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Well, 2o08 is now over and we are well into 2009. My photography has taken me to interesting places and I got to meet interesting people along the way. I look forward to 2009 as the arts took a major hit in Colorado Springs in 2008.
In April I started traveling and didn’t really stop until the end of the year. I was in New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah in April, I did 10 trips to Montana, One trip to New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma in September/October, and then to Washington DC in November. I was also busy in the state. I photographed Biden, and the Obama family, did a few dozen photo shoots for models, a few shoots for publication, and a lot of self directed projects.
Trip to Washington DC. was to highlight the opening of the fly girls at the WIMSA Museum at the gate to Arlington – see video. and for Washington DC photo week.
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid2390709001/bctid2409664001
Most of the trips to Montana were to work on a documentary of one of the most amazing people I have ever met. Joe Papez. He was the oldest Purple Heart recipient when he died at 100 1/2 years of age. I also went to spend time with family and to deliver peaches to my sisters restaurant.
The campaign trail was a lot of fun but, a lot of work at the same time. I had about 50 of the images published in various magazines, and I have a book in the works and a possible calendar? I am also open to doing photo shows of the election.
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- Joe Biden in Colorado Springs
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- Michelle Obama in Colorado Springs
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- Obama in Denver Colorado
Click on the images above to see larger versions!
On the other side I had one major shoot cancelled due to a lack of a guide, 7 galleries closed in the Pikes Peak region in one month from mid December/January. Show sales in the Colorado area were the slowest I have seen in years. and we lost a few master photographers in the past year including some local icons.
2009 shows some promise!
In April we are having a series of gallery openings for a show on Poetic Art. A post will be on this page in the next few days. I have a show at the Colorado Springs Senior Center, 1514 N. Hancock, Colorado Springs, CO 80909. and several projects in the works. please watch this page for more information and feel free to drop a comment on what you read here!
Thanks,
Bill
Well, things have been crazy here first with photographing the Obama campaign, then going to DC to photograph the fly girls and participate in Photoweek DC. And now getting ready for my next trip for the Archaeoastronomy of the American South West. I haven’t even finished the first book and I am now in the process of starting the second one. These are long projects that don’t really provide financial rewards until they are finished. The first book has been more than six years in the making and the second one will probably take longer as I will have fewer days each year to capture the needed images.
Aztec Doorway © Bill Young 2002
It will be interesting working on this next book, The locations are a bit more remote and it will be a lot colder taking photos of each one. I suspect this project will be eight years in the making.
Some of the images from the first book have been featured on PBS, and various shows throughout Colorado. I hope to set up a road show for the images soon and perhaps have the book ready to go with them. If you know of a gallery that may be interested please contact me and let me know! figurativephoto@aol.com
Have a great holliday season!
Peace
Bill
Hello:
It is amazing how creative the modeling world can be. I have been very fortunate in finding great models. I like to work with my models and use ideas that they come up with. Finding a creative meeting point really does make for better photographs when all is said and done. I am in the process of searching for models for a series of photo shoots similar to the work of Boris Vallejo – http://vallejo.ural.net/1997/. I am looking for a broad range of models male and female athletic to curvy, young (Must be over 18) to old, I would love to find some great models in their late 80’s or older. I want to create the images I have in mind but, I also want to create images that are of specific interest of the models.
Jeremy hoody © Bill Young - Figurative Photo
So people ask where do I find models?
1. Via my website – I have a page on my website dedicated to finding models. I have found a few of them from that site. They visit, read what I am looking for and if they feel they are good for a project they contact me.
2. Other websites – I have a presence on other websites that are dedicated to helping models and photographers get together and build collaborations.
3. Referrals – Many of my models recommend to their friends that they should model for me. They say, I am fun, professional, and easy to work with. This really makes a difference and helps people want to model for me. Some of my friends recommend people to me and some times other photographers will make a recommendation.
4. Finding people on the streets – The main source for models would be my friends and strangers that I find in public settings. I have found them at parks, restaurants, museums, and just out shopping. This is probably the best source I have had!
Batwoman © Bill Young - Figurative Photo
What do I look for in models?
1. I want models that show up on time and are ready to work. If for some reason they can’t make it they need to call and give me as much notice as possible.
