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Flying High

I did a story for The Knoxville News Sentinel a couple of years ago when I was an intern in the web department about the new skate park. It was a multimedia story, which you can view here, and I really had a great time getting to know the some of the local skaters and the guys who made the project such a success. I understand they have completed phase II of the park and recently opened another park in a different part of town. It’s a great resource for these kids and the group that started it is doing a great job of keeping the community involved in it’s development. You can read more about the story by clicking the links above. Here are some of my favorite shots.

Brian Beauchene

Jason Mallette

I think this is something we can all contribute to. This is open to all levels of photoraphy and all types of camera:

On behalf of the New York Times photography blog Lens http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com, I would like to invite you to join us in a project called A Moment in Time. Thousands of photographers of all experience levels will be capturing the same moment on Sunday May 2nd at 15:00 G.M.T., (U.T.C.). That’s 8 A.M. Los Angeles, 11 A.M. in New York and Santo Domingo, 4 P.M. in Algiers and London, 7 P.M in Moscow and 11 P.M. in Beijing.

While everyone is invited we are particularly encouraging photography students. We hope this is a first step in trying to connect photographers around the world.

We are asking participants to think about where they will want to be and what they will focus on. Consider how to represent yourself, and your community, with one image.

To start the thinking process and to act as guides, we are suggesting the following categories for images:

· Community
· Nature/ Environment
· Family
· Work
· Play
· Arts
· Religion
· Social Issues
. Relationship

After you take your photos, send your best image as soon as possible to http://submit.nytimes.com/moment. The link will go live that morning to a simple Web form. You will be asked to categorize your photos by location and subject and to include a caption that helps tell the story. Photos will very quickly appear on the Lens Blog, and on The New York Times Web site. Your photo will appear in our A Moment in Time Web display, and may also be spotlighted in a Lens Blog post. Please feel free to contact me with any comments or suggestions, and thank you in advance. The project will be greatly enriched with your help.

Check the Lens Blog for more information about a Moment in Time http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/08/about-3. You can also follow us on facebook ( Lens) or twitter (nytimesphoto) for updates on A Moment in Time. There is also a Moment in Time Facebook event invite http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=112035958816765

I’m just stuck on the memories from that trip.

The advanced photojournalism class at the University of Tennessee goes to LaFollette every year to document its people and ways. I was part of this trip a couple of years ago and had a great time. As you probably noticed in my last post, I focused on the animal side of things, but I certainly made my way around the town to pursue other stories.

Here are some really lovely moments I captured there. Enjoy.

Had his ears lowered...

Who's driving up the driveway?

Love this detail...

Past and present

This is officially my last post with photos. Ever.

Pah. Yeah right, like you believed that for a second.

I wanted to share some images I took a couple of years ago for a documentary project on a town near Knoxville, TN. The population of LaFollette is comparable to that of my college campus. Everyone knows eachother and nothing goes unnoticed.

With such a tight community comes great inspiration. It was so easy to talk to everyone on a very personal level. I found a few people to follow around there and got some beautiful portraits to go along with some great stories. They really are unique people.

While I was there, however, I was alerted to the animal control and rescue issues. I quickly became involved with the shelter there and was allowed to ride along with the animal control officer on duty (there’s only one, and he worked full time). I saw so many sad things, but the love of the workers made up for the suffering their animals experienced before being delivered to their care.

Shelter workers

Unfortunately, they do not have the facility to support the large number of animals arriving daily. They rely on the kindness of rescue groups and adopters, which sometimes is not enough.

"Nothing we can do..."

They required (at the time) only about $20 to adopt a puppy and would probably allow someone to take them for free if the need was great enough. Spaying and neutering costs are too high to service all the animals they take in, so new owners are responsible for that half of it on their own terms…but many people leave them intact, which only contributes to the problem.

Animal rescue worker

Hopefully the town will receive more funding in the future in order to help keep the pet population at a manageable rate and lessen the amount of neglected animals there. From what I saw, there were certainly enough good Samaritans to make a difference.

A second chance

Hidden from view

Drink up

Don't forget us

This is a selection of my favorite memories from the few rainy days I spent in that tiny shelter and with other animal welfare workers. They were so helpful and willing to share their stories..some sad, but some very warm and tear-jerking.

Where do we go from here?

On my trip home I delivered a litter of kittens and the momma cat to a new rescue in Knoxville. With a larger town comes better possibilities of adoption. I was happy to help out. I went home that night and hugged my animals tightly. They will never experience abandonment. I just wish I could spread that feeling to them all.

Patience is not a descriptor for me. If someone asked my husband if he considers me a patient person he would laugh. A lot.

