That way this post becomes less of a “re-run episode” and more of a “special features” section.

Skate Sunday

Since no one had work and everyone was usually prettyboard on Sundays, Skate Sunday became an inevitable conclusion among the people I hang with.

These photos of a spot that turned into an bust came out nice, but I never posted them for whatever reason. I like all the greenery though. Lush.

This is what Trace thinks of my skateboarding skills. His criticism is harsh, until you actually see me ollie, then it becomes reasonable.

Apparently Greg doesn’t take kindly to younger skaters. Watch it, kid.

Trace switches something out on my Myrtle deck. I can’t remember what exactly he was changing, but I remember thinking later on that he’d made it worse.

Nelsen worked hard that day. I remember saying to him “Ok man, that was great, now just push it as HARD as possible. Ok, nice. Now higher.” He was literally dripping when he was done. Dude knows how to bring it to the Ditch of Doom.

These photos of Nelsen and the photos above of Trace both appeared in the first issue of my zine. I can’t remember why I didn’t ever post these to the blog.

I shot about 400 frames at the Volcom: Wild in the Parks Tour and came away with some stuff I’m really happy with. Most of it is more of the unorthodox kind of skate photos (butt shots, heads cut off, skaters in the way of other skaters) but I tend to lean that way anyway.

See more of my Volcom skate photos here.

Wedding Photography

One of my dearest friends, Charlotte was married this year.

Ashley Thalman makes an apperance in this photo.

I like this photo because it’s not perfect, but I think honest.

This is what weddings are like for young kid. A thing you dress up for and have to smile at. I especially like the little girl in the back pulling her eyes down. I have no idea what she’s doing. But it’s adorable.

Speaking of weddings, I’ve added a wedding portfolio to my site.

Da Guyz

Ballin’ with Da Guys.

If you take sports seriously enough to not let a guy with a camera on the court, you’re doing it wrong.

Cj thought that one of their frogs might have been eaten. By the other frog no less. Nature, right?

It turned out that it had only gotten stuck in the water filter, so you know happy ending.

This is what a lot of the past year has been like for me. Hanging out with friends. Rescuing frogs & solving mysteries.

Smashing a microwave at Satan’s Land.

(I hear Satan’s Land is now becoming defunct due to construction. If that’s the case, local hardcore bands will need a new place to get their dark, contrast riddled pics taken. I suggest train tracks or dark alleys.)

This half joke, half serious, all awesome band shoot was for Vic’s band Mexi Sexi.

Indeed.

Not everything has a satisfying answer.

Portraits

Dad showing me how to true a tire on my new road bike.

My father is the nicest, most honest guy I know. He is also the worst joke teller I know.

The house I live in now is near the home that I grew up in. Trace, Cj and I went to explore some of my old stomping grounds. As a kid I used to disobey my parents and ride bikes back there. The place is now completely overrun with brush.

I guess that just goes to show that things change, or something.

To see more from that shoot click here.

Last minute sumo wrestling.

Every time a friend leaves on a mission, we go power tumbling. Noah’s number was called this time.

I went to see Kimi run her half marathon. I have never seen anyone more excited then Kimi was after she finished. Kimi is already a lively person, but this was insane.

Somewhere in Utah, road trippin.

Guys and pizza.

Girls and cameras.

Nads, Kimi and Allison.

Life is better with them in it.

This is not true.

Photographers chose their medium because of style, ease of use, or personal preference. They chose what works for them.

This is the thing about shooting film or digital: it’s just another medium. Some painters prefer acrylic, some prefer oil. As artists, we work with the materials that we create best with. If it’s digital: fine. If it’s film: fine. But whatever works for you doesn’t make it the best. Or at least not the best for everyone else.

So if you’re an aforementioned elitist: shut up.

For portraits, eyes are what attract the viewers attention. It’s a safe bet to place the eyes along one of the power points.

The beginning photographers instinct might be to center the model in the frame, or at least not cut off the top of his head. But when the image is viewed with the rule of thirds superimposed over, it can be seen that the focus of this image is the eyes.

In this photo the focus is on the head. With the rule of thirds over the image we can see that his head is squarely in the bottom right point.

So that’s the rule of thirds. It’s a simple idea, but when used appropriately it can produce powerful results. Next time you’re taking pictures take two shots of the same thing, one with the rule of thirds in mind, one without and compare the two.

Further reading:
The golden ratio and aesthetics
Rule of thirds at Digital Photography School

Today I woke up to my test prints from WHCC, they require that you submit some prints to check color accuracy & monitor calibration.

Damn. They look great. I highly recommend them. If your in the market for a new lab I’d check them out. The test prints are free and I couldn’t be happier.

*The sort of painterly, whimsical, back-of-Reader’s-Digest style.

I’m totally sorry guys.

So as penance here’s some thoughts on local photography:

I really like finding good photographers in my city. It’s sort of wakes me up to my environment. It’s easy to look at a photo taken in California or New York and say “Well of course that is a stunning image, they live in an environment that lends itself to it”. But seeing an interesting photo taken 300 feet from my house shakes me out of that mode of thought.

Although seeing lame local photography really bums me out.

I live in Provo, Utah which is a pretty nice place all things considered, but sometimes it seems like we’ve got a glut of bad photographers out there. Check craigslist.com, you’ll see what I mean.

Why is there so much sub-par photography?

I blame the Mormons.

Well not the Mormons themselves, but the culture behind it. Observe.

Mormons are taught from a young age to get married and have a family. It’s one of the most important thing a young man or woman can do.

So that gives us three potential reasons to get photos taken. One, engagement. Two, wedding. Three, family pictures.

The first two of those category’s only come once and are relatively quick & painless, but the third is the killer. Pictures of babys, lead to pictures of toddlers, lead to pictures of kids, lead to pictures of teens, lead to senior portraits.

And look at that. It’s time to get engaged.

So my point is, if everyone is getting engaged, married and having kids there is going to be a large demand for photography. Not all of it good.

So here’s some good stuff.

Puppy photo at Kiwanis Park. Who can’t like that. It’s also right by my house, bonus points.

Photos of Motels on University Ave by Justin Hackworth.

Shadows and light are great. (second large one down) by Scott M. Jarvie.

So that’s what what.

What local photographers are you digging?