my 30 percent

a new home

2010-07-22T15:54:00.002-04:00

my blog now has a new perminant address. while i will leave my older posts up in this location my newer posts will reside "here".

feel free to check it out and be happy.

josh

one happy guy

2009-11-30T15:04:00.007-05:00

florida, land of retirees who love to drive way to slow. i know i have a few grey hairs that i can attribute to more than my fair share of screaming at the little old lady in front of me. at times it seems the highways and byways in the sunshine state are covered with them.

recently my had my opinion changed. i was hired by "npr" to make some images for a story they were doing on senior drivers. i got to spend the day with thad seymour, who works for a company called itn, as he drove his clients around. thad is a volunteer with the company who assists those who can no longer drive. he was one of the happiest guys i have ever met. curious about everything, and nothing brought him down. he even talked me (not that it took much arm twisting) into having lunch with him at wendy's saying his wife never lets him eat there so we had to strike while the iron was hot.

after we finished with the reportage portion of the story he agree to have some fun with me as i shot portraits.

thanks thad

no one ever said i was smart

2009-11-24T10:10:00.007-05:00

as i have for the past three years i traveled to homestead over the weekend to cover three days of the NASCAR championships. it is always a weekend filled with some cool people, long days, and throbbing ear drums. this weekend, however ended with with a twist.

sunday was the big race. i was the lone soldier for the paper i was working for (in years past i was one of three shooters) so i was running around like a mad man. i started out shooting fans in the morning, then just before the race started i found myself shooting the top two drivers (jimmie johnson, and mark martin) on pit road. i knew that after the national anthem was over i would need to make my way to the outside of the track to get some race action shots.

earlier in the day i had decided to try a spot that i haven't been at in a long time during the race. i normally go to turn one, but i wanted to change things up so i went to turn four. in order to get to where i wanted to be i had to walk about a half mile or so from turn one to turn four. there i would enter the gate that separated the fans from the outside of the track. when i got to the gate it was locked, damn!!!! i had two choices at this point i could walk a quarter mile back to the start/finish line and then a quarter mile to turn four (not really a great option as the green flag was going to drop in about 2 minutes), or i could jump the fence and walk about 30 yards to the spot where i would shoot. no brainer really. i had to jump the fence.

i had two cameras around my shoulders, a hip pack, and a 300 mm lens. i looked around to see if there was some one could help me out by handing my gear to me after i got over the fence, which was about chest high, and there was no one remotely close to where i was. meanwhile the cars are on the track and are on their last pace lap before the started of the race. so i jump the fence with all of my gear attached to me. as i am halfway over one of my cameras starts to fall. i reached to save it and in doing so i lost my balance and fell to the ground in full view of the grandstands......

......as i hit the ground i twisted my right knee (which was already bad due to a bmx injury i suffered when i was 9) and bent a toe on my left foot back. both hurt really bad. as i picked myself up i start hearing jeers from the thousands of fans in my immediate area, but i did not have the guts to see if they were cheering for the race or my own stupidity. i hobble my way, much like an old man, to the spot where i will shoot the race from. i got there just in time to shoot the start.....

....there was only one other photographer there at the time but i did get a couple of strange looks from him as i stood on one leg while i shot the race. i made the images i had to make, and then turned around and leaned up against the wall for the next 100 laps.

i decided that i needed to make my way back to the media center which was about a mile walk from where i was. needless to say it took me while. i got to my computer uploaded my images and nursed my wounds as best i could in prepartion for the trophy ceremony at the end of the race. the end of the race comes, and i knew i was gonna have no choice but to jump another wall, twice, and climb on to the tailer the track sets up for the photographer. needless to say i was a sight to behold as the "gimpy" photographer tried to make his way though the hordes of fans and photographers.

i was proud of myself at the end of the day. i managed to get the necessary images, despite have a really hard time walking. the paper was please. that's a good day in my book.

all is well now, and i am healing up nicely. but as my dad always said "no one ever said you were smart". oh how right he was.

sports, sports everywhere

2009-11-11T12:42:00.024-05:00

over the past several months i have been lucky enough to shoot some of the biggest names in both the nba, and the nhl. the shoots can be stressful, as you normally get about 5 minutes with the player (if your lucky), but these shoots were a lot of fun despite some of the road blocks.

it all started with me traveling to cleveland, oh to shoot "the chosen one" for l'equipe, the sports illustrated of france.

there definitely was some stress involved with this one. i booked a last minute flight, bought some new bags for all of my lighting gear, and did some test shots before heading to the airport the day before the shoot. when i arrived at my gate if found out that there was mechanical delays in fort lauderdale and was told i would not make my connection until the next day (the day of the shoot). needless to say i was more than a little freaked. when i arrived in atlanta i found out that my connection flight to cleveland was delayed due to weather. THANK GOD.

the stress didn't end there. on the day of the shoot we found out that lebron was in town for lebron james day. according to the magazine we were gonna get him to ourselves, now every major media outlet in the free world was there and competing for time with the king. on top of that the pr guy in charge swore that he had no idea that the magazine was sending a photographer despite having spoken with the magazine for several weeks leading up to the shoot. he and chatted and i got him to agree to giving me some time and space to set up my lights as well as time with lebron. again THANK GOD. the area he gave me to set up the lights was by no means ideal. it was in the corner of a gym and had about 50 people milling around. most of the kept stepping into my gear, and some even stood right in the spot where i was setting up. really people? let's all be professional here.

it all worked out in the end. i was able to overcome all of the obstacles that the photo gods put up in front of me, and i got got some shots that both the magazine and i liked a lot.

below is a lighting diagram that shows my set up for the shots, as well as how the magazine used the images.

after all of the stress with lebron, which i am now glad i went though since it has perpared me to deal with anything that can happen while shooting the big names in the world, i was hired to shoot david booth of the florida panthers.

to my surprise i got less time with booth than i did with lebron, but i was already prepared for that since i had defeated all of the road blocks "the king" threw at me.

the booth shoot was pretty straight forward and i used the exact same lighting set up as i did with lebron. the client wanted something that showed that he is becoming the face of the franchise, and already had a very specific image in mind. they loved what i got for them.

below is how the images was used.

last, but certainly not least i spent a full day shooting the miami heat's dwyane wade and his teammates.

not only was this shoot a lot of fun, but i got to hire my wife as my assistant. deffinetly not a bad way to spend the day. wade is a super nice guy, and was willing to do almost anything i asked of him in the 7 minutes or so he spent with me. he made it really easy to get what the client wanted, and even joked around with my wife. now i just have to becareful that she doesn't get a taste for rich nba stars ;).

the story for this one was about wade's future since his contract is up next year. the client wanted something that was a bit moody and something that was shot from behind to show that he may leave next year. the team gave us no choice on where we could take the image, so i worked the situation and ended up with something that the client loved.

below is the lighting diagram, and how the final image was used.

in the end i learned a lot of valuable lessons, and raised the level of my game during these shoots. over coming obstacles is almost more important than shooting the image, almost. if a road block is put in your way you HAVE to overcome it or you will not get the image your client wants. i know i can overcome anything now. bring it on.

new attitude

2009-11-11T12:06:00.004-05:00

i have changed up the design of both my "flash" and my "html" sites. they are now a bit more user friendly, and look just a bit cooler is i do say so myself.

plus if you navigate to photojosh.com from your iphone you can view the new iphone version of my site.

chiggity check 'em, and enjoy!

five....five dollar....

2009-11-10T14:28:00.010-05:00

i must say that "businessweek" is one of the best clients i have EVER worked for. not only do they pay great, but they really take care of their photographers. andrew popper, the photo editor i worked with on my most recent shoot for them, was willing to chat with me at length about what they wanted. he listened to my thoughts and concerns and gave his input without being over bearing. you gotta love that!

i was hired by andrew one day after i visited the businessweek offices in new york. during my meeting most of the photo department stopped by to see my work. all of them were extremely upbeat, and made me feel like i was the most important person in the building. within about ten minutes of my arrival they were adding me into their system so they could use me as one of their hired guns. it's not often that you get that kind of treatment from a high profile client. did i mention they pay well?

andrew hired me to shoot some images for "a story they were doing on the subway guys who started the five footlong promotion" for the sandwich chain (who knew those guys were from the fort lauderdale area). on the surface the assignment was pretty simple. the magazine wanted to get some portraits of the three men, both individual and as a group. not too tough i thought, well that was before i chatted with the subject who was given to me as the point person for the shoot. he informed me that we could not shoot at the store he owned due to problems with the signage not being up to date, and that the only other available spot was a newer store down the road. not a big deal, right? well that was what i thought until i arrived at the store. it was literally the smallest subway i have ever seen. there was no seating inside, and no room to make any images of the group inside. i was pretty much out of options so i had to settle for shooting in two different spots outside. that's the name of the game though take what you given, run with it, and make it sing.

given the circumstances i am pleased with the way things turned out. the layout for the magazined worked well, looked great, and i was able to make solid images out of a hard situation. all in all not a bad days work.

plus i got a great new client out of the deal. that's a great days work in my book.

life with a trucker : the video

2009-07-24T09:09:00.003-04:00

life with a trucker

2009-07-22T23:19:00.004-04:00

growing up in the ritchie household was interesting to say the least. just ask my friends most of them carry the scars to prove it.

barry, my dad, was/is a truck driver. his profession molded him into the man his today. back then that man sat around the house in his whitey tighties smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee. that in it's self is fine. the problem was that when company came over he just sat there in his whitey tighties smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee. he would often say "it's my house. if you don't like it there's the door". obviously social grace was not one of his strong suits.

the first time he met my wife, at that time she was my girlfriend, he asked her to turn around so he could see her ass. those were literally his first words to her. thanks dad.

now that i am older i have to say i wouldn't have him any other way. sure he embarrassed me on more than one occasion, but the stories i have are priceless. i realize he just wanted some attention even if it was at the expense of keeping our food where it belonged.

thanks dad. you rule!

at long last......