That being said…I am definitely asking a lot from all of you regarding this blog. Yes, I know, it’s a pain getting excited over new photos and stories only to be disappointed in my lack of posting or site-crashing. I’m getting back into the grove and I think it’s going well!

So, here’s the hiccup: I have recently been granted a miracle from the computer Gods. They have seen my efforts and decided to reward me accordingly. NOW, because of said miracle, I will be undergoing a few…transitions…regarding my digital assets (jeez. I sound all lawyer-ly and techy, don’t I?).

Please be patient. At the most, you’ll probably notice less content for a few weeks (probably not even that long). Just stick with me. I’ll give you enough to keep you intrigued I think!

Thanks!

Yes...this is indeed what I'm doing in my spare time...pitty me.

What else would you do on a rainy day if you were a horse?

Sometimes the best moments in life are spent watching things you don’t quite understand.

There is such beauty in the lines of animals–their movements, simple gestures, silent wondering…

Daring and shy

The personality of an animal is as unique and brilliant as a human. We underestimate their ability to relate to us. We simply don’t listen…or maybe it’s just that we don’t see.

Kind eyes

The reactions they each give are all so individual, just as a model may have his or her own special glance. They are curious, yet cautious.

Soft lines

The movement of a horse’s form has always brought me inspiration. My horse is my muse.

The softest thing in the world

Sometimes I come to the barn and find my horse is sun-bathing in the paddock. I love seeing him that way. He lets me sit next to him, feeling the warm sand beneath us. I get to share something so simple with him and still it feels so much bigger than me, to be able to share a common feeling with an animal I can’t quite understand…but maybe that’s the point.

Swoosh

I think they want us to listen.

Listening

But they don’t communicate in words…

a window

They think in pictures.

One of my favorite things to do in the morning is read the news. I hate reading depressing stuff, so I just stick to the news I like…whatever gives me inspiration. These are mostly blogs by fellow professionals in the photo/magazine world, faux news like The Onion, and of course blogs written by close friends or relatives.

Now you’re going to say, “Wow, Samantha, you’re not reading news at all,” since most everyone, including myself, will hardly admit blogs a news source. However, how many times have we wondered to ourselves, “That story on the news would be so much more factual if they had heard it from my friend who was there!”

Whether we are sharing creativity, ideas, thoughts, gossip, or whatever…we are still sharing media in it’s truest core…communication. That’s why I love blogs.

As strapped to our PDA’s, cell phones, crack-berries and iCrack’s as we are, seeming to avoid daily contact with the world around us, we are still finding new ways to communicate. Some say blogs are a waste of time. I think they are a great way of staying in touch in our lives that only seem to get busier.

Consider these blogs as good sources for discussion in the photo world and among the world of the silly (i.e. Sarah Booz and Matt Levy (though not as silly as the prior).

Of the foodie-pursuasion, I really like these two girls…

Saint Tigerlily – Humor, musings and damn good food. This girl knows how to please the mind and the pallet.

Food and Femininity – You like cupcakes? Yeah, so does this girl…enough to make a beast that rivals even the great Magnolia’s!

And the photo world:

The Exposure Project – A great way to find out what new photographers are doing…and how to get involved!

A Photo Editor – This is a great source of news in the photo/media world. Lots of great interviews with various influential photographers, editors, advertisers and art directors.

Joe McNally’s blog – This photographer has some great lighting tips and tricks and he’s fun to read as well! I like his cookey sense of humor!

Flak Photo – Good to see what the photographers are working on these days.

PDN Photo of the Day – Come on…the magazine is amazing, why wouldn’t you want to see what they feature?

Photolucida – This is a good place to see notices about photo contests and such…

Shorpy Photo Archive – though the feeds are never up to date for this blog, it’s worth visiting at least once a week. There are some amazing photos from 2 centuries ago, clear as day, that look like they were taken yesterday. It’s amazing.

What’s the Jackanory – Like the others…a really great blog by Andrew Hetherington, a very talented photographer.

Enjoy!

Sarah's Room

Sarah Booz. Not booz. Booz (like the speakers). She speaks for herself and her personality is rather unique. When we first met, Sarah said, “Do all girls in Knoxville look like elves?” followed quickly by, “You have a pig nose…and a butt chin.” And just like that, I was immediately confused.

Sarah being serious...this never happens.

My dear friend certainly has a way with words. Aside from her lingual elegance, she demands attention just in her way of being. She really packs a punch. Seriously. She looks for excuses to punch my husband anywhere she sees fit. Most of the time a reason isn’t hard to find. Needless to say, Thomas suffers many bruises after her visits.

