C.Taylor's Happyplayground

Letterology: Stone Printing

2011-07-20T14:13:00.000-05:00

Letterology: Stone Printing: "The series of photographs above are of Reynolds Stone 's old ironhand presses. Stone (1909 - 1979) was a very distinguished British wood..."

Beauty

2011-01-28T20:58:00.001-06:00

Beauty
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

This are the three finals of a small project shot digitally, then translated into the look of a classic solarized print. I used to do this in the darkroom, but now use Photoshop. First you want to shoot a very evenly lit portrait. When you open your file create a second layer and do your touchups using the bandaid tool. After that create a third layer and desaturate it, then finally a fourth layer of the desaturated image and blend it as an adjustment layer - I used Difference for this look, but you can use others for a variation of looks. I suggest going through each layer to find what you like.

So voila, that is it.

This technique does not look great for everything, do be careful!

Home Fashion

2009-12-16T13:07:00.001-06:00

home fashions
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Gather up some designer wears, an attractive friend and hang out. You can do anything with any kind of equipment.

This photo is shot in the home of its subject very early in the morning. The model's head is over just far enough to make her seem headless.

It is planned to recreate this image in the studio with a designer chandelier.

In the mean time enjoy the home feel.

Malice

2009-05-04T02:24:00.001-05:00

Malice
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Lighting is not natural sunlight.

The set is outside, with strobes mixed in with hot, bright sky light.

One light is set to come into the side of the car, the other is set to come into the back.

Then a disk reflector is used with gold covering to shine in golden light as fill.

On the inside there are two slaves that pop on specific spots for added light peaks.

This is not a fashion shoot, rather an portrait shoot of Portland's most famous stripper named Malice.

She is a Northwest icon, and has contributed to a whole slew of other women following in her dance steps, so-to-speak.

Lovely to work with. Easy to direct and professional.

Photo illustration - example

2009-04-01T22:23:00.001-05:00

Photo illustration - example
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Retouching and Illustration example

2009-04-01T22:22:00.001-05:00

Retouching and Illustration example
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Retouching and Illustration example by Photographer Christine Taylor.
Here I needed to make the sea otter more true to their original living appearance. Then I also wanted a little more action so added in the splashes by going to the water front at Lake Michigan and photographing it. Then I cut it out and pasted it in, blended and matched it.

One of the tricks to great composite work is matching up angle, and light. If you get those two elements correct (so shoot with it in mind) you can composite seamlessly - with a lot of blending practice too).

Be sure to match pixel size, lighting, angle and then when you blend make sure the edges of the piece you cut out and add in has edges that match the other edges in the image - usually with a feather of about 1px to 3px (depending on distance the item is from lens).

Also take into account any light cast that may exist in real life - for instance here - on a grey overcast day surrounded by water. You will have a cyan / blue less contrasty image.

The skin tone of your human subject should not be properly skin tone balanced, rather be balanced for standing in this type of lighting.

With sunlight it changes according to time of day. In snow is also changes with time of day and with type of sun (warm or cold).

Do some research and practice and most of all be patient - it takes a LOOOONG time to cut out and do it well.

Its a craft that can be learned.

One morning

2009-03-12T19:20:00.001-05:00

Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Cigrettes

2009-03-10T22:21:00.001-05:00

Cigrettes
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

The Americans

2009-03-10T22:17:00.001-05:00

Home
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Band Maritime

2009-03-04T11:27:00.001-06:00

Band Maritime
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Illustrators Little Friends of Printmaking

2009-03-04T11:26:00.005-06:00

Illustrators Little Friends of Printmaking
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Artist Rob Adams

2009-03-04T11:26:00.003-06:00

Artist Rob Adams
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Artist Randy Wood

2009-03-04T11:26:00.001-06:00

Artist Randy Wood
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Prada's platforms

2009-03-04T10:22:00.001-06:00

Prada's platforms
Originally uploaded by The Moment Blog.

Artist Randy Wood

2009-02-27T23:44:00.001-06:00

Artist Randy Wood
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Artist Randy Wood

2009-02-27T23:43:00.001-06:00

Artist Randy Wood
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Painter Rob Adams

2009-02-15T16:50:00.001-06:00

Painter Rob Adams
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Kimberly Baker Jewelry

2008-11-06T19:31:00.001-06:00

for jewelry campaign - more on the way
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Client is Kimberly Baker Jewelry

This is all lighting created with strobes... very moody, pretty, painterly.

Okay so my set up is with three strobes... choose your brand, you can get the same results from them all for a static portrait like this.

I also have two large windows bringing in natural, overcast daylight in front right of the model.

Go ahead, mix your light, its okay and it makes it less plastic feeling as much of manmade light can feel without gels.

light 1: medium setting to pop through branches thus creating shadows so the light is not flat and when you zoom the framing out you can see the shadow patterns around your subject. its what i call a mood light.

light 2: low setting to pop on her left side. its a fill light.

light 3: low setting to pop off ceiling. its a hair light (which is totally up to you if you want it or not) diehards like it, i say its personal preference unless its a hair shoot... which this is not.

light 4: diffused daylight through two large panels / windows - with clouds acting as the diffusion. if you are working with hard sunlight - cover your windows with white sheets or other pale colored sheet for a tone. this is your key light because its the largest light source.

In reality it kind of acts as a fill too and light 1 ('mood light') acts as the key light since its the strongest light being used.

Call them what you like - the results are what matter.

I send you much luck with trial of this and let me know if you get any questions.

Headlamp - image V

2008-09-24T00:33:00.001-05:00

Headlamp - image V
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

This is the fifth image from a total of 5, of a three part project that is in collaboration with Design Within Reach.

i will put up more information as the full project develops.

art direction is by C.Taylor (me).
model is Angela McAdrian.
hair/makeup is by Mary Guthrie.
wardrobe is by Sacha Marie Scott.
set design is by Carlos Lopez and Daniel J. Hunt.
grey stretch sllk blouse by Shanel.
jumper also by Shanel.
special thanks to Lela Boutique and Fashion Ninja.

Technical information:

Two lights, plus the prop light hanging over the models head and one bouce disk, with metallic gold covering.

One spot light, diffused on lowest setting, up and over her face, on the right side, about 10 ft away from her. Another spot light diffused, on lowest setting, on the left side.

Pretty simple lighting really. Minimal, moody and with a medium grey backdrop - NO backlighting.

Using a Canon 5D, with about a 35mm lens. low aperture, high shutter speed.

The goal is to have the light actually look lit, to not flatten out its lighting nor take away from its glow.

James Kloiber

2008-07-06T16:29:00.001-05:00

James Kloiber
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

This is charcoal artist/painter, illustrator and Drumhead Magazine art director James Kloiber. You can see his work at: http://www.jameskloiber.com

He is shown here near The Cloisters in upper West Manhattan on a lovely wet and grey day.

Whenever it is an overcast day outside - get out there with your camera and USE it!

It is the most clean and clear light, I love it! I use it is ALL of my conceptual art photography and am right now considering using it for all of my portraiture too.

If its not a grey overcast day, then I will simulate it using strobes and light daylight blue gels.

Overcast daylight is the BEST light for skin tones. Just make sure to have your subjects eyes filled with the light so they are not too dark and in the shadows (unless of course you want this look).

You want their eye balls to be illuminated as much as possible and still be natural.

The Clostrum

2008-07-06T01:21:00.001-05:00

The Clostrum
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

This photograph is taken in upper Manhattan near The Cloisters. Its an art photograph called The Clostrum meaning 'enclosed space'.

My new body of work is about the conflict between man and nature.

This is natural light, on an overcast rainy wet day - my favorite.

Cai Guo-Qiang

2008-06-01T07:46:00.001-05:00

cai_guo-qiang
Originally uploaded by repponen.

Please go to see the Cai Guo-Qiang exhibition at Guggenheim in New York City. It is loaded.

This artist is so profoundly moving. His work is some of the best work I have ever seen due to his combination of contemporary visuals backed up by strong ideas and historical context.

You can see more installation photos of his piece called "Head On" at this address.
http://www.caiguoqiang.com/project_detail.php?id=196&iid=964

Be prepared for wolves crashing into glass and tigers being overwhelmed with arrows - all life sized (and all hand made no real exotic animals here).

Also be prepared for pyrotechnics, in the form of Chinese fireworks. In the museum setting you get to experience them via video, which cannot possibly do such site specific projects justice, but you do get the idea. The videos will make even the most fire-fearing in touch with their burning desire to be a part of the fireworks that cause so much destruction.

I think that is the point of these videos. They bring out the human instinctual attraction to violence.

Cai's work is tragic. It is truly sad, and yet simultaneously beautiful, fun, and thought provoking. It appears simple, yet packs a powerful punch. His work approaches terrorism (“Inopportune: Stage One,” ), extinction (“Head On”), cultural explosion (“Borrowing Your Enemy’s Arrows”), and the human condition (“New York’s Rent Collection Courtyard”).

