Lately I have been focusing my photography efforts in areas that help me learn and expand my creativity. As part of this I have reenergized my activity in local meetup groups a bit. I’ve long been a fan and helped organized activities with Photowalking Utah, but due to the more social nature and size of the events, I’ve been getting together with smaller groups in a less official capacity. I still love the ‘walks, but I’ve been needing more direct focus on improving myself and creating images.

With that in mind I’ve been offering to host events at the studio co-op, especially while the weather has still been hanging on to winter chills and spring showers. It’s been great to shoot and learn with many local photography enthusiasts like myself. Every time I shoot I enjoy the process and realize I how much more I have to learn. I have to remind myself that it is the process of learning that I am enjoying and forget that my skill level and creativity is still well below where I’d like it to be. I look at the work of others I admire and always wish it came more naturally to me.

The most recent shooting event was with the Utah Strobists, a loose assortment of Utah photographers organized on Flickr working on their off camera flash skills. I’ve been to a couple events in the past, and after a little inactivity the group is working on getting events going again. I offered to host a non-themed event at the co-op with only the idea that we would work on various creative lighting. We had a great turn out with 5 models and 20+ photographers in attendance. It was a bit busy on the lights at times, but overall I think everyone had a good time and enjoyed the practice.

Here are a few shots from the evening, plus more in a gallery on my SmugMug site.

If you are in Utah (even if just visiting) and would like to arrange a shoot together, hit me up. My fees are always reasonable and if we are just being creative together I’m typically available for TF work.

Last night I had the opportunity to join the Provo Creative Meetup Group on an outing near my home. It seems I usually miss their events as they conflict with other commitments on my schedule, so I was happy when things opened up so I could attend.

This time everyone attending brought a "prop" of some kind to photograph and everyone took turns seeing what they could do to creatively capture the various objects. I chose to exclusively use my 100mm macro lens and go for tight details. It will be interesting to see what others captured.

See more of this set on Flickr:

Last week I had the pleasure of joining my fellow Photowalking Utah friends at the 3rd Annual Studio Photowalk event. This is by far one of the most popular events of the year with 9 studio setups and approximately 200 photographers attending this go around. A full smorgasbord of learning, sharing, and fun.

Though I often like to try and be a part of putting on the Photowalking outings, this year I was arriving as an attendee only, planning to take in all the cool lighting set ups and do some learning myself. Studio lighting is definitely not my forte. I arrived a bit early though, realizing that we hadn’t done a good wrap up video in some time. So with lav mic in my bag, I decided to get with some interviews and get the raw footage for a video.

The generosity of the Utah photographer community never ceases to amaze me. From the many hours put in by Rich Legg and Nicole Young in the organization of this event to the many photographers and volunteers that came early to set up and then helping everyone that came through, it is a testament to the caliber of these folks. The day went smoothly even with the crazy number of people there and a few long lines. I saw smiles on faces everywhere and people enjoying the day.

See some of the excellent photos taken by the attendees in the Photowalking Utah Flickr pool.

See some of the echoes of the day in wrap ups appearing on a blog near you:

• Rock Star by Nicole Young
• Ladies and the Tramp by Jeremy Bechthold
• Last Night’s Studio Lighting Clinic: WOW! by Rich Legg
• Studio Photowalk 2010 by Zig Peacock
• Caught in the Light by Preying Jaws
• Photowalking Utah Studio Lighting Event by Utah Photo Challenge
• Photowalking Utah Studio Event by Nathan Marx
• Photowalking by Jessie O’Neal
• Photowalking Utah by Adrian Parkinson
• Photowalking Utah by Scott Stringham
• The “Jarvie Window” Experience Utah by Scott Jarvie

And these are just the links I could find today in Google! If you have a link you would like added, please leave a comment so I can check out your post & add it to the list!

I had the opportunity last night to join my “like minded” friends of Photowalking Utah for the third annual Salt Lake City Temple Square Holiday Photowalk. This is always one of the most popular events of the year, with many people joining us to take in the beautiful display of lights & Christmas spirit. Who can blame us?

This was a record year with over 130 attending the mini-clinic held before at the public library for some low light instruction, and an estimated 140+ at Temple Square itself. I was asked last minute to take the group shot, so with some help from Scott Jarvie & Dave Terry we hastily put up some speedlights to light up the group that was there:

This represented only a portion of the group that was there at the start, with many still arriving on Trax from the library. I wanted to wait a bit longer, but between causing some crowd issues and everyone chomping at the bit to get out and start shooting, I figured we had better shoot now or never. Not the best lit shot, but hey, for throwing up a few speedlights it wasn’t the worst either!

Being the third time I have made the outing for the lights, I ended up doing a lot more talking and helping others than actually shooting of photos, but for me that is a big part of the fun of a photowalk. It’s always great meeting new people and visiting with now familiar friends. We really have something special going in Photowalking Utah.

I now consider this trip one of the key milestones of they year that gets me in the holiday spirit. Here are a few others from the night. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy taking them.

This last week I had a wonderful week of R&R in Southern California.  Beach, family, beach, Disneyland, and did I mention the beach?  Our family loves the beach, so therefore most of our days consisted of getting up late, moseying around until the fog burned off, and then heading off for a day of playing on the beach.

