Running

I've been floating day-to-day here. I'm feeling uninspired. I need a photo story to work on, like my Digmann or Jacob projects.  I told my editor I would like them to post a call for idea submissions on the facebook for me to do a story on, but it has yet to be posted.

I need this. I need something to occupy myself - to drive my work forward.  In Michigan at this time I would have just had my photojournalistic batteries recharged by attending the Michigan Press Photographers Association annual banquet.  Watching professional visual people judge the works of the best photographers in the state is unmatched in experiences...even if you don't win anything.

I didn't enter anything to MPPA for 2010, which was stupid, because I had some decent stuff.  But really it was the experience of watching as your photo comes on screen, hearing maybe a few rumbles of comments from the crowd and then having your hopes dashed when the "out. out. out" sounds out from the judges.  Having one win, or even be held to the second round of judging, is dizzying.

But mostly it is just seeing what all these great visual artists can do in a year will really kick you right in the face when you have settled into a kind of rut at your paper.

I always try, despite the toll it takes on me sometimes, to keep a fresh log of photographers that are better than me. These days CMU is cranking out classes that I would have a tough time of breaking into the middle of. It's cool, from my time there and at the Sun, seeing some of these kids after me become amazing photographers. It makes me feel like a piece of crap, but it's amazing to watch.

That said...here are some photos.








On a non photo front, I've been trying to run in the mornings.

My bike was broken for a little while and I was starting to get out of the habit, so I just went down to the track near my house and tried to run.

It's been slow going, because I'm out of shape. Riding a bike is pretty easy, so I've been diluting myself. Riding almost 20 miles seems like a lot, but I need to ride that many to really work up a sweat.

The big hindrance to running is my knees suck, but I've been trying to fight through it.  I got a brace thing and after a few days some actual running shoes.

Ran a few tour de stades or whatever the hell you call them, when you run up and down all the steps in a stadium.  Had to drive a short ways to the big football field to get some real steps, but it fits my running style better, I think.

I've always liked running up steps, I feel like if I stop I'm going to regret it. Running on flat ground is too easy to give up on.

I'm weird.

Rumors of my death have been exaggerated

Yes, I am in fact still alive.

I've been a swirling mix of busy, bored to death not busy, completely engulfed by some video games and tired. Most of these situations have also had a nice coating of pain from a re-occurring back pain that makes me so angry that I attach the hate to what I am currently doing.

It has some complicated thoughts and evaluations of my lot in life. But in moments of pain or the sweet joy of...not pain I still take photos.

I have quite the backlog to post, but luckily I have just put together my end-of-year contest submissions. I have total control over my National Press Photographers submission, but the ones through the paper were chosen from my initial selection by people I will admit I don't entirely trust as far as photo critiquing goes.

I love having eyes other than my own to look at my stuff, so I can get a unattached opinion, but if it is someone that has told me to stop doing my job creatively...well, come on.

Anyway, things are progressing.

I will admit in the months since my last post my passion for journalism is waning, which breaks my fucking heart. But I'm not sure how much validity to give to my thoughts right now, because I seem to have lapsed into one of my angry Ryan phases. It's been a long time since I've been in one and I have to say I used to kind of enjoy the distance it provided me from real self evaluation. But this one is different and I don't like it. So I've turned back to one of my old favorite venting techniques (besides video games), writing. Which is partially why I am clicking the keys right now.

Even if I hold back some of what I want to say, the process of just writing what is currently running through my head is like opening a gate to release the flood waters. Because at any moment something stark and truthful might just appear on the screen. Usually I will backspace over it, because this is a public forum and I don't want the entire world (Hi, world!) to know everything I think. But it works like those letters you write and then never send. Venting.

Okay, so here are some of what I think are my best work from the year that I haven't already posted. As I'm loading the photos on I may describe what I did or the story behind the image, if it is interesting.

I'll start with what I think is my favorite shot from the year.


Shot an event for a bunch of Marines returning from Afghanistan, but got there an hour and a half before they actually showed up. So I had some time to wander around and find interesting photos. I like almost everything about this photo.

Firefighter training. I felt brave standing right under this mock roof that they were swinging an axe into.





