Andrew Zuckerman's birds...

With tomorrow being Thanksgiving - a day in which we seemingly worship the turkey - I thought it might be interesting to introduce the work NYC based photographer Andrew Zuckerman. His newest project is entitled Bird. There are some truly stunning portraits in there all shot in a studio setting. Having worked with animals in a studio setting myself - including dogs at the Rocky Mountain Cluster dog show and livestock at the National Western Stock Show - I know first hand how challenging it can be. They never quite do what you hope for and often turn quite skittish once the lights start firing. I've had more than one seamless destroyed while shooting at various times. So as you're enjoying your turkey on Thanksgiving take a moment to appreciate some of the other beautiful birds out there or if you can stomach it take a look at the Wild Turkey featured his site!

The book can be purchased on Amazon.com

November Denver Magazine cover...

First off for anyone out there following the blog sorry for the extended layoff in posting, I've been working and traveling a lot lately and haven't had much time for posting...I do however have some material to catch up on hopefully in the coming weeks so check back. For the November issue of Denver Magazine I photographed Sarah Siegel Magness, who along with her husband Gary Magness produced the critically acclaimed movie Precious. It's already won numerous awards and garnered critical acclaim and is certainly in contention for an Oscar.

The film is based on the searing 1996 novel Push by Sapphire, the film stars 26-year-old newcomer Gabourey “Gabby” Sidibe as Claireece “Precious” Jones, an illiterate, obese, Harlem teenager coming of age in the 1980s. In many ways, she has already lived harder in her short life than anyone should have to. She has been physically and emotionally abused by her mother (Mo’Nique) and has two children by her father who raped her. (The film also stars Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz, and Paula Patton.) It’s a difficult story to tell, and if it had stayed there — in that seemingly unspeakable realm of abuse and incest — it may well have never made it to the silver screen. But Sapphire deftly moves the story from one of abuse and dreams deferred to one of hope and breaking through. It’s that positive story that first captured the attention of team Magness (Sarah always refers to she and Gary as a team) and director Lee Daniels (who also produced Monster's Ball in 2001).

Denver Magazine Art Director Tom Visocchi and I scouted the Denver Performing Arts Center the week before the shoot and settled on the stage at the renovated Ellie Caulkins Opera House for its stage and curtains and the overall look of the place. Special thanks as well to Tobie Orr for help with styling and makeup.

Skiing Magazine Clip...

I got a call last month from Skiing Magazine about some images of Rainer Hertrich, a Copper Mountain snowcat driver and endurance telemarker. He's been skiing every day of the year (winter and summer) since November 1, 2003 - more than 2,100 consecutive days and 70 million vertical feet! Pretty impressive feat I have to say considering that even as much as I love snowboarding or even mountain biking for that matter I know I would never have the stamina and willpower to make it out there every day for that long. Even the logistics of traveling across the globe and still being able to get some turns in that day are impressive. Hats off to Rainer, his Guinness World Record and his ongoing quest. The November issue is on newsstands now.

Duality Photo Contest Win...

The image above entitled "Hope and Fear" placed third in a duality themed photo contest. It was an image I shot at the Crown Fountain in Millenium Park in Chicago a couple of summers back while on a trip there to see friends and some of Margaret's family. I've always liked the different reactions of the homeless man and young boy - they almost seem opposite of what they should be.

The judges comments were as follows:

The actions of the subjects in this photo just seem to shout "duality". While an old man reaches up, embracing the falling water, his face twisted either in pain or exuberance or both, the young boy next to him retreats unhappily beneath the shower of water. Or is he exhilarated? Either way, we feel that a powerful instant is captured here.

Rockies Postseason Run...

I had been saying all summer long that I needed to get out to a few Colorado Rockies games to shoot some baseball and kept putting it off for one reason or another - sometimes work, sometimes to mountain bike or camp and before I knew it the last few games of the season were upon us. So I made a point to clear my schedule for the final couple of home games against the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers. The Rockies had been solidly leading the NL Wild Card race for a good portion of the late part of the season after climbing out of a 15 (or so) game hole they put themselves in earlier in the season. New Rockies manager Jim Tracy seems to have turned the team around and even had them on the verge of contending for their first ever NL West title - coming up just short at the end of the season. They did however secure the NL Wild Card and will face the Philadelphia Phillies who they swept on their way to the 2007 World Series. I'm thinking it won't be nearly as easy this time around.

