VCU Lacrosse

I got the opportunity to shoot one of our club lacrosse games yesterday on University of Richmond campus. Although we (VCU) got out butts kicked, I think i got some good images, which really is all that matters to me at this point. I used to be all about our lacrosse team, and I obviously do cheer for them, because I still have friends on the team, but really, as a photographer, I'm just looking for that great photograph, whether that happens by us losing really bad or winning. My job is to follow the game and document aspects of the game that some may not see or find different aspects of the game that I can bring interest to. It was an afternoon game so I was able to take advantage of the late afternoon, dramatic sunlight, which to me, always makes a great photograph. Ever since I started looking at Simon Bruty's work, specifically his photograph with the dramatic, chierosciro lighting on the tennis player, I really started to thinking a lot more about the light that was present in the frame of my images. One of my main focuses has been to try and replicate that type of feeling that his image gives you, at least for me. I love being able to try and incorporate beams of light stretching across the frame, while capturing an athletic feat at the same time. Doing so adds a whole new level to photographs I feel, obviously you can take great sports photographs but if you can utilize the atmosphere around the game and somehow include that within the images, it adds to the narrative and overall impact the image can have.

I also starting to consider what adjective words i may use for my presentation, it started to make me think more deeply about the real meaning behind my works, and the ideas i was trying to capture through my experience of sports photography at this point. Some words i've been considering include: drama, light, triumph, passion, just to name a few. I'm looking for words that show the dramatic lighting i'm trying to incorporate into my photographs, as well as words that describe the passion in sports, doing everything you can to pull out and W in the end of the game. Leaving everything on the field, shots that show emotion in the face, as well as body language showing the extent of what goes on in sports: on the field, sideline, anything. The thing with sports is there are so many, and eventhough there are certain shots that are comfort shots: ones that you know will be good, there are so many angles and directions you can go with a photograph when including a team, or the geometry of the field, ball, equipment, the list goes on forever. These are things I encounter when I approach a sport through my lens.

Artist Lecture: Su Friedrich

Based on the artist lecture from Su Friedrich today, I just wanted to write down a few observations and opinions based on what I saw in the presentation. I feel like she was really well spoken, and seemed like the majority of the audience really liked her work, but to be honest with you, there was very few things about her work that I liked. I felt her videos were a little too abstract for my taste, it seemed like she was explain some aspects of her films, give the audience a taste of what it was about, but when she showed the film, i was completely lost. The imagery within the film appeared really scattered and unconnected. As a respected artist, I don't feel I should hate on her work the whole time, there were some things i did like. I liked the color film she showed that was entitled "rules of the road", the music was really good, upbeat and fit well with the time period that was portrayed in the film. The opening title was really nice too, I like how she did the letters on the cards to spell out the title, it was really original and also played on the idea of being alone. It gave foreshadowing to the game of solitaire she had talked about prior to the viewing. I also feel the game of solitaire also contributes to the idea of loneliness, as it seemed the film was about a past partner she had. I can't remember when she had filmed the video, but I did want to say that I liked the color throughout the film, gave a very retro feel to it, a lot of different elements play on the feel of the film, she executed in a lot of different ways that gave you the sense of 1980s which i enjoyed.

The other film I liked was the tree house fantasy, where two girls were in a tree house and one had discussed what happens when you "do it", which I thought was pretty funny. I don't really want to go into detail about exactly what was said, but it was a humorous touch and got me a little more interested in her work, after the first few films I was pretty uninterested in her work, but after those 2 films, I had more respect for what she was doing. I dont necessarily feel that I am hating on their work, more just not understanding what is going on within the film, whenever I feel lost about the dialogue or narrative, I find myself drifting away and usually ignore other qualities of the work. I feel her earlier works were a lot more experimental and off the wall, which is probably why I had a tough time understanding her work, the later work she was showing seemed to be more finished to me, possibly because they had a narrator and music, which to me helps, especially when I feel a little lost about the issues discusses within the film, having that extra direction makes a big difference at times.