Mad Mantis Blog

Big Guns

2012-01-10T06:53:00.000-08:00

This past year I was able to have access to a Tactical Shooting Competition. This happened the usual way for my personal assignments - through a friend of a friend.

A lot of these guys are ex-secret service, military and other "government operators" and did not fit my preconceived idea of who actually attends these competitions. Most targets are 800 yards plus. These guys build custom guns (and some in turn sell there skills via the internet).

The biggest downside to an event like this, is the inability to .shoot from downrange back at your subject. I'm not sure that any competition would allow you that access but Profile shots, Over the Shoulder, and Back of heads gets tiresome. I was only able to attend one of the two days which is unfortunate. If the hosting group is open too it I hope to have my act together for a more comprehensive outing next time.

Skeeter and Greg

2011-12-19T06:02:00.000-08:00

I had the opportunity to follow Greg Pinkston and his Harris Hawk, Skeeter out hunting last week. This is what I hope to be the first of at least a handful of shoots if not more. I had never been around hunting birds before and certainly did not know what to expect.

It was cloudy and wet (Not very normal for Albuquerque) so I knew it could be a bust if it started raining. I don't own a housing or a Rain cover for my camera (on the wish list now) so I had already relegated the outing to a meet and greet and maybe get a photo or two.

Right out the gate I knew no flash. At least not till I had talked with Greg regarding Skeeter's possible reaction. I never got that far. Greg pulled Skeeter from his truck and I started shooting. There was no standing around either. Skeeter was ready to hunt and Greg was off into the brush. I was just trying to keep up and remember if I locked my truck.

They were hunting Jack Rabbits. Well, Skeeter was... Her eyesight is magnificent. Obviously designed to see things at far distances. We would be walking along in the brush and Skeeter would launch from the perch after her quarry. So I have no pictures of Skeeter leaving the perch. Returning, yes.

Finally Skeeter got her rabbit.

After that it was time to head to the truck, mission accomplished. But Skeeter was reluctant.

Once we were within 50ft of Greg's pick up Skeeter flew over and commenced the final "routine."

We were then greeted by Mike Sayamontry, another avid hawk hunter and his Harris Hawk Zing. Before we took off to hunt he did show me his Goshawk that he planed to let hunt later.

Mike and Zing actually ended up getting a quail in the end. It had hid in a hole under some brush but Zing did not let that deter him.

Not being a hunter I wasn't sure how I would react to "the kill" but interestingly I had no real feeling either way. I was once told, regarding a nude photo shoot, that looking through the camera, the photographer was distanced from the actual subject matter, but as soon as he pulled his head from the camera the reality of the situation was staring him directly in the face. So maybe I just held my camera tight to my face and kept my "filter" up.

V.... Again

2011-12-11T20:25:00.001-08:00

So, yes. My dog. Again. This won't be the last time she is the subject of a blog. I love taking her picture. Even thought after about two clicks of the shutter she is done. My first class at Photo school required living subject matter to help execute the exercises so I used my dog (Skye at the time). My instructor finally told me I had to find new subject matter. And he was right. Skye was my crutch. If I couldn't or didn't want to find people, she was an easy out. I finally started shooting portraits of people but I still would run back to the dog to play. My first digital camera experience (Nikon 1d) was shooting Skye.

So now its "V." I was setting up a couple of lighting scenarios in my back yard and she stepped in. I have a handful of shoots on the horizon so I wanted to play a little. She filled in nicely.

Re-Organizing

2011-12-07T17:47:00.001-08:00

Things have been set in motion that I can only hope to keep up with. And therefore things must change. While my blogging consistency leaves little to be desired, I have separated my illustration from my photography. This Blog will be Mad Mantis Studio's sole outlet while The Phantom Mantis will consist of my "other" art adventures. I've placed a link on the right hand side. I'm currently lining up a handful of shoots to expand my portfolio and hope that some make for good blog entries as well as fantastic photo opportunities. Until then...

Here is one happy dog!

Dragway... Round 2

2011-05-20T07:36:00.000-07:00

Through a few connections (that I am completely grateful for) I was able to get closer to the "Line" than before. The images speak for themselves, but I could never have gotten such shots without being granted the access.

