PhotoWalkPro

If I had to write a script as to how a photowalk should go from start to finish, I would need look no further than today as a near perfect example.  We had the weather, we had the location, and we had great photographers to document it all.

I would like to start off by thanking everyone that turned out this morning in Georgetown for showing up and really making the photowalk a great event.  Although we lost some folks by the end, we started with close to 50 people.  I am including some of the children that were there because they were either shooting their own shots, or posing for others.  I was also pleasantly surprised to find that photographers from as far away as West Virginia and Pennsylvania made the early morning trek just to be a part of our walk.  I would like to say that I have a bounty of images from the photowalk but truthfully, I spent most of my time just enjoying all of the great conversations I had with everyone.  We talked Nikon and Canon, and Mac and PC, and View Cameras and Point and Shoots, Lightroom and Photoshop, and on and on.

During one such conversation, a fellow photographer said something that really summed up the whole photowalk experience for me.  He said that he participates in lots of online forums and reads blogs and generally does the whole online thing, but he never gets to talk photography, one on one with other photographers.  It’s that face to face that really makes the photowalk so much more than just a shooting event.  It’s also a community event where everyone can share their ideas and opinions with people that share the same passion.  That being said, I would like to thank everyone that came out and socialized with me today.  I had an absolute blast!

And just as a little aside, while eating lunch today, a large group of us were discussing all the hoopla over tripods, including Scott Kelby’s recent tales of shooting in NYC.  We all shared our stories of being chased off from the many tripod-unfriendly monuments in the DC area.  Generally we get it and it’s just something we have come to live with, even if we don’t like it.  So after lunch we headed back down to Water St. so I could retrieve my tripod and find a spot for our group shot.  We picked out a pretty non-de-script building with a short wall up against the sidewalk that offered some good light and enough space for us to shoot a few frames.  No sooner had I extended all three legs of the tripod when a pair of “suits” came rushing from the building.  They were saying something about private property, “can’t shoot here”, blah, blah, blah.  We all just broke out laughing and politely moved our party down the street.  So here are the fruits of our nefarious act.  If I were a security guard I probably would have run us off too, I mean just look at how menacing we are, especially those two in the stroller.

If you would like to see images taken during the photowalk, head on over to our Flickr group and check them out (link).

Ok, sorry to make everyone wait so long but I was out of town last week and tied up with work issues but now I’m back and looking forward to next Sunday’s photowalk in Georgetown. So here is the plan. We will meet at 10:00 AM at the corner of Water St. and 33rd St NW.  Water St. is actually under the Whitehurst Freeway if you are looking for it on a map. The easiest way to get there is from M St.  If you are coming across the Key Bridge, you will want to take a right on M St. heading east and then turn right on Wisconsin Ave. You’ll know you are there from the big gold dome on the top of the bank on the corner. Coming from the East, you’ll want to hang a left on Wisconsin (same gold dome landmark). Go down Wisconsin towards the Potomac and then turn right under the Whitehurst FWY onto River St. There is parking all along River St. They are all meters but I believe they are free on Sundays, but bring a pocket full of quarters just in case. It’s about $1.25 per hour, as opposed to the $12.00 per hour at the Georgetown Mall parking garage.

I would like to get started right around 10:00 so try and get there a little early so we can get organized and have a few minutes to chat prior to getting underway.

The route is pretty simple. We will head up 33rd St to the C&O Canal. Then we will hang a right and follow the canal to 29th St. Then we’ll hang a left and head up to M St. Next it’s a right on M St. all the way down to the Philadelphia Cheesesteak Factory for some lunch and a little chimping. We can drop back down to River St. through the Francis Scott Key park across the street from the restaurant for some additional shooting if anyone wants.

I have a route map posted online if you would like to see exactly where we will be going. You can find the route map at www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=1931605

If you have any questions please leave me a message, otherwise I will see all of you next Sunday.

I’m starting off today on a more serious note (I know, that’s like two serious days in a row).  Yesterday I talked about what some consider to be an uglier side to photography but today I want to talk about a selfless act that I think you should know about.  No doubt you have heard of the typhoon that wreaked havoc on the country of Burma.  It’s hard to even imagine the loss of human life on the scale in which it is being measured in this tiny Asian country.  It’s even harder if you have given a piece of yourself to the country like my friend Vincent Versace has.

