Posts tagged ‘Photographer’

Apr 17

Boston

To every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Words in the physics realm have rarely been so personified than what we witnessed at the Boston Marathon. As heartbroken as we were staring at the videos of pure massacre, we were equally surprised at the small numbers of those lost, all due to the heroism of the many who ran towards the chaos. Amongst the videos I viewed, one struck me with pride and a restored faith in photography.

It was a video that showed the response to the first blast. In it chaos encompasses the street, but many rush in. While photographers around grab pictures with hopes of Pulitzers, one photojournalist (with 70-200 and 24-70 slung over shoulder) decides that the story is less important than the lives of those impacted by this attack. This unnamed man slings the cameras and opts to start pulling debris off the victims in an effort to help medics access those in need of care.

Without second thought, without a hope for fame and awards, this man gave up any chance of getting “the shot” so that he could help those in need.

While the news will surround itself with the photographers that captured the images of carnage and chaos, rarely (if ever) have they mentioned the photographer that wasn’t taking pictures. In all honesty, I didn’t even notice him until my wife pointed at the television screen and said, “look, that photographer is helping instead of shooting… that is a hero.”

A hero indeed, the man that put the cameras aside to help is an idol to me. He encompassed compassion towards strangers instead of gratification from the public. While humility is easily pronounced in times of good fortune, it takes true character to embrace it in the face of opportunity. Could this anonymous photographer have created an image worthy of a Pulitzer? We will never know. However, did his willingness to give up such awards in order to save complete strangers make him a hero? Undoubtably.

This is what is all boils down to, and why the attacks on Boston mean more for Boston than the coward that bombed the innocent. All this person managed to prove is that man cares enough for one another that opportunity, at the sacrifice of others, just isn’t worth it. When tragedy presents itself to you, be the one that comes to the aid of the few rather than spreads the word to the many.

Jan 29

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Can someone get the Rattlesnake off my back?

Whenever I talk to another photographer the topic of “personal work” always comes up. Usually in the casual form of, “hey, have you shot any personal work lately?”

This standard artistic rendition of the workplace, “how’s the weather” is usually brushed off as soon as the first round of drinks arrives and more enjoyable “which celebrity is a jerk?” conversations quickly replace it. However, for me, it is probably better that my “personal work” remains limited, for doing it usually leeds to bodily harm (or in this case recurring nightmares).

You see, I’ve always had a fascination with dangerous animals, be it sharks, snakes, heck if a bird could kill you, I’d probably think it’s cool…. but they can’t and that’s why birds are boring. Anyways, one day I got the grand idea that I would love to photograph the poisonous snakes of the world. (even writing this has made me realize how bad of an idea this was, but trust me, it gets worse). Somehow in my obsessive compulsive quest for sharpness, many… let’s says safety precautions… were skipped. Actually now that I think of it, I don’t know of any safety precautions we even had other than “don’t get bit”.

Western Diamondback Rattlesnake

This is where it gets dumb….

My first request for sharpness was that we not have anything between the camera and the snake. Every layer of glass that is not needed is only a source of flare (hence, why I don’t use filters on my lenses) and must be done away with. Now you’re probably saying, “oh, that’s fine, you can just use a cable release and stay the hell away from the snake.”

Black Tailed Rattlesnake

This is where it gets real dumb…

In wanting to be able to see what I was getting and autofocus when the snake was over my preferred AF point, I decided I would lay behind the camera. My logic was that snakes only see heat and movement, so if I laid still I would look like nothing more than a rock to them.

Arizona Black Rattler

The final bit of stupidity…

Snakes, when cold, are very lethargic. So we decided to keep them cold when we brought them to the set and therefor prevent any snake shenanigans. What we failed to account for was how fast two Profoto heads at full power can heat them suckers up. And so, on snake number 3 (a Diamondback Rattlesnake) we found out why I shouldn’t shoot personal work.

roughday2

Let me just say that I was kind of correct in that the snake didn’t see me as a threat, as I was looking it eye to eye (notice it has PASSED the camera). It proceeded over me and into the Tenba case that I transported my lights in, which was laying on it’s side. The wrangler then shut the case and we cleared the set, everyone was safe….. the wrangler, the assistant and the crying little girl that was a photographer only minutes before.

Since then I have decided to move on and never return to photographing snakes, especially pissed off poisonous ones. Instead I am pursuing a different avenue of personal work…. sharks… more specifically Great White sharks. So in September we depart for the Guadalupe islands to shoot a portrait of great white, safety precautions and life insurance policies are currently being evaluated.

Jan 16

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Hunters and Smoke

As a commercial photographer, one of the biggest stressors that I face is getting the shot. Some shoots are easier to accomplish this than others, but you must always get the shot or you haven’t worked hard enough for your client. However, today’s post is about a shoot where getting the shot was actually an impossibility.