2. I want models that are creative and open to the photographic process. The models need to know what is expected of them and then be willing to provide that. If I am looking to do a sports shoot I don’t want my model to show up and state they can’t do the sport due to a bad back or not knowing anything about the sport. If they are there to do a fine art nude shoot they need to be ready to get naked in front of the camera. If a model has a problem with a shoot they need to tell me in advance. Some times models change their mind when they arrive. As long as I know in advance that they haven’t done the type of modeling I am asking of them in advance I am usually comfortable with that change. Some times models say they have experience they don’t have and then I have different expectations of them than they are ready to bring to the set. This is not a good situation! Just make sure you know what you are getting into and be ready to bring yourself to the shoot ready to model for that shoot!
3. I am comfortable with models bringing an escort to a photo shoot but, I do like to know in advance that they are going to arrive. Generally speaking the escort shouldn’t be anyone the model is romantically involved with.
4. I really like it when the models work with me on a shoot. If you have ideas for a shoot let me know and let’s work to create the images I want as well as the images you want! If I am setting up a sports shoot and you want a fashion shoot let me know and let’s set up one of those shoots!
5. I like it when things are clear about compensation! Most of my models do a trade for pic and/or CD photo shoot and that is the extent of the compensation. If you expect money for the shoot I need to know before we meet for the actual photo shoot. I seldom pay my models but, there have been a few exceptions for specific photo shoots.
6. I always expect my models to sign a model release and to bring a photo ID and/or parents if you are under the age of 18. I expect to be able to photograph the model with their ID and take a separate photo of the ID proving that they are the one signing the release and of legal age to sign. If you don’t want to sign the release I am not interested in doing the photo shoot!
What is tfp/tfcd?
Trade for pic (tfp) is where the model gets prints in exchange for modeling. Usually I provide one print for each hour of modeling. tfcd is Trade for CD of the images. In this case I give the model a CD of all the images without any touch up on them. Some times I will include one or two that have been touched up. The CD images are for use in promoting the model. They can put them on their website or send them in e-mail but, they are not to be printed. I reserve rights to all images that I take at all times. Some times depending on the situation we may have shared rights to images. This is usually when the model is paying for the photo shoot.
If you are a model how can you set up a photo shoot with me?
Send me an e-mail and let’s set something up. If you fit in one of the projects I am doing or if I like the projecdt you want I will usually do a tfp/tfcd photo shoot with you. Or if you want something that doesn’t interest me but, you are willing to model for the projects I am doing then we may be able to do a tfp/tfcd photo shoot. If we are just doing a photo shoot for you and your interest then I would charge for the photo shoot. The price for a photo shoot depends on a number of variables but we can usually set something up that you will be happy with and meets most budgets.
If you have questions contact me at figurativephoto@aol.com and let’s talk about them!
Peace,
Bill Young
Hello:
On the 23rd of August we had the Scott Kelby World Wide Photo Walk here in Colorado Springs. We had about 30 photographers show up to shoot and we all had a great time. It was amazing to see some of the things people found in Colorado Springs that we pass by every day but seldom notice. One photographer captured a wild raccoon up in a tree right down town. We saw a fox, birds, a labyrinth, lots of flowers, sculptures, and interesting architecture. The one thing that stole the day was a wonderful sky with clouds, sunrays, and finishing off with a great sunset.
After the walk, I received a number of comments on how inspiring it was to go out and do some photography with a group like this. Many of them wanted to get to know the other participants better, and others made new friends. I have to say that I was surprised at the outcome of this photo walk. Some of what happened I expected other things were a surprise!
We had photographers from as far north as Cheyenne Wyoming, We had members of a number of photo clubs from around town, and we had pros to people that recently just picked up a camera. We had some great images as a result of the photo walk.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/scott-kelbys-worldwide-photowalk-colorado_springs/
Part of what really captured my attention was the quality of the images some of the brand new photographers produced. It reminds me that as photographers we often place ourselves in a box and we don’t look at things from a new angle or perspective. The creativity of the group was really top notch!
The following images are examples of the work from the photo walk. Please note that the images are the property and right of the photographers that took them. If you want to purchase or get more information about the images please contact the photographer directly. You can find them through the link provided above!
The Curios One
My Hand
She Can Leap Tall Buildings
Old GMC
As you can see the images are Amazing and there are many more! I would highly recommend a loose walk of this nature to photographers either pro or amateur in the future! It was great fun and inspirational!
