I’m feeling a little sentimental this morning so I thought I’d share the video I made for Boone’s 1st birthday which was 2 weeks ago. Here’s to another great year!
Boone’s1stYear from Ryan Smith on Vimeo.
22
Apr 13
Laura Mae Socks
I recently had the opportunity to work with musician, Laura Mae Socks for her new promotional photos. Laura is a country musician and a long time friend so when she asked me if I would be interested in photographing her, it was a no brainer. I have mentioned on this blog before that musicians are some of my favorite subjects to photograph because it’s always a collaborative process. This shoot was no exception.
Laura lives in New Orleans but was recently in my area for a few weeks which gave us an opportunity to get together. We decided to spend the day in two unique locations playing with various concepts. Laura is also a trained makeup artist and has a great wardrobe to work with so I was able to concentrate wholly on the composition and lighting of the photographs.
We had a hard time editing these down and ended up with quite a few great shots. These are some of my personal favorites.
17
Apr 13
The Year of Boone
Today is my son’s 1st Birthday. He explores the world with gusto and I couldn’t be more proud of him. It’s been awesome to watch him grow over the past year. Happy Birthday Boone!
The Year of Boone from Ryan Smith on Vimeo.
12
Mar 13
I’m a Major Slacker
I’ve been slacking big time on my blog updates for the past few months. As always, I pledge to do better. We’ll see. For now, here’s a photo I took while working on my Rural Exposures Project last month in Pottsville, PA.
White Zombie Tuxedo
04
Feb 13
God Made a Farmer
In general, I don’t get that excited by most of the Super Bowl commercials, but this time something really caught my attention. Maybe it’s because I felt a connection to the images used in this spot. Maybe it’s because I grew up in an agricultural community surrounded by farming families. Maybe it’s because I thought the photographs were brilliant or maybe it’s because I wanted to be the photographer who shot these images.
Regardless, I think the ad was excellent. I’m sure there will be many naysayers, but from my perspective, it was brilliant. In fact, I would say it was the only ad that actually held my attention. I spent most of the game drinking and eating with friends and family, but by the time this ad came on, I was engrossed in reading my iPad while semiconsciously paying attention to the game. This ad brought be out of my stupor and pulled me in.
Paul Harvey’s voice wrapped itself around me and demanded my attention. When have you heard a voice and a tribute quite like that? And then, the images did their work. They were beautiful, powerful and authentic. They made me jealous of the photographers given this assignment. It’s exactly the job I would want to do.
I did some sleuthing and believe that the ad was produced by The Richards Group out of Dallas, TX. I also discovered that 10 different photographers shot for this ad, 2 of them being William Albert Allard and Kurt Markus. I’m not sure who the other 8 are and would love to here if anyone reading this knows. I think they all deserve some respect for their images. I’ve always looked up to the work of Allard and Markus and I would love to know who else contributed to this.
Lastly, I think the photo editor on this should be commended for his or her work. The sequence was perfect. The image selection made this story successful. And now, I think I’m going to go buy a Ram.
UPDATE
I just saw on A Photo Editor that the ten photographers who worked on this project are Andy Anderson, William Allard, Jim Arndt, Daniel Beltra, Mark Gooch, Andy Mahr, Kurt Markus, David Spielman, Matt Turley and Olaf Veltman
07
Dec 12
Late Night Musings
I work in a fickle industry. There are times when it feels overwhelming as I’m sure it does for many other photographers, filmmakers, writers and anyone who pursues a freelance career. Even when you are doing everything you think you need to be doing, outside forces that are beyond your control can influence the outcome. As it is in every aspect of life.
You work hard. You nurture your creative voice. You learn. You research. You hone your technical skills. You perfect your business skills. You think. And sometimes you find yourself writing blog posts in the middle of the night. To what end you say?
Well, this industry is fickle and it can be frustrating. But that fickleness is also what makes it exciting to get up every morning and get to work. A set back one day is just that. It’s one day. The next day offers a multitude of opportunities if you allow it to. If there is one thing I have learned as a freelancer the past 8 years is that you just have to take one day at a time. Jobs come and go. The shutter clicks. The hard drives hum. The world turns and the industry changes by the minute. Be willing to adapt. Be flexible and enjoy yourself . . . even when things seem hard. If it was easy everyone would do it.
I’m excited for tomorrow. I’m excited to wake up next to my wife, to see my son smile, to watch my dog run through the field and to make coffee. Mmm, coffee. And, I’m excited for the work I get to do. Fun, creative work. Tomorrow is a day to focus on creating and to take a break from the numbers associated with running a business.
That’s why I endure the setbacks. Even when things are bad, they’re actually pretty damn good. I hear a lot of complaining and a lot of excuses on the web. I’ve done my fair share, but sometimes you just have to shut up and do the work. Be a doer. Lead. Take a risk. Stop complaining. If we can remember that we are the only ones holding ourselves back then nothing is out of reach.
Good night. I’ll see you in the morning.