Takeing it to the next Level

I have been involved in photography for nine years now, but it was only in the last 2 years that i realy started to take my craft seriously. I was talking to my mom the other day about takeing it to the next level and I told her I was scared because I have not done much portraiture. (My goal of working in Vegas in 2.5 yeas) But in the last few days I have come to realize that is not the only way to take the next level. I have opened my own CafePress store front... Sadly I don't have the money to set it up like i would want. I have put one thing of note cards up and i worked on this photo for the cards. I have been thinking about doing free siting to work on my portraiture for a number of things one of witch it would add to my experience along with adding to my portfolio. I am even toying with the idea of sending out post cards to the neighborhood advertising my photography services. If you see any thing on my blog or my flickr pages you would like as note cards, prints or any thing don't hesitated to drop me a line. I'm sure we could work some thing out. It is my goal to make my living with my art :)

Outside the BOX

Some times you just have to push your self even when your not feeling it... Today was one such day I have alot of them days and flowers photos are not my thing. But today was about pushing my self and steping outside of the box. As im working on my vision i keep asking my self the same thing; Why do i take photos? That has led me to a whole host of other things. One thing i ask at the end of this dialog with my self is do I need to answer these questions to make good art? I can not be a photographer if i do not make photos and i can not do that if i do not push my self to get out there and take them. Its kinda like the existentialist talk about I have all this anxiety because I have all this freedom. I need to over come my fear of failing and just do it... Why do i take photos? Right now its to find my vision and to work on my craft. If i have some nice art to put on the wall all the better... but as an artiest i do not believe that should be the end to aim for...

Learning Process

I have been learning to use photoshop more and working on my workflow. I shut in raw now but when i first got my camera i went out of town for 3 weeks and i had no idea what i was doing so i used jpeg. it was not tell yeas later and i got photoshop that i started useing raw and then still on my trip last summer i was unsure so i shot raw and jpeg it was not tell i red some thing about color in post processing and extermination that I found out what was wrong or was missing so i have added to my repertoire of postprocessing and added one more step to my workflow. here are two photos one befor i learned to deal with color in post and the other i reworked early this
morning.




No color post

















Color added in post and i have stared useing the unsharp mask.

Direction

I have two photos over on flickr caught in a lope and locked out. I mention them because they work as visual metaphor in describing my frustration in the lack of direction I feel in regards to my art. I feel locked out becaue i have a lot of hang ups that i have not over come... and i dont push my self hard enough to come up with compelling photographs. i tend to go back to the same things over and over again like the fire trucks like the psychiatric hospitals therefor im caught in a lope. to day i did go to the haymarket area and i tryed to photograph but i feel i came up short. i left with only photographing the city buses coming in to the barn for today and some other industrial complex...a grain elevator. On the post side of it i also feel im stuck in a lope because photoshop is so extensive I feel like im spinning my wheels... not just that but some times it feels so overwhelming all the technicalities with exposure sharpening and what not... Here is my homage to the greats that worked in the FSA during the Depression. Reflecting upon direction I keep focusing on short-term goals... like setting my my dige dark room up or buying this or that and i keep forgetting the long term one of being back in Vegas in 2.5 years working as a photographer. that is the point of me going back to school here where i live so i can pay instate tuition get my degree if i so choose and then go out there (vegas) and get a job doing weddings at a Chapel and supplementing my income by pursuing my own artistic endeavors and selling my wheres at art shows. so i would have the job side of it taken care of steady income from a wedding chapel and then the creative outlet at the art shows. i miss the art scene in Vegas. years ago i had a art instructor that was active here locally in art scene and that really turned me off that's another discussion for a another blog.

Why do I photograph?

Dada was an outgrowth of the 1st world war and was a backlash the against traditional canon of art and dealt with nihilistic themes and representation. At on point in my early adult life I questioned the existence of reality and I tried to pursue photography in a nihilistic direction specifically abstract photography. After facing death and feeling empty I searched for some thing more fulfilling both philosophically and artistically…

I have 3 photos here from my earlier work…

This is a sunset shut out in the Mojave Desert ill call this art photography.

This was taken at the neutral buoyancy laboratory at Johnson Space Center Ill call this a snap shut or travel photography (for personal use).

This photo was taken at Clarinda psychiatric hospital Ill call this documentary photography.










So with these 3 photos may be I can answer why I photograph and start working towards an artist statement.

My Intro to the world

Well i could cheat but i'm not going to this is my photo blog to the world so here is my 1st pic. I dont have an artist statement as of yet and im hoping that this blog will help me in that aim and will foce me to take my photography more seriously. I have been actively participating in photography since high school. but it was not until after my aneurysm that I decided to pursue my artistic endeavors. This year i'm going back school for photography and I have decided to study photography on my own. Im reading a book right now on exposure and following that one up with one on composition. a quick note about this photo befor i got sick i was vary much in to dada and nihilism; facing my mortality I have come to embrace existential philosophy and impart existentialism in to some of my art that is why you will see pics of turtles and other nature related endeavors. Much more to come so stay turned...