Derecho: Quinwood West Virginia 2012
The storm hit us on June 29th 2012 at approximately 7:55pm, it came from the West-NorthWest, With winds at an excess of 70 mph. we lost power for 10 days, temps reached well into the 90’s, Neighbors helped one another, we boiled water and cooked what we had before we had to throw it out till help could arrive; Other impacted states included Ohio, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Washington DC.
If anyone were to ask me what I thought a "Derecho" was prior to 2012, I would have said a Quentin Tarantino film. Like many, I had been through my share of weather events; Snow storms, Blizzards, Tornadoes, I remember the heatwave that hit Chicago in 1995 that contributed to over 700 heat related deaths. Through each event you think you're better prepared more over than the last one, you're not, you're really, really not. Cause we're all too busy living in the now in the moment. I do applaud the citizens of all the communities, small towns, and cities through the great state of West Virginia, we helped one another, and that is truly what living is all about.
More Power crews began to show up 10 days later to access the damage.
Mayor of Quinwood greets a member of the American Red Cross from the Kentucky division, soon after the power crews arrived..
The Red Cross was a welcomed site to many of the residents of West Virginia that were effected by the storm..
Pallets of water arrive per the National Guard.
Volenteers prepare meals furnished by the Red Cross.
Meals stand ready to be taken to those residents that could not make it to the quinwood fire dept
Pallets of water stand ready to be distributed to the residents.
Members of the American Red Cross getting ready to head out.
The last can of food is handed out before their departure.
The Thousand Year Flood: 2016
As we approach the 2-year anniversary of the "thousand-year flood" that occurred on June 23, 2016. I thought I'd share some of my images from my ride home through Harts Run in Caldwell West Virginia to White Sulphur Springs.
Shot with my LG G5 Smartphone: My Rolleiflex MX series TLR and the film I shot on my dresser, it would be a month or so till I was able to send it out to be developed.
Shot with a LG G5 Smartphone: Part of the Greenbrier golf course in White Sulphur Springs (right) It had gotten worse as I drove on route 60.
Shot with an LG G5 Smartphone: Center of town, the river had breached the barriers to the right and was pouring into the neighborhoods, the area behind the tree line (right) fared far worse since it sat much lower. The road directly in front of me is the one I needed to take to get home, Howard creek had already breached the barriers along the road, and the lower lying area just on the other side of the tree on the right, 23 homes were destroyed and 6 lives were lost.
Shot with my Roleiflex 6x6 TLR: Section of road at route 60 and 92.
Shot with my Rolleiflex 6x6 TLR:Several vehicles were washed away downstream and found themselves in the park.
Shot with my Rolleiflex 6x6 TLR:The area where many homes were destroyed, I found this bicycle that someone had stood back up, it was the only thing still intact.
Shot with LG G5 Smartphone: this image was taken in 2017 atop the bridge of Howards Creek, I thought I'd include it to show just how high the creek had risen.
I'm With The Band
These were just a few of the perks. From working in the music industry.
The Smashing Pumpkins, a band called The Blind Venetians a famous club called The Cabaret Metro in Chicago: This blog is dedicated to the memory of Matt Suhar, Lead singer of the Chicago based band, The Blind Venetians.
The only concert I can remember I paid for in my life was the KISS Dynasty tour back in 1979, with opening act Judas Priest when they’d played at the Chicago’s Amphitheater on Chicago’s far south side. Come to think of it, I had never bought many physical albums or CD’s, most if not all in my collection from back in the day were promo copies sent out from the various record companies to the distributors weeks prior to their actual release dates, those were just some of the perks working in the music industry, then there were the CD release parties and the concert tickets, any show and just about any venue. The catch was you had to show up to these release parties, cause if your rep didn’t see your name crossed off the list the following day, well, don’t ask for anything else, well at least for a while.
I was supposed to have seen Guns n Roses at Alpine Valley in May of 1991, unfortunately I had to return those tickets to Geffen Records, guess I missed a few obscure release parties that year, but I was told later they overextended the tickets they had given to people, but the following year, oh yes, I was comped without asking and seen them live in Tinley Park with openers, Skid Row in the summer of 1991. again, These were just a few of the perks. From working in the music industry.