These images are a quick run of edits with some post production. The sheer volume of images will keep the more subtle gems at bay till I can look over the group numerous times.

I will admit that the first couple of hours I felt like I was taking the same shot over and over again. I walked away ultimately with about 1500 frames. Once the sun got low and began to back light the track, I got visually more interested. My intentions have always been to capture the more human aspects to intermingle with pure "Hot Rod" shots, but I was carried away by what was in front of me.

Ultimately I hope these images grant me the validation that I'm seeking. There are a lot of "photographers" at these events and it makes complete sense. The subjects can be very striking especially in context. But I hope to stand out a bit due to approach and expertise. While the rattling of my eardrums, the smell of smoked slicks, and the eye candy of cars flying down the track on two wheels carried me away, my intention is still to photograph people. I prefer shooting with a wide angle to standard lens which means I need to be close. Not to say telephotos are bad, but they immediately (to me anyway) can communicate a strange sense of insincere voyeurism. If, I suppose, voyeurism can be sincere.

My last trip did not prepare me at all for this. Last time I wandered around and timidly shot when and where I felt comfortable. I didn't leave my comfort zone at all. Mostly because when I'm doing my own thing I don't want a stranger taking pictures of me and I feel most of the world responds this way (true or not). I pushed a little bit, but hid behind the fact that I was shooting cars not people.

I now feel that my first run was more of a trial of my interest and this trip turned into hopeful leverage for a more lengthy project.

Albuquerque Dragway

2011-04-12T14:31:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I decided to explore the Albuquerque Dragway. I'm looking for photo stories to keep the skills sharp and maybe shoot stuff outside my comfort zone. The dragway has been on my radar for awhile but its hours of operation (weekends) always seems to conflict with other missions. I have always enjoyed watching and looking at pictures of funny cars and dragsters as far back as I can remember. It was like they were piloting a missile. There was also something even more inherently dangerous about a vehicle that required a chute to slow itself down than Formula One (Nascar has never had a huge draw over me).

For someone like me who does not have a vested interest in any one team or individual, I was afraid I'd find myself bored. I mean, how many times can you watch two cars speed down a straight away at the speed of light... Well, for me, a lot. I could not believe how freaking fast these guys were going.

The smell of burned rubber and gasoline was constant. And so was the deep bass rumble of idling engines. A couple of times I checked to see what the hell was dancing around in my camera bag (worried my camera was off on some auto-focus adventure in the dark) only to realize it was just the machines' engines.

I enjoyed myself and the venture yielded a handful of good imagery, but I'm still looking for my story. I need a human aspect to balance out the beastly machines. Something that helps bond this idea of human speed through mechanical assistance.

City of Rocks - Part 2

2011-03-21T07:09:00.000-07:00

The pinhole. Amazingly this primitive camera has yet to be named by Bridget. There is nothing special about a pinhole camera in the sense of components and structure. It is a box with a pin-size hole on one end and film on the other. No glass no shutter and just a fixed F-Stop. You can buy manufactured pinhole cameras or even just pieces of metal with machine drilled holes, but in a world of digital cameras with exacting matrix-meters and camera raw files that can retrieve information from the depths of 14 bit wells, there is something chaotic and haphazard about a camera that uses a #10 needle hole in a Nestle Quick lid.

I built my camera while I was still in school for photography. I shot with it quite a bit for a short while. Once I realized that it was not going to be an aspect of my commercial portfolio the camera was shelved. Over the last six years it has seen very little use.

Early Polaroid Tests behind Bridget's apartment

Choosing to shoot film right now is daunting. Professional labs are disappearing daily. New Mexico has one professional lab - Visions Photo Lab - in Santa Fe. So the concept of patience is taking a whole new meaning for me. I used to hate the anxiety of developing film myself. Between getting the chemicals the right temperature and then watching the clock for each step then drying an cutting and sleeving and blah blah blah. I just could not move fast enough. Then I had a local lab do it for me and that was at least bearable. Now I send my film to Santa Fe and it takes basically a week to see the results... Developing my own film is starting to look real appealing again.

