On Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 history will be made in the United States.
As Barack Obama is sworn in as the first African-American President, the country and world will be waiting and watching as their hopes for the future are laid at the feet of the new architect of the leader of the free world.
Yeah, a lot to expect of one man, but there we go.
Everyone wants a hero.
Photojournalist Lauren Victoria Burke was on this mans’ train for awhile, though.
She just published a 280 page book of the 3 year rise of Barack Obama from his first day as a US Senator to his victorious election on Nov. 4th of last year.
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“Birth of a Statesman: Barack Obama”
And her publisher? Herself. Thanks to Blurb.

[photopress:03_muhammad_obama.jpg,full,centered] © image copyright of and courtesy of Lauren Victoria Burke
[photopress:birth_pics_031.jpg,full,centered] © image copyright of and courtesy ofLauren Victoria Burke

[photopress:birth_pics_028.jpg,full,centered] © image copyright of and courtesy ofLauren Victoria Burke

When asked about her highlights on making the book:
“The biggest highlight is the obvious one: handing a copy to Barack Obama. But whether it is him or my mom: the best part of making a book is the moment when you’re finally presenting people with that first looksee — even if the first thing they see is a draft. By this time some of the subjects have been watching you take pictures for months and wondering: What are you doing with all those photos? With the technology we have now — where you can use Blurb to turnaround a book of high quality in TEN days the time — you can go from making a photo to showing people a book less than two weeks later. It really makes all of the time at home in front of the computer worthwhile.”

There are going to be a ton of materials out on President Obama. Even the Blurb bookstore has more books from other photographers.
You have to give someone real credit though, to this photographer to follow the man for 3 years. Sure, many of us had an idea that big things were coming when Barack Obama spoke at the Democratic Convention 4 years ago. These politicos seed stuff pretty early.

But for a photographer make it their personal project shows the right instincts.

So we feel that this should be shared.
We will be giving away one copy of this book on Weds., Jan, 23rd, 2009 to one of our NEWSLETTER subscribers. Details in the Weds. email. It’s a good time to sign up.

Ms. Burke did also capture some great photographs from all of the players in the election so when you visit her site, look around for your faves.( Yes, McCain is included!)

[photopress:p69103.jpg,full,alignright] I’ll be honest with you..never before did I ever want a book like this. Or the Obama T-Shirt I have.
But no coins for me.
There is such a sense of hope in this country across the board, as we witness the crapfest of the economy, that as photographers, we can be giving it a story and place in our visual history.
Next major op is on Tuesday, the 22nd.
Let’s see what you have.

And this fast thinking Twitterer took a photo and posted it. Within minutes.
US AIR 1549
[photopress:f.jpg,full,centered] © JKrums / Janis Krums
One of the best news photos in awhile.
Terrorism has not been blamed. Flock of Birds are being blamed.
Everyone safe.
whew.

The Canon G10.
It’s the point & shoot that most pros go for.
Sure, while sporting this camera, newly released, the eyes opened and shooters were curious.”Wow, you GOT one!” Yep, your fellow shooters will acknowledge the purchase with a solid nod of approval. Check.

But lets get down to the camera and what it does, and what it doesn’t do, okay?

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First of all, this is a solid brick of a point and shoot that feels solid in your hands and from every operational point.
Knobs, buttons, switches, battery doors, media card springloads, were tight and responsive.

There is a cool looking interface that shows up on your screen as you cycle through the available options, like Program, Auto, Manual, Aperture or Shutter preferred, Manual and Video, Panoramic, and Custom 1 & 2, and of course the graphic Scene choices.

[photopress:REG_1285.jpg,full,centered]general set-up menu

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And now “Kids And Pets” scene choice. Which kind of tells you the customer that Canon is actually speaking to with this camera. Did we mention is also has Face Detection software? It is a pretty excellent piece of technology, that most manufacturers are incorporating into their lines.

Sporting 14.7 megapixels, with a lens equivalent to 28-135 mm.( wider but shorter than the previous model ) this point and shoot does deliver.
Solid, beautiful digital files, even as the Canon RAW format has been incorporated into the most popular photo editing software.

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G10 battery compared to Nikon P6000 battery
The large battery allowed a good walk around the city for the day without a fear of power loss. And the included battery charger is a one piece block that plugs right into the wall. Love these. Less stuff to travel with.

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You also have a standard hot shoe where you can add a speedlight, or as a buddy of mine just did, a sensor with a wireless commander so you can hold the speedlight off camera.
The exposure compensation dial on top was a huge help as I did adjust as I went. No fumbling here.