Conceptual art does not get better than this. He successfully brings an intelligent and enlightened message to the art arena. The artist also creates "paintings" using live gunpowder. The large 2-D works become images that envelope a process while sharing a certain destructive beauty, and despite their quality I have to admit that it is the installations that have left a lasting impression on me and inspired me to write this blog entry.

Through the work, one can visualize the artists political history. He was raised during the Cultural Revolution in China, but his father sold illegal books to those who had the power to acquire them. He is presently described as a Communist.

From a Western point of view Cai Guo-Qiang may be considered a Moaist “Anything that disrupts the usual and consensual rule or law is considered good.” This belief carries a weight and intensity with it clearly portrayed in the work now showing at the Guggenheim.

For an excellent article written by the New Yorker check out this link:
< http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/artworld/2008/02/25/080225craw_artworld_schjeldahl >.

If you get the opportunity to see the work of Cai Guo-Qiang in person, you should take it because ultimately even if you know nothing about art, you will walk away with something from seeing his.

Hot Air Balloon

2008-05-28T16:24:00.001-05:00

Hot Air Balloon
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

This is a portrait done of a hot air ballooner in WIsconsin. Her husband is to her right and assistant to her left.

What a day.

It was a very windy day, which as many of you know can be very dangerous for ballooning since you are working with fuel and fire, not to mention hundreds of pounds. It was my first time in a balloon and probably one of the best experiences of my life thus far.

The actual shoot here was difficult. The balloon was flailing all over the place. It was very early in the morning. From the time we arrived on site to when we were up in the air it had been about 10 minutes.

I was also helping hold the balloon down while I shot. Yah. They were short handing so the rope was wrapped around my arm, I held the flash with one hand, and the camera with the other.

WOW. Scary. It got more scary up in the air though. We even had a crash landing in someone's back yard in the country. Nothing quite like a fire burning over your head while you are being swallowed by some synthetic material, shooting a camera and trying to gracefully get out of the basket.

It was amazing. You MUST go up someday because its the closest thing to being weightless I've ever experienced. Besides that you feel free and connected to the land in such an unrealized way.

A good ballooner is certified so please do not go up with someone who is not a professional!

I photographed her with an off camera strobe and diffuser of a white bounce card taped onto my Canon flash - set to manual so that I can get a little extra hot light onto her. If you let the flash TTL usually you do get a "perfect" flash pop - which to me often = BORING.

So experiment with using the manual settings. You will memorize them in time and it will all become second nature.

BTW: Wisconsin is truly a gorgeous state. If you go there, be sure to stay at Devil's Lake for some crystal rock climbing. You will never forget it.

Another Brandis

2008-05-28T16:08:00.001-05:00

Another Brandis
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Something about this pic is so beautiful to me. The colors and the light.

Shot on location in Harlem, NY. THe model is Brandis Hildebrandt and up and coming NY editorial agency model. She and I have worked together on many occasions now and every time we get better and better.

This is natural light and shot as she is leaving the set. It was just something that caught my eye as the crew was dismantling everything so I caught her.

Its so pretty I think its my favorite photo from that series... and it was so simple. The other photos are shot with strobes so have a completely different look.

See you can make great photos ANYWHERE, ANYTIME, with ANYTHING.

Hope this can encourage you to believe in your abilities! Keep shooting!

Remembering China

2008-05-05T21:11:00.001-05:00

White noise in print - China
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Just want to remind people that my older work was big in China for like a minute! YAH! It was a flash, but hey - it was fun.

I did some interviews and published some editorial work and did some assignments for Vision Magazine (the equivalent to Vogue there). We could barely understand one another, but it was pretty cool.

This series was later translated into a fashion series, but these are the originals. My models include Nikola Tamindzic (the famed NY nightlife photographer) and Lori Talley (the famed Chicago sound and programming artist).

You can see their work here:

Nikola Tamindzic
http://www.homeofthevain.com/
Home of the Vain/A>
&
Lori Talley
http://www.loritalley.com/
Lori Talley

Recent photo shoot

2008-05-02T07:31:00.001-05:00

Recent photo shoot
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Okay this is my first fashion portrait shoot in New York. It was a tiny space that I had not seen prior to walking in to set up for the shoot (which is never great).

For fashion it is ideal to know your space, your light at different times of day (if you are using any natural light), your other light sources (if you would like to mix light for effect), and other details of the location.

These days fashion is about more than a large production. There are several types and often I go for a very produced shoots; this time I did not.

I had a willing team who really came through. Since I did not have someone to do wardrobe I picked up a few things. I'm not a stylist, so I just kept it simple and worked within a color scheme of black and cream.

You can see more picture from this shoot by clicking on this one and then linking into my flickr profile.

Details:
Model = Brandis Hildebrandt;
Hair = Tetsuya Yokozuka
Makeup = Olga N.;
Asst. = James Kloiber;
Photography & Wardrobe = Christine Taylor
Location: New York

Lighting technique: Strobe with dome, slighting overhead shooting down. (This is a mimic of on camera flash; hence the wall shadow - only softened for a more flattering light).

Location specifics: Harlem area in Manhattan, NY in a studio apt. Who says you need fancy spaces to create beautiful fashion portraiture/photographs?

Pants are American Apparel $35.00.
Blouse is Linda Loudermilk $125.00.

Gear:
Canon 5D
(1) Strobe
Soft Dome over strobe

Sesci Makeup

2008-04-22T09:42:00.001-05:00

Sesci Makeup
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

This is a picture from a shoot I did for Sesci Mineral Makeup.

We needed light, pretty, natural feeling images to work within the feel of the makeup.

Min is my model - a true professional, who is also getting in medical school. She is one of my favorite people to work with; such a joy.

This photograph is just beautiful and sexy - like Sesci Mineral Makeup makes one feel. A woman in a mans undershirt / tank is so hot. Her skin looks glowing and a little flushed - which adds to our mood.

Min is lying inside of a giant white soft box. I set up two lights on the outside of the box and shined them through the white diffusion. The light then blankets her.

CHEAP HOW TO DIY.:
Several ways to do this.

You can do this with two flashes pointed through two white sheets, filling with your on-camera flash. If you have a 5D or up then you will need a third flash to place on your camera. Use a medium to large room. Mix with window light if you are limited on supplies and funding.

You would need to surround her on each side with the white sheets (hang them from the ceiling with tacks or tape), build like a tent someone can climb into.

Then setup the strobes one on each side (evenly) on high power - MANUAL setting. If the light is too harsh in your test shots - lower the power or pull them further away from your subject... you want to start them at least 4 feet away anyways (this is to spread the light more when it travels through the sheets).

If you don't have stands for the flashes... well then improvise. Find a way to get them stand alone by using boxes, stools, ladders (whatever) - so they shine from the side, BUT shine above, down onto your subject (to ease hard shadows).

You need flashes that can slave to your on-camera one. For them google to see your options (but you can get the lower end slaves), as they seem to work fine to me.

Slaves allow your flashes to be triggered by your camera flash. This is a GREAT small investment so BUY SOME. You will use them time and again in every situation you can imagine.

I hate bulk, hate heavy, and hate cumbersome equipment so slaves have really been a joy for me to work with over the years. Dont let anyone tell you that you need fancy stuff to get great light.

You just need to understand the light you have and how to work with it; contain it, spread it; direct it; lower it.

Remember there are always cheaper ways to get the same effects as the high end stuff! As in Photoshop - more than one way to get the same results.

Sincerely,
Christine

Testa Rosa

2008-04-11T15:23:00.001-05:00

Testa Rosa
Originally uploaded by Photographer Christine Taylor.

Testa Rosa is an indie band with some musical history - (The Frogs, The Lovelies, Nerve Twins, and more ) They reside in the midwest and have a sweet sound.

Listen to them here:
www.myspace.com/testarosamusic

Three wonderful people, two fabtabulous dogs and one evening together shooting 'home scenes' for a cover and spread published a few months ago.

For the spread we just wanted to focus on the home environment kinda like when your a kid and hanging out with your friends.

It was a full moon that night - < see my previous post of my Wildbirds portraits to see that full moon >.

It was also freeeeeeeeeezing outside that night.

We had a good time that night. There are several great pics from the house shoot you can see on my flickr site, but this one I just love because everyone is chillin' and the dogs are so perfect in it.

Tech information:
Covershoot, using one large soft box bounced off of the ceiling.

Design Within Reach series

2008-04-04T13:26:00.001-05:00

Design Within Reach series
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

Design Within Reach series

This is the third image from a total of 5, of a three part project that is in collaboration with Design Within Reach - Milwaukee.

part 1 is not completed yet, and part 3 will be shot in a week or so and is with clothing designer Heather Hambrecht.

i will put up more information as the full project develops.

all of the images will be exhibition the third Friday of April at which time i will be in attendance at Design Within Reach - Milwaukee for the opening night!

art direction is by C.Taylor (me).
model is Angela McAdrian.
hair/makeup is by Mary Guthrie.
wardrobe is by Sacha Marie Scott.
set design is by Carlos Lopez and Daniel J. Hunt.
grey stretch velvet shirt by Fashion Ninja.
special thanks to Lela Boutique and Fashion Ninja.

