Hooray! #MoreLightHours

Yup...It's FINALLY March and the feeling of Spring in New Jersey took its sweet ass time getting here. With this new season comes some new things of course.Incase you didn't notice the title, feel free to holla atcha guala and follow me on a few new social mediums: Twitter & Tumblr.

Secondly, I did some minor work for Renegade Hip Hop and had some time to check out their recent show in East Stroudsburg, PA with Mac Miller. Crowd was real harsh and the only performances they didn't 'boo' at were Mac Miller's and Renegade's haha, so much love to them for always doing their thing and always killing it.

Slacking on some video gear has me being stingy on adding videos to my repertoire, but fortunately for me my wonderful lady was in attendance at a poetry jam I took part in earlier this month.

I wrote about a minute worth of lines because It was my first time and I wanted to get it over and done with before I choked. Lo and behold....I STILL choked haha. Regardless, it was great to see the local poetic talent. Shout out to Janelle for organizing the event and everyone who attended / participated at NY's Finest. I've never publicly shared what I have written so it was an overall positive and unique first experience. Supporting creativity is a big thing for me, especially when it comes to creatively expressing yourself through different avenues.

A major part of why I decided to participate has to do with the book that I plan on publishing.

In my previous post there was a mention of the book but I held back the details. Generally, it is a collaborative project between myself and other artists. As of now, there are 3 individuals that I am currently collaborating with. Essentially, I'm going to be photographically illustrating another persons form of art.

Real talk...this isn't a project that will take a week or even a few months to complete. I look forward to each and every step of the process because I already know how dope this book is going to be.

Be safe people.

Middle of Febuary? Already?!

I know I know its Febuary and its been awhile but it's a new year and things have already been going better than the previous. I've been running around doing work for a few websites, portrait sessions, and brainstorming ideas for some personal work which I'll get into later. The website has also gotten a few small upgrades with the in between time that I have had. A noticeable improvement is the Proofs/Store section to my site. I'm still in the process of configuring the Store section because of available print and quality options. Also, I configured the site to look, and operate better in full screen mode than it had originally so if you find time...Hit that F11 key when your on the site to get the full experience.

Also updated were the transitions and a new menu. I'm having a problem deciding what kind of layout I want for the 'Eye Candy' menu. It has been a thorn on my side to try to make it exactly how I want it. Another push to move towards Adobe InDesign? I think so...

Speaking of 'Eye Candy'....Through some networking I realized that there are a lot of people using some form of the words 'Eye Candy'. I have gotten used to having my URL and am quite happy with it, but it's time for a change. As far as what the new URL for my site will be? Probably something a little more simple.

Another needed change is the look of my business cards. Overnightprints.com did a great job of handling my order but I feel like I have grown out of the look that my current business cards have. I want these new ones to reflect where I am now and where I'm headed. I have some great ideas for it involving different textures which can manipulate light. I am a photographer after all and a business card is the only first impression you get to make sometimes so I want it to be amazingly unique.

Now onto the personal work. At the beginning of the year I told myself I wanted to publish a book. I also told those around me that I want to make this book a collaborative effort between me and other artists. I put the idea in the back of my mind to focus on other things. A couple weeks later I was fortunate enough to meet someone who is passionate about their form of art as much as I am about mine. We have already started to get the ball rolling and I'm extremely excited about it. Thats all the info im giving out about the book at this time so when I do another update I'll be sure to shed some more light on it.

Another collaborative effort I have in the works involves another photographer and my dream car. Needless to say I'm excited about that one too haha.

I like how life conspires to get you where you want to be so in saying that, I want to thank everybody now who has supported me and what I do. Even if you visit my site for a minute, I'm just happy you made an effort to get there. LEH GO!

One Person At a Time...

Inspire

[in-spahy^uhr]

verb, -spired, -spir·ing.

1. To fill with an animated,quickening, or exalting influence

2. To produce,or arouse (a feeling,thought, etc.)

These past two weeks I have been getting a lot of feedback from my photographs. One of my oldest friends told me my work inspired him over the weekend to go out and take photos for himself. I seriously can't begin to tell you how happy him saying that made me feel. It's exactly what I want to do. To INSPIRE more ART and CREATIVITY in this world. From audible art forms to visual poetry inspiring someone to do something is such a wonderful gift you don't even know you're giving.

So anyway, sold my first print last week and I STILL don't have the shop section up on my website. More on that by the end of this week hopefully.

I Want Flow...

So I listen to a lot of Hip-Hop and R&B and was out running an errand with my girlfriend. I was criticizing how some artists have the potential to be great, but there are nuances in their vocals in relation to the track that just aren't right.

For an example I'll use Lil Wayne considering he just got out of prison today: From his Lights Out album, which was the first Wayne album I ever purchased, to Carter III, he got progressively better. His metaphors kept getting better, and it's like he finally figured out where and when his voice would sound better at a certain point in the track. "A Milli" was outrageous, and the fact that he recorded parts of that song as a freestyle in a hotel in Amsterdam is a testament to how good he has gotten over the years. (Proof)

During that car ride that my girlfriend and I were taking, we were also comparing some new rappers to older ones. I swear...the next song that came on the radio was Jay-Z's 'Hard Knock Life'. After the song was over there was a long pause, and the first thing she said to me was "I'm sorry, but nobody can rap like he can". THATS the damn truth...