A while back, Vincent visited Burma and was overwhelmed by its beauty and even more so by the people that live there.  Ever since the typhoon struck, he has struggled with finding a way to help the people of Burma recover from their recent tragedy.  Being an artist, he has found the only outlet for help that is currently available to him at present.  In his own words:

photo by Vincent Versace

For those of you are familiar with my work you know how much the country of Burma (Myanmar) moved me when I shot there. I truly was taken by the country, so much so I left a piece of my heart and soul there.

I believe that being of service is the rent you pay to live on the planet, which is why I volunteer my time to be the photographer of a first response extreme medical rescue team “Immediate Assistants”. We are currently barred from entering the country because of the three week visa requirements that are in place for all aid workers.

Thomas Jefferson said “The pen is mightier than the sword”. I believe that art is mightier than the pen. With that said I am putting my art where my heart is. With the current death toll at 22,000 and 46,000 still missing, we as a community of creatives have to act with the the most powerful tools that we
have, our voice, and in my work that voice is contained.

For the next six weeks 100% of any of my photographic art, what ever size, what ever the price of that the art sells for (except for Shipping and Handling) will be donated to relief efforts in Burma and will be sent directly to the The Nargis Victims of Myanmar Trust.

Please link to my print sales page and buy a print for the cause:
http://versacephotography.com/prints.html

If you want to donate an amount that is less than the cost of one of my prints, or you just want to donate directly out of the kindness of your heart then here is the account info:

Bank:
Washington Mutual
address:
Yorba Linda Financial Center 1358
20385 Yorba Linda Blvd,
Yorba Linda, CA 92886
Phone:
1-800-788-7000

Name of account: “The Nargis Victims of Myanmar Trust”
Account # 34033 45916
ABA# 321180748
Swift Code# WMSBUS66
Routing # 322271627

If you are going to send a check, please use this address and payable to “The Nargis Victims of Myanmar Trust”
Andrew Khaw
4382 Via Miguel
Yorba Linda, CA 92886

Peace,
Vincent Versace

In Other News -

I have created the Flickr Group for my upcoming Georgetown photowalk.  If you are planning on joining me, or just want to stay abreast of the discussions, plans, and subsequent images, head on over and register as a member.  You can find the group here.

I was reading a post over at John Nack’s blog where he discussed the upgrade schedules of Photoshop and other CS Suite applications.  I started thinking about how I would love to see a shift in the upgrade paradigm to reflect only those items I needed.  Here’s how it would work.

1. Buy the core photoshop program.  This core would be upgraded periodically at no cost to maintain compatibility with new upgrades.
2. Then, when Adobe updated part of the application, say a new set of filters, you could choose to buy that upgraded module or keep what you already have.  As new modules are updated, you can choose to only upgrade to those items.
3. And because the core module always updates, you can add just those future technologies that you really need.
4. For those that wanted all of the upgrades, there could be a discounted bundle that included everything.

I know that this will probably never ever happen but wouldn’t it be great if you could customize your application to serve your needs?  I can dream, can’t I?

I would like to thank everyone for the great response so far for the Georgetown photowalk.  After reviewing all of the comments I have to say that the June 1st date appears to be best for the majority of folks so let’s go ahead and make it official.  Depending on weather and other plans, I will try and make a recon trip down to the area this weekend to nail down our route.  I know that there is a huge parking lot along the waterfront on K St. so that might be our best starting point as there is no MetroRail service to the Georgetown area.  I would also like to make this a morning shoot, but I’m not sure how early as of yet.

I still have some logistics to work out, including creating a Flickr Group for the shoot but I hope to have that done by this weekend.  If you haven’t been on a photowalk before, let me suggest viewing my previous photowalk post which describes what a photowalk is and what you can expect.  You can find the post here.  Also, you can find images from my previous DC photowalk over at the Flickr Group.  To see the images, click here.  Stay tuned for more information.

In Other News -

Shawn King is planning another TimeShoot on May 9th at 12:00 Noon.  If you aren’t sure exactly what a TimeShoot is, be sure to check out my previous post which gives a full explanation. Basically you just have your camera handy at the appointed date and time and then click off a few frames where ever you may be and then upload them to the Flickr Group.  It’s like a world-wide photowalk, without the walking.  For all the details on the upcoming TimeShoot and how to upload your images, head on over Shawn’s blog by clicking here.