JmJohnson photo blog

1409

2010-04-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

Better than baseball.

2010-04-04T08:18:00.000-07:00

The clouds were heavy and grey as I was photographing a non-conference ball game in Pittsfield Friday. I usually carry the 5D Mark II with a 24-70mm and my 1D Mark II with 300mm but that day I left the 5D in the car should it start raining.

I've been looking for "Bonus" pictures a lot lately, pictures I find unrelated too but adjacent my assignment. There was a foul ball and I scanned the crowd and spotted three kids walking behind the bleachers covered head-to-toe in mud.

I followed them for awhile through the viewfinder until they disappeared over a bank and into a creek bottom. I ran back to the car grabbed the 5D and gave pursuit.

Pictures for me

2010-04-01T20:47:00.000-07:00

More from the past few months

2010-04-01T20:07:00.000-07:00

2010-03-31T19:41:00.000-07:00

It's been so long since I blogged.
It's not that I haven't been taking pictures I go to work and I shoot, but I lost my drive for a little bit.

These past several months have been long and hard but I have decided to share here a few of the moments I enjoyed most.
The Jacksonville Journal-Courier is turning out to be a wonderful fit for my personality and subject choice. I feel confident I can grow here.

These following posts will be a little bit all over the place as I try to encompass my range of coverage from high school sports to agriculture.

Like a good wine I never enjoy a photograph the day I capture it as much as I do over time. So from hindsight, here's a handful.

Today's

2010-01-12T22:20:00.000-08:00

I hit the wall.

2010-01-11T20:07:00.000-08:00

I feel like I hit the wall.

Professionally and non-professionally I’ve come to a crossroads. I’m at a mental standoff with myself. Personal woes cross with the professional. My heart is heavier these days and my mind clouded.

Alone

2010-01-11T15:57:00.000-08:00

Mirrors

2009-12-29T09:47:00.000-08:00

Edwardsville

2009-12-29T06:12:00.000-08:00

Winter Scene

2009-12-29T06:00:00.000-08:00

This picture makes me feel good

2009-12-16T20:25:00.001-08:00

I love pictures with stories.

I’m at a time where I realized I’ve drifted off path and have lost my focus and I’ve lost my drive.

I’ve let my love for photography grow cold and forgot why I get up and go to work everyday. I feel like I forgot how to look at things, I forgot how to appreciate them.
When I was in Mexico I took only one digital camera and a lens. I also packed a Nikonos V

If you are unfamiliar a Nikonos V is a waterproof camera that is similar in design to a range finder. It’s not an SLR and you focus by guessing the distance between you and the subject and shooting at smaller apertures. It was a great experience photographing without knowing the outcome and having that instant gratification.

During the snorkeling trip I spotted a turtle and I followed it for some distance as it swam closer to the surface. I managed to grab just a few frames as we got closer.

It took a breath then dove away.

Available light

Nikonos V ISO 400 chrome handheld 1/60th probably at f/5.6

Shot off the coast of Cozumel, Mexico on my most recent cruise.

2009-12-03T22:26:00.000-08:00

Mexico, Cozumel and Calica

2009-12-03T21:46:00.001-08:00

2009-12-03T20:04:00.000-08:00

2009-12-03T20:01:00.000-08:00

2009-12-03T19:57:00.000-08:00

2009-09-08T10:53:00.000-07:00

I’ve decided to try and make one still life photograph a day for a little while. The picture has to in some way relate to a page in my life. The photographs have to relate to me, they may or may not include people.

Some of them may develop into portraits, and some may be lit. For now it’s just an exercise. Something fun.

I’ve started a new photo project. This project is strictly personal.

Update

2009-09-08T10:46:00.000-07:00

I just accepted a job at the Jacksonville Journal-Courier in Jacksonville, Ill.

I won the Illinois Associated Press photograph of the month award for the month of August.

I switched to Cannon out of convenience and purchased a 5D Mark II

I’ve been neglecting to post. I have not been able to find the time recently. Things have finally started to settle down and I’m getting back to the things that I really need to be working on.

Waverly Video

2009-09-06T08:20:00.001-07:00

Tornados in the area.

2009-08-19T19:49:00.000-07:00

Chandrajo Ushman, 5, sits inside her father Michael Ushman Jr.’s truck after a tornado ripped through her home on Mill Street in Loami Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Michael Ushman, 31, carries 10-year-old daughter Geneva to an ambulance after she stepped on a nail outside her tornado damaged home on Mill Street in Loami Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Michael Ushman III, 7, watches his sister Geneva Ushman, 10, cry in the driveway of her Loami home after having stepped on a nail exiting the basement where she, mother and siblings were protected during the tornado that demolished their home Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Darlene Witt, mother to homeowner Jeanne Williams holds family photographs removed from her daughter’s home on Mill Street in Loami Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

David Britz makes his way to the front door of his home after a tornado swept over his property on Wesley Chapel Road in Chatham Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Farm equipment is left overturned in a soybean field on Wesley Chapel Road in Chatham Wednesday, August 19, 2009 after a tornado swept through the area.

Patti Bader left, and Pat Brubaker talk with neighbors about the tornado that nearly missed their home on Wesley Chapel Road in Chatham Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Oxygen and acetylene tanks lay in the debris of the Britz property on Wesley Chapel Road in Chatham Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Michael Ushman III, 7, carries a broom to the rear of his tornado-damaged home Wednesday, August 19, 2009, on Mill Street in Loami.

