Baby-Back Ribs + Photo Editing
Last night, Devin, Kedwien & Lenice came to my place for dinner + to edit their images for the upcoming June 9 + 10th show.
Check out the images at:
http://woodandwine.blogspot.com/2010/05/classic-bbq-baby-back-ribs.html
Peter Turnley comes to speak to NYCSalt
Last week on April 22, world reknown photojournalist Peter Turnley gave us some of his time and expertise and showed a selection from the vast archive of images he has created since he was a teenager. He talked about the first project he did with his twin brother, David Turnley, who is also a photojournalist, when they were just sixteen years old. It is called "McClellan Street" and it was a street in a neighborhood different from the one where the Turnleys lived in Fort Wayne, Indiana. For Peter, "it wasn't about making photographs -- it was about experiencing life" which brought him to do that project. He had "a desire to enter new worlds" and the camera was his passport.
Here are some of his words of wisdom:
"Shoot with a consistent style - It's like writing. You wouldn't change writing styles in the middle of a story"
"If you get nervous, do it. If you don't, it'll become harder, if you do, it'll become easier" (This particularly applies to photographing people on the street or anywhere that it might be somewhat challenging).
"We, as people have radar. You can usually tell who's good or who's bad"
"Learn to have the courage to be calm and look people in the eye" - don't look away after you make a photo of someone.
"We all like to be flattered, admired, honored. You have to charm people, seduce them [with your camera]"
"The First Amendment of our Constitution (Freedom of Speech) protects your right as a photographer to make photos in a public place. This is particularly good to know if someone challenges you.
"If someone doesn't want me to make their picture, I don't do it."
"Let people organize themselves the way they want to be seen. You don't always need to tell them how to pose. Oftentimes, just letting happen naturally creates the most interesting images."
....and the best advice of all, told to Peter, when he was a shy teenager, by one of his teachers:
"Every time you find yourself looking down at the ground, lift your head."
Peter obviously has a wonderful love of life and appreciation for all the different kind of life that exists in this world. The NYCSalt students listened in complete silence, totally drawn in by Peter's images and words.
It was a great day.
ANNIE! Congratulations for a great performance to Kedwein & Ydalmi :)
Kedwein & Ydalmi were fantastic in their performance of Annie in their high school play. It was so much fun to see them with their friends and in a different context than our class. Kedwein was an excellent Drake, the butler, as well as a cop. And Ydalmi played Ms. Pew. They were delightful! Awesome performance guys!
Here are a couple pictures from the show....see a gallery of pictures on facebook:Facebook | Your Photos - Annie, starring my students, Ydalmi and Kedwein!
HEADSHOTS! ~from Christian
Portraiture, it's what I've been up to lately. In one of the classes that Alicia taught she told us about jobs and finding jobs doing portraiture, it's funny because in the beginning I was laughing at her I thought to myself, "There's no way it's something people really want or need." But by the end of the night I was convinced and so I started to talk to some people and I got a photo job at a daycare, I was amazed and I felt this insane amount of hope, I'd been looking for a retail job for around a year, but here I had this opportunity to make some money, it was great. I still haven't found a retail job and honestly I've given up on it, Alicia and the family at SALT have convinced me that I can do portraiture also they have lent me some lighting which is great! Portraiture, it's something I don't like very much, my favorite type of photography is architectural photography, but the truth is that I can't take photos of buildings and get paid as easily as a headshot. I like still objects, taking photos of a human is much harder buildings are easier, but when you take a photo of a building it doesn't smile or give you a thank you, photographing a person is much more gratifying. I hope to transcend in portraiture photography and develop an immense amount of love for it and enjoyment.
Another awesome photo from Danny
My inspiration for this photo actually came from a conversation about xray glasses at my brothers house, it didn't hit me right away but my brother has a good amount of canvas all around his apartment with drawings he did, so i thought to myself, wouldn't it be cool to like see threw a canvas and what ever's behind it comes out as a drawing. At first i just took a test shot see if the idea looked cool at all. Once i did, i showed my brother and he thought the idea was great so i set up a black backdrop with a little light and got to work=], i was pleased with the final result, the D.M on the top right was the cherry on top lol. I CALL THIS ONE PICASSO ..Mainly because it incorporates a photo (PIC) with art, and a very famous artist was named Pablo Picasso.
WWD Fashion Shoot
- WWD Fashion Shoot 032510
- WWD Fashion Shoot 032510
- WWD Fasion Shoot 032510
Thanks to my amazing editor, Erin Fitzgerald, Devin Osorio and I were able to observe a fashion shoot this Thursday with photographer Kyle Ericksen. It was there that I learned that Devin wanted to assist the stylist rather than the photographer! Devin enjoys photography, but his biggest passion is for fashion. I'm so excited for him. He is so talented and already has serious taste. He will be interning at Diane Von Furstenberg this summer! Another Karl Lagerfeld in the making...
-KSW
NYCSalt: A Moment With The Setting Sun…
We took some of the crew up to Washington Heights for a dinner/games night at the Tyson's house. We stopped by the park for a bit so that we could photograph the setting sun. Why do we have so much fun? I am counting my blessings today and these kids are on the top of my list. -KSW
From Danny…
NYC SALT...People hear that and say huh? usually an image like mine pops into their heads, the salt you put on certain foods, the salt that gives you high blood pressure. I took this picture because i wanted to portray that its not just that, NYC salt is far more than a food ingredient, Its a home away from home, a place where everybody has the same interest and gives us time to get away from our everyday lives and learn about the stuff we love=] which in most of our cases is photography=]
Danny
a really fun evening…(our gallery show)
The photo above is a picture of Ruben and J. Carlos Lagares who won our photo raffle and chose Ruben's picture to take home with him.
We had an intimate group of brave souls who came out despite the rain and cold weather Friday night to meet the kids and see their work. The kids passed out flyers at their schools and many of their teachers showed up. For those of you who have never been to a SALT show, it is a treat. The kids will greet you at the door and all of our guests receive a tour through the gallery from one of the kids who will do their best to convince you to buy one of their pictures over all the others. They are quite a little sales team! But better than that, this celebration of the work that they have done lights them up. It's important for teenagers to be told they are good at something. All the kids had an opportunity to speak about their work and their experience in SALT.
I love hearing the kids speak about their work. It gives me a sense as a teacher that what I am teaching them is sinking in:) A couple of the highlights that they shared were when Lenice said that for her it isn't just a photography class, it is a family. The kids are a pact. If one goes the rest usually follow. And they have developed strong friendships with each other as well as the teachers. One of our core values is connection, that our Thursday class will be a time of relationship building as well as instruction. Danny, one of the newest students, said that he likes the class because it gives him something to do after school. As a side note....At the end of the show, we walked over to Grand Central to take the subway home, Devin mentioned that it was his first time in Grand Central Station. Amazing! He's lived in NYC his whole life!
This is about the 10th show we have had in five years. Sometimes we sell pictures and sometimes we don't, but this is not why we host a show. The reason we have gallery openings is to celebrate the kids and praise their work. The very first show we held was actually by accident...I was hosting a show of my own work and at the last minute it occurred to me that I should include what the kids had done. So, I printed all the kids work on paper left over from a job and taped it to the walls of the studio. We had about 60 guests. The best part of the evening was when Devin walked in. He came over to me and said, "Alicia! I have 5 pictures in the show! I can't believe it! I didn't think I was any good." Devin's confidence was the reason for that show. I have watched him go from being a quiet and timid kid, to becoming a networking monster! It's amazing what a little celebration can do!
Our next big show this year will be in June. We will celebrate a new body of work that the kids are currently producing. More info to follow....