Observation Point #1

Hoover Rock

The Outcropping

Observation Point # 2

We shot these on our last day at the park. While they are excellent executions of pinhole photography there is some room to improve. Cloudless skies leave much to be desired. Just the few wisps in the lower photograph up its excitement value dramatically and its by far the least interesting of the four. As you can see from my previous post we had clouds all the time. Just not when we decided to shoot the pinhole. Also next time I will shoot using a red filter. It ups the exposure time by 2 to 2.5 stops but it should bring the sky down in value.

The image quality is soft and dreamy at best. There is a sweet spot in my depth of field but its much closer to the pinhole and even then its not super sharp.

Detail Example - Click to Enlarge

I'm glad I dusted it off and took it for another run in the wild. It will definitely be a staple when traveling by car!

City of Rocks - Part 1

2011-03-13T19:36:00.000-07:00

I'm doing this entry in two parts because while we were there, Bridget and I shot some 4x5 pinhole and it has taken some time to get it developed, scanned and worked up. But I'll save all those shenanigans for next round.

City of Rocks sets just south of Silver City in he lower west side of New Mexico. There is not that much to do besides walk around the rocks and then around the entire park, but that being said, we spent three days there and stayed busy the whole time. Lots of hiking and grilling and sleeping. It was V's first camping trip so we were apprehensive about her willingness to get in the tent at night and sleep. Both Bridget and I were prepared to pack up and go to Deming for the night if need be. But V was a trooper. I do not think she got much sleep the first night (neither did I). The park was visited by a group of coyotes early in the evening and then around 2 a.m. two Great Horned Owls began hooting back and forth in the park. One was definitely close to our camp site. While V acted as though she wanted out she never made a sound.

Our days basically consisted of getting up super early to get to the restroom for us and the dog. We then proceeded to walk around and through the park as the sun rose. Then we would head back to camp and make breakfast and coffee then suit up and head out for a longer hike. Back to camp for lunch then relax (we ran into Silver city for supplies one day and the other we tried going to a winery up the road but they were closed) then another small hike and dinner. Batten down the hatches and call it a night.

V was hell bent to find every rabbit and jack rabbit in the park and therefore was always on point. On top of that she loved navigating the rock labyrinth. She would scramble up the rocks and into tunnels fearlessly. We renamed her to Rock Dog for the duration. She ran herself into the ground while we were there. She was so happy and content that we now know there will be more camping in V's future.

City of Rocks has been on my radar for awhile and I really wanted to shoot some landscape photography there. Images on Google searches are pretty abysmal. Granted the park is very difficult to capture in a single photograph. Landscape photography has never been something I sought out to capture. Usually it was more of a documentation of where I was at that point in time and never premeditated.

The Standoff

Near our campsite was a group of rocks that we passed by every morning and evening (They were near the restrooms) that I affectionately dubbed "The Outcropping." I took pictures here every day. Had we camped else where I probably would have gravitated to another set of rocks (And called them "The Outcropping" as well). These were shot with a Nikon D700 in color and converted to Black and white in Lightroom and Photoshop. Because I went drastic with my skies and highlights I could not accomplish this feet in Lightroom alone. If you pull the blue and aqua slider to far you get pronounced white lines around certain transition areas. I did have to use the clone tool a bit to keep that under control around the rocks. To keep from "re-sculpting" the rock with the clone tool, it's best to use the different blending modes (In this case lighten and darken) to remove the unwanted white and black lines that form. The blending mode keeps the rock edge true.

The Outcroppings

As for shooting the park as a whole, this trip I found a vantage point on the trail that circumnavigates the park on the North East side looking South West. Not sure it speaks volumes but it shows a certain idea of the park's "situation."

Next time I'll post some Pinhole examples as well as pictures of the camera and how I built it.

Observation Point

"I'm done with this city of rocks..."

FJ62 Restoration Project - Work Day 3

2011-02-28T19:15:00.000-08:00

I've been following this project for a while and most of the accumulated photography has basically been guys hanging around a FJ62 Land Cruiser body, cranking on it with tools and that's about it. Well this entry is no different. Except they've now managed to drop the rebuilt engine into the vehicle. So although tweaking will still be occurring, there is going to be different subject matter in the future to capture... and that is good. Until then here are some more shots of guys climbing around a Land Cruiser.