Technical information:

Two lights, plus the prop light hanging over the models head and one bouce disk, with metallic gold covering.

One spot light, diffused on lowest setting, up and over her face, on the right side, about 10 ft away from her. Another spot light diffused, on lowest setting, on the left side.

Pretty simple lighting really. Minimal, moody and with a medium grey backdrop - NO backlighting.

Using a Canon 5D, with about a 35mm lens. low aperture, high shutter speed.

The goal is to have the light actually look lit, to not flatten out its lighting nor take away from its glow.

Yellow Heels

2008-04-04T12:50:00.001-05:00

Yellow Heels
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

Someone asked about the lighting here I think so I will talk a bit about it.

Its a pretty decent sized studio and I am working with all soft front lighting, with an overhead mini-soft box too.

I LOVE super soft light. I mean, I know the trend right now it hard lighting and hard shadows and thats cool too - but I personally love the yummy feeling soft light gives me.

Really this is a very simple lighting set up - but I used two strips, and two large soft boxes over... I think 1800 strobes, I forget what brand right now - one of the popular ones.

I own the Calumet three point travelite mobile studio - but this is not shot with that.

I've been very happy with that system so far though. It comes with a boom, stool, thre lights, stands, medium soft box, AND a couple wizards for a very decent price in my opinion.

Most people think Calumet is overpriced, but I beg to disagree. Some things may be more than B&H, but their new product lines are excellent and made for photographers on the go.

i also need to recommend anything by Gary Fong. Just google him. GREAT products for location photographers or people who are building studios wherever they can (like me).

CTay

Sad Mad Sadie

2008-01-04T19:40:00.001-06:00

Sad Mad Sadie
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

Sadie is one of the children of Katie Euliss, a bluegrass musician (Truckstop Honeymoon), who moved with her family to Lawrence, KS after Katrina hit New Orleans.

This is natural light in their living room.

The Wildbirds - music

2008-01-03T15:20:00.001-06:00

The Wildbirds - music
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

This was a cover in Milwaukee last week... of WIldbirds. I think the image says is all.

Young rock-n-roll hippies traveling in a bus running on corn oil, having a blast, and counting the days until they are done paying their dues. Until then, they are going to enjoy every minute they have got.

Fun, cute and dedicated. To read the full story by writer Lilldeshan Bose, go here:

Wildbirds in MKE.

NYC and Juiceboxxx - music (rapper)

2007-12-30T15:04:00.001-06:00

Juiceboxxx - music (rapper)
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

I'm here! I have officially relocated to NY... wow. This feeling is somewhat surreal and I think I'll be on cloud nine for at least three months.

This photo is a series of the rapper Juiceboxxx http://www.juiceboxxx.com . If you don't know about this guy then you need to so check him out online and watch for the upcoming cover and spread about him in MKE - Milwaukee, written by music watcher Lilledeshan Bose.

Soon I will be entering some more mini-interviews with my favorite photographers so stay tuned!

I leave you with this address to view Juiceboxx live at Cinders Gallery in Brooklyn.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kw_-5ly0b3E

Headlamps

2007-12-10T00:53:00.001-06:00

Headlamps - DWR project 2
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

Headlamps - DWR project 2

this is the first image from a total of 5, of a three part project that is in collaboration with Design Within Reach - Milwaukee.

part 1 is not completed yet, and part 3 will be shot in a week or so and is with clothing designer Heather Hambrecht.

i will put up more information as the full project develops.

all of the images will be exhibition the third Friday of April at which time i will be in attendance at Design Within Reach - Milwaukee for the opening night!

art direction is by C.Taylor (me).
model is Angela McDaniels.
hair/makeup is by Mary Guthrie.
wardrobe is by Sacha Marie Scott.
set design is by Carlos Lopez and Daniel J. Hunt.
grey stretch velvet shirt by Fashion Ninja.
special thanks to Lela Boutique and Fashion Ninja.

Stay tuned as I will be uploading interviews with some other photographers SOON!

Dites Donc

2007-11-30T13:26:00.001-06:00

Dites Donc - music
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

to hear them click here http://www.myspace.com/ditesdonc

They are feminist pop performers with a twist.

Alison wears the headdress, while new mom Lindsay looks suprised on the right.

These two ladies were alot of fun to photograph. They've been BFF since they were young girls, and it shows. Being so comfortable with one another made directing them pretty easy because they would just go into their own world together, and not be intimidated by the camera at all.

My favorite portrait shot from the evening shoot is this one of them on the left becuase it was actually taken after we were done. Alison had dropped one the letters from the bracelets shown here in the photo on the right, and they both decided to dump out their bags to look for where it had fallen.

I knew this coule make a great image, its just a moment that shows them in their personalities - so I took one last photo of them - and here is it!

I love it.

Techincal information:

I am using the one backlight with a yellow gel over it, then two front lights angled - one on each girl... with small soft boxes.

In photoshop I intensified the color, the contrast and the black - to make it more rich. I shoot with low contrast and saturation on my camera settings so that I have more control over the final image.

That means I start off with a somewhat flat image every time, then I decide my color and contrast after the shoot - rather than on camera.

I have always worked this way, even in film days when I would intentionally shoot very balanced negatives, only to print them any way I like in the darkroom using filters, gels, plastics, and other tools to enhance the image after it was taken.

YAAAH I KNOW

2007-10-22T15:04:00.001-05:00

Originally uploaded by conwaykt.

I'm a slaker show doesn't update her blog nearly enough. I will try to get started on that once again starting NOW.

This photo is by a flickr friend of mine, Ms. Katie Conway - located in Ireland. Its hilarious!

Yesterday

2007-09-24T17:53:00.001-05:00

Yesterday
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

It was a beautiful late summer day in Wisconsin.

Another Mary

2007-09-22T18:43:00.001-05:00

Another Mary
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

Sorry for being so distant, photography took over. Here are some pics from the last week to show what I've been up to.

Milwaukee IS cool

2007-09-11T14:57:00.000-05:00

Many thanks to my fellow Seattlite and the lovely Ms. Faythe Levine for posting this on her flickr account.

Here are some links to learn more about her:
Flying Fish design.
Wikipedia.
Paperboat Boutique.
Indie Craft Movie.

Brian Lesteberg

2007-09-10T11:49:00.000-05:00

This is one of my recent favorite photographers - brilliant and conceptual all the way. His work resonates with me.

Please look through his website (linked through the title).

This photo is through his body of work called 'Raised to Hunt' and was featured in PDN's annual 30 under 30 issue.

Rainbows?

2007-09-10T07:56:00.000-05:00

I'm a sucker for rainbows... and unicorns and sunsets (but those are other blogs for other days). Its been a hell of a weekend for me, and my G'ma sent me this lovely photo which pretty much sums it up.

Next blog... may be about transition, letting go, and who knows - sunsets.

Oh, the irony.

Ta.

Nothing

2007-09-08T21:30:00.000-05:00

This is a little something about... nothing.

I have a tattoo under one arm that is Chinese pictoral caligraphy for 'thought'. It is an ancient design... My interpretation of this age old symbol is, 'I think too much'.

I find this writing to be full of interest and inspiration. (Reproduced without permission... please forgive me). The photos are what comes up when you do a google search for the image 'nothing'

---------

NOTHING

by P. L. Heath

NOTHING is an awe-inspiring yet essentially undigested concept, highly esteemed by writers of a mystical or existentialist tendency, but by most others regarded with anxiety, nausea, or panic. Nobody seems to know how to deal with it (he would, of course), and plain persons generally are reported to have little difficulty in saying, seeing, hearing, and doing nothing. Philosophers, however, have never felt easy on the matter. Ever since Parmenides laid it down that it is impossible to speak of what is not, broke his own rule in the act of stating it, and deduced himself into a world where all that ever happened was nothing, the impression has persisted that the narrow path between sense and nonsense on this subject is a difficult one to tread, and that altogether the less said of it the better.

This escape, however, is not so easy as it looks. Plato, in pursuing it, reversed the Parmenidean dictum by insisting, in effect, that anything a philosopher can find to talk about must somehow be there to be discussed, and so let loose upon the world that unseemly rabble of centaurs and unicorns, carnivorous cows, republican monarchs and wife-burdened bachelors, which has plagued ontology from that day to this. Nothing (of which they are all aliases) can apparently get rid of these absurdities, but for fairly obvious reasons has not been invited to do so. Logic has attempted the task, but with sadly limited success.

Of some, though not all, nonentities, even a logician knows that they do not exist, since their properties defy the law of contradiction; the remainder, however, are not so readily dismissed. Whatever Lord Russell may have said of it, the harmless if unnecessary unicorn cannot be driven out of logic as it can out of zoology, unless by desperate measures which exclude all manner of reputable entities as well. Such remedies have been attempted, and their effects are worse than the disease.

