Hey everybody! I have moved the blog to a new web address. There will no longer be additional posts to this site. You can now reach the BMP Blog directly from my website at www.brettmayphotography.com or just click HERE.
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Life Is Short…
Life is short…Drink good Beer (Wine, Bourbon, or Vodka). Choose your poison. And No, this is not really a post about alcohol.
The Photo above, is of a cold frosty refreshing glass of New Belgium pure unadulterated goodness. (I like beer) This post, is about how simple it was to create this image. It took me about five minutes to setup the shot and then about ten minutes in post-production. Not everything has to be complicated.
I basically took a frosty cold beer and put in a frosty cold beer mug. Because I was in my garage, so it was fairly warm and would not give me much time to pull off the the shot. There are synthetic ways of getting a frosted look, but I believe “Real” looks more “Real”. I then took a few photographs of the label and threw it onto the computer. The only really editing I did was a little Dodging and Burning in PhotoShop. The moral of the story is, “Work Smarter, Not Harder!”
Check out New Belgium Brewing and their amazing list of beers [Follow your Folly, Ours is Beer!]. New Belgium also sponsors one of my favorite PodCasts by Fitz Cahall called The DirtBag Diaries. Check it!
Today we Released “Project Acworth”
Today is the official release of Project Acworth. I’ve been working on this project for the past six months; trying to get it ready to share with the world. I’m photographing and interviewing individuals throughout downtown Acworth, GA to create a photographic conversation with the city. The photos are going to look something like this:
To make Project Acworth a reality I’m teaming up with the TenPixelGroup to design the Project Acworth Website. Right now, www.projectacworth.com is setup as a blog to keep everyone to up-to-date. The big thing is we are kicking off Project Acworth with Kickstarter.com. We need everyones help to make this happen. Go to the Kickstarter Project page to find out more.
That Dog Won’t Hunt…
Its been a very long week for me. I’ve been stuck in the house for the most part, but I’ve been running around in circles on the phone. I’ve been talking to multiple customer service reps for multiple reasons, and I spent two full days trying to figure out an Ikea problem (and I figured it out the hard way).
Today, I needed to De-Stress myself somehow. So I played my own version of DuckHunt. I’ve been planning on shooting a photo like this for awhile now, but I never really got around to it.
Heres my suggestion to you: If you have a great idea>>> DO IT! No one is really going to be impressed by the stuff still locked away in your head. My version of DuckHunt is a pretty childish concept but it was Fun to make. I basically recreated the gamer screen, but the possibilities are endless. The hardest part of having a great idea is Just Getting Started.
Polaroid ThrowBacks
My Aunt found an old Polaroid 250 Land Camera in some lady’s attic. There is no telling how long it had been stored there, but when I opened the box I nearly melted. I have a slight obsession for old cameras (especially Polaroid). What I found inside was a nearly perfect camera set. It had everything in the box, ranging from a Roto-Dial self timer to a Flash unit with “flash bulbs“. I say Nearly, because the last person to use the camera left the batteries in the camera forty years ago. If you haven’t encountered the destructive powers of old batteries, the entire camera was covered in corrosion. I had to order special batteries, re-wire most of the camera, and give the old girl a little elbow grease, but she lives again.
I found some old 966 color polaroid film stashed away the deepest reaches of the camera box, and decided it would have been a crime not to see if the film was even remotely usable. Unfortunately, all the chemicals were dry as a bone. So, I ordered the next best thing: Fuji FP-100c Professional. Polaroid Film is no longer in production anymore if you didn’t know, and FujiFilm is now one of the few companies still making film that imitates it.
Heres some the results for this forty year camera:
See more of the Polaroids on Flickr.
How to be a “Creative” and Make Money… BS!
Alright, if you read the title you can already assume I’m blowing smoke, but I’m not. I’m a Freelance photographer and I want to get paid just like everyone else. If you depend on your creative abilities to pay the bills (Like Me), or you just want to make a little extra on the side: I have the best advice for you I’ve ever heard…
DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!!
It’s as simple as it sounds. Get off the couch and do something about it. (At this very moment my parents are laughing at me because they have been telling the same thing for YEARS) Maybe my parents aren’t to far off, but like a good son I thought I knew everything and didn’t pay attention. Maybe it’s just a part of growing up, whatever…
There are thousands of people out there telling you what you should be doing to make “More” money.
“You shouldn’t buy that three dollar cup of coffee…”
“You need to send out a hundred Resume’s a day…”
“Beeee Thrifty…”
BULL S#%*! Being thrifty is a good practice but there is a line that doesn’t need to be crossed. Who cares if you can buy 10 candy bars and get 10% off; I only want one candy bar. Like a lot of the people who read this blog, I’m fresh out of college, and I’m trying to make my own way in the world. What I have found is that most of my college education didn’t do a thing to teach “HOW” I’m supposed to do that. I really do value my education, but people go into thousands of dollars into debt, only to graduate and find out no one wants to hire them. Be all you can be… Live the American dream… Where is the handbook on how to go about doing that? Its like raising kids: Theres not a manual. Doesn’t seem right does it?
