I shot with Alicia Griffin again for this one, whom I’ve shot with in weddings of yore. Unlike the last two years of weddings, I was very excited to unleash some new toys. First, after shooting with great friend and biz partner, Andrew Markowitz, during our wedding in Mexico, he got me hooked on the amazeballs Collapsible Lightsphere flash modifier by Gary Fong, which I have trouble imagining how I was able to live without for all this time. It lights the subjects so incredibly evenly that it demands to be used for every event or wedding reception you ever shoot. Second, I had my Canon 7D that I’ve become increasingly a fan of after using it for the past month. I’m addicted to the auto focus-zone feature that has become such a help when I have to adjust my focus on the fly. And finally, lensrentals.com has become my godsend. In the past, my glass has just not been able to keep up with the low lighting situations and strain thrown on my images, but bigger, better lenses seemed out of reach. And then I discovered LensRentals.com. Holy cow! Amazing, affordable lenses at your fingertips. How have I lived without this service???

For this wedding, I rented the 24-70mm f/2.8, which was a great workhorse for the low light settings in the church and wedding reception. We had complete access to the balcony that overlooked the church floor, which I definitely took advantage of during the ceremony. While I wished I had something like the 70-200mm that could have reached the couple while they were at the altar, the 24-70mm was perfect for everything else I needed. I cranked the ISO inside the 1000-1250 ballpark and went to town. Outdoors, I stuck to the 24-70mm and went with an ISO of 400 while keeping the f-stop relatively wide at 3.2-4 for the bokeh effect. Overall, the lens was a lifesaver and I think I ended up with some fantastic shots to start out the wedding season!

I couldn’t have been happier to shoot for Vonetta and Rustin! I loved Vonetta’s wedding dress, which was classic, simple, and timeless, and it seemed to suit her practical nature. Rustin had an idea to shoot portraits around the Spanish Steps in Dupont Circle and the photos worked out great (when people weren’t walking up and down them constantly – who knew so many people ACTUALLY used those steps?!). The reception at the Fairfax Hotel at Embassy Row was gorgeous and insanely fun! Usually, the DJ has to do a lot of coaxing in order to get people onto the dance floor, but there was none of that this time! So much goodness! Rumor had it he was a bit of the romantic, which is why he envisioned the steps in the first place, so as a fellow romantic, I hope I did his idea justice! Here is a sprinkling of photos from the wedding.

Congratulations to Vonetta and Rustin!

Until next time,

- Patrick

: : photo by Ryan Maxwell : :

Tap into the mind of Jon Betts and find out how he achieves the kind of work that helped me discover my own appstract photography voice. Wait, does Jon even consider his work “abstract?” We chat about the difficulties of getting our work shown and how mobile photography is perceived. Plus, did you know Jon was in a band? That might explain some things… Meanwhile, wedding season has begun and I am ready! First wedding: complete! I’ll explain, as well as tell you my thoughts on Artomatic, if you can handle it.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

Knowing how I interact with having my photo taken, I’m never surprised when I have clients who are very aware of their appearance. Everyone is always critical of having their photo taken and I always have to take this into consideration when such a situation comes up. With DSLRs allowing people to chimp behind their LCD screens and get instant proofs of what they recently shot, it’s not uncommon for the subject to instantly request to see what you captured and place swift judgement upon their appearance stemming from your photographic abilities. Even after countless occasions of this happening, I still had many lessons to take with me after a great series of shoots with the salon Last Tangle in Washington, DC.

Thanks to the results of my favorite type of marketing – referrals from previous, happy clients – I connected with Bruce Marks, owner of Last Tangle salon, who is revamping his website and was looking for new interior and action shots, as well as updated head shots of his staff. I’ve done this on many occasions previously, though it had been a while, but much like the proverbial bike riding, I easily got back into the swing of things and began shooting. During some downtime, I got to chat with Bruce and learn about how he started up as a stylist, being in Washington, DC for nearly twenty years after being in London, New York, and Vancouver. He’s had various spots all around DC, but has settled into this location for the greater part of his time in the city. Bruce is an extremely pleasant and easy-going guy who simply wanted a clean look for his salon and let me have nearly complete creative freedom (my favorite kind of creative freedom).

There was no natural light to be found in his basement salon, so speed lights and glass that could achieve an extremely wide aperture were vital to the shoot. I chose to also use a slow shutter to pull out all of the color in the salon and increase my chances of grabbing all the light possible for the shot. Because of all of the floor-to-ceiling mirrors in the establishment, and my total adoration for playing off of any reflective materials, I was immediately drawn to them and had to find a way to shoot them. It was tricky attempting to not get myself in the photo and had to contort my body in such a way as to only get shots of the salon. However, thanks to a few yoga classes in my day, I made it work!

While interior shots had their challenges, they never get self-conscious about their appearance or ask to see the shots immediately after they’ve been taken. Case in point, I returned a week later to take action shots of the stylists at work, creating great looks for their clients. The tricky thing was trying to respect their clients’ privacy – many didn’t want to have their photo taken while they were being tended to. How are you supposed to get action shots of the stylists interacting with people when those people didn’t want their photos taken?! A lot of cropping in-camera had to take place in order to achieve this, which is less than desirable, sure, but it’s not really about what I want, is it? I’m not trying to make Bruce or the rest of the salon lose business just so I can get a shot I’m looking for!

A lot of the time I spent there wasn’t actually taking pictures; it was spent generating a rapport with the staff and their clients. I made sure I got to know them and essentially put them at ease with me being there. I could feel out the client and stylist; who wanted nothing to do with me and who didn’t mind I was around and snapping photos. Most of the time, they cooperated, but much like my reaction upon seeing a shot of myself, there were a few who were a little camera shy. I made sure to snap a few of them and practically left them alone – let’s face it, you’re not going to get great shots out of people who don’t want to be photographed!

I managed to get a lot of fun shots of the staff at work, but the peculiar part to me didn’t occur during the action shots; it occurred when I had to shoot the staff! Who knew hair stylists were so self-aware? While there were a few who stepped up to the plate right away, the majority of the staff were very reluctant to sit down in front of the camera! It took a bit of coaxing and persuasion, but we managed to get the staff on board. I made sure I was very encouraging, taking into consideration that if they were anything like me, they just wanted to get this thing over with. So, I used a lot of “greats” instead of “goods” in my compliments and ensured I could pull off the entire shoot quickly and efficiently so they could hurry and leave, but still get the shots I wanted.

In the previous website, I noticed that the staff were placed in front of a blue seamless, and no offense to the previous photographer, but it didn’t necessarily suit the color scheme of the salon. It looked more like they were having their photos taken at the DMV. Instead, I wanted to get a sense of the environment and salon, which used a lot of browns and oranges in the color scheme. Using an extremely wide aperture, I made sure I fuzzed out the background so you could get a vague sense that they were seated inside the salon, but so as not to be too distracting and take away from the subjects. Despite all of the orange and the relatively harsh lighting, the colors seemed to work for me. I tried these in black and white, but something about those seemed to be lacking, so despite sending both versions to Bruce, I am happier with the color versions. What do you think?

I managed to learn a lot about photographing people and essentially improved my approach to shooting people who aren’t accustomed to having their photo taken. You have to approach people completely differently than, say, a model, since these folks may be a bit camera shy. Much like when I shoot a bride and groom at a wedding, people require a little bit of coaching and also some encouragement. I learned that you can never compliment a person’s appearance enough and I made sure I was always genuine when I spoke. Saying what you don’t mean always comes across as fake and will never achieve the results you’re looking for; you’re just going to come off and insincere!

I was very pleased with the results, even if the stylists initially weren’t too keen on having their photos taken in the first place. Once the camera was off them, they resumed being extremely fun to be around and I got to have an awesome time hanging out with them! To be honest, after spending three sessions with Bruce and company, I was quite sad when the shoot was a wrap! They were such a great group to be around, so hopefully I’ll get to shoot with them all again soon!

Until next time,

- Patrick

How does throwing parties lead to a career in videography? Join me as I chat with 8112 Studios’ own Nicholas Cambata about how a life of being a promoter during college led to shooting videos for Kaskade, Twista, Cedric Gervais, Mya, and Lady Gaga. I also ask about shooting video with a DSLR and all of those purty vehicles he posts on Instagram. Meanwhile, I rant about life and smartphones. Go figure.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

I already spent a few minutes rambling about this on my latest podcast episode, but I can’t seem to shake the past two weeks in Colorado Springs at the 2012 Warrior Games. Maybe it’s my fault, but after last year’s experience, my expectations were high, seeking yet another awesome year at the Games. While there were a lot of memories and experiences I thoroughly enjoyed, what I discovered, however, was something simply lackluster and truly misrepresenting of what the Warrior Games should be about. At least I got pretty images out of the deal, right?

It started out so promising. I arrived a week before the Warrior Games were to take place and saw this year’s slew of athletes ready to take on challengers from the Army, Air Force, Navy/Coast Guard, SOCOM, and for the first time at the Games, the British Armed Forces teams. There were a lot of familiar faces from the Marine Corps Trials and last year’s Warrior Games to look forward to, but a lot of new faces I would be honored to meet. So many inspiring stories to add to the collection that only made me prouder to work with these Marines even further. Learning from last year’s trials and tribulations, I made sure I had the gear to properly cover this event. So, I obtained a Canon 7D (swoon) and rented a 70-200mm f/2.8 IS to come along for the ride. I mean, look how pretty the combination of a 7D and a 70-200mm lens is! Look at it!!!

And then the Games started. And mediocrity ensued.

One of the biggest difference in these Games as opposed to last year’s was the United States Olympic Committee’s (USOC) treatment of the media. We were essentially treated like the lowest forms of scum on Earth. It’s not like we were paparazzi or anything; we were simply trying to capture images of our military branch’s athletes. Is that so wrong? The USOC people and volunteers apparently thought it was. They did a great job of calling us names, getting in our faces and being extremely and unnecessarily confrontational, making up stories about our disobedience and telling them to their superior to cover their tracks. It was disgraceful, to be quite honest.

Right from the beginning, we were treated like cattle lining up for the slaughter. Instructed to arrive at the Olympic Training Center at eight in the morning (the center was closing at 8:30 to make way for the First Lady’s arrival), we hurried to our spots only to wait over four hours in order to receive our media credentials, which they actually didn’t have and I had to hand-write mine like an elementary school visitor (and this was the case for majority of the media). Pathetic. Plus, waiting around for nearly seven hours while being corralled to a tiny area that we weren’t allowed to leave for six hours was pretty ludicrous, too. And that’s just the opening ceremonies.

Last year, we had a lot of free reign to roam where we needed to in order to get the shot. We managed not to get in each others’ way and had a relatively stress-free experience. This year, that was not the case. In majority of the instances, we were corralled into play pen-sized areas and limited to being stationary within these confines to shoot from. One such example took place at the swimming competition, where we were limited to a 3×6 corner of the pool, which only allowed us to get the finishes of any 50m swimming event. No finishes to any 100m event. No starts to ANY of the races. Pathetic. I managed to sneak out of the quarentined area and utilized my staff badge to access areas otherwise inaccessible to the press. Pathetic. What’s the point of waiting for hours for media credentials when we weren’t getting any better access to the courts than what athletes’ family members could obtain? Pathetic.

The confrontations were amusing, too. Nothing like having a bald, fat doucher threatening a Marine videographer to really tickle the funny bone. Or another USOC volunteer making up rules as she went along, just so she could flex her authoritative muscle. Or another USOC volunteer telling us to “get [our] ass behind the red line” during the shooting competition after we had already been positioned there for nearly five hours. I guess USOC was keeping it classy this year.

Speaking of classy, and something that hadn’t necessarily changed, but was certainly magnified in comparison to last year, how about the Army? I was quite impressed with how classless these folks were this year, and there are tons of examples to pull from. Between fans picking fights with mascots, having a fan get in MY ear after I got after him for insulting one of the Marine athletes who took a pickaxe to the head from the Taliban (and I’m a photographer! What the what??), and the AW2 creating events for their athletes to partake in to boost their medal count, it’s clear to me that the Army has lost sight of what these games are all about. It’s not about winning the most medals; it’s about overcoming the challenges caused by the injuries these service members have suffered and being able to compete amongst others who have overcome the same. The fact that the Army solely looks at a medal count instead of the hard work these athletes have put into competing completely undermines the point of these games: honoring those who have sacrificed so much for us to live with the freedoms we have. Well done, Army. Keep it classy.

Let’s not devalue what the Warrior Games was about by focusing on the negative, though. There were plenty of awesome moments to cherish. Watching the Navy rally behind one of their cyclists who suffered a flat tire during the race and ran alongside of him was quite the sight. Getting to share drinks and conversation with the British Armed Forces and SOCOM athletes was fantastic, but watching one of the British Armed Forces runners, Pa Njie, a double amputee who only had his racing legs for six weeks, competed in track events just for the sake of competing. And the usual suspects, like Chuck Sketch – the blind double amputee – swimming his heart out and being the passionate motivator we’ve all loved. Or how about the seeing-impaired Navy swimmer who achieved the fourth-fasted time in the world? Completely impressive and moments I will always reflect upon (hopefully more than the other pitfalls of this year’s games… I’m looking at YOU, Army and USOC).

So check out the gallery below! I hope you enjoy them, and I also hope to a better year next year (can you say “four-peat”?)!

How do you make everyday buildings look pretty? Look no further than the talents of Emily Reid, better known to you all as DC Emmy. Will she reveal what her favorite buildings to shoot are? I find out what her obsession is with architecture, And I describe my Warrior Games experience. (Boy, what an exhausting experience…)

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

Who knew we’d share so much in common? This week, I chat with Aziz Yazdani about today’s photographers, shooting film, and what he thinks about the DCist Exposed selection of his shot. Plus, listen to me take a shot of bourbon like a wuss on my own program.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

One of my old Union 206 buddies, Ivory Lawrence, joins me on the podcast this week as we discuss why he went on a long hiatus from photography, reminiscing about the good ol’ days of Union 206 and where it’s at now, why he switched from Nikon to Canon, and the state of the fashion and editorial photography world, which is looking bleak. Meanwhile, I vent about trolls and last week’s guest, Pablo Benavente.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

Oh yeah, here is the Colorado "Inn" - left: 2011, right: 2012 See what I mean?