A few times I ventured off with camera in hand to capture a few local scenes, once meeting up with Twitter Friend and fellow photog Bryan Villarin.  Thanks for making the trek up the coast for a brief meet up!

I’m still in the process of going through the photos I took, but here is a selection I have posted so far.  I hope you enjoy a glimpse into the fun time we had!  There are of course plenty of family photos as well, but I’ll keep this relevant to just the general photowalking type shots I captured.

See more of the photos from this trip, along with some new ones as they are posted over on Flickr.

Perspective

Saturday I participated in the Salt Lake City downtown photowalk as part of the second annual Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk.  It was amazing to see the number of registered walks and people around the world, but something almost expected with the awesome photographer community we have here in Utah.  Two photowalks were scheduled due to filling up so fast here, though I was only able to make the first of the two.  There were plenty of (encouraged) walk ups, so the crowd was big.  With this kind of outdoor wandering event, the more the merrier.

I’ve mentioned previously how I enjoy photowalks for a variety of reasons, but in short it’s about interacting with the great people – new and old to the concept – and sharing in knowledge and fun.  It was interesting to watch the group naturally split up into subgroups following different paths and ideas.  Some stayed with the lead group continually walking, while others stopped, set up some speed lights and did an impromptu modeling session.  You create your own experience on a photowalk.

I mainly took video to put together into a wrap up piece (hopefully over the next couple of days), but I managed to snap a few photos as well. Nice to be able to do both on the 5Dii.

Be sure to see my entire set from the day, as well as the group pool.

PhotoCamp Utah 2009

In the last year I have grown to really enjoy the local photographer community in Utah.  Not only are there great opportunities to get out and take photos, but there are great people to run shoulders with and learn from.  I am happy to announce PhotoCamp Utah 2009 as the first of hopefully many photography conferences in northern Utah.

In the last year I have had the opportunity to help some local photographers organize events for Photowalking Utah and Utah Strobists, and visited a few other outings along the way.  There are other groups I hope to visit soon because there is so many great people to meet and associate with.  The people are amazing in their willingness to share in their knowledge and passion for photography.  It is the people I meet and networking with fellow photographers that makes these events so valuable to me on top of the opportunity to get out and take photos!

Thom Allen, an organizer for PodCamp and other conferences suggested it would be great to put on a photography themed conference in the camp theme, and thus the PhotoCamp Utah ideas started brewing.  I was very excited for the idea and jumped at the chance to help put it together.  I am excited for the schedule of awesome speakers that have stepped up to present – I plan to hit every class I can to get the most out of the day myself!

Photocamp Utah is not tied to any one photo club or group; in fact, we have been reaching out to every group we can think of to invite their involvement.  PhotoCamp is all about everyone in the photography community getting together for learning, fun, networking and inspiration.

Everything has been coming together so well, from the volunteers helping with the organization to the speakers sharing their expertise.  A big help in making this event happen was Peter and East Bay Studios offering up their facility for the event.  A perfect location with everything we need to put on a great show!  Sponsors are starting to line up with great donations for giveaways.  It is all coming together in a big way!

If you are in Utah and have yet to register, get on over to PhotoCampUtah.com to check out all the details and get registered.  You can see the growing info on the Schedule of Events for the day, including new info on speakers just added later today and with more to come!  Seriously, don’t miss this awesome day.  The cost is only $10 for the entire day, all of which goes towards the expenses of putting on the event.  This is a not-for-profit event BY local photographers FOR local photographers.

On one last note for this post, I am going to let a little exciting info leak out…

Smugmug was one of the first sponsors to commit to the event, and they did in a big way.  Get this: along with some cool swag they are sending out, from camera straps to stickers, every PhotoCamp Utah 2009 attendee will receive 50% off a Smugmug membership of their choosing.  Depending on which membership you choose, that is $20 t0 $75 in savings!  On top of that, Smugmug has donated 10 1 year PRO memberships to be given away at the event.  How cool is that!  Not only do you get an amazing day for cheap, you will get your money back and then some!

Have I sold you yet?  I hope so!  Get on over to the site and see what this is all about.  Get registered and tell your photography friends to do the same.  Seating is limited, so reserve your seat right away!

Lehi Mini-Photowalk Group (sans me)

Kim Guanzon and I were lamenting last week about the lack of social media meet ups (tweetups) happening in Utah County versus those happening up in the Salt Lake area.  So Kim got the ball rolling and with a little last minute announcement on the Photowalking Utah flickr discussions turning this into an ad hoc mini-walk, we assembled this motley crew you see above (sans me because I was taking the photo & didn’t have a tripod with me).

We gathered at the Lehi Roller Mills (a la Footloose) and did some portrait shooting of each other.  We had originally intended to just walk around the city from there but quickly realized any other locations were a bit far of a walk for our short mini-walk time frame.