A home on Mill Street in Loami was rolled off of its foundation Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

Chandra Ushman speaks with family over the phone in the rear of her husband’s truck after a tornado demolished their Loami home Wednesday, August 19, 2009. Two of her three children 10-year-old Geneva Ushman left, and seven-year-old Michael Ushman III wait in the cab.

Outtakes

2009-08-16T23:45:00.000-07:00

Some lost photographs from a story about Refuge Ranch.

Small town pleasures

2009-08-13T10:57:00.000-07:00

Church Campout

2009-08-11T15:53:00.000-07:00

Pictures from a pretty neat feature assignment

I got a hook in the butt on this one......

Black and White

2009-08-11T15:01:00.001-07:00

The X-Ray

2009-08-05T12:32:00.001-07:00

Finally got into the hospital today for the X-ray. We still don’t know anything. The doc has to look at the pictures and decide what is wrong if anything and what are next move is.

I’ve googled X-ray pictures of hips trying to see if there was anything just blatantly wrong but I can’t seem to see anything. A lot of the x-rays I have found are also for an adult and Kamille’s hips do not appear to be as developed.

Kam was very laid back during the whole thing. I’m anxious to find out what the problem is. I just want to know and get it fixed.

Doctor visit

2009-08-04T11:38:00.000-07:00

We’ve noticed for some time now that kam has a little bit of a problem walking. She waddles really.

Her hips have given her trouble for some time and I think have become the most generous contributor to her disgust for walking. Her walking became more noticeable about two years ago after Kamille was in gymnastics. She wasn’t able to open her legs as wide as the other girls to perform different maneuvers and began to waddle after long periods of sitting or sleeping.

We finally made it into the doctor for a preliminary visit. No big news, doc says her hips feel tight and ordered an X-ray.

Tomorrow she gets X-rayed.

Coolest thing

2009-07-31T23:29:00.001-07:00

I really love Jeeps, it's sad.

Here's a cherry 55' Jeep CJ. Found it in Waverly.

Feeling the love

2009-07-31T17:30:00.001-07:00

I think that I am falling back in love with photography.

I spoke with a man this morning who was horribly in love with the Canon 1D Mark IIN that hung from my neck equipped with a 16-35mm F/2.8. I listened to him bad talk Nikon but I was in to good of a mood to care. We spoke about photography and what I liked to photograph.

He told me about his passion for landscape photography. I told him that black and white landscapes may have led me to the place I am now, and that they still hold a place in my heart. More importantly I told him that my photographs feel empty if void of people. I’m in love with documentary photography. I’m in love with meeting people and learning new things.

Sometimes I guess you just need to bounce words around with another person to realize something you have forgotten.

I’m currently amidst a new project for the paper. I think we’re calling the series An Illinois Postcard. It will consist of feature picture essays about the small towns in our coverage area. I chose the town of Waverly about 20 minutes southwest of my home in Chatham.

The town has inspired me to come out and shoot everyday. I’ve been inspired find stories and tell them. My biggest struggle has always been to find stories. I’ve proven to myself that it is as easy as walking into a town you’ve never been in before with a camera. All I had to do was show up curious.

I need this. This town is more than pictures. I think it will become another learning experience for me as a photographer.

Exploring

2009-07-28T18:00:00.000-07:00

Today I satisfied my own curiosities.

Explored my world with a camera.

The other day I was driving to Waverly, Ill. and I was on Route 4 between Chatham and Auburn with my windows down. I heard a dull roar to my left and the sound increased as this bright yellow plane appeared as if from the corn only to clear the approaching power lines. Then it ducked down again so low that I couldn’t see it above the corn.

I started thinking about the guys that fly these things. Who operates them and how it all works. I called Chuck Holzarth’s Flying Service in Virden and Chuck let me experience a small part of Cropdusting.

Crop duster Allen East makes some last minute adjustments to the wheel of an Air Tractor Tuesday, July 28, 2009, with the assistance of fellow pilot Roger Bock at Chuck Holzwarth’s Flying Service in Virden Tuesday, July 28, 2009.

Matt Haulk a ground crewmen for Chuck Holzwarth’s Flying Service carefully checks fuel levels in one of the Air Tractors prior to flight Tuesday, July 28, 2009 in Virden.

The most popular cropdusting aircraft is the Leland Snow designed and manufactured Air Tractor. The Air Tractor is capable of spraying, seeding, spreading dry material, and firefighting.

This Micronair nozzle is one of the many different types of nozzles that can be used on Agricultural aircraft and is designed to break the sprayed material down into smaller drops creating more of a fog than a spray.

Matt Haulk a ground crewmen for Chuck Holzwarth’s Flying Service carefully connects the hose that fills the Air Tractor’s tank with fungicide. Fungicide is designed to protect crops from disease and fungus that can severely lower yields.

The Flying Service uses a special computer controlled system to calculate how much of the fungicide is mixed with water per plane and job prior to takeoff.

The spraying system aboard the Air Tractor is pressurized by a wind-powered pump spun by a small prop on the belly of the aircraft.

Matt Haulk a ground crewmen for Chuck Holzwarth’s Flying Service sprays out the mixing tank part of the computerized system which mixes fungicide with water before pumping it into the aircraft.

I'm thinking about pursuing this as some sort of story. We'll see how it goes.