2009-07-02T10:12:00.003-04:00

......the new "photojosh.com" is here!!!

a few weeks ago, while surfing the web, i came across a company called "photobiz". after spending about an hour on thier site looking at all of their web templates i decided to take the plunge and sign up. i have been in love ever since. there really easy to use, and allow for quick site updates. look 'em up. you won't be disappointed. oh, and tell them i sent you!

my new site features full screen flash powered galleries.....

....as well as an html version.

go ahead, linger. you know you want to.

Master of Disaster

2009-06-22T14:22:00.012-04:00

the magazine group has been a great client for me recently. i have shot for three of their publications, edtech, statetech, and biztech, and the editors of each have always really easy to work with as well as willing to listen to my ideas.

a few weeks ago i got a call from the folks at biztech and was asked to shoot a portrait of greg taffert for a story on computer disaster recovery. the editor and myself chatted for a while about what the story was about and what i could do to visually contribute to the package. after a few moments we both realized that we had our work cut out for us. the publishers of the magazine did not want any technology in the image, nor did they want the image to focus on "bad things, like broken computers, chaos and things like that. so it was my goal to shoot something up beat and "happy" while still saying something about disaster. so the brain storming session started. we (the editor and myself) chatted for a bit longer, and then we decided that i would sleep on it and come up with some more ideas to run past them. the next mooring i decided that i would try and make this guy look like a hero. that way i would steer clear of the "bad things" and still be able to show something that fit with "disaster recovery".

i called the editor and explained that i thought we could make this guy look like a business superhero. my vision was put superman into a suit and have his cape and tie blow in the wind. she loved the idea, but said we should forgo the cape.

in the end i think i accomplished the image that i wanted to make, even with out the cape, and made the editors at biztech really happy. that a great day of shooting in my book.

so here is my set up.....

i used a total of six lights to accomplish the desired effect. one main, and one fill on the subject (both with grid spots). two edge lights, one snooted light for the tie, and a background light with an amber gel.

here is a stop motion video of the entire shoot

the images......

the layout....

Coming Very Soon........

2009-06-22T14:12:00.004-04:00

......an all new, completely redesigned, fullscreen version of "photojosh.com"

Key West Via Iphone

2009-06-22T14:01:00.002-04:00

I've Been "Raped"....Well Not Really

2009-06-22T13:33:00.005-04:00

about a week ago i got an assignment that i was stoked to shoot. the story was about bars that held karaoke nights that catered to the spainish speaking population in south florida. i figured drunk latinos singing on the beach while their friends danced had to make for a good time. and it did for the hour or so that it lasted until the cops shut it down due to a noise complaint. it was really getting into the mood of the evening, and trying to make some images that showed the craziness that ensued during each salsa song when my frame went dark. at first i tried to move out of the way so i could continue shooting the drunken dancers that made the broad walk into their personal dance club, but the figure blocking my lens moved with me. after a few seconds of trying to figure out what was going on, i realized that one of the ladies decided that she wanted a piece of josh ritchie!!! she proceeded to grind me as sweat, which was mostly made up of alcohol by now, poured from her body. all i could do was nervously laugh and keep my camera between me and the crazy lady. after she came after me a second time the writer and i joked that i had been raped on the dance floor. it made a fun assignment a little weird, and very memorable.

here is what i saw coming at me. if you are a bit squeamish look away now.......

....don't say i didn't warn you!!!

it's election day again

2009-06-01T15:03:00.009-04:00

so thank you to all of you that voted on the front of my promo cards. now it is time for the back.

the two above this message (all grey) are the ones i am currently using. the ones below are the potential new ones. i have been trying to keep everything the same as far as design goes. from my website to my blog to my newsletter, and business cards i want everything to have a similar feel. the newly designed back seen here step away from that design slightly. so far there has been no color in my logo design until now. that is the major change.

so i am curious about your thoughts. do you like my message on the back? how about the new logos? is the color working? is there anyther color that might work better? any saying/moto you would use instead? any and all suguestions on any and all parts of the designs is greatly appreciated.

if you click on the image it will open bigger. if you are viewing the larger version of the image ignore the black border. only what is inside of that border will be in the final version.

thanks in advance.

rock the vote!

2009-05-26T16:11:00.004-04:00

so i am taking votes on which design i should use for my promo cards. i am looking for the most effective design that showcases my images while giving out my contact info. i have decided to include my website and phone number on the front. my reasoning is that if an editor hangs the image near their desk then they will not have to take the card down to see my contact info. let me know what you think. all opinions are welcome.

feel free to vote as many times as you like!!!

edtech magazine

2009-05-20T11:13:00.006-04:00

yet another new client has started using me on a regular basis. the good people at the magazine group have hired me for 4 different shoots over the past month or so. they are really easy to work with. when some of the shoots present a challenge they have been right there to help iron an issues out.

the first was at kaplan university for a story on online colleges for edtech magazine.

here is what the magazine did with the layout.

and here are my favorite out takes.

i really enjoy shooting for these guys. more to come as the images are published so keep your eyes peeled!

wealth manager

2009-05-20T10:54:00.008-04:00

recently i started working with wealth manager magazine. i always love working with new clients, esspecially one that is as great to work with as this magazine and tim schafer their photo editor. tim always knows what he wants, but is willing to listen to the photographer's input to make sure that the idea will be something that can be accomplished. gotta love a relationship like that.

so for my first two shoots for them i was sent to a company, gen springs, to shoot two of their excutives. they were hoping for very straight forward kind of stuff, so it was a relatively easy shoot.

here is what they decided to run from the first shoot, with a note from tim that came with the zine in the mail.

and here are a couple of out takes....

here is what they did with the second shoot, again with a note from tim.

and an outtake.

i hope all of you are lucky enough to have clients that are as great as these guys. they have made these hards times seem just a little bit brighter.

extra! extra! read all about it

2009-05-14T10:37:00.004-04:00

it's your last chance to read my current "newsletter" before the new one comes out on tuesday!

one great day

2009-05-14T10:14:00.007-04:00

take one good friend add a boat, a beautiful day, and lots of fish on the reef in key largo and what will you get? well for me one of the best days i have had in recent memory. i spent 5 hours with melissa lyttle exploring the waters of the national marine sanctuary and making images for my fluidity project. if you are not familiar with the project, it started several years ago when i began shooting tourism from the water’s point of view. you can check out the project "here".

a brave new world

2009-04-21T10:31:00.010-04:00

over the past week i have been exploring a brave new world, at least to me, in photoshop. it all started when i was looking though ross taylor's blog and noticed this image. being kinda of curious on the techniques he used to achieve the effect i shot him an email asking for some help. ross being ross he called me that night and was more than happy to walk me through some quick steps as well as giving me the names of some great podcasts. two of his recommended podcasts are "adobe photoshop quick tips", and "photoshop for digital photographers".

achieving this effect is matter of have a really well lit file with A LOT of information, and creating layers that you then blend in photoshop. i know it's not ethical as far as photojournalism is concerned, but for portraits, and other work it can be used in the right situation.

feel free to tell me what you think.

2009-04-16T10:07:00.005-04:00

the april installment of my news letter is up and running. feel free to check it out. if you would like to receive my monthly updates you can subscribe here.

wonderful tears

2009-04-14T11:08:00.003-04:00

wonderful machine has added me to their tear sheet blog. check it!

tweet tweet

2009-04-14T01:56:00.007-04:00

i am now on "twitter". look me up.

gregory smith

2009-04-14T01:17:00.007-04:00

every once in a while i cover a story that sticks with me. all of the subjects that i meet affect me in some way, some make my day better, others present me with a challenge, but then there are those stories that i just can't get out of my head. gregory smith is one of those stories.

smith was a bright 16 year old high school student who had his life ripped away from him a little over a week ago. he was performing at his high school's talent show on a friday night, he was an accomplished song writer, and was shot to death after the show. from what i am told greg and several friends left the school and were waiting for a ride home when a mustang pulled up and four guys got out. the murderers made everyone lay on the ground and then robbed greg. smith complied with all of their requests, but was still shot execution style and killed on the spot. a great kid killed for no reason.

i hate covering these stories for all of the obvious reasons, and this one was no different. i had to cover it for a total of three days so far and each day i felt more and more like a vulture. every time i went out i had to tell myself that the family wanted me there, even if i wasn't sure if that was the case, and that i was helping to find the cowards that did this.

last saturday i was sent out to cover the funeral. it was the first time in my career that i had covered a funeral from inside the church, and i felt like the biggest asshole in the world. i barley shot any frames, and tried to blend in with the wall. it may not have been the smartest decision as far as making great images go, but i can live with that.

maybe it's because of my grandfather's recent passing, but this one affected me more than i can remember a story affecting me in a long time. when all was said and done i felt at peace with myself. which i am proud to say.

i made the images that were needed, and hopefully the family will see justice served.

ugly room, lots of clutter, and a man

2009-03-22T17:37:00.006-04:00

when i arrived to shoot a portrait of city commissioner anthony sanders i walked into a photographers worst nightmare (mr. sanders is the former president of a community organization that helps the less fortunate, and the publication i was shooting for was doing a story on how he and the city were in a battle over his property). the room was small, ugly, and HAD to be shown for the purposes of the story. i spent a good half an hour racking my brain trying to come up with a way that made what i had in front of me work for the photo. i checked every nook and cranny of the two room building searching for a spot that made sense. i even went outside, but due to rain that was a no go. i did what i could, and the publication liked the images.

in the end i guess sometimes you do what you can and hope that your hard work pays off.

sometimes the satisfaction is found in trying to overcome all of the hurdles while knowing that you did your best, and not in making the best image you have ever made.

challenges are fun!

is there a grimard in the building???