Thanks,
Bill
Hello:
I just went on a trip to visit with the relatives from all around the country. It was a great time. One of the things that happened once I arrived was an interest in some small yellow birds that spent most of the time across the river from us. The first task was to identify the yellow birds, then we needed to determine what was the best equipment to capture images of the birds, and then plan a way to get the best photos of them.
Identification wasn’t as easy as most would have thought. The problem was that the birds kept a good distance from us and there are lots of bright yellow birds that fly through the area of Chama New Mexico. We collected a few tools. We started with a book on birds put out by the National Audobon Society, Then we got field glasses (Binoculars) that are developed for viewing birds. The way you know they are developed for viewing birds is that they are light weight so you can move around with them and they are high power enough to see small objects at a good distance. As it turned out the bird we were after was a Yellow Finch! http://www.thelensflare.com/gallery/p_animals_2182.php. This bird was Identified by the bright yellow color all over the body, the black patch on the top of the head, the size of the bird, and the location we found it in. If you were to look for the birds in a different season you may not recognize them at all! http://www.birdsnbutterflies.com/yellowfinch.htm
The second step was to determine what equipment to use. Due to the fact that the birds were keeping a good distance from us we had to bring in big lenses. I told the relatives we needed at least 600 mm of lens to capture the fine birds. We also would need a sturdy tri-pod if we were going to get a good photo of the birds without motion. We would also need those field glasses again in order to find the birds as the 600 mm lens would be too narrow a view to be effective at this job. I also recomended a natural blind – The trees in the area were a good place to hide in order to take the photos instead of just standing on the banks of the water as most of the relatives were doing.
Now planning the photo out. We have a few things to consider when planning our photo out. We want to get a pleasant background, we want as close to the bird as we can get, and we want to capture the bird in as natural a habitat as possible. We can do this by observation. Birds are creatures of habbit. If you watch birds for awhile you will start to notice that they have a favorite perch. They also have favorite times of day to spend time on that perch. We determind that early morning and in the evening was the best time to capture our shot. during the day the birds basically vanished into the woods. We found a tree that one or two birds kept going to and a branch they would land on. After observing for a couple of days we figured out that early morning was the best time as the sun would be lighting the birds up and we didn’t have any back lighting as in the evening. After deciding where we wanted our bird for the shot we needed to figure out where to take our shot from. We found a clump of trees that were as close as we could get without crossing the water and that we could put a lens through to get a nice clear shot of the birds.
Well, as most of you know I am not a morning person. Not that it doesn’t happen but, that it is unlikely. I left it up to my cousin to get the shot. Did we get it? I actually don’t know yet as when I got up the next morning the cousin that was going to get the shot had already left. I guess it will be a few days before I find out. I can tell you I have had great luck with the planning above and you can see some of my photos of birds on the gallery pages.
Now you know how the photos are taken so get out there and start shooting! I think you will be suprised just how well you can do if you follow the plan of attack laid out for you above. If you don’t have a 600 mm lens you can get closer to the perch before the bird(s) are expected to arrive and then be quite and watch the birds come in. Just make sure you don’t add stress to the birds, and take care not to disrupt the habitat they live in. We want the birds back next year so that we can get even better photos of them. Audubon Society http://www.audubon.org/. Let me know about the success you have in capturing your images of birds!
Hello:
Well, I just got back from my trip to Montana. It was a good trip over all! At the same time it was sad. I went to video tape the funeral of my good friend Joe Papez. I am doing a documentry on Joe, and I have to say he really lived a full life ending at just over 100 years of age. There were 100’s of people there, music, and good food. I think it was pretty close to the way Joe would have wanted it. I only have a few pieces to gather at this point and then I will be able to edit the documentary! I hope to have everything done by this time next year!
While on the trip I did some photography of Owl’s, Turkey’s and their young, deer, sky lines, trees, flowers, and friends. I also visited with family and friends. It was a good trip over all. Now I have to get ready for my next trip. This week I have to work on the Archeoastronomy of the American South West photos so I can finish my next book. I have been working on this book for about five years now and I look forward to getting the words, and drawings together to go with the photos. I am also in the process of preparing for the next book on Archeaoastronomy which will be associated with Winter Solstice. As soon as I get those photos going I have a trip to New Mexico to be at a family reunion, and then back to the springs again and working on the Show for July 11th. I hope to get some time in to blog from time to time but, I don’t know what internet access is going to look like over the next few weeks?
Have a great week!
Bill
