the life of m

Dani ramble

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 05:42:00 +0000

I wish my brain had an off switch.

I can't sleep. I can't help but lay awake, thinking about a story Lane and I have been working on. It's going to be published in 12 days.

It's a tragic story, but ultimately, one about hope. Though, in a meeting last week, Lane's editor summed things up by saying that this is a story about what happens when a child isn't loved. Somehow that resonates.

I want it to be done right.

I wish I was still making pictures of Dani. Still working it. I can't help but wonder if I did enough. If I've told this story fully and to the best of my ability. Wondering if the family will be happy with the results. Hoping it'll do some good, somehow.

My worst fear is that I haven't done it justice.

I'm drawn to stories like this. It's what I'm most passionate about. In a way I'm dealing with my own demons. Trying to reconcile with the past. But it's not about me.

I want it to be perfect. For Dani. After all, it's her story. Not mine.

Anime

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:30:00 +0000

I had a lot of fun shooting portraits of all the characters I ran into at MetroCon 2008 -- a celebration of Japanese popular entertainment, including anime (animation), manga (comics), J-pop and J-rock music, cosplay (costume design and performance) and video games. Florida's largest anime convention... right here in Tampa... I love this place.

APAD T-shirts

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:56:00 +0000

I'd like to introduce to you, the long-awaited, much-anticipated APAD t-shirts, with a smashing new logo designed by Bill Manley. They are for sale at both Skreened and CafePress stores. The banner reads, "In Image, Truth."

Skreened is printed on a slightly better quality T-shirt (american apparel) and the logo is a little more subdued... it's just an outline of the fist and the t-shirt color as the background, available in 7" and 10" logos.

The CafePress shirt has a little more pop to it.... with the black on white logo design. It can also be printed on anything from a bbq apron to a baby onesie to a mug.

You can order up whatever color combination and sizes you'd like from our two stores below. Get yours for geekfest today!!

Our Skreened store is:

http://skreened.com/apad

Our CafePress store is:

http://www.cafepress.com/aphotoaday

Launching into the Webisphere

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:17:00 +0000

I think it's done. Finally. Two years later. Procrastination at its finest. My website has been tweaked, slightly different format, dropped the header, added some new categories, like Travel, which includes the semi-recent trip to Mexico (day of the Dead and Viva San Martin) and some documentary style portraiture. I promise to post the story on Dani when it publishes in early August.

Just a little

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 17:26:00 +0000

shameless self-promotion

Where is My Mind?

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:32:00 +0000

---Stop
With your feet in the air and your head on the ground
Try this trick and spin it, yeah
Your head will collapse
But there's nothing in it
And you'll ask yourself
Where is my mind
Ooo ooo ooo
Ooo ooo ooo

GeekFest 2008

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 16:23:00 +0000

If you're anywhere near Florida August 1-3, St. Petersburg is the place to be. For the nominal fee of $100, you can hang out with the APhotoADay community, which is having it's annual gathering. The weekend is jam packed with some incredible speakers. So, if you're looking for some inspiration and motivation -- don't miss it:

Thursday 7.31

opening night meet-and-greet BBQ at Mike Weimar's house (email me for an address)

---

Friday 08.01

free time all afternoon

6pm - reception at The Poynter Institute (801 Third Street South, St. Pete, FL 33701)
introduction and motivational speech by Kenny Irby / preaching the word of photojournalism
St. Petersburg Times DOP Boyzell Hosey to speak

8pm - dinner for organizers and speakers
free time/dinner for Geeks

10pm - portfolio reviews at the Ponce De Leon Hotel

---

Saturday 08.02

(all speakers at the St. Pete Times auditorium - 490 First Avenue South • St. Pete, FL 33701)

11am - Ross Taylor (Hartford Courant)

12pm - Lane Degregory (writer, St. Pete Times / tips for finding stories)

1pm - Preston Gannaway (Rocky Mountain News / 2008 Pulitzer Prize)

2-3:30 LUNCH BREAK

3:30pm - Ted Jackson (community journalism at its finest, New Orleans Times-Picayune)

4:30pm - Bob Croslin (freelance photographer / lighting genius)

5:30pm - freelance/business of photography panel (Bob Croslin, Eric Larson, Mike Weimar, Susana Raab, Mark Adams)

6:30-9:30pm DINNER BREAK / FREE SHOOTING TIME

9:30pm-??? - Photo Slam by the Nation of Poetry
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Sunday 08.03

(all speakers at the St. Pete Times auditorium)

11am - Michael Williamson (Washington Post)

12pm - Laura Lo Forti (the raw file / multimedia)

1pm - Eric Larson (freelance photographer)

2-3:30pm LUNCH BREAK

3:30pm - Susana Raab (freelance photographer)

4:30pm - wrap up

Happy 4th

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 07:19:00 +0000

A Communal Life

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:51:00 +0000

Writer Alexandra Zayas and I teamed up again, this time to tackle a story on an intentional community, otherwise known as a commune, here in Tampa. In the house are 7 adults, 6 children, with 1 more on the way. 5 cats, 2 dogs, 2 hamsters and a box of mealworms. Brian Sanders started this commune as a way to live the word of God. Sanders' practices what he preaches, and lives in an urban area with other like-minded individuals that believe in being an integral part of the community they serve. I love working with Alex because she's always finding quirky little stories and great people within her neighborhood beats -- which makes my job more fun.

Monica&Simeon

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 04:46:00 +0000

Monica Sanders, 35, comforts a tearful Simeon, 4, after he stubbed his toe.