Which brings me to April 11, 1992. This was a night to remember. Guns n Roses with supporting act The Smashing Pumpkins, at the Rosemont Horizon in Rosemont, Ill. Smashing Pumpkins are set to open a sold out show for Guns n Roses on their last night at this venue. The Pumpkins hit the stage giving an electrified set, they ended there show with Billy Corgan taking his Mike stand and smashing one of many metal grates that made up parts of the stage; he created a pretty good size crater when he was done. Soon the lights were on and the wait for the main act begun, and we waited, and waited, and waited.
Then after what seemed an eternity all in attendance heard the announcement, that Guns n Roses would not be taking the stage and we were to exit the arena. Found out later that Axl Rose had a warrant for his arrest waiting for him, so he skipped out, leaving the packed house pissed off and cheated. Oddly I was not a bit phased by this, considering I seen them the year before.
The night was still young, so myself and some friends decided to hit up the Cabaret Metro, the famous rock club on the north side of the city in the Wrigleyville area, the same place the Gunners rented out the upstairs for 2 months while working on the very album they were touring 3 years prior. We had some friends that were playing a show there and we would just make it before their set time, as long as the Blue line train was on time, we were looking at just over an hour to travel back to Wrigleyville. This was to be the cap for our Saturday night.
Once we arrived and paid the cover; whatever that was, maybe around 8 bucks or so. We soon made our way to the upstairs portion of the club and found our friend Jimmy, we told him what had happened in Rosemont with the Gunners. he, in turn, told us his band, The Blind Venetians were to hit the stage as soon as the band currently playing finished their set. So we all made our way to one of the archways just left of the stairway that led to the main floor of the Metro to chat some and watch the band.
It wasn't soon after that, well you know that feeling you get when you know someone is standing right behind you, and 1 out of 10 there is not a soul nearby? Well, this was the 1 time my instincts were right, as I looked, there stood Jimmy Iha, the guitarist with the Smashing Pumpkins right behind us. Me never in my life a “fanboy” type stood there looking at him for a moment while at the same time tapping my friend Jimmy on the shoulder.
Jimmy first looks at me then directly behind me, “Dude”! as the 2 greeted one another, the Jimmies knew one another, I believe they went to high school together, and like most bands that played the Metro, everybody knew everybody. My friend Jimmy asked Iha where the rest of the band were and soon I was hanging out with the Smashing Pumpkins and my friends in The Blind Venetians. What a way to cap off the night.
The Social Media Platform: Us and Them
“Who’s social platform are you promoting, yours or their’s”. - Dave Morrow, Professional Landscape Photographer.
Last month I shared a video by professional photographer and filmmaker, Sean Tucker about dealing with creative block, I also attempted to touch on my own struggle in facing creative block head on, Now I am at my next hurdle; social media and sharing on these platforms. I watched a video by professional landscape photographer, Dave Morrow, that I found posted in an article from Petapixel, The article was titled “ This Photographer Deleted His Social Media With 1.5 Million Followers”. The title sure grabbed my attention, and my curiosity. So I decided to watch the 11 minute and listen Photographer Dave Morrow’s reason for such a move.
In 2017, Dave Morrow had the idea for an experiment, To quit social media completely. Most photographers would find that hard to do, especially with a following of 500,000 on Google+, Facebook 15,000 and a huge following of 1.5 million on Instagram. But Dave Morrow did, accounts deleted, followers all gone. Morrow’s 2 biggest concerns were, his web traffic and business would suffer tremendously, when in fact it was the exact opposite, both had actually increased.
Though I don’t have a large following on any of my social media platforms; Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, followers have never been the problem for me, or the goal I set out to accomplish when I first setup my accounts, the problem that presents itself to me is I don’t see a need to post separately the same material on every......single.... page I have, especially when I can just share a link that leads right to my main outlet; my website, My own platform. That is where I really want people to go to see my work. I honestly believe that would work better for me and give me room to create.
I liked when Dave Morrow said “Who’s social platform are you promoting, yours or their’s”. That statement is so true, and now I am just wanting to simplify my life personally and creatively. The point is, I have decided to just share new creative content on my website and post a link on my social media accounts that in turn will help keep my website fresh with content and direct traffic back to my platform. Below is Dave Morrow’s video, I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.
www.davemorrowphotography.com
Resisting Creative Block
This months blog I present a video by UK photographer Sean Tucker and my views on my own dealings with creative block.