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, but since I can only assume not everyone who listens to the podcast (which you can download on iTunes, BTW) reads the blog, and not everyone who reads the blog listens to the podcast, I might be missing out on updating everyone how I’m doing. Plus, I like how I talk about what I’m up to in the lead-in for the podcast, but I always write differently than I speak (a lot fewer “uhms” and “you knows” when I type), so I figure I should go back to designating Mondays to my weekend updates. Sound good? Well, you don’t really have much of a choice in the matter, so… yeah. (awkward)

So, I’m going to just say it: I’m extremely excited for my trip to Colorado Springs tomorrow, but in a slightly arrogant competitive way. Last year’s venture out to participate in the Warrior Games was phenomenal, and if this year is even just a fraction of that awesomeness, I will consider this trip a massive success. It goes without saying that a ton of photographers I interact with out there are beyond talented. Especially the Combat Camera guys, majority of who I meet know how to pull off some amazing shots, as was displayed during the Marine Corps Trials. However, there are a few photographers who are already taking shots of the practices, and no offense, but… c’mon, guys. Our heroes deserve to be captured a LOT better than these fuzzy photos. And I know exactly what’s going on, too. They’re compromising quality to squeeze out a few extra photos onto the memory card, so photos are coming out fuzzy, small, and quite lackluster. It only makes me squeamish and eager to get out there and, quite honestly, show them what’s up. Guess I’ve got my swagger back.

Part of what makes me so arrogant competitive is that for THIS trip, papa’s got a brand new bag [of camera gear]. Beware, Marine and Combat Camera photographers! I’m gunning for you (no pun intended)! First on the new list, I’ll be donning a Canon 7D that I acquired around my birthday, which has been INSANE to use. As much as I loved my Canon 50D for the past two years, the upgrade has really been a tremendous step up. I got to use it in a few recent shoots, which I’ll be blogging about, and the difference is incredible. This only makes me super excited to get out to the Warrior Games! I wanna rock! (I’m full of musical references today… what the what, yo?)

So pretty!

Further, I decided to try out www.lensrentals.com this trip and rent the 70-200 f/2.8. I’ve already gotten to tinker with it and I gotta say, I’m beyond thrilled to have this in my arsenal! I brought it along with me for a recent trip to a cabin out in the Shenandoah Valley amidst Virginia wine country and tried it out. Holy mackerel! The portraits this thing churned out make me VERY excited to do this Colorado Springs thing! I am ready to crush it! Stay tuned for the photos that I will undoubtedly post on the Wounded Warrior Regiment’s Facebook page and the USMC WWR Flickr page.

I mean, look at how beautiful that is! OMGz!

With all of that aside, I had a great, relaxing weekend away in one of my favorite places in Virginia: the Shenandoah Valley. We had a great time touring wineries, which has been a major task on my To Do list since returning to the area, and that was finally accomplished. I discovered the amazing winery of Sharp Rock Vineyards and the not-so-great Narmada Winery. Sharp Rock was incredibly scenic, which HAD to get captured by every photographing-capable item I had within reach. And no offense to the other winery, but the diversity in their wines was quite lacking. It all goes to that adage “jack of all trades, master of none.” Sharp Rock had much more interesting wines that had a lot more going on with the palate than something like Narmada did, which in my opinion, was one step above Carlo Rossi. Plus, sipping wines in an old barn during a rain storm is a perfectly delightful way to sooth my nerves before they get shocked into the fast-paced world of sports photography at the Warrior Games.

So, that’s the past week. I’m thrilled to be traveling for my job again and will be podcasting/blogging/photographing/annoying you all from afar (unless you’re in Colorado, which means I’ll be doing all of those things at a closer distance… yeah). Oh, and if you DON’T listen to my podcast, what the hell is wrong with you? Fix this by checking it out and subscribe on iTunes! I’ve got a GREAT, timeless Patrick Rant scheduled for the intro this week. Awesome rant + Ivory Lawrence = an episode you don’t want to miss!

Until next time,

- Patrick

I referenced this in my recent podcast episode, but here’s the deal: I was trying to figure out how to update my Twitter avatar and couldn’t think of anything original to do. I wanted something that wasn’t the cheesy, overdone photographer pose: taking a picture of yourself with your dSLR with your camera covering your face. Ugh. But I couldn’t think of anything to do because I was bored and a creative’s best ideas don’t always stem from boredom. Sometimes.

There, on the TV screen, was Lady Gaga, performing “Poker Face”. Why she appeared on my TV screen, I couldn’t tell you. I hate MTV. I don’t care for her music, although I absolutely admire her marketing ability. I mean, you know she got her name from Queen’s “Radio Ga Ga”, right? Pretty genius marketing and understanding about how the pop music scene works.

And then it hit me. Considering how mainstream the photography industry is getting, it would be pretty funny to pull off a Gaga-like mockery of faux-tographers, but how do I do this without the camera? Turn it around and take the photo that way? I only had one camera. Eventually, the boredom created this stupid, simple placement of my hand over my eye. “In the world of the blind, the one-eyed man is king,” right?

Funny enough, I got identified as the one-eyed man. “I didn’t recognize you because I can see your entire face,” people would joke. Yeah, that never got old. But out of boredom and Lady Gaga music videos, I created a brand that has stuck with me for over two years. I suppose she really IS a marketing genius, since her brilliance extends into other careers.

A week or so ago, Jan Michael was equally bored and decided to mock twitter avatars. He started with mine in what was a brilliantly humorous adaptation of my avatar. The Photoshop’d beard and hairline had me in stitches, so when I saw him in my latest birthday event, I had to tip my cap to a well done image. Well, it avalanched from there, since Noe discussed with him and other friends about getting everyone to do it. So, with her camera, they did. And then it turned into this:

Brilliant. Just brilliant.

Upon further discussion [and further alcohol consumption], it turned into a project I now want to accomplish. I want everyone to take a photo of themselves a la Patrick Imitating Lady Gaga and send it into me at patrick@patrickonofre.com with the subject “I Am Onofre, And So Can You!” The project? I want a collection of these images and create a collage of them composed in a manner to recreate MY One Eye image. Isn’t that AWESOME??? I know! So, do it! All you need is a black and white photo of yourself with your left hand over your left eye. It’s that easy! Hell, I’ll even edit it for ya so it’s the proper overly-contrasty image like mine is! Let’s do this!

I Am Onofre, And So Can You!

Until next time,

- Patrick

After discovering whose photo of the MLK memorial beat out mine for the DCist Exposed show, I had to chat with the man who seems to be able to capture anything desired through his camera, Pablo Benavente, or “Pablo.Raw” to the Flickr community. Find out about his life growing up amidst the turmoil in Nicaragua, his DIY nature, and lots of coffee talk. Meanwhile, I divulge in my horrible memory. I think.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

Maybe I’m hyper-sentimental. Maybe I’m too much of a romantic. Maybe I’m caring too much about an inanimate object. Maybe. The thing is, for the past seven years, there has been no person or thing which has been there through the best and worst of times like my old Volkswagen Golf. And even though I’ve moved on to something new, the memories will always be attached to that car.

It all started on a failed attempt to go to Whitehall, NY back in 2004. I was driving a Toyota Camry that my mom had used and abused before handing to me so she could get a Mini Cooper and traveling in a car caravan on our way to the home of a friend at the time. All of a sudden, cruising along, the car shuts down. The steering locks, the stereo shuts off, and the pedals are inoperable. My engine froze and I was nearly stranded on the side of the road. Everyone turned around and we managed to tow the car to Whitehall. But now, I’m left without a vehicle. Fuck.

After flying into Virginia Beach from Albany to spend the Fourth of July with my family, I spent a day looking at cars with my mom. We went from dealer to dealer, but nothing stood out until we got to the Volkswagen dealership. And there it was. Perhaps I’m remembering this incorrectly, but a beam of light shined upon the vehicle and a chorus of angels sang from the heavens, guiding me to the 2003 Golf. For a used car, it barely had 13,000 miles on it, manual transmission, and… what was that I saw? A sunroof?! Well, this HAD to be expensive, right? WRONG! I got it for an insane deal and drove it off the lot that day. It was as if the hand of fate decided in New York that enough was enough and I was to unite with this German-made piece of delightfulness.

The first day I drove it back into Providence, there was a steep hill that led from downtown to the east side. It was also my first time driving stick shift since high school. I was petrified at the monstrous mountain that felt like a 90-degree angle. For a solid two hours, I drove up and down that hill to ensure I wouldn’t do wrong to that car (or, rather, stall out, roll backward, and collide with the car behind me), but I conquered it. Like a boss.

The two of us were inseparable. We went everywhere together – Maine, New York City, Chicago, Boston… so many places up and down the East Coast. The trips to the beach. The trips to the Shenandoah Valley. The countless trips to the casino where I’d play poker. Transporting friends around Providence. Transporting my friends’ drum set AND amps to a gig. Moving my stuff from Virginia to Rhode Island, and moving my stuff from Rhode Island to Virginia. It was there to comfort me and let me sleep in the backseat when I went through a hard breakup. It was there to console me when I sat in the parking lot of Mohegan Sun and tried to put the pieces back together on a life I felt was falling apart. We even rebelled together, blasting music loudly – and ultimately getting pulled over by the cops for “disturbing the peace”. We were just cool like that.

The Golf's Cameo on Google Maps' Street View

Then 2009 happened and I returned to the Washington, DC area. As if it knew the best gift to give me, we drove up to my buddy’s place in Maryland to snap some photos and on the way back, right near that freaky Mormon castle on The Beltway, we reached the 100,000-mile mark. I couldn’t believe that after all this time, while friends and relationships had come and gone, the most mileage anyone has been with me besides my family was this vehicle. I had to memorialize the moment, and I’m sure I looked like a freak to all those driving by – this weirdo kid setting up his tripod to take a photo of himself and this car. Maybe we’re the only ones who will ever understand what that moment meant, after all we’ve been through together, but it was ours.

Our relationship lasted just a few years more and I noticed that my Golf was getting a little sick. It had started to show signs it wasn’t as young as it used to be, but we survived Snowmageddon (or whatever these paranoid freaks in Washington are calling it) and, with the occasional help of my Irish buddies from James Hoban’s whom I was working with at the time, we trudged through the snow and somehow managed to get everyone home safely. It also still wanted to be there for me while I started my own photography business, and when I woke up that first morning after quitting my job, it was there to enjoy that celebratory cup of coffee as I drove to my first shoot. Clients would recognize the two of us as we pulled into sight, as if one couldn’t exist without the other. And when I started my first gig with the Marine Corps, my Golf was the one to start my first day with me and ask how I did when the day was over.

Maybe I’m hyper-sentimental. Maybe I’m too much of a romantic. Maybe I’m caring too much about an inanimate object. Maybe. The thing is, for the past seven years, there has been no person or thing which has been there through the best and worst of times like my old car. Even though I’m now driving a Mini Cooper, nothing is going to compare to all those moments I got to share with my Volkswagen Golf.

Thanks for the memories, old friend. You were always there when I needed you and I will always look back on our seven years together with fondness.

Until next time,

- Patrick

In typical Patrick fashion, I did a bit of reminiscing and thought about what I did last year at this time and all of the times before. And I realized something: I did the exact same fucking thing. I reminisced about where I was and what I did the year before  and all of the times before that. I mean, hell, you can look back at last year’s blog post at this time and see that I use the same jokes. “I’m declaring it a national holiday.” “I’m really only getting a day older because blah blah blah.” I need some new material.

Some things have changed, for sure. I’ve gotten to finally show in an exhibit – TWO, in fact. I’ve gotten to shoot the Warrior Games, which has been beyond anything I could’ve ever imagined experiencing. I got to shoot my first wedding abroad in Mexico (and survive a hurricane, to boot). And if that wasn’t enough, I started a podcast. I’ve gotten to meet some amazing people throughout the year and have weeded out the bad seeds. And after seeing the birthday wishes rolling in from all over the place (I mean, literally, all over the planet. I’m getting birthday wishes from four continents. FOUR!), I know I’ve got it extremely great and have the greatest friends and family on the planet. Still, and maybe I’m being hypercritical, personally, my 27th year on Earth was… okay.

I was thinking about this in the last remaining minutes of being 27 that it was one roller coaster of a year. So many triumphs and so many heart breaks. I’ve made huge strides in my career as a photographer, but something still feels out of place. Being addicted to things like Marc Maron’s WTF podcast, I listen to all of the stories of these comedians and actors and their successes (though they seem to refuse they’re successful by any means), but they’re in or around their forties – twenty years my senior. I guess I have a long way to go, but I still ask myself if I am positioning myself to be in that position someday, too. This photography racket makes me nervous sometimes.

Perhaps I’m exposing too much of my insecurities to the Internets, but I’ve learned that a lot of my motivation, inspiration, and competitiveness is driven by fear. A fear of failure. A fear of letting my friends and family down and disappointing them. A fear that the naysayers will be right and that I can’t do this. A fear that I’m going to have to go back to the restaurant industry. It drives me to constantly push the envelope and raise the bar year after year. I always want to make sure I’m in a better spot than I was last year. So reading that blog post from last year, I’m left wondering if I really am.

