15 Hoods, Redux

15 Hoods, ©2013

The premier of 15 Hoods went very well.  Despite the event coinciding with Yom Kippur, we seemed to have plenty of people in the studio and throughout the Bakehouse as well.  Both the photo and the installation drew favorable responses from visitors and three inquiries for possible future shows.  Not bad, I think.

The photo, shown above, is about 30x40 inches as currently displayed.  However, because each portrait is a distinct image ranging from 10 to 12 megapixels after cropping, the image should be indefinitely scalable.  Projection on the side of a building anyone?

The models in the photo range in age from toddler to middle age, male and female and yes, the guy second from the right in the lower row is me.  The idea of the piece was to render 15 nearly identical images in black & white, except the middle image which is clearly identifiable as a young African American male and is rendered in full color.  Essentially, each of us can look nefarious in a hoodie under the right conditions but society's attention is still drawn to the black male above all others.

Along with the piece, the installation also included out-takes and informal portraits of the models intended to show that they are really just people in hoods and that at heart we are all the same. Rounding out the installation is a series of images from the vigil for Trayvon Martin at the Torch of Friendship earlier this year.

The installation will remain on exhibit through October, 2013 in the Bakehouse Art Complex, Studio 3U and by private viewing by appointment.

15 Hoods

Background shot from the 15 Hoods photo shoot

Immediately after the story broke, I remember feeling a sense of surprise and indignation that the Sanford Police let George Zimmerman go without much thought based on Florida's "Stand Your Ground Law."  I felt that they, at least, ought to have asked the simple question, Which of these two actually stood his ground and confronted an attacker?  Was it the older man who acted against the direct instructions of a police dispatcher or the young man who was being stalked by a "creep" in an SUV?  At the very least, I thought the SPD should have referred the case to the State Attorney's Office, if for nothing else then just for CYA purposes.

That surprise, however, was nothing compared to the surprise I felt when the Special Prosecutor filed charges of second degree murder against Zimmerman in the absence of much supporting evidence and absolutely no witnesses or apparent motive.  Being legally trained, I felt the better charge, the sustainable and provable charge would have been manslaughter.  It also had the added benefit of comporting with the provable facts.

When the jury returned its verdict, I felt justice had not been served but that they had nonetheless rendered the legally correct decision.  In computing, there's an axiom: GIGO, garbage in, garbage out. You can't blame the computer if you ask it the wrong question or ask the right question but in the wrong manner. Similarly, you can't really blame the jury if you've asked it the wrong question and given it no option but to return a bad answer.

I wasn't surprised, but like many, I was disappointed.

I was, however, very surprised at the steps the right-wing corporate media took to legitimate the shooting by demonizing an article of clothing, the hoodie.  Most infamous in this regard is Geraldo Rivera who is quoted in The Huffington Post as saying that "hoodies reminded people of criminals like the Unabomber and thus put (the wearer) in danger".

I must confess, I have long since stopped watching or reading the right-wing corporate media.  While Faux News is the worst offender, in my opinion, the so-called mainstream media are little more than stenographers to power.  Still, using this article of clothing in order to legitimate the death of a young man who was doing little more than walking in a neighborhood that he had every right to be in was a new low, even by today's debased media standards.  It's as if none of the so-called reporters have children who wear hoodies.  Seriously, don't they know any seventeen-year-olds?

And so was born my idea of 15 Hoods.

15 Hoods is both an image and an installation.  The image, consisting of 15 portraits of people wearing hoods, will be shown for the first time on September 13, 2013 at the Bakehouse Art Complex, in my Studio, 3U on the second floor.  As an installation, it will also feature background images, outtakes and a separate set on the Vigil for Trayvon held at the Torch of Friendship in Miami.

If you find yourself in Miami that evening and do not have to attend Yom Kippur services, I hope you will consider attending.

Carleigh & Eric's Wedding

After the wonderful comments I received as a result of Lizzie & Frank's Engagement Gallery, I thought I'd continue the theme by posting a wedding. 

Carleigh & Eric were married in St. Joan of Arc's Catholic Church in Boca in October, 2009.  The train is a relic located in the local Tri-Rail station.  As always, I tried to capture the feeling of the day rather than just a bunch of boring poses. 

Click here to view the entire gallery.  Click here to leave a comment.

Portrait of a Young Candidate

Katie Edwards

Currently the Executive Director of the Dade County Farm Bureau, Katie Edwards is the Democratic nominee running for Florida State Representative, District 119.  Comprised of parts of unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Homestead, Florida City, Redland, The Crossings, Country Walk, Richmond West, and Sweetwater, District 119 is very geographically, ethnically and racially diverse.

In April, I spent a day following Katie and her campaign volunteers around as they engaged in old-fashioned door-to-door politics in order to meet the voters and garner the necessary number of signatures to qualify for the primary election without a filing fee. 

None of the photos in the essay was staged.  I had complete access to Katie and was granted unhindered freedom to photograph at will.  The photo-essay shows an earnest and eager young candidate who engages the voters and her campaign volunteers with friendliness and respect.  This is democracy at work.  Click here to view the gallery.

10 Things Photographers Should Not Do

Brian Auer has an interesting piece on Epic Edits listing 10 things photographers should not do.  My favorites are number 2, "Don't lust for gear", and number 9, "Don't ignore the rules". 

Photographers are a curious group that includes hard-core gear-heads on one extreme and the touchy-feely artsy crowd on the other.  While I love the gear (don't get me wrong I really love my gear) to focus (pun intended) on the gear misses the mark entirely.  Photography is about the images, it's about what you can capture and how you can display it.  To focus on the gear is not only super expensive but totally misses the mark.  The gear-heads might as well be talking fuel-injectors or hard-drives.

It's all about the images.

As for the "rules", yes there are compositional rules for photography.  In sum, you should learn them and commit them to memory so afterward you can intentionally ignore them.  That's the difference between accident and intent.

Click here for the rest of Brian's article.

Rockabilly Culture

"Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, and emerged in the early 1950s.
The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock (from rock 'n' roll) and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music (often called hillbilly music in the 1940s and 1950s) that contributed strongly to the style's development. Other important influences on rockabilly include western swing, boogie woogie, and rhythm and blues. While there are notable exceptions, its origins lie primarily in the Southern United States.
"The influence and popularity of the style waned in the 1960s, but during the late 1970s and early 1980s, rockabilly enjoyed a major revival of popularity that has endured to the present, often within a rockabilly subculture." Wikipedia.

I love the music and think the culture is kinda cool, at least in measured doses.  The Gawno Magazine has some wonderful photos of Rockabilly Culture taken by Erik Refner.  The photos are in black and white, very graphic and photo-journalistic, exactly what I like and exactly my style as well.  Click here to see these truly great photos.