Another Video

2009-07-28T09:56:00.000-07:00

Traveling from Jason Johnson on Vimeo.

looking for pictures

2009-07-23T16:10:00.000-07:00

Savannah Brus, 5, waits as her mother’s two-year-old painted horse Icom is photographed with a saddle for sale Thursday, July 23, 2009, after the Illinois State Fair Western Horse Show at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

Sweetcorn Festival in Chatham

2009-07-21T12:08:00.000-07:00

Update

2009-07-21T09:08:00.000-07:00

..... I need to. We made it home safe from California. My Nikon D700 with grip and 17-35mm was stolen from our rental car.

I have more pictures and videos to share soon.

Pictures Of The Year international

2009-07-14T07:12:00.000-07:00

Matt Eich and wife Melissa hanging out in the hotel lobby after the last night. Phillip Scott Andrews at the ready with the camera.

Andrew Burton won First Place Sports Portfolio in the College Photographer of the year (CPOY) competition. A lot of his images were from the Beijing Olympics.

CPOY winner Tim Hussin's mom.

CPOY Tim Hussin.

Newspaper photographer of the year Emilio Morenatti.

Phillip Scott Andrews.

Mission Beach

2009-07-13T21:51:00.001-07:00

San Diego

I saw spider man.

2009-07-13T21:47:00.001-07:00

He hangs outside the Chinese theater in Los Angeles.

Behind

2009-07-13T21:05:00.001-07:00

I need to blog I'm so behind. I promise as soon as I can find a few minutes I will.

Morning Stroll

2009-07-10T10:38:00.001-07:00

I took a two-hour walk this morning around the neighborhood and shot a little.

I found the Annenberg Space for Photography during my walk and saw that the grounds people were putting the finishing touches on the space.

In L.A.

2009-07-10T10:31:00.001-07:00

We made it to L.A. Thank God we made the 10:30 am flight. Checked in and got lost finding Tommy’s famous hamburgers.

I decided to head down to Santa Monica and let Kam burn some energy at the beach. I was tired of being on planes and standing in lines all day and needed a change. I saw the pier but the light was terrible. I will go back later and take some pictures and take some time to enjoy it.

Nothing goes to plan: part two

2009-07-10T07:39:00.000-07:00

As the rain began to move over Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport we slowly shimmied and scooted off of our American Airlines flight from St. Louis around 8:50 am Thursday morning. I turned my phone on as I walked down the aisle of the aircraft. One new voicemail, but somewhere between remembering to grab all my equipment and gathering my daughter and her mess I forgot to check it.

Off the plane and into the bathroom I remember to check my voicemail. It’s American. Our connection flight to Santa Ana in an hour has been cancelled last minute. When I say last minute I mean sometime between 6 and 8 a.m. while en route over the Midwest they cancelled my 9 O’clock flight. Awesome.

While other folks look at the flight boards trying to find the Santa Ana flight that doesn’t exist I moved in on the ticket counter. We got booked on a 3:45 pm flight out of Dallas and placed on standby for a 10:30 am flight. Long story short we were the last three people on that 10:30 am flight.

Nothing goes to plan

2009-07-08T18:35:00.000-07:00

It never fails something will fail.

This week has been unusual as we have battled disgruntled uncoordinated roofers, readied ourselves for a birthday, and prepared for a ten day vacation clear across the country.

Apparently my mother has been packed since Monday, today Wednesday she had to re-pack. Her preliminary packing was merely a blind shot in the dark for what she might want to wear. I pack outfits. That’s the only way I know how to pack in an organized and minimal manner. I think I have the smallest bag – North Face backpack duffel – I always pack fast and light. I have to keep my hands free.

So mom gets repacked and has to check her suitcase to make sure it’s under the 50lb weight limit. It comes in at a little over 40lbs…… but there’s a problem. The wheels on the suitcase are broke and she has to swap cases. Long story short she’s right at 50 lbs now. Despite really wanting to hit the road and get out the house I stayed calm.

We’re in Saint Louis now, poolside. I’m trying to convince my daughter that she can’t stay up too late because we have to be up at 3 a.m. Our flight is at 6 a.m.

Birthday

2009-07-08T08:42:00.001-07:00

Kam’s birthday was a success. A small gathering of friends came, swam, and ate. We pretty much swam all day while the roofers finished their work on my mom’s house.

when I look at my take from hanging out with my daughter and making photographs I feel as if I'm looking at another photographer's pictures. I shoot differently for Kamille than when I'm on assignment. I love the photographs I make of her and wish I could translate that feel into my daily work.

Swimming

2009-07-07T06:04:00.000-07:00

Untitled from Jason Johnson on Vimeo.

Time Off

2009-07-06T20:26:00.001-07:00

Today was my first of many days off until July 18. Kam my mom and I will be traveling most of my break.

Today was meant purely to tie up some loose ends and relax. I finished and delivered wedding pictures but still managed to spend the majority of the day in the pool.

Tomorrow is Kam’s birthday pool party. Watch for that video ☺

First Video

2009-07-06T07:34:00.000-07:00

Here's the very raw first video I've made.

Third of July from Jason Johnson on Vimeo.

I really love the D90. I've shot video before but being able to shoot with a DSLR and manually focusing pose their own challenges. I manual focus a lot but having to focus form the LCD I think is a little more challenging. All in all it's a blast.

Happy Accidents.

