A THOUSAND WORDS - RIERSON PHOTOGRAPHY

Two Wheels To Work: Meet Branson and Aubrey

2011-12-17T08:15:00.000-08:00

Branson has been a bike commuter for about 20 years, and now commutes 8 miles each way with his 3 year old son Aubrey in a bike trailer behind his fixed-gear bicycle. He says bike commuting has helped keep him in shape, reduced his carbon footprint, and has given him another cool thing to share with his son. Aubrey has quickly become a big fan of cycling, and now has his own "big boy bike" with training wheels!

Branson says cycling has made him a happier person and has allowed him to experience places and things that he never thought possible. Most recently, cycling took him to France for his second participation in the once-every-four-years Paris-Brest-Paris 1200 Kilometer bike ride, one of the oldest cycling events still regularly taking place. He completed the over 750 mile course in good time- riding a fixed-gear, of course.

When asked what advice he’d like to give motorists, Branson says “We’re human beings too- look after us, as you would want us to look after you." If you see him and Aubrey out on the road, slow down, give them a wave hello and plenty of space when passing.

Two Wheels To Work: Meet Esther

2011-12-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

Esther started riding a bike about 9 years ago after her doctor suggested exercising to help reduce the risk factors for Type II Diabetes. Now she does a combination car/bike commute, driving to a shopping center parking lot in the morning before cycling the final 6 miles to work.

Esther became a below-knee amputee in a pedestrian-bus collision during gradeschool, and says her favorite piece of commuting gear is her sparkly prosthesis cover. She'd like motorists to be more aware of cyclists on the road and know how wide their vehicle and mirrors are. Her advice to anyone who would like to try bike commuting? "If I can do this, you can do this!"

If you see Esther out on the road, give her a friendly wave hello and at least 3 feet of space while passing!

Two Wheels To Work: a new project

2011-11-10T17:45:00.000-08:00

Every morning millions of Americans get up, get ready, and head out the door on their way to work. Most do so in cars, some take mass transit, but a few commute to work by bicycle. The people trapped in their cars usually see the cyclists as obstacles in their way, not as fellow human beings heading to work. I want to show the faces of these bike commuters- show that they are fathers & mothers, sons & daughters, husbands & wives, brothers & sisters, just trying to get where they're going like everyone else.

I'm photographing commuters on their usual route- whether it's quiet neighborhoods, bike paths, or busy city streets. They're wearing what they usually ride in, spandex or regular clothes. Some have fancy road bikes, some single speeds or fixies, and some city bikes or cruisers. So far I've photographed six sessions and I have eleven more on the way!

Shoot for Healthy Pet Magazine

2011-10-22T21:05:00.000-07:00

Here's a selection of images from a shoot for Healthy Pet Magazine at the Orange County Animal Shelter. This is an amazing facility, and I had lots of fun spending the day with them.

Wake County Schools

2011-10-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

Here are a few shots from a recent editorial assignment on the Wake County School System:

Model Testing

2011-09-28T17:40:00.000-07:00

Ronda and her family were some of the models on the Tryon Palace production down in New Bern. She's new to modeling and wanted to get a few more shots for her portfolio, so we did a little shoot in downtown Raleigh.

Shoot for Yoga Journal

2011-09-24T17:30:00.000-07:00

Just a few images from a shoot at Wrightsville beach for Yoga Journal. Apparently balancing on the sand is difficult. Who knew?

Tryon Palace Interpreters

2011-08-14T17:57:00.000-07:00

During the shoot for Tryon Palace I took a few moments to shoot portraits of a few of their Interpreters- the folks who are dressed in period costume. Sometime I'd like to do a whole series of these...

Tryon Palace Production

2011-08-14T17:53:00.000-07:00

We did a large production for Tryon Palace to advertise their new NC History Center. I had an incredible crew: Susann Hodges from SKH Producers, Tyler Northrup was my assistant, and Robbie Forrest was our stylist. Here are just a few of the shots:

I'm still waiting to get copies of the final ads, I'll post them here if I ever get them!