Jael&Carrot

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 06:59:00 +0000

Jael Sanders, 13

Eve & Smoky

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 06:50:00 +0000

Eve Sanders, 9

Brian&Jesus

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:02:00 +0000

Brian Sanders, 35

Dock Dog

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:10:00 +0000

My nightly ventures down to the river. A time to clear my head. Quiet solitude, except for a muster of peacocks across the way. Dumping thoughts from the day into the water, with each lapping wave. To be taken away, out to the bay, and beyond.

Emma Brown

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:08:00 +0000

Mistake1

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 07:18:00 +0000

Life is full of beautiful mistakes.

FanFest

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 07:04:00 +0000

The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 01:05:00 +0000

You might be driven by a fear of failure quite as much as a desire for success...So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had already been realised, and I was still alive...and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.

J.K. Rowling, author of the best-selling Harry Potter book series, delivered a great commencement address last week at Harvard University entitled, "The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination."

If you haven’t already, see it, hear it, or read it here. It was as reaffirming as it was inspiring.

Band of Light

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 14:43:00 +0000

I shot the top picture at the Confederate flag raising Saturday, after I noticed this little guy, sitting atop his uncle's shoulders kept passing in and out of a beautiful band of light. I made one frame before they moved on.

When I was editing my stuff from this assignment, our new Summer intern was looking over my shoulder. He said he really liked this frame because it reminded him a lot of another frame I shot a few days earlier at a technology conference.

HAHA. Damn. So much for originality.

lazy day

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 02:55:00 +0000

such are Sundays...

If At First You Don't Secede

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 02:42:00 +0000

Measuring 50 ft x 30 ft, and weighing in at 100 lbs., the world's largest Confederate flag was raised in Tampa today (again). I am speechless. But Stephen Colbert says it pretty darn good.

Special Citation

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 23:54:00 +0000

I'm going to start by saying that I never do this. I never take the time to pat myself on the back, and rarely ask others to do it. If you don't believe me, ask my photo editors or DOP. I am, perhaps, a little too self-depricating at times, but it comes with my personality. I also like to undersell my pictures, so as not to attain a certain hype I can't live up to. I truly believe that humility is an honorable quality in a human being -- and it's one I strive toward.

Awards are funny things. I've said how I feel about them before on here. And while it's always cool to be recognized for things, having been on both sides of the coin, both as a contest judges and a receiver of past recognition... I know just how subjective a win can be. I've seen good photos lose because judges are tired, or tired of seeing a similar theme. I've seen bad photos win because they've skirted through on mediocrity, and judges say "eh" it's OK... and so it became a part of the last group standing. Awards, if nothing else are good for your resume. It's the best way I know how to get ahead... to get a better job... to get more money... to get more responsibility. They are not, however, a measure of your worth as a photojournalist... at least not for me. If anything, judge how good you are by the amount of change you bring. There's the adage that if you've affected one heart or mind, you've done your job. And it's true. Cover your community, your hot button issues, and your ideas well... shoot pictures that matter... tell stories that count... be a valuable member of society... try to affect change for the better.

Few are given a voice as loud as that of a photojournalist. Don't be afraid to use yours.

With all that said, while this, too, is subjective.. it is still one of the biggest compliments I've ever received. I appreciate the knowledge that this came about from a single nomination and a jury of my peers. I thank them for that. And more importantly, I thank them for recognizing a community that is far bigger than one. This award shouldn't have my name on it... instead it should really go to APhotoAday. Like one line below says, an organization is only as good as its volunteers. APAD is what it is because of its members. Constantly growing, changing, ebbing, flowing and never ceasing to amaze me with the quality of work and the level of discussion. For me, and hopefully a few others, it has become an invaluable resource. If I had to sum up APAD in one word, it'd be: family.

Below are some of the emails I received from the NPPA. Where it says "you," please replace it with APAD... the name of the community that made it all possible. The official line:

Congratulations, the National Press Photographers Association has awarded you its Special Citation, for making significant contributions that advance the interests of photojournalism.

---

A follow up:

Congratulations! The bottom line is that you received the award because you deserved it. APAD has benefited and encouraged many photographers and you are a great example of what can be done with initiative and effort. I am so glad that we were able to recognize you for it.

---

And one of the greatest compliments I think I've ever gotten:

...the photo-j world is a changin' and it seems to be full of old white males (which I'm quickly becoming) with little to no new ideas.

APAD is a great tool to inspire young photojournalists and, to me, that's the type of thing we should be doing in NPPA nowadays. NPPA does a lot of things with its advocacy, contests, networking, etc., but I'm not sure it is quite at the point it could and should be when it comes to inspiring.

What you did with APAD is a great model for others to follow. I'm always saying this organization is only as good as its volunteers and your one-person operation proves it. You had a vision and shared it with us. Not only that, but you followed through. That's the big thing. Following through. Many of us come up with great plans, but the follow through is the problem. That's inspiring and, in my mind, worthy of being noticed. Congrats...

I am honored. And grateful.

My Dog Rocks

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 16:26:00 +0000

Atlas

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:52:00 +0000

Sometimes I feel like I'm carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders.

Storny Weather

noreply@blogger.com (m) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 01:12:00 +0000

My mind is wandering.
Over 95 degree days.
Through the breeze that makes them bearable.
Down to the edge of the water that keeps me sane.

There's such an undercurrent of uncertainty right now.
It's pushing and pulling me in all directions.
Some days I'm floating along.
Others, I'm fighting to keep my head above water.

I always wonder though.
What it would be like if I just let go.
And sank under the surface.