I was at Benicassim 2009, I had an awesome time despite strong winds, a little fire, missing out on three of the main acts due to people not being interested in asking the damn right questions etc, but hey ho - I loved it much. I have been following a couple of the images that have come back from the 2010 event - you can see them below.
What makes a good photography portfolio?
I've spent the last twenty four hours re-organising my "Gallery" section. It needed updating and I needed to better represent "me" as a photographer and what I was up to these days. I have taken it down to 36 images which some people have advised is still more than I should show.
What dictates "how your gallery should look?" I'd say the following factors are important...
1. Who is your intended target? Press? Glossy? Agency? 2. What do you want to say about you as a photographer? - I take too many shots, here they are? or I'm so hot, I'm only going to show you three and a half images, the rest you can beg for, low life scum... There's a balance somewhere between those two scenarios that you have to find... 3. Do you have any good images to show? Put them up, get someone to check them out, take advice (But not from your family, they say*) and cull cull cull... 4. Go over your gallery after you've slept on your choices - what jumps out at you as a bad choice? bin it...
They're a few ideas I've been given since I asked for people to check out my gallery and let me know what didn't work... What I've been informed from various sources is that, basically, I'm rubbish and should quit - most people kept about eight of my images live, they binned the rest... And that's OK...
Let's look further into these results "Keep about six" ...of all the results - and I've had around eight emails with suggestions, in addition to the facebook notes and tweets (thanks for those) let's take NiN for example - exactly three of the replies said bin it, and three said keep it... Very interesting and shows exactly what I say ALL the time on dPS - I may love a photo today that I hate tomorrow, it depends on my mood, the weather, if I've had coffee or not... So many things! (What music I'm listening to when I check out an image!!) - So, basically, I have decided that there is no real point worrying all that much because the person that checks out my images may be in a horrible mood... And then I'm screwed I guess!
My favorite images of 2009, in no particular order are...
You can see all of these images in large, glorious color in my gallery...
Elbow, Significance?
Elbow, Significance can refer to: with purpose and importance For 2009, The most "significant" keyword on gtvone.com was "Elbow" This would be largely due to the fact that I photographed the band in Spain, met Guy Garvey afterwards and generally loved the set they played.
- The word "Elbow" is used 16 times on my website.
- Fugitive Motel was my most listened to track of 2009 - According to iTunes, I've listened to it 198 times (make that, now, 199)
This is a photograph of me listening to an "Elbow" track "Fugitive Motel
It's a brilliant track, good for "down" times... (as you can see above)
Lost in a lullaby Side of the road Melt in a memory Slide in a solitude Not ‘til I can read by the moon Am I going anywhere Not ‘til I can read by the moon
Drunk, Naked and alone - Festivals
There's a certain view when I'm talking to people that I'm lucky to have photographed two festivals this year, and, I guess I am in some respects. I got up close and personal (not that close and not personal at all, though I did say hi to the bass player from Alien Ant Farm and shook hands with the Saxon guys) and was able to roam around at the front of the gigs for three songs and go in the press areas and blah blah... I've chosen five VERY TAME photos from my festival collection from Benicassim this year to share with you... Though, it's not pretty lights and some over paid muso singing someone else' song to you in the wrong key, it ain't even someone singing their own stuff... it's the darker side to festivals... the spew, the urine, the alcohol abuse, the drugs and the general pushing and shoving of the whole thing... Some people love this and that's why they go - year in, year out to FESTIVALS...
At the front of the main stage where everyone walked through.
Directly as they opened the main stage in the morning.
A girl, just off the crowd, passed out.
This girl, tears streaming down her face, alone.
This girl, passed out, being passed over the crowd.
...or so wasted you miss the lot?
Homeless?
Or, just Australian...
Rock Star, I think so...
I wrote recently that Martina McBride, or at least her entourage, were quite ...what's the word ...petty? Some musicians are great to photograph, some really worry how they look and want to protect their image and some just flat out won't let you near them because they've got bigger jowls than a Christmas turkey... (names, anyone - huge band, come on... Jenny was a friend?) anyway, yes... Last night I had the absolute pleasure of photographing Alice Russell.. The venue was KOKO (My current fave) in Camden and let me tell you - what a performance... Anyway, that's not the point - my point is that I shot for the whole set, encore, the lot... I went through three cards - two 4gb cards and a 16gb (half full) and I had an absolute blast doing it! - I was considerate to the fans, though, that had paid to stand behind me. I moved, I weaved, I ducked!.. I was a musical Mike "the ear biter" Tyson...
You know, I'd love to show you a photo or two from that gig, but as I'm penning this whilst at work (The clock has since gone 6, oh reading boss man) and some lowlife scum dog has swiped my CF reader - I have ALL the photos, but they're enclosed in plastic and metal with a SanDisk Extreme IV
On that note, I'm off home to get me some Alice Russell image goodness and, at that point, share it with you oh faithful tripe reader...
And if the stereo guy is reading (hi!) I am going to be listening to Alice in chains again, through my 7 channel amplified, but I'll turn five of them off - ok - just for you!... (Comment and tell me more about your course)
Sime