Shoot for Guideposts Magazine

2011-08-14T16:41:00.000-07:00

Here's a few shots from a shoot for Guideposts Magazine. The subject is Betsy Saul of www.petfinder.com. The job required some shots on white as well as some shots in and around her barn. I set up a white sweep and turned her garage into my studio, then we spent some time visiting with her animals. I really enjoy these shoots for Guideposts!

My camera collection: The Jewel

2011-08-09T20:11:00.000-07:00

The jewel of my collection and without a doubt my favorite camera is my Leica M7 rangefinder with the 35mm f1.4 ASPH Summilux lens. If I had to get rid of all my cameras and could keep only one, this is the one.

I found this camera used (barely) in late December 2005 at Southeastern Camera. I was shopping for something else entirely, but I came across this chrome M7 body for a really great price. I told them I'd buy it if they had a 35mm f1.4, and it turned out they had one at their Carrboro location. It was a lot of money, but I snagged it and drove quickly over to Carrboro to get the lens. I didn't know that I'd get the aspherical version- a really great deal for the price!

I've shot some gorgeous images with this little camera. It's the perfect tool for travel and street photography, and at f1.4 the lens has a beautiful signature look that cannot be replicated by anything else. My finest wedding work was shot with this camera, until I had to stop shooting film because clients wanted more instant results. Perhaps one day I will be able to replace the body with an M9 digital, but until then I plan to continue to shoot 35mm film for my own personal use. I love my Leica!

My camera collection: The Workhorses

2011-08-05T20:34:00.000-07:00

For years I shot weddings using 35mm film. I'd go through 40 or so rolls of 36 exposures on a wedding day, plus 6 or 8 rolls of 120 for the formals. I needed cameras that could withstand the use and abuse of these hectic shoots.

These 3 Nikon F4S camera bodies were my workhorses; 1 body carried a wide prime lens like the 35mm f1.4 while the other carried a long prime like the 85mm f1.4. The third camera was usually in the bag as a backup, except during ceremonies when it was mounted on a tripod with the 80-200mm f2.8 for the long telephoto shot.

The F4 was the last Nikon professional camera with knobs instead of buttons and an LCD display, making these bodies nearly indestructible. I ran many, many rolls of film through these and they are still in fine working order, though they have been replaced by digital bodies. I've thought about selling them, but nowadays they aren't worth very much so I've just hung onto them. Perhaps one day they'll be worth something as antiques...

My camera collection: Retina Reflex III

2011-07-12T16:13:00.000-07:00

My Dad is the one who got me hooked on photography. His favorite camera was his Kodak Retina Reflex S. He started me out with a Sears SLR with a Pentax K mount, but I always remembered his Retina Reflex. Years later, as a professional photographer I had amassed a small collection of cameras- 4x5, medium format, and modern 35mm Nikons- but when I came across this Retina Reflex III in a small camera shop while out of town on a shoot I just had to have it. It came with the Schneider 50mm f1.9 and I also bought the 28mm f4 and 135mm f4 that were in the display case with it.

I have 2 requirements before I add a camera to my collection: I have to be able to shoot with it and I have to want to shoot with it. This 35mm film camera has a wonderful feel and action, the shutter release in on the front of the body instead of the top plate and the film winding lever is on the bottom of the body. It takes some getting used to, but with a little practice it becomes second nature. The lenses have leaf shutters built in, which gives it a lovely quiet click. Unfortunately the top half of the "ever-ready" case was in awful condition, and I've never made an effort to find a replacement. The bottom half is still in great condition and gives the camera a great look and a bit of an extra grip.

I remember bringing my find over to my parents' house and showing it to my Dad. Once again we were just a couple of camera geeks playing with our toys, and he got his Reflex S out of the closet so we could compare them. Sadly my Dad has passed and I've inherited his Retina Reflex as well, but shooting with these cameras always makes me think of him.