2009-07-03T16:04:00.001-07:00

I want to change the name of the blog to Happy Accidents.

However, I'm lazy and that entails finding the header photograph then rewriting over it. One day, not today.

Today I received my Nikon D90, for those of you who don't know it's a still camera that captures video :) I'm excited because it's the only way that I want to capture video.

I've only shot a few nothings with it thus far but tonight she'll sail her maiden voyage at Rock The Dock. It is the celebration of the fourth on the third over Lake Springfield.

Hopefully I'll shoot some useable video and be able to post it up here.

Stay tuned.

A night out

2009-07-02T18:34:00.001-07:00

I've been blogging more over on the Journal's blog Behind The Curtain. I need to get back into the practice of blogging here. I need to do it everyday, picture or not, but hopefully with a picture in tow.

I've been stuck in the office, stuck in the grind, I forgot why I do this. I forgot that an editor is just the guy that picks the pictures for the paper and that I'm still the guy that makes them. I forgot that I can and should take photographs for myself.

I'm going to California next week. I'm a completely different person when I'm traveling, a different photographer. I think I need to get out of town and charge my batteries for a minute. I need to remember why I do this.

Giant post about the fair

2009-06-18T13:52:00.000-07:00

To much to repost this.... so check out my latest post on the SJ-R photoblog

County Fair

2009-06-18T10:02:00.000-07:00

2009-05-22T11:22:00.000-07:00

Love when this happens

2009-05-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

I photographed this little boy the other day for a fluff feature; it was an Associated Press story about how although Lowes sales had dropped in the first quarter they were still ahead of what Wallstreet had projected.

So I get sent to Lowes grab a quick picture. I go and walk into the nursery area, well, cause there’s just more color and natural light out there. Anyways I find this little kid in a cart with a junior park ranger’s outfit. It’s like a safari at Lowes, perfect. I’ve had this problem and it kills my editors; I can’t lock into something and I bounce. I shoot these people for two minutes then those people then that detail, etc. It’s ridiculous. I opted to lock into this little guy and his family, but it got boring I’d photograph someone else, the boy kept staring at me, I photographed someone else. Eventually I told myself just to stick with it.

Long story short it’s not the picture I’m proud of, it’s a good new picture for the story nothing more. Two days later I’m at the Governor’s Prayer Breakfast and this man motions for me to come over. “You’re Jason right?” he asks. It’s the junior park ranger’s grandpa from Lowes and he has a Xerox copy of the photograph on him. He’s been showing it to everyone he knows!

I love that. Kinda makes my day.

Refuge Ranch

2009-05-19T07:02:00.000-07:00

These photographs are from one of the last Heartland pieces I worked on. Refuge Ranch was founded as a way to rehabilitate at risk youth. Founders Chris and Stephen Daniels have ministered to youth for many years, several of which in Chicago, and they have a dream to communicate to kids their importance and value to the world.

Many of the animals on the ranch are rescues. The children that are involved at the ranch take on responsibilities of the daily operation of the ranch and learn unique skills that they can call their own and be proud of.

Sometimes the ranch can serve as nothing more than a retreat from urban life. One evening the ranch was open to the youth of Springfield’s inner city mission. Children who live with their families in cramped one room dwelling had the chance to run, have space to play, and interact with the animals.

I don't know.....

2009-05-18T06:59:00.000-07:00

It’s been a while as per usual for me

I’m in a slump again, but at least this time I know what needs done to correct. I need to start seeing. Thinking. Photographing.

I love certain photographer’s work but never attempt to create an emotion in my own photographs that rivals the emotion I see in theirs. I’m not standing in front of interesting enough stuff either.

And I’m pretty sure that everyone who reads this blog already knows that Lane and I are semi-finalists for the Hearst Journalism award. We are both 1 of 14 right now to be narrowed down to 6 people June 1st. If one of the six I travel to San Francisco for a good ol’ fashion shootout.

My final print entry.

Look forward to more photographs. Hopefully I should be coming back around.

Ridiculousness

2009-05-04T10:38:00.001-07:00

I've been taking pictures.... honest.

2009-04-23T13:27:00.000-07:00

I'm blogging fairly often on the sj-r photoblog called behind the curtain. I just added the link to my side bar.

Check it out.

Creepy Doll

2009-04-22T11:58:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I have to improvise. Like when I’m home alone and want to practice outdoor lighting ideas on someone. Key the creepy doll, yes, sometimes my daughter’s old American Girl doll plays the role of inanimate object for these light sessions.
The goal today was to tame harsh midday sunlight and be able to introduce flash just for fun. Well ye old montra of outdoor photography in which the subject is to look flattering is to shoot them in the shade. This is quick dirty and dare I say lazy. Yes well the problem with shooting in full on shade is that it lowers the light so much that the background gets blown out. The other problem is that the shade in my opinion is too dark it’s too much.
I decided not to bar the sun from my photographs but to shape it and soften it with a white umbrella over the doll. I’m building a scrim that will do the same thing but on a larger scale.
I tried the shaded setup with a mix of gold/white reflector bounce and some softened flash for different looks.

2009-04-21T11:22:00.001-07:00

Ok so here we go more as promised, easter pictures, better late than never.

I’m pretty sure this is the look my mom gives me most all the time. It’s that “Jason why the hell is there a lighstand in my front yard” look. My response is generally hurried cause I can’t interrupt my thought process…. “Umm… the one next to the reindeer… I need to take that down…. I’m trying something sit here a minute.” Like a good mother she does. I fire a few frames and we’re done.

