Need Advice, Feedback Requested

We all have various sites and blogs that we check daily. The internet has become more about routine these days than discovery. Let's face it, when most of us were younger and the internet was still fresh and relatively new, we spent more time finding new sites than we did revisiting ones we already knew about. The world wide web was wide and fresh with info. Nowadays though, through syndication of content, most people really only need to check a small handful daily. Thanks to things like MySpace, Twitter, Facebook, Digg, and the like, a lot of what we're interested in is already indexed for us daily and spoon-fed. Sure, it's great because it saves a lot of time, but how often do you really come across a new source of info that you decide you will go to daily (and I don't mean by adding it to a bookmark site or RSS feed)?

Since my blog is relatively small, with few viewers as of this writing, I need people's opinions on how to drive up the number of people that come here.

I'm no slouch, but it can be difficult at times to provide quality content that I can be sure people will be interested in. Leave some advice in the comments section below and let me know what would make this blog (and the related website) more worth your time on a daily basis. Do you want to see more pictures? Do you like more of the how-to stories behind a shoot? Are you interested in product reviews or gear articles? I've got some ideas lined up for some new entries but I want to make sure that I can get people's attention.

I think part of my problem is that I'm too concerned with my own personal privacy. I don't like the idea of putting photos of myself on the internet, despite the fact that it's been proven that it helps make people feel more comfortable contacting you. I also don't like to put too much personal info out there, even though that helps people feel like they know you. Lastly, at times I can be overly concerned with being as professional as possible, which sometimes causes me to lack a sense of humor about things, or at least that's how it can come across.

Some of my favorite photographers, who are very successful at what they do, are very accessible in the sense that they communicate directly with their fans/followers, they put out videos and do seminars and workshops, they use photos of themselves, and they know how to let professionalism go when necessary. Don't get me wrong, I'm no square, and can be as ridiculous as the next guy, but I think I'm still trying to find my public voice.

Zack Arias, one of my big influences and photographic role models, just released 2 videos that I personally find hilarious. I start to wonder if I'm using the wrong approach to my self-promotion. What do you think? Take a look at these videos and you be the judge.

Workshop World
Sucksessful Commercial Photographer


Don't forget to leave some comments, I would really appreciate feedback. You can also find me on Twitter

All Hope is Not Gone

So since my last blog post about Peter Steele I haven't been able to whip up any new writing. I wanted to stay on a more frequent blogging schedule this year, but it's hard. I'm trying some new things now and hopefully I can deliver more content, quality content, more frequently.

But, it would be very wrong of me to continue on from this point and not acknowledge 2 more great losses felt by the Metal world. Since Peter Steele's death we also lost the great Ronnie James Dio, and Paul Gray of Slipknot.

I do have to admit, I wasn't always a big Dio fan. As far as Black Sabbath was concerned it was always Ozzy and that's it, to me. It's not that I didn't appreciate what Dio and the other intermittent vocalists contributed, but the Ozzy lineup was always my favorite and there couldn't be another. But about a year ago I got to witness what nobody could have expected to be the last concert Heaven and Hell would ever play in New York City. It was at that show that I truly felt the power and talent behind Dio's voice and stage presence. I was a changed fan as of that night. I got some good photos of the band and was able to check Tony Iommi off the list of guitar greats that I want to photograph. I wasn't given a ticket, so I only got to witness about 3 and a half songs. The last one, "Bible Black" is the one that really changed my opinion of Dio, since then I listen to it constantly. Just a few days before his death there had been rumors that he already died, to which his wife and family responded to as being false. Unfortunately merely a few days later it became truth. The Metal world will miss you Dio, I only wish I had grown to appreciate your voice and style sooner.

I have been a fan of Slipknot since I first heard them back in 1999 at Ozzfest. I really enjoyed hearing the band's sound evolve over the years. They'd come a long way from the arguably sloppy first major label album (there was an album before that, but I think they only had about 5 guys at the time). Being a bass player myself, I always liked Paul's style. Slipknot changed the scene, whether you liked them or not, and that's a powerful feat for any genre of music. At this point it's unclear what will happen to Slipknot. Some bands slink away after a member's death, and others continue on with the "He would have wanted it this way" attitude. As a fan, I support any decision the band makes, as I understand how hard it is to replace somebody when your band's image as a whole is just as important as your sound.

I was lucky enough to have shot Slipknot when Subliminal Verses came out, but unfortunately it was on my old Olympus point and shoot camera (I shot in manual mode, but it just wasn't a great camera) - I have to dig and see if I have any decent shots of Paul, if I find any suitable for posting I will add them here.

