Endure
A CrossFit photo shoot with the one and only Karli Stroud!
It has been challenging but rewarding being able to work with many sweet clients and on many personal projects during the same time period recently. I'm thankful for all of you, to be able to spend a short time together reflecting each other's passions and sharing them through portraits.
Endure is a short series portraying my cousin, Karli, a caring and humble physical therapist, CrossFit coach, and an inspiration. This series is shown as it would in a magazine spread, and quotes from Karli herself and 9:24 CrossFit coach, Pete Doan.
Thank you all who were a part of this shoot, whether in pre-production, production, or the post-production, everyone who gave feedback and simply supports these big ideas I have.
Behind the Scenes
Live by faith & share through fotos.
Bloom Where You Are Planted
Symbolism in the little things.
I bought an flower from the 99 Cent store in town to bring a little life into my room, if I can't have my very own garden. The tag said it was an african violet, but I think it's a type of pansy. I thought it would be a simple thing to take care of, I mean it fit in a small cereal bowl that I planted it in (totally using my resources here), I mean what could go wrong? I set it in my room and watered it when I thought it might be a little dry, it looked like it had some sun in the afternoon, since the sun sets where my window is. "It'll be fine," I thought.
Reality. My plant died. Well became very close to dying; it was droopy and sad looking, and the once blooming buds were shriveling. I asked my mom if I should just throw it away because there wasn't much more I could do. I began to realize the soil was just too dry, as I had thought I may have overwatered it before. Soon, I learned that watering it in the morning and at night helped my little flower, as I saw the color come back into the buds. I rearranged my room and I sat the tiny cereal bowl garden in my window on a stand, so it had more of a chance to see the sun through the day. I counted the blooms. One... two... three... water in the morning... water at night. It began to droop again, maybe too much water? Water in the morning, water a little at night. Four, five, six, seven. A week went by, I was learning to care for this little gem as it bloomed right where I planted it. Eight, nine, ten, eleven! More and more blooms popped up. Every day there seems to be more. I now have 19 blooms on a flower that I planned to throw away when things were looking a little rough and the water had dried up.
Bloom where you're planted.
Sometimes the first place we are planted is a little rough, drying up our inspiration and hopes. Maybe we're losing the life we once had. The next place we plant ourselves is a little better, we start to learn what works for us and what doesn't so much. Sometimes we fall. But we look to The Light and slowly, but surely find our way and find ourselves with more blooms of joy than we ever dreamed were possible in an idea that began in the size of a cereal bowl.
Live by faith & share through fotos.
A "Modern Antique" Project
Bringing a little life into the style of antique portraiture in these Mock Wedding portraits with color.
About a year ago, I posted this photo on Instagram..
"When I heard about The Rescued Film Project (@rescuedfilm), it reminded me of one old photo I picked up at an antique mall several months ago in Wexford, PA. There's such a wonderful mystery about a photo without names, dates, places, or knowing the photographer that saw a specific scene. Was this taken on his or her way to work? How old was the photographer? Why was he or she drawn to the moment? I encourage you, with all old photographs, to appreciate the memory and time that it holds, and not to forget the life that breathes in it, still."
With that said, I have this love for antique photos, they just make me so curious. I was inspired to "recreate" photos to mimic the style of antique portraiture. I actually shot these before I graduated. I shot these in May earlier this year. The reason I haven't shared these sooner is because I've been having a creative block with this set of images. Sometimes this happens, and I've realized that I just have to wait it out and let them become what they need to be in order to be shared. I started this project thinking I wanted to share photos that looked worn and sepia tone or black and white. But after months of working with these, I decided that other than the first image, I would leave them images in color to let them come to life. Often times when we take a look at old family photos, we put this "tone" to them and can't or don't imagine what life really looked like other than in the photo. And so, I left these images in color, with an antique wedding setting, style, and wardrobe to not forget the life that has been involved in every photo ever taken regardless of time period, and the life that breathes in it, still.
Below is a before and after, showing the extensive work in Photoshop to make the atmosphere eerie and intriguing in this specific photo.
