom, explaining most of the tools in the advanced section.

He didn’t get into the whole how to import and organize your images discussion because that’s really another topic altogether. We mostly just stayed in the Develop module, which was fine with me, because that’s where I seem to spend the majority of my days anyway. Learned some cool tips like how to use the gradient tool, something I remembered seeing in a workshop that APA|NY organized last year with Julianne Kost and have been trying to figure out ever since. That was incredibly helpful since I often shoot natural light portraits in lighting which differs from the background and then I lose the background because I’ve metered for the face. This tool can help you bring back in the sky, for one thing. It can also help you create a really nice effect across someone’s face if taken in from the side. You could actually make it appear as if you had a whole strobe off to one side of your model. In case you’re wondering how to use it, it actually couldn’t be simpler. You click on the little square box that says “Graduated Filter” when you mouse over it then put your mouse just outside the frame of the image and drag it either up, down or across. Watch the effect on your image and adjust it with the Exposure and Density sliders on the right.

Another interesting tidbit I didn’t know is how common it is to use vignetting to focus the lighting on your subject and bring the viewers’ eye where you want it in a subtle way. I’m gonna try that more from now on! Apparently, it’s one of the major changes that’s coming up in Lightroom 3, which, btw, is available as a BETA for download, according to Tyler.

There were a bunch more of these sorts of tips, but I’ll detail them later…off to another Lighroom Seminar with Julianne Kost herself. And yes, her name is on the credits of Lightroom – she’s an Adobe Queen!

More From Sari Day 2 PhotoPlus Expo

info@stellakramer.com (Stella Kramer) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 12:41:00 +0000

Juliette Wolf-Robin which I’ll try to summarize. Then, although I couldn’t be there in the morning due to a last minute photo shoot, I went to an afternoon workshop, "Real World Lighting, Real Results: Using Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 & Photoshop CS4 for Exceptional Travel and Outdoor Photography" from this cool outdoor and adventure photographer named Tyler Stableford. Very chill and knowledgeable guy. And it turns out he knows a friend of mine, Jim Thornburg, who is a famous climber and climbing photographer.

So first yesterday’s panel... Juliette had panelists Brian Clamp, from CLAMPArt here in Chelsea, Michael Mazzeo of Michael Mazzeo Gallery, Stephen Wilkes and Elinor Carucci, both photographers, as you probably know.
Juliette was awesome about peppering the panelists with tons of questions while also allowing the audience to throw out questions whenever we felt the urge. She started out, however, by running through a list and slide show of photogs who manage to do a bit of both commercial and fine art. Some on her list: Doug Menuez, Sandro, Emily Shur, David Robin, Michael Crouser, Michael Prince, and David Maisel.

She then posed numerous questions throughout the presentations by each panelist, which led to the following nuggets of info, some of which definitely comes across as a bit contradictory. For example the following:
*You must edition your work, but don’t edition it until you are actually seriously selling it with a gallery or widely on your own. [Huh?]

Well, seems that if you’re on your own and selling to private individuals or even randoms who buy off your website, just keep really good records so you know how many of each images you’ve sold and to whom for how much. That way, if and when you DO get a gallery, you’ll know that you might want to start the edition of one of your images at 5, for example, if you’ve sold 5 of that image at that size already.

Speaking of sizes….

*…don’t have too many different sizes. For example, if you are editioning your work, don’t have three different sizes with an edition of 25 each because you will make yourself look cheap. Granted, this might seem like funny logic to those who are new to the art world, but galleries try to create a scarcity of an artists work so that the price point can be higher, thus those small editions of 3 or 5. If you are selling your work on your own off your website or some other commercial website, that’s fine to have a larger edition, but keep in mind that should your work be there, a gallery may ultimately not be interested in you because there’s this sense that you’ve cheapened yourself by selling on a website that also “sells posters and tchochkes” as Michael Mazzeo so New York-ly put it.

*If you are showing your work to a gallery that has an open portfolio review policy (rarer and rarer these days) or at one of those organized portfolio reviews like Photo Lucida, Santa Fe, or Atlanta Celebrates Photography, it’s generally better to “show one solid body of work instead of 20 prints from a variety of different series.”

*Get as much serious criticism as you can from people outside your immediate peer group, whether you like what they have to say or not.

*Mailers to galleries are fine, but know that there is a glut of them, so they may never even get seen.

*If you happen to be selling your work off your website, don’t post your prices on your website.

*Brian Clamp said that rather than receiving a mailing from you, he’s much more likely to be interested in your work if someone like Amy Stein writes about your work on her website or blog, or Joerg Colberg writes about your work on his blog. [Uh yeah, good luck with that….]

*If you are editioning (and a gallery will usually help you figure this out once they’ve signed you), the whole Artist Proof thing becomes important at keeping the edition limited. So, if you’ve got an edition of 5, only 1 AP is customary. If the edition is up to 20, then maybe 3 or 4 APs are ok.

*In terms of printing a whole edition at once, no worries….all the panelists agreed that it would be illogical to do so, given today’s lack of storage space and cost of ink and paper, not to mention the fragility of inket prints, even if they are archival pigment ink. IF, however, you’re still in the darkroom then that’s a whole different scenario and you might want to get all those prints done while you’re still able to buy the chemicals! WORD.

Over’n out.
-Sari