I tip my hat to all the great musicians we've lost this year. It's a sad year for music, and actually, it's a sad year in general. So much loss this year all around, it seems people are dropping off left and right all around me and everyone I know. I hope it stops soon, for everyone's sake.

Well, that's all for now, I should be back with more frequent posts, until then, enjoy the photos, and don't forget to come on over to Twitter and follow me there for daily updates and general stupidity.

More soon,
Rob

He Was The Green Man

Wow, 2010 has turned into a lot of death. Between the earthquakes and people in my every day life, I've already heard of more deaths than I can count since January. But there was one I was not prepared for.

(this might get long, just warning you)

Peter Steele of Type O Negative left this world yesterday, at the young age of 48. Everyone has their own beliefs, some believe in an afterlife, others don't. I am of the opinion that none of the fairy tales are the way they tell them, but there also has to be more to existence than a bunch of random equations involving carbon atoms. So yes, I do believe in an afterlife, just probably not the same kind that most people believe in. Regardless, that's not what this is about.

I remember the very first time I saw Type O Negative. I was in 8th grade, and my dad took me to see Ozzfest '97. That was one of the best lineups ever for that festival, but also probably the best lineup ever, period. One of the biggest highlights was Type O Negative. October Rust was out and they were supporting that album. I wish I could say I still remember the performance, but sadly I do not. I do remember that at the time I was so blown away that I went out that same week and picked up Bloody Kisses. I also picked up Cowboys From Hell, because it was also the first time I'd ever heard Pantera. (Should there really be an afterlife, Dimebag just got himself a monster bass player to jam with)

TON changed my life, and I can say without a doubt in my mind, heart, or soul, that had it not been for Peter and the gang, I would be a very different person. In fact, I'm throwing away my inhibitions right now regarding sharing too much personal info, and I'll even say I may not even be alive.

I've struggled with some serious depression from a young age. I hid it well for the most part, but it's still something that still keeps me up at night from time to time. Had it not been for the way I could relate to the music of TON, I honestly don't know if I would have been able to hang in there through it all. I looked up to Pete in so many ways, but most important was his ability to take the most depressing things and make something beautiful out of them. Funny guy, too. He would not only make beautiful music from his own depression, but he would make it funny. I remember summer nights, sitting in my bedroom with my windows open, the lights off, candles lit, blaring TON through my stereo until my mother would knock down my door to tell me it was too late at night to be blasting my music. I'd then retreat to headphones. I remember, distinctly, being the music obsessed kid that I was, standing in front of my mirror for hours with my bass guitar, mimicking the music, pretending to be playing a live show. But not low-key at all. I'd put on black jeans, a tight green t-shirt, tucked in (to give my fat ass a slightly slimmer appearance), sleeves rolled up, hair slicked back.. ok, ya know what, I'm done with these details, I can make an ass out of myself some other time... But yeah, it's all true, I was obsessed. Listen, fat kids often look up to people who have body types they can never have, it's the same chemical reaction that average-weight women have when they see a Victoria's Secret model. There may be nothing wrong with you, but you think there is.



Over the years, as I began to appreciate the deeper aspects of music and art, TON was always there. They had a way to put out masterpieces of music every 4-5 years without ever repeating themselves, while also keeping true to their signature sound, AND, they never got big heads. Talk about a balancing act! Most bands these days don't make it past their sophomore album before they're stale (some can't get through the first half of their debut album!) - but TON knew how to do it. they didn't just write songs, they didn't just get a riff in their head while taking a shit and throw it on an album. They carefully constructed epic soundscapes that wove seamlessly into themselves and created an entire experience. I think the key word, actually, is experience. They weren't just a band, they were an experience. Kind of like the groups of old, like Pink Floyd. They didn't just make music, they made an environment, their live shows had a feel all their own, their album artwork was carefully structured around the theme and vibe of the album. The whole thing would make even DaVinci jealous.

I related to their music in such a way that it helped me get through not only the itty-bitty "disasters" of going through those awkward teen years, but also the genuinely hard times that life would throw at me. Even as of lately, with Peter having gone all born-again Christian, and making it blatantly obvious in his music, I still found ways to admire the man. Probably one of the worst parts about this is that he had finally cleaned up his act and got sober. He gave himself a second chance, but life, or fate, or God, or what-have-you decided his time was up.

This isn't just the death of one man, this is the death of Type O Negative. Some of the last true stick-to-their-guns pioneers of music. They never cared about trends, they didn't care about serving up the flavor you liked best. They made music that made them happy, they recorded songs that they would want to hear, and if they sold a few records, great, if they sold a ton of records, even better. If they sold not one single copy, I'm sure they'd still stand by what they put out. They had an integrity that most bands can't even imagine. Which is another thing I admired about them, their integrity.