Behind the Scenes
A very special thanks to the people who made this shoot possible...
Models: Daniel & Bethany Snoke
Wardrobe: Shiloh Leath
Live by faith & share through fotos.
On Veterans Day
Final images from my shoot inspired by Call of Duty, with behind the scenes and before and after images.
Final image from Collin's shoot used for my print portfolio.
My inspiration for this shoot originally came from Call of Duty. My brothers used to be in love with the game, and gosh darn it, their promo photos are so good. Google Image search "Call of Duty" and you will agree completely. Plus, my friend Collin has been wanting to do a shoot for quite some time using all of his airsoft gear. We did the shoot in two sessions, one at sunrise and one at sunset, which makes for a pretty long day, but the crew had a nice long break for naps between. The team included Collin Galbraith as the model, Chelsea Black and my brother Jonathan Schonauer as assistants.
Although this was a personal project inspired by a video game, on a serious note, I'd like to dedicate these images to all the Veterans that have served our country. I take every thing I have for granted on a daily basis, forgetting the freedoms that I have, thanks to the brave American troops this country has, and our Awesome God. I debated sharing these images on Veterans Day because I didn't want them to be "offensive" in any way to make military or war look "easy" or "pretty" with all the Photoshop and setting up this shoot took. And I hope that that message doesn't get passed on through the images. I want these photos to represent the soldiers as individual people and be a reminder of the incredible sacrifice they have made. It's not much, but I just want these images to say "Thank you!".
Below is a before and after, showing the extensive work in Photoshop to make the atmosphere eerie and intriguing in this specific photo.
Behind the Scenes
Live by faith & share through fotos.
Wake Up, Sleeper
Final images revealed from my personal project, "Wake Up, Sleeper" in collaboration with makeup artist Alyssa Emigh and my friend Victoria Venskoske. Script from a class also included that I have integrated with this short series.
One of my favorite images, and the final image I used in my print portfolio.
I've been debating the way I should go about sharing this group of images for several months now. This photo shoot was put together in April when I began drawing inspiration images for my print portfolio to first be shown at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh's quarterly Portfolio Show when I graduated. I wanted to collaborate with another artist specifically for this shoot, and special effects makeup was the way I decided I would go. I knew I had wanted to do a "mermaid" themed shoot with my friend Victoria for quite a while. When your friend has purple and blue hair and your a photographer, there's no question about who to use for a model. Funny enough, I first got the idea to have her model for me because she wore a shirt to school that said something along the lines of "I'm a Mermaid". Later I pulled inspiration from Ephesians 5:14, "This is why it is said, 'Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.'" I wanted the shoot to have this idea of a "mermaid" turning away from her life that was not what she wanted and not where she was supposed to be. The crystals on her face would represent the time that she had been in that stagnant place and almost appeared to be dead (rise from the dead). She then "wakes up" and realizes where she not only wants to be, but where she is meant to be.
I ended up using a single image from this shoot for my print portfolio, but I enjoyed the images so much as a whole that I wanted to do something bigger to share them. It didn't dawn on me until a couple weeks ago that I had written a short script for my Conceptual Storytelling class at The Art Institute. This was actually a filmmaking elective rather than a photography class, but I took it to have enough credits to graduate on time. I also thought it would be a neat opportunity to work on developing a story for each of my series, and would help me to see movies (which is where I draw a lot of my inspiration) in another way, as far as the way the story is told.
In the first planning stages, the way I develop a photograph in my head is really like a mini movie trailer, literally playing like a scene of a film rather than just still images. Then in the following planning steps, I'll decide on makeup, hair, location, lighting, etc. I work on this entire process all while trying to figure out who the character is, where they came from, what their motivation is, and what is driving the story.
This script was an in-class assignment, assigned at 8:00 AM and due before class was over at noon. Trying to figure out what the heck I should write about, and never having experience writing a script or really any story that wasn't totally lame or in third grade (especially at 8 in the morning), I kept going back to the idea behind this "mermaid" themed shoot that I had been editing on and off the last several weeks. I kept thinking how amazing it would be to know what was going through this character's mind and why she was where she was and what her expressions meant. The script was written in early June, so the shoot, which took place in early May, had already been completed, meaning the images don't align in complete perfection. However, I think I've found an awesome process to use in order to do a creative shoot like this in the future and have the viewers try to see this "movie trailer" or "short film" using their imagination between the script and the photos I use together.