It’s a tough road, this photography business. I always wonder where I would be if I hadn’t quit the restaurant gig and stayed the course. Would I be happier? Would I be living more comfortably than I am today? Would I have better experiences than the ones I’ve gotten to have over the past year or two? If only there was a machine that could expose dual universes…

And then, much like what I do with my wedding experiences, all of these anxieties and insecurities wash away after I realize that at the end of the day, I get to live MY life by MY rules and on MY terms through this photography gig. And man, I’ve got it great! I wouldn’t have gotten to meet so many wonderful people if I had stuck around the restaurants. I wouldn’t have gotten to travel for my job. Sure, I’m not some balling millionaire, but who needs that to be happy? For a guy who is turning 28, I’ve got a great life.

Bottom line, I need to learn to be patient, and as long as I continue hustling and making moves so I can position myself to be comfortable down the line, I will be comfortable down the line. Much like the restaurant industry, you spend a lot of time paying dues in the photography biz. What separates the weak from the strong is that knack of working harder than everybody else and plugging away. I’m turning that fear of failure into something that will positively drive me towards achieving – and exceeding – my goals.

What does my 28th year hold for me? I’m not quite sure. I asked the same thing about my 27th and can now see that I was in for one helluva ride. I hope this year isn’t as radical as the last and is more in my control, but I do know that if I have anything to say about it, I’m determined to make this year better than the rest of them and by far my best year yet.

Let’s hope the universe sees it that way, too!

Happy Birthday to me,

- Patrick

Speaking of happy birthdays, you should check out my birthday gift to you all: a podcast episode! I’m glad this chat with my great friend, Richard Inonog, fell on my birthday, since I consider him one of the greatest people I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know. Check out our latest conversation on my blog or download it on iTunes! (and if you want to give me a gift, how about giving me a five-star rating on the podcast page, would ya?)

Picking up where we left off, learn more about the history of my photographic journey in Part 2 of my conversation with my photography hero, Richard Inonog. Learn about his influences, how he’s been able to discover his artistic and personal voice from a conservative background, his explanation about his anarchist undertones, and what it’s like for me to grow another year older (FUCK, I’m old).

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

By the way, here’s that reference I was making about birthdays:

Also, I decided the gift of podcasting wasn’t enough, so I even wrote about how I’m turning 28 today (whoopdie fucking do).

[ photos by Noe Todorovich ]

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

: : photo by Noe Todorovich : :

“If we’re still alive, my regrets are few.
If my life is mine, what shouldn’t I do?”
– Metric, “Help I’m Alive”

Though the government and my financial planner may not officially recognize it, I have determined that I have retired. According to the dictionary, technically, this would mean I would have to “cease working”, but because they say that if you “do what you love, you’ll never work a day,” I technically have solid ground for my argument. As per the usual, I’m right and I win.

I suppose this is a pretty cheeky statement to make, but when you learn why I have come to this conclusion, it makes sense, I pinky swear. I was driving to Quantico this morning and heard a Prudential commercial on the radio. The woman in the commercial, Nadine, said, “most people today live to work and it shouldn’t be like that; we should work to live. And now I can live.” While I respect Nadine’s statement, I have a problem with this mentality. I have never been one to plan excessively for the future, and perhaps that will lead to my downfall, but along with that, I really take the most out of the present day that I am living. Upon leaving the restaurant industry and undertaking photography, I really began to appreciate every aspect of what I was experiencing. The sights. The smells. The sounds. The good times. The bad times. At the end of the day, I have the awesome opportunity of lying in bed and reflecting how I was able to experience another day in my life. I have it pretty friggin’ good.

As a line cook and eventually a restaurant manager, I was one of those people Nadine was referring to about the people who “lived to work.” I would wake up around noon, grab a morning coffee at the nearby coffee house, catch up on news, then head into the restaurant, where I’d deal with the strains of overbearing and under-appreciative guests, over-demanding general managers, and underachieving staff. I’d get the fortune of dealing with this for ten hours, then head home around two or three in the morning, attempting to fall asleep, but really just watching TV like a zombie until the sun rose and squeezing out a few hours of sleep. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Then, photography happened. Even through the struggles of starting my own business, I lived to work, but the living was different. I was enjoying what I was doing. I loved the fight to survive and prove the naysayers wrong (honestly, even though I’ve pushed a few of them out of my life, I still use their words as motivation). The difference? I fell in love with my career. Ever since then, it doesn’t feel like work and as a result, I feel like I’m really living. I can appreciate everything – my friends, my family, my apartment, my car, the sunny days, the cloudy days, the morning coffee, the evening glass of wine or bottle of beer, the busy days of shoots and get togethers, the days when I can lounge on my bed and do nothing. I know this wasn’t Prudential’s intentions, and no offense to them or Nadine, but it begs the question: why wait until retirement to live?

Maybe I’m some overprivileged piece of shit, but the way I see it, I’ve been given a tremendous chance here. I have the uncanny opportunity of being able to pursue something I enjoy doing, and I fully intend on capitalizing on this. I’m not the type to let this slip out of my fingers, so I’m maximizing this fortunate position I’m in. Further, I’m not the type to overlook this; I’m beyond fortunate that I can do this as a career. True, it’s a very difficult road to have chosen and it requires a lot of paying dues to position myself to be successful, but hey – what fun has taking the easy way ever provided?

While I respect Nadine’s point of view and congratulate her on her retirement, quite frankly, I want to live today, not thirty-seven years from now. We’re not promised a tomorrow, so what’s the use of planning on all of those things when you should be appreciating today? And the best part is that I have the opportunity to go into my photo shoots and give my 110% to each and every one. You better believe I’m going to enjoy the ride!

So, I guess you can say I retired early. I know a lot of people look forward to that day when they can retire and declare that they can begin living, but man! Waiting that long to live doesn’t sound fun! I certainly hope that all of you out there are enjoying every day you have to the point where it feels like you’ve retired early, too.

Until next time,

- Patrick

Discover how I got into photography in the first place by speaking to my personal photography hero and the man who inspired me to take it on, Richard Inonog. Learn about the amazing life of my great, great friend, what inspires his provocative style, what his fiancé thinks about all of this, and find out how my return visit to Providence was a delightful and agonizing trip down memory lane.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

[ photos taken by Noe Todorovich ]

Bee Tee Dubs, check out Uber – Everyone’s Private Driver. Sign up today using the promo code “onofreshoots” and get $10 off your first trip!

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: a way around the iTunes issue so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

Jenna Crowder, one half of the Public Space: Cairo project, chats with me this week, where we discuss her background, her numerous art projects like Reverb and Echo and A Pair of Scopes, the DC “art scene”, her time in Haiti, and New England seafood.

And hey! Help fund my friends Jenna and Keith Lane in their upcoming project in Egypt by going to their Kickstarter page! There’s only a few days left!

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

Bee Tee Dubs, check out Uber – Everyone’s Private Driver. Sign up today using the promo code “onofreshoots” and get $10 off your first trip!

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

I’ve made the conscious decision to steal from my friends and creative peers. I’ve done the research and, perhaps to the dismay of my fellow photographers, there are no criminal repercussions for my planned actions, so you’re just going to have to deal with it. I’m sorry for not being sorry.

I originally had a rant planned for today, but I noticed something that changed my mind. Rants are fun to do and all, but they’re not overly productive. They get you all riled up until you start to, I don’t know, riot at the nearest Whole Foods. Maybe that’s just me. Anyway, I decided that explaining why I’m stealing would be way more fun, so… yeah… that’s what I’m going to do.

After beginning the podcast over two months ago (Shameless self-promotion – at least I didn’t say something like “DOWNLOAD EPISODES OF THE STAYING IN FOCUS PODCAST ON ITUNES OR CLICK THE BUTTON ” or something obnoxious like that, right?), I’ve had the good fortune to chat with a lot of my creative friends. In doing so, it’s made me realize a few things that have given me the idea that I need to be just like them borrow a few ideas to utilize in my own life.

Besides all of the “it’s interesting that ___” and “it’s funny that ___” and “you knows” I have caught myself saying, all of my conversations have made me really want to step up my game. The best part about talking with such imaginative and creative people has motivated me to be imaginative and creative, too. I’ve been able to take something away from every discussion that I feel [and hope] that it will carry over into my own work. So, basically, all of these podcast episodes are truly done out of selfishness.

Take my conversation with Nakeva earlier this week, for example. She and I both left our steady paychecks to pursue our dreams of making a career in photography, and we’re both off to a great start. However, something inside me felt a little stagnant, so to talk to somebody who is in the same boat I am in and to hear they’re doing well gives me the motivation to continue fighting the good fight. If she’s not giving up and making moves, then I can’t give up and must continue making moves.

Or my conversation with Alex Priest. To many (even Alex himself), it would seem odd to talk to somebody who isn’t a professional photographer, but I really needed a spark in my marketing. That was all remedied after our chat, since I was able to come up with ideas to position my photography business where I need it to go and help myself and my work stand out. Plus, it was a good way to spend brunch.

I’ve been very fortunate that most of my friends have cooperated and allowed me to hang out with them while a microphone is in their face. Every person I’ve talked to has been inspirational, and even with the upcoming podcasts I have in store for my listeners, the best part about this is that I’ve gotten to corner my creative friends into sitting down with me for a chat. I’ll be interested in seeing what comes out from my future conversations, but with events like the InstantDC Photowalk spurring on projects and ideas for me, such as the This Is A Portrait If I Say So series after my chats with Michael Andrade, who knows what is possible!

There came a moment in the middle of all of this where I wondered if I would ever get bored and grew nervous that it would lose its fun for me. That quickly disappeared once I remembered how every conversation has been unique and I’ve managed to get something out of every person who I’ve talked to. And because there are SO MANY people to talk to, how could I get bored? I’d have to talk to some Uncle Bob in order for me to finally not gain anything valuable out of the discussion!

While I know who the next two episodes will feature – and I’m SO EXCITED to release those episodes – I’m not sure what the future conversations will bring. All I know is that after 11 episodes already, I really hope this ride doesn’t end and I hope all of my listeners can gain something useful from each podcast!

And I hope my future interviewees don’t mind me stealing a thing or two from them.

Until next time,

- Patrick

(And don’t forget to check out the podcast on iTunes! Go do it! )

Long time, no chat! I remedy that with Nakeva Corothers by hanging out with her for the podcast! Check out what she and I think about being self-employed, getting your business off the ground, avoiding getting pigeon holed, and our ingenious business ideas. (Maybe they’re only ingenious after a couple glasses of sangria)

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

I learned to be brave. I’m not sure if that’s what a photowalk is supposed to teach somebody, but that’s certainly the lesson I received during my sessions with my friends slash cast members of the InstantDC gang. I finally went on a photowalk – a much-needed kick in the pants of my creativity that not only motivated me to take photos, but also take a peek into the methods and techniques of some of my favorite DC mobile photographers like Jim Darling, James Campbell, Michael Andrade, Keith Lane, and Ryan Maxwell to figure out how the hell they work their magic.

I wasn’t sure what I was going to shoot – I’m sure none of us were – but the idea of capturing something different was exciting. For a while, I’ve been so jealous of all my fellow DC compatriots, and even the likes of NYC mobile photographers like Greg Schmigel or Sion Fullana, for being able to capture great street candids on their way to get their morning latte while I get to capture… trees… on my way to Dumfries, VA. The opportunity to photograph something different made me look forward to that day since the arrangement to hang out had been made!

Watching everyone work was certainly inspiring, making me reconsider the techniques and tactics I used in my own work. Seeing Jim Darling direct, compose, and line up his shot just the way his mind’s eye envisioned it to take the photos of Keith Lane, Jenna Crowder, and Noe Todorovich were fun to experience, as well as seeing Ryan Maxwell and Michael Andrade covertly snap the photos of unsuspecting strangers (ok, not so much Michael – it was hilarious to watch him weave in and out of crowds and practically get in somebody’s face to snap a photo from his chin). Taking all of the lessons in, it made me gain some confidence in snapping candid portraits with my iPhone.

Right out of the gate, I took a shot that I was most proud of: two men having an animated conversation outside of Union Station. It helped me build up the much-needed confidence to snap a photo of strangers. I don’t know why, but I’ve built up this paranoia that my subject will notice I’m taking a picture of them and start a confrontation. I don’t know why this intimidates me so much, and even after this photowalk, I catch myself getting inside my own head too much. However, watching Michael and Ryan work their magic, I realized a vital piece of information that I’m training myself to understand: people are just too caught up in themselves to notice their surroundings. Nobody is paying attention. That’s why Michael can practically get right up in somebody’s face and the person is none the wiser. Kind of freaky how I could just walk up to someone and they would seriously never know I snapped their photo. In a deeper, philosophical sense, it says a lot about the world we live in. But that’s a blog post for another day.

Anyway, here are a few of the photos I captured from the photowalk. I hope you enjoy them!

Until next time,

- Patrick

A special treat for you all in Podcastland: not just one guest, but TWO others! In my first time meeting Joe Sterne in person, I also had his fiance, Julia Dachner, and photographer Noe Todorovich, hanging out to chat about his Photowalk Alliance, his hatred for watermarks, and proposing the one thing that might destroy their wedding day.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the photography podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

[UPDATE] Joe Sterne put up a nice blog post about his podcasting experience with me, and you can check that out on his blog post, “What Happens When 2 Photographers Meet at a Starbucks?”

This Is A Portrait of Jim Darling If I Say So.

They say “good artists copy, great artists steal.” If that’s the case, call me a thief.

Allow me to explain. What isn’t said on “Shit Photographers Say” is that every photographer will say, “I hate having my photo taken!” Hypocrites! One thing I thought of discussed with fellow photographer Michael Andrade was that I wanted to do some kind of abstracts with people. He mentioned creating abstracts with people’s faces, and one app I thoroughly have enjoyed recently is Decim8. While the effects are random, the images the app creates are truly unique and intriguing, so I decided to use the latest update and see what I’d get.

