Final Post

I'm starting a new photo blog on wordpress because it seems a lot more flexible than blogger. So this blog is officially dead. Make sure to follow my new photo blog: http://juanmadridphotography.wordpress.com/.

Blog Response

               I was excited to start a blog. Blogging is a way of connecting to other people you may or may not know, which can always lead to opportunities. It also allows for growth when people decide to critique your work. I personally would've liked to see more people get more involved with commenting on others blogs and others to keep their blogs more up to date. I guess that was my biggest gripe with the assignment.
               I think there are too many positives afforded by the blogging experience for this one blemish to really stand out much. I enjoyed looking at others' images and only wish that I had commented on more. It's also a great way to get your work and name out in the world where anyone could chance upon it. I loved getting critiques, as I think it helps me even when it's over the internet. A perfect example is my first image of an orange for the still life, which I got some feedback on. Using that feedback, I went back into the studio and created a much stronger image.
               I thought of my blog as a place to show my work, whether it be a final product or a work in progress, and to share things that inspired and interested me. I have a flickr, though I haven't used it in a while (may have to change that), so I was used to putting work up on the internet. I had also used a photographer's forum before to get and leave feedback. Making a blog wasn't all that different, though I much prefer blogging since it can be so much more personal.
             Overall it was a great experience and I'll definitely keep at it with at least one new blog, if not more.

40th Post

A near perfect 40th post (especially if Blogger didn't lie to me and tell me I had 39 posts when I really didn't).

It's all about loving what you do and having fun while you're doing it.

Freezefest sled "race"

This was falsely advertised as a sled race, which I was going to use as a narrative for my final. That didn't happen of course but no big deal. Here are just a few images from the sledding.

 

 

Watch these!

These videos are very strange but I can't help but watch and love them. There's more from the youtube user if you want to watch more. These really make me want to try something really out there in my photography, hopefully I'll find inspiration for a huge project from them.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HouIf-PXpJs&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxC4zMCwefo

Constructed Image Final

Inspired by Magritte, I'm hoping to flesh the idea out more and try to give it my own spin over time as I'm really interested in Magritte's work and like how this shot came out. I had other ideas for images but sadly I didn't have the time to work them out. I think I want to go in an even more surreal direction with this when I decide on exactly what I want to shoot.

 

A few of Magritte's paintings:

 

 

Narrative Final

Ice sculpture. Really wish I had an establishing shot of just the block of ice.

 

  

  

  

 

Inspiration: Ellen Kooi

Ellen Kooi's website

I came across Ellen Kooi's book Within From Without during first quarter and decided to check it out of the library again recently. I personally think her images are awe inspiring because most are pretty simple and she uses light extremely well. She also usually uses color extremely well in her images. If I had had more time for the final I definitely would have liked to try something similar to her work, especially since her images easily fit into the category of the constructed image.
Here are some of my favorite images created by Kooi:

 

Images by Ellen Kooi.

Final Still Life

My personal favorites of all the still lifes I printed. Critiques always welcome.

 

 

Final Still Life

4 of my final 6 still life images.

 

Apple

Probably not using this as one of my final still lifes but I still like it.

OJ the old fashioned way

An image (straight out of camera) I'm thinking of reshooting tomorrow since the highlights are kind of bugging me. Any critiques/comments very welcome.

Todd Hido

I enjoyed Todd Hido speaking almost as much as I enjoyed Kareem Black speaking. I really preferred Hido's images over Black's though. Hido is a fine art photographer who also does commercial work, but he mainly stuck to showing and talking about his personal work. It really came across that Hido loved photography and it made for an interesting lecture from him. Photography is very personal for him, as his subjects relate to his past. I liked the ambiguity of some of his images, particularly those of houses. The houses appear as if they could be almost anywhere and allow the viewer to relate to them easily. After hearing Hido speak today I definitely think I might move towards fine art photography, though I can't be too sure yet.

More Still Life

Critiques welcomed, especially on which of the two star fruit images is better and why.

 

And one non-fruit still life:

2 More from NYC

The Met.

A store in Chinatown.

Kathy Griffin

Didn't think she was all that funny but I love shooting events like this. There's a ten minute time limit for shooting so you have to work fast because ten minutes is up before you know it.

 

  

 

Kiwi: Most Amazing Fruit Ever

I'm pretty sure the title says it all. I don't think there are too many fruits that are better to photograph or eat.

Brother

 

My brother playing one of the silliest instruments in the world, the melodica. The only thing I dislike about this image is lost details in the shadows, but there wasn't much I could do to save them.

The Star Beneath the Sea

Don't know if I'm using this as one of my final prints for the still life but I think so.

Erika Larsen

I went to go see Erika Larsen speak at the Carlson Auditorium tonight. I thought she had some great images and also some decent video. She talked about how she shoots and the usual things speakers talk about. It wasn't great but it was enjoyable. It's too bad I kept falling asleep and only got snippets of what she was talking about. She did say she rarely talks when shooting, unless her subject is particularly chatty. I thought that was interesting because I usually try to talk to somebody I'm shooting because it usually puts them at ease. I guess it really depends on the photographer and subject though. Overall I didn't enjoy this speaker as much as when Kareem Black came (I'll write about him soon) but it wasn't bad by any means. Finally a quote from when Erika was talking about shooting the Sami in the Arctic: "There's a lot of boob grabbing; it's like, "You're a young girl in the tundra, why else would you be here?"

http://www.erikalarsenphoto.com/

Monkeys

Well I found what is easily one of my new favorite books. I'll share an image from it but the rest will have to wait until book share.

Image by Jill Greenberg. Check out her site at http://www.manipulator.com/.

Excited

I'm pretty excited for these last two assignments. I've got a ton of ideas for the still life and a few for the final. I just have to flesh them out this weekend so I can shoot soon. Not sure yet, but I think I might need to find a model for the final.

Triptych

Swim Meet

            I think these two photos are much better than any from the first swim meet I shot at. A lot of it is about timing, especially since the swimmers aren't always above the water. I finally shot some diving at this meet but my battery died after about 5 shots. Guess that will have to wait until another time.

NYC

Studio Self Portrait

The focus is a little off, but I'm happy with the lighting. Planning on doing a self portrait series at some point.

NYC

One of my photos from NYC from break. Didn't shoot a ton and can't say I love the city anyway.