John Cameron. 04/21/10. Visiting Artist Paola Antonelli

Today I went to the Paola Antonelli's lecture at the Grace Street Theatre. Paola Antonelli is the Senior Curator in the Department of Architecture and Design of The Museum of Modern Art. It was interesting to hear her talk. She was a very good speaker, and I learned a lot by how she went through the lecture. She had a basic powerpoint type lecture, and she spoke about each thing she did individually. Antonelli was very confident in telling us about how she makes her art successful. I think she spoke confidently for over an hour, and she backed it up with beautiful designs of art shows she created. Antonelli was very keen on the conceptual side to pieces of art. She mentioned how important it was to her, and how she thinks it makes pieces of art so much better.

Fernando and Humberto Campana. Vermela Armchair. 1993. Stainless Steel and Cotton Rope.

31 1/3" x 31 1/3" x 23 1/2"

This was made out of stainless steel and Cotton rope. There were other versions made out of silver and gold (as pictures only I think) and she talked about how that the silver and gold cotton would not work conceptually. Gold just doesn't mix with cotton. As she said, "No".

I did take in a lot of her quotes in relation to art and life. She talked about how important it is to stick to your own story and to have your own presence in the world. This way you can stick out from the crowd and maybe get that job you've been looking for. She also mentioned how anger can work as a creative tool. Sometimes if you get angry about your work, it is common sense to get better from it. When I heard this quote, it reminded me of something I always say to myself, "Don't get bitter, get better". Everyone gets angry, but it's what you do to make the situation better that counts.

John Cameron. 04/19/10. Artist Noel Vasquez

This week, I have found Noel Vasquez. Like previous weeks, I have been looking for artists who are at popular sporting events. This week, the NBA playoffs started, and the I looked at the Los Angeles Lakers at www.gettyimages.com. The first artist I found was Noel Vasquez. The unique thing about his images on Getty (from the Lakers game), was that every image was of famous people in the crowd. Something a little different for me, so that is why I chose him.

Jack Nicholson - Photograph - April 2010 - by Noel Vasquez

Teri Hatcher cheers at LA Lakers game - Photograph - April 2010 - by Noel Vasquez

Over the past few weeks, I have been shooting high school baseball games, and some of my fellow students have said that I should shoot some of the parents watching to game. to show emotion. With the image below, it is a great mix of the action and the people in the crowd cheering on.

Zachary Levi taunts Oklahoma City Thunder player - Photograph - April 2010 - by Noel Vasquez

Noel Vasquez has a nice website, www.noelvasquez.com . He is another artist that shows different photographic techniques in his work (blur, panning, etc). This is something that I want to show in my work also.

John Cameron. 04/14/10. Idea/Concept Blog

So I finally got in the dugout with the high school Baseball team that I have been photographing. I am become close to the Head coach of Benedictine High's baseball team, and I am proud with what I have done. My teacher Paul said he wanted me to get in the dugout, to prove to him that I can get the access, and I have now done that. It was not easy, but I kept telling myself that "I have to get in the dugout" to get the access. This pleased me, and I hope Paul appreciates it also.

Silhouetted Thoughts - Digital Photograph, April 2010. By John Cameron

Batter Up - Digital Photograph, April 2010. By John Cameron

Cadets - Digital Photograph, April 2010. By John Cameron

"Good Eye, Good Eye" - Digital Photograph, April 2010. By John Cameron

Empty Steps - Digital Photograph, April 2010. By John Cameron

I like these images above, and I am pretty sure that I will use some in my final portfolio. But Paul and I knew that I needed more. We have talked about showing details (with bats, cuts, etc) and I need to get into that area too. I have another game to shoot on Monday, and I will work on some new stuff then. This was my first time in the dugout once again. So I did not want to get in anyone's face, and I was lost for ideas. But now, since I have done it, I have some experience and know what I can capture.

