How does your photography reflect your vision?

It's been a while since I last added to my supposedly weekly blog, and I must apologize for my tardiness. My life, it seems, as resembled more of a roller-coaster these past couple of months, than a growing, dynamic journey where I can see where I've been, where I've come from and have an idea of where I'm going to. I've been questioning the meaning and purpose of my life and of course, the moment you start comparing yourself to friends, it's not long before you nose-dive into the muck and mire of depression.

My life may not be headlined in National Geographic images or coffee table books, but I food on my table, friends who I value and treasure, 3 incredible children who I'm proud of, a 78-year old mother who keeps me in her prayers (thanks Mom!) on-again/off-again siblings who I hear from occasionally, and given the distance we live from one another, that falls into the category of miracles.

This past week I got an email giving me advance notice about another E-book that photographer and author David DuChemin was releasing. This one is called, The Vision Driven Photographer, Notes on Discovering & Refining Your Vision.

While I love Dave's body of work, his international experiences, what I value most is his from-the-heart writing. In many ways, it's almost as though he and I are sitting down having a drink in his or my living room as he talks about how I can get in touch with my inner self again instead of moping about just how pitiful life is. In other words, this E-book (can be downloaded HERE) is food for the soul.

Dave says that vision matters because

...it is the place we begin, and the road we travel, on the way to our goal - creating compelling photographs that express something we've no other means of expression but through the frame...Learning to discover, and then express, our vision will make better photographs through a more fulfilling creative process.

He establishes the difference between vision, style and technique before giving us concrete examples, suggestions and exercises that will help to tap into or develop our vision. What I find most interesting about this E-book is that while it speaks directly to the photographer, it applies just as well to the watercolour artist as it does to the animator as it does to someone struggling in their marriage. Even though quoted out of context, the words from the Old Testament poet, "Where there is no vision, the people perish..." (Proverbs 29:18a), remain valid.

I could highly encourage you to purchase and download a copy from of this E-book from pixelatedimage.com and read it at your leisure. It is a $5 investment that you won't regret making. Furthermore, promotional code DRIVEN4 when you checkout, you can have the PDF version of The Vision Driven Photographer for only $4 OR use the code DRIVEN20 to get 20% off when you buy 5 or more PDF ebooks from the Craft & Vision collection. These codes start at 1:00am PST, November 24th, 2010 and expire at 11:59pm PST November 28th, 2010.

One final note, some of you know that I am leading an 11-day safari to Botswana next June. Yesterday I got notice that one seat is now available. If you are interested, or know anyone who is, please contact me. The cost, without airfare to Johannesburg, is close to $3000, a steal especially when everything is included. You will have two professional photographers, one of which is also a wildlife expert, on board to help you master your camera and capture incredible images.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Could we have a few more photographers please!?

Today's blog post is a repost of Zack Arias' blog post dated September 22, 2010. Zack knows first hand what it's like to start as a photographer, lose it and then come back a 2nd time and finally make it big! He's a hero. At least, he's my hero.  Links to his blog can be found at the bottom of this post. Enjoy!

Everyone wants to be a photographer these days.

Let me warn you now that this blog post is currently in it’s third state of revisions. It’s a real rambler. If you’re up for it, I’m up for it. More after the jump.

If you hang out on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and the like enough you can “stumble upon” some trends without even trying to. Lately I have seen a number of articles flying around about the over saturation of the photography industry, the unsustainability of the microstock market, and the pros and cons of working for “free”. The “abuse” we photographers receive at the hands of our clients and totally absurd Craig’s List postings of people wanting work for free or photographers giving away the farm for nothing.

Here are a few of the articles that most people are talking about these days.

• Photo business guru John Harrington over at Black Star Rising talking about the 12 excuses for shooting for free. This article is the one that got me thinking about doing this blog post.
• Don Giannatti (Wizwow) has this article on shooting for free, and this article on getting experience. Great reads here.
• David Hobby (Strobist) about working for free. Another must read.
• Rob Haggart (A Photo Editor) about the unsustainability of the micro stock industry. Canary in the coal mine?

Let’s start with the “over saturated” market premise.