>>Side note: I really can't believe I'm posting this script for the general public to read because honest to goodness, I've never been so self-conscious about a piece of writing I've ever done in my life. But it's all for a good cause. Below is the script, followed by the images, followed by some behind the scenes. Enjoy!
Behind the Scenes
A very special thanks to the people who made this shoot possible...
Model: Victoria Venskoske
Special Effects & Makeup: Alyssa Emigh
Assistant: Camille Madison
Location: Jeannie Werner
Live by faith & share through fotos.
1920s Inspired Cinemagraph
My first cinemagraph put together at this weekend's 1920s inspired shoot.
Cinemagraphs are so intriguing, but for some reason, so unsettling. And of course for this reason, I wanted to create my own. Cinemagraphs combine photography and video into one frame of continuous motion, but only of a selected part of the image. The process is a little tricky at first, but planning out the shoot, as always, makes it go much smoother.
We had the opportunity of working with the talented Angela Taylor of Blush Makeup Artistry to create those crazy eyebrows for this 1920s look. I thought a cinemagraph would go along perfectly with this 1920s theme with my dear friend, Elise.
"Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all, ..."
-Emily Dickinson
Live by faith & share through fotos.
"Alfred and Lucille": A Duane Michals Interpretation
"Alfred and Lucille" is a simple project I shot and developed as an interpretation of Duane Michals' work. With the help of my parents and a little patience in the darkroom, the short sequence turned out rather adorable.
Quote from Duane Michals at The Carnegie Museum of Art
Last month I visited The Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh to see the exhibit for Duane Michals, which highly inspired me to work on a fun little project of his style. Michals was actually born and raised in McKeesport, Pennsylvania in 1932, which is not too far from Pittsburgh. He is known for his ‘frame-by-frame’ sequences, multiple exposures, and handwritten text on the print itself that he originally was criticized for. However, in my opinion, Michals' work is witty and playful in a relatively simplistic way. His film sequences and portraits are shot on black and white film and he often includes blurred motion to show the movement or action of the subject. He has used family members as the main character in his sequences and has done many personal projects that run along the themes of family, dreams, and death with a lighthearted approach.
Another project that Duane Michals has presented are oil paintings on 19th century collodion prints. For each image, he alters the subjects’ features with vibrant oil paint, drawing from principals of early photography, modern painting, and Surrealism. Each image is rejuvenated with allusions to both Picasso and Picabia. The amazing thing that Michals draws our attention to in this series is the difference between the tintype and artists of the 20th century, and unites them as one art piece. He names some of his subjects as if he knew them, and gives meaning and life to their left behind portraits, which I find interesting as well.
For my project, I drew inspiration from a combination of Duane Michals' sequence work, oil paintings, and shooting with black and white film. Replicating Michals' style in shooting, I shot my sequence on black and white film, while capturing motion and playful expressions. From his work with oil painting on tintypes, I chose Fred and Ginger, 2012 as my photo of reference to base my shoot off of. I photographed my parents (as a side note- thank God for parents that put up with and support my artistic ways) as the characters of Alfred and Lucille as Michals' would depict his family members as characters and name those in his oil paintings. As Michals' would embrace the flaws of his photos as he wrote on them, I did the same with mine, having light leaked paper and bent corners. The final image is painted with acrylic and I applied glitter to add texture, all to mimic the character of Michals' oil paintings.
Information found at: http://www.dcmooregallery.com/artists/duane-michals
My Interpretation
Inspiration
Sequence entitled Grandpa Goes To Heaven, 1989 by Duane Michals. Images shared from The Carnegie Museum of Art's exhibition "Storyteller: The Photographs of Duane Michals".
Oil Paintings by Duane Michals. Images shared from DC Moore Gallery exhibition "Duane Michals: The Painted Photograph".
Live by faith & share through fotos.