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03/15/2007 07:49:26 PM · #51 |
Next grab a chair and order that "decaf, skim, no whip, extra foam, double-shot soy latte". We travel to that golden state of California and have a sit down with our "golden" girl, Leah  Blue Moon.
Q. What got you into photography?
I definitely have my dad to thank for that. He loved to take photographs and was very talented especially at taking macros and landscapes, unfortunately he was waaaay to ADD to ever make a business out of it. When he upgraded to a better camera (I forget what kind, but of course it was a canon, lol), he gave me his Powershot A80 for my birthday in '05. I still have the cute little thing, but unfortunately it succumbed to the dreaded E18 error :(
Q. What could get you out of photography?
Going blind
Q. How has the suck league influenced your photography? Show us the best representative photograph of your suckiness.
Oh my...it has to be this one 
I sucked so bad, I couldn't even get a good score for the BAD challenge! I did get an OOBIE though, so I think it was worth it.
Q. Which of the challenges was your favorite?
Ha ha, well my mind instantly goes to the my third challenge, whic was "Progress" 
I doesn't look too pretty, but it sure was fun/interesting to set up. Plus, I got some laughs from others.
Q. What is the most ridiculous extent you have gone to for a challenge?
Did you see the above picture?? Also this one was pretty horrible for me. Ewww, pink! 
Q. What is your sign and how are the stars conspiring against you?
I'm a crabby Cancer. I should really check my horoscope because I seriously think that ALL of the stars are against me right now. I just got kicked out of my college program on Saturday(not my fault), I haven't been keeping up on the challenges so I'm afraid my WPL team is getting aggitated with me, I have to take pills for 9 months for TB, I'm dead broke, and my mom is mad at me...On the other hand, it's a beautiful day outside :)
Q. How has depth of field changed your life? Do you have a photographic example?
I honestly had no idea what DOF was until I came here. I gave it a shot, and it wasn't greatly liked. And of course it was right before the Shallow DOF challenge. D'oh! 
Q. What activities besides photography help you vent your creative urges?
Uh, beating people up in Karate. I don't know if that qualifies as a creative urge, but it definitely is an outlet for my other urges :P
Q. Which of your photographs do you believe was the most underappreciated and why?
It's kinda hard to remember what I was thinking for each challenge, but probably this one 
Granted it is very different, and looking at it now it could have been sharper, but I like its individual crop and eye contact.
Q. Tell us the story behind one of your photos.
 Read the description for the full story. But basically it was me and my friends just screwing around with facepaint and I ended up winning an award.
Q. What picture on DPC most accurately depicts what your brain is like?
 Yup, blue and swirly.
Q. Show us the best photograph of "your world".
 Well, I don't exactly live on a bridge, but this is the closest thing I have.
Q. If you could send one picture from this site to President Bush, which would it be?
Yeah, I think this about sums it up 
Hope I don't offend anyone...except Bush.
Q. What piece of photography equipment are you currently using as a paperweight?
My mini-tripod. I forget what its called. For that matter, I forget where it is. crap.
Q. If you could do a photo session with anyone from history, who would it be? Describe the shots you would take.
Forget history, I pick  Joey Lawrence. I definitely think portraits would be in order. Dark, gory ones. Or if he could photoshop me to look like that Jennifer girl, that would be pretty awesome too ;)
Q. Which photograph on dpchallenge do you wish you had taken?
 simply amazing
Q. Post-editing philosophy, minimal or no-rules or somewhere in between?
In the middle for sure. If you can take gorgeous shot w/out editing that's great, but if you really want to go beyond that's great too. I know, I'm so vague...
Q. Camera lust??? Name your pick.
I'd be happy with any E0S
Q. Which photograph on dpchallenge displays the best set of "teeth"?
 Mine, lol!
Q. If the suck league comes out to visit you for a photographic exhibition, where will you take us?
Probably either to heritage grove  or San Francisco
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03/15/2007 08:21:54 PM · #52 |
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03/15/2007 08:31:34 PM · #53 |
Originally posted by quiet_observation:
Next grab a chair and order that "decaf, skim, no whip, extra foam, double-shot soy latte". We travel to that golden state of California and have a sit down with our "golden" girl, Leah Blue Moon.
