6/20 - Happy Father's Day


Kyle Waldrops searches for his father after the game.

Kyle Waldrop and his father, Steve




6/1 - The Red Wing

For my final project for Fine Arts, I was to shoot whatever I wanted and I decided to use the Rochester Red Wings as my lab rats.

My goal for this assignment was to show that whenever you're on the Red Wings, it doesn't matter what race you are: white, black, Hispanic, whatever, you are still under one banner, the Red Wings. All of the guys are ONE team, not a team of individuals. There are no "I" in team.

I've titled this project "The Red Wing" because once you're on the Red Wings, you ARE a Red Wing.

Floyd Rayford

Matt Brown

Chase Lambin

Ray Chang

Anthony Swarzak

Kyle Waldrop

Steve Singleton

Anthony Slama

Steve Holm

6/1 - Manufactured Landscapes

There was actually only one assignment that I enjoyed shooting for Fine Arts out of about six assignments: Manufactured Landscapes. 


The goal of this assignment was to search around and find a landscape that has been heavily influenced by man. Here's a direct quote from my assignment sheet: "For this assignment you are to observe the large and subtle ways humanity has acted in and on the land."


So I decided to hit the High Falls area in downtown Rochester. Most people would shoot the waterfalls because it's beautiful and rare to see a big waterfall right in the middle of city. But for myself, I shot in the opposite direction, toward the Old High Falls Factory. It was an old factory that has been abandoned for some time now. You can tell that the earth is starting to take over it. I really enjoyed shooting the assignment because I got a chance to shoot from high above on a bridge, which is GREAT for those kind of photos. 







I got a B on this assignment. What the...?


I tried my best on this assignment and ended up getting a B on this. In my previous post about the constructed images, I didn't even try at all and got an A. That's one weird teacher that I had....


Oh well. It's over with. The important thing is that I ENJOYED doing THIS assignment. 

6/1 - Constructed Images

First off, I am not trying to offend anybody here. I am simply just stating my own opinion here. Personally, I think Fine Arts Photography is very pointless for myself. The way that I see in the photography world is this:

Photojournalism is there for a reason: to show people what happened.

Advertising Photography is there for a reason: to sell products.

Fine Arts Photography is there for what reason?

Exactly my point. Sure some people may try to tell me that fine arts is there to express your feelings or something like that, but that's not just how I roll myself. If Fine Arts photography works for you, then great. I'm happy for you because you found what you enjoy doing. But I know it just isn't right for me, that's all.

Anyway, one of the assignment for this class was Constructed Images. I have to "construct" the image and try to tell a story in that picture. To be honest, I pulled this idea out of nowhere and just shot it at last minute. Somehow I managed to get an A on this project.



  



Please don't ask me what's the idea here or what's the theme or whatever. I just pulled this whole thing out of nowhere and just sprayed and prayed for something. I didn't even plan anything or whatever. I was just standing around and saw a paper bag on the floor. I picked it up and gave it to a friend and told him to wear it on his head. That's all I did. Somehow I got an A on it. Yay? 


6/1 - Miss Deaf Illinois

A good friend of mine, Tara Holaday, approached me to do a photo shoot with her with her in her Miss Deaf Illinois dress and sash. The reigning Miss Deaf Illinois needed a new picture of her so the pagent can have a recent photo of her to use for the pageant that is scheduled this July.

She's a great friend of mine and has been on my softball team for the past three years as one the longest-tenured member for the RIT/Gallaudet Sports Weekend. She plays in centerfield and pitches for the team. Unfortunately, she got an injured knee few weeks before the weekend so she had to sit out the game. I felt really bad for her because the softball team got their first victory in three years and she wasn't part of that. But one of the great things about her is that she always has a positive attitude and she keeps everybody's heads up. That's one of the things I love about her and in people in general. Always being optimistic.

Anyway, here's two photos of her: One is just a nice pose of her and the another one is one that I really like. It wasn't a planned shot while it's more of a candid shot. I really thought it turned out nice so I'm putting it up here.


6/1 - Update, The Durants

Hey guys,

Sorry it has been a while since I've posted in here! Been pretty busy in May with my finals and all those things. I also got a chance to go home to Iowa for a week so it's pretty nice. Anyway, now that I'm back in Rochester and I got some down time, I thought I'd post a couple updates on some of the projects that I've done this quarter for my Fine Arts Photography and some other side projects that I've done on my own. I ended up getting a B in the Fine Arts course, keeping my unbroken streak of getting 5 B's in my photography classes (Photo Arts 2, Photo Arts 3, Photojournalism, Advertising Photography, and Fine Arts Photography). Hoping to score an A in Sports Photography class that I'm planning on taking this fall.

Anyway, leading off my updates is the Third Year Anniversary of Daniel Durant and Stephanie (Stella) Nogueras. The two of them are two of my best friends and I love them. I am so happy for the both of them. To be together for this long is a tough thing, especially during the college years where everybody is starting to open up their mind and experiment around. Anyway, I'm proud of them and for the third consecutive year, they asked me to do a photo shoot of them and I couldn't be more thrilled to shoot for them again.





Both Daniel and Stella are now living together in New Jersey for the month of June. In mid-summer, the two will move down to Frederick, Maryland where they will work over the summer. Come fall, Daniel will attend Gallaudet University to pursue a degree in acting. Stella will return to Rochester Institute of Technology as a senior and will continue her modeling career all over the country on weekends.

I wish them the best.