Recently I had stumbled upon Sean Tucker on Youtube, Sean is a well-established photographer and filmmaker located in the UK. I was searching out vlogs from other photographers on the subject of creative block and how to deal with it and the ways to overcome and escape its grip. The video that caught my interest was titled “ How to create when you're just not 'feeling it'; with Sean’s permission I have added the video below
I would like to touch on the things in his video that I, as a creative can relate to and at times have been demonized by this shadow of my own despair and uncertainty in my creative process.
Sean Tucker touches on 3 things that can weigh him down and I relate to all 3 perfectly; perfectionism, rationalization, and fear.
I agree with Sean, “nothing we ever do is ever going to be perfect” and “ think of every project instead, as a draft along a longer journey of creativity that will span my lifetime” I like to think that the work we create is like adding layer upon layer to the last idea we had, the end piece is more of a coalition of those ideas along the way. I know I have done this, and within the last year alone I have struggled (again) with “I Don’t have the right gear to start or finish a project”, and yes, again this has plagued me for quite some time for years, I’ve had a few self-projects on the back burners for way too long. why? Because I used this as an excuse almost every time.
It wasn’t until recently that I had realized what I was doing to myself. It started in the winter of 2016, I put in my head that I wanted to trade up my current strobes for better and more portable strobes than what I was currently using, I made myself feel justified in that, then I needed to add that one lens to my gear bag, I bargained with myself and gave in, then I needed a few more modifiers, the list goes on and on, and once 1 had gotten that each thing fulfilled from my list, another “must have” item appears and it now takes that much longer to get started and finish a project.
Lastly, Sean suggests the book “The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield at the beginning of his video, Sean quotes from his book " Resistance- anything that keeps us from creating, he speaks about it like an internal voice that never sleeps, but always whispers" I have since ordered this book.
Video used by permission:
Website: http://www.seantucker.photography/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seantuck/
Purchase book or prints: http://www.seantucker.photography/store/ Book training sessions:
http://www.seantucker.photography/bookings/
"After reading 'The War of Art' by Steven Pressfield, I'm sharing some thoughts on my own resistance and how I push through to create regardless." - Sean Tucker
““Rule of thumb: The more important a call or action is to our soul’s evolution, the resistance we will feel toward pursuing it” - Steven Pressfield”
Why Capture One Pro?
The choice was easy when I decided I wanted to tether my photo sessions to my laptop, Capture One Pro supports both my older Nikon cameras, the D200 and the D2x.
Recently I started to explore the possibilities of shooting tether during photo sessions; For those that don’t know, Tethering is the ability to connect the camera to the computer via USB cable and using software to view each and every image as you shoot.
Phase One’s Capture One Pro 11 imaging software became a possibility for me. Why would I switch from Adobe Lightroom? First and foremost,the obvious, tethering options for both my Nikon D200 and D2x that are not supported with Lightroom, they’re however supported through Capture One .
Though I have been an avid Adobe photoshop user for many years, jumping over to Adobe Lightroom Classic CC within the past year or so. The idea of viewing each of my shots on a larger display, being able to tweak the RAW file as I shoot, showing a prospective client the process and make any changes that would become more visible per a larger presentation other than the small LCD on the back of my camera. Capture One Pro has became exactly what I think I need.
Sure I’ve had a few friends tell me to just upgrade to a newer, more recent model camera, a full frame camera, and just stay with Lightroom, why should I? For what I do and plan to do, and for what I need. my Nikon D200 and D2x are more than enough to take on what I put them through, if its not broke, don’t fix it is what I go by and secondly, the camera is nothing more than a tool, an extension of the artist. Adding Capture One software to my workflow just ups the ante when it comes to making each and every image count, this will allow me to fully dig deep into my vision, cause in the end, the image starts and ends with me.
What’s in my bag
Here's a peek at what I currently use both in-house and on location. My whole Elinchrom system is actually the newest addition I have added since switching from the Paul C. Buff units, and it was worth the switch.
Often at times I never get asked “what’s in my bag”, well that’s not entirely true, when doing events is when that question would arise……at times.