I, Zack Arias, am part of the over saturated market. I am one of the many who are filling the waters of this industry. Every job I take is a job off of the table of another photographer. I am a working photographer in large part due to the prevalence of affordable DSLRs, the expense of film and development being removed from my up front overhead, and the Internet.

I’ll be so bold to say that if you have entered this industry in the last ten years then you too are part of the over saturation equation. If you are thinking about becoming a pro photographer, whether part time or full time, then you are over saturating the market as well. I would say the “standard saturation” photographers are the ones who have been in the game, full time, without gaps, for more than ten years.

Let’s break this thing down.

In the days of Kodachrome and dinosaurs there were some pretty set rules of engagement and paths of entrance into the photography industry. You usually started by going to photography school or you started working in a lab. You had to get your feet wet somewhere and school and photo labs were a good place to get started. Once you were ready to move forward you started assisting working photographers. Many times you would have done this for free. I have assisted and interned for free many times and I have met countless photographers who started by schlepping bags and fetching coffee for nothing or next to nothing in pay. It’s what you did. It’s how you got to see how a “real” photographer worked. It was called… get this… “paying your dues.”

These days those paths aren’t so clearly defined. You can go to school via blogs, workshops, YouTube, and DVD’s. You can upload pictures to Flickr and suddenly get a message from an art director wanting you to shoot a job. You can be a kid from Canada, travel the world, shoot some bands and end up shooting campaigns for a company you aren’t even old enough to buy their product. You can be inspired by your own wedding photographer, buy a camera, a fast lens, and rise to the top of your zip code within a year. You can go to Wal-Mart, buy a cheap DSLR, shoot your friends and family, shoot their friends and families, put a blog together, and start a business. There are so many easy entry points into the market now. There is an abundance of inexpensive cameras, free learning portals, and free advertising routes that allows just about anyone with a camera to get out there and make a little or a lot of money with it.

The worst part about all of this is you don’t even have to be all that good of a photographer to get into the game. That really is the worst part about it all but hang out at enough photography water coolers and you’ll hear stories from “back in the day” about the same damn things. Being a crappy photographer with a profitable business is nothing new. There were just more up front costs to deal with back then. Now it’s just easier to be a crappy sucksessful photographer. Add insult to injury… You can be a fairly mediocre photographer these days and have a workshop teaching others how to be just as mediocre as you are. Meh. Whatever. It is what it is.

Add to all of this the deteriorating morale in the corporate workplace, the need of many to make an extra $100 here and there, unemployment, the recession, blah blah blah, and the fact that a lot of people find it a whole lot cooler to say “I’m a photographer” at social gatherings instead of saying “I’m a systems analyst at a health care company.” Bring this all together into the perfect shit storm of an industry filled to the gills with Joe and Jane Photographers trying to do something cool with their lives AND make some money doing it. I mean, Quicken and Quickbooks didn’t really over saturate the accounting market did it? Maybe I’m wrong.

I’m right here part of it all. I’m part of the over saturated market. You’re part of the over saturated market. Don’t bitch and moan and complain about it because you’re in it with the rest of us.

What do we do with that information? Here we all are. Up to our necks in each other. We watch ten leave because they can’t take the pressure and twenty more take their place. It all gets just a little tighter around here. The last thing in the world you need to do is complain about the situation… unless of course, you’ve been at this for twenty or more years. In that case, my apologies to you. I know you’re feeling the pressure of all of us new kids in the pool but here we are and it’s the only pool in town for us. Complaining about us isn’t making us leave and don’t think for a second that I didn’t just notice the water around me get a lot warmer.

Blah blah blah. Metaphor upon metaphor.

So it’s competitive. Guess what? Photography has always been competitive. I don’t know of any other time in this industry when it wasn’t competitive. The nice thing about the industry these days is it seems that most of us are now open to share our experiences with others. Gone are the days of everyone playing with their cards close to their chests. If you are still trying to stay in this industry with that sort of attitude your days are numbered. It’s a real hippy love fest around here these days and we young punk kids ain’t got no time for your old ways of doing things.

