This image makes me think about what it must have looked like before we came along.
John Handley High School
Commencement
You’d never finish anything if they keep calling it commencement. Just a thought.
Congratulations to all graduates today – including my daughter!
Life has no remote. Get up and change it yourself.
Normally you’d see all the parents gathered around taking their own pictures, but I wanted something different. It took me a while and it’s far from perfect. This was one of those projects where I did it just to see if I could.
First Question
“How far can you go with that thing?”
It’s inevitable – people want to know how far this thing goes. And I was bitten by that bug when I first started using these aerial cameras last year. My answer has shifted now and is more in line with being creative and practicing common sense and a lot of safety. It’s no longer about how far it goes, but more about what kind of imagery can I get from it? Where can I put it to shoot totally different perspectives? How can I differentiate myself from every other photographer out there?
By the way, it goes pretty far!
I’m standing on the front steps of Handley. Line of sight becomes an issue this far out so I didn’t go any farther (but I wanted to).
Free
I don’t know if it’s writer’s block or what, but sometimes I struggle with my posts. Or even figuring out what to write. I’m sitting here staring at this image and am coming up short. Maybe I have nothing to say or maybe there’s too much to say. All I know is that I truly enjoy finding new images to make. There is an endless number of possibilities and I’m constantly drawn to this place.
I love how art is so subjective. I see what I see. You see what you see. It’s all up to the viewer. | Order a print of this image.
Compression
Before anybody gets too upset, the camera was really nowhere near the cupola. Photographers use compression all the time – it’s what makes objects in z-space look so much closer than they really are. A longer lens will make the objects’ relative size so drastically different and they appear closer to each other. I was using a 400mm lens (which, on my crop frame camera is essentially a 640mm lens). I was probably 40-50 meters away from it.
I always err on the side of caution. I quickly grabbed this shot and then got the heck out of there.
It’s Not OK!
We devote an enormous amount of time and effort to improve our craft. To develop our own style. To create art. We put ourselves out there, sometimes in very vulnerable situations.
When I say “we” I mean Creatives – anybody who creates. It could be paintings. Perhaps videos. How about crafts or wood carvings? For me, it’s photography.
And those “vulnerable” situations I mentioned have everything to do with this phenomenon called the interwebs. Internets. The internet folks.
For most Creatives, their art is their main source of income. It’s a business. It’s a job and a career. It was a choice. IT’S NO OK, PEOPLE, TO EXPECT US TO ALWAYS GIVE IT AWAY FOR FREE! You don’t expect to walk into your local grocery store/pharmacy/department store and walk out without paying do you? Why is it any different with photography? IT’S NOT. I’ll continue to consider freebies and I’ll make decisions based on my own business model and expectations at the time, but don’t get upset if I come right back at you with a link to purchase a commercial license to use my work.
The experts say that you need to have a web presence these days. A social media presence. Ok. Done. That opens up a can of worms doesn’t it? So how do I keep people from taking my images and sharing them elsewhere? There’s no way you can catch everything. It’s a pretty vulnerable situation indeed. Here’s my thinking:
- I post an image to a social media platform (an actual image, not a link) – I expect people to share it if the desire hits them. That’s the way it works.
- I post an actual image to my blog (here at cedarmeadestudios.com) – I expect people to “like” it or share it. That’s the way it works. By the way, all the images on this site are posted with a Creative Commons License.
- I post an image to my online galleries (cedarmeadestudios.smugmug.com) – I expect people to purchase those images if the desire hits. It’s an online store people. This screen grabbing has got to stop. IT’S NOT OK! Just because an image is on the internet does not mean it’s “up for grabs.” IT’S NOT OK. Did I mention that already. Technically it’s stealing.
Like I said, I can’t catch everything. It’s impossible. I have, however, discovered multiple issues where an image of mine is being used (one from my online galleries) and I have no record of it being purchased. That’s stealing people. IT’S NOT OK!
But the latest issue (the impetus behind this post) has really got me heated. Angry. Downright pissed off! And I’ll be addressing the issue with the guilty party. I’m hoping that it’ll be a simple “Oh wow, I’m so sorry.” but I feel this goes beyond “simple.” Who knows, maybe this person will approach me after I post this – we’ll see.