When me and my now-fiancee started Paragon Music Magazine, there were 4 people I desperately wanted to eventually land in-person interviews with. They were Dimebag Darrell, Peter Steele, Zakk Wylde, and Ozzy Osbourne. I'm 0:4 on that goal, and only half of them are still alive. Of course, aspirations change over the years and now there is a bigger list of people I'd love to talk with, but those 4 guys, man, those 4 guys I wanted to sit down with, shake their hands, and thank them profusely for all the strength and inspiration they've given me over the years. I may not be me, and I may not be alive, had it not been for what their music means to me.

TON were famous for playing concerts on Halloween. I never thought I'd get to see one, but then back in 2007 they played NJ on Halloween, and I got to go. Not only that, but I got to shoot the concert. I have to be 100% honest, it was great and not-so-great all at once. It was great because it was TON, so that was always great. It was also great because it was Halloween. Yet another great thing was the set list. I could go on and on, who doesn't love a concert featuring one of their favorite bands? The not-so-great stuff was really just that Pete had been hurting that day, and so he didn't put as much into the performance as usual, he was a little off. But still, he was up there, in his usual ironic humor, doing what he did best.

I never even edited those photos until this morning. At the time, I didn't have the most up-to-date editing software, and my camera didn't have the same capabilities as the one I use currently. So I kind of looked at the previews of the shots and pushed them aside, thinking nobody would ever be interested in these.



Last night when I saw the news, I realized those photos were the last ones I ever shot of the band, and the last TON show I'll ever see. So I started pecking through them this morning and posted them on my site. You can see the full gallery here.

I am beyond words right now (though you wouldn't know it) - All that I'm saying here is what I've been saying over and over again in my head, but I don't know if I can offer anything really elegant regarding this. I can only share my own personal experiences and stories of TON.

Everything for me is music. Every little thing I do, revolves, in some way or another, around the only constant I've ever known: music. Without the music that this man made, things could have gone in an entirely different direction.

We don't often think about how short life is (or maybe we do, but I know I don't) - we're usually worried about whatever the next big hurdle will be. We don't stop to think that there might be someone out there that admires us. I mean, most of us are not celebrities, why would anyone look up to us? Why would anyone look at me, and what I do, and say "wow, I wanna be like him" - Hell, most of the time I don't even wanna be me, why would anyone else? But the truth is you never know who you touch, or in what way. Peter Steele, for all his fame and success over the years, just kept doing what he did because he liked it. He knew he had some die-hard fans, but I wonder if he ever really knew, even partially, the impact he had on so many. It often happens, when someone famous dies, that the tears pour out from every corner. You see it a lot with mainstream stars. But for someone so relatively unknown to the mainstream, he had a cult following that surprises even the people that were a part of that very same cult following. So I wonder, did he ever know just how much he meant to all of his fans? Did he know what he did for music on a whole? Would he ever have given up, would he ever have retired from making people laugh, from inspiring people, from putting that comedic edge on all of life's little sucky things? Probably not. That's the part that hurts, probably the most. The fact that he wouldn't have given up on this, that if he lived another 50 years, he would have been entertaining people in some way or form, for the duration of that 50 years. This is just what he did, and he liked doing it.

I could only dream to be half as inspirational to people as Peter was.

Being that I felt so connected to him and his music, a little part of me died along with him. So I'll raise a glass of red wine (grape juice, for you that don't drink) and toast to him tonight. But for right now, I'll be unsuccessfully coping...

By the way, my good friend Mike Grosshandler had recorded a cover version of TON's "Die with Me" a few years ago. You definitely should check it out.

More soon,
-Rob

Goodbye, Jim

Yesterday the overlapping worlds of photography and music got some very sad news. Legendary Rock and Roll photographer Jim Marshall died in his sleep.

For anyone who is into Rock music and/or photography, even if you didn't know this man's name, you knew his work. His iconic images included those of The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash, and many more. I will have to admit that I wasn't as familiar with his work as I wished I could have been, but I did know his most popular images, and I did know they were his, so at least I can say that much.

