In Vermont with my DLWS family, Moose, Sharon, Laurie Excell, Kevin Dobler and the intrepid Brad Moore and Drew Gurian. (More on the lads tk.)
The family just got bigger. Jeff Snyder is here, and Adorama is on board as a sponsor of the Digital Landscape Workshop Series. Cool!
Here’s the thing about Adorama. They are big, but also small at the same time. You meet them, sit down and talk, and, even though you might be talking about the business, it feels like you just had coffee around the kitchen table and yakked about the poetic justice of Joe Torre managing in the playoffs yet again. I’m happy to hang around with them.
Lectured this week at the Adorama shop, and we had a full house and a great time. Affable guy named Keston was in the front row, so he had to take the pain of being my subject for small flash demo. We took it from this…..
To this…
…in short order, with a combo of SB800 and 900, Lastolite tri-grip diffuser, a Lastolite Skylite panel, Avenger c-stand, and some willing hands from the audience. (You can tell about the diffuser panels, cause, uh, they’re, uh, in my picture. Sigh.)
We moved fast and had fun, and even K-man was in the audience, without the fedora and the mohaska this night.
Adorama’s Monica Cipnic, a photo veteran and force of nature, runs the education program. As she has told me, what was once a part time job has now kicked into high gear and she’s logging full time plus hours every week, orchestrating educational photo programs, which are really worthwhile and really, really reasonably priced. We’re talking about a bunch of stuff for next year that should be pretty cool.
Overseeing the Adorama shop is Harry Drummer, who is a delight. A handshake with Harry is a done deal. He’s got a canny knack for knowing what photographers need, a quick mind, and he’s always got a twinkle in his eye and the beginnings of a smile on his face. A good sense of humor goes a long way in this biz, especially right about now.
But, Jeff Snyder is the one in the field making all this happen. I am guessing here, but I have to imagine it is his influence that has awakened this sleeping giant of a camera shop and catapulted it foursquare into the middle of a whole bunch of shooter’s lives. Witness Adorama’s sponsorship of Sportsshooter.com, and their generous support of the Giant Polaroid 911 project. Now they are out here in the woods of Vermont, supporting shooters, stalking chipmunks, reaching out, listening, and making it happen.
Speaking of family, my sisters Kathy and Rosemary are here, too. They’ve always done a bit of photography with point and shoots, so my wife Annie fixed ’em up with a D40 and a D60 and they are in hot pursuit of the falling leaves. It’s great to have them here. I told ’em this’d be fun, though I think they were wondering about that at 5 frikkin thirty this morning, especially when I told Kathy that where we were going didn’t have flush toilets. But they rocked it out on program…..
Kathy shot this……
And Rosemary shot this……
Cool. They’re already shooting better landscapes than I can, even though Moose has been trying to teach me now for a couple of years. I guess I’d be more comfortable out here if the barn or the tree looked at their watch and told me I only had five minutes to shoot.
Came up a bit late on Sunday, and was further delayed by the receipt of my first speeding ticket in quite a while. Seems I was trying to put a small Vermont town (redundant?) in the rear view a touch too quickly. Hmmm. I got such authority issues I never look at the officer until the last minute, and when I did turn my attention out the driver’s window it was a bit of hoot, I tell ya.
Cause standing out there was Eeyore with a badge and a trooper hat. Same ears, same voice. “Sir, did you know that you were…” Etc. etc. etc. He was very courteous, but I knew there was no backing this up to a warning. Oh, well.
I’ve had some travel adventures of late. More tk.
;
Great shots from everyone. I like Keston’s portrait. I actually thought the panels where meant to be there. They kinda give it a funky framing and some depth. Almost looks like you were shooting though a piano. I dunno. It could be the fact that I’m just really tired…
Sorry about the ticket.
I like the autumn leaves images, they are just beautiful
what is ‘tk”?
Joe, the workshop at Adorama was great. I was used to your VALS (voice activated light stands) at Photoexpo, so the camera stands were a bit less responsive than your willing VALS. Keston brought some great attitude and poses to the night. Thank you for sharing your work and your insights, and giving us so much of your time.
Adorama has to be lauded for doing all that it is doing. I had not been to the store for quite some time. It was an old rabbit warrened place in the day (God, I still remember climbing the stairs to go to Olden Camera, so I am old), but it is now bright, open, accessible, with the product available to look at, try, and buy. They have gotten my business for all that they are doing.
In my other life had the ticket been in New York, I could have helped, but no luck for VT. Got to be careful as they stay in the same place, and friends have gotten them coming and going from the same officer at the same location. Guess they sleep in their cars.
Joe,
I really like the colors and the fall season.
Kentucky will come into its own in about 2 or 3 weeks with our fall colors.
Most kindly
Ken in KY
It was a great class, Joe. My head is still spinning. Not only were your teaching points excellent, it was great fun to hear you talk about some of the other images you’ve created throughout your career and the human interest stories that are behind them. Your portrait of Phan Thị Kim Phúc with her little baby is one of the most compelling I’ve ever seen….
Looking forward to doing it again sometime soon. Have fun with the leaf peepers.
@craig
when asked what I usually shoot I most often say: the two “K” – kids and kats
so I assume that “more tk” might read “more to kome” …
anyone with a better idea? (google failed in this respect)
Joe-
Just got my registration cleared for your Montana workshop in November after sitting on the waiting list for a while. Very excited to get to meet you, finally!
Hey Joe,
Missed you at the the San Juan Islands and by the looks of these images, I should have gone to to Vermont as well!!! NIce blog and good to hear from you 🙂
Michael S.
http://www.mdsimages.blogspot.com
I love the colors. The leaves havn’t turned here yet :/
Joe:
Kudos to a great evening! If you haven’t gotten the chance to see Joe live, by all means do it and do it NOW! Joe really knows how to work the room as well as those SB-900’s!!! I left Joe’s seminar re-energized – can’t wait to break out my battery-operated flashunits this weekend!
Brian S
Joe,
Thank you again for the wonderful presentation and workshop at Adorama. It was a lot of fun and I learned a few things too!
Don’t worry about the diffuser in Keston picture. If anything shouts five second fix in photoshop, it is that, especially with how evenly you lit the wall with that speedlight in Group C behind him. Then if you look at it, it is a pretty easy crop to get rid of the reflector if you go with an 8×10 format. Some people don’t believe in cropping, but I love it!
Joe, you are a true mensch.
Hi Joe:
I had to drop your name in an email heading to Jeff Snyder. “McNally’s Faithful ” I ordered an expensive Nikon product, chronically back-ordered, and had been waiting since early September. Coincidence or not, it is now on it’s way. That guy is magic. Thanks to the both of you.
Hello Joe,
Ran across your blog. Enjoyed it very much.
Thank You.
Larry Johnson