Russell himself, in eliminating the present King of France, inadvertently deposed the present Queen of England. Quine, the sorcerer's apprentice, has contrived to liquidate both Pegasus and President Truman in the same fell swoop. The old logicians, who allowed all entities subsistence while conceding existence, as wanted, to an accredited selection of them, at least brought a certain tolerant inefficiency to their task. Of the new it can only be said that solitudinem faciunt et pacem appellant -- they make a desert and call it peace. Whole realms of being have been abolished without warning, at the mere nonquantifying of a variable. The poetry of Earth has been parsed out of existence -- and what has become of its prose? There is little need for an answer. Writers to whom nothing is sacred, and who accordingly stop thereat, have no occasion for surprise on finding, at the end of their operations, that nothing is all they have left.

The logicians, of course, will have nothing of all this. Nothing, they say, is not a thing, nor is it the name of anything, being merely a short way of saying of anything that it is not something else. "Nothing" means "not-anything"; appearances to the contrary are due merely to the error of supposing that a grammatical subject must necessarily be a name. Asked, however, to prove that nothing is not the name of anything, they fall back on the claim that nothing is the name of anything (since according to them there are no names anyway). Those who can make nothing of such an argument are welcome to the attempt. When logic falls out with itself, honest men come into their own, and it will take more than this to persuade them that there are not better cures for this particular headache than the old and now discredited method of cutting off the patient's head.

The friends of nothing may be divided into two distinct though not exclusive classes: the know-nothings, who claim a phenomenological acquaintance with nothing in particular, and the fear-nothings, who, believing, with Macbeth, that "nothing is but what is not," are thereby launched into dialectical encounter with nullity in general. For the first, nothing, so far from being a mere grammatical illusion, is a genuine, even positive, feature of experience. We are all familiar with, and have a vocabulary for, holes and gaps, lacks and losses, absences, silences, impalpabilities, insipidities, and the like. Voids and vacancies of one sort or another are sought after, dealt in and advertised in the newspapers. And what are these, it is asked, but perceived fragments of nothingness, experiential blanks, which command, nonetheless, their share of attention and therefore deserve recognition? Sartre, for one, has given currency to such arguments, and so, in effect, have the upholders of "negative facts" -- an improvident sect, whose refrigerators are full of nonexistent butter and cheese, absentee elephants, and so on, which they claim to detect therein. If existence indeed precedes essence, there is certainly reason of a sort for maintaining that nonexistence is also anterior to, and not a mere product of, the essentially parasitic activity of negation; that the nothing precedes the not. But, verbal refutations apart, the short answer to this view, as given, for instance, by Bergson, is that these are but petty and partial nothings, themselves parasitic on what already exists. Absence is a mere privation, and a privation of something at that. A hole is always a hole in something: take away the thing, and the hole goes too; more precisely, it is replaced by a bigger if not better hole, itself relative to its surroundings, and so tributary to something else. Nothing, in short, is given only in relation to what is, and even the idea of nothing requires a thinker to sustain it. If we want to encounter it an sich, we have to try harder than that.

Better things, or rather nothings, are promised on the alternative theory, whereby it is argued, so to speak, not that holes are in things, but that things are in holes or, more generally , that everything (and everybody) is in a hole. To be anything (or anybody) is to be bounded, hemmed in, defined, and separated by a circumambient frame of vacuity, and what is true of the individual is equally true of the collective. The universe at large is fringed with nothingness, from which indeed (how else?) it must have been created, if created it was; and its beginning and end, like that of all change within it, must similarly be viewed as a passage from one nothing to another, with an interlude of being in between. Such thoughts, or others like them, have haunted the speculations of nullophile metaphysicians from Pythagoras to Pascal and from Hegel and his followers to Heidegger, Tillich and Sartre. Being and nonbeing, as they see it, are complementary notions, dialectically entwined, and of equal status and importance; although Heidegger alone has extended their symmetry to the point of equipping Das Nichts with a correlative (if nugatory) activity of noth-ing, or nihilating, whereby it produces Angst in its votaries and untimely hilarity in those, such as Carnap and Ayer, who have difficulty in parsing "nothing" as a present participle of the verb "to noth."

Nothing, whether it noths or not, and whether or not the being of anything entails it, clearly does not entail that anything should be. Like Spinoza's substance, it is causa sui; nothing (except more of the same) can come of it; ex nihilo, nihil fit. That conceded, it remains a question to some why anything, rather than nothing, should exist. This is either the deepest conundrum in metaphysics or the most childish, and though many must have felt the force of it at one time or another, it is equally common to conclude, on reflection, that it is no question at all. The hypothesis of theism may be said to take it seriously and to offer a provisional answer. The alternative is to argue that the dilemma is self-resolved in the mere possibility of stating it. If nothing whatsoever existed, there would be no problem and no answer, and the anxieties even of existential philosophers would be permanently laid to rest. Since they are not, there is evidently nothing to worry about. But that itself should be enough to keep an existentialist happy. Unless the solution be, as some have suspected, that it is not nothing that has been worrying them but they who have been worrying it.

This is just a picture of my new shoes, which should arrive any days now... aren't they cute?

Vintage glamour - you will LOVE this!

2007-09-07T22:43:00.000-05:00

This is a repost, from a repost, sent to me by a friend who saw it on Boing Boing one of the best blog sites ever). I orginally was posted online over I THINK a Russian website.

If you love photography, pin up, retro, glamour, fashion - this is for you. You can click on the pics to enlarge them to see credits, words, and everything else.

Hope you enjoy is as much as I did.

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Deer butt art? Tasteless Irony.

2007-09-07T12:58:00.000-05:00

This is seriously scary stuff - be forwarned.

I love squirrels, and every now and again I do a google image search for squirrels. To my surprise todays search brought me to a very interesting article called 'How to Make Your Own Redneck Art'. Since I'm overdue on a posting until I write about something worthwhile, here is an edited repost of "craft tips by Don Burleson".

I am not in any way suggesting that people actually do this, but it nevertheless an interesting read if you are into art... or rednecks. Personally I'd like to stick with drinking a Pabst.

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Fine art Deer Butt alien heads

In the world of fine redneck art, many of the top-tier deer butt aliens have been showcased by world renowned art exhibitions and galleries.

For real family fun, take the plunge and make your own artistic ass creations. Making animal ass redneck art is easy once you know the secrets. Deer ass alien heads are fun and educational activity for the whole family. The kids get a lesson in fine art, anatomy and taxidermy, but the kids think that they're just having fun! It's the perfect craft for children of all ages, young and old alike.

The quality of the deer butt alien head depends upon the craftsmanship and artistic vision of the redneck artist and the most highly-prized deer ass alien heads vary from simple to sophisticated works of art:

But the pleasures of making deer butt aliens is not just confined to the art world, and people across the USA are discovering the joys of making their own deer butt alien heads. Let's take a closer look at this phenomenon and see why crafting alien heads from deer's asses has become a popular craft for young and old alike.

Making your deer butt alien head

All you need to create your own deer art is a styrofoam mannequin head, a fresh deer butt, a sharp knife and some glue and you are ready to get started making your own deer masterpiece.

Deer butt alien head aficionado's recommend that you start with a fresh deer carcass, and this always makes it more fun and educational for the kids because they can share the joy of disemboweling Bambi, they get a lesson in anatomy and taxidermy, and they have the thrill of creating a one-of-a-kind work of art.

::NOTE::
Make sure to tie-off the hiney hole

You need to carefully open-up your deer, starting right above the groin. Once the incision is made you will need to tie-off the anus again, from the inside, and then sever the large intestine right above the tie.

Next, cut the deer's throat, severing the deer's neck all the way back to the spine. This will disconnect the arteries and throat from the head.

Now, all you need to do is simply cut open the gut upwards to the rib cage and watch junior's delight when all the innards come-out in one piece! Amazing!

(Redneck Factoid: When the contents of the body cavity slide free from the carcass, be very careful not to pop the gall bladder. The bile stinks to high-heaven and it will ruin the meat and your deer butt).

Once you have skinned the hide, open-up the deer skull and extract the brain so that you can use the deer brains to tan the hide (see www.braintan.com).

Many people say that the real red neck art is the shaping of the deer anus to look like a mouth. This is the true test of the artists loving hand. The anus can be made very simple, or you can stretch the anus for realistic effects such as smiles and frowns.

Many deer butt snobs will put their art outside, bragging on their good taste. Here is an example of the popular deer butt doorbells:

Alternatives to deer butts

If you don't have any deer butt's handy, don't despair. Many creative folks will go on a scavenger hunt, searching for fresh road kill to use for their red neck art. Here is where the creative process is critical and you can let-loose with your artistic freedom to come up with a wealth of affordable fine art for your home. Even rodents can be sculptured into fine redneck art plaques.

Finding the up-and-coming artists
The trick to any art collection is to identify talented redneck artists and acquire their works before they become famous.

