mike ricca, picture-taking guy

in progress: Unmet

mike — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 04:25:33 +0000

One of the perks of self-employment is that I'm no longer forced to backburner series ideas for lack of time. So when I decided it would be cool to take long exposure shots of various rooms and exhibits at The Met with the hopes of photographing an "empty" museum, there was nothing to stop me from just grabbing my tripod, ND filters, and hopping a train to 86th street.

a new snapsation

mike — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 23:59:08 +0000

There's a new site in town called Snapsation that is trying to be the latest site to connect photographers and clients. Photographers set up profiles and list offers, and potential clients come in and browse the wares. Job booking and payment is done through the site, which allows it to offer buyer protection to the customer, something decidedly lacking in the traditional photographer/client relationship.

you gotta start somewhere*

mike — Wed, 08 May 2013 02:58:59 +0000

I had originally intended this entry to be about buskers; about how I'd always had a soft spot for them and always loved them as photo subjects, about how I always admired them for loving their craft so much that they would stick to it even if it meant sacrificing a lot to do it. But then I got laid off today and figured I'd rather talk about that.

tricks of the trade

mike — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 23:58:50 +0000

Last month, Stina asked me for some tips and suggestions on how to make good portraits of her relatives at an upcoming reunion (I say “make” because with a portrait you’re not just taking the picture, you’re directing the whole thing). She had asked for specific pointers so, naturally, I replied with general rhetoric (because [...]

holi high

mike — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 05:12:23 +0000

I'm sure some of my family would cluck their teeth that I opted for this celebration over the traditional Easter Sunday Mass, but I'm only human. Hourlong masses and stiff clothing can't really compete against a day devoted to song and food and drowning in colors. Maybe if Easter Mass could somehow incorporate a Nerf gun fight, I might be tempted to drop in.

q&a: family portraits

mike — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 21:12:08 +0000

A friend shot me this question on Facebook, and after the site ate the second half of my two-part reply, I decided to just make a post out of it (at least WordPress automatically saves drafts). And considering my sporadic posting habits of late, I can always do with more topics to write on.

the bare necessities

mike — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 05:10:22 +0000

In "Things I Kept Meaning To Do But Never Started" news, I have instated a new house rule that anyone visiting my apartment for the first time must let me take their picture in my little studio. My first victim inaugural model is Anna, The Gal What Cuts My Hair. I normally go to hers, but today she made a house call and was given the honor of being my first subject. As she stepped in front of the lights she confessed, "I'm not photogenic at all!"

“We’ll fix it in post”

mike — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 08:04:08 +0000

I’ve never really held too closely to the nigh-Platonic Ideal of getting it entirely in-camera. As someone who does a lot of his work in a tiny studio with low ceilings, I deal with a lot of limitations that I have to compensate for in post. Practice makes pragmatists, after all, and that goes doubly-so when you’re broke.

300 francis drive

mike — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 05:39:17 +0000

There were two rooms in my grandparents’ house–a wonderful Central Florida bungalow that looked like 1970 trapped in amber–that always held a special place in my heart.

into the woods

mike — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 22:53:24 +0000

This New Year’s, as I sifted through my Facebook feed, I couldn’t help but notice an almost direct proportionality between peoples’ excitement for the new year and their derision for the last one. The more exuberantly a friend would welcome 2013 with resolutions and affirmations, the more venomously they’d talk about how terrible 2012 was [...]