Bags & Cases:
Timbuk2 Medium Messenger Bag (custom)
Domke F7 (black)
Domke F1-x little bit bigger bag (tan)
Elinchrom Hardshell Case
Tenba Hardshell Waterproof Case
Anvil Heavy Duty Flight Case
Cameras, Lenses:
Digital 35mm:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 85mm F1.8 D Lens
Nikkor 80-200mm F2.8 Lens
Sony Alpha A7R II
Sony FE 135mm F/1.8 GM
4x5 Film:
Toyo GII (4X5 camera)
Schneider Symmar-S 180mm f5.6 MC (Large Format Lens)
Riteway 4x5 Film Holders
Medium Format Film:
Rolleiflex MX series TLR
Mamiya RB67 Pro SD
Mamiya Sekor 50mm C f4.5
Mamiya 140mm F4.5 macro type “C” Lens
Mamiya K/L 90mm f3.5 Lens
Mamiya K/L 180 f4.5 Lens
Mamiya CDS Prism Finder
Mamiya Model 2 Prism Finder
Mamiya RB67 Waist Level Finder
Mamiya (RB) 6x8 Motorised 120 Film Back (2X's)
Mamiya (RB/RZ) 6x7 Motorised 120 Film Back
Lighting:
Elinchrom Quadra Pro Flash Head
Elinchrom Quadra Action Flash Head
Elinchrom Speed AS A Head
Elinchrom EL-1000 flash Head
Elinchrom Quadra Hybrid Battery Pack (400ws)
Elinchrom Quadra RX Battery Pack (400ws)
Elinchrom Ranger RX Speed AS Battery Pack (1100ws)
Elinchrom RQ Adapters (2X's)
Elinchrom Deflectors set
Elinchrom Maxispot Reflector
Elinchrom Rotalux 39" Deep Octabox
Elinchrom 17" Silver Beauty Dish
Elinchrom Basic 8.25 Reflector
30-degree Grid Spot (8”)
Elinchrom Skyport Plus HS Transmitter (Nikon)
Elinchrom Skyport Plus HS Transmitter (Sony)
Elinchrom EL-Skyport Transceiver
Elinchrom EL-Skyport Receiver
Honey Grid 40cm- 25-degree Grid Spot
Vagabond II Battery Pack (used w/Elinchrom EL-1000)
Mola Demi 22” Beauty Dish (White)
22” spot grid for Mola Demi (20 Degree)
Photek Softlighter II
Phottix 35cm X 155cm Strip Light
Nikon SB-26 Speedlight
Misc:
4'x 6' California Sunbounce w/ Silver/White Reflector Panel (2x’s)
42"x78" PVC frames (2X's)
42"x78" Calumet Translucent 1/2 stop Fabric
42"x78" Calumet White/Silver Fabric
Savage Seamless Paper (Thunder Gray) 86"x 36"
5x7 Canvas Backdrop Olive/Medium Texture
Rosco Color Gels
Bogen/Avenger Rolling Stand
Matthews Century C+ w/Turtle Base (Black)
Matthews Baby Runway Stand with Wheeled Base
Matthews 40” Hollywood Head/Arm (black)
Matthews 40” Hollywood Head/Arm
Matthews Half/Full Size Apple Box
X-rite ColorChecker
Workflow:
Dell XPS 17” Laptop
Dell XPS Desktop (32GB memory) Dual 27” Monitors
Wacom Intuos Pro (Medium) w/ Pro 2 Pen
WD External Drive 500GB
WD External Drive 3T
WD External Drive 6T
WD External Drive 8T
Adobe Lightroom cc
Adobe Photoshop cc
Adobe Photoshop CS3 Master Collection
Capture One
Accessories:
Mamiya G2 Lens Shade
Tokina Lens Shade
Nikon Lens Shade
Sandisk Type II & III CF Cards (10X's)
Sandisk Card Reader
Nikon Battery Charger
B+W UV Filters (8x’s)
Sekonic L-358 Light Meter
Bogen 3021 Tripod (bought this in 1991)
Bogen 3030 Head (bought this in 1991)**retired
Arca Swiss B1 Ballhead
Arca Swiss Universal Plates (4X's)
77mm Neutral Density Filter
FIRST BLOG POST COMING JAN. 1, 2018
Recent and personal projects, photo essays, road stories, even some BTS (behind the scenes) of a photoshoot or two, Going to present my work in both digital and film formats, 35mm and medium format.