Since most photographers hate having their photos taken, I thought it would be cool to get their photo, except with an abstract touch – that way, we all win; I get my photo without hearing them critique their appearance and they don’t have to critique their appearance and worry that there is a horrible photo of them floating around somewhere (hopefully). The end result is this latest series that I am titling This Is A Portrait If I Say So, an homage to the great abstract artist Robert Raushenberg and his famous oblique Conceptual art piece of Iris Clert, which was a simple telegram declaring the message itself was a portrait if he said it was.

In a recent photowalk with members of the InstantDC community, I figured it was a good a time as any to get started on the project, since most of my photographer buddies would be around and I could kick start it into shape. So, I hope you all enjoy what I’m hoping will be an ongoing project!

This Is A Portrait of Keith Lane If I Say So.

This Is A Portrait of James Campbell If I Say So.

This Is A Portrait of Noe Todorovich If I Say So.

This Is A Portrait of Michael Andrade If I Say So.

This Is A Portrait of Jenna Crowder If I Say So.

This Is A Portrait of Ryan Maxwell If I Say So.

To see the set on Flickr, check it out at the This Is A Portrait If I Say So photography set.

Until next time,

- Patrick

Because it’s always fun to shake things up (and because it has become a running joke), Alex Priest joins the program this week. While not directly talking about photography, Alex shares his marketing and social media experience to help the budding photographer get noticed beyond his immediate family and blossom his or her photographic career.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

The Marine Corps Trials are a series of paralympic-style events that pit Marine athletes from Battalion East at Camp Lejeune, NC, Battalion West at Camp Pendleton, CA, veteran athletes, and international athletes from allied nations against each other to compete for a spot on the 2012 All-Marine Warrior Games team. I didn’t attend last year’s Trials due to the fact we had just launched the Facebook page for the USMC Wounded Warrior Regiment and my photographic abilities weren’t recognized until afterward, so I was very excited to make my way out to San Diego for my first time ever. More than that, I was very excited to once again see the inspiring athletes that motivated and moved me so much in Colorado Springs.

The main difference between now and last year’s Warrior Games was that I knew what to expect. Anticipate the action. Look for new and exciting angles that the mass of other photographers aren’t getting. However, these facilities are a far cry from the professional, Olympic-grade arenas of Colorado Springs, which meant I didn’t get some of the cool shots that I achieved during the Warrior Games, like the shots of swimmers from above the pool or higher angles at the basketball games. Plus, the lighting was insanely better in Colorado. However, the stories are still inspiring and the athletes are still amazing.

The shots were a little harder to come by, since I wasn’t focusing on one team, but four teams, making it impossible to catch all of the action, especially when there were multiple wheelchair basketball games or sitting volleyball matches going on at once, for example. I tried to make do, but the biggest thing was that, even though I inevitably missed some shots, I had an amazing experience out at Camp Pendleton and that’s all I could really hope for.

I hope you enjoy the photos!

What you can't see here is that the Marine in yellow is blind and paralyzed below the waist, but still rocking some cycling!

Until next time,

- Patrick

What started as a simple follow on Twitter and meeting on Valentine’s Day has now turned into an awesome photography connection and killer friendship! This week, I chat with Alicia Griffin, food photographer to the stars and engagement/wedding photographer of AG Images. Listen to us converse about her joining the dark side of iPhoneography, hanging out with Wolfgang Puck, and more about the girl behind the camera in that picture up there!

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

from the San Diego Museum of Photographic Arts

I haven’t written a blog post in a while, and that’s fine. However, I did think that posting fun pictures of excursions I’ve taken would be a good idea instead of posting them randomly on Flickr or Twitter or Da Bookface. I mean, I do call myself a “photographer”, after all. So what’s the point of writing words all the time if I’m not showing you photos, even if they’re from my iPhone while I’m out and about? Therefore, I have decided to do mini “collections” whenever I go someplace and post them on this fancy schmancy blog I’ve now got.

The idea came about after a few recent photowalks. Well, actually the idea came about as I’ve been doing all of these podcasts, talking to street photographers (P.S. have you been listening to my podcast?? Download them here on iTunes!). They exude what I consider a lot of confidence and bravery in capturing street candids that I never could take. I always feel so intrusive when I think about taking a photo of someone or a unique moment. Plus, I always feel pretty clumsy and un-suave, stumbling around to covertly snap a picture, only to see a resulting blurry mess.

So, I changed that mentality and on a recent trip to San Diego, I just went for it. No matter how stupid I felt I looked taking images of random things, I took the picture. I’m not saying these are the next best thing, but it gives me warm fuzzies, so… there.

Enjoy!

Balboa Park

A Day at the Museum

The Bridge

Stairs in the San Diego Day

Dry Fountain

Pollock Shadows

Break Time at the Zoo

The Art Student

Graffiti Artist

Wine Break at The Prado

The Brave Aviator

Once again, we return to the awesome sauce conversation with Jim Darling from sunny San Diego while Patrick wraps up the Marine Corps Trials. Listen to us talk about his history with photography, what challenges him in photography, what he thinks of his photography, and the wild, wonderful world of Twitter snafus.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

It was too great of a conversation to limit to just one podcast episode. So this week, I present to you part one of my conversation with the gentle Giant(s fan), Jim Darling. Just who is this guy? And is that his real name? Find out this episode!

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

It might get loud. This week,regularly-DCist-featured street photographer Michael Andrade visits the podcast as we talk about music, musical influences, photography, music, and music. Did I mention we talk about music?

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

This week, I chat with concert and fashion photographer, and great friend, Andrew Markowitz about life, liberty, and the pursuit of the best portfolio. And happiness, too.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

“You can try the best you can,
The best you can is good enough.”

– Radiohead, Optimistic

It came down to me and one other kid. There we are, standing along the sidelines in our gym uniforms, awaiting our fate. One of us was going to get selected, and the other was going to be the last one picked. It always seemed to come down to us for whatever reason. I was a WAY BETTER basketball player than Tim, but he always got picked as one of the first players on the team. Why didn’t they remember the sweet floating lay-up I made last week that seemed to drift just out of reach of Anthony’s block attempt, or the awesome three-point shot from the corner that I managed to swish with Andrew’s hand in my face? And yet there I was, one of the last ones to get picked. How soon we forget, I suppose.

“Alright, we pick Mark,” Andrew sighs.

Last. Again.

It always seemed to happen. No matter how hard I tried, no matter how good I thought I was, my selection always came down to the fact that I wasn’t friends of the boys in gym class that were the captains and picking the teams. I learned an early lesson about the real world: sometimes, it’s all about who you know.

Earlier in the week, Washington-focused weblog DCist announced their 2012 DCist Exposed Photography Show Winners, and just like the above scenario, I wasn’t even picked. The frustrating thing to me is that, through the images I selected to enter, I didn’t think they were worse than some of the entries that actually got selected. Not to put anybody down because there were a lot of excellent images that were selected and I’m extremely excited to see some of my friends picked as winners.

But dammit! Why not me?

It’s one of those moments when you start to look at everyone’s work and compare it to your own. Am I doing something wrong? Was my image or perspective not interesting enough? When you create an image that you’re passionate about, it’s hard not to take rejection personally. I was pretty distraught when I saw I didn’t get the nod. It’s one thing if these images were created haphazardly, but in my case, I actually gave a shit about what I created and poured my passion into these photos! What gives?!

Well, I think I figured it out: maybe I didn’t.

Here’s the thing: no matter where you go, who you talk to, or what you read, photographers everywhere will tell you not to compare yourself to other photographers. I absolutely disagree, as long as you’re doing so in a healthy manner with the intent of improving your own style, not copy someone else’s. I looked at what I submitted again after getting over the initial annoyance of rejection and really hunkered down to analyze what I felt I was missing. What I came to realize was that maybe I didn’t actually have any heart in my photos after all. Maybe I was shooting photos with the wrong mindset, expecting to hit home runs every time I stepped up to the plate, but ultimately ended up striking out more often than not. Maybe I was really trying way too hard.

When I submitted photos for the 2011 instantdc exhibit, the two images that got selected out of the ten I submitted were two images I shot for fun. I experimented and messed around with the photos until something cool came out of it, but what really caused the photos to turn out great was that I was having fun with the process of creation. With a lot of the appstracts I created in the meantime were done more so out of desperation to simply create. However, the photos that have gotten the biggest result were the ones I created because I enjoyed creating.

In the end, when you stack up my entries to the winners, I deserved to lose. Part of the reason is because I simply don’t create photojournalistic images like that, but the main reason is because I didn’t have the soul in the images that I needed to have in order to have a photo selected. Maybe I can add this to my faux-New Year’s Resolutions, but my goal for 2012 is to shoot with more soul and create images I can really, honestly get behind. I want to make sure that next year at this time, I get all three images selected because the photos I submitted are undeniably awesome. (Ok, maybe not ALL three, since that’s a bit of a stretch, but you know what I mean)

Yeah, I think I’ll add that on right now.

Until next time,

- Patrick

This week, I chat with DC photographer Ryan Maxwell, where we discuss the horrors of Instagram, what it means to capture candid photos, and P.T. Barnum. Check out Ryan’s fantastic photography on his Flickr page at www.flickr.com/photos/rmaxwell

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

: : image courtesy of Keith Lane : :

Last week, I showcased my latest project with the inaugural podcast episode, featuring James Campbell. This week, I have an awesome conversation with DC freelance photographer on The Hill and humanitarian photographer Keith Lane. We had a wonderful chat over how he got into photography, how he turned travel into exhibits, and how he refuses to stop moving about the country.

You can listen to our conversation above or download the podcast on iTunes here.

(Android users and those not in tune with the iWorld: I learned a way around this so you can download it onto your own machines is to download a podcatcher app and use this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/StayingInFocus

The week has finally arrived. It’s been months in the making and I’ve been laboring on this for what feels like an eternity. I’m currently appeasing the tradition I’ve established for flying since turning 21, which is obviously my alcoholic beverage consumption that allows me to better deal with the crying babies and selfish assholes who like to take up all the armrest space. I’m excited about this particular flight because unlike any other, Frontier has Fat Tire. Holy crap. If only this flight had wi-fi, it would be a party up on this flight (until I get kicked off for obscenity)!

Anyway, that’s not what I’m really excited about. What I am excited about it that on January 20th, my photography exhibit finally, finally, FINALLY opens. Finally. I get to showcase all my hard work in a museum. Finally. Fuck. How amazing is THAT?! I have always said how cool it would be to display my work, but to be frank, I didn’t think my work was ever worthy enough to get into a museum. To be frank, I still don’t think my work is worthy enough, but when opportunity knocks, you get it a beverage and let it relax in your living room for a while. Maybe even let it watch the TV and eat whatever it wants out of your refrigerator.

It all started out when the Marine Corps’ Wounded Warrior Regiment launched their Facebook page so they can better reach out and inform all of the wounded, ill, and injured Marines and their families and I made my personal Facebook account an administrator. For whatever reason, one of the important people at the Regiment saw my ridiculous profile picture and clicked it out of curiosity. To their surprise, I was a photographer and for whatever reason, they liked what I did. From that point forward, I was their guy. They let me photograph events and even the Warrior Games in Colorado Springs, CO. I would like to say all my hard work paid off to make that happens, but I’d be a liar. What really happened was that shit worked out for me and I am one extremely lucky man.

After seeing the work I did at last year’s Warrior Games, they loved my work for whatever reason and thought it would be perfect for an upcoming exhibit that they were preparing for. It’s as if the perfect exhibit to best reflect the happenings and progress that has occurred in the Wounded Warrior Regiment fell into their lap. Who knew?

Collecting images and photographing all of these amazing Marines who have overcome so much has been insane. I always felt I appreciated how fortunate I was, but after working with these inspiring men and women, it made me really look inward and learn what it is to truly appreciate what I have. All of my images I’ve shot for the Marines are done with the mindset to really honor these folks who have sacrificed so much to allow me to be free. Every photo I snapped, I did with the attitude that I wanted a Marine or their family member to look at that shot and be proud. With this exhibit, I really hope I did just that.

I still haven’t seen my images hung up at the museum just yet, and maybe it will really hit me once I see them up in the room, but right now, I’m beyond thrilled. This is one huge step for me, where I can say I have my work hung up in a museum for people who aren’t my friends and family see and appreciate. Holy crap.

If you want to see for yourself, my work will be at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Virginia, from January 20th until May 11th. Not only will my work be displayed, but there will be works created by wounded, ill, and injured Marines on display as well, which is really exciting to see. Something about a Marine using art to express themselves and what they’ve been through is just as inspiring as the Marines I was fortunate to photograph, and I’m beyond thrilled to have my works next to theirs.

Anyway, the plane is on its decent into Kansas City and I’m done bragging about my work. Please check it out if you ever have an opportunity to – I’d be more than flattered if you took a trip all the way out to the boonies to visit the museum.

Well, now that the museum is on its way, what will I do next?

Until next time,

- Patrick

The waiting is over! The unveiling is here! Lookie what I made (with the help of James Campbell)!

As you can tell by the title of the post, I’m podcasting! I’m very excited to share my conversations with photographers with all of you out there in Internetland. I always found my discussions about photography and the life of photographers to be very interesting, so why not record them? In my opinion, it’s a great way to get inside the head of creatives and see what we chat about over a few beers.

I begin my podcasting experience with James Campbell, creator and curator of InstantDC, a mobile photography exhibition that I was beyond fortunate to be a part of a few months ago. James has been one of my go-to guys for iPhoneography apps and someone I love bouncing ideas off of because his mind is always on the go with creative ideas and projects. What better way to start off my podcasting experience of having a peek into the mind of creatives by beginning with James?

Because it’s a conversation, I decided to keep it pretty lengthy (an hour and seventeen minutes) because we touched on so many subjects, and honestly, it was a lot of work getting it down from two hours to just over one! Either way, I feel like it’s a great thing to play in the background while at work or during the commute, and I intend on making it a weekly thing, so you’ll have plenty of time to listen before the next one comes out! (And after just finishing recording for Episode 2, I’ll tell you all you are in for yet another treat!)