Jim was a game-changer through his skill and attitude. He really set the bar pretty high for guys like myself, and in fact, he set it impossibly high because nowadays you just cannot get the kind of access that he would demand. He would not shoot a subject unless he could be around them 24/7 and these days you just don't get permission to do that. So many artists these days are overprotective of their image, which is understandable, but also makes it very hard to get more than 5 minutes with them, and forget about actually owning your work. Most music celebrities these days have you fill out paperwork signing over your work to them so they have the legal right to say where and when it can be used. Not everyone does it, but there are quite a few, and of course it's the bigger names that can get away with asking such a thing. But Jim never signed a single release form; he refused to. If he wasn't allowed to shoot his way, then he wouldn't shoot. He had a real "fuck 'em if they don't like it" attitude that probably got him more respect than grief; again, the opposite of how it would work today.

The thing is, Jim was photographing Rock and Roll when it was still relatively new, and although there always was and always will be Rock star egos, Jim knew how to break through and get to the person behind the persona.

His website displays some of his most well-known work. He's most famous for his classic images of Johnny Cash giving the finger to the camera and Jimi Hendrix burning his guitar on stage.

Jim Marshall did what we all hope to do at some point; he lived with his subjects, he followed their every move, he captured more than their image, he captured their essence. The man had an eye that makes most of us green with envy. With Jim it was more about knowing why to get the shot, rather than how to get the shot.

I will give Jim the respect, from one photographer to another, to not link his images directly here. They are displayed on his website and will be there until whoever is in charge decides it's time to take them down.

More soon,
-Rob

Unrequited Acoustic Music Video

If you've been following my blog for a while, then you remember when I posted about the band Unrequited that came by DIGImmortal Photo's studio last year for a photo shoot. You can see those photos here.

At the time of that shoot we had tried taking some video of lead guitarist/vocalist Nick Vallese performing an acoustic version of their song "Black & White" - The video didn't pan out very well so we never put it out there for anyone to see. There were audio problems, and quite frankly the video setup wasn't that wonderful, either. I told Nick we'd give it some time and try it again at a later date once I got the audio issues figured out.

A few months, a couple of firmware updates, and an investment into a solid video mic later, we got together again to reshoot. This time I had better lighting prepared, a better method of recording video and audio, and plenty of time to take multiple angles.

I won't lie, there were issues. First off, I'm only just finding out something that, apparently, many 5D Mark II shooters have been aware of. The camera doesn't produce files that are easy to edit. This is because it uses a relatively new video compression that most software chokes on. This also changes the way you have to output the final video. Lots of transcoding going on to get these clips to work. In the end though, it's worth it for the great results you get. I edited using Final Cut Express, which took a bit of learning, but I'm happy with the results. In all it took about a week between research, editing, scrapping the project and starting over, re-editing, more research, and final output, which is pretty darn good in my opinion, considering I work a day job and always have multiple projects going.

I plan on doing a full band video shoot with Unrequited in the near future. They are finishing up recording of their new album and we are going to pick a song from that to release as a video. It will be much more intense to shoot and edit, but I'm up for the challenge, as long as the band is OK with miming the same song about 800 times in a weekend. (Not fun)

Also on the horizon is a video shoot for a new track from Steve Bello Band, which will be taken from their upcoming album Go Berzerk! which will be a lot of fun to film as well. Steve and I have been throwing around the idea of putting out a DVD with the content for him, since I've already put up a poorly filmed and edited teaser for a new track, and we plan on doing a video of the next rehearsal as well, on top of the official video (whenever we get to that). So there would be plenty of material to put on a DVD and I'm sure we can work up some extra bonuses to package in there along with all of that.

Before we get to the video, though, what do you think: Would you be interested in buying a physical DVD from an independent band? Physical music sales, as CDs or music videos on DVD are way down, but for some people this is the way they make a living and get known. If a band like Unrequited or Steve Bello Band put out a self-produced DVD with a music video, video interviews, photo galleries, and other extras, would you be willing to shell out a few bucks to help support unsigned artists? Leave a comment and let us know!

At long last, here is the video. You can get it from either YouTube or Vimeo. Personally, I prefer Vimeo's player as well as their quality, but YouTube did a good job of rendering this video, just make sure you select 720HD for the quality.


Unrequited - "Black & White" (Acoustic) from DIGImmortal Photo on Vimeo.
The HD is turned off in the embedded video above, go to the video itself through the link in the previous paragraph to view in full HD quality.

For info on how to get YOUR band a music video shoot from DIGImmortal Photo, just email me through the site, or leave a comment here and I'll get back to you!

Don't forget you can also follow me on Twitter and be kept up-to-date on new projects, new photos, what I'm eating for lunch, and my thoughts on absolutely nothing useful.

That's all for now, but more soon,
-Rob

Mind in the Gutter

This shot was my 365 photo for yesterday, March 11, 2010.

