Cliff, myself and Jim out on the lava rocks next to the rising ocean tide with Kona climbing up the mountain to the left,
the stars to the right. 30 second exposure. Jim was doing his 'location lighting' assignment. Jim's photos.
I'm watching a video by a band named Cornelius called Fit Song.... and it's ridiculous and I can't watch it anymore because it's THAT absurd.
The past three weeks have been rather intense.
They began with Gary S. Chapman teaching us on photoshop and stock photography, and getting the ball rolling with our guest speakers. At the beginning of that week our school leader was gone to Pennsylvania to take care of things after his mother's passing that weekend. So Gary and his wife Vivian were here and it was amazing and encouraging and all things good.
Then directly after Louis DeLuca came and spoke to us to teach us on photojournalism. We had to do a photo story on someone/thing and some of my classmates stories were above and beyond what was expected - yet again, it just showed how much talent I'm surrounded with and how powerful our gifts are when utilized, with growing potential.
This week we had Stanley Leary come speak with us on business and studio lighting. It was really good just to know how to budget what you do and see realistically what you'd need to charge to be able to just have enough to live. It really hit me, the correlation of how valuable our gifts are, are intertwined in our own personal value. Even to the point of when people have mindsets that what you do is not worth much monetarily, that that even reflects your own personal value and how that has played a role in my own perception of my personal worth, aside from the addition of gifts in photography etc.
I'll be honest, I was a little ticked off the more I realized that what we do is a luxury, and that people are expecting to trade a Chrysler in for a Bentley. And by luxury, I mean that you don't need a photographer to get married or to graduate high school. You don't need flowers, you don't need rings, you don't need much at all but a bride and a groom, witnesses, a license etc. You don't need a gown or tux. You don't need a photographer. You don't need photos to document your event. Quite simply, you don't. You don't need music or musicians, you don't need a caterer or food.
Basically I was ticked off at how walked over we can be, how "I need a photographer at my wedding, you need to do it for cheap."
Sorry princess. I have to live too. I don't just spend 6 hours with you for one day, I have a lot more work to do once I get home. I don't expect to go to a movie for free because I have the mindset that you made that movie just to entertain me, and that there is no trade off.
I don't like talking about money, so I'm stopping this here. Just know that when you ask someone to do something like that, don't do it expecting it for free or for cheap. One, your Grandmother will tell you that's rude. Two, respect the people around you and what they have to offer you, for it is a gift that they hold, not just addressed to themselves, but to you as well.
Yet that doesn't mean they won't give you a steal of a deal sometimes... :)
All in all, these past three weeks have been good yet tiring. These guys are the top of their leagues and I don't think that's something we quite realized. Gary is at the top of his medium and there are very, very few people in the world who are good enough to make a living doing what he does. Louis is a senior photo editor for The Dallas Morning News and has consistently been at the top of photojournalism, competing with the best in the world in photo contests and has won many prestigious awards.
Stanley is one of the head go-to guys in the industry for lighting and business and plays a pivotal role in the South Eastern Photojournalism Conference and Christians In Photojournalism.
All three of these men are humble and have great hearts, are solid teachers and are eager to lift others up where they can.
Stanley was saying today that he doesn't know if we realize how high the bar has been set by our school leader on the kind of people he brings in to speak and teach us. The bar is Pulitzer high. There are top university photography programs that don't teach business and don't teach lighting and who's students come out with a degree but no portfolio. He definitely wanted us to realize and see what we are in fact being offered here.
12 weeks, no debt... life is good. :)
These men practice what they teach and are eager to release us into bigger things then they've done themselves.
That my friends, is a blessing.
+++++++
WE'RE TRAVELING TOMORROW!!
Tomorrow, Tuesday, we will begin our trek around the island! Now really, if you've driven for 2.5 hours at the legal speed limit around the island, then you're already coming home, but we're taking 2 days to take it all in. Stopping at some waterfalls, stopping at various places, staying the night in a military camp and we'll get back Wednesday at 9 or 10pm.
So, EXPECT PHOTOS!
At the same time, I'd really really really like to ask for prayer for protection and safety on this trip. This island has a phenomenal amount of auto accidents due to drug and alcohol abuse and we will be traveling around in two 15 passenger vans for two days.
Prayer that the drivers would be alert and that protection would be over us would be an incredible blessing to me.
Much love and hope you're well
-K
[ps: just because this isn't an email, doesn't mean you can't respond or reply... so.. ya know... do it if ya want.]
this is a teaser to make you go to my flickr.com account to see more photos :)
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