Us young punk kids actually really need you to stick around. We need the long established pros to help us out. I know you want us out of your pool but that isn’t happening any time soon. The better you can adapt the better you can survive. Part of adapting is now requiring you to kind of be a life guard even though  you’d probably just be as happy to watch us all drown.

So. Yeah. Over saturated. Your attitude should shift from “This sucks.” to “So what?”. Big Deal. More at the party dude!

How can I run a business will all these $500 wedding photographers in my town?

That’s the next thing we are going to look at. I’ll let you in on this… I’m all for $500 wedding photographers. For many different and sometimes conflicting reasons. Then we’ll look at the micro stock situation. Is it the canary in the coal mine? Then let’s have a conversation about what it all means at the end of the day and will the industry adjust and what will that look like?


The dog days are over
The dog days are done
The horses are coming
So you better run*

*I actually like to listen to the song above as “The dark days are over” and the horses coming aren’t here for destruction.
Cheers,
Zack
------------

Zack Arias is a music photographer based in Atlanta, GA. You can follow his blog at www.zarias.com

September Wallpaper

September is here in all it's glory and even though Labor Day has come and gone, I wanted to upload a new monthly feature, viz. desktop wallpapers. Each image will have a calendar at the bottom left or right every month.

This month's image is a scene photographed in the Kruger Park, South Africa. In spite of the bush that is filled with all sorts of wild animals, and river in which crocodiles lurk, the image highlights the loneliness and isolation that you feel when you are so far away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

2560 × 1600

1280 × 853

 Sometimes it is so quiet, that your ears hurt. Of course, the night sky is something to behold!

I am leading a safari to Botswana and Zambia in June 2011, and am opening registration for the next Safari. I had thought the next trip could be a tour to Nambia and the Kalahari with their stark landscapes before returning back to Botswana in 2012.  Please let me know if you have any interest.

Enjoy the images, and please let me know your thoughts.

A Traditional Treat: South African Crunchies

As some of my readers know, I love cooking, and from time to time, I miss eating traditional South African foods, things like bobotjie, koeksusters, rusks, boerewors etc. and today I thought I would share a wonderful crunchie recipe that I have used. It's easy to make and requires no baking skills, except the ability to measure and follow a recipe.

Think of today's post as a sweet treat, thanks to my readers for following me. If you find this recipe on the web, please leave a comment. Measurements are metric.

Traditional South African Crunchies

Combine the following dry ingredients together:
2 cups (250 ml) cake (all purpose) flour
2 cups finely dessicated non-sweetened coconut
2 cups slow cooking rolled oats
1.5 cups of white sugar

Melt:
300-350 g of butter
1 heaped tablespoon of Lyle's golden syrup

When melted, add:

1.5 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) dissolved in 1 tablespoon of boiling water.
Add this to the melted butter/syrup mixture.

Stir vigorously, but be careful as the mixture will froth!

Mix the dry ingredients in and let it stand for about 10 minutes.

Press the mixture into a greased oven tray (I use a baking spray)

Bake at 220 deg C (428 deg F) for approximately 30 mins or until a deep golden brown.

Remove from oven, cut into squares while still warm and allow to cool in the baking tray before using a lifter and allowing to cool completely out of the tray,

Store in a tight container.

I am about to bake my own and if I remember will put up a photograph of what they look like!

Enjoy.

Photographing an Artist

Artists are a unique breed of person because we are passionate about our work and the way we see the world. We will stand up for each other, but will also "move" around each like two novice dancers who have no idea who is supposed to lead, or who is supposed to follow because you're afraid to step on toes and hurt someone else's feelings.

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to photograph a friend and fellow artist, Kobi Baker who is based in Houston, Texas. I've known Kobi for almost 5 years, and while I have photographed him in a variety of styles and settings, our latest project was the most exciting, because it was radically different from what either of us had done in the past. The goal was create an image that would describe Kobi without using words, an image that would show the artist at work.

We threw a few ideas around, but one in particular stuck. Kobi would create an acrylic painting, and I would photograph the artist and his work together. The idea seemed innocuous enough. A couple of months had gone by when Kobi sent me a text saying the painting was finished and asking when the shoot was scheduled for! Needless to say I was stumped. The problem wasn't so much the "when", as the "where"! I was to photograph Kobi in front of his art while a 3rd person poured paint over him. I had no idea of a location that had tall ceilings, had a floor that we could potentially knock a can of paint onto, and was big enough to set up lights in such a way that it didn't look the image didn't end up looking as though it had been photographed in a cave. The MFAH came to mind, but I immediately discounted that idea.