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Also, if you are a Canon user, the dial setup on the back would be familiar in switching out your operations.

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The manual was referred to, as the buttons to push for white balance shifts was not evident to me.
Yes, even though it was on page 140, it was easy to find listed on the content page.
OK, I’ll admit it it. I had only read to page 98.

But seriously….there are a few competitors in this category, so you do have a choice.
The photographs I was able to make with this, were, to my eye, as expected. Good color, crisp and sharp at lower ISOs, and no lens flex at longer lens extensions.

This is one of the top 3 to consider. Canon, Nikon and Panasonic are the brands to look at this $500 MSRP price point.
Lets talk for a second about why a point and shoot, to begin with: convenient, silent, unobtrusive.
The Canon G10 does all that. Mostly.

Here is our only concern- Continue Reading »

With a huge shout out to Firesign Theater and Nick Danger, the above line delivers a fitting entry into the world of Pulp Fiction.
[photopress:586_cover_1.jpg,full,alignright] This week we have a very cool collection of photographs by Thomas Allen titled “Uncovered”.
By taking the detective pulp novels of the 50s, and extracting the images from the cover, he has created a new tableau.
His deft hand on the depth of field and the 3D use of the cut-outs, retells the storys that made people like Mickey Spillane famous.
We first were introduced to the work through Foley Gallery of NYC, actually at a previous PhotoLA.[photopress:22b.jpg,full,centered] © Thomas Allen
This unique volume is made in a thick card stock, and the cover utilizes this with a die cut cheesecake image of a va-va-voom woman of the fantasy era.
Aperture published this volume and also offers a great price on a print created especially for them.

[photopress:686.jpg,full,centered] © Thomas Allen

So check your inbox on Weds. morning at 9:00 AM PST for details on adding this to your collection.

While the main event in photography this past weekend in Los Angeles was PhotoLA, there were other things to discover.
Over at Bergamot Station, one of our prime venues filled with a TON of galleries (park once, hit a bunch of galleries), there is a new gallery called Terra Galleria Artworks. Slightly hidden at one end of the location, the show currently up, is one heck of a find.
Ted Orland: Scenes of Wonder and Curiosity, introduces one of the hidden talents in our midsts.
We spent some time not only looking at his portraits of the photographers we have grown to know and love, but his neverending photographic explorations.

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From the sublime sense of humor,

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To his colorful panoramas

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and his love of the Holga.

[photopress:aa_ic_ju.jpg,full,centered] OK, $5 to the first person to name the 3 people in this photograph

One my favorite parts of the evening was being able to hear his stories of printing for Ansel Adams, the photography scene of the 60’s and 70’s, why he embraces current technology, at least as far as post production goes.

To quote Mr. Orland:
“The real bottom line – and my overall theory about artmaking – is that if you lead an interesting life, you’re on track to make interesting art. How could it be otherwise?”

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Now you can only wonder if the intensity of printing for Ansel Adams, taking 12 meter readings to live the zone system dream, made him turn to the fuzzy logic and leaky Holga, but whatever it took, we’re loving the photographs.

OK, here is another reason that this work is such a find: the price.
Yeah, I know, it’s the images that are important. And you are right. But I saw prints for $400 dollars !!
No, seriously, take a look at some of these, then go and see for yourself if you can.

He does have a book of photographs, available from the gallery, and a book titled “Art and Fear”
“This is a book about the way art gets made, the reasons it often doesn’t get made, and about the difficulties that cause so many artists to give up along the way. David Bayles and I are both working artists, grappling daily with the problems of making art in the real world — the observations we make are drawn from personal experience, and relate more to the needs of fellow artists than to the interests of viewers.
Do not mistake Art & Fear for a pop psychology self-help book — we’re not interested in freeing your inner child! This is a book about what it feels like to sit down at your potter’s wheel or keyboard, easel or camera, trying to do the work you need to do. What we’ve tried to do is illuminate the obstacles you face, and offer some artistic strategies for getting past them.”

As a kid, Ted was the kind of photographer we knew about and looked up to. The photographer in the inner circle. Master printer, shooter, raconteur, and a darn nice guy. No wonder he teaches and became a mentor to many.

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He’s not an LA guy. Quite the opposite actually.
Santa Cruz is his home, far away from the maddening crowd.
I’m glad to have met him, and I hope you enjoy the work.
Nothing like supporting a new gallery either.

Ted Orland: Scenes of Wonder and Curiosity
Terra Galleria Artworks
Bergamot Station
2525 Michgan Ave.
Building T1B
Santa Monica,CA 90404
310-5104

January 10 – February 28, 2009