Easter at my house is not a special time in the way that I think Easter is special to other people. It means mom makes potato salad, and pasta salad, and we search for Easter eggs all weekend and eat ham sandwiches. It was fun but I wanted an Easter picture and I wanted it to be a little different. Kam and I dyed eggs alone this year. We tried to get really crafty with our eggs and introduced one of Kam’s favorite craft tools, Scotch Tape. I’m pretty sure she can fix anything with it. Built a car out of the stuff using only the tape and a cardboard box, and a toilet one time out of paper. Needless to say the eggs posed no threat to her advanced scotch taping skills.

back on

2009-04-20T09:58:00.001-07:00

I haven’t been very good about keeping up with my daily blogging and I apologize. My computer finally came back to me after crashing and holding my portfolio and a wedding hostage on its hard drive for 11 days. Thankfully nothing was lost apparently it was the logic board that provoked the standoff.
Big news, Lane Christiansen and I are semi-finalist for the Hearst Journalism Awards program which means we are two of fourteen that will be judged and narrowed down to six students that will travel to San Francisco and battle it out for the top three positions. I’m so proud of Lane and her year of achievement and I hope that we both make the trip to Cisco.
I’m sick, coughing, congested, and getting ready for work. I promise more to come……

The first game

2009-04-07T20:16:00.000-07:00

Kamille played her first soccer game today. I felt like it was pretty important that I be there. I’m probably going to miss some games but I didn’t want to miss this one.
It’s hard being a dad and a photographer. Schedule is always hectic, things are always coming up, and I’m always traveling. Life is a tough balance.

Practicing light

2009-03-29T19:57:00.000-07:00

Working in available light..... any available light.

Defeated

2009-03-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

I failed to blog again yesterday.

I feel like I’m continually finding myself in this spot, this low unmotivated spot. I feel like there are pictures out there everyday that I probably walk by. I feel failed when I prepare for an assignment and fall on my face.

The other day I was covering a doctor who announced that he would treat any of his regular patients for free if they had lost their job and or their health insurance for the rest of the calendar year. I knew I wouldn’t have much time and that a portrait was probably my best option. I thought it out. I came up with three solid portrait options that I could quickly set up and shoot. I packed my light stands, two strobes, light modifiers, and my pocket wizards. When I got there I started setting up the shot and realized I didn’t have the cable that attaches the pocket wizard to my Nikon strobe. Failed.

What do you do now? Well, one of my Nikons has a built in visual slave, which means it’ll flash if it sees a flash. I pulled the Canon strobe out I carry with me (I shoot Canon at work) and put it on an off camera cord, dialed way down so it didn’t show up in the photograph. I pointed the Canon strobe at the Nikon Strobe out of the frame and popped it. So far so good, but nothing like what I was hoping for.

In the end we ran a frame that I grabbed quickly during a five minute examination. So quick that I forgot to get the patient’s name and ended up having to track down the doc’s secretary after her office hours to figure it out. Another fail.

I just feel defeated lately.

2009-03-23T22:26:00.001-07:00

thinking

2009-03-23T08:26:00.000-07:00

I didn’t get to post last night. By the time that I got home from Chicago and finished my first rough edit of wedding pictures it was midnight. I started work this morning at eight so I needed to get some sleep.
I’ll post twice today to make up.
Right now I’m deep in thought. I have been thinking about a lot of things lately; I starting to believe that honest thought breeds solid photography. Sometimes I have to do just as much work with my brain as I do the camera. Right now I’m working on my car photo essay. Time is dwindling and I still haven’t made one photograph for the publication. I know my cars and my locations, but I’m trying to make mental notes of which cars go where, why, and how will they look, what’s the lighting.
I’m also in the middle of trying to find solid statistical information and history regarding my story idea in North Dakota this summer. The information exists it’s just finding specific info that proves to be difficult. Eventually though I will begin on my project plan and hopefully secure a “yes” to proceed with the project.

Today

2009-03-21T19:16:00.000-07:00

I’m not sure if I mentioned it but I love my job.

I’m in Chicago right now staying with a buddy in his amazing four-story home. Tomorrow I’m shooting a hindu/traditional wedding at the Westin in Itasca Ill. the place is gorgeous.

I’m still pretty pumped about the possibility of documenting Native American health care this summer in North Dakota.

I’m sorry if this post is a little quick and random I need to sleep soon I have to be up at 4 a.m. and I’m pretty beat.

Some cool van

The Westin

Good news

2009-03-20T06:47:00.000-07:00

I finally made contact with the folks at North Dakota University who study the health and the effects of diabetes on the Native Americans living in North Dakota.
I’ve wanted to do a story about the health issues that face the people living there. Diabetes has become an epidemic and leads to more problems including heart complications.
Native Americans are provided some amount of health care through Indian Health Services, or IHS. The program as is has been described to me is a joke.
Many native peoples have been raised on government commodities, which has attributed to the diabetes. The IHS has been unsuccessful in educating the people it serves to the risks that cause diabetes. IHS is also more of a bandade plan than true health coverage for the people.
If everything goes according to plan I’ll probably start shooting there for about a month starting in July.

Photographers.

2009-03-18T21:34:00.000-07:00

I think there are two types of photographers in this world.