"Untitled"

I contacted a couple of Houston artists and art organizations without success. Some people didn't even bother returning my phone calls. The Houston Art Alliance suggested that I place an ad on a bulletin board that many artists frequented, but while people read they ad, not a single person responded. As days turned into weeks, I realized that finding the right location, at the right price, was going to be a challenge and then I remembered that my fellow artist and colleague David Ayl has a studio located not far from downtown Houston. I shot him an email explaining what I wanted to do and within a day got his return email saying that I was more than welcome to use his place. The only problem was that while his studio didn't have a fully functioning shower,  it did have a tub and shower head that Kobi could use to rinse off the paint.

With the location selected, all that remained was to set two dates: one to set up, and the other for the shoot. I packed my FJ Cruiser with all sorts of photo gear and included some heavy duty plastic bags and tape so we could protect the floor from the paint and met Kobi and David at the studio.

One thing I have omitted in my description of David's studio is that  it doesn't have air conditioning. The humidity and heat in Houston is almost unbearable at this time of year, I knew that was going to be a hot job. As we unloaded my vehicle, the sweat poured from our bodies like water over the edge of Niagara Falls.  We moved David's tables out of the way, cut open plastic bags and taped them to the floor.

Next we set up the lights, set up light modifiers and I took approximate measurements and translated those to use with my Canon 5D and 70-200 Mk II lens.  Why the 70-200 lens?  The longer the lens, the more it compresses the foreground with the background. While I wanted Kobi to stand in front of the painting, I didn't want it to be covered with falling paint, but wanted the image to appear as though there was very little distance between the subject and the art.

Artist and Art

The shoot was scheduled for 10 AM the next morning. This was tricky. After all, once the "operation" started, there was no stopping or going back. We had one go to make this a successful shoot.

I arrived at the studio and David was waiting for us.  Kobi had brought a friend along who volunteered to climb up a ladder and to pour the paint over him.  After a few more adjustments to the changing light, we were ready to go.  Kobi knows how to respond to a camera and as I pressed the shutter, the dance began: lights, paint, movement, light, shutter, stop, wipe face, lens blur, shutter, light, more paint, check light, more paint... Before we knew it, the last bottle of paint was emptied and the last flash went off, but then Kobi had an idea...

The Pour Begins!

The Finished Product

The Finished Product

...could I take a photo of him outside? OUTSIDE?  Why? As we emerged into the hot Houston sunlight, me with my camera in hand and Kobi covered in paint, a Houston Police car cruised by.

Posing Outside

The officer probably just shook his head and thought obscene thoughts to himself.In the meanwhile, the paint was starting to dry. We ran the water for the bath that David had cleaned out and laughed as Kobi tried to wash paint off. That was a sight to behold after which we packed up all my equipment, loaded my car and I headed back to the studio to process the images.

All in all, a great day and a great experience, with some incredible photographs in hand, and special thanks to Kobi and David for an fun time.

On Your Own? Think Again!

It's easy to think that we are sometimes that only person who has a certain world view or is struggling to define concepts, or battling to make ends meet in this rather lack-lustre economy.  Yes, you can talk to friends and family about your life and the struggles you have on a daily basis, the disagreements you have with your bank or credit card company, but there is nothing quite like connecting with colleagues who are in the same boat as you are.

A couple of weeks ago I booked a flight up to Omaha, Nebraska on the urging of Ann Monteith an incredible photographer and past president of PPA to attend a workshop hosted in the town of Norfolk, Nebraska.  I wasn't sure what to expect at the workshop. I knew that I would have to be bullied and glared at by cold-hearted security personnel with room temperature IQs at the airports, have to squeeze into aeroplane seats designed to fit 5-year olds and endure the two hour flight to Omaha on teeny packet of pretzels with the possibility that some 3-month old kid would be screaming his/her lungs out the entire journey. While the latter didn't happen, the plane was delayed for over an hour.  I wonder if this is a sign of things to come with the merger of United and Continental?