So, here is the inaugural podcast post for your aural pleasure!

Every week, I’ll have a podcast ready for you to listen to through my blog, OR you can check it out and download it in the iTunes Store here – search for “Staying In Focus”.

OMGz!!!1! My ugly mug is on iTunes!

I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed creating it!

Until next time,

- Patrick

Finally, I’ve got something big to announce. However, because I am who I am, I’m not going to tell you what it is. Yet.

Sorry.

So often, I’ve seen my peers (I’ll throw Jasmine Star and Chase Jarvis into the mix – they count, right?) doing big things, such as launching magazines or informative sites like creativeLIVE, and wondered why I couldn’t do something like that. However, because I am who I am, I can’t just rest on my laurels. I had to do SOMETHING. Hmm… maybe I’ll give you a hint: it has something to do with my “New Year’s Resolutions” list of To Dos for 2012 (although, it’s a bit of an amendment). I’m really excited to launch this for the world to see, but I also hope I have the follow-through to make this a regular and consistently awesome experience for all of you in Internetland.

I can’t leave you all hanging for long, but tune in to my post on Wednesday, where I’ll unveil a project I’ve been working on for honestly only a few weeks, though that doesn’t mean it’s any less exciting. After working on the project to have it ready for Wednesday, I’m certainly pleased, though I’m trying very hard not to overdo it and turn it into something extremely complicated as a result of over thinking. Either way, I hope you all enjoy it when I showcase the project for all to experience come Wednesday!

On another note, I’ve been sort of consumed with wanting to launch my latest project that I haven’t necessarily been shooting anything as of late. I guess I’m resting up until the end of the month, where I will reunite with Nisa of Kitchenability for what will (hopefully) be the final shoot for her upcoming cookbook. This will set off a flurry of busyness that makes me enjoy this momentary relaxation before I get slammed with awesome photographic opportunities. A chance to go to San Diego to capture the Marine Corps Trials for over a week is exciting, followed by reuniting with Kimberly Wilson for our fifth clothing line shoot for what will be her Spring ’12 line up for TranquiliT. Add to that that I still want to crush my To Do list and I’m mentally preparing myself to be busy, busy, busy!

At one time, when I was getting started, I used to get a little upset when things slowed, but over time, I’ve learned that these ebbs and flows seem to be perfectly timed. I get extremely busy for a period of time, and just when I’m about to pull my hair out, I get a break. And just when I’m about to pull my hair out due to boredom, I get slammed with a busy period. It seems that everything gets balanced out just as I need it, which I have come to recognize and therefore calm myself down by reminding myself of this every time I get impatient or stressed. Photography is a tricky business and there is no real consistency; it’s feast or famine, for sure. Learning how to manage this has been an ongoing lesson, but I’m getting there. So with this momentary lull, I’m still keeping busy and making moves. Much like the adage for running backs in football, in order to make forward progress, you have to keep your legs moving, even when you meet resistance.

Speaking of football references, I’m getting very excited about my San Francisco 49ers in their first playoff appearance since 2002. It’s been a remarkable year for a team I wasn’t holding my breath for. A new coach, straight out of the college ranks, coming in to manage a team that has seen numerous coaching changes didn’t give me too much hope. But after a close loss to a Dallas team everybody expected to roll over us, I got a glimmer of hope. Now, at 12-3 and the two-seed in the playoffs, we’ve got a tough match-up against a stellar New Orleans Saints team, and I’m actually very excited, not only because this will be the first post season game I’ve gotten to watch my team play in since high school, but that I’ll be watching the game in rival city Seattle, where I hear they will probably razz me a ton as I proudly wear my cardinal and gold.

So, trips to Seattle in the coming weekend, NFL playoffs, and an upcoming announcement… sounds like a great week, doesn’t it?

Until next time,

- Patrick

: : © Patrick Onofre Photography : :

Is it just me, or does 2012 feel a lot like 2011?

Maybe it’s too soon to tell, or maybe it’s my cynical nature, but it’s hard to notice a significant difference. There’s so much promise and hope that things will be better when a new year comes, but nothing is guaranteed and so much can happen between now and December 31st. Not to be a Debbie Downer or anything.

Would I consider 2011 to be a success or a failure? Well, to be honest (and I don’t intend to sound like a Hallmark card), the way I see it, I’m still alive and able to enjoy life, through the good times or bad, so I’d say it’s a success. After leaving the restaurant industry and becoming self-employed, I noticed that I have developed an uncanny ability to be positive and look for the good things to celebrate while recognizing that bad times may happen, but they won’t be sad for long. It’s all in your perspective, which then leads me to think about all of those hopeful souls standing in New York’s Times Square, awaiting a glass ball to “drop”, signaling a new year and bringing illusions of a promise that things will be better and we can all start anew.

What a crock of shit.

Let’s be honest with ourselves, shall we? You can change any time you want to change and don’t need the first of January to be the only time you can do so; you just have to be persistent and motivated to work on those things you want to change. Things don’t always fall into your lap and makes all the bad things go away. Hell, if you think about it, winning the lottery hasn’t made anyone’s lives 100% better. Think about all of the “family” that comes out of the woodwork once they find out a relative has won millions of dollars and looks for a free hand out, and all the turmoil that brings. Good times.

The bottom line is that, while it’s always great to bring in a new year with the ones you love, as I did this year with friends who have traveled near and far to be together and celebrate while also meeting new friends to enjoy the festivities with, thinking that the stroke of midnight means your debt goes away, your health miraculously recovers, or that your relationship with friends and family improves is kind of ludicrous. Everything requires a little work and effort year-round. Think about it: did you make a New Year’s Resolution? And how did that work out for you? Shit, look at the the list of ones I made for myself. Piss poor performance, if you ask me. Do you want to know why I failed? Because I didn’t put in the work and effort to really make those things happen. It wasn’t 2011’s fault. The glass fixture for last year’s ball drop wasn’t faulty. It simply was because I didn’t want it enough and didn’t make the lasting effort to bring about those changes. Plus, I kind of didn’t really care (I mean, “Keep Up With Google Reader”? Who does that shit?).

In a few days, I’ll be celebrating two years of blogging fun, and coming from quitting the restaurant industry to where I’m at now, there has been a ton of change. So much has happened since I began this blog and started my own photography business that through the good and bad, I can’t help but reflect on how entertaining it has all been, to say the least. I’m not sure what this coming year will bring, but the things I plan on making happen, like the exhibit at the National Museum of the Marine Corps that begins on January 20th, all show that 2012 will be whatever I make of it, and if that means I want to make it awesome, I will do whatever is in my power to make that happen.

Will 2011 be a lot like 2012? I guess we’ll find out. Ask me in twelve months.

Until next time,

- Patrick

Yesterday, I teased you all about what my resolutions would be for 2012 after showcasing how I failed so horribly at last year’s list like a Washington, DC sports franchise. While I didn’t do so bad with the professional goals, my personal goals were left in the dust. As a result, the list I made you all wait an extra day to see is a combination of professional and personal goals. Being honest, the delay is because I only had about two or three things on my 2012 To Do List and wanted to buy some time to figure out some more, since they were all business-oriented goals and not personal by any stretch of the imagination. But now that it’s the next day, I have no excuse and must present to you my 2012 New Year’s Resolutions. I want to do multiple ones because I think stopping at one life improvement is weak sauce, and I’m competitive in nature. SO, without further ado, here are the things I would like to accomplish in the coming year:

1. Shoot Live Concert Photography Regularly - Months ago, I got to shoot my very first live concert and caught the concert photography bug. Unpaid, I went to the Black Lips show weeks later to shoot that show for the thrill of it and had a blast. Since then, I haven’t shot a concert. At all. I really miss it, and especially for someone who makes music a regular part of his life, it only seems right. Who knows what will come of it if I shoot for fun, right?
2. Regularly Post Video To The Blog - I’ve been thinking about this for a while now, and while I see a bunch of other folks do it, I have yet to do so myself, mainly because I hate the sound of my voice. This can be something I can get over and I think it will add a nice, personal touch to my blogging and website efforts. I mean, wouldn’t you like to see and hear my awesomeness?
3. Transfer My Blog and Website Under One Roof - I recently renewed my blog’s domain name, and as I clicked “submit payment”, I cringed. I’ve wanted to have everything placed under one domain name for a while now, but for one reason or another, I haven’t gotten around to it. So, I would like to make this happen, and completed even sooner than the end of the year (since I have to renew my website’s domain name in September).
4. Stop The Car And Shoot - Here’s the issue: I’ll drive or walk somewhere, see something interesting or funny, and continue to walk or drive somewhere. I’ll think back to that image I should have taken and wonder why I didn’t just take it. Was it nerves? In a rush to go somewhere? Either way, I want to just go for it on a regular basis. We’ll see what develops…
5. Attend a Photography Expo - What better way to better yourself than surrounding yourself by better…? I think I’d be doing myself a disservice if I didn’t force myself to attend one of these things to see what my peers in the industry are doing, so I should fork over the cash and check one out to pick up some new ideas and techniques.
6. Force Myself to Regularly Schedule “Me Time” - I’m always on the go. Always. I was sitting at home yesterday, cleaning the bathroom, and realized that, with the calamity that’s about to ensue for New Year’s Weekend, it was nice to simply sit at home and [almost] do nothing. If I don’t schedule it, it won’t happen, so I think I need to force myself to book myself for… myself. Whether it’s restarting regular yoga classes or vegging in front of the TV to play Madden or FIFA on the Xbox, I should take time for me for once. Let’s see how that goes.

I’m sure more will come to mind as the year progresses, but for now, this is what I’ve got. I think I can accomplish all of these things, and if I really put my mind to it, I’ll make it happen. I have to stop with the excuses and do a better job scheduling time in to ensure I will give myself the best chance of crossing these tasks off of the To Do List. What are your New Year’s Resolutions, both photography-minded and personal?

Until next time,

- Patrick

It should come as no surprise, but I completely forgot all about New Year’s Resolutions. I mean, I did sort of warn you all in Internetland that I thought New Year’s Resolutions are stupid – hell, it was the first line of the post I did a year ago. However, to entertain all of you who were so eager to know what I’m doing at all hours of the day because you stalk me as if I were Lady Gaga (which, in reality, would be zero of you), I made a list anyway. I wrote down a few “wouldn’t it be nice if I completed this” things, acknowledged it as a completed post, and then forgot about it like that ugly sweater your aunt gets you for Christmas/Hanukkah/Festivus which you discard into the black hole of your closet, never to be seen again.

For a few weeks now, I was curious to see how I actually did. I figured I subconsciously had a few of those things on my year-round To Do List and probably completed them by happenstance. I get lucky like that from time to time. Other tasks I am fully aware I didn’t accomplish because I continue to mock myself for not doing so, such as learning Spanish, which seems to be the albatross I shot long ago, not with a crossbow, but with taking German in high school for three years. Go ahead, ask me something in German to see how I respond. I guarantee you I’ll give you a blank stare. It’ll be funny, especially possibly only because we are drunk.

Anyway, I’m still curious to see how I actually did, and because it’s drawing closer to a new year [and I'm bored], why not check it out? You’ve got spare time, don’t you? Well, alrighty then! For fun, and because I love colors (almost as much as I love to smile – smiling is my favorite), GREEN means I actually did it and RED means I failed miserably. Let’s hope for my pride’s sake that I see a lot more green than red. I’ll even say a prayer to Tebow before I get started, just to be safe.

1. Show my work in an art exhibit – Holy crap! I actually did this! Back in November, for the first time, I showed two of my pieces at the instantdc art show, part of FotoWeek DC! It was something else to see my work printed and displayed for all to see, and what makes this even better is that from January 20th until May 11th in 2012, I’ll have photos I took from my visits to Walter Reed and from the Warrior Games displayed in an exhibit at the National Museum of the Marine Corps! OORAH!
2. Complete a Project 365 – Oh man. I failed at this miserably. I got as far as June 6th – 156 photos – and then ended it abruptly. I will admit that I was going through a lot at that point, which consumed my time, but that’s still not an excuse. I mean, Hugh Crawford took 6,000 photos – a photo a day for EIGHTEEN YEARS – from 1979 until his death in 1997. Fuck, the guy even took photos while he was on his death bed during his battle with cancer. That makes me seem like a wimp. It’s not to say I don’t photograph stuff regularly, even with my iPhone, but it’s not at least once a day. *sigh*
3. Learn Spanish [finally] – Oh man. I failed at this miserably. I made a point to read at least once a week, on Saturdays at Busboys and Poets near my house, but even that stopped. I stopped making time for things and forcing myself to do stuff like learning a foreign language. *double sigh*
4. Keep up with my Google Reader – Well, this didn’t last long. I honestly don’t know why this was even something on my list to do, since it’s just not me. I read what I want when I want to, and sometimes the blogs and posts aren’t worth my time. This was a stupid one to make myself do regularly. Does this mean I get a pass on this one?
5. On A Similar Note: Make sure to post a comment on at least four blogs a week – Oopsie. I started off really well, but much like #4, some posts aren’t worth commenting on, even four in a week. While I think it will help give me some relevancy, I just don’t feel like I should force myself to comment on something if I’m just not feeling it. If you have nothing nice to say, after all…
6. Go snowboarding – I still have never been. This is still a tragedy. It still needs to be resolved. Soon.
7. Travel somewhere outside of the US – Well, I was right: I didn’t let it happen again. Andrew and I traveled to Mexico with Craig and Victoria to shoot their wedding back in the end of October, and in the meantime, he and I got to explore Playa del Carmen while we were at it. It was loads of fun and something I will definitely look forward to doing more of, now that I’ve got the destination wedding bug!