1.The ones with raw sickening talent and innate ability to see moments, light, and composition. The guys who have forgot better stuff than most of us have even thought of. Guys like Joe McNally, Chase Jarvis, and Sam Abell.

2.Then there’s photographers like me. The folks who have to read book after book, hang out with folks that know more than I do and ask dumb questions. Why? Because knowledge is power and every little bit I learn builds one more inch I can push myself.

The more I know the better equipped I am. I think on my feet faster, I know what’s up. Sometimes I get frustrated with where I am, well, I get frustrated a lot actually. The point is I need to keep pushing myself learning more and trying something different. Everyday. I don’t think I take enough creative risk and that’s what sets the big boys apart.

Knowledge and experience is where it’s at and neither comes overnight.

Practice

2009-03-17T06:25:00.000-07:00

I haven't been very good at blogging everyday already, but I'll keep trying.
Anyways I have a project coming up where I'll be shooting new model cars. The problem is I've never tried this, and lighting a car is really tough.
I've kind of found a couple of major problems already though.

1. Location is 85% of making a great car picture.
2. Shade is your friend
3. When working with little lights, let the ambient do the heavy lifting.

I'm pretty nervous about the whole thing. I really want it to jump off the page but I'm still not completely comfortable shooting a car yet.

Here's a few of my first attempts.

Working on some lighting

2009-03-12T20:18:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine asked if I would shoot some pictures of her to start a modeling portfolio. She's moving to California soon.
It was an opportunity for me to practice some of my lighting skills. I've really been getting into lighting with small strobes.

Right place, right time.

2009-03-11T12:00:00.001-07:00

So far this week I’ve had the great fortune of being in the right place at the right time.

Sunday Kamille and I had gone to the horse fair out at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. She had brought her Nikon D50 and I had brought my Nikon D700 and an HD video camera from the office, that’s all I had.

About an hour or so after being there the tornado sirens go off and we are all moved into a shelter on the fair grounds. An hour after we’re out of the shelter my editor calls and asks if I can cover some storm damage on the north west side of the city. I told him what equipment I had and he told me just to focus on video.

Kam and I drive down North Grand Avenue and it looks like a tornado came through on its far west side. We hop out and a lady tells us about a blown over trailer down the street. We run back to the car, I buckled Kam back into her car seat and we’re off to the trailer park.

Again we’re out and I start shooting video as the trailer frame drops back down on to its tires. We climb down the hill towards the trailer and continue shooting. I knew there was a lot of damage in the surrounding area but I felt like this scene was too strong to leave so I stayed. I only had the one lens, my 17-35mm f/2.8, so I needed to get close I needed stills for the paper.

This image made it into USA Today. It ran small but it’s still kind of cool to say I made it into USA Today.

Jerika Graham, 12, surveys the damage to her home in Park Ridge Mobile Home Park after devastating winds blew through the area Sunday, March 8, 2009.

I was running late to a basketball game in Jacksonville, Ill. because I had to turn back halfway there and look for a feature in Springfield, but then another photographer found something so I headed back to Jacksonville. Long story short after all the craziness I managed to roll by these kids on my way to the high school and got a couple of quick frames that worked perfect for the feature we needed.

It’s not spring yet, but the warm weather and a rain puddle proved too inviting for friends Aaron Morris, left and Tristen Leblanc. The two were playing at the corner of Grove and South Fayette Street in Jacksonville Tuesday, March 10, 2009.

Tristen Leblanc tackles Aaron Morris in a deep puddle at the corner of Grove Street and South Fayette Street in Jacksonville, Ill., Thursday, March 9, 2009.

New Deal.

2009-03-11T11:56:00.000-07:00

I've made a new deal with myself. Starting today I will have to make one blog post everyday.

I want to do this to make myself work harder, experiment, and take risks.

So here goes....

More pictures

2009-02-17T08:04:00.000-08:00

2009-02-17T07:34:00.000-08:00

It’s been awhile I know….. I feel like I just keep moving in and out of bad spots and not really moving forward.
The internship is still amazing. I’ve covered the impeachment of our Governor, the president, and a valentine’s dance at the senior center. You really have to love the diversity of this job.
I really have to get motivated again, I think that I’ve settled myself and started just going through the motions. I hate excuses but my mind has been too cluttered lately to shoot. To think.
I’m not sure what it is going to take to start making the photographs that I expect myself to make. What I do know is that I have to open myself up to the photographs, and let them come to me.

Messing around

2009-01-22T19:15:00.000-08:00

It’s been awhile since I blogged. No real particular reason, it just has.

I’m in Springfield for the next six months. I’m interning at The State Journal-Register and it’s amazing. I absolutely love working here so far.

It’s amazing waking up everyday and knowing that I get to go make pictures for the same newspaper that I used to deliver back even before I could drive. I’m working next to T.J. Salsman, the man who introduced me to photojournalism.

I’m finally beginning to settle into my post and shoot closer to my capability. I’m really looking forward to six months of growth and development.

So stay tuned.

I really dig this picture, especially because I noticed the composition and waited for the moment. The white line through the middle...... That's what happens when the shutter on you Canon Mark IIN goes out.