2009-03-17T15:44:00.002-04:00

marriage...marriage is what brings us together today. marriage that blessed arrangment, that dream within a dream (said in my best princess bride voice ofcourse).

my sister in law got married. i, ofcourse, was "forced" (said jokingly) to be the wedding photographer.

after many many drinks, a lot of laughs, and a few tears jamie leo and jason grimard are now hitched.

congrats guys!!!!

the boots with the fur

2009-03-17T15:29:00.008-04:00

hoochies, high cars, and malt liquor. that's what filled two days of my life on the set of atlantic records artist "flo rida" videos "right round" and "shone".

there is a lot of hurry up and waiting on video sets. grips buzz around like army ants getting everything in place, only to be told by the director that the light they just spent an hour meticulously placing needs to be moved a foot to the right. so the process begins again as i wait some more.

many trips are made to the little cart that is filled with sugary goodness. blow pops, laffy taffy, bubble gum, and various chocolates bring out the little boy in me, and put me into a sugar high only my mother has experienced. after filling up up on candy, i have some coffee, and a heart attack.

then just maybe the wait is over and i can shoot some images before lunch.

in the end it is a really long day that is a lot of fun. flo is a nice guy who is great to work with, and the crew is always filled with characters that make the day go quickly.

what a wonderful machine

2009-03-16T17:41:00.005-04:00

i am now officially partnered with wonderful machine they are an upcoming firm that allows clients of all shapes and sizes to search for the right photographer to fit their needs. so if you are in the market check them out. tell them i sent ya ;)

here's to great things to come.

2009-03-16T17:37:00.003-04:00

the march version of my monthly newsletter is up for all to view. it details some of my recent shoots, as well as a farewell to my grandpa

feel free to take a look, and sign up to receive an email version of the newsletter each month.

keep your eyes open for next month's version!

mmmm bbq

2009-03-16T16:31:00.007-04:00

dirty jokes, great stories, amazing bbq, and don king. add these together and what do you get? only one of the best assignments i have had in recent memory!!

my task was to go to the king home and make portraits of him for a story previewing a fight he was promoting. i had no idea what to expect from the shoot, but i kinda had a feeling that it was gonna be a crazy day when i had heard that king had bought his neighbors house after the neighbor complained about the smell of bbq always emanating from king's home. i thought i might get about 5 minutes to make his picture and then he would ask me to leave, boy was i way off. first he gave us the tour of his home, showing all the images he had with every fighter he had ever come in contact with, then he had his guys make the most amazing bbq i have ever had. it was a huge spread. ribs, sausage, chicken, you name it it was on the table. then he sat for a portrait. he was very nice, allowing me about 10 minutes or so per sitting.

i must say that he made my month. really great guy and a hilarious story teller. if you ever meet him ask him to tell you about the asian men that pull boulders with their manhood and how that relates to business. it his words....it takes balls to make money.

priceless!!!!!

pop pop 1930-2009

2009-02-26T16:44:00.003-05:00

rest in peace grandpa. i will miss you. thank you for everything.

we will take care of grandma for you!

you will never be forgotten.

raspberries on my cheeks

2009-01-19T12:38:00.021-05:00

when i was a kid i always looked forward to going to pop pop and mom mom's house. if my parents simply mentioned the idea of going over there i became really excited knowing that i was gonna get to see them. my grandmother could turn the simplest of meals into something that tasted like heaven, and my grandfather was a character like santa clause, given his jolly disposition, that could spin the wildest tales that would put a hush on the loudest rooms.

each time i spent time with them all of my cares would melt away. not that i had a lot to worry about back then, but i always felt like everything was right with the world when i was with them. they had a way of making you feel important, and loved in way that only a grandparent could do. pop pop would always put us on his knee and kiss us on the cheek by blowing raspberries. we would laugh so hard together that i am surprised that he never ending up with a wet leg. my grandmother was always at her best when surrounded by her grandchildren. her eyes would light up every time we walked through the door even if she knew we were coming hours in advance. their house was heaven on earth for us kids.

as i got older my grandfather remained a big part of my life. i will never forget how i was one of the coolest kids in my sunday school class just because i was his grandson. during church my grandfather would hand out hershey bars to kids that did something good, or just because. all of my friends knew him as the hershey bar guy, and when they found out that he was my grandfather, well i reached superstar status at the tender age of 8.

during that time he started teaching me important life lessons that at first i didn't understand. he had me mowing almost an acre of land and helping with other yard work for an hourly wage. while the tasks seemed menial at the time, much in same way that daniel larusso's work seemed small for mr miyagi in the karate kid, they were designed to teach me the ways of the world. he had a time sheet taped to the pantry door and i was told to fill in my hours of work each time i worked for him. i was taught how to be honest, responsible, and hard working. he then would pay me based on those hours, however he never paid me my hourly wage. he would always add a little extra to the wages on the time sheet, which i still have to this day. i would always question him on why i was being paid higher than he told me i would make per hour. he simply replied "haven't you ever heard of a raise?". that raise happened almost every day i worked for him. why can't all bosses be like my grandfather?

pop pop was the most resourceful guy i have ever known. he could fix anything with some duct tape and twine. god forbid you go out and buy a new piece of equipment. if something broke he sent one of us to the shed to chose one of the many balls of twine, all of which held several miles of string, so he could weave and elaborate web of knots that would inevitably not only fix the problem, but hold up for years to come. to this day if one of my uncles or myself have to fix something the first thing we think of is tape and twine.

though i did work a lot with my grandfather, it was not all work and no play. i will never forget the time i wanted to build a go-kart. my grandfather was too much in love with his grandchildren to ever say no, so despite the fact that he had a lot of others things to do he dropped everything he was doing over several days to help me make a 10-year-old's dream machine. he told me to design it on a piece of paper, teaching me preparation, and he would help me from there. after my plans, complete with measurements, were finished we began the hard work. he was way too nice to tell me that my design would never work, instead he helped me build the car to my specs, and even paid for all of the materials. as i am sure he knew well before we finished the go-kart never really worked all that well, but i was proud of it none the less.

when the time came for me to move out on my own, i was well prepared for whatever the world could throw at me thanks, in large part, to the teachings of my grandfather. i was patient, caring, responsible, and accountable, at least as much as a young man making his way in the world could be. it was only then that i began realize what pop pop had done for me. he was my mr. miyagi. teaching me wax on, wax off so i could defend myself against any "attack" that the world would send my way.

now the man who has taught me so much, who has loved me through thick and thin, who has been a hero to me since i was a kid, is going where none of us can follow. 32 years with him is not nearly enough. i was lucky enough to spend a week with him as he lay in a hospital bed at home. as i sat with him watching tv i began to notice the little things and saw that even at the end of his life he was still teaching me important lessons. i watched as he showed me his love for his wife of over 60 years. how his eyes lit up every time she stepped into the room no matter how bad he was feeling. how his only worry was for how we as a family would be with out him to protect us. how he did whatever he could to make his last days with us as normal as possible, while never letting us believe that he would be getting better. i watched him fight cancer with every fiber of his being, as only he could. he is the commander in chief of the family, and he would not be seen as a frail shell of himself, not if he could help it. he made sure that his bedside table was always neat and organized. he always wanted to look his best, and would change his own pajamas, despite the pain that it put him, so that he always looked presentable, and made every effort to joke with his visitors. one morning after it snowed he called me in to his room to get him a cup of coffee and joked with me that he would take me to shanks park so we could go sledding together, priceless.

during that week i was there he was more concerned about how i was seeing him than about his own health. even though i was honored to spend that time with him and was concerned about how he was feeling, he made every attempt to make sure i was not freaked out, or scared in any way. pop pop nothing i could have seen would have scared me. i just wanted to spend time with you, create another memory, and say goodbye.

so how do we say goodbye and honor the man that has touched us so deeply. as far as i can tell, by keeping his teachings alive. for me that means that my children, when i have them, will know everything about their great grandfather. they will know all of his lawn care techniques, how to fix anything with tape and twine, and most importantly how to be passionate about family. above all that was the most important thing to my grandfather; his family. though we will miss him he will always be alive and well in each one of us.

i am honored to call frank jones sr. pop pop! i will never forget anything he has taught me, or any of the laughs we have had together. if i know him he will continue to bring laughs in heaven. the first thing he will do is try to sell jesus a new pair of herman survivor boots to replace the old worn out sandals he has been wearing, and when he is told that the sandals are just fine i am sure he will offer him a hershey bar to help the sale along. then i am pretty sure he will try to plant some forsythia bushes outside of the pearly gates claiming that it will help to keep the dust down. and then he will tell the same story to everyone about a million times, and each time the story will get just a little bit better. that's my grandpa.

thank you for everything you taught me. i love you and will always treasure our time together.

why do the good assignments happen at the last minute

2008-12-22T10:35:00.008-05:00

a few days agao i got a call around noon asking if i could make a portrait of the u's bad boy baller jack mcclinton at 1 pm. i said sure, knowing that it would take about 45 minutes to get to the campus. thanks to bad timing, and some bad traffic i arrived about 20 minutes late (i was in a meeting that i had to cut short when i got the call). the school was kind enough to give an extra 15 minutes to shoot (for a grand total of a half hour) so i would have time to scout. after finding out the only basketball court that was available was outside in bad light and had lots of students playing pick up games on it, i decided to shoot in front of a brick wall inside.