Two out of seven done. Ouch. However, in this past year, I was able to progress in a few things that are on my photography bucket list, such as being the photographer for a cookbook and shooting a destination wedding in three continents. Baby steps. Still, though, it’s rather disappointing that I wasn’t really able to accomplish a lot of these things. Boo! I still think these things are stupid, since I feel like I had a great 2011 despite not accomplishing these things. I have done so much this year – from photographing inspiring Marines at The Warrior Games in Colorado and elsewhere to showing my work at an exhibit to being a part of a cookbook to shooting some of the best weddings I have ever shot to date to some fun projects like shooting awesome people and beer to shooting a book cover to shooting at stellar places like The Source and Rogue 24 to shooting my first live concert. Not too shabs for failing on majority of my New Year’s Resolutions.

I observed that I didn’t really accomplish any personal goals, but my professional ones were met (and in some cases, exceeded). Even in the instance of the ones I didn’t write down on this list, almost all my professional goals were accomplished, but nearly none of my personal ones were. This tells me I’m so work-focused, but even though I feel as though I do a good job with my personal life, I think that I might not be doing a good enough job with it as I think I am. I enjoy my “me time” and doing things for myself, but I actually might not be doing things for my betterment like I think I am. Interesting.

So, what are my New Year’s Resolutions going to be for 2012? Find out tomorrow in my now-annual NYE Resolutions post! (Like that teaser? Yeah, I took a few marketing and writing classes, so I know how to keep you guys coming back ;P )

Until next time (or tomorrow, even)

- Patrick

In a word: ugh.

My dedication to writing gets completely lost amongst the continuous busyness that is my life at the moment, and with holiday shopping abound, the idea to even sit in front of a computer and type something out makes me feel nauseous. How do all these busy bodies do it?! I’m chugging along, editing photos while gaining new photography assignments, and am in complete awe of people who can blog regularly while taking on so many projects simultaneously. Those rat bastards and their ability to multitask.

Taking a peek at my history of blog posts, there was a time I could blog three times a week. Have I run out of things to say? Well, those who know me know that’s far from the truth. Could it be I’m tired of my blog being separate from my website? Sort of, but that shouldn’t stop me from writing. Am I too busy to blog? I think that’s bullshit because “you make time for what’s important to you,” but to say the blog isn’t important to me is even bullshittier because there are countless days my mind races in the car or in bed and I think, “GOD DAMMIT! I HAVEN’T UPDATED MY BLOG IN A MILLENNIUM!” (Seriously, the thoughts in my head are in ALL-CAPS and bold font) So clearly, it can’t be that.

Look, I love to write and I like to fill people in on what’s going on with me, which I feel I do regularly on Twitter, but something about formulating my thoughts in about 600-800 words freezes my branium. I have no problem ranting and raving in 140 characters, but getting me to sit down long enough to hash out a coherent post for you all to read is a task in itself. I have trouble getting myself to eat, let alone think of something clever to say. Then again, when the coffee wears out, good luck getting me to do anything.

So, what’s the deal? Lord knows there is never a shortage of things for me to say, so what gives? Honestly, I have been trying to prevent this blog from getting too personal and focus on photography, and even though I’m getting a lot of gigs and photographing a ton, sitting down to write about it seems… blah. Recounting a shoot is always fun, but having to go through the images to post some on a blog before the images are ready for the client sort of irritates me, and then once I complete editing the shoot after hours/days of laboring through the photos, I want nothing to do with them after that because I’m tired of looking at them. All this added up, and it equals large gaps between shoots. I’m crying a fucking river.

I’m not saying I will turn this around today, or tomorrow, or next week, but the bottom line is that this attitude must change. I’m a business, for God’s sake! I’m fortunate to have the clients that I have, but this is essentially free advertising on all the awesomeness I do, so what am I waiting for? Maybe this post seems like a lot of ranting, but the valuable lesson you can take away after sticking with me for over 500 words is this: if you want to accomplish something, sitting on your ass and doing nothing is not the way to make that happen. If I want to impress people with all my awesome photos and the great things I do, I need to let them know, and long gaps between posts doesn’t let them know you’ve done anything relevant, since not everyone follows my Twitter feed or my Facebook page (and if you don’t, why the hell not?! Don’t you love me?! I love you! I just want to be liked and followed, and I ain’t too proud to beg!). Did you know I recently had an awesome shoot with Nisa for her upcoming book, Kitchenability? No? That’s probably because I’m an asshole and haven’t posted anything about it on my blog. Shame on me! (And shame on you if you don’t follow Nisa on Twitter or fan her Facebook page!)

If I want this to happen, I’ve got to make it happen. Hopefully, I’ll think of some clever things to discuss with you all, but the first conversation I’d like to have with you all is this: for all you bloggers out there, how do you make the time in your busy schedule to blog? What time of the day works best for you? And how frequent do you blog and why not any more/less?

Until next time,

- Patrick

“You live in Arlington, right?” my boss at the Wounded Warrior Regiment asked me. I do – almost directly across from The Pentagon on the other side of I-395. “Perfect,” he said, “because you’re going to go shoot the Warrior Care Month Wheelchair Basketball Exhibition.” Well, if I MUST…

The Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Regiment, along with other military services, were a part of this wonderful event that showcased to spectators the impact adaptive athletic activities can have can have on recovering service members. Along with wounded, ill, and injured service members from different branches of the military, there were also select military leaders who played alongside the athletes. Watching the event at the amazing Pentagon Athletic Center, I was reminded of my time at the Warrior Games and how amazed and inspired I was to watch these remarkable men and women participate.

One of the best parts was that, for the first two or three hours, they allowed interested spectators to hop in a wheelchair and give it a try. Not being one to be shy, I decided to attempt it, since I have never been in a wheelchair before and found the sport extremely fascinating in the first place. The specialized wheelchairs designed for the sport were incredible – the wheels are angled to give you more stability and maneuverability as you worked around the court. Plus, it’s a deceivingly physical sport; the number of times players collide with one another seems brutal, but it’s a part of the game, much like blocking defenders in football to better position yourself to prevent the opposition from scoring points. I had a difficult time trying to get my wheelchair to even go straight! However, after a little bit of coaching and practice, I was able to move around and stop on a dime.

Then, it got to shooting a basketball, and after watching wheelchair basketball players seemingly score with ease, I learned they deserved WAY more credit than I already had given them initially! We take for granted that playing basketball, we can use our legs to help us launch the ball, but that is not possible in a wheelchair by any stretch of the imagination! It’s all done from the arms and requires a lot more arm strength to propel the ball towards the basket. It took me a few tries to really launch the ball from my seat and I caught myself practically standing out of the wheelchair to even shoot the ball high enough to hit the rim!

After enough practice, I was able to make a basket, but it still left me with quite an impression. To watch these athletes shooting during the game after trying it out myself made me realized what kind of superior ability they had in order to be effective in the game.

What also added to this was what occurred later that evening, when my girlfriend decided that it was time for a “date night”. Thankfully, dressing up wasn’t required, however we started the evening by watching “Hell And Back Again”, a documentary about a Marine who was a part of Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines, who went into Afghanistan to eliminate a Taliban threat to the region. I remembered being told about it by a Marine Captain I work with, who went to the opening screening of it in New York City and talked with the Marine and his wife. After learning about the kind of hoopla this film initially drummed up within the Marine Corps (which was later quelled once they actually saw the film), I was intrigued to see a movie that got a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Because I’m a sap, I sort of took this movie a little personally, since service members like US Marine Sergeant Nathan Harris and his wife, Ashley, are the kind of folks I interact with regularly when working with the Wounded Warrior Regiment. I think Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a highly misdiagnosed and commonly occurring injury that is experienced by service members returning from combat, and to see it affect Harris and how he and his wife were coping with it made what I do real. I felt more motivated to really help out the more than ten thousand wounded, ill, and injured Marines and felt truly inspired.

This week, before I get fattened up by inhaling an ungodly amount of turkey and cylindrical cranberry sauce, I’m reminded of my post last year at Turkey Day, and while I’m thankful for so many things this year, it doesn’t change the fact that I’m thankful for so, so much that I have on a regular, daily basis; one day to reflect on all of that is certainly not enough, which is why I think about all of that every morning when I wake up. I’ll probably post something on Thanksgiving, but for the rest of the posts this week, I’m planning on chatting about my awesome time in Mexico and a really fun engagement shoot from earlier in the month. Stay tuned for stories of my awesome adventures!

In the meantime, I think I’m going to practice more on my wheelchair basketball hooping skills – that game is extremely difficult!

Until next time,

- Patrick

: : photo by Ryan Maxwell : :

It was pretty surreal. There I was, standing in front of the black pegboard amongst the eighteen prints and amongst them, my photo. Across the room was another one of my photos, which I mockingly named “Retro Ball of Warm, Healing Light” just to chuckle when I listened to people discussing it. I wondered if that’s how everyone else who went through having their work displayed in their first art show felt when they saw their images printed. “Nah,” I thought, “I’m probably the only sap in the room – these people are too cool for that!”

The second annual InstantDC show was November 9th, and it was an event I had been looking forward to for a year. Since last year’s InstantDC exhibit, my good friend and organizer, James Campbell, has been making some BIG strides. From a self-promoted show to a sponsored show along with FotoWeek DC, he’s making things happen, and I have never been prouder of my friends. He has kept a few of us in the loop about some of the goings on, but to see everything in action was fantastic and better than I could’ve imagined.

The event was hosted at Interface Media Group, who held the main exhibit in their recording studio. I loved the layout, having strobes normally used to put on a television or video production illuminating the artwork, and everything draped in black to make the images stand out. What was even nicer was the food and beverage selection, which was succeeded by a clothes line containing thumbnails of all of the entries to the InstantDC a la FotoWeek DC.

I had the joy to hang out with some of my good friends who had pieces displayed in the show while I was there, but also got to meet a couple of other great photographers whom I have been following for quite some time, and other photographers who I have certainly been missing out by not following until now. Great people like Ryan Maxwell, Greg Schmigel, Michael Andrade, Laura Frantz, and Jon Betts, who, if it weren’t for Jon, I wouldn’t have been encouraged to attempt mobile photography and “appstracts”, as James calls them.

Knowing that a few of my friends would be there made it especially exciting to attend. Seeing their images appear next to mine made me feel a bit inadequate – their body of work is incredible, and here lies a photo I took of the ceiling in Jaleo that got selected by the judges. It just didn’t seem to match up, considering the always-fantastic works from photographers like Jenny Markley and Jim Darling made me feel a bit small. Even more ridiculous was being contacted a few days later about interest in buying one of my pieces! One of MY pieces! What the what?! Already, I was feeling humble, but the slices of humble pie just kept being served! I was beyond flattered and can’t wait to send away the print!

The biggest egoist thing I felt compelled to do was show my support for local artists (since this was a DC-centric event, though I feel FotoWeek does a poor job of showcasing Washingtonian talent, but that’s a rant for another day). My thought was to be seen in a Jon Wye shirt, who is an awesome and talented t-shirt and belt buckle designer from the area, and make sure that it was known DC has wonderful artists beyond this week-long exhibit. I was very pleased that I had been asked numerous times where my shirt was from, and considering it also related to cooking – which was a play on where I had come from, I felt it very suiting to wear. Hopefully, this meant Jon got a little more attention for his work!

Everyone’s work was so incredible that to put my photos anywhere in the same vicinity was extremely humbling. On top of that, everyone was extremely pleasant and a joy to talk to, which only made the experience more memorable, knowing I not only walked away from the Interface Media Group facility with the ability to check off something from the ol’ photography bucket list, but that I also walked away with a bunch of new and inspiring friends.

Until next time,

- Patrick

Thought from the road: I should take more road trips.

This occurred. To me as I was heading north this past weekend to Pennsylvania to shoot the wedding of Kimberlee and Erik with Alicia Griffin. The idea of an outdoorsy wedding in the fall had me really excited, and it was hard to grasp the notion that I’ve shot almost as many weddings outside of the DC area as I have inside the Beltway. I’m a traveling wedding photography phenomenon!

But another thought occurred to me from the road: I really need to get back to blogging regularly. It’s been a while since I’ve blogged, and I even had a blog post two weeks ago from the plane to Mexico while Andrew and I were in-transit to shoot a wedding. As life would have it, things keep getting in the way of me updating the interwebs on how awesome things have been going. Maybe that’s a good thing, because life has been pretty awesome, and I’d hate to make you all jealous.

It’s been a long time coming, and while it’s easy to say I have a charmed life, it hasn’t been without a ton of work. Photography isn’t the kind of industry where you can wait for opportunity to hook you up; you have to be proactive and make it happen. I can’t lie, though – there has been some luck thrown in there, but it hasn’t been without cheating a little bit by positioning myself in a way to get lucky.

This reminds me of my poker days in college, which only makes sense to mention because the World Series of Poker main event concludes last week. When I first started out, I had moderate success, but “consistent” would never be a term I’d use to describe my play and my profitability. Once I learned more about the world of poker and how to regularly position yourself to get lucky, my results changed dramatically. I was winning more often and would come home with thousands every weekend. Want to know the secret? Here it is:

You make your own luck.

I couldn’t predict what cards were going to fall, but I knew enough of the probabilities of the possible outcomes enough to know when to play and when not to, when to push my money in and when to keep it in front of me. Some lessons required me to lose a few of my chips, but the way it works in poker is that you have to spend money to make money, and scared money doesn’t make money. If I spent my time worried I was going to lose, I was going to lose. I wouldn’t play the kind of smart, aggressive strategy necessary to be successful in the game.

The bottom line is that, after learning all of these lessons and learning from others’ mistakes, I knew enough to put myself in a position to increase the likelihood that I will be successful. In the world of photography, it’s vital to fight for the success you need in order to survive in this industry. Everybody is a photographer these days, much like everyone was a poker player back in the day when I played cards. I never became a household name, but I never cared to be. I had money to pay my bills and have extra beer money. Nowadays, I’m looking for much of the same, but maybe a more grown-up version… you know, like saving the money for investments instead of booze.