I've noted in previous publications that our farm cats have been eating all of our squirrels and our concerns about mad squirrel disease. It's really a waste to have half-eaten squirrel carcasses all over the ranch, and it occurred to me that these corpses could be used as an educational tool for children. The kiddies can have hours of fun crafting a coffin for the deceased squirrel and you can have great fun doing a full open casket funeral and eulogy.

No matter how you slice them, creating animal butt art is a fun and educational experience for the whole family

Thank you Owen Wilson

2007-08-27T22:07:00.000-05:00

As you all know, actor Owen Wilson is having a very rough time right now. During the upcoming months, Mr. Wilson is about to make peace with all his demons, and I am rooting for his brilliant sense of humor to carry him through this difficult time.

Had he succeeded with his attempt, for the record, he would be greatly missed from this end.

On that note, I would like to pay a small tribute to an actor whose work has brought me much joy, by asking you few people who read this blog to share your Owen Wilson greatest moments or thoughts in emails, on MySpace, in blogs - anywhere that people can learn more about his contribution to our culture.

My Owen Wilson thoughts:
I have to say the first time I really caught on to the Owen Wilson strain of humor was a little later than most. It was not until Zoolander that I became a real fan (I have not lost track of him since).

If you watch comedies you can appreciate the subtle nuances of comedic timing, and the delivery of hidden meanings, and the impact of gesture. The comedic actor is an art form.

Actors such as Owen Wilson hold true to that crafted form of comedy found in those who work hard, study and who know suffering (as many comedians do) that binds them to an audience.

I always find that Mr. Wilson has the ability for the smart comedy, or even to make most stupid cultural ironies - seem smart. He recognizes that his audience needs to unwind and laugh about something that at may on first view come across as nothing. But does nothing mean nothing… not a thing… no thing?

A black hole is referred to as nothing, yet it is a powerful and mysterious natural wonder. For someone like me, who is not funny but has a sense of humor, Mr. Wilson is an aid. He has aided me into laughing out loud, one of the greatest pleasures in life.

Thank you for The Royal Tenenbaums, Rushmore (kept me company on Christmas after an unfortunate breakup), Zoolander, Wedding Crashers, My Life Equatic, Night at the Museum, The Dajarleeing LImited, and many more.

Thank you Owen Wilson.

A Tribute to Crazy

2007-08-24T12:30:00.000-05:00

In the mean time - I propose a toast to the crazy days we each have, and hope to get through.

Its a crazy day so I thought in light of days such as these I would share some crazy photos.... Over the weekend I will be writing a more text heavy entry about, the gallery, the gallery owner, and the alternative gallery.

The photo series above is from a blog that goes by .bootstrap It appears to be in a college classroom and a decent example of when the mind is in a whirl....nutso.

This is a copy of a tin type claming to be of Crazy Horse, the great Oglala Sioux warrior. There is some question as to if this portrait is real or not, because it seems that the warrior did not like the idea of having his picture taken.

Lastly, Ramases & Selket 1968 single called 'Crazy One / Minds Eye', guranteed to bring forth a bizarre state of mind. Here is a link to an article about it where you can also listen to the mp3!

Architecture Student in Cambridge, MA

2007-08-23T15:53:00.000-05:00

I found this young photo novelist on flickr, and I really like a few of his pics - so here they are, along with a mini-interview with their maker Patrick.

Patrick Thomas is a 24 years old student in Cambridge, MA, studying architecture.

A proud midwesterner originally from Michigan he began taking photographs when his assistant principle in high school enrolled him in their beginning photography class (as a surprise to him). He now takes pictures throughout the course of his days without much diligence, but still on a regular enough basis to keep up a flickr profile.

He primarily works in digital photography because, being a student, he can't afford the costs of film. He feels his best photographs are the ones taken with film of which very few are portrayed on his flickr site (with an exception to his Detroit series).

He is interested in "the quotidian, the non-contrived, the simplicity of the things in their natural state and uneditorialized with camera tricks and post-editing shenanigans".

I feel some of his digital photos are often interesting and hold a pureness, a random quality, that can be lost by professional image makers.

If you would like to see more of Patrick's photos click here.

Brilliant in every way

2007-08-23T14:35:00.001-05:00

This photograph is by a woman who resides in Berlin, Germany and this is a quote from her flickr profile:

"Can't follow any concept on this site, whenever I get my money I bring my films to the shop, but I never know which film it is... all pictures are available in higher resolution"

That is such an honest and beautiful statement to me which captures the essence of 'The Photographer'. She puts everything into it. Her work is truly inspiring to me.

Victoria has had work in Nerve and a some other professional publications, but this piece here... and the others like it show a softness that is moving, and their conceptual content is smart. If you read this Victoria, we want to see more of these images of women with pieces perfectly cut out of them. They are loaded with meaning, and look good too.

Please look through her profile on flickr (there is a link to Victoria Tomaschko's work below the photo).

Originally uploaded by victoria*.

I love these photos

2007-08-22T11:53:00.000-05:00

Every day I'm going to post a pic I love by another photographer.

If I know the name of the photographer who took the picture it will be posted but for these I do not. If you know the name of the photographer please send it to me and I will be sure to give photo credit and create a link to the photographers information.

Enjoy:)

Rock style

2007-08-20T10:22:00.001-05:00

Rock has always had a style, and as trends change in the fashion world, rock style is as steady as always.

I've been photographing musicians for a long time, and I love rock style. I'm going to show some examples of real rock style being worn by real musicians, and make comments.

First off the rock style staples include, expensive boots, unisex tight black pants, an old t-shirt, a well-fitting and/or vintage black blazer, a worn in leather belt, one item of bright color such as blue or red, and dark sunglasses. If you have these clothing items, you never need to worry about looking cool.

The nice thing about the rock look is you can dress it up, or you can dress it down and fit in most anywhere you go depending on what you accessorize it with.

Some suggestions are the trendy wrist cuffs, perhaps a hat of your choice, a white belt, jewelry of your likely or a long scarf. You can also take the indie-rock route and move away from black and more towards clashing shades of color... but be sure to hold it together with a neutral such as chocolate brown, white or charcoal grey - if not black. Then to top off the indie look for summer, change those expensive boots to bright sneakers. They come in all colors now so experiment with your regular look, by adding the color to your feet!

For the ladies I say purchase a pair of long leather gloves, and for the boys I say a vintage silk tie, with a print to your liking, is a must for the fancier times. If you ladies insist on high heels, which I completely approve of, if you can last all night in them, you really should save your pennies for a bitchin' pair of designer shoes ($200 give or take a few) that are black with a two-toned piping of silver or white.

Also for the ladies, you can't go wrong making your way to American Apparel American Apparel for their spandex pants. Yah, spandex. They are shiny and cool as shit if downplayed with more timid and neutral jersey fabric tunics.

Just be sure to not wear too many items that are made to look rock-n-roll. This is a sure sign of someone who wears it, but doesn't live it and you won't win points with the the real musicians out there.

Some samples will be posted later this afternoon:)

Stay tuned.

Niagara II

2007-08-14T16:50:00.001-05:00

Niagara II
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

White is a color.

2007-08-09T23:39:00.000-05:00

White is a color. O.k. I know, its really the combination of ALL colors in the visible light spectrum, but I would like to put out the argument that in this day and age white has graduated to a color.

Without white, there would be no visible light spectrum, and vice versa... but albeit that white is used more than any other color out there, with exception to black and grey - two other very underated, dare I say, colors.

According to The Penguin Book on Symbolism, by authors Jen Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant, white is absolute in itself. They also write that "white is the color of passage" (as in a symbol for birth and death) and you can find this association universal through both eastern and western cultures, and religious beliefs.

We live in a society that favors the color white. White clothing for trends, white teeth and nails for status and beauty, white cars for easy care, white diamonds for bling, weddings, we like white. Then once again, in 2005 white became a fashion trend, and that remains to this present time. White is equal to space, and space is priceless in a growing global population - but I digress.

The ultimate luxurious wealth is often represented by a diva, who wears all white, lives in an entirely white interior, and only surrounds herself by white material objects. As most recently seen with Ugly Betty's character played by Vanessa Wiliams, Wilhelmina Slater. Many rock and indie musicians do at least one photo shoot where they explore only wearing white.

Somehow white remains artistic, and accessible - even after the
minimalist movement.

White screams. So find your voice with a little help from this article in
I Village.

We can thank Yoko and John Lennon for all of this coolness in white within the world of pop. I think everyone needs to start posting their photos of musicians wearing white. Seriously!

Hell I wouldn't mind a photo of myself wearing all white, on a white backdrop - something like this one I just did of Green Gallery founder and curator John Riepenhoff perhaps?

In any case white can be seen as decadent, pure, neutral, and accessible while keeping some edge or even keeping some balance of beauty - so work with it!

Why natural braids are still cool for fall 2007?

2007-08-09T11:04:00.000-05:00

For a while now I have been claiming that tight braids are in style, and should be. In 2005 I began to see the loose country braid mentioned in trend reports, but now in 2007, the 1999 style of tight braids are back and cooler than ever. If you choose the right styles they portray an uncontrived sophistication.