I arrived at Omaha, picked up my car rental (a PT cruiser which handles the way it was designed - awkwardly) and drove into the green hills of Nebraska carpeted with fields of green corn. After a 2 hour journey, I found the hotel, checked in, rushed down for the "Welcome" cocktail hour (the older I get, the more cocktail hours I need!) and introduced myself to a few stragglers and made out way to the restaurant for dinner.  What a treat.  At table I sat with Bruce and Josh Hudson, a father and son team at Hudson Portrait Design. What an incredible team they make and they set me on fire with their stories of hurdles they had to overcome and tales success.  This was a sign of things to come. For two days, I "workshopped" and networked with 35 other photographers who insisted that even though the economic climate sucks, failure in business is not an option. After all, what else can a photographer do? Work for some cold-hearted jack-ass boss whose ongoing mood swings need to be controlled with bi-polar medication?  I think not!

The energy was intense. The workshops helped us design our goals, put systems in place for the next two quarters, overcome issues, tweak some ideas and plan for success. The evening were spent sharing our stories around a glass of wine, beer or scotch. The third day of activities was tightly scheduled as we met with graphic designers, web designers and marketing specialists back to back and who helped translate our ideas and dreams into marketing reality. At 5 PM we parted and I headed back to Omaha, NE and checked into a Holiday Inn (thanks to Priceline.com) at a good price.

 I spent the Thursday morning relaxing over a late breakfast and then made my way to the airport. I was so anxious to get home, that I boarded the wrong plane! How was I supposed to know that the plane I was seated on was going to La Guardia, NY instead of Houston, TX?  I mean, there I was comfortably seated in my teeny aisle seat, and the doors were about to close but one person had a ticket but because some people had switched seats, he had no place to sit. The gate official came up front and made an announcement for me to come to the front of the plane with all my belongings.  What?  Why was I being kicked off? I went up front without my stuff, and asked what was going on. The gate official asked if I had all my belongings with me.  Of course I didnt!  I wanted to know what was going on before they kicked me off. That's when I learnt that I was on the wrong flight.  Ooops!  I was a little flushed and apologized profusely. The gate official said it was their fault because they should've caught it. I exited the plane with my bags and ensconced in the waiting area once again waiting for the correct flight! Anyway, after a dull flight with well-behaved passengers, I was glad to get back to Houston.

It's easy for us to sometimes wallow in the fact that we're on our own and to underscore our aloneness by taking online classes or read books and manuals in isolation.  This experience taught me how important it is to get out there, to mix with others,  to share ideas, to listen to others and to surround yourself with people who know the taste of success and are happy to help you in your quest for success. The poet John Donne put it this way in his Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions:

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind...

Going on Safari to Africa

There are many many photographers who call themselves "professional". Some are good, some are average and many are just bad. That's a pretty sweeping statement to make and I wont' be surprised if I get more than just a few comments about that. But stop and think about it. Just because you charge to take photographs doesn't make you a "professional".

A professional that I admire is former seminarian and Canadian, David DuChemin, because he is a man who, from my perspective at least, "there is no guile" (no pun intended in that Scriptural reference). Dave is honest and upfront and wants to get anyone interested in photography shooting with the equipment they have and no wishing they could take great photos because they don't have the latest and greatest gizmos on the market.

I'm singing Dave's praises because this week he released another monograph in a series called "The Print & The Process" called SAFARI. The title was like nectar to a honey bee because in less than a year (June 2011) Jamie Thom and I will be leading a group of 7 people on safari to Botswana and Zambia. Why seven? Well, because I am number 8 and Jamie is number 9. Jamie is a top flight photographer and skilled instructor who lives in Johannesburg, South Africa. He knows the African bush backwards and has won many awards for his photography. I grew up in South Africa and want others to grow to love Africa and it's heritage the way I do and what better way to make that happen by taking friends and their friends on safari. By the way, only THREE (3) seats remain, so if you are interested in going to Africa for less than $5000 (including airfare), then you need to contact me today!

