I write a lot about passion. I feel like it's something I have and feel so much that I can't help but share it with everyone around me. Sometimes it comes out as giddiness, sometimes it comes out in tears, but it's always there.
Over the last couple weeks I've seen multiple concerts and luckily they've all been of my favorite artists. The Dave Matthews Band was one night and, although I sat under the stars in one of the most beautiful venues on earth watching my favorite band, the only thing that really moved me was the look on my cousin's face as he stared in wonder at the drum works of Mr. Carter Beauford: our voices becoming one as we sang "Why I Am" at the deep blue sky. The Long Winters at Bumbershoot also comes to mind. I love this band and am enamored with John Roderick's voice, however I grew bored during the set and suggested we go. Once we got outside and I heard the music flowing over the night air mixed with the sounds of the city around me I made the tall one stop and sit on a bench to listen, I was so blown away by the scene. Even the Australian Pink Floyd show didn't really floor me. I was more interested in the way the light played with the performers than I was with the actual performance.
It made me wonder if my passion has a new focus. I pour over photo blogs with a fury every single day. I have at least 50 that I check on a regular basis and even more that I glance at once a week or so. I don't visit music sites, I don't ask my friends for new bands to listen to, hell I don't even know when my favorite artists are coming to town. Have I lost my passion for music? Have I been so immersed in photography that I've forgotten what it's like to really feel a piece of music, to watch a band and feel the crowd swell with happiness around me and think there isn't a place in the world I'd rather be than right there, right then?
Then I watched this video:
Listen to it loud and preferably with a glass of wine.
My heart swooned, I was pushed back in my chair by the sound of the choir and my eyes welled up in tears. I haven't forgot, I just have another thing that not only am I as equally passionate about but has opened up my world to help me to appreciate things more broadly. Instead of just the music moving me, it's the surroundings that I'm in, the company that I'm keeping, the lighting, the time of day, the venue, everything. Which is fine by me, I guess I just need to remind myself every now and then :)
Sooooo since I occasionally post songs, like the one above, that move me I thought I'd share some photographers that inspire me.
Wedding Photography
Since I had the chance to photograph my cousin's wedding I spent quite some time looking at wedding photos and both Heather Gilson of One Love Photo and Caroline Tran have stayed in my blog list even now that the wedding is over. Heather uses a combination of homemade lenses and film cameras to achieve her pastel colored and blurred shots. Caroline's use of negative space and the way she connects on such an intimate level with her subjects makes her photography an inspiration. As Heather's blog says "the photos alone are reason enough to get married".
Light Painting / Night Shooting
Long exposures are my favorite thing to do. I love the dreaminess of the colors, the fogginess of the waves as they crash to the shore, the streaks of light either created by the stars or by a friend who's joined you on the outing who's been outfitted with different light sources or even just a single red headlamp.
I was first introduced to BURNBLUE, aka Toby Keller, via flickr and I followed a link to his blog. His long exposures and seascapes along the Northern California coast are so fun and helped me to understand exposure when playing with a light source.
Stu Jenks is doing some amazing things with his pinhole camera and I can browse through his series called Circles, Hoops & Spirals for hours.
Another photographer who I think is amazing and who also uses toy cameras is Susanne Friedrich. The star trails that she achieves using long exposures with her Holga camera are wonderful. When shooting long exposures with film there is not a lot of room for error. You've got to meter the light, compose correctly, wait endlessly and then hope to whatever God you pray to that the damn thing came out. She's nailed that process and I love to look at her photos.
Brent Pearson has a great blog for tips on light painting that is pretty fun to read and his photos are out of control.
Textures / Abstract / Polaroid
Irene's blog is indeed Eye Poetry. I was first drawn to her bokeh hearts and shots of Paris and she just keeps pulling me in with soft colored shots of her surroundings. Her photos are so peaceful.
The Hymn For The Cigarettes is shot entirely with film and each one is thought provoking.
xxhxxm is described as such: We do not live or work together, and yet we wanted to share a common area around some photographies. Share time, even a few milliseconds, despite the distance that can separate us (589 km at the beginning of the project). At the same time, our eyes look at two different spaces, to finally form one single picture. The rule is simple: each day, a time and a picture ratio are given. The next day, when that moment comes, we trigger no matter where we are. Later, the pictures are put next to each other to finally be published on this blog exactly (to the very minute) two weeks after their capture.
Brilliant.
Photojournalists
Love them all:
Zoriah
Boogie
Mr. Toledano
Nick Campbell
Nature
My mentor, who is an inspiration still, and I check his site at least once a day.
I have no idea who this guy is. I stumbled upon his photos and put him on my bookmarks and have been following him ever since.
Trevor Anderson is a friend of a friend and a fellow hiker. Although I haven't approved of the borders he's been putting around his photos as of late, the way he captures the northwest is awe inspiring and makes me incredibly jealous! :)
Bill Hinton is another northwest photographer and hiker that loves to shoot during the magic hour. I just love looking through his photostream. It seems as though I see something new every time and reminds me what a beautiful state I live in.