In the end, all I can do is what makes me happy, and having a career that accomplishes that has been a long time coming. I’m glad that I no longer need to rely on Ramen as my only source of meals for weeks on end. I may not necessarily be where I envision myself just yet, but I most certainly have made strides to be on a path that I want to be on, which has had a ton of niceties as of late.

I mean, destination weddings to Mexico and finally showing some of my photography in an art exhibit are nothing to be nonchalant about, right?

Until next time,

- Patrick

As you might have been able to tell based on the lack of updates, I have been INSANELY busy. And it’s been great. Nay, GREAT! Over the past weekend, I finally got to do what I’ve been longing to do for a while now: shoot food for a cookbook. I got to meet Nisa and go over the food she was going to shoot for the book, reviewing a very ambitious shot list. However, you all know me, and ambition is my forte. I saw the challenge and said, “BRING IT!”

We got started late Friday night and ended up shooting up until midnight, but got into our groove and set ourselves up nicely for the rest of the weekend. Saturday was filled with fun, shooting action shots of Nisa and her mom cooking, head shots, and more and more delicious food. The unfortunate draw back of shooting food is that you’re stuck with tons of leftovers. So, sadly, I was forced to eat things like Nutella Peanut Butter Brownies, Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes, and gnocchi with a homemade pesto from fresh basil grown in her garden. It’s a tough, tough life.

To top it all off, I met some incredible people. Between her mom, Brian, Drew, and of course, Nisa, it felt like it wasn’t work; it was a weekend of fun conversations and hanging out with friend. And when you are able to throw any reference at someone and they can throw it back at you (Yoko Kano and The Seatbelts, anyone?), you know you’re working with the right people.

Furthermore, this week, I’ll be reliving my rodeo days by shooting the second installment of the Cutting Horse Classic. Three months ago, I had the opportunity to capture ten Marines who had little-to-no riding experience compete in a competition where they looked like professionals. This time around, these riders have even less experience, it appears, but so far this week, they have learned how to ride cutting horses with ease. It’s been quite impressive to watch, so I know that capturing the competition on Friday will be a blast! (plus nowhere near the sweltering heat that was faced in the last go around)

All of this comes right before Andrew and I head to Mexico for a week to shoot a wedding. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten to shoot with Andrew, so I’m really looking forward to reuniting with my partner in crime again. He and I have been so busy with our personal photography that it’s been hard for the two of us to catch up with one another – or even catch one another on Twitter and the like. While its been a pleasure shooting weddings with other friends, Andrew is my business partner for a reason. He and I definitely click when it comes to weddings, and it’s almost mechanical the way we operate. Add to that a destination wedding outside of the United States and you have the makings of one kick ass wedding!

So, cookbooks, Marine athletes, and destination weddings. Man! What a rough life!

Until next time,

- Patrick

It’s funny how quickly we can develop routines. Wake up, shower, brush teeth, get dressed, grab a morning coffee at the local coffee house, head to work. But therein lies an interesting point: why is grabbing a coffee somewhere a part of our routine these days? When did THAT happen? Why do we do the things we do and claim that we can’t exist on this planet without them?

I remember when I worked at Starbucks in college and how impatient people would get as they waited in line. People would remark, “I have to be at work in ten minutes!” If you’re THAT pressed on time, why are you here? Why didn’t you get here earlier? Or the people who would say it’s outrageous to pay $5 for a cup of coffee. Well, first of all, that’s the price of a latte – you can usually get a large cup of coffee for $2. Secondly, if you’re that upset, why not brew it at home? Oh, because you’re too lazy to? Then shut your trap.

But it’s that last bit that I’ve been pondering lately. $5 for a latte? That adds up! I know it’s been talked about on countless occasions, but I’ve always made excuses as to why I should be stopping in at Starbucks or Caribou. “It’s not THAT much money.” “I can drink my coffee during my long trip to the Regiment.” “I don’t have the syrups that make it taste SO MUCH BETTER.” Excuses, excuses, excuses.

I figure that I’m spending nearly $1,200 a year on coffee. That makes no sense. Imagine all of the things I could spend $1,200 on. A new lens. New gear. Gas for my car for about half of the year. I could think of a ton of better things to spend my money on than coffee. Granted, the banks and their fees don’t really help much (I get charged at the ATM for withdrawing money, and then Wells Fargo charges me ANOTHER $2.50 to withdraw money?! What the what?! Reminds me of this Louis C.K. bit). And it’s not just coffee – I’m overhauling everything. The extra appetizer I tend to get at restaurants for the hell of it. Going out to lunch every day. All the extra things in life I barely use (I have an HD TV, but I’m barely home long enough to watch it… what’s the point of having an HD box then?!). Time to consolidate.

I think we all make excuses for the little things we buy, but fail to add all of those little purchases up to recognize that we’re spending WAY TOO MUCH money at any given time. As a business owner, I can ill afford doing that. So, I have bought a half pound of coffee and am utilizing my French Press. I mean, look at this difference: it cost me $13 for a half a pound, and I’ve already consumed a week’s worth of coffee, with plenty more coffee drinking days ahead of me; that same $13 wouldn’t even get me three cups of coffee! Sounds like I’m off to a great start.

Besides becoming stingier with my purchasing, there are routines I’ve developed that are worth keeping. I recently finished a shoot with one of my favorite clients, Kimberly Wilson, who is just about to launch her Fall 2011 collection for TranquiliT, and the whole process has become a familiar routine I’ve always looked forward to. Plus, I always bring new toys to use for each shoot, and the results always turn out better than the last shoot! I got to meet Lesley Ware, who modeled for us this go around, and reunited with Tim and Julia, who were great help during the shoot. It was a load of fun and I’m plugging away on the images, but in the meantime, you can take a sneak peek at a behind the scenes video of the day here.

New toys! Thanks to Andrew for letting me try this puppy out!

Another amazing opportunity coming my way is something I get to check off my Photography Bucket List. Even though I’ve worked in the food service industry for nearly ten years and have degrees in both Culinary Arts and Food Service Management (yes, they are REAL degrees), I particularly don’t care to work in that business anymore unless I’m taking photos of a brilliant chef’s food inside his/her kitchen or being the food photographer for a cookbook. Well, worry no more, kids! I get to do the latter! I was approached by a young culinarian named Nisa Burns who is putting together a pretty neat cookbook for those who tend to get intimidated by cooking and is going to make it more accessible to the folks who The Food Network is forgetting about: every day people.

After spending some time on the phone with her, we both realized we have just about the same philosophy on cooking and share a lot of similar culinary heroes. the interesting part was when she said that she not only wanted someone who she could work with, but someone she could get along with, too. This has been something I’ve preached over and over and over again when people have asked me why I say what I say on Twitter or Facebook because I want to show that I’m a person that you can get along with; if you’re not impressed with what I tweet or say, chances are we probably won’t get along when it comes to business, too. I do what I do and say what I say to weed out the people I don’t want to work with for the people I do care to work with, and Nisa finding me and wanting to work with me is further proof of that. (I smell a blog post… or Nisa’s cooking)

Speaking of Nisa’s Cooking, you guys should check out her stuff. At the moment, she’s revamping her blog and getting it all redesigned and all that fun stuff, but in the meantime, stalk her on Facebook and see what she’s up to. By the sound of things, it’s quite an adventure in the world of an author!

I’m hoping to have more great news coming your way soon, so stay tuned! (and keep stalking me on Twitter and Facebook!) (yes, shameless self-promotion… I’m over it)

Until next time,

- Patrick

I don’t think I’m as busy as I tell people I am. When someone asks me what I’m up to, I tell them that I’m busy and they think I’m a hustling professional, but that’s quite far from the truth. I’m INSANELY BUSY. I don’t give myself enough credit for all of the nonsense I do on a regular basis. There are days where I stare blankly at my computer, completely overwhelmed with my To Do list. I’m surprised I get anything done, and yet here I am, doing more. I’m The Dude.

Besides my daily dose of awesome I subject the world to, I was asked to speak to my friend’s class, who teaches at American University alongside my good friend and fellow photographer, Alicia Griffin. They were a very engaging class and extremely pleasant to talk to about how social media has affected our businesses and other issues that have arisen over social media and photography. It was a great time and I met wonderful people in doing so. I even met someone who said, “I want to be you” – well, she was referring to wanting to help with the Marine Corps like I do, so… yeah. But anyway, who knows – maybe public speaking is in my future?

I wish speaking wasn’t tainted with the fact that an ignorant employee at the WWR Call Center decided to choose their words poorly and insult the degrees that I have earned while simultaneously insinuating that a person with my educational background wasn’t worthy of speaking at American University. It was quite an absurd situation and things are certainly awkward now, but I haven’t let that deter me from working hard and being my best. I got quite the reaction to the article and I must say, I highly appreciate everyone’s support in the matter! I have quite an amazing group of friends, so thank you all sincerely!

Meanwhile, I’ve noticed that the number of posts I’ve been doing have dropped off significantly. I would apologize, except that I’ve grown increasingly busy in my life and haven’t found much of a chance to get to this. There have been so many things I’ve wanted to talk about, yet I simply haven’t gotten around to it because I’ve been setting up upcoming shoots. Plus, there are weeks where I look at the blank page and have NOTHING to write about. Rather than drone on about mindless items or turn this into something where I discuss every teensy weensy detail of my life, I figure the best approach is to speak when I have something to say and shut my mouth when I don’t. My average visits to this site haven’t decreased when this happens, so what do I have to lose? (That is, unless there suddenly becomes an overwhelming demand to see my posts regularly… *looks around the room to see if anybody agrees to that notion… anyone? Bueller?*)

However, I DO have something to report this week, which is another wedding that I shot in Wisconsin – this time, for Renee and Matt Wraalstad. I’ve already been to Wisconsin back in June to shoot a wedding with one of my best friend’s wife, Amber Humphries, and also to visit him and his family, but a second helping never hurt! Amber had shot the couple’s engagement photos a few months ago, but this was my first time meeting them and they were extremely awesome to work with! The best part was that they had ideas on some images they wanted, which I think Amber and I were able to capture and then some! It’s refreshing when the couple is able to grab you in the middle of the reception and ask, “could we get some photos of us with this gorgeous sunset?” As you can see from the above photo, I think they were spot on in requesting that image!

I had great fun shooting that wedding while finishing up other wedding photos. It’s going to sound corny, but shooting weddings has and continues to be loads of fun to me. I think other photographers who dislike them aren’t approaching the matter right. It’s such a momentous occasion and extremely festive – how could you NOT enjoy it?! Plus, I’ve been fortunate to travel to Massachusetts and Wisconsin to shoot weddings and also have another one in Mexico in a month. I can’t say that happened when I was working in the food service industry!

Another fun happy times moment was getting to photograph my good friend, Rachael King, and the award-winning business she works for, iostudio. They needed some head shots done and I was more than happy to oblige, since I’ve met these fine folks at a happy hour earlier in the months. They’re all really fun and laid back folks, so the shoot was more like hanging out than work (and isn’t that how work should be?). Plus, lunching with Rachael is always a treat, since she’s extremely hilarious and awesome to hang out with!

Upcoming sooner than a month from now, I’ll be shooting with the delightful Kimberly Wilson again on Friday! She’s becoming quite the regular client, as I recently photographed her newest yoga instructors at her yoga studio, Tranquil Space, but with someone as pleasant and easy to work with as her, the shoots we have together are always too few and far between! She’s going to be unveiling her Fall ’11 line for TranquiliT and if it’s anything like what I’ve shot in the past, the pieces are going to be fabulous. She always picks phenomenal colors and her designs are versatile and chic, so I can’t wait to see what she’s got in store!

The rest of the week is going to be busy at the Regiment, working on more images for the upcoming museum exhibit I’ve got in April and also piecing together what I’d like to put together for a show at the next instantdc show, which will hopefully be done in the next few months!

So, in being completely honest with you all about my status for once, I’m not just busy – I’m EXTREMELY busy! Oi vey!

Until next time,

- Patrick

So, here’s the thing: I never get offended. Ever. I’m laid back about a lot of subjects and don’t take myself seriously at all. I’ll joke about my ethnicity, poke fun at other stereotypes, and lightheartedly tease people about anything and everything.

A typical introduction to someone I am just meeting goes as follows:

Acquaintance: So, what do you do for a living?
Me: I’m a photographer.
Acquaintance: Oh, how wonderful! Did you go to school for photography?
Me: No. Actually, I went to school at Johnson & Wales, earning degrees in Culinary Arts and a Bachelor’s in Food Service Management. As you can see, I’m clearly using my degrees to their fullest potential.
*everyone has a good chuckle and I look like a comedic genius*

I have no problem having a laugh at my degrees because they’re my degrees. Even though I’m not using them, it doesn’t make them any less relevant to me. So when someone acts as if my hard work at a major university is null and void, well… let’s just say I was really close to yelling “HULK SMASH!!!” and using my iMac as a weapon. I was originally hesitant in even writing about this, since I don’t normally divulge in my personal life, but I was so hurt and offended that I eventually concluded “I don’t give a fuck about their feelings since they blatantly didn’t care about mine. Fuck them.” Allow me to go into detail.

I was having a conversation with someone about what I’m up to in the upcoming week. I told him about the wedding I will be shooting in Wisconsin this weekend and that I have a speaking gig for a friend’s class at American University. While he expressed enthusiasm and excitement for my opportunity, I had another person overhear the conversation that they were never a part of and, in their usual manner, help themselves to our conversation. The offender asked what I was speaking about and I reluctantly told them that I would be discussing social media and how it has helped my photography business, as well as other subjects involving social media. After some mindless dross about American’s great Grad School programs (umm, sure… that’s not any what relevant to the conversation, but whatever you say), they throw in this gem:

“I didn’t know that they would have someone with no college degree speak to their students.”

