I was going to write about this but Paul wrote it out last night. He's not usually one to blog so it's nice that he'll be fully represented here.
So, about a month ago I went to a sports photography workshop at the Olympic training center. I learned from the best of the best. Expert Professionals from Getty, Sports Illustrated, and the Associated Press. I learned the most about lighting and lighting techniques. I learned a ton about off camera lighting as well as dozens of things to do with Nikon Sb800s. I only bring this up to preface my little story.
From what I've read, in wedding photography the key phrase is: "Keep it simple", but that was the last thing I wanted to do. Today at the wedding I got the opportunity to shoot today I was going to push myself to use as much as I learned as possible. Things went well at the wedding except for keeping line of sight with the remote sensors, but Kelsie was there to help and even the people I was photographing had the sense to say things like, "that left one didn't go off"
At the reception, I wanted to try something really different I like to call the "Jim Sugart Technique." I have a photo gallery with examples. He didn't really give specifics, but his guidelines were enough: "Get the flash off the camera, Get a wide lens, Get really close." So with this in mind I held the flash in my left hand and used my right hand to change the focus and take the photos. If I pointed the flash correctly, then the results were really softened light on my subjects. If I didn't get close enough I got some pretty funky shadows. I wasn't really gambling with these peoples wedding photos, I knew I could use traditional techniques to capture the key moments. It was great.
So, when I'm taking photos, I'm really in the zone and I don't notice much, but this girl was being so belligerent and rude I couldn't help but notice. She obviously didn't care for what I was doing with my flash off the camera. I heard her raucous taunts intermittently, things like: "look how awkward he/that is" or "that's so ridiculous" I took a moment to recognize who she was. This was the Bride's younger sister. According to the Bride, she was a "photography student who took some of the bridesmaids photos." I took this into consideration. Kelsie reminded me later that if she was skilled enough to get hired, she would have been hired to take the wedding photos because she was family.
Well this apparently wasn't enough for her. She got her friends, took some photos of me, and then started showing them to people and laughing about it. The funny thing is that she was going it right in front of where Kelsie was sitting. This whole affair got kelsie more worked up than me, but I had a job to do and I didn't let it bother me at all.
This got me thinking. It made me think back to the "keep it simple" idea. I didn't want to make all the photos look the same. I actually felt complimented by her laughter. I was doing something really different. I guess that's what makes the difference between an ordinary photographer and an average one. It's also important to have a really think skin.
Oh, and by the way, the whole time I was wishing I had Tom's Nikon 24-70 2.8, well not his exaclty, because he's dropped his a bunch, including in a river.
Here's Kelsie's bit: So I spent quite a bit of time fuming about that trashy girl. She was dressed in this tatty (on purpose) looking baby doll sun dress that was too short and too small and really just didn't fit her in any way. She also had that common Virginia Tech Beer Belly that most girls out here seem to have. Baby Doll+Beer Belly= looks pregnant. Now I know that she wasn't pregnant. I also know that she wasn't 21 but she kept going up to the open bar and even her dad didn't stop her- he was too busy flirting with her actual whore friend. I spent almost the whole evening coming up with things to say to her, "I heard that you were curious as to what my husband was doing with his flash. I guess I'm not surprised because most people aren't hand picked to be mentored by famous photographers, but it's the Jim Sugart technique. Paul studied extensively with him and he's one of the most sought after photographers for celebrities." The "extensively" is a bit of an exaggeration but the rest of it would have been true. The problem was that I would have been ranting= no good. So instead, I ended up running into her on the way out (not on purpose) and I said, "Oh sweetie, it's not good to drink alcohol when you're pregnant!" and left. It was a mean thing to say but some people just deserve to know how awful they dress. She deserved that and a punch in the face.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Monday, August 4, 2008
I've been slacking.
Sometimes I feel incredibly vain for writing a blog. I mean, we're not very interesting so it's kind of ridiculous to think anyone would enjoy reading about us but right now, I'm over it and so I'll try and catch up.
Last week was kind of boring but still full of things to do. For most of the week we had this killer killer heat wave and so Regina and I walked with Paul to the pool and watched him swim several times (way too cold for me, my body fat is nil). I also discovered the most delicious popsicles- the double stick kind that come in packs of 18 and only cost $1.50 which is a full dollar less than a single Slurpee, we packed them in. They are my favorite food right now even though they don't count as food and it's hard for me not to eat four or five a day.