I've watched this team for a few years now after not really being a huge baseball fan. I always thought it was about the most boring game to watch and shoot but after following the Rockies in 2007 and even getting to go to the game in which they clinched their first ever appearance in the World Series I really gained a new appreciation for the subtleties of the game. I shot a bit of baseball back in my days at the Rocky Mountain News and always felt as though I never got anything that was all that great...Many times I'd end up missing plays because I was too busy being distracted with chatting with other shooters or trying to stay awake. I have to say that I have a newfound respect and understanding for the game. The intensity is incredible, especially during the playoffs and capturing some of those moments late in the season has been a fun challenge.

The top image is of Rockies second baseman Clint Barmes making an incredible diving catch and subsequent throw to first to complete a game ending double play against the St. Louis Cardinals (a game they really needed to win to hold off Atlanta). The bottom image is of Rockies catcher Yorvit Torrealba and teammates celebrating an 11th inning walk-off home run by Chris Iannetta against the Milwaukee Brewers to win 7-5. I may have waited the better part of the season to shoot a few games but man did I luck out with two great late season games to cover. Here's hoping the run continues.

Here a link to a few more images as well.

October Denver Magazine Cover...

Denver Magazine contacted me last month to shoot their first ever Chef of the Year special section for the magazine. I've always enjoyed food, food photography and portraits of chefs so I jumped on the opportunity. We ended up not shooting any finished plates of food for the piece but instead shooting some group portraits of chefs and mixologists in their environments. It figured to be a logistical nightmare but Stacey Brugeman, Denver Magazine's food editor, and Tom Visocchi, the magazine's art director, pulled it all together like the pros they are and we were able to get all 20 chefs together on a Tuesday in September for the portraits. Results were kept under wraps until a party this past Monday at the May D&H Clocktower in downtown Denver so we had to be careful with letting anyone in on the results beforehand. We even had to be a bit dishonest with Alex Seidel of Fruition Restaurant, the Chef of the Year (on the cover), to keep it all secret when we made a trip down to Fruition Farms to photograph him with his chickens and goats Frick and Frack on the farm he has recently purchased. On a side note, what he intends to do down there sounds amazing and I'm hoping it takes off in the near future.

Congratulations to all the finalists and category winners...There are some truly talented folks featured on the pages of Denver Magazine this month. Everyone selected was chosen by their peers which speaks volumes about the integrity of the selection process. I've eaten at many of the places listed and am headed out tonight to one of the finalists that I've yet to try. So if you're in the mood for a good meal, dessert or drink one evening in Denver here would be a good place to start your serach. Enjoy.

Sobering numbers...

Editor and Publisher recently published this article about job losses in the media segment (specifically newspapers) of the economy, the great majority of jobs lost -- 24,511 -- were in newspaper and other print journalism. I personally know more than a few journalists that have lost their jobs recently especially with the Rocky Mountain News closing and I always hope that all of them land on their feet. I actually had lunch with a couple of former staffers yesterday and both said they were the happiest they've been so it's not always a horrible thing but you do have to wonder if the market is a bit flooded with unemployed writers and photographers.

Here's the full story :

Journos Losing Jobs at Three Times Rate of Average Workers

By Mark Fitzgerald

Published: September 21, 2009 12:11 PM ET
CHICAGO Since the financial meltdown began a year ago, journalism jobs have gone away at almost three times the rate jobs have disappeared in the general economy, according to a report by Unity: Journalists of Color.

Unity's 2009 Layoff Tracker Report shows an average 22% increase from month to month in journalism jobs lost from September 2008 through August 2009. The general economy lost jobs at an average monthly pace of about 8% during that time, according to Unity.

For journalism jobs, there were big monthly increases in job losses from the month before at periods coinciding with the close of a quarterly financial reporting periods.

News media, including newspapers, broadcast and digital, have shed 35,885 jobs since Sept. 15, 2008, according to Unity's tracking report. The great majority of jobs lost -- 24,511 -- were in newspaper and other print journalism, Unity said.

Since Unity began tracking job losses on Jan. 1, 2008, the news industry has shed 46,599 jobs, it said. Job losses were occurring at a fairly steady rate of about 1,000 a month starting in January 2008, and then accelerated, in December 2008 when 7,398 job disappeared, Unity said.

"The news industry has been hemorrhaging jobs long before the economic crisis began last year," Unity Executive Director Onica N. Makwakwa said. "These numbers confirm that the economic downturn has hit the news industry very, very hard."

Unity's Layoff Tracker project uses data from Securities and Exchange Commission filings, plus self-reported data from 1,101 print and broadcast media outlets. It includes jobs lost by attrition as well as by layoffs and buyouts.