kuophoto blog

It’s amazing how a strong photographers style comes through loud and clear, even when they are shooting outside of their comfort zone. This is the case in Chris Buck’s recent blog post. http://chrisbucknews.wordpress.com/ Taking himself out of his comfort zone, scheduled sessions, he ventured out to the streets for “A DAY.” Upon looking at his results, I cant help but see the “Buckness” in his shots. The worker from Radio City Music Hall, the Strand bookstore shoppers all possess that slight awkwardness, that subtle “weirdness” that I personally find so arresting in Chris’s work. It was Buck’s post that led me to make this post. Ironically, currently I have put myself in the hot seat as well. I signed up for Serge J-F Levy’s street photography class and decided to also hit the proverbial pavement. (Levy feels that street photography isn’t limited just to the streets) I took the leap because I knew it would be hard, but that I would be in good hands. The genre is completely foreign to me, which intrigues me.  I knew it would take me out of my comfort zone and challenge me in the best possible ways. If you’re not growing, then you’re stagnant. I can find plenty of things to challenge me but I have to make a concerted effort to allow myself to be really uncomfortable.  Well so far it’s delivered big in the discomfort category. It’s been a challenge on all levels. But what I did not anticipate was how exhilarating it would be, and in regards to my last post http://blog.kuophoto.com/ something was borne out of the suffering. The street class has reignited my love of portraiture. I have been mainly focusing on my documentary work  and can’t wait to get back to doing portraits. The experience has been frustrating and not without it’s stresses but it has also been fulfilling and fun. I love every minute of it. Good, bad and ugly.

It’s not good to be too comfortable.

You plan the shoot you spec it out and then it’s a wrap. The funny thing is, is that it never fails that the best shots are either at the very beginning of the shoot when you’re just getting prepared and warming up. The mental or emotional attachment isn’t the same as when you’re ready and geared up to shoot. It’s then that there’s this shift where things become result oriented.  I don’t think there has ever been a time where when I wasn’t looking, the best shots presented themselves. It’s like life. You can make all the plans you want, cross your i’s and dot your t’s, be as prepared as you possibly can and in the end life happens as it’s going to happen anyway with or without your permission and many times you just have to fly by the seat of your pants. I’m not saying don’t be as prepared as possible. I mean I’m actually the type of person that makes my grocery list according to where the items are in the aisles. I have the store memorized. And even as I write this post on letting go of control, I’m always trying to optimize at all times as much as possible in everything that I do. However, the key is “balance” and awareness. Thank goodness for Trader Joe’s. They scramble their merchandise without notice so that the cereal isn’t where it was last time so my list system is useless in their paradigm. And THAT is how life is. Plan all you want, but stay loose. Anything can happen.

I still arrive with a mental image of what I want and will arrive to the location with that plan in mind. Sometimes it works, often times it doesn’t. The main thing is to not have any attachment to that plan. Because then force comes into the picture and force is always met with resistance.  It has to come naturally. The tighter you grip the more elusive the shot will become.  When it’s time to shoot and you’re in the zone and your subject feels that energy and is also in the zone, that’s great in of itself. The synergy of the shoot. But when there is a break, a lull, a changing of the guards, that is where serendipity takes place. The true genuine unguarded moments and if you’re able to capture those, it’s just the best.

Joe McNally was on assignment to shoot a portrait of Linus Pauling. He had packed his camera bag and was leaving the property and as Linus opened the gate to let him out,  his cat climbed onto his shoulder. Joe saw the moment and caught the shot and that was the winner. It’s unmistakeable.

Linus Pauling by Joe McNally

Last weekend I photographed Jennifer and her pet bird Elmo. They are very bonded and I wanted to capture them in a portrait together. I got some satisfactory shots but as I was preparing to leave, she was holding him and petting him as she leaned against the wall. I had just put my camera away and pulled it out again and it was this shot that I felt most expressed their relationship. It ain’t over till the fat lady sings.