We've continued to eat pretty healthily. Well, outside of this past weekend. We eat fruit for breakfast and snacks and not within thirty minutes of any other food. For lunch we have brown rice and fresh veggies or salad and for dinner something out of the recipe book. It works pretty well for us and since we aren't overweight, it's seems ok to eat so many popsicles.
On Thursday and Friday we went looking for the fish ladies but they were nowhere to be found. Friday afternoon, Paul went to sell some camera lenses his company doesn't need anymore to the local camera shop and we ended up in the middle of Steppin' Out which is this huge Blacksburg thing where downtown merchants and little craftsmen come and set up tents in the streets and you can buy all sorts of things. We did a full circuit of the streets and that was all we could stand- heat on top of too many people on top of overprice merchandise. There was a stand run by a small and worn out looking Amish family. Their bread looked particularly scrumptious and even though it's not on our diet at all I was willing to overlook that to buy a nice loaf but they were charging $15.75 a loaf. There wasn't anything particularly special about them, some had bizarre ingredients but they were all normal sized loaves and all cost $15.75 and I'm waaaaaaaaay too cheap for that. Needless to say, we left the fair empty-handed and I'm not sorry, I don't care to spend money anyways.
On Saturday night, Pearl and Joe came over to watch a movie and have dinner and since it was really last minute, we opted to order pizza rather than have me cook and stress out a ton. I did steam some squash though so that the whole meal wasn't rot- and I really did crave some fresh and good food (goes to show the diet is working!). Paul and I really didn't feel well on Sunday though, so we probably won't do that again. I honestly didn't know how important food was until this diet. Pearl and Joe also have mono, so here's to hoping we don't get it too.
The missionaries came to dinner last week, I think it was Tuesday. I made pot roast because it always turns out right and I know missionaries like to eat meat so I didn't care if it was cliche. I did care about the house being clean though so I recleaned everything. I clean every day and I vacuum every other day so the house is pretty much always clean but when company comes, I get really worried and wash walls and things like that. It's compulsive and wrong. One thing that we've always done, however, is split up the chores. Here's how it works, Paul cleans the kitchen (something he likes) and I clean everything else (everything he doesn't like) and it usually works out. Paul, however, had a meeting with a lady he is doing contract work for and so he didn't come home and then when I went to pick him up, we visited with the lady's daughter and then Paul took us to John's camera place and would not let us leave. I started to get really really worried because the missionaries still hadn't called and the kitchen wasn't clean and I had no idea when they'd show up. I was a huge mess by the time we got home and swore that if they were here waiting for us I'd send them away but they weren't so I relaxed a little and tried to help Paul finish the kitchen (to be fair, all he had to do was clean the countertops and sweep). Unfortunately within five minutes of getting home, they showed up. Still no phone call. I sat them down with an appetizer (Pickapeppa on cream cheese and crackers) while I got everything on the table and then they informed me that they had less than an hour to be at another appointment. SOOOOOOOO uncool. I know they can't be expected to be the epitome of etiquite but seriously, if you don't call me so I can be ready for you, please don't make me feel more embarrassed than I already am about my kitchen by making me rush everything else. The visit was nice though. Elder Bishop is nice and talkative and pretty funny and he agrees with us about how frustrating it is for us not to ever use the Joseph Smith manual during the 3rd hour of church. He's actually older than we are and was openly really shocked to find that out. He's almost three years older so I don't know why he couldn't imagine someone younger than he being married. I mean, tons of missionaries are married by the time they're twenty-two and a half and a lot of those are to 18 year old girls. Elder Soloman is also nice but he's soooooo quiet! It's actually pretty difficult for me to be comfortable around people that are quiet like that. They're coming over for dinner again on Thursday, their meal calendar is patheically empty. This time I'm making king ranch chicken because they informed me they love cheese and they're both from out west so real spicy won't really affect them. I'm excited, I love king ranch chicken.
I have an interview tomorrow with the Vet school at Virginia Tech! I'm terribly excited because it's a job I'd be really good at, it's on campus, and I'd be a salaried employee which means I'd get a good parking spot and benefits!!!!! I've been cringing about paying 7000 a year for our health insurance especially with all the caps and limits and things. I hope it goes well!
Last week was kind of boring but still full of things to do. For most of the week we had this killer killer heat wave and so Regina and I walked with Paul to the pool and watched him swim several times (way too cold for me, my body fat is nil). I also discovered the most delicious popsicles- the double stick kind that come in packs of 18 and only cost $1.50 which is a full dollar less than a single Slurpee, we packed them in. They are my favorite food right now even though they don't count as food and it's hard for me not to eat four or five a day.
