Old Getty Images

Just thought you'd like to know Getty Images (US) Inc. sent you $106.85 USD.

The hell is this? Seemingly some of my few photos on Getty Images sold. I joined Getty from my time at Flickr for reasons unknown. I reckon I felt that some good could come out of having a contract with this large photo agency. Initially it seemed seamless and the thought of having to put more work into the Getty'd images seemed minimal, but minimal for me was click two buttons, not retag, rename, date and geotag items. Of course I could have avoided doing so but I felt I would be missing out on potential customers because a large majority of Getty users tag radically much like the hardline taggers of Flickr.

It was at this point when I realized that my relationship with Getty would turned sour as our time grew. I didn't accept any more invitations and decided to end my contract as soon as possible with Getty.

I will have to say that my friend Trevor did help a lot with the process and his spill about Getty got me interested a lot. But my genetic laziness usually overcomes small projects such as this because I am too nearsighted to see how my work will payoff in the future. But, I will say it was worth the $106.85 I have received and will definitely use this money for beer. So that is one thing Getty is good for.

Just for shits and giggles let me tell you what sold. A Japanese buyer bought one photo for about $142 and I get the 20% cut of about 28 bucks. Microsoft Multimedia Publishing and some design company purchased three other photos for a total of $400 my little cut of $78 bucks or so make up how I got the Benjamin.

No one has purchased my dead, inside out Thai frogs photo. What good is Getty?

Bye Bye 6x9

I decided this last night. Last night as I was looking at my digital files and all the programs I have invested in to accommodate these files. I look at my workflow and how another body will fit into it. Then it struck me. The Fuji 6x9s just doesn't fit here with me. I must part ways with my beloved bodies.

I loved the 6x9s. I remember seeing Nate show me the GW690III (or maybe it was a GW690II) he had that was a little rough but still fully operational. It felt so clunky yet after he explained me how to use it, it seemed deceptively simplistic. The thought of a camera so large yet so manageable really intrigued me and drove me pursue one of my own. At that point in time I had known 4x5 as the larger cameras but they were in my mind very difficult and clunky to use. Having this medium format, which at 6x9 was unique in itself, yet being so elementary to use, I was excited when a beautiful GS690III came into my possession.

Running a roll of Neopan Presto though it at a market I learned my way around the camera's foundation of structure which barrows from the large format lens scheme of having shutter speeds and aperture settings in the front of the lens. Mistakes came easy with this pattern building workflow but upon seeing at least one good shot per roll from this Fuji lens, all mistakes were forgiven. The contrast is something I really, really appreciated. I must admit, as I am writing this, I'm looking over some of my Velvia exposures and I am having second thoughts.

But, I have to say good bye. They were good to me. In fact they were honorable at producing some of my finest photographs. But they just don't fit anymore and it breaks my heart to part with them.

I have no idea what I can get for them so if you know anyone in the market, let me know, because I'll throw these out to my friend's friends with a "bro" price. I'm not looking to gain a profit, just to get rid of them to someone who will enjoy them as much as I did. So here is the info:

GSW690II - Excellent condition! This body came to me in near mint condition with about 40 shots on the counter. The entire body looked as if it had sat on some tripod and never left it. Now there is some paint chips coming off from under the logo FUJI. All else is almost perfect. Shutter counter reader 015. So multiply that by 10 and this camera will have shot 150 shots. Amazing. So low, so sad. But I will admit this wide is hard to compose for someone like me.

GW690III - The even better, more easier to use GW is also in great condition. The III is the best to use because of the improvements in handling. I often hear this but I really can't decide. I like the boxy feel of the II but only because it is big and clunky already. The hood has that common loose syndrome that makes it easy to get annoyed but I never had a problem with it. I slapped some gaffers tape on there and was good the whole day. Never once got in the way. Also the spirit level is out of juice. No idea how. Counter reads 065 so this camera has done 650 shots.

If you are interested or know someone who is, give me a shout. I stand by fully on these cameras and their functionality and the glass is FLAWLESS. I'll also have to give you some of my 120/220 film sadly along with some film binders for these rolls. Just for my friends. Man, I know I am going to regret this but they deserve better then a drunk mexican like me.