after finding a spot to shoot i chatted with the writer (who was there to interview mcclinton at the same time of the shoot) and found out that the story was about how he was considered a bad boy, but really wasn't. mcclinton had been suspended for 3 games due to slapping another player during a game. i was told he has a very solid family life and likes to point to the sky in honor of his grandparents after he scores. he was a pretty nice guy, i only wish i had more time to get him to warm up to me a little more.

for the short notice, and short time i had with him i think i did pretty well.

i just wish it was the crappy shoots that happened this way. then i wouldn't feel like there was so much more i could have done.

my first sermon

2008-12-19T10:45:00.002-05:00

yesterday i shot a profile portrait of an episcopal priest for a client who does a recurring q&a story with area clergy. these are normally somewhat difficult to shoot in a way that is visually interesting with out being redundant when compared to all of the other ones i have shot. so, naturally i was not completely confident that i would end up with something i was proud of. i am still not sure i did.

father bob, however, changed everything once i started taking his picture. this guy was a joy to work with. completely funny, an addicted to the boston red sox, he kept trying to get me to shoot him in his best pitching pose or better yet on a baseball field. i just could not stop laughing the entire time i was with him and his lovely wife, who i am sure rolled her eyes at his antics more than once. while we were chatting i started to tell him how good light could take an ordinary image and make it look extraordinary. i was showing him how the my lights could make the gold cross we were using in the picture look silver. during my explination i said "it's amazing how the light changes everything". to which he said that was the best idea for a christmas day sermon he had ever heard and asked if he could use it. i said he could and he asked my name so he could quote me. as far as i am concerned there is no need to quote, but i must say i think it is really cool that something i said could spark so much excitement from a man who many look to for leadership and guidance.

thanks for making my day father bob. and good luck with your sermon.

December Newsletter

2008-12-17T22:17:00.001-05:00

the december version of my monthly newsletter is up for all to view.

feel free to take a look, and sign up to receive an email version of the newsletter each month.

keep your eyes open for next month's version!

oh and MERRY HOLIDAYS TO ALL!!!!

me? on apad? really?!?!?!

2008-12-16T21:20:00.011-05:00

the fearless leader of the aphotoaday community, melissa lyttle, decided to interview me for the apad blog. i talk about how i got my start, why i love this crazy life as a freelancer, and what makes me tick. kinda cool if you ask me.

Interview: JOSH RITCHIE

Josh Ritchie is a freelance photographer based in South Florida. After graduating from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, several successful internships and being a staff photographer in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Illinois, Josh decided to take the leap into the freelance world. One fateful day after several long conversations with a close friend Josh decided he wanted a change and moved to Fort Lauderdale where he began a new phase of his career. Since that day, Josh has been seeking out moments in the Florida light with an ear-to-ear grin on his face. He has also found his photographic passion while working on his "Fluidity" project beneath the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, and while working for his corporate and editorial clients. His blog My 30 Percent is home to work shot not only for his clients, but also for himself.

You went from small paper to small paper to propelling yourself into the freelance world -- what prompted the change? What does freelance offer you that newspapers didn't?

i had spent many years at smaller papers working for boss's that had little vision, and motivation to push their staff to do great things. i was working in communities that, looking back on it now, had some great stories to tell, but the papers i had been working at for one reason or another refused to tell them. photography for them them was more of a way to fill a hole on their pages, an after thought. this lead to a lot of complacency for me early on in my career. i was making solid daily images, and a better than average image every once in a while, but was missing the boat on great story telling and great lighting.

everything changed in 2001 when i went to the eddie adams workshop as a student. i got a portfolio review from joe mcnally. he said my work was good, but lacked that certain something that would take it to the next level. so naturally i asked him what would help me to get to that next level, and he said that i would need to go somewhere where i was scared. all of the papers i had been working for had me in their comfort zone. i was making images that would suffice for the paper because i knew what was expected. if i became scared, or got out of my comfort zone, i would be forced to see differently.

What advice would you give for other people ready to make that leap? As far as actually making pictures what do you do to keep yourself motivated now that you're on your own?

my advice to budding freelancers is to make sure you have the money to support yourself for a while. unless you are extremely lucky you won't land the high paying jobs over night, and there are a lot of expenses when you go out on your own. marketing, travel, equipment, and daily living can take a huge toll on the bank account.

probably the most important thing is to make as many contacts as possible BEFORE you become freelance. you have to get the editors you want to work for to have you in the forefront of their mind. there are a ton of photographers out there who are more than capable of shooting any given assignment. your job is to get the editors to use you and not the other guy. that comes down to solid images, and more importantly great marketing. make sure you go to their offices and meet face-to-face with the people you want to work for. become friends with them. always keep in contact with your contacts. let them know what you are up to.

making sure that i am building my client list has kept me motivated thus far. i always have this voice in my head that pushes me by saying "if you want to work for them you have to show them something special." so i am always trying to work on something. whether it's new work, a website update or a newsletter, i am always trying to push myself to show something new.

For a boy who's been largely landlocked your entire life you really seemed to take to the water and excel with your Fluidity project? How did that come about? Is that for a client or is it more personal?

i have always been drawn to the water, which is kinda funny since i can get sea sick. growing up my mom always used to tell me that i should join the navy or become a marine biologist. when i was about 8 i really got into sharks. i read tons of books about them and went to see them at the aquarium. my friend and i even started a club called the killer sharks (dorky i know). so when i started taking a photography/video course in high school my plan was to become the next jacque cousteau and study sharks though video. i was better at stills, so i went with that instead. later in college i found that i had a passion for people and thus my photojournalism career was born.

when i moved to florida i rekindled my love for the sea. the clear aqua waters of the south florida shores called to me every day and i knew i wanted to try my hand at underwater photography. i am not scuba certified, and i had a lot of inner ear infections as a kid which gives me problems when i dive deeper that 10 feet so i knew i would be trying to shoot stuff in the surf close to shore. i had looked through "the seventh wave" a book by photographers trent parke and narelle autio and it blew my mind. the images were very surreal very dream like. with that in mind i sold the idea of doing a tourism story from the water's point of view to the south florida sun-sentinel. they liked it so they paid me to go to the beach, destroy at least 7 nikonos v cameras, and explore my vision which became more about how people are changed when they entire the water. kinda like i have been ever since i was a kid.

Speaking of personal projects, let's talk about your travel. For someone whose first trip out of the country was to Mexico to shoot some personal projects, what did that open your eyes to?

travel to mexico did a lot of things for me. first of all it taught me to pick your travel companions wisely. good friends always give you great stories to tell from the road. i also learned that going to a foreign country isn't as scary as i thought. things are generally the same there as they are in the u.s. and people are generally good. so there wasn't much for me to be anxious about in the first place.

i also found that the mexican people are passionate about a lot of things. it seemed to me that no matter what they did they did it with a love for the fact that they were able to do it. they were happy just because they were able to accomplish the task at hand and share it with others. it seems to me that in the u.s. were are very self absorbed. we get so wrapped up in how we look to our peers that we forget the joy of just being able to do what we do. that to me was probably the most important lesson i learned while i was in mexico.

a change of scenery can do a world of wonder for photographers. it seemed liked i was looking through the eyes of a child again. everything was new and worth exploring. travel is exactly what i need to keep the creative juices flowing.

Why'd you wait so long to get out of the U.S.? Where's your next trip to? And why?

i grew up a poor pennsylvania boy. my family never traveled outside of the eastern seaboard, and even that was rare. when i was in middle school we declared bankruptcy and moved into section 8 housing for a year. then when i was in college i was scrapping every last red cent i had just to buy some ramen noodles. i was never lucky enough to be in the situation that allowed for travel to another country.

currently i have not picked my next destination, but i do know that i want to go back to guanajuato, mexico to experience the easter celebration there. from what i have heard and seen in images it is amazing. they ride hundreds if not thousands of horses through the mountains and the entire town comes out to celebrate. they were all sorts of costumes and some carry life sized crosses. other than that i will go where they wind blows me when time and money permit.

You seem to have found your niche as a portrait photographer. Tell me about that. Was that out of necessity?

when i became freelance it became more and more obvious that i was gonna have to up my game in the portrait department. i was finding that a lot of clients, both corporate and editorial, where looking for lit portraits. so i started out slow, gained my confidence with smaller lighting kits, and eventually invested in some profoto gear. i have to say that investment alone has made a huge difference in my business. the lights work well, and it shows in the images. when i was using the smaller kits with smaller light sources i wasn't making near the amount of money i have made since i got my current setup.

people will always be willing to pay money for great portraiture. you have to be prepared deliver if you want to cash in.

Your portrait essay on the cars and their owners seems different from your other work. Are you exploring a new direction to take your work?

i was lucky enough to land an assignment from city & shore magazine shooting owners of high end cars. the story was about the passion that these guys felt for their vehicles which aloud me to have some room to play with the images. i decided to try my hand at the diptych scene in an effort to shoot the owners and their cars in a similar way. my original goal was to shoot the images so that the cars and the owners looked alike in some way, kinda like the way dogs and their owners sometimes look alike. after realizing that was a tall order while shooting on location, i simplified to shooting them in similar light.

lighting the cars was probably the hardest thing i have done in the long time. i knew what i wanted to accomplish in my head, but translating that into a final images while shooting in someone's driveway was a bitch to say the least. after a lot of trial and error and several calls to friends for some advice i was able to get the light the way i wanted. i learned that light cars is not about placing a light, and using highlights and shadows to create shape, but more about creating a reflection that works for the image. all of the images had little photo retouching done to them, and i did not have a studio where i could control every little thing so there were no reflections. i had a car four heads and black back drop all set up outside in most cases. so i had to make the reflections become the high lights.

so i learn a lot about how to make light do what i want in a less than ideal situation. i guess to that end my work has gone in a new direction.

