Holy Update Batman!

No images in this post.

After getting the family settled, getting the better half into school, & learning to navigate the foreign land I now reside in... I got around to looking into photo programs in the area.

I have recently applied to two programs down in Chicago. The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (Mike's school) and Columbia College Chicago (Both of which have received positive reviews from those I have talked with of the photographic relations). I was still hesitant about the application/acceptance processes after my 1-1 record with Utah's programs. But what the llama... not going to get anywhere unless I try.

SAIC isn't official yet... so I will hold off on that story. Though it is looking favorable. Columbia, on the other hand, is official in the affirmative (got the letter today)!

Looking forward to getting back into the Scholastic game. Looking into doing more book & paper related arts along with my photography. Looking forward to putting my work beside the overly conceptual stuff I have been seeing all over place... should be interesting.

Stay tuned for another update of the scholastic nature. And as soon as that darn Lake Michigan does the freeze over thing.. I should be working on another project.

How I can't wait to have access to the goodness that comes with photography labs...

Introducing: The Camera Code Named Wallace

So I added a large format camera to my collection over a month ago. It took a bit to get me out with it. (Something to do with that whole new camera/"Oh crud! What do I do with this thing?" mentality.)

This was the first image I captured with it. It was up at Cascade Springs in Utah. I deliberately only brought this camera so that I would have to shoot with it, and still I only took two shots.

I don't know how I feel about this image. I like it, but don't know if I finished it. It might have something to do with not trusting myself enough to decide if an image is finished. So Yah... there is just me to be the judge and that is not necessarily a comforting thought.

I am in Illinois. I haven't shot a thing. At present Hector (my medium format) and Wallace sit in their box-- unpacked. Sigh... I need some friends of the photographic nature. If you know any.. send them my way.

And now to the imagery!

Commentary: It kind of gets at the idea of my surrealistic landscapes that are supposed to nudge the imagination into imagining... but I think it goes a little bit too far.

Spirals can be Jetties

Went up to the Great Salt Lake and visited the Spiral Jetty.  I can definitely see the appeal to the area.  Although I did not photograph the actual jetty.. I did find a miniature one, along with lots of salt and a few dead birds. 

It was good to finally get some images that turned out decent enough to actually be worth showing to people.

Utah Lake Before 7am

Was out at Utah Lake pretending to be a photographer earlier this week.


Could be the last time I photograph there.. weird...

Produce: The Side You Never Knew

Here is my photographic lighting final.

It turned out ok. I should have spent more time picking out my vegetables and fruit. For example, even though I hate coconut with a passion, its hairy shell would have been fantastic (yah... that idea came a bit too late). Should probably grow my own garden in the future, raw veggies and fruit from the ground would have a unique look to them. I think I would have liked more variety in my backgrounds as well. I do like the warm tone I added to the black & white. In the end, I tend to think of this as a rough draft to some really awesome final draft in the future (which kind of defeats the purpose of this being my final... oh well...).

Without further ado.. Here they are with a little bit of information about each one:

Asparagus: Have been working on a documentary about the asparagus prison system.

Pineapples: When frightened they thrust out spikes to ward off potential predators.

Lettuce: Tiny people use them as mazes to torture people that try to leave their tribe.

Ginger: Not the same Ginger who got stuck on an imaginary island in the 1960s.

Radishes: Hide in the ground using their stems as fake trees. Tiny people looking for shade are violently sucked into the ground never to be seen again.

Artichokes: That stump looking thing in the center is really an eye. Your food is watching you.

Blueberries: They moonlight as marbles.

Peppers: They are apart of the group PAN. Peppers Against Nudes.

Eggplants: Introducing the newest addition to the Pokemon universe. I choose you Eggplant!

Apples: Will be the topic of a new book about decoding secret religious messages found within secret Catholic fruit cults.

Tomatoes: Scientists revealed recently that they truly are the Nectar of the Gods.

Tomatillos: Are known for their eccentric hair styles and their punkish attiudes.

These are definitely meant to be Fine Art photographs, but I think I need humor right now in an effort to try and de-stress from finals.