Saturday, March 23, 2013

March 23, 2013. Retake

Probably only the second time I've redone a shoot and, like the first, it was because my teacher told me. It's annoying, but I'm glad they have made me do it because the second time around I'm much more satisfied. I had a clearer idea than last week, knew what I did wrong, and was able to work toward my objective steadily.
It is hard to redo something but chances are when you do, you will do it better. I'm not saying this image is perfect either, as with the limited space we were working in really made me unhappy with the background, and on second thought I would've liked another flash, but I am still very satisfied.
However, realistically, in the professional world there usually aren't second chances at a shoot, so you have to be better prepared, but this helps me do so.
Lastly I'd like to thank Yeyeon for modeling with thin clothing in the cold, and Keren for giving me a much needed assist I couldn't have done this without.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

March 17, 2013. Day At The Park

Outdoors in the morning, I wish I got up early more often. We set off to work on our first project for photography class, and that was portraiture. Honestly, I didn't nail the lighting like I intended, but the results weren't bad either. I did end up longing I had more time to go to the park and relax, enjoy the fresh air and not worry about things I have to do.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

March 16, 2013 Lost In Dimension

It was a handful of narrow alleys, reaching the point to where cars couldn't get through. The place is a mess, as if it was built like the paranoid nerves growing in our minds, branching in every direction, as disorganized as any human being's thoughts. The only sounds are the ones you can hear from far away, due to the intense quiet. Only those born there know their way around, the rest are lost, blindly turning from corner to corner of stretching walkways, toward the edge of nowhere.

Friday, March 15, 2013

March 15, 2013. Trash Alley

Mazes and dead ends stacked with garbage, the neighborhood is mostly abandoned during the day. People only come at night to sleep, and avoid hanging around. They pretend they don't see what's around them nor do they acknowledge the reality of their situation. Day in and day out, feet drag through early mornings and don't return until late nights of hard, unsatisfying labor, until they are burnt out, and cast away like trash in the streets.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

March 14, 2013. Constructive Mindset

If anybody noticed that I didn't post yesterday, well I was getting a little worked up about this blog, and even though I took a few photos, I didn't like anything so I just ended up going "Screw it, I'm not posting today."
I don't always like the photos I post here but I try to keep the posting regular anyway, and I've exhausted everything from Guatemala. I was a little anxious yesterday about a homework due today I still had no idea what to do about, and anxiety can really hinder your creativity. It also happens if I'm ever in a bad mood about something, even if I manage to take a decent photo I will certainly have nothing to say. Your mindset is a delicate thing with art, and I'm sure some people can harness negative emotions into their workflow, but stress, anxiety and a general bad mood don't work for me. It makes me wonder how artists who work 9-5 jobs manage to pump things out on gray days, or perhaps they don't? Which is why almost all artists wish they could be independent...

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

March 12, 2013. Fix 'em Up

A repair shop and a quiet, regular Tuesday. Clear mind, not much to say today.

Monday, March 11, 2013

March 11, 2013. Rundown

I have no sense of the size of Seoul. I know it's a large city, one of the largest in the world, but I slide down these tracks every day without knowing how far I'm going or what I'm passing. All I hear is the clunking and screeching of the metal wheels as I am transported to the next planet.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

March 10, 2013. Edge Thrill

A gigantic, unexplained hole, at the bottom a miniature forest where no one has been. I wonder what kind of creatures live down there, if any. The crater is huge and a terrifying sensation comes over you when you approach the edge, forcing you down on your knees from fear, like a strange gravitational force could suddenly pull you in. This massive natural accident is just humbling, reminding you of your puny size.

March 9, 2013. Far Sighted

An interesting thought I came across on the internet: The early bird gets the worm, but what happens to the early worm?
Ok it's 1am and perhaps I have nothing deep or interesting to say this time, I hope you enjoy the photo.