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Mmmmmm, that sounds good! Off to Starbucks!!
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03/15/2007 08:36:53 PM · #54 |
| Very fun to read, Leah! I love these interviews. |
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03/16/2007 05:24:56 AM · #55 |
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03/16/2007 07:58:54 AM · #56 |
super interviews indeed! well done mry and leah. very entertaining.
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03/16/2007 08:14:08 AM · #57 |
Fun, fun, fun!!! Very nice interview Leah!
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03/16/2007 11:20:15 PM · #58 |
Chust wunnerful as they say here in Amish country!
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03/19/2007 01:27:57 AM · #59 |
| Always great to learn more about a fellow Team Suck member. Great interview, Leah. What a stunner to boot. |
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03/19/2007 12:12:37 PM · #60 |
| Great interview, fun to see how other people's minds work! Oh please can we go shoot in Heritage grove? |
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03/19/2007 12:30:27 PM · #61 |
This is so much fun! Thanks, Mary for doing all the legwork, and thanks to those who have responded so far for the fascinating, entertaining answers. :)
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03/19/2007 09:18:14 PM · #62 |
Tonight, say a big HI! to Jeffrey, levyj413.
We let him out of the cyber world for a bit to respond to our questions.
Q. What got you into photography?
Wanting to capture memories. I realized a long time ago that I'd never really capture the grandeur of the mountains or the emotion of sharing times with friends and family. But photos of those things can help me remember everything else relevant to the memories.
Q. What could get you out of photography?
Getting involved in something else. I tend to have strong, passionate affairs with hobbies that eventually fades over months or years. But I'm a year into this one.
Q. How has the suck league influenced your photography? Show us the best representative photograph of your suckiness.
It's given me a community that encourages me to try new stuff without worrying (well, worrying less) about the score.
This shot sums up my approach to life, which I think meshes well with Team Suck's attitude: have fun, keep trying, and make memories you cherish. It took a bunch of tries to get this shot of my daughters underwater because you can't really see what you're getting in the frame. But the outcome means so much to me, and will be something we'll enjoy for years to come. And as any good memory-keeper shot does, it makes me think back to that day and remember all of it, not just this shot.
Q. Which of your pictures best represents your loss of innocence?Heh.
My very first challenge submission. It taught me that my thinking something was was cool didn't mean it was a good photo. I got good comments on that, though, that told me DPC would provide excellent feedback to help me improve, and it has!
Q. What is the most ridiculous extent you have gone to for a challenge?
Hoisting my daughter into a tree for "Wind."
That was fun! As was editing out the rope and harness later. Both daughters wanted a turn, of course. We had some fun explaining it all to the neighbors. They got it, so no, they don't think we're crazy. :)
Q. What is your sign and how are the stars conspiring against you?
I live under the sign of the umm ... eternal optimist. The stars love me, or haven't you heard? :P
Q. How has shutter speed changed your life? Give a photographic example.
It's shown me much of the night world that I couldn't see with my own eyes. For instance, this scene didn't look like this to me; it was basically just a dark night.
Q. What activities besides photography help you vent your creative urges?
In college I wrote poems, but that was long ago. Right now, photography's pretty much my only creative outlet.
Q. Which of your pictures is your favorite and why does it give you a warm feeling when you sit down?
Tough one, because I have several of my family. But I'll go with this:
This trip to the Alps was with my best friend. Last August, when we went, was exactly halfway between our 40th birthdays (mine's coming in April) AND it was 25 years to the month we'd been friends (we met in 10th grade). This shot sums up our lifelong bond and the trip in one neat package.
Q. Tell us the story behind one of your photos.
We called my family from our Disney World hotel room. They asked about the room, so I hopped up and took shots. That's my wife talking on the phone while I was shooting (it has a speakerphone). I also took a shot of our bathroom and some vases. While we were talking, I emailed the pics to them. It was almost real-time, which was pretty fun.
Q. Which photo represents the challenge that was your favorite to do?
I had a lot of fun making up things to procrastinate about, like finding the gerbil, unstopping the toilet, and making a cardiologist appointment. That last was a reference to an actual health issue from a month earlier (nothing to worry about, we found out).
