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Respect for the Subject

Respect narrowly defined, is examined here in this Wiki link. One of the key elements for a creative in a study of any sort, is respect of subject. But here is the twist. One has to respect one’s self first. If that aspect is not nailed to the floor of a soul, the oft times hidden elements of a subject, may never reveal themselves to an artist. But once those things do become apparent, it is self knowledge that allows for us to pick accurate lanes whereby we may expose, illuminate, and from where I stand as a human being,

The Here and Now of Creativity

There is very key thing which has literally made my career, and caused me to flourish in some pretty dangerous situations. In yet another deep Facebook conversation, this time with an old friend and colleague named Brent Schlea, we covered it. Focus. Or possibly more to the point: Hyperfocus. What that means basically, is being so in the moment, that you see and feel and experience time, Spirit, Soul and Body. For an Artist, that can be a fantastic tool. There is that proposition that humans only use a small percentage of our brain’s computing power. I see it

Cuarto Negro

In principle it works well, this walk in the light sort of path. But the thing about light, is that it tends to make one imminently aware of what darkness is all about. Corbis Images, frequently sends it’s Photographers out creative briefings. One such note which I read today, was on Darkness. People seem to love to play tag with it. Darkness defined is simply the absence of visible light. The briefing got me moving inside. Imagine a pitch black room. So deep is the pitch into which you have strode, that not even the hand in front of

Jam

I have a lot of friends who are into music. They all range in experience, depth, scope, and level of monetization. Music is one of the High Arts of course. How a person begins in any Art germinates in a fascination with it. I remember mine. Getting to play my Hawaiian Grandfathers Zither. I must have been about 6 or 7. Guitar lessons at 8. Then on to the Arts in school, where I took choir, learned to sing in church, band practice, learning to read and write music. It was part of the education process in America at the

Waves: Neo Creative

I needed to shoot more wave and water surf work after the past couple months like, umm, well let’s just say, I did not need any more work to satisfy my commercial or editorial clients. But right now I am buried in post production work from multiple back to back swims over the course of several days. My feet have a couple ulcerous sores which are oozing blood. Caused by not having time to rinse some gravel out of my Da Kine fins in between sprints after a promise. I have probably shot close to 10,000 winners in this genre.

Vision

Vision is one of those multifaceted aspects . It is indirectly related to motivation. When one embraces motivation, and engages it, the word transmutates from noun to verb, as action is required But what is vision? Here is a great example. Often a communicator has a vision for how to motivate people that is not readily apparent, as it is rooted deep within the thought processes and soul of the artist. I do the vision quest thing a lot. I will follow a thread of interest, let it develop within me, and when it is ready, a lot like the

Be Brilliant

There is quite a gap between being good and brilliant, between high art, and low. Brilliance and high art, will take one right into the throne room of God. You come away from the experience, knowing that something special has occurred: you have been touched by Creativity. Watch this if you have ten minutes. This is how it feels, when the realization hits, that I am on to something great. There is an incredible example in this performance, of where an artist can take a person with music and brilliance. Steve Vai. His lengthy Wiki page says it all in

ID Please

In marketing, one of the principal rules, is to identify the product in the eyes of the market. I am often introduced as a surf photographer. It is not that I eschew the title, which truly makes me die inside at the proffering of that description. Someone inevitably must endeavor to communicate what indeed it is, that one shoots. I do shoot surfing. I love the ocean. Surfing professionally was something that I was proud to have done for a substantial portion of my life, as it kept me IN the sea daily. But that is not what I am.

Intersection

Tyler Swain and I strode arm in arm, lock step, across the pavers in the foyer of the swank, old, Figueroa Hotel. It was a rainy night in Downtown LA. I was just back from some time away with Shawn Alladio in Oregon and Northern California, and being immersed in watery adventure. Tyler was fresh off the set of Jackass 3 where he is engaged as camera. He had just survived being taken out with a twelve inch dildo fired at him down a hallway from a potato cannon. It had struck him mid chest and dropped him. Then there

A Bali Journal: 1

Uneventful smooth sky sailing into Bali, and here we are in one of the most beautiful locations I have ever seen. David Booth and Sam Holcomb of East Bali Poverty project “get it” when “it” means hospitality apparently. The villa they arranged for us to rent in Ubud is far and away the most amazing location I have shot in. I will save the description for the images which hopefully I can scare up time to post. Long days ahead. Colorful and bright, dark and pulsating, with a richness that one from a society with less dimension, would appreciate and

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