Mary Weiland Photography - A Lighter Side: November 2009

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Scenes from Iota

I went Iota Club and Cafe in Arlington, VA this past Tuesday night to see and shoot the Ryan Montbleau Band with Laura Tsaggaris. Even though this blog is about photography, I'm not going to "talk shop" in this post. The venue and the music were too great to not share.

Iota was very chill (I hate to use that word, but it was!), and right up my alley. Warm and laid back, with an open interior of exposed brick walls and high ceilings supported by wooden beams. The architecture presented a cozy, comfortable vibe without making you feel claustrophobic. Christmas lights adorned the two bars, one on either side of the floor. One of the bars opened into the restaurant area, making the place feel unified.

In addition to the bar being my kind of place, the music was perfect...and perfectly suited the venue. Laura Tsaggaris sat on a bar stool at the front of the stage and plucked away on her acoustic guitar while singing about things such as love and being a song-writer. She was very comfortable in this environment, and her personality came out in both her music and light-hearted quips in between songs.

What more can you say about a headlining act then when you leave the show and buy all of their CDs for sale at the merch booth?! The Ryan Montbleau Band was my cup of tea...they had a great blues/blue grass/rock type of feel and the members completely gelled on stage. To put it simply, they clicked. The clean sounds of the viola, upright bass, drums, guitar and keyboard rung from the stage, with Montbleau's voice being the perfect complement to the music. The band members had so much fun up there (the drummer was never without a smile), and it carried through to the audience.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Guitar Hero: Take 3

No, Guitar Hero: Take 2 wasn’t skipped. I just didn’t post shots from the actual concert, but rather scenes from the stage instead. Take 3 happened at the Rock and Roll Hotel on Wednesday night, with Baroness as the headliner. The band exhibited tons of energy and character, which helped inspire me and keep my interest peaked in the picture-taking department.

The stage lighting made it difficult to come away with solid shots (is it okay to blame the lighting instead of the photographer?...in this case, I say yes until I learn more). The lights were coming from behind the stage so that the band members were backlit…which equates to silhouettes or darkened faces. Hard-to-work-with lighting combined with non-stop movement from the band members made the majority of the shots blurred and unusable.

As of my 3rd try on shooting bands, I’m finding it more satisfying to take pictures of the stage and what is on it rather than the band. This may solely be because the stage, equipment, and instruments remain still, which makes it easy to come away with a clear shot…not to mention I don’t need to fight with the crowd to get up close during set breaks. It may also be because I am shy when it comes to shooting people and am still learning what the best angles are that make a solid photograph. Whatever it is, I really do just love the simple, clean look of the guitars and drums standing by themselves in the spotlight.

The last picture in this post just makes me laugh. After the band left the stage, the crowd was emphatically cheering them on to play one more song. I love the girl on the left clapping and eagerly waiting for Baroness to return. The two guys to the right of her look just as enthused and completely satisfied with the show they just witnessed. But what makes the shot for me is the 4th guy from the left. He totally caught me taking pics of the fans, and his expression screams “I see you!” all the while saying, "Hey! I'm having my picture taken!"

Friday, November 13, 2009

Infrared Photography

I LOVE black and white infrared pictures, and the dream-like state they portray.

I have been slowly testing my hand/eye at it over the last few years, with my most recent shots taken in Amish country [Lancaster, PA]. Because of the beautiful farmlands and old barns, I thought Lancaster would be a fun place to experiment. Here are a couple shots from that trip, followed by some challenges/considerations of working with infrared film.

It is a challenge working with infrared film for various reasons. Below is a list of difficulties I encountered, as well as some things to consider when shooting infrared:

Cost: The cost of the film is very expensive.

Handling: You can only load and unload the film in complete dark. This means the amount of shots you have is limited to the roll of film in the camera…or you buy yourself a cumbersome dark-room bag where you can change out the film at any time.

Exposure: As with any film, you do not know if the exposures are correct until the film is developed. You lack the immediate knowledge of how to better expose the picture or perhaps compose it differently.

Processing: It is expensive to have the film processed, not to mention the time to drop off the film and pick it up. Additionally, there are few labs that process infrared film. The one lab I was using started to go downhill - the negatives would come back scratched or under-developed, and were not usable.

Post-Processing: After the negatives are back from the lab, you still have to scan the film to digitize the images (unless you trust your lab to do it without scratching them). This is extremely time consuming...especially when you are not good at removing dust before scanning and subsequently have to use Photoshop to do so.

Air Travel: If you plan to bring infrared film with you on a flight, do not pack the film in checked baggage - it will most likely be destroyed by the X-ray machines. Bring the film in your carry-on bag and have it hand-inspected.

With all of these challenges, I decided to convert my Nikon D80 to be a dedicated B&W infrared camera. I am SO excited about the conversion. I ship the camera off on Monday to Lifepixel, and should have it back within a few weeks. The cost of the conversion was expensive, but I am confident the costs will be recouped over a short period of time.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

New York, New York

I risked life and limb to capture the thrilling pace of New York City in this picture. Positioning myself in the middle of Broadway, I squatted low to the ground and began to click away. My goal was to get a panning shot of the NYC yellow cabs, while recording the glow of the neon lights that make Times Square so recognizable. It probably wasn't the safest place to shoot, as I was nearly invisible to passing cars, but I am happy with the end results and had fun taking a little risk.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Lost and Found

I am preparing for my first portfolio review this Sunday through fotoweekdc.org. I have been going through my photo archives to see if there were any shots I wanted to pull - possibly some pictures that have been overlooked. I rediscovered the following two images - both taken in Prague, both indoor architectural shots. The first is St. Vitus, and the second is Wallenstein Palace. I'm not sure if I will use them in the final portfolio, but for some reason, they caught my eye when I saw them again.