To Texas

I’ll be heading to what I previously referred to as home. San Antonio, Texas. Going only for 10 days starting on the 27th, I plan to make use of a checklist I created to help manage my time and focus on squeezing every second to maximize the “vacation.”

I’m forcing myself to leave my entire slide film at home. This will be strictly a Neopan operation in covert black and white mode. My goal is to expose the intimate and unglued relationships that make up my family. We have a lot of skeletons in the closet and the most of us are quite moody. I know Neopan will be better suited for this kind of action instead of Velvia. ha-ha.

I know it will be fun and full of surprises. I can’t wait.

PS: Go Spurs Go!

Chris's Annular Solar Eclipse

Amazing photo that my friend in Texas took. Good 'ol Chris Lynch snapped this of the 2012 Annular Solar Eclipse in a place called, get ready for it, Sundown, Texas. Nikon D7000 and some lens that probably isn't worth mentioning because that is the kind of guy Chris is. Please check out his other shots here and here and look around him stream for random goodness. Below you'll find some of his other stuff and contact information.

Website: WHOISCHRIS
Google: crawdiddychris
Flickr: mx5chris

Real Life Instagram

The Instagram Socialmatic Camera. Mother of God. Please have mercy on our souls Instagramers.

Fauxy Photographers

I should write more about this but I feel compelled to do otherwise from some unknown force inside of me. Maybe beating a dead horse here. I love reading stuff like The picture of dishonesty: social media slaps down a wedding photo faker. Hattip photojournalismlinks.com. But even when I visited the victim's website I am quickly reminded of the realm "these photographers" inhabit. I heard a very good analogy of them from a friend while we played video games late into the night (Lance, told you I'd write it).

He compared these type of photographs to pigs in a pigsty. They are quite large due to their social networking antics. Always updating Facebook, having a cute name and printing stickers and giving them out to their husbands (or wives) to pass out at work. They are always in a group, herded and controlled. They roll around in their own shit and the shit from their friends. And most importantly, they all eat from the same trough, gobbling up all the same food, all mashed up together.

I butchered it of course because I can't conjure up the exact points he emphasized and I won't explain it and leave it up to you to establish how it all relates to them. But it is relatively simple if you just take another look at the victim's website and browse around others in the gerne of choice for these people.

I can't count how many times I've visited a link to someone's photography website only to be asked "Portfolio or Blog" click here. God forbid I click on the blog to see the level of individually or creativity they posses despite a portfolio being the main attributer to this. I am always floored to see the exact same basic design for these people. If the header imagine begins to rotate I have a pen nearby solely for the purpose of stabbing my eyes out. Its a uni-ball fine tip pen and it feels so good every time.

Oskar Barnack Award 2012 Jury Video

A nice little video watching the jury of the Oskar Barnack Award discussion for 2012. Very funny watching the gang talk back and forth about the worthiness of photographers. Especially how deep Bruce Gilden gets. Kind of makes me want to take an art class or two.

Why I Left Flickr

I was writing this for my blog a couple of days ago; actually I started thinking and jotting down notes when I started this blog about this topic, both events happened around the same time. And now a blog post was written over at Gizmodo.com by “Mat Honan titled How Yahoo Killed Flickr and Lost the Internet.” This has triggered a lot of responses about the subject and big back and forth commenting on the status of Flickr now and its future. I just want to say that the reasons he listed, and others have echoed, weighed a little on my decision to leave.

I want to make this post short so I won’t talk about how I felt disturbed when Flickr was purchased by Yahoo. I just wanted to put my 2 cents in and let my readers know that I felt pretty much the same way everyone else felt when I went to login and had to use my old, decrepit Yahoo account to get in. Ugh.

But Flickr has turned a new leaf I believe in recent months. They have new designs and larger viewing capabilities and things look a bit different than before when all hope was lost. This is good, but too late for users like me. But like I said, their acquisition by a cancerous company had little to do with why I left.

I left because I’m tired of working for these websites. I’ve been cleaning house. I gave away old servers I had, about to get rid of all my externals and routers to make room for a combo of these like the Apple Time Capsule. I’m throwing away old laptops and computer parts. And I’m doing this on the web as well. I’ve deleted old accounts to web forums, communities and services. Closed my overseas VPS accounts, shells, web hosting services at Dreamhost, Dropbox, and the list go on.