I have just been under siege lately. Life coming at me from all sides. Despite the onslaught however, it’s interesting that for the most part I feel serene. When things are out of control you either fall apart, or relinquish. Notice that I said “relinquish” rather than surrender. I’m not raising the white flag just yet. I’m just letting go of the control that I never had in the first place. The irony is that the status quo or (kuo, yes pun intended…)  is still the same. Business as usual but with out the mental vice grip. Life is a completely different experience if you can live within this realm. But that’s just the thing. To exist in this radius on a consistent basis is the challenge. How can you exist in this orbit without letting the gravity of “life” suck you back into the  drama?

We had snow today. Or some version of it. It was not in the forecast and I woke up to a slushy sloppy mess. Too soggy for a snowman, too wet for the snow blower. Too overcast to be reflective and glittery. Well I proposed that we venture outside to make do anyway. What ensued was an afternoon of pure silliness and creativity. Not enough snow to go sledding but we rolled down the hill until we were dizzy and our coats were soaking wet. I hadn’t picked up my camera in a week and was going through major withdrawal but I got my creative fix by channeling Andy Goldsworthy. We worked with what we had, and even though what we were given was less than perfect, we did more with less than we would have if we were possibly given more.

"foundation"

snow boots

pair and right mitten

I’m glued to the book “The Artist’s Way.” I can’t recommend it enough. There are two exercises that are unnegotiable which are the journaling, and the weekly artist date. I am so overwhelmed every day in my life I couldn’t conceive of taking time out once a week for an artist date.  But once I committed to it, there was no going back. It doesn’t have to be anything profound. The artist’s date just takes you out of your “required” life in order to release the blocks from your creative energies. So in the end, you operate more effectively and become more proficient. It works.  So this past weekend I went to the DIA in Beacon with a bunch of friends. Best weekend plans I’ve had in a long time. I was inspired the minute I stepped out of the car into the parking lot. I said to myself that I can’t believe I don’t just drive up here all the time and walk around. The change of scenery alone was inspiring and a release. The creative juices were overflowing and I just could not drink it in fast enough. Getting so wrapped up in the doing, we forget about the being within the doing and when that happens what’s the point?

parking lot and berries

parking space

scarred for life. creepy ketchup bottle with moving "doll eyes"

program hat

serra

serra

This year I had no plans to make a holiday card. Then I started receiving them. People sending seasons greetings. Smiling happy faces, good wishes, so I felt inspired to send one. It was the 11th hour and I had no option other than to make and print one myself, if I were to do it at all. But I just didn’t want to throw something together. It had to be a true reflection of me. It had to convey the sentiments I wanted to give to others as we embarked on a new year. I’ve found out that you can have all the plans you want, but once you’re in that creative realm of actually producing it, stuff just comes up, other stuff doesn’t pan out and you just have to be open to any inspiration that comes to you during the process. For me it’s a combination of always over thinking things, trying to hard, and then letting go. It’s always in the letting go that the good stuff presents itself. It’s like being at a restaurant and thinking that the waiter that is walking towards you, dishes in hand, is headed to your table with your food, only  to be disappointed when he  turns sharply and goes to the next table. It’s only when you get tired of “expecting” that your food shows up.
The card that I ended up making was very simple. The response that I got was overwhelming. I had one friend tell me that she carries it around with her, she loves it so much. I was tremendously flattered and touched by the sentiment. I was curious as to why the card was so well received. It only occurred to me what it might be when I came across this TED talk given by Simon Sinek, about “The Why” When I set out to make my card, it was pure intention, and intention only, to show what means the most to me and to share it with others. It wasn’t driven by design, or composition. They were factors, but they were not the focus. Sometimes it’s a challenge to stay pure and not be distracted by other agendas or be results oriented when creating our art. But it seems that when it comes from the inside out, your gut, your heart, “the why” you can’t go wrong.

Front of holiday card 2011

Back of holiday card 2011

I find animal behavior forever fascinating. It’s my favorite pastime. Recently I’ve spent countless of hours on farms, and often times the natural compositions these animals take on is simply uncanny. Chris Buck has 2 cats. They produce such symmetrical compositions (which he sometimes tweets about) http://twitter.com/#!/MrCHRIS_BUCK/statuses/141941957957132288 that if they weren’t 2 completely different species, you’d swear it was a trick. I was inspired by Chris’s humorous posts and extracted my own footage of symmetrical farm animals as a nod to his domestic felines. Oh, and including one pair of symmetrical pigs.