Build Me A Slow Decline

I’ve neglected this poor blog for too long!
I went shooting yesterday with Trent and Ian at an abandoned school near where they live and now I really want to shoot (and update!) more.

Our model was the lovely Veronica.
Trent has shot her a little before and after seeing some of those images I really wanted to do a session with her.
It was the first model shoot I’ve done that hasn’t involved someone I’ve already known so I was a bit nervous.
However that all lifted once I met her and we started shooting.
She has a very fun personality and having Trent and Ian there helped a lot as well.
It was a ton of fun and made me quite happy.

My downfall here though is that I was so excited about shooting and editing I didn’t account for editing the pictures on a laptop and the screen resolution thereof.
That’s why they are all so dark right now.
I’m going to go through and change that a little later so I can reupload the correct versions.

Just A Click Away

I have a link for you!!!

>>>>>>>>>>Fight Night Photography<<<<<<<<<<

That’s right, Mike and I finally have our site up and running!

It’s a little sparse right now, but we have some more (non pro-bono) gigs lined up so more will be uploaded as we go.

The Combat Fighting EXPO we went to was interesting. It was a great place to meet and greet fighters, promoters, gyms, etc. We met up with Nelson Bigles, a graduate from our program, and chatted for a while.

We are super thankful to Georgia Fighters for allowing us the opportunity to show our stuff and network a bit.

Unfortunately we were unable to shoot the fights there. The ring that was set up wasn’t able to be fully lit. Only two spotlights were able to be powered on the back corners. That was no one’s fault really. The problem came about because there was so much power being routed to the floor in general because of all the booths that if the other lights where to be powered up everything would short-circuit.

Oh well, live and learn.

Michael was able to get some shots of the seminars going on though. And I was able to shoot some of the amateur boxing that was going on before the room lights were turned off.

This was Georgia’s first fighting expo so I’m hoping it will give way to more in the future. That way we, and others, will be able to be better prepared.

Quotable Quotes:

“If there is a 50-50 chance that something can go wrong, then 9 times out of ten it will.”

~ Paul Harvey

It’s Mine Cause It Has My Name On It (Not Because I Licked It)

I HAVE A PUBLISHED PICTURE!!!

Click that hyperlink so you can see it.
I’m super excited, I’ve never had anything published before so I’m freaking out a little.
This is from the first MMA fight I shot in Anderson, South Carolina along with Mike and Charles.
It’s because of Charles we got in and Mike is the reason I went at all.
I have them to thank for my getting into this.

Since the Anderson trip Mike and I have shot a few more fights locally. They all fall into MMA, Muay Thai, and/or Boxing.
I’ve never had so much FUN shooting!
We have actually started our own business, kind of, just for fight photography, and are aptly named Fight Night Photography.
We’ve ordered business cards, tee shirts, and are in the process of finishing up our website which I will link once it’s done.

We are actually attending the Combat Sports EXPO in Atlanta at the Renaissance Waverly this coming Saturday (April 3rd) on behalf of Georgia Fighters. Mike has been in contact with them and he may very well become their head photographer. Since they have theirs hands in just about anything that goes on fighting wise in Georgia, that’s kind of awesome. He has been the one heading this venture of ours, but I think we make a good team and we’re having fun.

Georgia Fighters is also giving us a table so that we can set up business cards, have a slideshow of our pics going, and even set up an area for taking portraits on-site so we may even turn a profit at this. It will go a long way in getting our names out there and thrusting head first into this business.

I’m nervous but super excited and can’t wait!!!

In another little side note (not so little for me really), Mrs.Harkins (head of the Photography Dept.) has assured me that I will be able to get with the photographer I have been aching to intern with, Mark Maio, this June!!!! He deals in Ophthalmic Photography. It’s a far cry from what I’ve been shooting, but all the same I am extremely excited about it!

This has actually wound up being a pretty awesome day and I’m looking forward to this quarter (second to my last in Photography. Yikes!) with a pretty positive and hopeful outlook.

Quotable Quotes:

“Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot uneducate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore. We have seen the future, and the future is ours.”

~ Cesar Chavez

MMA Away!

I shot my first MMA match last Friday (Feb. 19th) in Anderson, South Carolina.

It was amazing!!!! I can honestly say I have never been as excited about shooting as I was there!