Painting soon

“I’m a pretty princess,” is her catch phrase and anyone with an objection to her self-titling can pretty much go screw themselves as far as she is concerned. She’s tough as nails yet graceful (sorta) and very eloquent.

Sarah Booz

Sarah’s family bought their NYC apartment in the village almost 18 years ago and now they are going to move on and sell the place. (Some of you may follow Wendy from Encore and are privy to all the fun antics of preparing to sell a home…if now…check it out.)

A lot of history comes with all those years. Sarah’s room definitely speaks the loudest.

Words to live by

In order to sell the house at market value, they will need to make some adjustments…mostly by painting. Painting means covering up years of memories writen on the walls of her childhood bedroom. Some wish walls could speak…well in Sarah’s room, they do.

Playbills

I could never tell the stories as well as Sarah whose relationship with this space is nearest, but I hope the images can tell a tale of their own. Sarah, please fill in the blanks as you see fit.

Love you, Sarah

Enjoy.

Click a thumbnail then click the image again to see the full size. There are far too many to post individually.

I live in an area of Brooklyn called “Bushwick”. Admitting you live here used to get some very interesting reactions from the locals. Let’s just say, if you were interested in taking someone you just met at the bar home with you, you might get the, “yeah, I actually have to get up early in the morning…that is unless you want to come to my place. It’s in Williamsburg!”

Basically, saying you live in Bushwick is like saying you live in Bed Stuy…10 YEARS AGO!!! So, my point is, it’s not like that anymore. In fact, Bushwick is home to some of the most prominent emerging artists and musicians in the NYC area and is quite “up-and-coming”. I’m pretty proud to be part of that.

Bushwick Open Studios started in 2006 with a few artists willing and generous enough to open their lofts and studios to anyone off the street to showcase their art. It started out with a very small community and quickly gained notoriety around 2008. Last year’s BOS did not disappoint and our building, though a bit off the beaten track, was a hot spot.

These are images I took of a performance piece performed by an improv dance group on our roof under a full moon at the last BOS in June 2009. Everything was so perfectly synced and executed. If I remember correctly, it was about 30 minutes in length and quite beautiful.

The beginning started out like this...just girls in white walking around the roof. No one noticed them at first.

Said topless girl and token "dude"

I had my doubts, though. Inevitably, you get those kids banging away on some toddler toy while strumming a harpsichord with their toes (or some crap like that) while another person draws penises on their face in sharpy and ALL in the name of “art”. SO, this group certainly made me a little skeptical. It’s probably because the topless girl was standing outside the front of the building throwing cotton balls at people to get them to come to the roof. Hey…whatever it takes…I guess.

This was intense. Their bodies moved so perfectly together.

Hard to believe this is improv.

She looks like a child here. This is my favorite.

Hard to place this emotion...

The spot lights made amazing natural contrast for photos. I wasn't the only photographer taking advatage of it.

There were several groups of dancers performing at the same time, but most of the time they would direct the audience's attention to other dancers in different areas.

Feet. Like I said...

Ring around the rosey...

The end...

Any teacher will tell you–when you do something repetitively, you start to see patterns in what you produce. Maybe it’s a word or phrase you say often (for me, that word would be “evidently” Don’t ask. I have no idea), or maybe the first thing you notice about a person is their blank (insert, eyes, smile, arms, nose, etc.)

When I was in high school art class I almost predictably exaggerated my subjects eyes. I was so obsessed with the “window to the soul” thing that I made it the focal point of any artistic idea I was trying to represent. I did, eventually, make portrait eyes less alien-looking and much more natural, but that was always the area I concentrated on most. Back to fairies and unicorns.

I graduated and left all the hippy-dippy stuff behind me. Ok. Not entirely. Just my paintbrushes. Mostly.

In college I probably went through 5 majors before settling on journalism, and I only stuck to that because I had been told I was a good writer (you English majors can stop shaking your heads now…ok, gloat a little longer. Ok stop). I took maybe one writing course before I threw myself into the photojournalism track. It wasn’t long after my first photo class when I started seeing a new trend in my “artistic eye”.

Feet.

God help me. Yes. Feet. I have some strange fondness of feet. A gesture or a slight smile can make a simple photo extraordinary, but I’ve found feet are so expressive and incredibly genuine.

Many people focus on hands, and don’t get me wrong, hands are beautiful, but feet are so honest and painfully unforgiving sometimes. I feel they make lovely photos.

Here are a few of my favorites. Feel free to tear them apart, offer advice, or comment as you please!

Wall Flower

"Just a little off the top, Mac"

Status: Numeric

"Who? Me?"

Stomp

"I'm not weird. You're weird!"