As we finished up some staff of the Roller Mills came out to see what we were up to.  It was really quite humorous to us, though there were pretty serious in being prepared for trouble.  They came in a posse of 6-7 guys including one – I kid you not – tapping a large flashlight against his hand.  They even said the oh so overused “I’m gonna need your film then” which I couldn’t help but laugh and say “Sorry, no film here guys.”  The whole situation was quickly diffused by Rich Legg as he showed them photos on the back of the camera we were creating.  Why is it everyone always assume that a bunch of guys with cameras equates to trouble?  I admit we are pretty shady looking group though.

We headed out of some lunch afterward wrapping up what was a great break from the daily routine at work.  Thanks guys!

You can see photos from this day taken by:

• Me
• Rich Legg
• Scott Jarvie
• Kim Guanzon
• David Daniels
• Jake Spurlock
• Jeremy Bechthold
• Mark Abercrombie

It was a lot of fun, and I look forward to organizing some of these in the future.  No fancy or involved set up, just pick a place and time, then see who can come via Twitter, Facebook and Flickr discussion groups.  If you want to get together in your area of have an idea for a mini-walk, go for it!

Antelope Island

This last weekend I had the opportunity to join the Photowalking Utah group out on Antelope Island for the annual Bison Roundup.  Though the actual roundup took place earlier in the week, this was an opportunity to get up close to these amazing animals while being checked, sorted and vetted.  My wife and two of my kids made the early morning trek from where we live, which is about an hour and a half drive, the morning after Halloween I might add!  Though there were some that went up early for the sunrise, we decided the 9:30 meeting time was early enough for us.

If you have never been to Antelope Island, it is located West of Syracuse, Utah, connected to the “mainland” by a causeway.  We met at the State Park gates to allow for some carpooling to save on the entrande fee.  While driving on the causeway, I noticed the scene you see above and had to stop the car for a quick few photos.  I could have spent a lot of time getting more of these scenes, but I wanted to get up to the corral.

Once up at the right location, our caravan of cars was squeezed into the available parking and we gathered for an early group shot.  Getting the group shot right off the bat seems like a wise choice considering last time we only had a small portion of the group represented when we tried to take the shot at the end.  Scott Smith, the organizer of this photowalk took the shot and has posted it on flickr.

Escape!

The enclosure for the bison as they were run through their tests and sorted had only a small number of viewing points, so everyone had to take turns looking for their shots.  Photowalks are a funny thing for me, depending on my mood I may spend more time with the actual subject we are there for, and other times either just socialize or take photos of other things.  This time around I took a variety of bison shots, but ended up shooting more photos of the photowalkers in action.  I came back with a fun set of photos and having had a great time with friends.  You can view my flickr set from the outing to see more of what I ended up taking and posting.  Also, check out the flickr pool of what everyone has posted to seem some great photos.

Sharp perspective

The next outing is a ladies walk, so I’ll pass on that   December will likely have a couple of events, so keep tabs on announcements on the PhotwalkingUtah.com site.

another passing

This particular photo featured above is one that was taken after a portrait themed event in the park.  So why did I capture a leaf?  This was taken after I had packed up my gear and was just about to load into the car and head home.  I looked around one last time to take in the beautiful scenery and it struck me how the leaves were falling all around us.  Duh, I thought.  I haven’t taken a good, simple detail shot of a leaf this fall.  I grabbed the camera, crouched down and snapped a few right on the ground outside my car.

Often when I am taking photos for a particular project, theme or idea, I tend to get those blinders that keep me looking for only specific kinds of photos.  I like to say I’m “focused” but in reality I hate it when I miss opportunities for great photos simply because I am not looking for them.  This is one reason I enjoy the photowalk concept so much.  We go out with a theme, but in the end simply being out looking for great photos frees me up to look for shots of any kind in a new environment.

When I get out with other photographers with the sole purpose of finding and capturing the best photos I can, I start to look outside my typical mindset of a good photo and search for something new.  Of course I still have my style that comes through in everything I shoot, but I am keen to try and expand what my style actually includes.  I enjoy watching the other photographers in their quest for great photos and often emulate (read that as copy, steal, whatever you like) their composition so I have my own photo to remember and learn from.

Photowalking has many aspects to enjoy, including the social and exploration opportunities, but we all take away from a photowalk what we put into it.  I enjoy helping to organize events, meeting new photogs, and pushing my social tendencies to interact with new people.  Other people like the locations we head out to, but choose to wander off alone to capture their own creative findings.  These are all good things.

After an event, the photowalk keeps on giving as photographers share their photos online.  I always have the “wow” moments learning from the perspectives and processing that others do mixed with feelings of inadequacy as I see such amazing talent in the group.  I usually round this off with a renewed feeling of wanting to improve as a photographer, excited to get out on my own and on the next event to feed the need.

Photography for me is a sometimes paying profession, but mostly passionate hobby.  I have come to fill much of my discretionary time with photography, and enjoyed every bit of it.  It is one of those things I have so much room to improve, yet can feel a sense of accomplishment as I progress.  I often compare it to golf, something at which I have much room to improve.  Much of my game is merely adequate, but it is that every-so-often amazing shot you get in that keeps you coming back.  In photography, when you capture those images that you are proud of, it keeps you coming back, searching to get the next great photo.

Holding on to life

Canon 40D, 24-105L, mixed exposure values available on flickr by clicking each image.