Annenberg Space for Photography

I went to the Annenberg Space for Photography today. There was a National Geographic exhibit featuring images of water, (or lack there of) on display. I had never been to the Annenberg. The space is smaller than I expected. The Annenberg is comprised of print gallery walls surrounding a large multimedia digital gallery in the center of the space. I felt it was difficult to view the print images in this setup. I like being able to back up and view images from a distance, but this was not so easily done. The corridors also funneled you in a particular direction as opposed to letting you roam freely. The digital gallery is well designed and unusual for a photography space to feature so prominently. National Geographic videos were playing on many screens and there was ample sitting area from which to view them. As for the images of water, there were some very nice ones by John Stanmeyer and Edward Burtynsky. I really like the concept of a Water Exhibit, but I'm not sure they pulled it off here. The Annenberg is truly a unique experience and I would suggest anyone interested in photography to visit.

Andreas Gursky at Gagosian Gallery

I was introduced to Andreas Gursky's work today at the Gagosian Gallery in Beverly Hills. His work has tremendous detail. They are huge "C" prints. I think they are actually two prints that are masterfully joined to look like one print. Gursky's perception of space and the people in it are showcased in his work. The image you see above is of fishermen on a river bank separated by heavily wooded trees. The size is approximately 8x10'. Ironically, I made it look tiny in this photograph. There was a video detailing his thought process playing at the gallery. I watched a few minutes and found it very interesting. I will see if it is available on the internet or other source so I can watch it in full. In case your interested, one piece on sale was going for over $700,000. A bargain considering he sold a piece for over 3.3 million back in 2007. Start saving now.

PT-04 Wireless Flash Trigger

This is my first attempt at using these new PT-04 flash triggers I got from Ucolor on ebay. They are connected to 3 Canon 580ex II flashes and triggered by my Canon 5d Mark II. I have barndoors on two of the flashes and a softbox on the other. They work well. I was really interested in trying this technique since the canon flashes allow me to dial down to 128th power. This allows me to move my light modifiers extremely close to the object. I'll try to post an image of my set when I get a chance. Four triggers and and a transmitter for $45 bucks. Not bad. The image is for our Handmade Jewelry Website Rabbit Lounge.

Photographing Handmade Jewelry

I spent some time photographing Serena's store WORKSHOP in Atwater Village, CA. She needed some images to send to the LA Times. I think they are going to write a story about her and post it in their blog. Photography of jewelry and gemstones is interesting. Each piece has its own personality. I've also always enjoyed photographing the instruments used to create products.