I discovered one of my online gallery images imbedded in a Twitter feed. I have no record of it being purchased. And credit was given to someone else for having created it! WTF?!
IT’S NOT OK!
I’ve steered clear of watermarks, but perhaps I’m on to something with this one. Maybe you’d like to order a print of this image – the actual image with no watermarks.
Capturing The Cover
I’m always curious about what the scene really looks like in photographer’s scenes. Just going through some of my images as I prepare my year-long contract with Getty Images and I came across this one. This is the setup I had for capturing the cover image for Winchester City’s annual calendar.
Capturing the cover
Snowfall
Ah, the first snowfall.
I actually got a little freaked out about not posting an image yesterday. I certainly didn’t want to get out of the habit of shooting so I’m glad it snowed because I recently posted that I wanted it to so I could get some snow pictures.
Ta-da. Of course I shot Handley.
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Front Cover
Heads up. Watch for the 2015 Winchester City calendar. Yours Truly is featured on the front cover (well, at least my image is) as well as multiple months inside.
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Warming Up
Getting ready for our last Handley holiday concert. Seems like this is my view at a lot of venues.
This has been my view for many Handley productions over the last 6 years
Astro Wing
Give me enough time and I’ll eventually cover the whole school. I’d need a lot of time, though.
Several weeks ago I posted the exterior of what I always thought was graffiti on the windows. | Order a print of this image.
Inside
I’ve shot plenty of stuff on the exterior and I’ve always wanted to just walk around inside and shoot, but I never can get it completely empty – until today. I took advantage of some time before the annual band holiday concert and did a little walk-around. I know a lot of Handley faculty follow these posts so I hope I wasn’t too far out of bounds with my little photo walk. I’m really digging the updated Protune features on the GoPro – now I’m just waiting for the GoPro cameras to start shooting in RAW.
I like what it can do, but there’s still such a difference between JPEG and RAW images in post (but I knew that going in). | Order a print of this image.
Closing Time
It’s a real race to get in position for the sunset these days. The last buses from the school day haven’t even left the school, yet! It’s worth it though. I’m flying from the comfort of a heated vehicle these days. I wonder how easy it would be to fly from a moving vehicle. I suppose I should be even more careful now that the FAA is gaining ground with the NTSB, huh?
This one’s on my gallery site, too.
Graffiti
So it’s not graffiti. I thought it was something like a senior hallway that changes every year or something like that. Nope, it’s a wall of constellations. Yeah, look really closely. I always wondered what it was. And I’ve always wanted to take a photo of the cupola through the glass hallway. Here’s both – well, sort of…
The “bridge” at John Handley High School. | Order a print of this image.
Freedom
For all those who fought for my freedom I simply say “Thank you.” Enjoy this moving piece performed by the John Handley High School band and choir. It was originally written to honor the first responders during the 9/11 attack, but it applies here, as well.
Just Cool
Wow, that was just cool! When we first started talking about shooting some aerials of the entire student body of WPS, I thought sure it’ll be neat. That was just cool and a little overwhelming. To be honest, I was nervous until it was all over. Shooting aerials of that many people gathered in one space with an aerial camera makes me nervous. But we pulled it off. How about that?! And the camera was a huge hit. Kids love that stuff – and I’m including adults ‘cuz we’re just big kids, right?
The entire student body of Winchester Public Schools (roughly 4,400 students) gathered today for an aerial shoot promoting cultural diversity. The footage will be featured in a video to be shown in January on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Nature’s Palette
It’s nature’s color palette. What a great time of year to be a landscape photographer.
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Logo
I’m no graphic designer and I’ve never claimed to be one. I can re-create something I see, but I’m just not that creative when it comes to generating something brand new.
The senior class at Handley High School for at least the last 5 years has had some fun with the high school initials (JHHS) and created a logo for the class. I’m not sure how it started or who started it, but it’s been creative every year. We wait in anticipation over the Summer to see how the new year has been incorporated into the initials each Fall. So kudos to whoever generates the Handley senior class “logo.”
One of the many senior portraits I’ve taken of my daughter.
Cedarmeade Studios 