Trinitarian Congregational Church in Northfield MA

So Pastor Lloyd Parrill didn’t enter the Trinitarian Congregational Church in Northfield MA on a donkey. But his message for this Palm Sunday, as he welcomed the beginning of Holy Week, was no different from that delivered by Jesus as he entered Jerusalem, “live in peace and miss no opportunity to help others.” As he left the church, this last time he will celebrate Easter before his retirement, Lloyd gave love to his congregants, and they gave it back to him and his wife, Dottie.

 

 

Pictures of the Powerful

President Obama’s official portrait marked the first time a digital image was used to document his taking office. I want to have the opportunity, at some point in my photographer life to improve the image. The image, done right, should make him look Presidential, highlighting the Washingtonian smile, hiding his flapping ears. Not very imaginative.

Here is another, taken recently, of Mayor Bloomberg. A hand sticks out behind his head. His mouth is skewed. The upper left barks a texture, wasting space within which some useful information could have been included. He has red-eye, what looks like a razor nick and its broad lit. I just cannot believe that this is the best shot the shooter could have captured.

Friends at Red’s Barber Shop

Hard to make friends in a new place. You got to have a job and a place and some commitment to something. Me. I go to school. This distinction earns you so little, unless you spend a ton of money. Even then, people say that you are leaving, leaving behind dollars to use their territory to learn and then, like the proverbial NY comment about not letting the door hit you on the way out, say goodby. Not me. I made friends at the local barber shop, thank you Walker Evans.

So, I go to hang out and talk to the guys. No betta place to talk to the guys than a barber shop. You don’t have to be on any social level. You can be as judgmental as you want, withinreason, so long as it ain’t personal. and, you got to be able to either tell stories or laugh at the stories told by others. A quotable quip, for sure, makes it. But it really better be good.

 

Home Depot Lights the GregoryHeisler Way

So, the story goes that Heisler’s luggage lost its way on some unnamed airline on the way North Carolina via Atlanta to photograph some big ticket exec. Knowing the complications of rescheduling, he and his assistant stopped at a Home Depot and bought a flourescent fixture, two daylight tubes and a shower curtain. They did the shot with a kit that cost less than a C note. Now he teaches lighting, using the same setup, albeit one attached to a light stand by a knuckle and a grill painted black.

 

 

Ron Wyatt at Hallmark Institute of Photography

 

Ron Wyatt bills himself as an editorial photographer, but it is clear his first love is sport. He has shot MLB and NFL and been to the the last two Olympics, earning shot of the day two times. He would like to go to London for the upcoming event, but, so far, all his irons are still in the fire. Doing what he does now, which is make a living shooting events and people, keeps him closer to home where he can watch his son, a high-school sports star.

After graduating high school, he took up photography to avoid the lines at a local GM plant. Mostly self taught from workshops and magazines, he started with film and is now struggling to conquer digital, like the rest of us. His Keynote presentation didn’t support his assertions that he lacked the skills to make a quality show, a display that earned him some whistles and cheers, albeit for deft, if rudimentary moves.

While calling his business a matter of luck and being in the right place, he tells a story of how hard he worked to be in a position to take advantage of opportunities. He has an easy manner, obviously gets along well with others and finishes the jobs he starts. All theses qualities are essential for the business of photography. One of his breaks got him a job leading tours to China, shoots that give him the opportunity to use his camera and share his knowledge of the art and craft.

Borrowing from a scene from My Cousin Vinnie, he urged everyone to read the manuals that come with the camera. More a suggestion to learn the equipment to be able to take advantage of its full potential, he challenged mostly unwilling students to use the focus button on the back of the camera, rather than the shutter. Amazing, how few use this technique, which he says is the preferred way to click of photojournalists worldwide.

He said he had nothing against Canon and stated that his favorite lens is a Nikon 200-400. Though the lecture wasn’t sponsored by Sigma and a Sigma logo appears on his project Ron Wyatt site, he tried to be impartial as he urged everyone to try cheaper lenses. He did the math, showing that for the price of a telephoto Canon lens, you could buy a Sigma lens and an additional body. The quality of his shots with the lower priced lens seemed pretty good on the screen.

And he raffled off Peachpit and Wiley books on lighting, along with Black Rapid straps. I had to stand up to model my strap, an act that led several students to ask me about its usefulness. I seemed to be the only person in the entire school who used this piece of equipment which is pretty unbelievable considering it has been around for a while and the strap is revolutionary.

 

 

 

 

 

Christin Ohlman at Art Space in Greenfield

For a town of 15,000, Greenfield has an artsy scene that rivals places with more ethnic and economic diversity. Despite the absence of chi chi colleges offering arenas, crowds or financing, Catherine Ohlman drew a crowd to a little tea/coffee house on Main Street. We listened to her throaty sounds, heard the political message and danced in the aisles. Most of the crowd looked aged and very happy, nonetheless. Just a great Friday Night date night.