So why braids? My own explanation is that women are busier than ever and though we love fashion, most of us do not have the time and money to spare on high maintenance styles and cuts. I mean, we have things to do. We are in a Do It Yourself generation and braids are totally
DIY.

Braiding is a must have skill for the modern independent DIY woman. After some practice...you can roll out of bed and braid your locks, pin them up and voila you look great, you look together and if you use the right product, no amount of wind or rain will make your hair look bad.

You can braid your hair no matter what hair type you have. You can recall to past eras with braids or push for a futuristic look. You can even pay your respects to America's Native cultural history by incorporating tribal styles.

Dream Weaver Braiding

I am not against thick braid hair pieces, IF the fake hair matches your natural hair in color, texture, and sheen (and they are well applied). If in doubt, have a good friend check out your hair piece for those notes. If even one is off, stick with your real hair. Here is a how-to video that can be helpful (along with some hair gell or styling cream - I suggest Bumble and Bumble cause their product is amazing).

How to Braid

This is helpful for the European braid styles:

Long Locks

This is very nice for African braid styles:

Cedar Artworld

Tight braided styles are clean, sleek, and chic (and still not so trendy you see every woman in a place wearing them). That means you will get looks from everyone! You can be a rock girl, a corporate climber, or even an at home mom and sport a braided style that works for you. If you are a parent you can teach your kids to braid too - its fun!

Some designers who recently featured braids on their runways include: Proenza Schouler and Calvin Klein, but you can see them all over fashion photo spreads right now too, as in this one, and also the photo that I took for my upcoming MKE fashion spread.

Braiding is not easy, it does takes time to learn - but it will be worth the practice! Here are some helpful tips for braiding.

Some celebrities are who show how nicely a sleek braid can add a smooth finishing touch to a look are: Mary J. Blige.
Others you can look for include , and Heidi Klume, Beyonce, and Scarlett Johansson.

Finally I can blog again

2007-08-08T11:03:00.000-05:00

SO sorry, to anyone who tried to read this blog. Ever since April I was blocked.

I'm back and going to try to blog something new every day! Yes every day! I'm going to blog about photos I like, photos I make, or photography related / image making related work.

So stay tuned as I put together my new and improved blog.

ctay

Ghetto F.A.B.

2007-04-20T16:55:00.001-05:00

Ghetto F.A.B.
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

O.k - this was just this morning... Hip hop trio Ghetto F.A.B. l-r: Kwic Draw (Russell Loving / beat maker and producer), Big Three (Robert Isabell / lyrics), Godxilla (producer)- shown here at their basement home recording studio.

From the outside the house that holds this hidden gem, look just like any other small home with a family living in it. These guys are so cool, and their music is cool too. They have a dedication to creating music that is not found on your regular local radio stations.

Their studio is super small, but really nice. This portrait doesn't show its entirety at all because just to the other side of where I am shooting from is a lounge area, a glass wall, and then a sound booth for singing. It was beautiful.

It wasnt my best shoot - hard to shoot due to small space, low time, and then as you see - DAAAARK. I lit it up, but it was not easy. In fact there was not space to bring in full light kits for any of the music studios, so I improvised and think that they each match up pretty well.

They each look like they are a part of the same story - which is complex when you are given four different locations, four different types of musicians, and four different lighting situations!

Its a beautiful day today so after a walk in the sun, I'm heading out to see some gallery art tonight - and then home to watch Punch Drunk Love, starring Adam Sandler! (The film is research I am doing for an upcoming shoot).

Hope you're weekend treats you well.

ctay

The New Loud

2007-04-18T19:15:00.001-05:00

The New Loud
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

This trio are Franz Ferdinand-like is the best comparison I can give their sound, but The New Loud have their own thing going on. Here the trio are shown in their beautiful studio which is also a recording studio called Bobby Peru's Recording Studio based in Milwaukee.

Here you can check out some of their music, shows, lyrics and other fun stuff like their flyer art.

And here you can check out the studio - although I'm partial to the pic shown here that I did with them this morning.

I took this photograph to go with the same story that Collections of Colonies of Bees was for (I love that name). I'm obsessed with bees lately since they are fighting for their lives these days.

Anyhow, I was late for this shoot and thats a sucky way to start off a portrait shoot for sure. I try to NEVER keep my subjects waiting... but this time I did. First of all, I flew in from Philadelphia just that morning - early. I had been up since 3am with little sleep. Then I fell asleep without checking my calendar. Mistake cause my shoot with them was for 9am, earlier than I usually schedule.

I woke up at 8:45am, called the reporter - Lilledeshan Bose. Seemed she had forgotten too. SHIT! So we got it together fast. She got there first because she lived near them and started the interview. I showed up later at the end of the interview and all was well - but still, its not cool to be late for shoots, and its not cool for both the writer AND the photographer to forget the time!

I hope that this photo made it up to them, cause I love it. Its beautiful and interesting and weird - yet still simple. That studio was gorgeous. The girl Jesse is gorgeous. A gorgeous girl in a band can be a great thing for a photograph... and I have no complaints about this one.

It took about 30 minutes to shoot and get the peaks of light just the way I wanted them... light play is one of my signature image traits and you can see some great examples in this.

Have a nice day:)

ctay

Collections of Colonies of Bees

2007-04-18T18:43:00.001-05:00

Collections of Colonies of Bees
Originally uploaded by CTaylor.

Collections of Colonies of Bees are on Polyvinyl Records. They are pretty big in Europe and Japan right now and are based in the Midwest in Milwaukee, WI.

Website / tour dates
Discography
Free download
Myspace

These guys are super cool to hang out with and this is a portrait of all 5 of them in their studio which used to be a girls locker room waaaaaay back in the 20's. You can see some of the wooden lockers in the back right hand corner.

One band member could not be at the photo shoot cause he lives in Minneapolis and we were shooting in Milwaukee, so you can see the solution we made. One member brought me a photo he took of the missing member and I composited it onto a piece of cardboard on the left tiled wall.

Pretty cool looking and subtle, which is even more cool to me I color balanced it to be the same as the other guys and voila.

It took about 20 minutes, and the guys are just kickin' back. The article this was shot for is actually about band studio spaces, but it was a great opportunity to get in the band themselves to make it more visually enticing.

Latest fashion spread

2007-03-28T12:43:00.000-05:00

Hi people! Yey! I finally have a new fashion spread to shot you and I'm pretty excited about it. It is very different from my personal style of photography, and it was incredibly challenging.

First of all I would like to state that I find creating digitally based high concept spread such as this to be SO MUCH harder than straight forward pretty pictures. Really. I love making them both, but I always feel like I have accomplished something tremendous when I complete a creative project like this one.

I produced the entire project, and my design director Katherine Bryja co-illustrated the image with me. It was the most collborative process for production I have ever had. I chose the image, I photographed the models and clothing in the studio, then she cut them out and put the white borders around them and did the first layout based on my previous sketches. After than she sent them to me and I worked on the compositions more, and then I sent them back to her, she worked on them more - and that process continued until we agreed on a final!

Whew!

It was serious stuff. My last series (the diorama series you can see here - was a huge undertaking, but I did everything and it was all familiar territory). The graphic photo collages were something I had never done before and it was SO difficult to think graphically rather than photographically.

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Intro:
Hear it. Wear it.

These spring fashions bring sound and style together. Take six songs written by Milwaukee musicians. Cull imagery from the lyrics. Add a splash of local spring water, riveting guitar riffs, pounding bass beats and heavenly hooks - and you get an inevitable collision of music and fashion that would make Gwen Stephani and Madonna proud. ll you have to do is stop, look, and listen.

I got an honorarium to lecture on my work at SAIC in Chicago

2007-02-16T12:49:00.000-06:00

School of the Art Institute of Chicago is in the top three colleges for photography in teh country (I'm now an alumni), but that is not why I am being invited to talk there.

I plan to talk about digital and compositing within both the art and the commercial worlds. Here are some samples of what I will be showing.

So this is both scary and cool at the same time, I am going to be lecturing in Chicago at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

I'm going ot do it, of course. I would be stupid to not do it, as it is paid and just such an honor - OH its an honorarium! Tee hee. This means I'm all grown up now. Jheez, FINALLY.

I would love to hear suggestions as to how to make it NOT BORING! I'm going to keep it short, show stuff, hand out stuff, and spend alot of time looking at and directing working with students to help them develop their projects on their own... so less talk about my work and more talk about theirs is going to be my approach.

C.Taylor

Exhibition in Dallas December 1, 2007

2006-11-05T13:40:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone, please check out the invites for a new exhibition I am having with Wafaa Bilal in Dallas at Pawn Gallery.

DALLAS, TX Pawn Gallery is celebrating it's grand opening on December 1, 2006. Pawn Gallery is celebrating it..s grand opening on December 1, 2006. The Pawn Gallery..s mission is to be a champion of the artist. Artists pawn their integrity, self respect and style in order to have a gallery to show their work. Then the creations are sold like a slab of meat at the butcher shop. This gallery is attempting to showcase the creators of the world in an unadulterated form.