Christmas

2008-12-27T20:52:00.001-08:00

Christmas was great. I wasn't really looking forward to Christmas this year but it turned out awesome. I think mom had about as much fun as Kam did. The best thing I got was my Jeep running. Thanks mom. More will come on Black Betty :)

A warm day among the cold

2008-12-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

Weather

2008-12-27T19:58:00.001-08:00

Vernon Morris’s Riverton home on the Williamsville black top was blown off its foundation and the roof torn off during the thunderstorms that blew through central Illinois Saturday. Sherman firefighters were assisted by the Williamsville fire department to secure the area until it was declared safe to re-enter. Morris, 59, has lived on the property for over 15 years.

2008-12-22T08:13:00.000-08:00

Santa Claus

2008-12-07T17:46:00.000-08:00

Santa stopped in Chatham Sunday via Amtrak. Took Kamille to go see him.

Layering.....

2008-12-03T13:51:00.000-08:00

I'm so hit and miss with this. I wish it came more often.

100th Post

2008-11-30T19:08:00.001-08:00

I’ve been told that I should write more.

I’ve decided that not doing my Spanish homework can really only be justified if I’m blogging.

I’m thinking.

I usually am but I’m concerned and thinking. About nothing in particular, it’s just a mood. I’m reminded daily about the uncertainties by which we live and the fact that we are all mortal. I feel like I’m changing, growing, and impatiently waiting for it to pass.

I feel like I’m reaching for something in the dark, and that it’s close. I just don’t know what.

Turkey Day Portraits

2008-11-30T14:19:00.001-08:00

These are the only pictures I made on Thanksgiving.
Just a few portraits of a friend's daughter. The light was nice, her attitude was great.

Mental Vacation

2008-11-26T16:26:00.001-08:00

It’s been six days and I haven’t showered.
I’ve needed to feel the desert beneath my feet for sometime now. I’ve been thinking about this trip for months, but never actually thought that it would happen. Fortunately the opportunity came and we went.
I’ve wanted to go to Zion National Park in southern Utah for as long as I can remember. I love hiking and backpacking but I never have the time anymore.
This was an opportunity to get out on the cheap and break from the monotonous daily hustle I’m used to, a chance to become……unavailable.
I didn’t take a lot of photographs because I didn’t have to. I only took what I wanted to.
The trip was more of a mental vacation than anything else.
Seven states later I can say I’ve hiked Zion, including Kolob Canyon, seen the arches at arches national park and cruised through Moab. I even enjoyed a beer on the Vegas strip.

In six days spontaneity ruled.

Little battles

2008-11-18T19:53:00.000-08:00

I haven’t blogged in awhile. Life for me has been a fluster of excitement, worry, confusion, and happiness.
I love what I do. My passion has never been greater and my motivation has never been lower.
I wish I could go back to shooting with a furry like I did in my first days of entering college and working at the Daily Egyptian, but with the knowledge I have now.
I feel like people are starting to realize that I might actually have a future in photojournalism. I think people are being forced to realize that I’m not being selfish in my efforts to obtain a college degree, increase my wealth as an employee by educating myself, and being able to provide for my daughter.
I think only a handful of people understand the sacrifices involved with the decisions that I have had to make and will continue to make. I don’t anticipate more than a handful ever will.
I do hope that the cost-benefits ratio work out the way I need them to otherwise I’m setting myself up for a run on the bank.
I’ve made a lot of mistakes in life, and I’ve taken risks. My professors tell me to take more.
I have never felt like my education was a risk or my future uncertain, I certainly don’t know where I’ll be after graduation, but I know I’ll be in a better place than I am now.

A gold, or first-place for domestic picture story in the College Photographer Of the Year competition means that out of all the student photojournalists in the nation that applied, I had the best stateside picture story. That’s pretty big.
A little battle won in the war.
It really just makes me want to work harder because I know I can be better.

Click to go view the winning images. Scroll down to find my Story

2008-11-05T23:30:00.000-08:00

Election Night

2008-11-05T23:12:00.000-08:00

Dale

2008-10-31T15:11:00.001-07:00

Proof that the kid works

Letting it come......

2008-10-31T15:08:00.000-07:00

Cowboy Voting

2008-10-31T14:32:00.001-07:00

I meant to vote today..... I guess I'll just be waiting in line come Tuesday.

Funk

2008-10-29T13:49:00.000-07:00

I’ve been in a terrible spot lately….. It’s all self induced.

I’m not shooting nearly enough. I burn daylight in the office trying to earn hours and make money.

I know that I need to get out but I want to have something to shoot, but if I never get out and look than I’ll never find anything. It’s a vicious circle.

I’ve just lost so much motivation lately. I don’t feel like the person I used to be, the photographer that I can be. I know that once I find something interesting I’ll be able to lock-in, focus, and become inspired again.

I need an internship.

I feel like I’m back to spinning my wheels again. It’s not that I’ve tapped this town of its resources and its stories; I’ve just forgotten how to look for them. I need a new place, and open mind, and some opportunity. I need to wake up every morning, put a camera on my shoulder, and know that for the whole day someone is going to pay me to do what I love to do. Make photographs, capture moments, and tell stories. I need to be outside of this office and making pictures.

I think I’m gonna go try that…… see what happens……

Tired.

2008-10-27T13:04:00.000-07:00

I love my daughter, but she hates to walk.

I’m not sure why; I love to walk and hike. I was hoping she would get that from me, but all she got was my nose.

We spent the weekend in Chicago but I didn’t manage to get a whole lot of pictures. Saturday morning I couldn’t wake up, and Sunday morning my phone died leaving me without an alarm.