Now that I've got my first post in 2011, I'll try to keep posting more regularly. I have enough projects backed up to keep the blog busy for a handful more entries. Next time we'll switch gears to digital painting.

End of the Year

2010-12-20T12:43:00.000-08:00

On my way back from an assignment in Ottawa (Its cold up here) and I decided to take some time to post one last entry before Christmas takes hold of my schedule.

This portrait was a test. I've been inspired lately by the work of Dan Winters and wanted to take some of his principles into the studio and rethink my approach for certain portraits. I was very intrigued by the idea of lighting your subject then removing the unnecessary light. My version is a fairly simple 3 light set up. One light with a 30 degree grid illuminates the backdrop, one light with a beauty dish placed directly behind and slightly above the camera provides fill, and finally a small strip keys the subject from stage right. No doubt the beauty dish spilled on the backdrop some, but the spot over rides it. The two things to note on this setup 1: the beauty dish 2: the small strip.

First the beauty dish. I placed a sock over the the dish to soften the light and then aimed it upward to catch the edge of the lamps throw; feathering. This way I could control the fall off of the fill light and let it taper down my subject. I do this because it looks better than a gradient placed in photoshop. Certainly this effect can be attained in post but not as naturally and certainly not in as little time. This is an aesthetic choice and one that I have started to consider more. That being, how much shadow detail is necessary. The shot is fairly limited as to what information the audience is given. A guy in a motorcycle jacket holding a helmet with some wrap around his neck. So what's really important to convey is his face, the yellow scarf, and his helmet. Not so much the pants. Unless it was an ad for the pants, I find this to be information we all understand - He has pants on. And that's good enough.

The key from stage right is important because its flagged a little over a foot away and the light that is let through is only a sliver along the top, long side. This again mimics the idea of fall off presented by the beauty dish and isolates the light on his face. This took a little while to get right only because I was sure that I did not have to flag (remove) that much of the strips light to get my effect. Little did I know.

Finally the question of exposure. The images is definitely underexposed by all understanding of text book exposure. I purposely left out a hair light because I did not want a true "highlight" on the face of my subject. The specular highlights are still present and white as ever on the helmet and in his eyes. By keeping the exposure down on his face in this particular dark setting their is a softness to the image. The desaturated color helps keep the image from being to loud as well. While not completely monochromatic it certainly feels ripped of life's colors but not lifeless.

PROJECT FJ62

These are a handful of images from an ongoing shoot following the restoration of a FJ62 Toyota Land Cruiser while its owner is stationed overseas in Afghanistan. This is one of my more favorite projects right now. I do not shoot photography this way very often and I find this to be very rewarding.

Recently completed a shoot for Sound and Video Contractor these ran in their December issue.

Now to see what 2011 brings....

The Last Mantis

2010-10-26T14:47:00.000-07:00

As a kid there was always one bug that eluded me... the Praying Mantis. I loved looking at pictures in books or the specimens at the museums but I had never seen one alive in the wild. Jump 30 years later and there everywhere. At least in New Mexico they are. Its the end of the their season and they pop up everywhere. This guy was on our back porch and got caught in last nights freeze. I warmed him up on a window sill and he was good to go (Although he is starting to go blind).

The Ellusive Cicada

2010-10-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

When I was young I spent a lot of time chasing and capturing Cicadas. I kept a large collection of Cicada Shells in coffee cans in my parent's garage. I even tried keeping one for a pet until it decided to make their distinct sound inside my parents house and that was the end of that. I've never let go of my facination to this insect. Bridget found this guy while we were walking V. I used extension tubes on the D700 on a white background and added texture and color in post.

Jupiter and a FJ62

2010-08-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

Last week I was hired to shoot the New Mexico Department of Transportation nerve center. Its referred to as the Transportation Management Center and its housed in the basement of an old mansion just west of Downtown. The client I was shooting for was Jupiter and they were looking for shots of the giant flat screen installations as well as the server room. The server room was actually quite fun. It pushed my D700 to take pictures at 800 and 1600 ISO with 30 second exposures. I won't say there was no noise but it was minimal and Lightroom 3 cleaned it up what was there.