Q. What picture on DPC most accurately depicts what your brain is like?
My procrastination entry from the last question.
I'm constantly thinking about 500 things at once, with only a slight semblance of organization.
Q. If you could send one photograph from the DPC website to Congress, what would it be?
Hey, I thought we got to send it to Bush? Hmm. Congress ...
Remember who you work for and what this country is supposed to mean.
Q. What piece of photography equipment are you currently using as a paperweight?
Whichever camera isn't with me at the moment. Or my laser pointer, which I bought to do cool light-painting shots but have yet to use.
Q. If you could do a photo session with anyone from history, who would it be? Describe the shots you would take.
My great-great-great-grandchild. I'd take pictures of whatever environmental havoc still lingers from our poor choices, then I'd come back in time and smack our leaders upside the head with them.
Q. Which photograph on dpchallenge do you wish you had taken?
What a fun shot!
Q. Which of your photographs do you believe was the most underappreciated and why?
It was supposed to show the joy of jumping into a pile of leaves, but people assumed "long exposure" meant something measured in many seconds, not just longer than usual to get a non-blurred shot. My daughter and I had a lot of fun that day, anyway - we each tried it several times.
Q. How will global warming change your photography?
I'll get more chances to use my underwater box! Either that or photograph the coming war when the developing world reacts to how badly the developed world has screwed up.
Q. Post-editing philosophy, minimal or no-rules or somewhere in between?
Advanced rules feel just about right to me. I enjoy the others, but I've finally settled into the idea that pressing the shutter is just an intermediate step to bringing a completed image to life. I like the debates, though, and I participate in challenges in every rule set.
Q. Camera lust??? Name your pick.
Nikon D200 with the 18-200 VR zoom lens. Did I mention my 40th birthday is next month? I'm just sayin'.
Q. Show us the best photograph of "your world".
I'm tempted to show a picture of my family, but I think this one has more facets of my world than even that would:
I work 4 blocks from the White House, so there's that angle. Also, living in DC means seeing protests pretty often on every possible topic. It also means being close to a major terrorist target, and dealing with that possibility runs under the surface. Finally, I'm a career civil servant in the US federal gov't, so for better or for worse, the president's my eventual boss.
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03/19/2007 09:31:01 PM · #63 |
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03/19/2007 09:49:40 PM · #64 |
| Excellent interview, Jeffrey! Love these - so much fun to read. And thanks again, Mary, for all your hard work! |
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03/19/2007 09:57:42 PM · #65 |
| Great interview! I really enjoy them! |
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03/20/2007 12:51:43 AM · #66 |
| Good interview, Jeff. I still love that shot of your daughters underwater and I wasn't even there, so it's quite effective! |
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03/20/2007 01:58:44 AM · #67 |
I am really enjoying these interviews! A big thanks to whoever came up with the idea.
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03/20/2007 03:32:58 AM · #68 |
Way to squirm under the harsh light, Jeff, ya did good!
Way to squeeze 'em for the good stuff, Mary!
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03/20/2007 01:31:32 PM · #69 |
| Great interview Jeffrey! Mary, keep up the terrific work re questions! |
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03/20/2007 01:45:19 PM · #70 |
| ooo, nice view from the office Jeffrey!:) great interviews, both yours and Leah' as always! |
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03/20/2007 01:50:40 PM · #71 |
| great interviews, thanks to all |
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03/21/2007 05:20:41 AM · #72 |
Today we visit Chicago, 'My kind of town' and chat with Rob, meyers.
Q. What got you into photography?
I've always had an underdeveloped interest in visual art; drawing landscapes in grade school and high school, and I liked taking pictures but couldn't afford a half decent camera or film processing (or a photography class, for that matter).
Q. What could get you out of photography?
Taking pictures at weddings (I've done it for family and a couple of friends) is seriously draining, and I have to put the camera down for a few weeks afterward. If photography was my job I think I'd burn out fairly quickly. I don't get a lot of time for photography (or any other hobby), so it might become something that just goes away.