IOSDT- "The Shit Box"

2011-03-31T10:02:00.000-07:00

I was contacted by Todd Spain of the Inside Out Sports Delta Triathlon Team to do some photos of team members for a wrap on their team trailer. We set up a white sweep at one of their Tuesday night spin classes and shot some quick individuals & groupings before everyone started the workout. Big thanks to Robin at HEAT for allowing us to invade the gym to do these photos.

I took some quick snapshots once the trailer wrap was finished, it really turned out well. Apparently, on his first outing with the team trailer Todd was accosted by a large woman who admonished him from her car window to "get that Shit Box out of my way!" effectively christening it as "The Shit Box." I hope the team enjoys their snazzy new gear hauler as much as I enjoyed helping it come to life!

Mama they took my Kodachrome away

2011-02-08T16:14:00.000-08:00

In the summer of 2010 I read about the demise of Kodachrome, and about Steve McCurry's project to shoot the last roll of the magic emulsion that made all the world a sunny day. True, it wasn't the last roll in existence (I still have an un-shot roll!) but it was the last roll to be produced by Kodak, and Dwayne's Photo (the last lab still running the K-14 process) was set to discontinue processing on December 30th, 2010. The end of an era.

A few weeks after reading the article I was cleaning out a box and there it was- a shot roll of Kodachrome 64! What was on it? How old was it? Obviously I hadn't thought it important enough to ship off for processing whenever I shot it, but if I didn't send it off before the end of the year those latent images would never see the light of day. I kept putting it off, though, and eventually found myself up against the deadline and shipped it. It took over a month to come back- Dwayne must've been slammed with nostalgic Kodachrome users!

As near as I can figure, one fall day in about 2001 Jo and I took a walk around my family's farm in Yadkin County, NC. I carried a camera, loaded with K64. We were engaged then, and we were thinking about having the wedding at the old farmhouse. We eventually did have a beautiful wedding there.

Mostly I photographed Jo, but I also took some shots of the old barn, built by my Great Grandfather just before the turn of the century. The land has been in my family for 5 generations, and I have fond memories of family reunions and spending Christmas with my Grandmother there. She always had glass bottle Cokes and had a croquet set on the porch ready for us kids to go out and play in the field. As an homage we had the glass Cokes and the croquet at the wedding, along with badminton, horseshoes, and chess! Pretty sure folks had fun, and that's how we like it at the farm.

Seeing those slides come back from Dwayne's Photo put a little smile on my face. I can't think of any better subjects for MY last roll of Kodachrome- the love of my life and one of my favorite places on earth.

Night Race

2011-01-31T21:38:00.000-08:00

In bicycle racing a criterium is a race held over a short course, usually under 5km. The length of the race is either determined by a number of laps or a total time. Many crits are held on closed-off downtown city streets, sometimes at night under the streetlights. This makes for an exciting race, and the low-light conditions gave me the opportunity to play with light & motion blur.

These images were made using my Leica M7 rangefinder and cross-processed film.

"Portrait Day" Benefit for MS Society

2010-09-09T08:02:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, each year I ride my bike at the Bike MS Historic New Bern Ride to raise money for the National MS Society. It's coming up this weekend, Sept 10th, 11th, and 12th, and I'll be riding 200 miles for the cause. My wife Jo has also decided to ride in her first Bike MS event this year, and has committed to the 75 mile ride on Saturday and the 50 mile ride on Sunday!

Since our family and friends' donations have been going to 2 riders this year, I decided to try something new for fundraising. I held a mini-event and called it "Portrait Day." I asked folks for a small donation, and in return they would receive a short photo session and a few final images via e-mail. My friend Bryan Regan donated his studio space for the shoot on Sunday September 5th. We raised $250 for the MS Society. Added to the money Jo and I have already raised for Bike MS our combined total is now over $1000! A big thanks to all who came out, it was lots of fun and it's all for a great cause. Jo and I even got in on it and did pics in our team jerseys!