I’m attempting to organize myself, house and web life, all to gain more time. Time. This is the main underlying reason why I left Flickr. I just don’t have time to organize my photos, comb, upload, tag and write descriptions for them. I rather put whatever time it takes to do this towards something else. This is the stage of life that I am now in. And there just isn’t room for Flickr in it. I have been thinking of a way to make use of Flickr in the future but as of now, no plans to shy away from the fate of deleting my account at the end of the year. Perhaps someone will come along and stop me with a good idea but until then, sorry Flickr friends, no photos will be uploaded there.

Weegee The Famous

When I hear, watch or taste something I like, I do it ad nauseam. My wife can't understand why I watch the same movies again and again and again. So when I heard this archived interview with Arthur Fellig, better known as Weegee, on the webpage of SoundPortraits.org for the Library of Congress, I knew it was one of those bits that I would listen to again and again.

What a time New York was in the booming days of the 30s & 40s. The Big Apple melting pot giving way to mobsters, ethnic gangs, growing crime and poverty. His photos show this but the interview is more about his superior ability to be at the right place at the right time. From taking a photograph of a man minutes before he is killed by walking across a street to photographing a fire hydrant before a fire occurs from a busted gas main.

My favorite photo of his is of some accident on labeled 42nd Street and Third Avenue in 1946. There is a crowd gather around a corpse and the police officers are laying newspapers on the body. Behind all of this a movie theatre's stationary marquee reads "Joy Of Living."

Give a listen then get his book, Naked City. Both are worth it. Matter of fact, go watch Joe Pesci play Weegee in the movie The Public Eye. Another movie I watch several times a month.

USPS Lithium Suppression

Being overseas yet still having access to a United States Postal Services office is one the great benefits of living aboard. I can ship virtually anywhere at such a minimal cost and vice versa for my incoming mail. I can ship express to America as if I was in America and I can ship EMS via a local foreign post office to anywhere in the world, traceable, and at a low price.

The big drag comes with actually having to deal with the USPS. The staff is great for me because I believe most are local hires and have tons of experience in the postal services. I often hear about episodes of complete idiocy with the new USPS budget program that calls for the replacement of full time workers with all the knowledge for part time workers who know what the 1990s USPS “Welcome To The Team” VHS tape shows. I remember my last time dealing with one in the great America land; I was told it was illegal to mail something to myself because a person can only have one address. Their manager made short work of the mistake and my package was on its way to future me.

The news of their lithium battery ban is a big thorn in my electronic junkie procurement mindset. The military community who solely depends on USPS for their mail will be at arms against the government’s crimpled postal system. Unable to turn profits and failed programs along with closed offices and remodeled hours, the postal system is already a big hassle for most Americans. Our USPS offices recently as of last year started to close on Wednesdays. They are open Saturdays but I rather have them opened during the week. Of course the reason for the closure wasn’t to satisfy someone’s pet peeve but due to budget cuts. With this new rule, I’m positive they will lose a big chunk of customers adding more numbers in the red.

Rather than email, I want to start sending in some letters. A secretary sifting through physical mail is way better to imagine then someone sifting though junk emails. I’m ready to start writing threatening letters to CEOs, lawmakers and the government but the only issue with that is that I might have to use USPS. I’m at a loss for words.

Equipment Bearing: Pentax LX

Note: I'll break this up into different post to better suit my slow readers.

Where am I with my camera gear? It is an all enveloping question that comes with many questions in itself but I usually take only one piece of the pie and focus on it. Can I get by with less?

I'll be the first to admit that I wasn't always like this. I always wanted what was hot at the time or what sparked my interest. Craving gear only to have the feeling of holding and shooting a special type of camera, brand or format. Looking back I feel a bit foolish but I am able to appreciate where I am today with how much knowledge I have been schooled on.

Part I. The Pentax LXs.

I have two Pentax LXs, one paired with a Carl Zeiss 28mm f/2 Distagon T* and the other with a Voigtlander Nokton 58mm f/1.4 SL II. I can't pinpoint when this idea entered my head, but I had decided to place these two cameras inside a strong, all weather sealed box for future preservation. I wanted to keep them in their clean, used, working condition for my two children. I found a perfect sized Pelican case with padding that allowed the camera and lenses to be placed inside and protected against all the elements. The box fitted the two cameras like a glove. Alas, their sarcophagus was placed deep inside a warm chamber in the back of my Great Closet.