We've continued to eat pretty healthily. Well, outside of this past weekend. We eat fruit for breakfast and snacks and not within thirty minutes of any other food. For lunch we have brown rice and fresh veggies or salad and for dinner something out of the recipe book. It works pretty well for us and since we aren't overweight, it's seems ok to eat so many popsicles.
On Thursday and Friday we went looking for the fish ladies but they were nowhere to be found. Friday afternoon, Paul went to sell some camera lenses his company doesn't need anymore to the local camera shop and we ended up in the middle of Steppin' Out which is this huge Blacksburg thing where downtown merchants and little craftsmen come and set up tents in the streets and you can buy all sorts of things. We did a full circuit of the streets and that was all we could stand- heat on top of too many people on top of overprice merchandise. There was a stand run by a small and worn out looking Amish family. Their bread looked particularly scrumptious and even though it's not on our diet at all I was willing to overlook that to buy a nice loaf but they were charging $15.75 a loaf. There wasn't anything particularly special about them, some had bizarre ingredients but they were all normal sized loaves and all cost $15.75 and I'm waaaaaaaaay too cheap for that. Needless to say, we left the fair empty-handed and I'm not sorry, I don't care to spend money anyways.
On Saturday night, Pearl and Joe came over to watch a movie and have dinner and since it was really last minute, we opted to order pizza rather than have me cook and stress out a ton. I did steam some squash though so that the whole meal wasn't rot- and I really did crave some fresh and good food (goes to show the diet is working!). Paul and I really didn't feel well on Sunday though, so we probably won't do that again. I honestly didn't know how important food was until this diet. Pearl and Joe also have mono, so here's to hoping we don't get it too.
The missionaries came to dinner last week, I think it was Tuesday. I made pot roast because it always turns out right and I know missionaries like to eat meat so I didn't care if it was cliche. I did care about the house being clean though so I recleaned everything. I clean every day and I vacuum every other day so the house is pretty much always clean but when company comes, I get really worried and wash walls and things like that. It's compulsive and wrong. One thing that we've always done, however, is split up the chores. Here's how it works, Paul cleans the kitchen (something he likes) and I clean everything else (everything he doesn't like) and it usually works out. Paul, however, had a meeting with a lady he is doing contract work for and so he didn't come home and then when I went to pick him up, we visited with the lady's daughter and then Paul took us to John's camera place and would not let us leave. I started to get really really worried because the missionaries still hadn't called and the kitchen wasn't clean and I had no idea when they'd show up. I was a huge mess by the time we got home and swore that if they were here waiting for us I'd send them away but they weren't so I relaxed a little and tried to help Paul finish the kitchen (to be fair, all he had to do was clean the countertops and sweep). Unfortunately within five minutes of getting home, they showed up. Still no phone call. I sat them down with an appetizer (Pickapeppa on cream cheese and crackers) while I got everything on the table and then they informed me that they had less than an hour to be at another appointment. SOOOOOOOO uncool. I know they can't be expected to be the epitome of etiquite but seriously, if you don't call me so I can be ready for you, please don't make me feel more embarrassed than I already am about my kitchen by making me rush everything else. The visit was nice though. Elder Bishop is nice and talkative and pretty funny and he agrees with us about how frustrating it is for us not to ever use the Joseph Smith manual during the 3rd hour of church. He's actually older than we are and was openly really shocked to find that out. He's almost three years older so I don't know why he couldn't imagine someone younger than he being married. I mean, tons of missionaries are married by the time they're twenty-two and a half and a lot of those are to 18 year old girls. Elder Soloman is also nice but he's soooooo quiet! It's actually pretty difficult for me to be comfortable around people that are quiet like that. They're coming over for dinner again on Thursday, their meal calendar is patheically empty. This time I'm making king ranch chicken because they informed me they love cheese and they're both from out west so real spicy won't really affect them. I'm excited, I love king ranch chicken.
I have an interview tomorrow with the Vet school at Virginia Tech! I'm terribly excited because it's a job I'd be really good at, it's on campus, and I'd be a salaried employee which means I'd get a good parking spot and benefits!!!!! I've been cringing about paying 7000 a year for our health insurance especially with all the caps and limits and things. I hope it goes well!
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