The thing I love about this image is that I was prepared! When I was a staffer, more often than not, I carried my camera with me all the time.

Y’know… Like Jay’s tree, great photos just show up. …without warning.

Now that I’m on my own, in the freelance world, I’m inside a lot more. My assignment count is way down. My professional opportunities to shoot are much rarer than the 2-3 assignment days I just left. I’m driving less, and, regrettably, my body’s getting softer. I’ve also stopped carrying my camera around as much as I used to. — like a lot less!

Sometimes I tell myself: ahhh, but I have my iphone. If something happens, I’ll be fine.”

But that’s not true! The act of digging out the iphone, clicking on the app, and waiting for it to get ready is slow enough for me to not only miss the moment, but to not even want to deal with the iphone’s camera (I have a 3Gs. ancient, right?).

But when I actively bring my “real” camera out — even with just my 35mm f/1.8 attached — I’m ready to go! That’s not to say I’m that obnoxious guy snapping away wherever I go (well… not anymore). I have it in case a photo presents itself to me.

This photo isn’t by any stretch a portfolio image, but for right now, it’s an important image for me. I need it to reaffirm my belief in being ready and staying sharp.

Freelancing is a weird life. It’s easy to be lazy. But that’s how you lose. Me? I don’t wanna lose. So, I gotta keep shooting.

Why oh why do I love this picture?

Everything about this shoot makes me roll my eyes. First of all, I’m breaking one of my cardinal rules! I HATE HATE HATE making portraits of people holding books, or whatever it is the writer decides the story is also about. So, I don’t do it. If I can make a book or a photograph, or whatever the subject made into a detail photo, that’s what I’m gonna do. — especially with authors. It’ll probably help the layout, and add an extra “click” to the website. This woman, however, is a faux finisher. Rita Melnick’s is a featured artists in the resource book “Modelo by Design, Volume 2,” — which is what she’s holding — and that’s pretty much what the article was about. Ugh! This newspaper article reads like a website bio. I could talk at length about how this assignment isn’t really journalism, but I think y’all are smart enough to figure that out.

So, why in the world do I love this image? Well, on the one sense, Rita was super pleasant to deal with, and got what I was going for. She was up for anything. …and why wouldn’t she be? We’re giving her faux finishing business free advertising! But this image (not unlike the article) is just ridiculous, isn’t it? I could try to make a heady analogy about faux paint/fake news/faked enthusiasm blah blah blah.

…but the fact is, every time I look at it I chuckle.

I get something out of it.

And hopefully the readers do too.

when I see this I think… POLITICAL CENTAUR!

@lopossay

Scott McIntyre

The world is funny, isn’t it?

Or at lest that how it seems to me. …but then again, I’m the guy who laughs too much during movies.

This is the second installment of my Best Runts of 2010. The first is here.

Can I first start by saying I can’t stand lifestyle images. You know what I’m talking about — Beautiful people laughing for no reason. …maybe holding a glass of wine, or frolicking through a field of wheat. It’s cheap high-gloss stock. Sure, there’s a semblance of a story being told, but it’s trying too hard to be perfect and beautiful. …but it lacks substance. What ends up happening is none of that joy those beautiful people in the photo translates to the end user — the audience.

Me? I roll my eyes.

…well, I sometimes chuckle. but it’s usually because a miscreant blacked out one of the boring hot chick’s teeth. …you know the one. She’s about to eat some spaghetti.

Now that’s funny. …at least to me. Like I said in Runts part 1, I like to celebrate the imperfect in life.

And I’m starting to realize (and I’m kinda cringing while I write this) that Happy is Boring.

…at least in photography.

Sure, if some kid is opening a birthday present and he’s making the craziest face in the world — like OUT OF HIS MIND HAPPY — because he got the most bad-ass toy robot ever, then that’s good stuff. That’s an emotion we can enjoy through someone else’s experience. But laughing on the beach FOR NO REASON isn’t entertaining. Those are passive photo. It’s like the white bread of photography. no nutrition.

To be clear, there’s a difference between BEING happy and trying to make a picture of happy. People smiling for no reason is void of content, void of purpose, and void of personality. It’s the quirks and our imperfections we, as individuals, are loved for. And so, I look for those when I’m out making pictures. Ultimately, I want the audience to relate to the subjects and stories in my images. …and rather than show them pictures of people laughing, I’d rather them enjoy a chuckle or two. Enjoy!

My mom got married to a wonderful man, Rick, this summer. They have so much in common, such as not liking bubbly. You gotta give em’ props for trying, right? So, lets raise a glass and wish them well! She finally found a good fit for her.

…during a semi-pro football game.

This is from December, 2008. Jess drew the heart, and our upstairs neighbor’s dog, Josh, was looking to make some yellow snow.

I just got my new full-frame D700 and I was making as many night photos as possible. The drawback — which doesn’t really bother me in this image — is that all my wide angle lenses were made for DX camera bodies. I shot this with a 17-55mm and that’s why there’s that huge black vignette. I could crop it out — and I played around with that idea — but it felt wrong getting that tight.

I try to bring my camera with me when I’m not shooting. You never know when quirky little things like this will present themselves.

Dripping water from my kitchen ceiling leak. The water is shot against an underexposed fluorescent light. This was made in my old house in SoWeBo, Baltimore, Maryland May 11, 2006.

Thursday, July 2, 2009.

Flowers by the Simkins Dam on the Patapsco River.

After the jump are more photos of some of The Collective dancers shot for their SHORTS promo post card.

The Collective presents SHORTS Friday, January 15, 2010 8:00pm at the Creative Alliance.

$15/general admission

$12/students, seniors, and CA members

Here’s the press release: The Collective, named Baltimore’s Best Dance Company for 2008 and 2009 by the CityPaper, will present a concert of short works designed to make the most impact in the shortest amount of time possible. SHORTS is a collection of twelve dances, ranging in length from two to five minutes, used to abstract everyday objects and situations into movement. Under the direction of Jessica Fultz and Sonia Synkowksi, The Collective houses professional dancers and choreographers from the Baltimore region who gather to create and produce new work. SHORTS will feature choreography by Jessica Fultz, Adrienne Lathanishen, Camille Lattimore, Cait Moler, Lynne Price, Sonia Synkowski, Melissa Talleda, Emily Tankersley, and Lauren Withhart with original musical compositions by Keith Kramer and Mark Williams.

who doesn’t love outtakes?

Patty, blacked-out-teeth-n-all, at her Cuba Party.