Week 4 BOC: You Incredible

National Geographic is famous for their amazing photos, but few people know who is actually behind those photographs. I found this article and video about the men and women who shoot for National Geographic. The messages in this video are nothing short of AMAZING. The photographers say things like, "Good photography has the power to change your prospective on life." and "It's a universal language." The photographers get so emotional during the interviews too! It's really amazing to watch. I teared up a little. You have to really should watch it! I especially love the part at the end, when they say, "If you want to be a better photographer, stand in front of more interesting stuff."

I wish I could travel to every corner of the world and photograph everything I see, but that just isn't realistic for my life at this time. What I can do is explore the part of the world I live in. I feel like people in Las Vegas are so isolated, that they feel like they have to take a plane ride to get out. It's just not true. We have so many scenic areas around us, if we are willing to drive for a couple hours. These photos were taken at a place called Cathedral Gorge. There are over a thousand caves in the one little area! It was one of the most memorable camping trips of my life! Just a few hours from Las Vegas!

Week 3 BOC: Paparazzi!

Privacy is something that we (as "normal" people) take for granted. We don't have photographers hiding in bushes waiting to take our photo. If we did, I don't think it would be pretty. If I were famous, I don't think I would be a very good role model. Whether I was walking my dog without makeup, or strolling down Fremont Street with an alcoholic beverage smoking a cigarette. Either way, the paparazzi would probably have no shortage of damning material on me. 

So what's the difference between paparazzi and photojournalists? To me, a photojournalist tells a news story. Granted, your average dopey American might consider Kim and Kanye's wedding to be "news", but I strongly disagree. That's not to say that paparazzo do not serve a purpose. Obviously they do since some make a good living off their work. However, I would put them closer to biographers than journalists. 

For my Paparazzi inspired photo, I wanted to show what it could be like to be minding your business, and then have someone start snapping photos of you unexpectedly. We set the shutter speed very low (15 seconds), kept my ISO at 100, and my F-Stop at 8. It was pretty dark, so we could have such a long shutter time. I set up my off-camera flash about 15 feet behind my model. As he walked, I fired the flash at three specific points to create the ghostly effect. 

Week 2 BOC: Self Portrait

In 2009, Steven Meisel shot an ad campaign for Louis Vuitton featuring Madonna in a cafe in Paris. I remember it and thought of it immediately for this assignment. I loved the lighting and the focus on the product. The vintage/smokey look makes the photo look like a painting. Obviously, I do not have access to a cafe in Paris (or thousands of dollars to spend on designer outfits and purses). However, I do know of lots of bars in our fair city. I attempted to edit my photo in a similar style, but chose to make me the subject of the photo instead of a product (the purse simply serves to balance the photo).

Here are the Meisel photos from 2009: 

Now, here's my attempt to mimic: 

Week 1 EOC: Stallions Not Unicorns

I want to be a famous boudoir photographer. I know that’s a tall order, but not impossible. One of my idols, as Christa Meola, has built her empire on empowering others, including fellow photographers. She says, “I believe that imagery is powerful….and that honoring our bodies, emotions, choices & impulses through photography—whether in front of or behind the camera—is sublimely empowering.” I believe in this philosophy whole-heartily. What Meola has done is unique to the industry though; she helps women in front of and behind the camera lens. By creating this network of photographers and women, and uniting them through boudoir photography, she has become a household name. I want to do something similar, but instead focus on positive body image in addition to the art. In a study conducted by Dartmouth in 2002, "Beginning in early adolescence, women compare their

body shape and weight with their beliefs about cultural ideals". Also sighted in the study: higher self esteem and body image directly impacts their happiness and overall productivity. What a concept! 

This also leads me to believe that I could actually achieve my goal of coming a world famous boudoir photographer. Helping people improve their self-image is extremely important to me, and it is NOT about the money, but self-help is a 2.5 billion-dollar-a-year industry (according to Psychology Today). People are searching for that something to make them feel better and be happier. It's human nature. I would love to be a part of something that actually does help others.   

Week 1 EOC: My Voice

For me, photography is about beautiful pictures, but it's not really about beautiful pictures. Sure, I have always loved photography, but it wasn’t until I took my first glamour portrait that I became hooked on the art of photography. From that day on (yes, I can remember the actual day), I became obsessed with taking boudoir portraits. It quickly became apparent that the images I was taking meant so much more to the women I was photographing than I could have ever imagined. Whether that woman was a mother of four wanting to reclaim her femininity, or a lady that had undergone a double-mastectomy and hysterectomy that wanted to celebrate life. I decided that I wanted to honor women through my photography. Not only that, I want my photography to be about celebrating womanhood. Insecurity is the most unattractive quality in a human being, but we all deal with it. Let’s face it: women have a lot of competition. Not with other real women, but with woman-like beings in media. If I can show women that they are just as good as the women they see in magazines, I feel that it could help them lead more confidant, happy, and fulfilled lives; long after the photo-shoot is over!