This is was a freaking awesome event. This local taekwondo studio hosted a squad from Korea that did some straight-up Matrix kung-fu shit. Jumping off a couple dudes to kick a board held on the top dude on a pyramid of STANDING people! I got some sweet stuff I was out loud saying "holy shit" about every other setup that they did. Then I got back to the office and my memory card corrupted and I lost every picture except this one and another. It was LAME!




He was trying to choke the chicken...too easy


He turned 11 on 11/11/11




Ending with my favorite sports shot of the year. Trying to do this same effect with a different runningback but the shot never worked with that kid.

Well, that's it for now.

I've had some decent stuff in January, including driving to Houston just to shoot tailgating at the Texans playoff game. It was kind of tease, but then I almost got run over by a car...so there was that.

I'll get to that stuff soon...hopefully. Or maybe in six months. :D

Go ahead, judge me!

Got to go to Houston on Saturday for work.

I tried to get in town earlier than I needed to be, and as I was starting to explore a bit I realize I had to leave. Oh well.



I'm trying to make more of an effort to enter work in monthly clip contests. I re-joined the National Press Photographer's Association. Also the Associated Press for my region sent an email letting members know that they are going to start a monthly contest, and if you send your stuff in to share on the wire they will add the photos in the contest. Which is cool, because I wanted to start sending my stuff out on the wire anyway. Two birds.

BUT! Stuff has to be published to be eligible for the NPPA contest. Luckily I've kind of got around the problem of cool shots not getting in the paper. Everything is uploaded to the print gallery for sale, but that doesn't count as "published" for contests. So I've started uploading them to the stories on the website.

Last post I put up my photoshop shot of the softball catchers. The next day I went in and re-did the lettering part on the jersey. I thought that really tied it all together.

And...it didn't run! Imagine that

On Saturday I shot the game this was meant to preview and showed one of the catchers and my phone disappeared for awhile into a crowd of excited high school girls. I thought I'd get it back and it would have been made over with curlers and lipstick, but it was fine.

In between games I had to drive about a half hour or so. The first didn't end until the second one started, so I was trying to hurry and I was also in a part of Houston I was not familiar with at all.

Yep. Got pulled over. Figured it would be for speeding, but as I was pulling off the expressway so the officer didn't have to stand on the tiny shoulder I realized he was coming up on me before I even got up to speed. What the hell?

Apparently there was a red light I didn't see and blew right through it. I really wanted to go back and see where it was, because I totally saw the yellow one I blew through, but it was yellow. But then I had to figure out which bit of curvy road crammed between overpasses, so it is possible there was a light there, but if there was I have no idea why it was there.

But I could tell the officer was pleased with my demeanor, behavior and genuine displeasure from having run a red light. After taking my license and insurance (and pronouncing my name right, which I told him I was impressed by) he just handed them right back and told me to have a nice day.

I was totally ready to eat a careless driving ticket, because I felt sick to my stomach after he told me my mistake, but he was a decent man and I behaved as I have been taught. Thanks, Papa Dush. :D

My Xbox finally died. :( I beat the story in LA Noire first though, so it wasn't as frustrating as it could have been.

Luckily, this month I am kicking ass at reprints. So I think I might be able to pick one up. I was going to just buy a used one from a pawn shop, but they are all the old ones like I have for about the same price as the new redesigned one. So if I take this months reprint money and do at all well in the next couple months, I should be able to swing it without upsetting my bill paying regiment.

On another money spending front I have been upset over the last couple months because I am flying up for a wedding in July and within a month's span of looking for plane tickets the prices DOUBLED! Frustration and desperation were all over in my head. I'm not going to miss it, but I really didn't want to put more crap on my credit card.

But luckily, I looked last week and prices have come back down. Probably because all those planes having cracks in them. I don't care if I have to hang on to the wing the whole way, just get me there.

I'm thinking of a plan for my next trip up, which will be in October for another wedding. If I can finally get a motorcycle endorsement I'd like to fly up and ride my bike back. It will be a hell of a ride and will likely cut my time in Michigan quite a bit short.

But I'm still thinking about it.