I've watched your work go from standard newspaper work to more high-end work with a magazine feel. Most of that seems to be because of the lighting you've been using and the professional nature that lends itself to. Do you have any tips for people who want to get better at lighting?

the biggest thing i can say about lighting is to practice a hell of a lot. try to come up with ideas that are way over your head and then force yourself to accomplish them. you will fall flat on your face more often then not when you first start out, but you will learn a ton of stuff as you are falling.

you also need to assist people who know what they are doing as much as possible. watching people like bob croslin, eric larson and jen sens, light things has been a huge help. i got to see what they were doing and why they were doing it and apply that to my own work. i think that has been the fast track for me to get to where i am now, but i still have a ton to learn and look forward to the opportunity to learn it.

As far as promotional material goes -- what are you doing to get your name out there?

some say that promotion is 80 to 90% of freelance, and i would have to agree. promotional material, and networking is what is gonna get your name out there and help to keep it out there. don't get me wrong you still have to have some amazing work, but promotion is huge.

currently i have my online portfolio that i try to update with new images and tear sheets from clients i have recently shot for as often as possible. i have a blog that i use to show people who i am both as a person and a photographer, and a monthly newsletter that i send out to both current clients, and those i want to work with to show what i have been up to. i also try to send out promo cards to the same list of contacts so i have at least two points of contacts with them each month.

meeting with people, as i mentioned before, is by far one of the most important promotional steps i can take. so i have been planning trips to new york and other places to meet face-to-face with the people who will pay to do this "job" (is it really a job if we are having this much fun?).

What's next for Josh Ritchie?

right now i am working for whatever clients call me. recently that has been golf magazine, newsweek, the new york times, and a few corporate clients. while i am having fun shooting assignments and paying the bills i am hoping that i will find the time to continue shooting my underwater photography, as well as working on some new personal projects. maybe something on fishing culture, or a continuation of my car portrait project, or a shoot with alligator hunters. who knows maybe all of them. plus there is some travel to be done in the near future mexico is calling me back, while south america is beckoning as well.

no matter what happens i am sure the future will be fun as it brings a few more grey hairs to the top of my head.

November Newsletter

2008-11-26T09:12:00.001-05:00

the november version of my monthly newsletter is up for all to view. it details my travels to the cayman islands, work i have done for several clients including for golf magazine, as well as an update to my website's clients pages.

feel free to take a look, and sign up to receive an email version of the newsletter each month.

keep your eyes open for next month's version!

fishing for images

2008-11-15T10:12:00.000-05:00

last month i got to work with a new client, golf magazine. they asked if i would like to spend the day on pga tour member robert allenby's boat as he fished for most of the day. gee let me think about that....YES PLEASE!!!! the goal was to document him fishing and make a couple of portraits that showed his new laid back attitude to life and golf.

my assistant and i arrived at 5:30 am (ungodly hour) and after recieving a speeding ticket for my efforts to arrive on time, we got to "work". after making most of the images in the first half of the day. mr. allenby was gracious enough to allow us to fish for yellow tail snapper with him. that's a great day in my book.

thank you mr. allenby

won't some one think of the children?

2008-11-14T10:10:00.000-05:00

i was clearing off images from cf cards i seldom use when i came across this.

about a month or so ago i was asked to speak in a photo 101 class a community college by an editor i work with quite a bit. she wanted to speak about seeing light to the "kids". so i put together a slide show and tried to show them how ambient and strobe lighting can be very similar, and very different. after showing them my work i broke out the profotos and tried to show them some simple technics that they could accomplish with clamp lights, flash lights, or any other common lighting they could get their hands on.

i am begining to find it strange that i am teaching other people about this stuff. i mean i feel like i am still learning and shouldn't be a "leader". i do love talking to people about this though. the younger guys are always so enthuasistic and tend to keep me thinking. that's always a good thing

this shot was one of the student's who wanted to see some "hip hop" style lighting. i kept it simple so they could try to do the same thing with one light.

grand old time

2008-11-14T00:13:00.001-05:00

ah the islands. warm sun, the sand beneath your feet, a cool drink in your hand as the warm breeze runs through your hair. i i wish.

a few weeks ago i traveled to grand cayman to shoot a financial story for der speigel. the idea was that the caymans tend to be a haven for big business and banks to hide from the tax man. billions of dollars flow through the country and there is now tax paid on a single cent. so with the financial markets around the world doing less then stellar are the caymans feeling the pinch as well? to tell you the truth i am still not to sure what the answer is to that question. the writer, who was great, and i had a hard time getting access to the people who had the answers, and the no banks would touch us with a ten foot poll.

on top of access problems the weather just didn't play along and foiled my plans to cover the second biggest money maker on the island, tourism. there were seven foot swells off shore which prevented the cruise ships from docking which meant no tourists.

on to plan c. i decided to cover the islanders. they live well, but when compared to the amount of money that is flowing through their shores you could say they were poor. the businesses that call george town their home don't have to pay a dime to work there after their intial set up fee. most of them hire workers from their home country which means a lot of natives work else where and don't benefit from the money. i thought that kinda sucked so i hung out with whoever i could find.

there was a great roadside fish market that i stopped by each morning. they guys were great, and gave me a lot of info that helped out the writer. plus they were kind enough to allow me to make their picture.

i would say it was a great trip.

tear sheets galore

2008-11-13T22:43:00.002-05:00

lately it seems as if my images have been popping up everywhere. my mailbox has been full of magazines that have published images i shot while on assignment, and there are several web sites that have used quite a few of my images. golf magazine just published a piece on aussie pga tour member robert allenby. the new york times used several images from a shot with a pancreatic cancer survivor. the saint andrews school redesigned their web site around images i shot for them. a financial story i shot for der speigel in the cayman islands just hit news stands. last , but certainly not least, city & shore magazine did a ten page spread featuring the my images i shot about guys who love their cars. visit photojosh. com to see more.

the final days

2008-11-13T21:16:00.000-05:00

this is the last chance you have to check out my october newsletter as i will be sending the new out on monday. you can view my newsletter each month my going to http://photojosh.com/newsletter . there (as well as on this blog) you will find a link to subscribe. if you choose to subscribe you receive it in you email once a month.

enjoy!!!

kids are fun

2008-11-04T12:35:00.001-05:00

i love kids. they always seem to bring a smile to my face with their innocence, their endless amount of energy, and their ability to not care what others may think of them.

this little guy was no different. alex manzanares was diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder, similar to autism, at age 2. he was unable to speak and would suffer from extreme behavioral out bursts. though a lot of tutoring and therapy little alex is doing much better. he now is able to talk and keeps his mother on her toes with his boundless energy .

he made me laugh the entire time i was at their home. he pulled out his super hero coloring book, the boy just loves every super hero ever created, and started coloring. he would laugh as he created new costume colors for batman, i beleive it was purple, blue, and red instead of the traditional black. he then proceeded to tell me how he and his older brother would play for the yankees one day. they currently play tee ball and claim to be the best at it.

he was just an all around great kid. i hope that when i have kids they are just as happy with they world as he is.

election day

2008-11-04T12:27:00.002-05:00

well election day is upon us. from what i can tell early voting across the country, and florida was no different. i went out to the polls on sunday for the last day of early in florida and the line wrapped around two buildings. voters had to wait about 4 hours just to cast their vote. crazy! i love the fact that people are willing to wait that long to help take our country in a better direction. i only wish they were a bit more animated as they waited in line.

here's to president barrack obama and hopefully a better future for all of us

aquinas

2008-10-19T10:38:00.002-04:00

anyone who knows high school football in south florida knows that saint thomas is a power house. granted they are a private school which allows them to recruit some of the best players around, and one of their coaches is former nfler cris carter, but that doesn't take away the fact that they play some damn good football.

every time i cover them i am amazed at how far ahead of the curve they are. most of the teams i cover tend to have a few plays they run all of the time with a couple of oh shit plays should they need them. not saint thomas. they seem to have endless plays and run them with precision. during the game where this image was taken (against deerfield) they took on an undefeated team and forced them to run the ball to no avail. after the aquinas defense came up with several turn overs the offense ran play after play including a 70 some odd yard touch down pass to duron carter, cris carter's son. they scored on every pocession in the first half. by the time i had to leave for deadline at half time the score was like 44-3. not as close as predicted for two undeafeated high school teams.

looks like i may be shooting st thomas again in the playoffs.

barnstorming it

2008-10-17T11:14:00.003-04:00

the last three weeks were spent preparing for barnstorm xxi (the eddie adams workshop). there was a lot of work ahead of time this year as i was lucky enough to get the nod to be a producer. that meant i had to spend a ton of time on the phone calling every resident in sullivan county trying to flush out great stories for the students on the purple team. there was a lot of luck involved, but in the end i connected with some really great people who were willing to allowing a student to follow them for a day and a half. our team shot a 60 year old women who loves to go rabbit hunting with her dogs, a duck slaughter house, a 17 year old golden gloves boxer who is using the sport to help him pick up the pieces of his life, a taxi stand in a town of 300 people, a great corner bar where the drinking starts at 9 am, an assisted living facility for mentally and physically disabled adults, and a pheasant farm that trains dogs to go hunting just to name a few. all of my phone calls paid off when our students knocked the stories out of the park.

it was great working with our team leader melissa lyttle, editor santiago lyon, digital tech mike stewart (both of the ap), and mutlimedia editors meredith birkett and bruce strong during the four days we spent on eddie's farm. some how as all of us were imparting our knowledge to them i became a better person and photographer. thank you all for teaching me.

eddie may be gone, but his spirit lives in each one of use that makes that walk up his gravel driveway to the barn each year. i am humbled that i get to help to further his dream each year. thank you eddie for creating a photo nirvana where we can be geeks who get no sleep for four days and come out better for it.