Q. Take us through a history of your cameras.
I was drawn to photography since high school, but I couldn't afford anything other than a cheapo "110" film camera, and film development costs kept me from really experimenting. In college, I picked up a Ricoh 35mm camera body and a cheap zoom lens, but was still limited by film costs. My aunt wanted me to take pictures at her wedding, and I had a job at that point, so I got a Canon EOS 35mm body and a Tamron 20-200 lens with some nice features like "Aperture Mode" (the Ricoh was pretty bare-bones). Eventually I got a Canon D60, and started taking a *lot* more pictures. By that time I was working for a search engine company which would be purchased by Yahoo, and with my ill-gotten gains I accumulated lenses and upgraded my camera body to a 20d and currently to a 5d. I gave my D60 and a couple lenses to a friend to let him get started in this art.
Q. How has the suck league influenced your photography? Show us the best representative photograph of your suckiness.
Team Suck has helped keep my photographic interest when it might have otherwise sagged. DPC can be a lonely place, it's easy to get lost in a crowd. The sub-teams are fun, though I don't think we do weekly team scores anymore. I try to comment more on other Team Suck entries, and I've received more feedback on my own pictures from people in the team. It's quite a little community. I think my best sucky picture would be my Woody challenge entry.
Q. Which of your photographs best represents the "Windy City"?
I grew up in the Bay Area, specifically in the East Bay just south of Oakland. That part of the world doesn't really change with the seasons; winter just means you wear a long sleeve shirt sometimes, so Chicago was quite an adjustment.
I think this best captures winter:
 .
But, this being Chicago, I'd also have to consider my shot of the Bears helmet on the lions outside of the Chicago Art Museum, and my Adams St Bridge shot taken during a snowstorm.
 
Q. What is the most ridiculous extent you have gone to for a challenge?
Posting a naked picture of myself for everyone to see in the Nude 4 challenge. My wife still can't believe I did it, or that it ended up in my top 4 for awhile.
Q. What is your sign and how are the stars conspiring against you?
Capricorn. And don't get me started on the stars, sitting up there all comfortable in the night sky, plotting against me!
Q. How has depth of field changed your life? Do you have a photographic example?
As I've learned more of the technical aspects of photography, I'll look at something and not just think "that'd be a nice picture," but more of how I'd try to capture the image. In my mind, I'll explore different perspectives, depths of field, emphasizing different subjects in the view, and so on. I rarely get the image in the camera to agree with the one in my head, but when I do it's because of steps I consciously took and not as much blind luck. For example, in my Bokeh 3 entry, I started with a picture of my son off center in the frame, but noticed the framing of the trees behind him. I wasn't planning for that to be a bokeh shot at first, but it seemed like that would be a good effect for that scene, and I set my aperture appropriately.
Q. What activities besides photography help you vent your creative urges?
Which help me vent? I'm a out of practice martial arts student, studying Latosa Escrima and Wing Tsun. My more peaceful outlet would be my attempts at cooking, which some might call a crime against nature.
Q. Which of your pictures is your favorite and why does it give you a warm feeling when you sit down?
Years ago, when my wife and I had just started dating, we were in southern California at some mission where her mom was getting remarried. My (future) wife was in the wedding, as the maid of honor, and I was left to my own devices. I wasn't shooting digital yet, and really had very little idea of what I was doing, but I captured an image of her in the bridesmaid dress, looking down at me from a second story balcony. Through blind luck, she was framed nicely by the archway around her, and a decorative iron railing in front of her. It's still one of my favorite pictures of her. Of course, since I'm neither Korean (her mom's side), nor part of the groom's family, people would ask me what I was doing there. Life as an only child helped me develop the ability to make my own fun, and I took advantage of the fact that just my (future) wife and one of her aunts knew who I was. I had everyone else convinced that I was just some kid who washed cars for the bride, and she was nice enough to let me come to the wedding. Everyone who heard this thought the bride was incredibly generous. My (future) wife got back at me by catching bouquets at that wedding, and each of the next three we attended.
Q. Tell us the story behind one of your photos.
I'll pick a couple, only because one of my current ones has created quite a discussion.