Additionally, Pawn Gallery has a commitment to unfettered artistic freedom, cultural democracy, and transnationalism. This mission is carried out in the presentation of visual arts exhibitions, guerrilla art installations, gallery education and other public programs, and in partnerships with community organizations.

Inagural Show: Interior Landscapes

Featuring the work of Wafaa Bilal and C.Taylor (Christine Taylor). Featuring works with multimedia presentation, photography and The Human Condition, a coffee table book produced by Mr. Bilal. Within Interior Landscapes, figures exist in equal balance with the landscapes, the images drawing their complexity from this dramatic polar tension. Within the frame, time and place loses specificity to become transcendent and expressive of a broader human condition.

Wafaa Bilal: Born in Najaf, Iraq, Wafaa Bilal is a Chicago-based visual artist with both skillful presentation and compelling story. He studied Geography at the University of Baghdad but left to avoid the draft in 1990. For forty-two days, Bilal and his family survived relentless bombing by coalition forces, eventually being caught up in the mass uprising that swept the country following Iraq..s withdrawal from Kuwait. Under suspicion of being a dissident, Bilal was blacklisted and joined hundreds of thousands of others fleeing Iraq in 1991. His harrowing journey took him through Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and eventually the U.S. in 1992. Bilal holds a degree in fine art at the University of New Mexico and has created art in paint, photography and video on his story and the stories of many other Iraqis devastated by the policies of war and siege in their country. More information on Mr. Bilal can be found at http://crudeoils.us/wafaa/index.html

Mr. Bilal has an extraordinary tale to tell and will be appearing, Wednesday November 29 at the Unitarian Church in Lakewood.

C.Taylor: C.Taylor worked as a freelance photojournalist and artist in Seattle, WA for 8 years prior to heading to the midwest to study concept based art at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she met Wafaa Bilal. Right away they realized that they shared a common interest in content and began to share ideas and help one another in developing concepts for projects. A year later Wafaa became an instructor at SAIC. Until Christine completed her degree in in 2004 he acted as a mentor and has supported the direction she has chosen to take her most recent works. After school Christine took a position with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, to act as Photo Producer and Staff Photographer for a newly award winning, lifestyle publication called MKE. Wisconsin is where she continues to draw her inspiration for her composited photo illustrations and video interviews, both a part of a greater project she calls, ..The New Perception... ..The New Perception.. is a continuing body of work which expresses her personal interest in the American condition and how its cultural contradictions effect the human perception about the quality of life. More information on Ms. Taylor can be found at http://www.happyplayground.com.

A.R.T.S. For People.
Ten percent of all proceeds of art sales from the opening night will be donated to A.R.T.S. For People. This organization People provides a unique blend of interactive art, dance, music, expressive and recreational therapies to contribute to the physical healing and help restore the emotional, mental and social well-being of individuals in Dallas/Ft. Worth healthcare and community facilities. Pawn Gallery is working to make this an ongoing relationship at future events. More information on this organization can be found at
http:// www.artsforpeople.org

Additional imagery can be downloaded at http://www.printelectric.com/pawngallery

Mark Roberts
PH: 214.453.3885
FX: 214-889-3100
pawngallery@printelectric.com
www.pawn-gallery.com

yah yah

2006-11-05T12:51:00.000-06:00

a new post! hooray!

o.k. - my blog is boring, i'm coming to terms with this and will be attempting to update this every couple days and also put in more links and just fun stuff.

For today though its art talk.

This is a detail of "American Bunker", a super long (i'm talking 80" long) image I am planning to show in Dallas at place called Pawn Gallery. Its from a series of pics that are strips of American life, then I add in my own little suble twists. I am hooked on the Army sand bag these days so it will be popping up in my art work on occasion.

How to make this kind of thing... very tedious it is... i'm talking hair pulling tedious and I do this stuff alsmost every day of my life and it is still tedious. I plant the camera in one spot and meter and shoot from that same spot rotating the camera to follow the strip i want to focus on. Watch out for strange Republicans in the suburbs of milwaukee and Madison, WI cause they are more Republican than any other people in the entire state. It matters becuase you should always be aware of the culture you are going into before you arrive.

This group tend to not appreciate contemporary artists who do political work, they do not like cameras, nor do they like strangers... when you combine all three of those you could face a confrontation if you are not fast, respectful while you're near their property and a little sly.

New York Times release a diagram of Republicans and Democrats nationwide and the suburbs of Milwaukee had the most in all of Wisconsin. They are also the wealthieast people, and the people that this cultural piece is about.

Shooting among people who fear you are a terrorist in their neighborhood - well that was the easy part.

The hard part of a multi piece panoramic is putting the pieces together so they are seemless. The full photo is about 10 photos put together... not including the photos i used to do the patchwork between those frames.

It takes days - about 4 to get it perfect... well as perfect as possible. with color, texure, all the lines, the sky, etc. Do if you want to do this, give yourself a month just to be sure you can get it done along with everything else you may need to do.

Then be sure to shoot on the same day, with the same lighting. If you plan to composite in things, the same lighting will make it seemless, as well as much easier to make it seemless. Also make sure your computer has at minimal 1 GB of RAM, ideally 2 GBs or more of RAM. My file for this is over 200 MB, flattened as a tif. If you were to use film drum scans and keep as a psd file (which you must always do with all the layers in it), you would never be able to make this kind of image on a computer with 256 MB of RAM. It would repeatedly crash, and make you want to never create art photography again.

So try to plan ahead.

Other than than it is just time consuming. Also you may choose to use a land camera instead of a digital. I used a digital Canon 20D and am very disappointed in the file quality. I cannot enlarge it and would very much like to in width, but there is no way without it looking crappy.

So this will call for a more intimate experience between the viewer and the piece.

Here is the full version of "American Bunker".

Thats all. Will post more shortly.

C.Taylor

Low Light Rulz

2006-08-24T15:19:00.000-05:00

Here are some samples of low light or diffused light portraits - some using strobe, and some using only natural light. First one, strobe, second one natural evening light, last picture is strobe and in studio.

Low light is harder than bright, all encompassing light, harder in a different way is all. With low light you really need to make sure you have light in the right place(s). I just did a portrait using hot stage lights - the pic is amazing (it will be posted tomorrow), but the hottest light aims right for the subjects crotch area... oops? Frankly it doesn't bother me at all.

Yah, that can be cool, I like hot lights on crotches too, but my client (MKE - my day job) well, its a weekly here in Milwaukee and they are still figuring out what their audience can handle - thus crotch shots are not too favored. Happy accident are so often great pics, but for the commercial world, depending on your client, editor and art director - they may not be welcomed).

Here are some soft light portraits.

If you are interested in low lighting and soft mixed light source techniques, check out a lighting for cinema course. It did wonders for me.

Truckstop Honeymoon

2006-08-19T13:54:00.000-05:00

For this portrait I wanted to capture the pure intensity of Truckstop Honeymoon, an alt coutnry band from New Orleans now based in Lawrence, KS. Mike and Katie are a dinamic duet, powerful and raw. They are who they are, take it or leave it, and they are not foolin' round.

Katie is a long time friend and Mike is her husband. They lived in New Orleans 9th Ward, just behind one of the the levy's that broke during Katrina. On tour most of the year with their two children Sadie and Vega, they live a truly free life. They tour all over America, Europe, Austrailia annually abd home school the girls.

If you get the opportunity to see them play live, DO IT - you'll never forget it. They always bring the house down. I've seen them play in a few cities now and I"m never disappointed.

SO for this pic - we took it to my attic. It just had that unfinished feel of wood walls, tricling light, and warm cozy feeling to it. I love that attic. It was perfect for them. There are more pics, but this is the one ready for web so here it is.

I mixed natural daylight, with off camera strobe.

ctay

Wash out the scene

2006-08-19T12:56:00.000-05:00

These are from a shoot done for makeup/hair designer Meg Lee. Shes a ball of talent and she just wanted to get some photos for her porfolio so we spent a day in the studio with two of her friends wh oposed for her.

These are some out takes, pictures more in my interest than for hers. For her portfolio we did primarily head shots to show the hair and face.

The jewelry is custom made by designer Meredith Jensen. She specializes in hand made, glass, semi prescious and prescious materials. Her line can be seen at her website - M Jewelry so please check it out. I own a piece myself and LOVE it!

So the lighting is pretty clearly light all around, using soft boxes, and backlights to wash out the background. It was difficult to not wach out the white netting around the models body, but its nice. We wanted a high contrast, 80's feel to match up with the hair and jewelry. Its pretty basic studio set up - 5 lights; one large soft box in center overhead on low setting, two strip soft boxes on sides on medium setting, two strobes with bells and no soft boxes on high setting directed toward backdrop for washed out - pure white - look. I"m using general terms because everyone has a different lighting system and there are so many ways to get the same look - so this is basic info that you can apply using a number of systems.