Jay's flow is ridiculously good...period.

So what does this have to do with my photography? Well a couple days later I was having a conversation about my photography and where I would like to go and some of the ideas I have. The comparison between the growth of rappers like Jay and Wayne was brought up and how it related to what is going on with my creativity. I realized I want a flow. A flow that no one else can compare to. A certain style of images that is unique to me, and only myself.

I want to do something amazing.

Bottom line is...I want my flow, and I'm not going to stop taking pictures until I know I got one. Even if it takes me a long ass time...although I hope it doesn't haha.

Keep Creative.

Getting out of the quicksand...

It's been almost 2 months since I've updated my blog and I'm pissed. I'm more pissed at myself than anything else. I just can't believe how much I've been procrastinating solely because I pride myself on working hard, and working towards my goals. I set myself a goal to update this blog at least twice a month when I started it and lo and behold, that hasn't happened. Theres been some creative road blocks here and there, and I think it's time for me to step my game up once again. My hustle has withered down to a slow creep but my brain has been churning out ideas for future projects like crazy. Projects that have largely been inspired by the music I listen to,how that music is always changing for the better, and how I'd love for my creativity and the subsequent images to do the same.

I have been looking at my past photos and have realized that I need some sort of an overhaul. I want more color, more emotion, and more of a statement. I want my images to connect to people and I want to create an image that makes you go "....WOW".

I also want to be able to look into a popular magazine and find one of my pictures in the centerfold...but baby steps Mario...baby steps....

anyway

Since my last update, I've been published on BBC.com under one of their weekly photo contests titled "Back to Work" where a self portrait was chosen. Big thanks to my number one supporter for sending in the picture to BBC without me knowing ;)

Lastly, I finished editing the photos I had taken for an organization called Pitbull Centerfolds (www.pitbullcenterfolds.org) in mid October and am waiting on a reply to find out when the calender is finished for publishing. It's very exciting to be published in a calender, so I can't wait to see what It looks like!

So yeah, until next time, KEEP CREATIVE.

Shoot with Paul and upcoming things...

So much for that update huh...Been so busy with work and trying to do new things lately that I forgot about my blog for a bit. I've gotten some new equipment but still nowhere near where I want to be. As always I make things work (shout out Tim Gunn) with what I have and my images always end up great right from the camera.

For example, this shoot with Paul inside of a giant yellow pipe. At first things were a little eh. Had a miserable day at work and I had planned to shoot earlier. Got out of work later than I had expected, hit traffic, and had to turn around at some point to get the property release form for the shoot that was left behind. Oy vey! I showed up a little grouchy but ready to get down to business. Since it was getting dark I had some trouble focusing which was driving me up a wall. My biggest enemy was time. The shoot was planned in just a few days and I relied on daylight too much. I fixed the low-light-focusing situation and thankfully that will never happen again.

As for the upcoming things: A variety of Pit-Bull Terriers and their respective female owners, a bar in Hoboken, a firehouse in Little Ferry, and a calender.

More about it in my next post!

Small Update:Triggers Fixed! Upcoming Shoots...

Fixed the situation I was having with my wireless flash triggers!

Finally ready to get things moving once agian.I have a small 'warm-up' shoot planned this Sunday that has to do with a giant yellow pipe that I pass everyday to and from work. After that, I have an enviromental portrait to shoot that will include a horse, hay, and a good old friend of mine. So things are definitely moving. The U.S. Outworkers shoot went well but the owner and I are still working on the final stages of post.

Time to sleep...

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It's Far From Over...

Well everyone.Back from a 'Statecation' and feeling refreshed.Although still a bit stressed about a few things here and there but overall doing well.Saw hot air balloons, went to a beautiful winery, and even went to see a minor league baseball game.(Shout out to Megan for the awesome seats!)

Also managed to get a slew of new pictures and finally got around to revising the website.Added a shop area thats still in the works, new categories, new pages for easier access, a contact form, and a video section thats going to be up soon with just a few videos from my cell phone I've taken so far.

It's incredible how much work just a few things can take.I was up two days straight until 2am working on it.I can finally say I'm comfortable about how the layout is. Still got a few loose ends here and there as always but not enough to overwhelm me like it was doing before the revision.

As far as work goes I have been keeping steady.Yesterday(Sunday) I spent most of the day shooting images for a company's website (www.USoutworkers.com). They specialize in asphalt repair, crack filling, and seal-coating.I have yet to show the owner the ~700 images I took from that day but I'm absolutely positive he'll love them.Updates on that later this week.

Up-coming shoots are still in the works as some of my wireless flash triggers are damaged

*sigh*

I still have several more pictures to edit so keep looking for updates on those! Enjoy and farewell.