There's still time to donate online at my participant page or if you would rather mail a check, you can contact me for my mailing address. Next year I plan to do Portrait Day again, perhaps a bit earlier in the year and not on Labor Day weekend!

Hooah!

2010-03-29T12:25:00.000-07:00

The men and women of the U.S. Military are used to hardship. They train for it. Long deployments to inhospitable climates in harm's way are the norm. Often overlooked are the hardships endured by their families and loved ones waiting back home. It's especially hard on the kids. That's where Families United for Our Troops and Their Mission comes in. I had the honor of photographing one of their Camp Desert Kids events at Fort Bragg this weekend. Here's a description of the program, borrowed from their website:

The Camp Desert Kids program works to help military children better understand the deployments that shape their lives through a fun and educational event. In addition to allowing children to share similar experiences as their deployed parent, it serves to help American children learn that Iraqi and Afghani children do the same things they do – just differently, and works to cultivate an appreciation of Middle Eastern heritage.

I thoroughly enjoyed working with the volunteers from Families United, the volunteer soldiers, families, and kids. Here are a few images, the full gallery can be viewed HERE

RIP Jim Marshall

2010-03-25T19:45:00.000-07:00

I will always remember the iconic images of Jimi and Janis, the shots of the Beatles and Jim Morrison, and many more. I'll also remember when I found out that all these incredible images were made by the same photographer. That was Jim Marshall. "THE rock & roll photographer," acording to Annie Leibovitz. If you get a chance, check out his book, "Jim Marshall: Proof." It shows contact sheets from some of his most famous shoots, complete with his grease pencil notes. It's as much a glimpse into the editing process as it is a look at outtakes from the famous sessions. His work will live forever.

And the winner is...

2010-03-01T21:59:00.000-08:00

On Friday evening, February 26th I photographed the AAF-RDU 2010 Addy Awards Gala at Marbles Kids Museum in downtown Raleigh. I had a great time seeing folks I hadn't seen in awhile, meeting some new folks, and checking out all the great work that was on display. Congratulations to all the recipients! The full gallery of images is HERE

I'll fix it in post...

2010-02-25T16:51:00.000-08:00

Digital capture can be a really nice thing. You can grab all sorts of images and then decide later which look to apply to each individual frame. You can change your mind. Make a variety of "finals." Some of us tend to do more post-processing than others. I think sometimes it can really complement the images and sometimes folks go to far and the treatment they apply to the images becomes distracting, or suggests to the viewer that the photographer has tried to make a weak image more interesting.

Recently I have been shooting some personal work with my Leica Rangefinder on film. Yes, they still make film. Remember when we had to decide what look we wanted the final image to have BEFORE we shot the images? Remember when we would choose from our favorite emulsions as an artist would choose his palette? Remember when we would capture a latent image on film, but couldn't view it instantly? How about that moment when you clicked the shutter and just KNEW you had that shot in the can, and the anticipation of processing the film and then looking to see if you were right?

cross-processed color film

high-speed black & white

These images were scanned and adjusted for density, color, contrast, and crop. I love the looks, and I've spent a lot of time in post-processing digital captures trying to achieve these exact same looks! Still, there's a certain satisfaction that comes from the deliberate intent that goes along with shooting film. Especially when it turns out right...

mmmm... doughnuts.

2010-02-06T06:53:00.000-08:00

What would make thousands of people get up early on a Saturday morning and brave mid-30's temps to run 4 miles? Some might say it's the charity- the NC Children's Hospital, and they'd be right. Others will swear it's the doughnuts- 12 glazed rings of sugary goodness that you have to down at the halfway point. But really it's the challenge- can you run 2miles, eat a dozen glazed, then run 2 more miles all in under an hour? And can you keep the full dozen down, or will you be one of the many decorating the streets of Raleigh?