here's to next year. i know i will be there doing whatever is asked of me if i am lucky enough to get invited back.

the best team ever (outside of the black team. my loyalties will always lie with mark kettenhofen and the workshop slaves!!!). you guys kicked ass!!!

fluidity in your house

2008-09-21T13:17:00.002-04:00

i have put a book of my fluidity project together that is now for sale at blurb.com. you can get to the book by clicking the link below. i kept the price as low as possible (i will only make $10.00 off of any of the sales) so i wouldn't break anyones bank.

so buy buy buy. you only live once right?

fluidity

By josh ritchie

Book Preview

a night of firsts or fists either one is fine

2008-09-14T10:44:00.002-04:00

last night i got to shoot my first mixed martial arts fight. i have shot a little bit of boxing in the past, so i felt like i knew what to expect.

there were 13 fights, three of which i was covering for my client, so i decided to shoot most of what was going on just for me. i felt like i really wanted some time to play. some time to rediscover the photographer with in me, and not just be the guy who is worried about all of the stuff i have to do in the office, or who my next client will be. it was a great escape.

i spent the a lot of the evening becoming a kid again. exploring different angles, and just trying stuff to see what would happen. it was so liberating and educational at the same time. most importantly i now know who i need to shoot for every time i pick up the camera. ME!!!

i ended up with eight photos that i feel took my vision in a different direction, and are good enough to show the world.

september 2008 newsletter

2008-09-11T15:23:00.000-04:00

the september version of my monthly newsletter is up and running. it will keep you up to date on where my photography has been taking me, and the new images that i am showing to the world on my online portfolio.

you can view it at...

http://photojosh.com/newsletter

and you can subscribe to via the link on this blog, or by going to...

http://photojosh.com/newsletter/subscribe.html

enjoy!

photojosh.com 2.1

2008-09-11T11:07:00.002-04:00

once again i have updated my website www.photojosh.com. the new version includes links to this blog, my newsletter, and a new picture category entitled "a love affair". the images in this category are from a portrait project i did about men and their love for their high end cars back in july and august.

please feel free to take a look. and never feel bad about loitering. it's totally allowed.

lest we forget

2008-09-10T22:08:00.001-04:00

i am always amazed at how children seem to know intuitively the right thing to do at the right time. most adults i know either are too busy with daily life, too jaded from everything that life has thrown at them, or have many excuses to not care about things the way a lot kids i have met do.

case in point. i followed three young brothers, between the ages of 18 and 8, around today as they placed flags around their neighborhood in honor of the 9/11 anniversary. the placed a flag at every mailbox, every fire hydrant (in memory of the fire fighters), every utility pole, and every traffic control sign. i know we all care about what happened that day, but these three kids have been doing something every year to show it.

kudos

the silent majesty of a sunrise

2008-09-08T11:01:00.001-04:00

there is something that happens to a person when the sun pokes it's head through the waters of the atlantic. something renewing. something primal.

as the sky becomes a canvas for a solar painting the world's inhabitants stop in awe of the shear beauty.

it's the earth's promise that each day will bring something new, and it is never too late to start over.

i just wish it didn't happen so damn early.

quickie

2008-09-05T12:34:00.002-04:00

of all of the professional athletes i have photographed mma fighters are the coolest. they tend to be very open to having their portrait taken, and take instruction pretty well. now if i could just get their pr guys to give me more time.

this is urijah faber. i had about 15 minutes, including set up, to make this image which was taken to go with a story on his upcoming fight in hollywood, fl. i used two lights both with grid spots, a 20 degree and a 30 degree. both were placed across from each other while the subject was placed in between so the exposure of each light was the same. the final exposure for this shot was 1/250, f-14 @ asa 100.

i really wanted to make him look like a bad ass that could beat the living snot out of you, so i decided not to use fill to lighten the shadow on his face and eyes. i did shoot a couple of images that were less dramatic, but i this one accomplished what i set out to do.

best of luck urijah

a near miss

2008-09-04T14:50:00.003-04:00

hurricane gustav had everyone in new orleans on edge. everyone was fearing the worst. i heard reports that some of the levees on the western edge of town may fail and there may be some significant flooding in the city again.

i got a call at 10:30 on sunday night from a client saying they wanted to send me. i knew i was behind the eight ball with the storm scheduled to make land fall on monday, but i decided to catch a flight into birmingham, al (which was the closest open airport) and make the 5 hour drive to the city. along the way i hit some pretty heavy rain and mildly gusty winds which contributed to making my trip 3 hours longer. once i got to the city i was relieved to see that the storm had caused only minor damage and all of the levees had held. there very few images to be made (except for an empty bourbon street) by the time i got there, but i was glad to see that the more than 2 million evacuees would be able to return with their homes still standing.

i guess if these things are gonna happen i want to be the guy who can help the affected people by telling their stories. i wish that they wouldn't happen, but i will be there when they do.

carefree and loving it

2008-08-30T20:10:00.004-04:00

i had one of those days. you know the ones where you get to an assignment and there is literally nothing going on. no one there to make an image of, and just nothing to really explore. then my eyes caught these two girls.

while their mothers were cooking some great food for the caribbean festival, they were cutting some serious rug in front of the food booths.

thanks god for kids and their ability to make a bad situation a lot better with their carefree attitude.

in the tall grass

2008-08-25T22:20:00.003-04:00

a few days ago i was sent to make a portrait for a story that is becoming all too common around these parts. it seems that the lady i photographed was having a problem with the abandoned house that she lives next to. the home went into foreclosure and has been unkept since november of 2007. the grass has gotten very tall and the house is in disrepair. needless to say it has become an eyesore and is starting to bring down her property value.

my client wanted to focus on the grass, because the lady was fearful that snakes maybe living through out the over grown yard.

here is the image of my setup.

i used two lights attached to one power pack, the one on the right is at full power, and the left at half. each light had a grid spot attached (a 30 degree on the left, and a 20 degree on the right), and were placed to get as close to a 1:1 light ratio as possible while still be a tad brighter than the ambient light. the final exposure at iso 100 was f-22 @ 1/250.

here is the final image

pretty simple, but sometimes keeping it simple is best.

the storm that wasn't

2008-08-18T23:40:00.011-04:00

today i covered fay. there wasn't much to shoot. some wind from time to time, rain off and on, but nothing more than a big thunderstorm. i tried to find something different, but there wasn't much going on other than the typical person on beach watching the surf and clouds.

i had fun chasing stuff down, and met some cool people in the few hours i was out.

that is always a great day in my book.

a love affair created

2008-08-17T20:20:00.009-04:00

in mid july i shot a story for city & shore magazine about guys and the really high end cars they love. the shoot included a rolls royce, a bentley, a lamborghini, two aston martins, as well as other vehicles.

after recieveing the assignment and talking with the editors i did a few days of brainstorming and came up with the idea of shooting diptychs. one image of the car and one image of the owner, that would show something that the car and driver had in common. a lot of what i ended up accomplishing relied on the lighting and graphic composition to show similarities.

i am pretty proud of what i did, and after receiving questions about my lighting set up i thought i would post some drawings and the final images for three of my set ups.

first

the bentley

this was the first shot i did. it was shot using two profoto 7b heads a couple of grid spots and a 3x4 soft box. after this shoot i realized i needed more lights.

i shot the driver with the 3x4 soft box set about four feet away from him with the power pack turned up to full power. i had the subject facing directly into the light but the light and the subject were offset by about a foot so the center of the light was aimed over his right shoulder, which was furtherest away from the camera. using the edge of the light like this allowed me to get that sliver of light on his face, while creating a shadow on the left side of his face. the exposure was f22 @ 1/200 with an iso of 100

to shoot the car i used two grid spots. i set up the main light about six inches away from the front bumper with a 20 degree spot on it. i turned it up to full power and aimed it straight down at the hood, it about 4 feet higher than the hood, just in front of the hood ornament. this allowed for the car to become a reflector and bounce the light back up on to the hood ornament. after that light was set i used a 30 degree grid spot on a fill light that was place about five feet off of the passenger side of the car and aimed at the car's head lights. this gave me a nice soft light, with this head being set at half power, to add a touch of light in the shadows. the exposure for this shot was f20 @ 1/250 with an iso of 100.

and here is what i ended up with....

the lamborghini

with the driver of the lambo i used two grid spots, a 20 degree and a 30 degree, set behind the subject and just off of each shoulder. the lights were aimed to glance off of his ears so they could then hit the reflector that my assistant was holding. the reflector was used as the main light source to fill his face. my exposure was determined by the reflector and both grid spots were adjusted to match each other while not blowing everything out. i did allow them to get a little hot, however, in order to match the highlights on the car. the final exposure of the shot was f13 @ 1/250 and iso 100.

to shoot the car i used a profoto 5 foot reflector just of of the driver side back bumper at full power. this light was raised to about 10 feet and then aimed to towards the hood of the car to give me a highlight on the roof and the hood. i then used a 3x4 soft box just to the left of the open door at 3/4 power to give me a highlight on the door, and 30 degree grid spot at half power to light the quarter panel. finally i had my assistant hold a 20 degree grid spot at half power at ground level to light the car's front end. the final exposure for the car was f20 @ 1/250 and iso 100

and the final result...

finally the rolls royce

the shot of the driver was identical to the shot of the lambo's driver. two grid spots placed behind the subject and a reflector used to bounce the light back onto his face. the final exposure was f16 @ 1/250 with an iso 100.

with the car i again used the profoto 5 foot reflector, but this time it was off of the passenger side back bumper of the car. it was raised to about 10 feet, aimed to give me a glancing blow on the roof and hood, and at full power. i used the 3x4 softbox to light the right side of the hood. it was about 4 feet away from the car and at 3/4 power. i then used a 20 degree grid spot at full power to light the grill and hood ornament. this light was placed in front of the car, and off to the right. finally i used a 30 degree grid spot off to the left of the car, by about 4 feet, to add some fill to the head lights. this light was at half power. the final exposure was f22 @ 1/250 with an iso of 100.

