Three years have now passed since we first published this thing on the weird wide web... CTL, now three years old. That should count as some sort of milestone, don't you think? Many of my favorite photography blogs of the last few years have vanished... well, not exactly vanished... the blogs are still online. The authors, however, have gone missing in action. Perfectly understandable. People are busy, there's stuff that must get done... And, as much as we, they, I struggle to bring relevancy on a weekly basis or more - blogging is, overall, an exercise in vanity.
Even my initial focus when I began this thing three years ago - primarily to bring information to my peers, to offer support in the necessary art of minding the store when engaged in the business of art - has shifted.
The world has changed. The new world is as image-hungry, image-driven as the old world was... even more so. The flip side to that equation is that now, thanks to the rise of affordable digital imaging tools, there is now a flood of available imagery and an army of producers of that imagery with little interest in putting in the sweat-equity of learning the business end of things; over-eager are they to gain exposure and/or to see their work and their names in print and believing that to be more than adequate compensation. Trade organizations like ASMP, APA, EP, even PPofA have been around for years, disseminating plenty of great information & support - free to members & non-members alike - easily accessible on the web. Most of the fresh new talent I talk with have never heard of these organizations. Worse yet, most appear to have little interest in exploring the very educational and helpful information at any of these organizational websites... at least until they get into trouble.
Selah... the world has changed. Learn the new dance or be trampled, eh? I was never a good dancer. Even though the world has changed... now that the economy is beginning to show signs of life... my work load is improving and I'm finding that clients both new and old continue to value creative work, are willing to pay to commission it, appreciate a professional approach to doing business, remain somewhat flexible in negotiating use and are less likely to seek out work done on the cheap by individuals with little proven track record.
So... here we are... marking an anniversary of sorts. And with all of the above now committed to bytes and out of the way, I can say that I have no intention of allowing this commemorative entry to descend into a rant. What's the use? There's the shift in focus - less ranting.
Yet fear not, loyal reader, as I will continue to post or link to relevant info found during my daily morning trolling sessions in the photo world. I know there are a lot of you that do, in fact, find those little tidbits of information & encouragement to be useful. I find it useful and posting it here keeps it in front of me and easily accessible.
And, as always... maybe even now more than ever, I will continue to provide twisted bits of wisdom, imaging successes, more peeks behind the scenes...
So with that in mind, Happy Birthday to CTL. Now, on to the meat...
Found this during my morning troll around the blogosphere... a letter
penned by photographer's rep, Heather Elder entitled: Dear Art Buyer. An open letter from a photographer's rep. Heather's letter is a heartfelt plea for a spirit of collaboration & communication between creatives, their agents & those that commission them. Much of the content with the letter seems like basic common sense, common courtesy... after all, we all have the same goal in mind, don't we - to communicate the client's message to the best of our abilities? Thanks to Leslie Burns Dell'Acqua & Heather Morton for the find.
Friend & client Joan B. sent me the following link via email today... leading to the BBC News website where there is posted an amazing audio slideshow highlighting the human condition by photographer Timothy Allen. The slide show, entitled Human Planet, features amazing imagery of people living in extreme parts of the globe all captured gloriously by Allen's lens. See your yourself HERE. Thanks for that, Joan!
Otherwise, things have been quite a bit busier that they were this time last year. The past week or so has brought assignments to produce new campaigns for not one, but two different tourism themed venues, a weekend event that was more freak-show than usual, a six day architectural project in the Princeville Resort area on the Island of Kauai, a proposal for three different remodeled & refreshed resorts on Oahu & the Big Island.
Thursday, the team & I will be capturing friend & legendary drummer Mick Fleetwood at his home & rehearsal studio high on the slopes of Haleakala, all to be published as an editorial At Home feature in one of the local lifestyle magazines.
Images from all the above to be posted soon...
And lastly - two weekends ago, legendary entertainer Elton John inaugurated the new performance stage and Yokouchi Pavilion in the A&B amphitheater, outdoors at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. SPECTACULAR is the only way to describe the pyramid-shaped dome now offering solid weather protection & production rigging over the outdoor stage, as it's glass panels light up during an evening performance. Two shows, packed houses each night and a non-stop, three-hour roll through the greatest hits catalog with a few new tunes thrown in for good measure. Though not really a fan, myself... at least not since the early 1970's, the show was impressive as Sir Elton pummeled the keyboards, sang and occasionally looked quite pleased with himself through a marathon lasting a full three hours, barely stopping to catch his breath, engaging the audience & shouting out to other celebrity musicians hidden within the 4500+ audience (Eddie Vedder & Mick Fleetwood).