This past Saturday I had the great opportunity to shoot an FJ62 in the beginnings of a rebuild. The project is for a friend of Bridget's that has been station in Afghanistan. His family and friends are getting together and providing what they can to rebuild his FJ62 Toyota Land Cruiser. My wife Bridget pitched in the photographer... me. When asked what vehicle I would want if I could have any vehicle out there my initial response would be an M13 Half Track but a close second would be a FJ 45 pickup or an FJ40 (I'm still undecided)... The project will probably last most of the year, so I hope to capture more of the rebuild as time goes on.

Long Live The Mantid!

2010-08-05T21:17:00.000-07:00

Well at least long enough to pay back the small business loan for gear. The new website is up but I'm still adding and rearranging images but I'm content enough to get off the ground. MAD MANTIS STUDIO

I've upgraded to A Nikon D700. Its been a long time in the making but having used the camera for the first time this past weekend I'm thoroughly impressed. For the last three years I've worked with around Canon's 1DS Mark III (An amazing Camera by all counts) but it can't hold a candle to the high ISO performance of Nikon's sensor. There is virtually no difference between 100 ISO to 800 ISO and 1600 ISO is nothing to cry about. Of course the clarity of a full frame sensor, not to mention the ability to use your lenses as they were designed, is just incredible. Luckily my brother arrived in Albuquerque for training this past weekend and I had great subject matter to play with....

For those who do not know my brother has been an eternal source of subject matter going back to the first days I discovered film and cameras. He also happens to be a Blackhawk Pilot. Which fits my brother perfectly. I hope some day to fly with him. I doubt it will ever be in a Blackhawk but for me any helicopter will do.

Next blog entry will be a little more technical. It will deal with printing a black blackhawk and retaing the details.

MANTIS RISING!

2010-06-29T12:39:00.000-07:00

Looks like the inevitable has occurred. I'll be launching a new website in a week or so. I've decided (after long agonizing walks around the block) to go with Livebooks and their cut and past templates. Ultimately I want more control over design and layout but for now it gets the work on the web and it looks clean.

Mad Mantis Studio is launching in July.

Begining Again....

2010-06-24T13:08:00.000-07:00

There was a time not to long ago I thought I might never pick up a camera again. In the last two weeks that seems to have changed completely. I'm currently knee deep in editing and filling my website as well as printing a new portfolio.

I went with Livebooks for the convenience of creating a quick website to get my work back on the playing field. I find the preset websites great in functionality but very limiting when it comes to layout. But for $39 bucks a month what can I really expect. I'm hoping to have it live sometime in July if not sooner. The print portfolio... that could take a while.

While going through images I came across some older shots from what seems decades ago. The first group is from a short film I shot with my brother and my friends Omer and Ben.

Why so serious? Photo by Ben Budd

One of my favorites of Steve and Putz. Omer shot this one. While most people use a point and shoot digital to capture some making of grab shots to remeber a shoot or project I decided to bring a Diana...
These are from a TJ Max shoot a few years back in White Sands.

More to come soon regarding the relaunching of photography as a career and continued exploration into the world of illustration.

First Post!

2009-12-02T12:58:00.000-08:00

I had hoped to start this blog around Halloween and here it is December. Just never enough time. Right Now I'm currently working on a Children's book with Bridget loosely inspired by this years Halloween card. An odd tale of friendship and despair!

I also thought it would be good to post a couple of my more recent Digital Illustration projects. These are drawn from "The Residence," a short story that manifested itself a while back. Curiously enough, Bridget and I brainstormed many of the characters on a flight from DC to Denver for a friends wedding, over four years ago (Also, I can’t take complete credit for their initial creation). It has taken quite a bit of time to get to this point and I hope to continue to composite these environmental portraits in time. Who knows maybe even see the short story in a more graphic form than just written words! I'll post some concept drawings soon. For now, I'll consider this a start