It started with a call to shoot an advertorial of a truck getting some hunters around the open landscape of Oklahoma, aiding in their quest to bag a large turkey. It was a piece that I really looked forward to as I wanted to test out a new camera body on set. However, before I even set foot in Oklahoma, I got a call that would change everything I planned for the shoot.

hunters-and-smoke-2

My travel itinerary had me flying to Oklahoma City by way of Dallas. I would then rent a car and drive an hour and a half to Sulfur, OK (not only the name of the city, but actually the smell). However, upon landing in Dallas, I turned on my phone to an absolute barrage of voicemails from the creative director. I called him back, while running from one gate to the next, only to get the news that the truck for the photoshoot had been destroyed in transit to the location.

Shit…

There are many ways to look at this situation. The despair route would say “all is over” and that I should stop everything and look for a flight back to AZ. However, the way I chose to view was that I was off the hook, playing with the house’s money. When all hell has broken loose and the control of a shoot is out of your hands, you can only achieve greatness. I got on the plane to Oklahoma with the intentions to go out, shoot well and create a piece that was worthy of publishing (even without the truck).

hand-and-brush

Upon getting to the location I was met with one more setback to the piece… You see, we were supposed to do a turkey hunt with the now crashed truck. However, in the haste to get the piece shot before the publishing deadline, the client had failed to notice that turkey season actually started the following week.

Again, Shit…

So, there we were… shooting a turkey hunting campaign where we couldn’t hunt turkeys, while using a truck which we didn’t have…

hunter-and-bridge-3

To be honest, I was very stressed in the beginning as my mind ran “what if” scenarios nonstop from the hotel to the lodge where we staged. However, once I let go of the idea that I could control things that were out of my hands, I saw a piece that existed, beyond the limitations put on my shoulders. We could shoot free of failure, free of control, and free of critique.

We created art that day, a story of real life without the forced falsities that exist an advertorial. Ironically, the piece was so well received by the client that it was run… without a truck at all.

Nov 21

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Nexus 4 for Photographers

As many of you know, I am an Apple freak. From the computers, to the iPad, to the iPhone, to the iWhatever, I am a what you would call, “fanboy”. However, the does not presuppose that I am narrow minded in my views of other products or companies. In a nutshell, I appreciate Apple as light, and supports the shadows that form it.

With my love of the iPhone 4s, being well known, I felt to would be fun to broaden my horizons in the phone world. After all, who am I to say the iPhone is the way to go if I have never walked in another man’s shoes? So with that I saw my opportunity to hop over to the other side with the recent release of the Nexus 4, an Android phone from Google. I picked up a couple and decided that my travels over the next couple months would be documented with them and I could form an overall impression of where they stand in likes of Apple, especially when it comes to cameras. Along with the phones, I also grabbed the Nexus 7 tablet with the idea of testing how it travels for shoots compared to the iPad.

This is not a defection from a company but rather an inquisition to clear my mind on what it is I respect about Apple, and what I will like on the Nexus 4.

So stay tuned to the blog, my Twitter, or Facebook page over the next couple months to see what we might be missing when we say that one device is better than everything else.

PS: A little tidbit on the Nexus so far…. after 20 minutes, I have discovered that this thing is an HD monster.

Oct 18

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A book every photographer must read

Although my work in photography resides in the Advertising / Editorial realm, my inspiration in photography is all photojournalism.

From the beginning, I always wanted to be the guy that could walk around the street and capture life with his Leica, yet the photo gods decided my talents be best used elsewhere. Maybe it’s because my social awkwardness, my aversion to being around conflict, or the fact that the idea of camping terrifies me. Nonetheless, my ability and my heart live on different levels when it comes to being a photojournalist. However, I draw inspiration from the images many photo j’s have shot, be it during a foreign conflict, local event, heck… anything where life is real and void of awareness of a camera. All to often it feels as though the subject is as addressed to the camera as the viewer is to its result, but that is where the true skill shows in this profession. Being in the situation, absorbing what it has to offer, and quietly backing out of it (often with the added goal of staying alive) are foreign concepts to my world. I may not ever use these skills on set to create my images, but in no way does that diminish my appreciation for them.

When I was in college, my wife (girlfriend at the time) got me the book, “Capture the Moment: The Pulitzer Prize Photographs” for Christmas. At the time I thought it would make an interesting coffee table book, or conversation starter. Fast forward 10 years, and it sits next to my desk and I look at it quite frequently to know that there is a skill and courage far greater than mine that has shared the love of photography.

I encourage you to go to you local bookstore (if those still exist) and have a look at it. Some of the images are tough to take in, but I guarantee it will give you a greater appreciation for where photography has been and teach you where it can go.