I inform them that I have a college degree – TWO, in fact – to which this person then says, “Oh, I thought you just took cooking classes.”

Oh wait – it gets better.

“I did,” I reply, “and in doing so, I earned a degree in Culinary Arts. THEN, I got a Bachelor’s degree in Food Service Management. And I worked very hard to earn those degrees, thank you for asking.”

The person I originally intended on having a meaningful conversation with can see I’m getting visibly upset and wisely chooses to regain focus on my speaking gig and what a wonderful opportunity it is for me, but apparently, my coworker was not done rendering ridiculous remarks.

“I didn’t realize they gave degrees for culinary arts.”

At this point, I had two options: 1) I could beat them senseless with my office chair and risk getting fired from a job that has provided numerous wonderful opportunities and whose contractors adore me and the work I do, or 2) attempt to refrain from conducting physical harm to the offender and take the high road. I chose option two and became silent, staring at my computer screen after putting on my headphones and trying not to think about what just happened.

Moments later, I was getting ready to leave when the offender decides they weren’t finished yet. The person asked if they had offended me in some way, and still stewing, I tersely said, “Don’t worry about it.” The coworker then states,

“I’m sorry if I offended you – it’s just that at [their alma mater], we had cooking classes, but that was just for vocational class, not for a degree.”

I got up and walked away.

Look, your apology means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING the moment you tack on “it’s just that…” to it; it turns from an apology to a defensive statement, pleading your case as to why you made the offensive statements in the first place. It doesn’t fix anything – it actually makes me even more offended and upset. Further, it makes you look like an unsympathetic asshole who doesn’t actually give a shit about my or anyone else’s feelings but your own, which adds to the offense and my hurt feelings. You’re better off shutting your fucking mouth than digging the hole deeper, you oblivious and aloof fuck.

The bigger crime here is the fact that not only was I insulted by the offender’s misinformation of my educational status, but the fact that upon learning of the degrees I earned, they continue to throw salt into the wound by essentially stating that my degrees weren’t relevant. That the university I attended was somehow inferior to the university they attended. That somehow, my hard work and energy exerted in earning my degrees was nowhere as extensive as the effort put into their singular degree.

Well, let me tell you something, you ignorant shit-for-brains: I worked extremely hard to earn my degrees, thank you very much. I am the first person in my family to earn a college degree, and not only did I earn a degree, I earned two of them. This is an honor I hold very near and dear to my heart and am beyond proud to hold this title. It’s not to diminish anything my family has done, since they are all successful in their chosen lines of work, but knowing I set my mind to something and completed something that nobody else has done in my family makes me extremely proud – that I’m not only representing my family, but I accomplished something for myself.

In fact, in the field I chose to get my degrees, the university I attended is revered as one of the best universities in the world in the hospitality industry. The private university I attended is held in high regards, and restaurants and hotels fall all over themselves to recruit graduates from Johnson & Wales. Just because I’m not using my degrees in the current career I have chosen doesn’t make them any less relevant. I still worked hard in earning them and I still use the lessons I learned – not just in school, but also in the workplace – in my daily life and business endeavors. Does that make my degree useless or irrelevant? I’d say not at all. I’d say that majority of the workforce isn’t using their degree in the current job they have as we speak. Does that mean they wasted their time? Not at all. So to give off this impression that my degree is somehow unimportant compared to, well, the degree THEY’RE not using only shows how truly ignorant they are.

The kicker in all of this is that the offender not once stopped to think about what they were saying and how it could potentially be offensive. They went about it as though this was a normal way to go about things. Not once did this person check themselves when I was visibly upset and my tone got very serious. Instead, the moronic fuck continues to offend, incognizant of how I could potentially feel in the manner they decided to make me feel as though the hard work I put in to earn BOTH of my degrees was worthless. Just because I don’t have a degree in what I ultimately chose to do doesn’t mean I’m not going to be successful in this career path. Indeed, numerous photographers I know didn’t get a degree in photography, yet they are extremely talented and successful. But are they irrelevant because of their lack of a piece of paper? The continuous stream of clients we receive seems to suggest no.

It’s one thing for me to poke fun at my degree; it’s another when someone naively takes a shot at my degrees and is ultimately unapologetic of their actions (that was far from an apology, and the fact that you think it was only further proves you’re a fucking pathetic, selfish tool). For this ignoramus to make it seem like my degree isn’t much of a degree when the rest of the civilized world would argue differently (and to know what this person’s degree is only makes this entire situation more laughable) not only offends me, but offends everyone else who has obtained a specialized degree in a field or to people who have been successful without a college degree because they didn’t go to the “esteemed” university this person attended. It gives the impression that this person feels they are far superior to everyone else. If that’s not the intent, then this person needs to learn English and how to construct sentences in an effective manner because the words they ultimately landed on to butt into a conversation I wasn’t having with them ended up being highly offensive and, for a lack of remaining emotionally numb to the ordeal, proof that there are miracles in this world, since based on the conversation I had with this person, it makes me wonder how they are able to differentiate their ass from a hole in the ground.

To the offender: Yes, you did offend me, but thanks to your total lack of awareness and consideration for how your words could be damaging, I’ve only become more determined to be more successful than you will ever be and outshine you in any way possible with my awesomeness and two degrees from Johnson & Wales. And in the words of the poetic and eloquent Ice Cube, “check yourself before you wreck yourself,” you idiotic, disgraceful, disrespectful waste of oxygen.

Until next time,

- Patrick

Of the two following statements, which one sounds more encouraging and gives you bigger warm fuzzies?

You’re doing a good job!

Or…

You’re doing a great job!

It’s amazing what a difference one word can make, right? Well, that’s a lesson I have certainly learned in my time, not only as a business owner and photographer, but as a person. I feel as though people don’t know the effectiveness of their words and how using the right ones can lead to completely different and improved results.

This all stems from thinking back to my shoot with Emily Nolan last year. I distinctly remember how this all came about. While we were shooting, Emily in her natural awesomeness was posing for me in the manner that we had discussed and what developed from her research and homework the night before. She was totally rocking the shoot, and me being me, I wanted to let her know she was kicking ass. So, I said the following:

You’re doing a really good job, Emily! Loving the pose!

Oops.

She immediately called me out on it. “So, am I doing great? You know, great just sounds better, doesn’t it?” And it does. And she was doing a great job – way beyond great, in fact. And all I could come up with was “good?” What the hell is wrong with me?!

Since that day and all during the shoot, I have become aware of the words I choose. If something is great, I say it’s “great”, not “good.” I’ve become conscious of what I say and how I say things because it has become increasingly important to me to say precisely what I mean and leave less to the interpretation and imagination of the receiver. Sure, there is only so much one can do, since people will always interpret things in their own way no matter how effective you are at communicating, but paying someone a PROPER compliment or encouraging your subject on the great job he/she is doing doesn’t require much more than using the right words to express yourself.

As a result, I have noticed that my usage of adverbs has increased significantly as well, but I think it’s also to drive home the point that not only to I understand what you’re feeling, I completely understand. And when someone is doing something very well, saying “you’re doing very well” just doesn’t seem to cut it. Thanks to Emily, everything has been GREAT.

Do you make sure to let your client/subject know he/she is doing a GREAT job – not just a GOOD job?

Until next time,

- Patrick

I totally rocked this weekend like a hurricane. (Too soon?) Considering Irene didn’t do much damage in the places I was over the weekend, I was very thankful that there was minimal damage. However, one of my friends ended up having his house flooded with a foot of water in one of the houses he rents out, which was a very tragic interruption to an otherwise fantastic weekend.

I accompanied my housemates to Delaware over the weekend in what was a festive atmosphere of fantasy football. It’s a tradition held every year, and thanks to Justin and Ali’s wonderful hosting capabilities, we were well fed and well hydrated (they served a ton of Miller Lite, and although beggars can’t be choosers – especially when it was free to me – it doesn’t take away from the fact that it was practically drinking water). They broke the weekend down into two days: Saturday was for the keeper leagues’ auction drafts and Sunday, which was the league I was participating in, was for the snake draft league. I adore fantasy football, especially because, as a 49ers fan, I need somebody to root for, but it also helps me focus on everything football. I’m kind of a football junkie, and fantasy football only helps add fuel to the fire. It’s really the best time of the year!

So on the day before my draft, while I was a spectator on Saturday, I decided to put in some work and create some more abstracts for a possible showing at instantdc later this year. It feels good to be creating abstracts again. I really enjoy taking a photo of something and not having any clue where I’m going to go with it – just that if it feels right, I’ll keep the results. I’ve been having a hard time focusing and being productive lately, and I’m not sure where it’s coming from. I’ve been looking at my To Do list and given it nothing more than a blank stare. This always seems to happen: when I’m looking for work, I’m beyond motivated, but when I’ve got a task list of things I need to accomplish that is longer than a list of the number of adulterous politicians, I can barely get myself out of bed.

And then a miracle happens: I get motivated.

While one would think a lack of coffee is to blame, it all comes down to finally spelling everything out, knocking out a task or two (like finishing a blog post) and then realizing I can do this. Next thing I know, I’m back to hustling for work because all my other tasks got finished. It’s such a weird cycle, and maybe I’m the only self-employeed entrepreneur that goes through this, but I can’t seem to figure out a routine that maximizes efficiency. As a result, this week will be spent in doing just that, as well as updating my website and online portfolio. Because all of that stuff needs to happen, STAT.

In the meantime, I’ve got a trip to NYC in the works for Labor Day weekend, which has me excited, as I foresee a LOT of opportunities to get more photos that I can use for abstracts. New York City seems like a playground for a photographer, and the ginormous possibilities to get inspired to create things makes me extremely eager for the weekend to arrive.

I just need some inspiration and motivation to get back to kicking ass and taking names, and part of what I think it causing this is not having an outlet. For the longest time, photography was that outlet for me, but now, it’s a job. Shooting for someone else isn’t the same, and because I get so burnt out shooting sometimes, it’s hard to shoot for fun with personal projects anymore. And perhaps THAT’S where my lack of motivation stems from: I’m not stimulating my creativity effectively.I’m hoping New York will remedy that, and when I come back from the trip (and after spending half  my life savings), I should be good to go. Naturally, I’d love for this to get remedied beforehand, but I won’t hold my breath.

Hopefully, I’ll have some more materials for you to read, but in the meantime, check out one of the few things I’ve been able to motivate myself with maintaining: fuelyourphotography.com. I’ve gotten a lot of new writers on the site, which has been a thrill to read and get inspired. I hope you find them to be the same way, too.

Until next time,

- Patrick

There are some things in life more important than making money and making money and making money. As much as I love working and can be a bit of a workaholic, I also know full well how to enjoy my free time and spend it with the people I care about all proper dopper like. This weekend was no exception, as I was able to spend a lot of quality time with my littlest brother, William. It has been a while since he and I just hung out together without the other family members being around, and the one-on-one time seemed to be much needed – not just for him, but for me, as well.

William is my 16-year old brother who is technically a half-brother if we want to get all politically correct, but for anyone who knows me, that’s not how I roll. Therefore, I spent time with my brother, having fun rocking out to some Rock Band (before I rocked so hard, I broke my guitar. Drat!), taking a little photo walk around DC, and catching a Nationals game in the evening. Family is highly important to me, and at this point in William’s life, where he’s working on getting his grades up to ensure his chances of getting into any college he chooses, he’s been feeling an extraordinary amount of pressure to succeed. For anyone who knows me, I tend to do the same with my photography, so I was definitely able to relate, and I’m hoping that helped.

Brothers

William and I aren’t the only ones who place a tremendous amount of pressure upon ourselves to succeed. I know a lot of people who do that to themselves, and while a little self-motivation can steer you in the right direction productivity-wise, sometimes it can be a bit much and unhealthy. It can have a major impact on your attitude and mental health, and this was something I certainly learned the hard way (as I typically do). When I was working in restaurants, whether it was cooking behind the line or managing the dining room, I put so much weight on my shoulders to excel in any area I was working in, but after a while, the expectations kept getting bigger and the number of tasks I had to accomplish increased, completely zapping me of energy and ultimately making me depressed. When I can’t accomplish the things I set out to do, it doesn’t bode well for my confidence, and Grumpy Patrick is not a fun guy to be around.

So, I learned that sometimes, you’re just not able to keep all of the balls in the air – sometimes, one will accidentally fall. And that’s OK. It doesn’t mean I’m slacking or unable to accomplish what I set out to do; I might need an extra day or two, or a helping hand. But I know my abilities and what I’m capable of, and I will accomplish what I’ve set out to do, as long as I continue to work with confidence. By the sound of things, my little brochacho is certainly of this ilk, too, but has yet to learn the lesson that I have. So instead, he has taken things a bit hard lately, which is why such a relaxing and rewarding weekend seemed to be the perfect prescription before he starts the upcoming school year.

To make things better, I have been dying to attempt a few more abstracts, so it helped to have my little brother around to encourage a photo walk between the two of us. He and I both fell into photography around the same time and have kept up with each other’s work over the past few years. He’s assisted other photographers in his area and gotten a lot of experience, which has definitely shown in his photos as time has gone on. It was nice to bounce ideas off of someone instead of getting inside my head too much and I’m already looking forward to creating some abstract art with the resulting images!

Meanwhile, it looks like another busy week of playing catch up and attempting to ensure September is as busy as possible. I’m trying to line up a lot of shoots, but at the same time, thinking extremely far into the future and preparing First Sight for the 2012 wedding season. It’s never too soon to start planning that stuff out, I figure, so organizing a game plan and strategizing the next move for Andrew’s and my business in the upcoming year. Planning is always the easy part, though – it’s the execution that will be crucial. In the words of one of my heroes, Tim Gunn, it’s make it work time!

Until next time,

- Patrick