Sadly, a friend inquired for the purchase of the Pelican case I had for them and shortly after I sold it to him like he was some curator of the British Museum. So the LXs are back inside the dehumidifier cabinet, naked and unused. I plan on purchasing another Pelican box in the near future for the same purpose. But feeling these cameras and the lenses, with their smooth focusing throws, it felt good. But I mustn't let them stray from their destination, no matter how much they tempt me.

In conclusion, while I still own these two cameras, they are the only cameras that I don't use, nor justify having them around by occasionally holding them in my lap or doing some sort of slow photography such as night or landscape. And while criminal to own a camera and not shoot it with such great glass, I don't want to lug them around when I have other cameras that I need to shoot more and their resale value is utterly terrible. I'll probably give them a good layman's CLA and then wrap them up tightly in plastic layers ready to be entombed in their new case once I get it. One day in the future, they'll again be used to capture light.

Links Links Links

If you are just tuning in you'll notice a small addition to the left hand side here. Links. I've taken the time out of my assiduous night of consuming Red Horse beer and watching Apocalypse Now (God bless you Francis Ford Coppola) to give you the following links and explain them a bit to what few readers I accommodate.

For my Flickr friends I have listed them by their actual name, or what I assume is their name via their profile entry in Flickr. Of course this will undoubtedly make it difficult to recognize people who you might already follow due to the magnitude of exposure people rely on via their usernames vice their real names on Flickr. Mo Angles Photography. No, their names are there and that is how I am inclined to address people I know or interact with. I don’t want to feel like I’m back in some irc channel begging to someone tagged “Overlord99” for some 0-day exploit script.

I affirm those I listed here are worthy of at the very least a glance, if not a subscription of their streams. I attempted to pick the crème de la crème of people who I am fortune enough to call friends on the photo sharing website and might have missed a name or two. Most of these photographers vary in their style greatly from one and another but they have a common characteristic that I find irresistible. They break hard away from tradition. It is this parade of common people that I feel at home and inspired.

The blog section of my link list is no shit actual blogs that I read each line instead of just glancing over like I do carelessly over other websites I feed my boredom with. Some provide insight into the world and niche of the corner of photography that I enjoy. Others just provide valuable food for my brain and always leave me asking for more. I can virtually safely say that while moving around in these blogs you will find something interesting.

The final section is the Links section and as you can see, these are just big websites that I occasionally frequent for their diamond information that I have to comb though to get to. They always have content pouring out and sometimes it takes awhile to get enough time to fully absorb all they are bringing to the table.

As of now, this is all I could think up while attempting to finish this final beer and sleep each one off. I’m sure as I can find more useful websites or more influential people but these are quite solid and should occupy a good while in your time. Let me know if there is any other worthy link I should be looking at.

Hello World

I’ll give this another go. After a small hiatus of inactivity, I felt it was time to return to more civilized world of internet identity and personality.

I use to have everything spread out as far as services go, and in my mind, I still do, but I aim to change that. Moving away from hosting my own servers, VPNs and etc, I’ve decided to let Google handle all this nonsense because I value my time more these days.

So long are the days when I would burn the midnight oil writing PHP code and hiring individuals to write diet plan and weight loss essays for me. Although I still haven’t been able to kick my “gaming” addition yet, I am not an active force in any game so I consider myself a tamed gamer.

No, these days I enjoy reading and discussing world affairs and humorous politics (isn’t it all?), and things revolving around the world of storytelling photojournalistic war photography. Just a small niche of photography. I have grown weary of the other gimmicks and tricks in this vast world of pro photography, street workshops and budget family/wedding photojournalist. It is hard to keep my tongue still when these topics arise during my friendly conversations and chats.

In my lifetime, I have had 3 online blogs. Each has come to an end that I could never have foreseen even if the choices presented themselves in a multiple question format. I would always choose “C” and just hope it was the right answer. This blog however, I plan to keep for life. Despite the dry seasons that will weather over this small web real-estate, I will stick by it.

So a warning and a welcome, I hope you enjoy it.