Oct 10

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Bb to Speak for Apple

Gotta say that I didn’t expect my schedule to open up to make this possible, but here goes nothing….

The good people in Cupertino have asked me to speak for them this Friday at their Scottsdale store about how their products make my life easier. I am seeing this turn into a free workshop of sorts and will be glad to answer any and every question asked, so please feel free to come this Friday at 7pm to the Scottsdale Quarter.

Official release from Apple:

“Widely recognized for his vibrant and unique imagery and lighting, Blair Bunting has attracted clients such as Pepsi, General Motors, and the Discovery Networks. At this event, hear Blair discuss his various photo projects and learn how he uses the Mac to edit and distribute his work.”

Info available at: Apple.com

Sep 28

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Bb to speak at CreativeLive NYC

Well it’s officially official, I am going to be speaking at Creative Live’s NYC keynote on October 26th. This event coincides with the PhotoPlus Expo, which I do intend to spend some time at as well. As for the speech itself, I am planning to spend an hour and a half talking about how to use a light meter….. yes, you heard that right, I will spend 90 minutes teaching a subject that schools often spend 5 minutes on. I think that this subject is a bit neglected in the digital age and often gets replaced by, “just look at the LCD”. Apologies for this spoiler, but your mind will be officially blown…

So go head on over to Creative Live and have a look a how to watch the lecture and / or join us at the studio.

You have been warned

PS: Sekonic, you might want to give me a call

Sep 5

9 Comments

Did I wreck that million dollar car?

… For those that see this one and think it looks familiar, you are correct. I pulled this post out of the archives, for when I originally published it, my blog had all of three viewers and I figured now that there are four, the new guy would enjoy it …

OK, so this is one that still haunts me to this day. A couple years back, I went to Las Vegas to do a photoshoot of a Swedish car known as the Koenigsegg CCX. By many measurements at the time, it was thought to possibly be the fastest production car on the planet. The performance can be argued, but one thing that can’t is how much of a beast it was to drive (after all, this is the first car the Stig from Top Gear ever crashed). With that said, when offered the keys to the car at a race track we had closed down for the photoshoot, I was not going to decline (although, in hind site, I should have). With a small racing past under my belt and the maturity that every 23 year old has, I went for a drive with my assistant in the passenger seat. Now how it ended is debated to this day. According to the magazine C16, I crashed it (literally I was the cover story over night). In my opinion the incident mentioned was nothing more than a minor off road testing of a track car. Although many will dispute the happenings of said indecent, one thing remains true, we got the photo……

……. and a video to boot..

Aug 29

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Ford GT40: The $11,000,000 Car

Value in function and design has a limit, value in history does not.

Perhaps there is no car that better personifies this than the Ford GT40. Not the road versions or the modern versions, I am talking about the car that gave them all heritage. Raced in Le Mans with the Gulf livery that graces everything from watches to cell phones, this car is an icon. It represents a time when cars were driven to the track and raced, when danger was ever apparent and the pilots of the cars were gods amongst men.

I can still remember when one of my friends told me that he had that car and how far fetched I thought it was. Imagine walking into a dark room and the lights turning on to reveal this car. It sat there all alone, it was like I was in my own private museum of racing history, I was awestruck. In all honesty I didn’t even think of photographing it, but rather just enjoyed looking at it and wondering the time and experience this car had seen. One night, while enjoying a glass of wine, my friend and I decided it would be fun to photograph the car; not for money nor advertising, but for history’s sake.

As for the photo itself, it serves as a testament to Nikon’s D3. When we shot the image, we had a camera, a tripod and a strip light. We knew that it was going to be a dark image and planned how I would walk the light to paint the lines, but the rest of the image’s quality relied on my faith to Nikon. With the D3, as well as the D3X, I have always had the confidence to throw any lighting situation at the subject and let the sensor work it out, and the cameras have always delivered.

Aug 27

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Neil Armstrong

Among the many who have looked to the sky at night and wondered what if, there are few greater men than Neil Armstrong.

As a kid, and still to this day, I have looked at the moon on early summer days when it graces the horizon and can be seen in all its glory and detail and squinted to see if I could see the rovers we have left up there. I know this is an impossibility, but that’s the best part… I still look. Many will look back on the life of Armstrong and celebrate who he was, but this will probably always pale in comparison to what he meant. To many he is probably the greatest figure in the viewpoint that everything is possible.

With one step Armstrong did more than many have done in a lifetime… he united the world. With one step, he gave generations motivation to learn, he gave them ambitions, he gave them hope.

One step for mankind. A step that drives mankind to this day be it to follow or be it to lead. One foot print in a dusty foreign landmass is to me and many others a celebration of an achievement that encompasses all that is the spirit of humanity.

Godspeed Neil

Posts tagged ‘Photographer’

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