New Directions

It's been three months since I last posted (too long!), and life is full. I've started working with some new clients, came up with about a dozen half-baked business ideas, moved to a new apartment, and through all of that I've come up with a few art pieces I'd like to create. Given that I'm pushing in several different directions, I thought It'd be best if I share some photos.

This is some work I've been doing for K. Boodjeh Architects in Eureka.

Some Photos I've taken in between jobs and editing:

Some Photos of my amazing friend Marissa who's graduating from University today:

And some photos I'm going to save for a small black and white photography book sometime next year:

In the future I will be working on growing the architecture side of things, possibly taking a small step into basic product photography, and doing an overhaul of my website for SEO in preparation to offer stock photography. In addition I'll be expanding my client network and prioritizing time to make room for artwork again. It's going to be a lot, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Cheers!

-Ryan

Frozen

As a photographer I've been in a pretty contemplative mood lately, but I'll end any notions of being vague right now. I want to be inspired, I want to make new work, and I want to put the days of doing what falls on my plate behind me and forge a career. The only way I know to do this while I wait for the readiness to jump in full time is to take pictures, and make art.

I've never been one for fairy-tale focused photography, or the creation of Disney characters. I've always said to myself they lack creativity, but in the search for inspiration, I've learned to take every opportunity, and this one wouldn't be the exception. My friend Marissa mentioned that she was going to be in a live production of Frozen, and after some talking, we jokingly decided to do a photo shoot. We picked a date, Marissa ordered the dress, and we roped in her boyfriend Daniel to drive us up the mountain and assist with the photo-shoot. Our friend Natalie is a talented make-up artist and she met with us at Marissa's to get her hair and make-up Elsa-ready before our trip up to horse mountain.

The shoot started slow, as there was no scouting ahead for snow with the unpredictable weather. We walked around, I found our first stop and we started shooting after setting up the lights. At this point it set in how cold it was going to be, Marissa began to feel the effect of wearing heals in the snow, but we were there already and she was determined. After several shots and a couple feet warming breaks we finished our first shot and started scouting for the second.

While looking for another scene, I found a frame in the forest that was distinctly mine. It's hard to describe, but to put it plainly, a photographer can take 100 nice photos, but only one of them is theirs. They would quickly toss out the other 99, just to save the one.

The rest of the shoot was easy going, but the cold had taken its toll and the sun was fleeting. We took some final portraits with the setting sun, packed up and began the trip back home, privileged to watch the remnants of a beautiful sunset in a warm SUV.

The Carson Block Building

It's been an incredibly busy year so far and there's so much to look forward to for 2016. To give an update, I've been doing a lot of work for Pacific Builders, a local building company responsible for the restoration of the historic Carson Block Building in Old Town Eureka, a project I've kept mostly under wraps for the last 6 months. The first photo below is of the theater, still waiting to be fully restored at a future date.

Walking onto a large project the first few times is a humbling experience, but as a photographer it's oddly satisfying. You hear the sound of nails piercing wood, sparks flying from welding torches as busy workers shuffle past up the scaffolds to continue work on the outside. At every corner is an intersection of history, the old chipping paint and flooring being sanded down, soon to be replaced and restored to their original glory. Early morning sunlight streams through holes that will soon be windows and bounces through the job site fences to create light patterns on the walls. While I entered this building thinking it would be amazing because of the theater (which it was), I found myself amazed at how the light travels through the turrets on the outside and the amazing view over old town and the bay.

For those interested in a detail of the process, the Carson Block wasn't up to earthquake code before the restorations, but as a requirement of the project, any structural supports had to be added to the inside to preserve the historical exterior. This meant hoisting massive metal beams up and through the windows, then cutting holes between floors to position and install them. This is one of the few unconventional challenges of the project and it's a project I thoroughly enjoyed seeing progress.

Graduation

After 17 years of education, I now have a Bachelors Degree in Studio Art with a focus in photography! Yes I'm counting kindergarten, because alphabets are imperative to every day life. That said, art school did an amazing thing and opened up doors I'd never thought were anything I wanted. I was an engineering student until three years ago, and now I've got this huge thing called life after college in front of me, and I have so many people to thank. I'll not bore you by starting at pre-K, but I just wanted to mention some of the amazing professors at Humboldt State University that helped put me where am. First, my photography professor, mentor, and now friend for my entire stay at HSU, Nicole Jean Hill. My professor and friend, Dave Woody taught me first how to make cyanotypes and eventually how to keep my drive for photography going; his critique is always insightful and his philosophies regarding photography are what I would consider an essential tool for photography and documentary projects in general. Last, two graphic design professors, Rick Febre and Kasey Vaughn who taught me the basics of graphic design, were influential in my design process, gave insight into my photography, and provided a space where I could learn and build community in the art department.

That was the short list, if we get long I would also attribute the profound change in my art work to the past teachers and mentors I met at CSU summer arts in 2014 and 2015. They're amazing photographers, and wonderful teachers who opened up art as a possibility for me. Nicole J. Hill, Doug Dertinger, Holly Andres, David H. Wells, Erika Gentry, David Hilliard. Above are images from the first session, and below are a few from the second.