Yours truly had an all access pass for both performances and have finally gotten around to posting a few images from the night:
Thanks to all of you who have stuck with us throughout the last three years, Happy Birthday CTL!
Even my initial focus when I began this thing three years ago - primarily to bring information to my peers, to offer support in the necessary art of minding the store when engaged in the business of art - has shifted.
The world has changed. The new world is as image-hungry, image-driven as the old world was... even more so. The flip side to that equation is that now, thanks to the rise of affordable digital imaging tools, there is now a flood of available imagery and an army of producers of that imagery with little interest in putting in the sweat-equity of learning the business end of things; over-eager are they to gain exposure and/or to see their work and their names in print and believing that to be more than adequate compensation. Trade organizations like ASMP, APA, EP, even PPofA have been around for years, disseminating plenty of great information & support - free to members & non-members alike - easily accessible on the web. Most of the fresh new talent I talk with have never heard of these organizations. Worse yet, most appear to have little interest in exploring the very educational and helpful information at any of these organizational websites... at least until they get into trouble.
Selah... the world has changed. Learn the new dance or be trampled, eh? I was never a good dancer. Even though the world has changed... now that the economy is beginning to show signs of life... my work load is improving and I'm finding that clients both new and old continue to value creative work, are willing to pay to commission it, appreciate a professional approach to doing business, remain somewhat flexible in negotiating use and are less likely to seek out work done on the cheap by individuals with little proven track record.
So... here we are... marking an anniversary of sorts. And with all of the above now committed to bytes and out of the way, I can say that I have no intention of allowing this commemorative entry to descend into a rant. What's the use? There's the shift in focus - less ranting.
Yet fear not, loyal reader, as I will continue to post or link to relevant info found during my daily morning trolling sessions in the photo world. I know there are a lot of you that do, in fact, find those little tidbits of information & encouragement to be useful. I find it useful and posting it here keeps it in front of me and easily accessible.
And, as always... maybe even now more than ever, I will continue to provide twisted bits of wisdom, imaging successes, more peeks behind the scenes...
So with that in mind, Happy Birthday to CTL. Now, on to the meat...
Found this during my morning troll around the blogosphere... a letter
penned by photographer's rep, Heather Elder entitled: Dear Art Buyer. An open letter from a photographer's rep. Heather's letter is a heartfelt plea for a spirit of collaboration & communication between creatives, their agents & those that commission them. Much of the content with the letter seems like basic common sense, common courtesy... after all, we all have the same goal in mind, don't we - to communicate the client's message to the best of our abilities? Thanks to Leslie Burns Dell'Acqua & Heather Morton for the find.
Friend & client Joan B. sent me the following link via email today... leading to the BBC News website where there is posted an amazing audio slideshow highlighting the human condition by photographer Timothy Allen. The slide show, entitled Human Planet, features amazing imagery of people living in extreme parts of the globe all captured gloriously by Allen's lens. See your yourself HERE. Thanks for that, Joan!
Otherwise, things have been quite a bit busier that they were this time last year. The past week or so has brought assignments to produce new campaigns for not one, but two different tourism themed venues, a weekend event that was more freak-show than usual, a six day architectural project in the Princeville Resort area on the Island of Kauai, a proposal for three different remodeled & refreshed resorts on Oahu & the Big Island.
Thursday, the team & I will be capturing friend & legendary drummer Mick Fleetwood at his home & rehearsal studio high on the slopes of Haleakala, all to be published as an editorial At Home feature in one of the local lifestyle magazines.
Images from all the above to be posted soon...
And lastly - two weekends ago, legendary entertainer Elton John inaugurated the new performance stage and Yokouchi Pavilion in the A&B amphitheater, outdoors at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. SPECTACULAR is the only way to describe the pyramid-shaped dome now offering solid weather protection & production rigging over the outdoor stage, as it's glass panels light up during an evening performance. Two shows, packed houses each night and a non-stop, three-hour roll through the greatest hits catalog with a few new tunes thrown in for good measure. Though not really a fan, myself... at least not since the early 1970's, the show was impressive as Sir Elton pummeled the keyboards, sang and occasionally looked quite pleased with himself through a marathon lasting a full three hours, barely stopping to catch his breath, engaging the audience & shouting out to other celebrity musicians hidden within the 4500+ audience (Eddie Vedder & Mick Fleetwood).
Yours truly had an all access pass for both performances and have finally gotten around to posting a few images from the night:
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| Yokouchi Pavilion Pre-show, First Performance Sound-Check |
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| Just Before Sir Elton Takes The Stage |
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| Honky Cat On A Hot Maui Night |
Thanks to all of you who have stuck with us throughout the last three years, Happy Birthday CTL!
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