Chris Dunn gives me a "thumbs-up" with a chocolate croissant...she's not sure about this "Second thirty days," either, but were doing to do it! | Canon 7D and 50mm f/1.2L; exposed 1/1250 sec. @ f/1.2, ISO 800.

It was with much fanfare–and relief–that I parted ways with what I thought was a successful project for my Picture Story class at the University of Missouri: posting on my blog a new photograph every day for 30 days.  Well, not so fast.

The majority of the class wanted a second crack at the project; some had made some excellent images and wanted the pressure to stay on, others found it to be no pressure at all, and others still just fell off the wagon early on, and wanted to see if they could work up the resolve to post daily.

Here we go again…

Tags: Canon 50mm 1.2L, EOS 7D, photojournalism, Thirty Days
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…well, more like ten…

POV# 2: Feral Foster, a solo musician from New York City, sings to the audience of "Identity Crisis" before the movie begins on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010 at the Tiger Hotel in Columbia, Mo.

Background…

Last weekend, Columbia hosted the True/False, an annual film festival for documentaries.  The streets bustled in a way not often seen in this part of the country; a friend of mine, Mito Habe-Evans, commented that it felt like we were in a “real” city.

All weekend I walked in a circuit through downtown Columbia, from the Missouri Theatre to RagTag Cinema across Broadway and down to the Tiger Hotel, intermittently weaving through the middle of my route just to mix things up.  There were times that it seemed the petitioners were in equally strong force as the movie-goers….who were mostly from out of town.

The restaurants were packed, and the trash cans on the street swelled and became domed with all of the trash that people couldn’t fit inside.  But for all of the visual variety in front of me, it became difficult to find a narrative that would “work” for a coherent essay about the event.  There were lots of singles to be had–indeed, some of them have made it onto this blog already–but finding a thread was difficult.

After editing my take five different times, I found that there were two threads I could pursue: one of the experience of the film festival for movie-goers, and the other the experience of volunteers.

These are the images I have selected to tell the story of the spectator’s experience at the film festival:

More photos and commentary after the jump! Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Five Points of View, photojournalism, stories, story
Posted in Picture Story | 1 Comment »

Sunset over Seventh Street | Canon 5D Mk. II and 50mm f/1.2L lens; exposed 1/640 sec. @ f/1.2, ISO 200.

Today is the last of the photo-a-day images, and I would say that it’s been an interesting, challenging, and productive month.  There’s a relief that the pressure is off, but there’s also a sadness that the same pressure is absent.

However, the next time I would do a project like this, I would prefer to make it one more akin to Jim Brandenberg’s Chased by the Light, where he made only one image per day over the course of ninety days. It would be more time-intensive, and require much more dedication and thought–and I would need a theme or a subject to focus on for a larger project like that.

Unfortunately, given the nature of my world at the moment, there just isn’t time for something like that. But some day, hopefully sooner than later.

Tags: Canon 50mm 1.2L, EOS 5D Mark II, photojournalism, Thirty Days
Posted in Picture Story | 3 Comments »

Rita Reed at the lower level of the capitol rotunda | Canon 5D Mk. II and 16-35mm f/2.8L II lens @ 35mm; exposed 1/40 sec. @ f/2.8, ISO 1600.

Yesterday, I drove down to Jefferson City, Mo. with Rita Reed and Maggie Walter to photograph their reception of the Missouri Alliance for Historical Preservation’s Osmund Overby Award for their contributions to Arrow Rock: Where the Past is the Future, edited by Abigail Pheiffer, Shane Epping, and Leah Gallo.  Shane was there, as was Alex Cooney, who photographed a portrait series for the book.  I’d never been to the capitol, and the whole thing was a gas.  A few more photos below:

Tags: EOS 1D Mark III, EOS 5D Mark II
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No Waste | Canon 5D Mk. II and 50mm f/1.2L lens; exposed 1/1000 sec. @ f/1.2, ISO 200.

Tags: Canon 50mm 1.2L, EOS 5D Mark II, photojournalism, Thirty Days
Posted in Picture Story | 1 Comment »

While I have not yet posted my “Five Points of View” on the True/False film festival held in Columbia last week, I have decided that this image–much as I might light it–will not be making the cut.  Think of it as a teaser for the project to be posted some time soon.

Amanda Espy, a volunteer for the True/False film festival, twirls in front of the "Q" line for standby tickets for the movie "Identity Crisis" on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010 at the Tiger Hotel in Columbia, Mo. | Canon 5D Mk. II and 24-70mm f/2.8L lens @ 59mm; exposed 1/6 sec. @ f/5, ISO 400

If only that “Q” was a little sharper….I’d like it more.  But it still wouldn’t make it in!

Tags: EOS 5D Mark II, photojournalism
Posted in Cutting Room Floor | No Comments »