I managed one picture of Kamille after she sat down on a picnic bench at the end of Navy Pier refusing to walk. She was upset after she found out that once we got to the end of the pier we had to walk all the way back.

Weddings

2008-10-21T09:41:00.000-07:00

I’ve been shooting a lot of weddings lately. Seems to be about the only way to make ends meet anymore.

I’ve discovered a new love for them. A wedding day is a lot like going out on a dynamite assignment, moments are everywhere.

I’ll make more of a point to post the work I do for Studio 7 Photography (Studio7photos.com) and my solo stuff.

This couple was a lot of fun, I shot the bride’s sister’s wedding earlier this year but I feel like I’ve grown a lot as a photographer since then.

Picking Grapes

2008-10-08T09:51:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine invited me out to her father's vineyard Thursday morning to meet real migrant workers. I had an assignment a week or so ago about migrant workers and the people that I photographed would not tell me their names or whether or not they were migrant workers.

This was the image we ran with only because I couldn't identify anyone or that they were actually migrant workers.

The vineyard was really just an opportunity to make pictures and meet people. Turns out Alto Vineyards uses these grapes exclusively for their Norton dry wine which I'm sure I'll be trying soon.

Pictorials turned news

2008-10-01T21:28:00.001-07:00

Ike damage in Southern Illinois

Hot Pursuit

2008-10-01T21:25:00.000-07:00

End of Ramadan

2008-10-01T21:17:00.000-07:00

These are a few photographs I got this morning from a celebration at The Muslim Center in Carbondale.

For Max

2008-09-23T18:19:00.000-07:00

This just reminds me of something Max Bittle would shoot. I miss his blog. He's an amazing photographer.

Pleasantly underexposed this is a photograph that focuses on the light, the colors, and the mood.

Murphysboro Apple Festival

2008-09-19T09:38:00.000-07:00

I love the Apple festival. I’ve never gone and actually partaken in the festivities but I’ve gone on assignment for two years now. I always make a handful of good pictures. One shot from last year’s rattled around in my portfolio for some time before being recently taken out.
I like this photograph it brings home the story.

A man identified only as Jason enjoyed the Murphysboro annual Apple Festival Thursday with Family Counceling of Golconda. The Apple Festival Committee organized the day making rides free to people with special needs.

Reason.

2008-09-19T09:22:00.000-07:00

I used to think that people believed in the idea that “Things happen for a reason” merely to make the unpleasant tolerable.
I suppose it’s true though.
There seems to be a silver lining in every storm cloud, but then again bad weather has always made for good pictures.
I have begun to adopt the idea as truth, although the outcome weighs heavily on a desire and patience for the reason to come after the thing that has happened.

Patience is a noun, almost a question, and surely a skill.

If one can make patience in their self, patience can make good pictures. Don’t hurry.
I have a problem when I drive, I can’t stop. I’m on a mission. In my defense driving is an opportunity for me to think and be alone, but I miss opportunities in the car.
I told myself the next time I see an opportunity to make pictures I’ll stop, exercise my patience and pause from the rush.

59-year-old Michael Sutton has been traveling, usually by freight train, for 18 years. Sutton is on his way to Florida from California; originally from Arkansas he was traveling southbound on Highway 64 Thursday near mile marker 29 at the Clinton County line. Sutton said he had been released Monday from an Illinois county jail after being taken into custody for trespassing on a freight train.

Friends Met, Pictures Made

2008-09-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

The weekend was a bust for me. There was a lot of potential but little opportunity.

I got stuck in Des Plaines, one of the hardest hit by the weekend’s rainfall, Saturday on my way to a football game that I had been anxiously awaiting to photograph.

My daughter was with me because I didn’t want to leave her at home without me all day and nobody could watch her in the stands as I shot. It was decided, at 5:30 am that morning that she would come and stand on the sidelines with me.

We never made it. The flooding in Des Plaines was incredible but I was in no position to photograph it, I had to worry about getting Kamille and I to a safer location. After trying several other northern routes we decided to come home, empty handed.

We spent nearly the entire day in the car, on the road.

Sunday we just lounged. Kam and I slept in a little, played some games, and decided to go bowling. The bowling never happened but something better did. On the way to Virden Ill. where I had been told there was a bowling ally we came across two girls and a puppy about to enter a creek. We stopped and I told Kam to stay in the car I would be be back in a minute.

I parked in the driveway of the home at an angle that Kam could see me. I grabbed my gear out of the trunk made a picture then walked up and started taking names.

I heard “Daddy!” from across the yard and Kam was standing outside of the car. I looked at her with that ‘get back in the car’ look my mom used to give me and then went back to taking names.

Pepper, the eight-month-old boxer takes off from beside me and I look up to see my daughter running across the yard in my direction. Pepper was going to meet her, however at eight-months, he probably weighs more than she does. He just wanted a kiss but Kam was scared and the mother of the girls apologized for the puppy, I apologized for Kam.

Well, of course now that she was out of the car she wanted to get into the water. To avoid conflict I just told her to stay out of my frame. Getting her out of the water was the hard part.

Ashtyn Freeman, 10, attempts to slow her 8-month-old boxer Pepper as she and Sydney March, 13, play in a creek caused by floodwaters in Auburn, Sunday. The area was dry Saturday night before hurricane Ike caused flooding in cities and farmland throughout the state.