and here is the shot....

so there you have it. the really quick version of what my thinking and lighting were. i really think i pushed myself to see beyond what i have done in the past, and because of that i ended up with some really solid results.

check my site in september when i will upload all of the images after the story is publish.

newsletters galore

2008-08-17T16:11:00.001-04:00

i have started sending out a monthly newsletter to clients, friends, and family. the goal is to keep people up to date on what i have been shooting, who i have been shooting it for, and where i will be taking this passion of mine in the future.

if you are interested in receiving the monthly installments you can subscribe using the link on the right hand side of this page. once you subscribe you will get the new versions sent to you via email. you can also view the current version all month long by going to www.photojosh.com/newsletter.

thanks for looking

updates

2008-08-16T15:39:00.001-04:00

from the new fluidity section of photojosh.com

incase you haven't noticed yet there has been a lot of changes going on at http://photojosh.com. the site has been completely redesigned and now includes three new categories from my trip to mexico. in the past days there has been new images added to the portraits as well as the fluidity sections. the clients pages have also been updated with new tear sheets from recent assignments i have shot for city & shore magazine as well as the guardian's magazine. please feel free to take a look.

in september i will be adding a new section for a story i shot for city & shore on guys who are passionate about their high end cars. more to come on that after the images are published.

olympic dreams

2008-08-15T13:30:00.000-04:00

i had the honor of making some portraits of adler volmar, an olympian competeing in judo, before he left for beijing. i just heard on the news that he lost his match and is out of medal contention. he is a super nice guy and i was hoping to watch him go for gold. ah well atleast he can always say he competed in the olympics.

like a kid again

2008-05-17T10:07:00.005-04:00

i got to shoot what was probably the most amusing assignment i have had in a long time yesterday. the harlem globetrotters came to a hollywood elementary school after the students won a campbell's soup contest. these guys were awesome so ethusiastic and authentic. they reminded me of how important it is to think like a kid and have as much fun as possible everyday.

so from here on out i am gonna try to have my kid goggles on.

now if i could only get that damn globetrotters theme song out of my head.

something from nothing

2008-05-12T13:15:00.006-04:00

sometimes i just want to scream. i just want to put the cameras down, pull all of my hair out, and scream until i can't scream any more.

today i had a shoot for a client which will remain nameless. i was supposed to shoot a group of 12 olympic hopeful swimmers, and then a individual portrait of a gal who has already qualified for the olympics. upon arriving i was told i was shooting two group portraits plus the individual, and had like 30 minutes to accomplish all of them. grrrrrr. on top of that i was not told who i was supposed to be shooting and the coach was supposed to gather the swimmers for me. so i shot a quick and dirty portrait of the first group assuming the coach was gathering the rest of the group for the second shoot since they were spread out between the pool, gym, and locker rooms. as i got ready for the second i found out that the second group decided to leave.

par for the course i guess. i wouldn't have been as upset as i am, but i did have some ideas that i wanted to try that i thought would have been fun. i was hoping to try some high angle stuff from the diving platform with the group floating below me (since it was requested that i shoot the portrait in the water), but since the people who set up the shoot neglected to tell the swimmers to remain in their suits after practice that was impossible. that just pissed me off even more since the reporter was there during the shoot, and she was the one who set everything up. and to top things off none of the swimmers who remained were willing to change back into their suits. double grrrrr

oh well at least the last swimmer was kind enough to enduldge me as i played with my new ring light.

in a mexican state of mind

2008-05-09T11:43:00.006-04:00

over the past couple of months my brain keeps taking a trip back to mexico (i only wish my body could follow). so much so that it resulted in a tattoo of a sugar skull (see post below).

back in late october i traveled with great friends (melissa lyttle and john l white) to oaxaca to make some images during dia de los muertos. it was a trip i will never forget. great food, good friends, and amazing natives who allowed three gringos with cameras into their lives.

i see a return trip, including my body, in my future

my mischievous daughter

2008-05-08T11:18:00.001-04:00

i love her with all my heart, but i know she secretly is plotting against me.

i can see it in her eyes.

skulls with a pinch of sugar

2008-05-08T10:22:00.010-04:00

friends are great. inked friends are even better.

i took a much overdue trip to tampa at the beginning of the week to visit melissa lyttle (code name crispy gingersnap). several hours after arriving she had the brilliant idea to commemorate our trip to oaxaca, mexico with some sugar skull tattoos. how could i say no?

thanks m for a two days that will be with me for the rest of my life.

-smokey topaz

(images of me by melissa lyttle).

our beautiful balloon

2008-02-17T13:46:00.011-05:00

after two years of up and downs, i felt it only fitting to celebrate our anniversary by taking the love of my life for a hot air balloon ride while on vacation in las vegas.

getting up at 5 am sucked but from there on out it was an amazing way to spend the morning. the cool crisp air forced our weak florida blood to search for warmer parts of our bodies. as we stood there shivering uncontrollably we began to realize why we got married in the first place. i looked in to the eyes of the woman who changed my life and knew that she was the single most important thing to me, and that best best thing i had ever done was to say i do two years ago.

here's to 60 more years

i love you mrs. ritchie

the day the dead rise again

2008-01-30T11:56:00.000-05:00

thanks to a lyttle (hahahaha) prodding from melissa lyttle, i spent a few moments doing an extremely quick edit of my dia de los muertos images.

last october i wondered through the cemetaries of oaxaca as families spent the days surrounding halloween celebrating the life and death of their loved ones. i was amazed to see how they embrace the thought of death and how it consumed the town. everywhere i went there was something to remind me of the fate we all must face, but in mexico it is a fate that has become so integral to their daily lives that they celebrate it instead of fearing it. family members of all ages sat around the final resting place of their loved ones cooking the deceased's favorite meal, and singing songs. it was more of a party than a funeral.

i only hope that when i go that my life will have brought that much joy to the ones i love

yet another death of another titan

2008-01-30T09:22:00.001-05:00

last night i witnessed an end of an era. hollywood mayor mara giulianti was voted out of office after 20 years of service. i didn't know her, nor can i say whether she was a good or bad mayor. i can say i admire how passionate and heartfelt the emotions were as she spoke supporters.

up up and away

2008-01-27T09:18:00.000-05:00

every once in a while i get an assignment that reminds me how lucky i am to earn a living by making photographs. yesterday i got to fly in a powered paraglider (you know those guys that look like they are in a parachute with a fan strapped to their back). i really didn't get to make the image i was hoping for (since there was no one else was flying while we were up there), but it was fun and i have some images to prove i did it

our job rules

it's an ugly habit

2008-01-24T10:05:00.000-05:00

i'll never forget it. the late summer heat was overwhelming. we were on lunch break during band camp (yes i was in marching band in high school), and i was in the car of one of the seniors in the band. i was finally cool. my luck just kept getting better and better, he offered me and a friend a cigarette and now i was amazingly cool. you know the kinda of cool that you only see in the movies, or on a james dean poster.

from that point on i was a smoker. most of my friends were too.

fast forward to today and my wife and i have given up our 15 year habit (even though we constantly struggle with our addiction). it is an every day struggle for me but every once in a while i am reminded that i need to stay strong. recently my dad was diagnosed with COPD and will probably die from it in years to come (thankfully he has the diease under control right now).

pasquale caprio was kind enough to help me remember while on assignment one day as well. he is 78 and has been smoking much longer than i have been alive. he too has COPD, and is on oxygen 24/7/365. as much as am thankful the lesson he has taught me i am sadden that it is at his own expense.

kinda wierd how that moment back in 10th grade was one of the coolest moments back then, but now it could be one of the worst decisions i have ever made.

thanks pasquale

hair by wind

2008-01-22T11:27:00.000-05:00

great cuban food, a couple of cigars, mediocre margaritas, several coors light, and a pale white boy running in the ocean make for a great day.

if you ask denise i am sure the only thing she would change is her new hair stylist.

new friends rock

a man and his dream

2008-01-22T10:59:00.000-05:00

ross taylor decided to celebrate martin luther king jr's birthday by fulfilling his own dream. despite the rainy, windy, chilly (by south florida standards) weather his extremely pale yankee ass was gonna end up in the waters off the shores of south beach.

i am glad i could be a part of your dream ross.

viva los lucha libre

2007-11-21T19:56:00.000-05:00

VIVA

is this a two lane road or a ten lane road?

2007-11-21T18:54:00.000-05:00

every once in a while there is a time and place that will be forever etched in your mind. could be your 8th birthday party, that time you prayed all night for enough snow to closed school the next day and your prayer was answered, or the way your spouse looked on the day you got married. this is not that kind of memory. oh it will be forever etched in my mind, but not because of the warm fuzzy felling i get when i recall it. it's more of a feared for my life kinda memory.

taxi drivers. you would think they would actually know how to drive. well if your in mexico when you are assuming that they have gone through some sort of drivers course and know the "rules" of the road in their fine country you've got another thing coming. the drivers are more dare devils than your friendly neighborhood chauffeur. as we boarded the many cabs we took during our two week stay, they started to become more of an amusement park ride rather than a way to get from place to place. we would get in, sit down, make sure our seat belts were as tight as possible, and then white knuckle it as we broke out in nervous laughter. driver after driver kept us on our toes as they continually turned two lane roads into 5 lane roads, cut off just about anything that move, and applied the brakes with only inches to spare. we were happy to arrive with our lunches still firmly implanted in our stomaches let alone alive.

the next time you get in the mood for some cheep thrills forget about a roller-coaster. just catch a plane to mexico and flag down a cab.

then.....

get in, sit down, and shut up. it won't hurt a bit. i promise.