It was the 6th annual Krispy Kreme Challenge this morning in downtown Raleigh, and the rain let up, it didn't snow, and the challengers were out in force to raise money for the NC Children's Hospital. One of these years I am going to run, but once again this year I just went to take pictures. I met up with the runners at the halfway point at the Krispy Kreme at the corner of Peace and Person St. as they were attempting to put away their allotment of doughnuts. Sidestepping the large rain puddles and the various other small puddles left behind by folks who weren't quite up to the challenge, I watched as runners wolfed down doughnuts and the media swarmed them for pictures and interviews (myself included.) Then, slower than when they arrived, the runners began to head back out on course, leaving their empty boxes in large piles along the sidewalks for the volunteers to dispose of.

I have to do this at least once in my life. OK, maybe next year I'll leave the camera at home and take on the challenge...

Helicopters and Ambulances

2010-02-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

One of the most extensive projects I have shot was with Stop Studios, a design firm in Durham. The client was Duke University Medical Center's Emergency Services, also known as Duke Lifeflight. The assignment was to produce a "library of images" from which they could pull for a huge variety of uses- brochures, a calendar, and even t-shirts! Take a look at a few printed pieces here.

My first step was to scout out the hospital to see where things were and determine how much access I could get to areas around the helipad, ambulance bays, and trauma rooms. Little did I know that my scout day would become a shoot day by default! The call came through that someone needed a Lifeflight airlift, so we hightailed it upstairs to the helipad and I quickly began taking pictures of the helicopter crew going through their pre-flight checklists. I had a few seconds to obtain permission from the pilot to stay up on the pad (at a safe distance, of course) and then they took off, banking out over the Durham skyline to go help someone in need. In the rush, everyone forgot that the Flight Nurse was also acting as our escort, so once the helicopter lifted off, we were left unattended on the roof! It wasn't long before a security guard looked out there and noticed me taking pictures of the helipad for detail "vignettes." After a brief explanation and a call on his radio to check my story I was allowed to stay out on the pad and wait for the helicopter's return. The sun was setting and it was "magic hour" as I was photographing the landing and offloading of the patient, then into the building and down to a trauma room. It happens fast! I was able to shoot the helicopter taking off again after dark, since they had to fly to RDU for refueling. All in all, my scout day was very successful.

I would spend quite a few days over the course of a couple months with the Flight Nurses, Pilots, and Ambulance Drivers at Duke. These folks are busy. They have serious jobs. They don't want to stop and pose for a photo shoot- people's lives are at stake. So I got to follow them around and see what they do day in and day out. Their days are spent keeping themselves busy with equipment maintenance and paperwork until the call comes over the radio that sends them into action. So that's what I did too- I had my laptop set up in their control center, deep in the bowels of the hospital. There I would look over images and show selects to my Art Director until the folks in the blue flight suits got their call. Then it was off to photograph the ambulances and helicopters and their emergency crews.

We also were able to shoot portraits of the crews, a few scenarios that were set-up during downtime, and one day I went up in the UNC chopper to photograph the two Duke Lifeflight helicopters flying over Durham. That was one of the coolest things I've ever done! I very much enjoyed working with the emergency personnel at Duke, and was quite impressed with their abilities and their professionalism. I have put a bunch of images on this post, this is just a small sample of the body of work we created.

Why "A Thousand Words?"

2010-02-03T00:56:00.000-08:00

Well, I have a portfolio of images on my website and I've tried using descriptions and whatnot, but I always end up going back to the theory of letting the image speak for itself. After all, "a picture's worth a thousand words," right? The purpose of this blog, therefore, will be as an outlet for me to ramble on about what it took to create these images, to show all my favorites from a project instead of just the one hero shot, and to show personal work that may not quite fit in any of the categories on my website.
I hope that folks enjoy seeing the images I'm working on and don't mind reading my drivel too much!!