This 62-page eBook, available for the ridiculously low price of $5.00 and whether you photograph your dog, cat, children, animals at the zoo or in the wild, I recommend you buy it. Dave discusses lessons he learned, (one being the importance of slowing down, because Africa moves at a different pace!), what gear he used and the Adobe Lightroom settings he created for his prints. If you buy this eBook before July 11, you can obtain it for $4.00 (that's cheaper than a meal at Mickey Ds) by clicking this link and using the promotional code SAFARI4 when you check out.  (Oh, btw, Dave also puts out a great desktop wallpapers you can use on your computer every month! For 1280×853 click here and for 2560x1600 click here.)

What is my itinerary?

19th June, 2011
Overnight in hotel in Johannesburg. Still making arrangements at a 3-star or better hotel close to the airport.

20th June, 2011
Depart Oliver Tambo Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa
Arrive Maun, Botswana
Air Botswana

Overnight in hotel in Maun. Currently exploring opportunities. Hotels/Lodges range from simple B&B to USD500 a night all inclusive.  More details to follow.

21st - 22nd June, 2011
Okavango Delta
Our adventure will take us in a north-westerly direction from Maun to the western side of the Okavango Delta, a special corner of paradise. Once we have reached the edge of the Delta, we will transfer our equipment to motorboats and cruise along the narrow papyrus-lined channels enjoying the exquisite birdlife of the region as well as the stunning landscape. Deeper in the Delta we will meet the local polers with their mokoro, a traditional dugout canoe, and enjoy a tranquil transfer to an island. We will spend two days exploring this beautiful area on mokoro excursions and taking guided walks on the islands and floodplains of the Okavango.
(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner provided)

23rd June, 2011
Okavango Delta
Inspired by the beauty of the Okavango, we will retrace your route to Maun. We will have the option of taking a scenic flight over the Delta to return to Maun (1hr scenic flight is EUR 100 per person, with a minimum of 3 guests to guarantee the flight). This magical experience provides another perspective of the Okavango Delta’s unique water system and if you choose to take the flight, you will enjoy a leisurely afternoon in the Delta campsite writing postcards or reading a book while you wait for your afternoon flight. Your guide will travel back to Maun with the vehicle to resupply for the next stage of your adventure. After collecting you at the airport, we will shop for drinks and then spend the night at a campsite just outside Maun with permanent ablution facilities. (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner provided.)

24th - 26th June, 2011
Moremi Game Reserve
From Maun we will drive through to Moremi Game Reserve, one of the best wilderness areas of Botswana which covers swamp and dry areas. The next three days will be spent searching for the wide variety of wildlife and birds that this area is renowned for, while absorbing the sounds and beauty of this region. Game drives in the early morning as the sun rises and in the late afternoon as the sun sets will be the norm. After our morning game drive, we will return to camp for lunch and a siesta.
(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner provided)

27th - 29th June, 2011
Chobe National Park
The diverse and striking landscape of Chobe National Park, is our next destination. As you continue your search for wildlife, we will traverse the drier region of Savuti where bull elephants dot the plains. We will then head northwards to the Chobe River where our game drives will meander along the banks of the river and venture further into the park.
(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner provided)

30th June - 1st July, 2011
After a morning game drive you will cross the Zambezi River by ferry and then drive to Livingstone on the Zambian side of the Victoria Falls (Visa required), where you will spend the night at a comfortable lodge. In the afternoon there will be time to visit the thunderous Victoria Falls and shop for curios. Dinner will be at your own expense at the lodge. The safari officially ends at 10 AM on 1st July, 2011.

1st July, 2011
Depart Livingstone, Zambia
Arrive Oliver Tambo Airport, South Africa
British Airways

1st July, 2011
Overnight in hotel in Johannesburg and transit on your own to a local or international destination with memories of an incredible experience you cannot wait to share.

Just think about it! You can swelter away in next year's summer heat, or you can call me today at 713.581.0656 and be part of the trip that you will remember and reminisce about for the rest of your life.

Here is your To-do list:
1. Call John at 713.581.0656 to get more information on the Safari to Botswana and Zambia next July.
2. Download Dave's eBook.

That's it for another week. Peace, and happy shooting.