Personal Photography Tipping Points : FOUR Photos

Thinking about myself as an artist is a daunting thought. I don't know why but I am extremely uncomfortable with the label. However, I can distinctly remember photographs I have made that made me stop and say I'm on to something. Here they are:

The Vampire - This was taken during a winter trip home. We were walking through the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the opportunity just presented itself. I was actually unaware what was going on until Amy pointed it out. Her presence of mind and awareness made this happen - I just had all the right settings dialed it. This shot was altered in Photoshop to make the imagery more powerful.

Jackson Hole, WY - This photograph was the first time I pre-visualized the shot and went back to the spot and made a picture happen. I was driving to the skatepark in Jackson and saw this sight. Not having a camera with at the time made this experience what it was. I saw exactly what I wanted to capture and went back a couple of hours later and created it.

God and Basketball - (Gila River Indian Reservation) While driving around in Arizona I just sort of let the road take me. I ended up on the Gila River Indian Reservation about 25 miles south of Phoenix. After stopping to take a couple of photos I found this site. This was one of the most powerful places I have ever been. The spot was perfect. I had a basketball in the car which completed the picture.

Kristina Snake River Overlook - (Grand Teton National Park) I set out to recreate Ansel Adams' famous photograph. I took about 25 or 30 pictures of this famous spot with my camera in Black and White mode. As I was putting my equipment away I called Kristina's name and she turned to look and this is the resulting picture. This was a one shot moment that I couldn't duplicate again (much like The Vampire) photo.

These are the four photos that make me consider myself a photographer and someone who make pictures. I don't know what else to really say about it. When I look at these photos I am taken back to the exact time and place they were taken - I can't describe it any better then that...

Mickey Avalon Shoot Martini Ranch "What Do You Say..."

"What do you say.." when you have to shoot in low light? The Mickey Avalon show Tuesday night was a tricky one for a couple of reasons. The main reason being the deceptive light. Most of the time by the eye the light looked decent but the camera was reading things all over the place. I finally decided to go with 1600 Iso and my 24-70mm f2.8 lens - with manual settings. The exposure varied during the set quite often. The other reason being that I am not used to shooting Hip-Hop shows - all things considered I got a bunch of images I really like and it was a lot of fun.

Getting out of my comfort zone was a great experience. This was a great exercise to challenge myself and get away from what I typically shoot. There is so much more movement in Hip-Hop on stage and there are misc. people who otherwise wouldn't be on stage at a typical show. Mickey Avalon had dancers, a DJ and some guy taking photos from behind him while on stage (covering his flash the whole time with his hand.) This guy was enjoying the show from the stage in a hype man kind of way but I found it odd he was armed with a camera. Composing shots with all the movement and people was tough.

Photos can be seen at: www.grtaylor2photo.com or www.flickr.com/grtaylor

Thanks goes out to Laura and Kristine at Avid Exposure for the access to the show.

Local Music (Part I)

Listening to: John Butler Trio LIVE 7/2/09 (Quincy, CA)

I'm a fiend for music.  I like all genres and I've been known to switch it up from The Clash to John Coletrane to Public Enemy all within 30 minutes My passion since I've been in AZ (almost 13 years) has been the local music scene.

Most of time here in AZ has been in Tempe.  I have seen Tempe go through some changes - some good some not so good.  The days of Nita's Hideaway, Gibson's, Chuy's and Sun Club (both a little before my time in AZ) and my favorite spot Long Wong's are gone. 

[Mill Ave. has gone through a transformation from a hip artsy almost boehemian spot to an uptight corporate anchored part of town (well documented by the movie Mill Ave Inc. by Nico Holthaus) and now a movement of change is starting again.  Movement may be too strong of a word but maybe we can call it a shift.  (I got a little ahead of myself here - for more about the "shift" and what's starting to look right in Tempe will be discussed in Local Music post two.)]

The Gin Blossoms and The Refreshments aren't playing 3 nights a week somewhere in town.  But there are so many other good bands from our city that are worth investing time in.  Here are some of my favorites:

Kinch: www.myspace.com/kinch (I used a photo I shot of them at First Friday's for the blog's banner)

Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers: www.azpeacemakers.com Our biggest national act that tours relentlessly- w/ no signs of slowing down.  My favorite band to shoot photos of - (LIVE MUSIC PHOTOS)

What Laura Says: www.myspace.com/whatlaurasaysthinksandfeels Energetic and creative energy at it's best!

Dry River Yacht Club: www.myspace.com/dryriveryachtclub  DRYC is an ecceltic bunch of musicians that make great music and has a lot of fun.  Their shows are something to witness...

Black Carl: www.myspace.com/iamblackcarl One of my favorite bands here in town but one that I've never had a chance to shoot photos of.  One night our schedules will align and it will happen.  BlackCarl has soul and a unique sound.  Another band that is a lot of fun to see.

Shelby James: www.myspace.com/shelbyjamesandthecryingshames  Sraight up Rock-n-Roll with a Honky Tonk flavor.  My favorite track is "Talkin' Words the Rhyme With Alicia's Blues" : Classic relationship gone wrong song with a stalker point of view.

Also we have an amazing Internet Radio Station here Radio Phoenix : These guys are tuned in to what's going on and who you need to check out.  Probably the best source of information regarding shows, bands and local music news.  Check them out.


How to support local music: Go to a show - support the musicians by paying the cover charge - it usually isn't that much.  If you like what you hear buy a CD or download the tracks from iTunes or another digital fee source.  Talk to band - tell them what you thought of their music.  Get involved...

Part II : What's going right on Mill Ave.- how to keep it going...