I'll leave you with one more Elbow song from the session with the BBC Concert Orchestra. Perhaps enjoy it while browsing through the links I've overloaded you with.
Over the last couple weeks I've seen multiple concerts and luckily they've all been of my favorite artists. The Dave Matthews Band was one night and, although I sat under the stars in one of the most beautiful venues on earth watching my favorite band, the only thing that really moved me was the look on my cousin's face as he stared in wonder at the drum works of Mr. Carter Beauford: our voices becoming one as we sang "Why I Am" at the deep blue sky. The Long Winters at Bumbershoot also comes to mind. I love this band and am enamored with John Roderick's voice, however I grew bored during the set and suggested we go. Once we got outside and I heard the music flowing over the night air mixed with the sounds of the city around me I made the tall one stop and sit on a bench to listen, I was so blown away by the scene. Even the Australian Pink Floyd show didn't really floor me. I was more interested in the way the light played with the performers than I was with the actual performance.
It made me wonder if my passion has a new focus. I pour over photo blogs with a fury every single day. I have at least 50 that I check on a regular basis and even more that I glance at once a week or so. I don't visit music sites, I don't ask my friends for new bands to listen to, hell I don't even know when my favorite artists are coming to town. Have I lost my passion for music? Have I been so immersed in photography that I've forgotten what it's like to really feel a piece of music, to watch a band and feel the crowd swell with happiness around me and think there isn't a place in the world I'd rather be than right there, right then?
Then I watched this video:
Listen to it loud and preferably with a glass of wine.
My heart swooned, I was pushed back in my chair by the sound of the choir and my eyes welled up in tears. I haven't forgot, I just have another thing that not only am I as equally passionate about but has opened up my world to help me to appreciate things more broadly. Instead of just the music moving me, it's the surroundings that I'm in, the company that I'm keeping, the lighting, the time of day, the venue, everything. Which is fine by me, I guess I just need to remind myself every now and then :)
Sooooo since I occasionally post songs, like the one above, that move me I thought I'd share some photographers that inspire me.
Wedding Photography
Since I had the chance to photograph my cousin's wedding I spent quite some time looking at wedding photos and both Heather Gilson of One Love Photo and Caroline Tran have stayed in my blog list even now that the wedding is over. Heather uses a combination of homemade lenses and film cameras to achieve her pastel colored and blurred shots. Caroline's use of negative space and the way she connects on such an intimate level with her subjects makes her photography an inspiration. As Heather's blog says "the photos alone are reason enough to get married".
Light Painting / Night Shooting
Long exposures are my favorite thing to do. I love the dreaminess of the colors, the fogginess of the waves as they crash to the shore, the streaks of light either created by the stars or by a friend who's joined you on the outing who's been outfitted with different light sources or even just a single red headlamp.
I was first introduced to BURNBLUE, aka Toby Keller, via flickr and I followed a link to his blog. His long exposures and seascapes along the Northern California coast are so fun and helped me to understand exposure when playing with a light source.
Stu Jenks is doing some amazing things with his pinhole camera and I can browse through his series called Circles, Hoops & Spirals for hours.
Another photographer who I think is amazing and who also uses toy cameras is Susanne Friedrich. The star trails that she achieves using long exposures with her Holga camera are wonderful. When shooting long exposures with film there is not a lot of room for error. You've got to meter the light, compose correctly, wait endlessly and then hope to whatever God you pray to that the damn thing came out. She's nailed that process and I love to look at her photos.
Brent Pearson has a great blog for tips on light painting that is pretty fun to read and his photos are out of control.
Textures / Abstract / Polaroid
Irene's blog is indeed Eye Poetry. I was first drawn to her bokeh hearts and shots of Paris and she just keeps pulling me in with soft colored shots of her surroundings. Her photos are so peaceful.
The Hymn For The Cigarettes is shot entirely with film and each one is thought provoking.
xxhxxm is described as such: We do not live or work together, and yet we wanted to share a common area around some photographies. Share time, even a few milliseconds, despite the distance that can separate us (589 km at the beginning of the project). At the same time, our eyes look at two different spaces, to finally form one single picture. The rule is simple: each day, a time and a picture ratio are given. The next day, when that moment comes, we trigger no matter where we are. Later, the pictures are put next to each other to finally be published on this blog exactly (to the very minute) two weeks after their capture.
Brilliant.
Photojournalists
Love them all:
Zoriah
Boogie
Mr. Toledano
Nick Campbell
Nature
My mentor, who is an inspiration still, and I check his site at least once a day.
I have no idea who this guy is. I stumbled upon his photos and put him on my bookmarks and have been following him ever since.
Trevor Anderson is a friend of a friend and a fellow hiker. Although I haven't approved of the borders he's been putting around his photos as of late, the way he captures the northwest is awe inspiring and makes me incredibly jealous! :)
Bill Hinton is another northwest photographer and hiker that loves to shoot during the magic hour. I just love looking through his photostream. It seems as though I see something new every time and reminds me what a beautiful state I live in.
I'll leave you with one more Elbow song from the session with the BBC Concert Orchestra. Perhaps enjoy it while browsing through the links I've overloaded you with.
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