Then there are all these people trying to jam Self-Help books and Services down my throat to “Help ME” grow my business. My first reaction is: Screw em’. Funny thing is, as I’m writing this post I had a guy from Texas call me and he tried to sell a service to optimize my search engine hits through Facebook. I didn’t hang up on him though, I actually learned something about Facebook and how it works. I of course told him “NO THANK YOU” but I found it ironic I was writing this post when I got this call. He was just doing his job, but I don’t need to pay somebody to do something I CAN DO MYSELF!!! Companies are making millions off people’s laziness.
So you are a “Creative” and you want to make a living doing what you love, or You are the average human being who has a 9-to-5 job but you want to be making more. Sounds reasonable right? Heres my suggestion: Do the work that will get you paid! I don’t mean go and find a higher paying job, but that’s definitely an option. I mean go do the research on “HOW” to make a living at what you love.
Alright, heres is where I tell you to pick up a book and READ it! (Stay with me here!) You don’t get to have the excuse “I hate reading”, because I hate reading too, but if you don’t pick up a book or do the work needed to get paid: you are being LAZY. We are all guilty of this (Including Me). If you are between the ages of 20-to-35 you need to read I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi. If you are between the ages of 35-to-Nearly Dead you need to read I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi, but you are already behind the curve. Yes I realize the title is arrogant, but I’m willing to bet you aren’t a millionaire if you’ve made it this far in this post. I usually don’t endorse stuff like this but I truly believe this is a book everyone should read.
As a 21-year-old, with absolutely no idea what in the world he is doing, I can say this book is about the best advice I’ve heard on “HOW” to do “It” during & after you get out of college! Ramit explains everything from credit cards -to- individual investing -to- personal savings. I wish I could convince some of my friends to read this, because I know 10years down the road they are going to be wishing they had.
Check out: I Will Teach You To Be Rich.com for Ramit’s book and some amazing >>>”FREE”<<< Resources! Don’t be an idiot, those recourses are FREE!. If you want to make more money (Like everyone else) do something that a lot of people DON”T DO: Pick up a book and READ IT!
Ramit also has a program he releasing this year called How To Find Your Dream Job and most of the resources are FREE.
“A person who won’t read has no advantage over one who can’t read.”
-Mark Twain
Danny Williams
A friend of mine called me up last week because he needed a couple of new headshots for his modeling portfolio. I’ve worked with Danny before and he is a pretty cool guy. Its been awhile since I’ve posted anything on the blog. So, I thought I would share some of the photos with you from the shoot. Happy Holidays everyone!
Check out the rest of the images on Flickr.com
Check out the rest of the images on Flickr.com
My Story: Kim Harkins
I haven’t been very good about posting anything to the blog lately because I’ve been super busy working. It’s a great problem to have, but it can get in the way sometimes. Unfortunately I’ve haven’t been shooting for myself too much lately. So, I recently completed another episode to the “My Story” project I’ve been kicking around for the past year. The idea behind the project is to show the world a glimpse into people’s lives. I wanted to tell cool stories about cool people that you might never meet. I needed to get out and shoot something, and I needed a challenge to push myself creatively. Shooting video seemed like a great way to learn and a great way to create something new.
I graduated from Gwinnett Technical College this year with a degree in commercial photography. I’m still not quite sure how I found myself there but I wouldn’t change anything for the world. I’ve truly found something I love doing and I plan on shooting till I’m six feet under.
This project isn’t about me though; it’s about the people I’ve met along the way. The world of photography is enormous and things are changing daily in our industry. I’ve only been in the game for a few years but I truly think that one of the most valuable things to me and my future career as a photographer is the people who have invested themselves in my life. I am one of the few that actually went to school for photography and I owe a lot to my professors at GTC. Without the help of some very key people I would not be where I am today.
Kim Harkins was the department head of the photography program at the time. She has been teaching for close to 35 years and is moving out to the West coast to continue teaching. She was at GTC for 27 of those years and has made an impact on not only my life, but countless others like Zack Arias, Marc Climie, and many more.
I went to a Tech school, but the program that Kim and the other professors built over the years far surpasses some of the Art colleges I’ve visited. The quality of work and craftsmanship coming out of Gwinnett Tech is phenomenal, and is only getting better as time passes.
This video was a lot of different things for me. It was something creative for me to get out and do for myself. It was a way of saying thank you to Kim and everyone at GTC, and it was a way for me to meet some really great people. All in all, I’m really stoked to be doing what I’m doing, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Cheers!
Special Thanks to those who have invested in me: Kim Harkins, Marc Climie, Zack Arias, Sheri Finch, John Kippel, Kathy Nesbit, David Allen Jones, Claudia Winter, Andrew Kornylak.
Red River Gorge
Last Thursday me and a few friends made the six hour drive up to Slade, Kentucky to go climbing at Red River Gorge. Our soul purpose was to crush as many routes as we possibly could in a few short days. Red River Gorge is one of the premiere destinations in the south for sport climbing. It has been nearly a year since I have gone rock climbing and I quickly figured out that I’ve grown soft (A.K.A. – Fat and Lazy). None the less, I had the time of my life. Great friends, great climbing, great food, and the great outdoors; who could ask for more. See the rest of the photos HERE.
Click HERE for full Slideshow.
Brett May Photography 