For Alternative Medicine, my first thought was to make a picture like the winner of the Biology challenge, but with me holding a mallet and a saw, titled "Discount Doctor" or something. I couldn't find a background I liked though, so I had to think of something else. I remembered reading about a study which linked people in hospitals knowing others were praying for them to extra complications in their recovery. I had recently managed to get that stupid base off of my woody, and my wife had an old bible. I set up the pose, and played with lighting positions until I was able to get the woody's shadow on the book, and still kept the background dark. I took several shots with different apertures, and different exposure settings. Once in Photoshop, I didn't do very much; just a little curves adjustment to bring out the blue in the book. Contrary to what OmanOtter believes, the message in my image was just my statement of prayer being a placebo. Without the "placebo" title, there isn't anything in that image that would ridicule or otherwise attack Christians.
My Street Photography shot was much less controversial. Every morning, lunchtime, and late afternoon (basically when there's lots of people around) by the Metra train station, there's a saxophone player. It's usually a different guy for the different times of the day. February had been especially cold, and that week it had warmed up enough for it to snow. I tipped the guy and told him I was going to take his picture for a photography project, and he was happy to keep playing for me. While it was snowing fairly heavily, the cold wind off Lake Michigan was especially cold, making it feel closer to 10 degrees than the 23 reported on the Etrade building. Still, this guy played for the lunch crowd, which largely ignored him. I wanted to get a shot with some other people in it, but for whatever reason (the sax player having turned to a bad angle, someone closer to me blocking my view, etc) that shot didn't happen. I wanted much of the background in focus, to give context to the players position, and to maybe catch some of the larger snowflakes in mid drop. I cropped the submitted shot, and it was my first submission with a border. It's also my best score that's not a fireworks picture (I just got lucky with the fireworks shot).
Q. What picture on DPC most accurately depicts what your brain is like?
That'd be my "Just the Ice" picture from the 30 day Where You Live challenge, in my portfolio: fractured, shattered, and something sane people try to avoid.
Q. If you woke up "looped" in a hotel room you didn't recognize, which DPC photo would you most like to see hanging on the wall?
Looped? What's that mean?
Q. If you could send one picture from this site to President Bush, which would it be?
I'd like to remind President Bush that he cut a program that gave federal money for services like fire stations after the 9/11 attacks, and several fire stations in New York had to be shut down. It's one of many examples of his policies giving a big middle finger to working Americans.
Q. What piece of photography equipment are you currently using as a paperweight?
I picked up a bracket at one point, and while I like having the flash off the camera, the bracket is bulky, heavy, and not all that stable. My 35mm Canon EOS hasn't seen the light of day in a few years either.
Q. If you could do a photo session with anyone from history, who would it be? Describe the shots you would take.
This kind of question will only expose my lack of knowledge of photography history. I'm actually don't know of many famous photographers, beyond Ansel Adams. For me then, I'd pick someone on this site: Scalvert.
Q. Which photograph on dpchallenge do you wish you had taken?
I have a few I couldn't decide between..
  
Q. Post-editing philosophy, minimal or no-rules or somewhere in between?
I'm fairly minimal only because I don't know what I'm doing. Most of my pictures get some global levels or curves adjustment, and I might clone out some dust or other specs, but I haven't figured out tone mapping, or any of the forty thousand Photoshop features.
Q. Camera lust??? Name your pick.
Canon 1Ds Mk3? Or could I wish for a nice studio setup and a bunch of attractive models?
Q. If the suck league comes and visits Chicago, what pizza place are we going to?
Sadly, I'm allergic to all things dairy, and so I lack any sense of which pizza places are any good. Even worse, I grew up in an area with an overabundance of quality Mexican style restaurants, and cannot find even acceptable Mexican food out here. I visit California about six times a year, and I gorge myself on tacos and burritos each time. If I want passable Mexican style food in Chicago, I have to make it myself.
Note: interviewer's choice-Lou Malnati's.
Message edited by author 2007-03-21 10:20:17. |
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03/21/2007 08:44:17 AM · #73 |
Great interviews Jeffrey and Rob!!
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03/21/2007 09:25:36 AM · #74 |
Next on the interview list:
NikonJeb
kashi
sickdog
 skewsme
griz210
If you have questions for the above suckees, PM me before Sunday, 3/25. |
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03/21/2007 09:34:39 AM · #75 |
I need to apologize for taking so long to get my questions answered. Even with all that time I still see some of my own typos in the response.
Sigh..
I need to enter more challenges.
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