In plain english, no technical jargon... use white balanced lights all around subject, brightest no backdrop, low on oeverhead (cause its just fill/hair light), medium from each angle front - 45 degrees or so - this is your main lighting for the subject. Be sure to check your light if she moves - you want to see the eyes (at least for this look you do).

WIth this set up you may have to adjust your camera setting a little, but not much or not at all. The back lighting will bounce and reflect onto the subject as well so they can turn, move, etc and always have the shadows filled.

If you do not have strobes, do not fret. Use tungsten hot lights or many clamp lights... you will be best with a light meter to even out the outputs - BUT if you do not have alight meter either, use your camer meter by zooming in on the subject first. Then always bracket. I recommend to bracket always regardless as you may want a variety of choices in exposure and not want to do it in Photoshop.

If you do all of your expoure and lighting decisions in Photoshop, it will not make for the best printing. Its fine for newspaper quality or magazine quality - but not great for large format printing as it may show. In time that will change and everything will be digital, but not quite yet - unless you are shooting RAW and with a digital back (28 mgpx).

If you have any questions drop me a comment here!

ctay

Stage portrait

2006-08-18T16:43:00.000-05:00

As "Boss Lady" and "Boss Man" of Insurgent Theatre, Tracy Doyle and Ben Turk are proudly non-mainstream. "We get so many people who've never been to a play or who say, 'I hate plays but I really love this,'" Tracy said.

http://www.mkeonline.com/story.asp?id=1391880

I love this portrait of Tracy and Ben. It is photographed at a small theatre called The Pharmacy, which is just that as well as a diner and theatre. The photo is using stage lighting, and the actual prop in their play "The Plight of the Ruling Class", I always try to make a connection with the subject and their real environment - but then collaborate on concepts to make great pics, like this one.

Its different, and totally represents who they are - fun actors, who take their work very seriously... As seriously as Davinci took his painting? Perhaps. In this photo we certainly think so.

Dreamy Island drink shot

2006-08-18T16:01:00.000-05:00

O.k. so I'm NOT a food photographer as that is just a talent I have no developed yet at all, BUT check this out... I think its pretty decent.

Its so difficut to create something non-static, that is new and pretty with food. I mean you can do the tride and true close up from an angle shot which more print photographers use - OR you can try to create a mood, and a relaly beautiful photo.

With this one I started off taking the tride and true with everything propped up, posed and perfect... then i decide it was too boring - nice looking, but boring. I placed the shot into the coconut and loved it, that was much more interesting and still readable for print (cause this will be published next week with an article about soda pop cocktails). When I was moving one of the props, the shot glass tipped and spilled - i KNEW that was the image to capture... the tipped glass, inside the coconut.

Beautiful.

The scene was built on a high table in front of a window with soft natural light coming in which I used as backlight to illuminate the liquid. Then I filled with an off camera flash, TTL -3 stops so it is very slight. I did not want hard light with this so as to keep the natural texture, and color of the ingredients.

I always dread food pictures, but this time I got into it.

Enjoy!

Sarah Price

2006-08-17T00:02:00.000-05:00

Sarah Price is a film maker and film editor in NYC, formerly in Milwaukee. She was so fun to work with and I think she was pleasantly suprised upon our meeting. We had a really good time walking, talking and getting to know eachother for an hour or so,

This photograph was taken on the bank of the Milwaukee River just off of North Avenue on the east side. Some condos are being built there now so I guess we had good timing for this picture. There is a series, but this is the portrait that was used.

I try to create work that is accesible to a large audience, smart, attractive and suitable to the subject. Sometime I experiment with it, but I've found that a truthful feel to a personality is the best, unless the personalities image is more prevelant that a natural persona.

I love conceptual work, as much as it applies to the story. For this profile on Sarah, it just seemed better to connect the feel of the portrait to her own work - documentary with a twist.

We talked about ideas prior, set aside time and tried two different things... a more "concept based" pic, and this series - the more natural one. Its all real and no touch ups were done with her. she is that pretty (nice skin and light are always the key).

Sarah does not like the camera pointed in her direction - so I really wanted to do something that she enjoys in her normal life. That is what I do to help relax a subject, as well as be introduced into their world so that I can perhaps get visual ideas from it that connect with the subject. I highly suggest this approach - its less controlled, but you will learn to be flexible for a successful shoot any place at any time.

For me a successful shoot it not just about a photo showing a personality. It is about a photo having its own personality. Anyone can walk away with a decent pic, but not anyone can have it take on its own life and hold its own life next to their other photos.

One of my goals with a portrait shoot is for it to look different from others - that is what makes them interesting as a group. If all my portraits are in the same place, BORING! Even the most exciting person will be washed away by the repetative environment.

SO yah, environment. Its key in my world for personality portraiture.

Sarah works hard! That is one thing I can tell you about her. She loves her dog (who was with us on this shoot last year) and she is talented.

Some of her work you may know of includes (but is not limited to) The Yes Men < http://www.theyesmen.org >, and American Movie < http://www.americanmovie.com/ > .

http://www.mkeonline.com/story.asp?id=307818&format=print
http://www.reel.com/reel.asp?node=features/interviews/smithprice

Andrew Rosas

2006-08-04T13:09:00.001-05:00

Oh - I forgot to mention that my photos will not be in the new Surface Avant Guardian issue:( Oh well... I'm working harder on a project to submit for next year. The one I sent was done very quickly and I felt the loose areas. This time I'm going to work with several people and we are trying to continnue on with my quirky approach but with higher end clothing, and models! If you read this and you are a professional model please drop me an email with your photo so we can see if there is a shoot for you.

In the mean time here is a pic that I did amonth or so ago of visual artist Andrew Rosas. Along with fashion, portraits are my favorite thing to photograph and this one really captures a mood of his personality. The location is in his home studio, and he is holding a model to be used in an independent film showing this fall.

Here's the interview:

http://www.mkeonline.com/story.asp?id=1397250

Cheap Reads

2006-08-04T12:52:00.000-05:00

These are photos from a series i recently made for MKE in Milwaukee. The cover is a prototype so the actual cover was much better had has the headlines, etc. It was a really fun shoot! The model is singer/songwriter Meaghan Owens, a nd hte hair/makeup was done by Bjorn Nasset. My design director assisted the shoot and it was photographed at Rennaissance Books. The bookstore was pretty impressive with floor after floor of used books - which the story was about.

We were going for a vintage pin up look from WWII era. The pics are all sepia toned (just a little) and I used combination of natural light, tungsten light as well as one strobe with a bell and 3 degree screen, which Bjorn held over the model, or pointed just in front of the model so she would be illuminated by the bounce of light off the floor.

She was perfect. We finished photographing in two hours, with several classic poses completed in (5) locations. Total photoshoot time taking about four hours because setting and styling her hair and clothing at the salon took about two hours 8 a.m. to 10.a.m. - then we drove to the set.

2006-05-30T21:26:00.000-05:00

The photo below is from the same series sent to Surface for their Avant Guardian fashion photo competition. He is doing a handstand, he did do it and then turn himself to face a white wall.

I have to insert something here... have you ever tried to do a handstand (adults only need asnwer this)? Well after this blog go and do one against your wall... o.k. you got it? Now turn yourself around to face the wall, and straighten yourself out so that you are symmetrical, then hold it for a few minutes. You o.k.? You with me? Now do it again... and again... and again. Are you seeing what I am getting at?

The model James Kloiber is an angel. He got all wobbly and red faced for me. You can see how fit he is... and it was hard! O.k. he is the man I live with and love, but I still give him so much thanks. No one does this stuff for fun. If you tried this at home, you know what I'm talking about!

It you do try this at home - watch out for your neck... REALLY.

This photo is a new version of an art piece I did two ears ago with another incredibly kind man, who is a friend, an animator in Chicago named Daniel.

Thanks to both you guys.

Christine

Recent Surface Magazine entries

2006-05-30T20:57:00.000-05:00

O.k. - i highly doubt I will win in this super competative fashion photo competittion, BUT one must try! Here is a sample of the pics that I recently worked on with Kathy Bryja, whom assisted me along with James Kloiber and Meg Lee. Also special thanks to clothing designer Shanel Regier andd jewelry designer L. Edgar Duff, both of whom are always so easy to work with. Their work is a gorgeous quality!

The photo here was one of the hardest to do of the bunch. The idea is that the light bulb is has a magnetic field around it drawing in the crystal necklace... its my one of my favortites. Its really very simple, but it is the angle that makes it look different. I photographed about 30 frames of this, experimenting with the angle and light.

For this piece I wasn't sure what I wanted before shooting. All I knew was that it had to have a lightbulb, the necklace and some kind of relationship with gravity...so there were guidelines, but nothing in set stone.

We played around with it alot. While shooting I am holding a simple tungsten clamp light underneath the necklace. I would move the light to try and capture the reflections off of the crystals while simultaneaously shooting with the other hand.

Ah. It was tiring! Just got to make it work any way you can.

Some photographers would hate to hear that... but I started off punk rock style and it still lingers in my heart today!

Christine