This project has been tough and there are days/nights where I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to complete the task for the day. Last night on my way out of the house I noticed this soda can laying in the curb by my car. It hadn't been there all week, yet it looked like it'd been there for a year. It was crunched, dirty, rusty in spots and conveyed a general sense of despair. Yeah, us photographers are nuts, we can start sensing feeling in inanimate objects. I was looking at it and the composition it could create within a photo, and I knew I had to shoot it, but I was already running late. So I got in my car and just hoped it would still be there later.

Well, I did my running around for the night and surely enough, when I got back, there was my sad looking little can. It was so lonely looking, just laying there in the gutter like that. I guess it's the mood I've been in lately. Hell, the mood most people have been in lately. But it spoke to me, it had meaning behind it, and it would be a shame not to document how life imitates art, or however that saying goes ;)

The basic idea of how to get the shot I wanted came to be pretty easily (Hey, I guess this project is paying off after all.). But it would require being eye level with the subject. So yeah, there I was at 1AM laying in the street with a camera in my hand and a speedlight flash in the middle of the road, on a corner. Thankfully my street isn't very busy at night or this entry might have a different ending!

I knew that the texture of the gritty can worked perfectly with the rough pavement and the abused looking cement curb. I also knew that the textures played into their respective colors perfectly. The black of the pavement, the bright-yet-faded yellow of the curb, and the once-was-green of the soda can really meshed. It was a dynamic bunch of colors and textures. I purposely hit it with pretty direct, harsh light, to really bring out the gritty textures of the street and the dirt on the can.

I just love how alone and forgotten this looks. It can be seen as a symbol of our throwaway society where we take everything for granted, or it can mean something deeper to anyone who feels like they've been left in the gutter. With the way the world has been lately, I'm sure everyone who looks at this can come up with some way to relate to this poor, forgotten, abused soda can.

Click the image above, or right here, for a full view of the shot.

More soon,
Rob

365 Day 133

I took this shot last night for my ongoing 365 Project. This isn't the first time I've done a shot with this same kind of setup, and since people have asked in the past how I get shots like this, I thought I'd give a quick lesson on how something like this can be done.

Now, for the more advanced photographers out there this isn't really anything you haven't already done, but since there are plenty of people out there who have never done this kind of thing before, I thought it would be helpful for them to see one of the ways you could go about achieving this type of result. Also, for the art lovers out there who don't have any intention of ever doing this themselves, it's just a nice little glimpse into how some of us work.

This shot may look like it could have been done in a studio with a backdrop and a food stylist, but really it was done in about 5 minutes in my kitchen. Again, for all the strobist readers out there who have seen Mr. Hobby talk about this kind of setup over and over again, I know this is kind of post has been done to death, but this is my turn to put up a quick how-to post.

The truth is, when you're doing a project that can be this demanding, you are sometimes left improvising nothing into something at 2, 3, maybe 4AM. If you don't shoot something for the day then you've failed your own assignment, but you can't just take 365 pictures of your shoes. You start looking around for something, anything, that could be made even remotely interesting.

I've always liked detailed close-ups, especially of everyday things, that make them look more interesting than usual. I could have taken a quick picture of the whole lemon, just sitting there on the kitchen countertop, but how boring would that have been?

Anyway, for something like this you really don't need a lot of stuff. You need a lemon (duh), or any juicy fruit, really. In my case I used 1 light with a diffuser cap, triggered by a Pocket Wizard, but you could also shoot this ETTL if you want to be all Joe McNally about it. I suspended the lemon slice above a bowl (to catch the juice, and to hold water in case I needed to reapply some juicy-ness) using a paper towel holder I got at the dollar store with an A-clamp. In the A-clamp jaw I used a bamboo skewer from the kitchen drawer and speared the lemon sideways. I propped the whole thing up on top of a tissue box to give me some height and to distance the subject from the light source just a bit.

Here is a pull-back view of the setup:

The whole thing took no time at all and gave me a great photo to add to my 365 gallery. The shot could also make it into the portfolio if I ever needed to display food photography, or could be uploaded to my stock gallery since I was able to shoot with a low ISO setting. So I can get 3 potential uses from one shot, how's that for making the most of your efforts?

Oh, and for the record, that drop of lemon juice was right from the lemon itself. Some juice dropped down after spearing it with the skewer and was just enough to make a nice droplet bulb, but not heavy enough to fall, so it stayed there nicely for the few shots I took before I was happy with my settings. The dropper in the bowl got put away unused.

Settings of the final shot: ISO 100; 1/200 @ f/13; 100mm 2.8 Macro lens; Canon 5D Mark II

More soon,
-Rob