(the photo was taken in one of my new favorite cities. guanajuato. i highly recomend it to everyone)

guys turning left

2007-11-19T14:32:00.000-05:00

nascar.

what can i say.

i just got back from two weeks in mexico (images to come once i have time to look through them all) and the first thing i shoot is three days of guys making left turns. it wasn't/isn't a terrible assignment, but it is a long hard three days of work. walking all over the place, waiting for drivers to come out of their trailers, and standing in line for mediocre food.

friday, i am walking back to my car happy to hear i get to go home early for the evening only to find out that my car won't start. i hold myself back from throwing my 400 as far as i can and set out to find some help. you would think it would be easier to find jumper cables at a race track. finally a really nice cop helped me out and i was on my way. i come back on saturday (after installing a new battery in my car) hoping that the gremlins will leave me alone for the day. no such luck.....my 17-35 broke (after i dropped it) and then my mac would not boot up. grrrrr, i had no way to transmit the images i was about to shoot on deadline. oh well at least it is a story i can tell and you get to laugh at me. wooo hooo.

welcome back, welcome back, welcome back
(in my best welcome back carter voice)

my crazy life

2007-10-22T18:22:00.001-04:00

life has been crazy latley. kinda like this shoot.

atlantic records needed some stills on set of the flo rida's (yes that's florida with a space between the o and the r) "low" video in miami. like every hip video the booze, apple bottom jeans, and rides flo'ed like wine.

not only did i get to shoot the craziness for about 5 hours or so, but i was threaten with arrest for using the rest room at the miami children's museum. if you are ever there don't take a piss after hours, you could end up in prison.

i love my job.

death of a titan

2007-09-06T08:31:00.000-04:00

as if the bso haven't had enough on thier plates with two deputy shootings, killing one, in the same week. now the sheriff has been brought up on federal mail fraud and tax evasion charges. crazy. i always liked the guy in my brief encounters with him, and it was a bit of a slap in the face to hear that he had been sort of a snake in the grass.

anyway i spent 6 hours camped out behind the federal courthouse yesterday waiting for him to do something.

here is what i ended up with.

happy accident???

2007-08-28T11:30:00.001-04:00

i am still a little unsure.

i had to shoot a portrait of 4 state champion (from last year) swimmers. after doing the typical shots i really wanted to try for something different. the guys sugguested doing something in the sauna. after spending what seemed to be an eternity waiting for the steam to build up and then getting yelled at by the coach for taking to much time away from practice i ended up shooting what i could for myself.

i like the idea, but i am still not sold. either way i will keep this tucked in my back pocket and pull it out when i get the chance on the next shoot.

our first wedding

2007-08-16T16:04:00.000-04:00

my friend and new business partner rhonda and i shot our first wedding together about two weeks ago. it was nice to shoot images that we knew would be cherished for a long time to come.

this was one of the groomsmen keeping a sharp look out for the bride so the groom wouldn't see her before the big event.

i'm back

2007-08-15T11:54:00.001-04:00

ok ok i know it has been way too long since i have graced the internet with a post. in my defense i was away from the internet for almost a week, and then i was sick for a while as well. i hope you can find it in your heart to forgive my lack of posting, and that you will return as i begin showing you what i have been up to during my absence.

today's image was shot for crain's chicago business magazine of a chief investment officer in west palm beach.

more to come....

busy busy busy

2007-07-13T22:05:00.000-04:00

been crazy the past couple of weeks, and the last two days feel like i haven't slept.

so since i missed a day i thought i would give you two images from today. i was sent out to shoot a gal who had taken a trip to israel for no real reason other than she had gotten a free trip. i was told to shoot her with the "stuff" she brought back. when i got to her place i found out that she only had a couple of necklaces.

yet another housing story

2007-07-12T00:00:00.000-04:00

ok it's 12 am an i just missed the clock to get this one in on 7/11.

anyway i was assigned to shot a portrait of a guy who is worried about home foreclosures bring down the price of his property, and bringing crime to area. no home foreclosures in the area so this is what we came up with.

it's coming

2007-07-10T23:23:00.000-04:00

i have been spending most of my free time over the past couple of days redesigning my web site. i think what i have come up with is the best design i have ever done, but i am a bit biased. i hope to have it up and running by the end of july (i have a couple of trips coming up that will cut into my time in front of the computer). if you would like to be notified when it is uploaded email me at josh@photojosh.com.

as schwarzenegger would say

2007-07-09T19:28:00.000-04:00

.....get down, now!!!!

she's pissed and she knows how to use a nail gun.

my wedding business partner, rhonda vanover, assisted me on a last minute shoot for reeds business today.just one from the lighting test.

remind me never to get on her bad side

hail mary full of grace

2007-07-08T22:11:00.001-04:00

went riding with the misses again tonight and tried to shoot at 1/15 while riding. hard but kinda fun. i think i am gonna talk her in to some night riding again to see if i can get this one just the way i want it.

due to popular demand

2007-07-07T01:40:00.000-04:00

got a couple of favorable comments on this one from the time i spent during the fourth on the beach so i thought i would post it

wine lovers

2007-07-06T20:34:00.000-04:00

a new magazine wanted me to get a shot of this couple in the wine store they frequent. the story was about how they met and share their love of wine together. i was told to shoot something that showed how close they are and something that had a more traditional italian feel to it (whatever that means). this is one from the take

get your motor runnin

2007-07-05T20:51:00.001-04:00

they wanted a photo that was cooler than stocks. crain's called me to take a portrait of the financial manager at a motorcycle manufacturer for a financial story. the subject matter, story wise, was pretty boring, so i told them i would do my best to make him look like a business bad ass.

this was my favorite from the shoot.

fourth on the beach

2007-07-04T23:03:00.000-04:00

the ocean was flatter than i have ever seen it, and thanks to a storm the sky seemed to blend right into the water with this eerie light. then out of the blue i found these kids doing flips into a 4 foot hole they dug in the sand.

crazy light + flipping kids = fun day.

holy crap

2007-07-03T23:32:00.000-04:00

i just realized i have been post for one month today.

woo hoo happy anniversary to me!!!!

old people suck.....

2007-07-03T23:00:00.000-04:00

.....sometimes

after living in their condo community (it's designated as a senior citizen community) for 10 years the clock's were served with a 10 day notice to get rid of their kids (kids under 18 aren't allowed) or leave. from what i am told the community is allowed to have 20% of their residents under the age of 55. at the time the clock's moved in they had no kids, but after living there for 7 years she got pregnant and the board gave them written permission to live there with their daughter after she was born. on top of the written permission they were given a copy of the community's bylaws which had a prevision allowing the board to give permission for the kids to stay. today they found out that those bylaws were out of date before they moved in. now they have a son and the new board (mr. clock was a board member and his father-in-law is currently on the board)decided to enforce the current bylaws. needless to say they are fighting this.

crazy how some people will enforce things just to enforce them

born to be wild

2007-07-02T13:19:00.000-04:00

she thinks she's a hell's angel now, but i know better.

the twins (my wife and her sister) turned 30 a few days back, and i got my better half a bike for the occasion. now we ride together several times a week. it's kinda fun and i get brownie points every time we go.

this is a hail mary as we rode last night.

it's raining it's pouring

2007-07-01T18:32:00.001-04:00

been raining hard every day now.

this one fit my mood.

a son's loss

2007-06-30T21:40:00.000-04:00

steve esdale's father, murray cohen, married a gal 25 years younger than him. several years ago cohen's wife made a call to 911 saying that she found him dead at home, claiming he passed in his sleep. according to esdale and several audio experts (i have not heard the tape yet) when you listen to an original copy of the 911 call you can hear cohen pleading with his wife to get him an ambulance. as the tape plays on cohen says that she was not gonna get away with killing him. the police say there is no evidence of foul play (esdale believes his father was poisoned) an autopsy was never performed and cohen's former wife is fighting him on exhumation.

just a sad sad story all around.

another day.....

2007-06-29T16:13:00.000-04:00

.....another hippie

i love that i get to met new people every day. this guy is related (through marriage) to joan rivers and he was the personal interior designer for the bee gees. he also was a part of haight-ashbury. among other things, was not allowed to attend his graduation from high school because of his long hair. the man was really keeping him down, he has the articles to back it up.

he had a ton of stories to tell. too bad i didn't have enough time to stay a listen to the rest of them.

way cool

great advice

2007-06-28T21:25:00.000-04:00

pay attention to my individuality. that is the advice i got while making a portrait of an astrologer today. the story is on what has happened to "hippies" as they have grown up, and i got to admit i was expecting to meet some crazy patchouli wearing gal with a crystal ball today. instead i met barbara hamilton. she was everything that i didn't expect. really professional, sweet, and gave great advice.

barbara, if you are listening thanks for making my day, and helping me to see that i have the power to affect who i am.

tough shoot

2007-06-27T20:33:00.000-04:00

shot this one for stern a while back. it ended up being one of the tougher shoots i have had in a while due to crazy miami hotel rules and the subject being really nervous about his image.

stern was happy with this, and on that day that was all i could ask for.

peace and love

2007-06-26T23:30:00.000-04:00

where do hippies go when they grow up? well if your ina lee you run a travel magazine in south florida.

i was assigned to take her portrait for a "where are they now" kinda story on hippies and the summer of love.

i know i know

2007-06-25T21:41:00.000-04:00

i may have gone a little overboard with the feet/fish shots as of late. but hey i was having fun, and i foresee a page of feet-n-fish in my "upcoming" book.

ok so this should take care of my foot fetish for now.

i promise to have bodies from the ankles up tomorrow