Friday, March 8, 2013

March 8, 2013. Abstract

An abstract image I can't fully explain. It's more of a feel than a "meaning behind" thing. I'm not sure what those photos were doing under a bridge, so that's for you to decide.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

March 7, 2013. We Make With What We Have

For many of us, life isn't as pretty as we wish, or pretend. Most media works to project our desires, not reality. It's not just individuals, but society itself works behind a facade, trying to show off its tall, shiny buildings and wide, clean roads, and there everyone gathers and pretend there are no dirty alleys where all the trash is swept and the windows are never cleaned. Many authors have taught us that there is no achievable utopia, and some problems can not be completely solved, only hidden from the public.
And although we cannot achieve perfection, we can certainly do better than this.

March 6, 2013. Rainbow Wheels

Perhaps "rainbow" is too far, but I really love all the colors I've been seeing the Vespas in. I've photographed a handful of mopeds now, and I feel like they have so much character. Motorcycle people typically like to keep the serious image, either the badass biker with the huge Harley and skulls, or the "livin' on the edge" racing bike type people. Mopeds are more of a way to get around then a compensation for your penis size (heehee! Just kidding.) and I think of them representing who we are, if motorcycles were who we want to be.

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

March 5, 2013. Cow Pie and the Sky

My dad mused, saying "I wonder when you'll get over your sky phase." Well I love staring at the sky, and great skies are inspiring. I love all kinds of photography and wouldn't like to narrow myself to one, but I think skies aren't a phase, they are opportunities. Anyway I still have a long ways to go as far as photographing them, they are pretty challenging and unpredictable so whenever I see a great sky going down I just can't pass it up.

Monday, March 4, 2013

March 4, 2013. Ye' Old

I only just got home and I already miss driving. Though it's not the same, I really want to get a bicycle already so I can be on 2 wheels, feeling the breeze.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

March 3, 2013. Finding The Calm

If there is anything that makes me jump up and down like a little girl at a Beiber concert, it's locations with moving water. Rivers, waterfalls, the ocean, they have given me some of my favorite photos.

I don't know why I like photography. It seems from very young I was always drawn toward cool images, like most kids, but I always thought I wanted to be one of those who created them. Everybody has something that gives them drive, gets their motors started, brings in excitement, but it is strange how for every one it is different, and how some could feel no interest in what to you is the world.

For example: I'm just not a sport person. I don't care for sport news or watching big games or even just knowing the results. Yet to many, very many people, sports are their greatest passion and their lives almost revolve around them. All the same, lots of people out there do not care for photography. It's like nature vs. nurture. Are our interests product of our experiences or could they be a part of our genetic makeup? (Like those who say they were born to do something.)

Saturday, March 2, 2013

March 2, 2013. Modeling

I've already had a chance to work with a few people on their first time modeling and it's a mutual learning experience. One should avoid the nuisance that there are "good" and "bad" models, just appropriate or inappropriate ones. Really you need to design your production around your model, and more experienced models are simply more efficient at adapting themselves to what's in your mind, as long as you are also skilled at expressing that. If you imagined a photo is a film placed into one frame, then the photographer is (aside from the cameraman) the equivalent of the director and needs to know how to work with both experienced and inexperienced models and play to their strengths.
Now I sure can talk for my own lack of experience but between working with someone experienced (Yvonne, my girlfriend) and inexperienced (above) I find the biggest challenge while shooting is knowing what I want and expressing it clearly and efficiently so that the model can perform optimally.

Friday, March 1, 2013

March 1, 2013. Capsule

Being in an airplane is like an extended subway experience. You enter this capsule where you only have a remote sense of the outside world, and after many hours you exit onto another land. You can feel the flight, look out the window to see above the clouds, observe cities shrink into miniatures and then grow large again, but you can't feel your environment change so it is much like remaining in the same place. Until you step out and smell the different air, the change in temperature, language and people, the change is always very sudden despite all of those hours of waiting. From last summer until now I've been on 2 trips, and those involved boarding a total of 12 planes, but it's always that feeling of having gone somewhere completely detached, an island in its own world, a world in it's own universe.