John Cameron. 04/12/10. Artist Robert Beck

This week, I have found the artist Robert Beck. It is actually a cool new find for me, because I have seen his work in Sport magazines before, but I never really looked into his work. With the Masters being on the past week (golf), I wanted to find a photographer who was covering it. I looked on the masters website, and most of the images on the site were from Getty Images. So I then went to Getty, and the first name I saw was Robert Beck. I then went to his website, and looked through his beautiful style of photography.

Tigers Woods in Practice - Digital Photograph. 2009, by Robert Beck

This is the image that I have seen before in magazines, and when I saw it, it was cool to know that I am now researching the specific artist. The main thing that I appreciate about Beck's work is that he uses all sorts of styles in his photography. Whether it be silhouettes, long exposers, and looking for the unique times in sports (like the image above). For him tobe constantly looking for things like this is a true talent.

Cyclists - Digital Photograph - By Robert Beck

Digital Photograph - By Robert Beck

So the main thing I learned from Robert Beck, was to try to use different styles of photography to be different. Instead of doing the basic shots, look for the silhouettes, and longer exposures with blur. I'm going to shoot a baseball game today, and I'm going to experiment with blur, and silhouettes.

http://www.robertbeckphotography.com/

John Cameron. 04/07/10. Idea/Concept Blog

Tomorrow I will be shooting another baseball game. However, tomorrow's game will have a new twist to my previous High School Baseball games. I emailed the coach of the team that I have been photographing, and I asked if I could get in his dugout. I really want to get in close, and get some good shots from this view. The coach/manager replied back very quickly and he was very positive about letting me come and photograph in his dugout. I'm really excited about getting in there, and I want to focus on the close up shots that I will have access to. I will do this by making it feel as though the viewer of the photograph, feels as though they are in the dugout as well.

Safe or out? - Digital photograph, March 2010 - By John Cameron

Check this out - Digital photograph, March 2010 - By John Cameron

Cadets - Digital photograph, March 2010 - By John Cameron

With the images above, I have cropped in on some images to show a different look from the obvious. Sometimes a face is not needed in a photograph, and it gives the image a small twist. I took these images last week, and I was not really trying to focus on cropping in on a unique area. But I just looked through some images, that I thought would be cool to crop in and edit. So I'll have some images up next week from the dugout!

John Cameron. Anderson Gallery Student Exhibition. 04/05/2010

This semester, our class is required to enter three competitions (like last semester). My first competition was a required one by my teachers Tom and Paul. It was at the Anderson Gallery here at our college. It is the Undergraduate Juried Design, Kinetic Imaging and Fine Arts Exhibitions from April 1 - April 18. At 907 1/2 West Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23284. I entered two pieces from last semester. One piece got selected to be in the show. So that was a cool reward.

Experienced. Digital Photograph - 2009 - By John Cameron

Energy - Digital Photograph - 2009 - By John Cameron

This was when I entered my pieces. I took it off my cell phone. So I apologize.

This is the piece that got selected to be in the show.

John Cameron. 04-05-10 Artist Dale Zanine

So this week, I wanted to focus on a photographer that can get close to the action. After meeting with my teacher today, he recommended that I get in closer to the players to show that my work is unique. So I found the artist Dale Zanine, and I have a few of his images that show how close he is to the actual athletes. Sure, you can make it look like you're close to players with large lenses. But actually walking up to the player and getting close to them can be shown in a photograph. With the image below, I have the feeling that Zanine is on the court, and close to the basketball player. He may be on the other side of the court, crouching down really low. But he has convinced me that he is right there in front of the athlete.

Maryland Basketball players celebrate - Digital Photograph. By Dale Zanine

Tim Tebow interview - Digital Photograph. By Dale Zanine

Ole Miss Women's Basketball - Digital Photograph. By Dale Zanine

With the image of Tim Tebow (the interview pic) you can tell that Zanine is once again right there in front of the athlete. But you still have that second thought in your head, that he could be far away, crouching down and shooting up to the subject. Also with the basketball image down at the bottom. It may be a camera mounted, and then fired by a remote source. But you still get the feeling that you are actually sitting right there underneath the hoop. This is what I want to try out. It is a cool and unique approach that I have never really thought about.