One of our lower quarter classmates, Charles Wright, got both me and Michael into the event through a participating fighter.

The night was amazing! It was hosted by ISKA (click the hyperlink for more info) and their president, Cory I. Schafer actually gave me his card to send him my best image of the night. I have yet to hear back from him but it was a wonderful opportunity none the less.

We were able to get ring side and I somehow fell into the good graces of one of the refs, Dale Frye. He was so nice! He helped me get a good spot right next to the net, and sitting beside Marty Garner, aka Cham-Pain. He’s an ex(?) wrestler for the WWE and was great company throughout the fights.

I had to delete a lot of images as I went since my SD cards kept filling up so fast, so I didn’t get as many great ones from the night as I would have hoped. It was my first time doing something like this too so I have plenty of room for improvement and, more than that, a driving will to get damn good at this.

Here are a couple of my favorite images of the night:

Quotable Quotes:

“I only want to be known as the best ever. Is that too much to ask?”

~ BJ Penn

Street Cred. I Has None.

Earlier this evening, through some random, weird happenstance, I stumble upon BladeDiary.com.

It is a blog written by a street artist, tag name Poster Child.

I have been enraptured by this!

He makes stencils and either uses them to spray graffiti or makes posters/stickers with them.

But he does so much more.

I don’t think another artist has inspired me this much, this quickly, ever.

I highly suggest perusing his blog to see his varied, and continually evolving work.

I’ve started from the beginning and am slowly working my way through his posts.

This is the piece that made me decide that I have to share this with you:

Quotable Quotes:

“Shine On, You Crazy Social Media Diamonds”

~ Poster Child

It’s Been Awhile

I’m sorry.
I’ve been very lame and bad with the updating.
I really did/do want to keep this blog up, however i do get very involved with life stuff so it gets neglected.

Speaking of life stuff, I’m about halfway through my 5th quarter in photography and am kinda going nuts.
This is mainly due to being in our first portfolio class.
I have about 6 (a maybe on a 7) images picked from EVERYTHING I’VE SHOT IN THE PAST YEAR.
So that’s not very reassuring.
Though it has made me more motivated to shoot, so that’s good.

We’re also doing our photo history class in which we choose an ancient outdated alternative way to print photos and go through it.
I’m doing the gum bichromate process.
Which I’m not going to explain now, but if you’re curious click on the link.

I’m also in Advanced Commercial class where we work in studio and take product shots.
That class is proving to be pretty challenging as well.

Oh, and I’m taking Technical Communications (in place of Speech) and College Algebra.
Because I’m apparently a masochist and torturing myself is fun.

That’s all for now.
Maybe I’ll actually update with pictures next time!
*le-gasps!*

“It is not worth the bother of killing yourself, since you always kill yourself too late.”
~ Emile M. Cioran

Tuesday Tunes 5

This is Lisa Hannigan (as found on all of Damien Rice’s albums), singing a far more depressing version of “Silent Night”.
I adore it all the same.

Free At Last!!!!

As some of you may know, this blog, and the others like it in my Links List over there >>>>
…Was created as a requirement for a Multimedia II class.
We had to make a certain number of posts a week as well as a certain number of posts linking articles, or creating specific multimedia things.
That being said, the class is now over, everything is graded, and now ladies and gentlemen, this blog is MINE.
There will be a few things that will no longer happen here:
1. I will NOT continue to post the same “Top 10 Images” for everything.

2. I will NOT be updating quite as much, but the posts will be based around things that *actually* interest me instead of searching the internet for something at least halfway interesting to fill a spot due to “forced posting” which I think is completely ridiculous and makes people hate blogging.

3. If I post a video I made, it will be thought out and, again, not just something I am required to do.

That’s all I can think of for now, but there may be other changes as well.
We’ll see.
Oh! And if anyone’s curious, I made an A in the class (Bs in my others but my GPA is still happy.)
Now I can relax for the rest of break.
AND once I find my battery charger I may try doing a picture a day, because I need to improve upon my skills.
That’s all for now!
Thanks for reading!

I Am Aware.

I know that video wrap up I did was below par and once grades go out I’m going to be taking it down.
I may do more videos.
I dunno yet, but we’ll see.

Tuesday Tunes 4

…I couldn’t help it.