New Outlook

Well, I just started a new semester of photography and just finished my second month of my new job. A lot of new things in my life and I have had to tone down my life a bit. This toning down is allowing me to enjoy photography in a different light. I am actually enjoying it a little more in being able to learn new things about lighting techniques, styles, and ideas for photos. I will try to post whatever new photo I complete and hopefully this will keep me inspired.

Historic High

Well I know some of you may be tired of hearing or talking about it but we all HAVE just experienced a very historic moment in this country. I have seen something that I was not expecting to see in my lifetime and I am only in my 30's.

No matter, it has happened, a black man has been elected president of the United States and I think we should all really appreciate the moment and recognize how major this is.

I will remember and really value the experience because it has given me confidence that I can accomplish my dreams.

Thoughts

Hello Everyone,

Just back into the same old swing of things with being busy with school again. I was getting a little overwhelmed again for a few weeks but am finally starting to feel somewhat caught up.

I took the photo below the other day during a one hour feature photo shoot in my photojournalism class. I turned one in but kind of felt that the teacher did not like it so I went out with 20 minutes left and scrambled to find another one. I got back with about 5 minutes to edit and this is what I got. The teacher then mentioned that he was glad I did what I did and went out to find another one because he did not like the first one.

Let me know what you think....



City College students walk along campus while they recover from a recent rain storm that occured during the weekend and ran into Monday on Nov 3.

Shaq and Kevin Johnson

On September 26, Sacramento Mayoral candidate and former NBA star Kevin Johnson brought basketball star Shaquille O'neal to the Boys and Girls club in downtown Sacramento. Shaq was greeted by a group of very excited kids and spoke for a few minutes before returning to his vehicle. The rest of the event had Kevin Johnson talking to the media about current allegations against the St. Hope Academy which he was previously a part of.



Sacramento Mayoral candidate Kevin Johnson and NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal visit the Sacramento Boys and Girls club in downtown Sacramento on Sept. 26, 2008. Shaq visited with the kids for a little while and then Kevin Johnson addressed the media about recent allegations regarding the St. Hope Academy that he has been a part of.



Sacramento Mayoral candidate Kevin Johnson addresses a group of kids at the Boys and Girls club in downtown Sacramento on Sept. 26, 2008. NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal joined Kevin and the kids for a little while.

Obama Reno

Hello everyone. I just got back from a speech that Barack Obama gave in Reno NV. I found out about it on Monday drove to Reno with a friend at night, stayed the night at a casino hotel(but did not sleep a wink) and woke up to the rally at 8 a.m. at the University of Nevada at Reno. It was quite an experience and I spoke to a good amount of the people there. The feeling of dedication and support was more than I expected and I met people from all over the world. Here are a few Photos that I shot and I hope you enjoy them.



Senator Barack Obama made a stop at the University of Nevada, Reno on Sept. 30, 2008. The Democratic Presidential nominee was welcomed by thousands of supporters.



University of Nevada, Reno Music Professor Dr. Katherine DeBoer shows her excitement during the Barack Obama visit to Reno on Sept. 30, 2008. Dr. DeBoer said that this election is "The biggest election of her life".



Thousands of people attended a visit by Barack Obama at the University of Nevada, Reno on Sept. 30 2008. Media and people from all over the world were in attendance.

Great Fair Results

Well, this took me a few days to get too but at least I finally got to it. I entered my county fair photo contest for the third year and got some great results. I won two blue ribbons, one red, two third places, and two honorable mentions. I was a little surprised because I was not totally happy with my photos this year but I am finding that I am feeling that about almost all of my work for the past year. I am just getting more touchy and judgemental.

Anyways, I was happy with my fair results but was surprised and extremely happy about what else I won. One of my photos won the best in show category and I was ecstatic about it. A friend of mine had predicted this but I thought he was just being nice. A photo of the award is listed below as well as photo of my other winners.

Now I am just getting ready for school to start again next week and will be busy as heck again going to school 3 to 4 days a week. Oh well, I am hoping to really look into finding a career or job in the next year and am going to work very hard to find one.

Let me know what you think of the photos.





This is the photo that won me the best of show photo and I am really proud of it. It also won the "water scape" category.





This photo won me the blue ribbon in the "still life" category.

Update

Hello,

I am enjoying my summer so far and have had more time to think about things in my life. I have been seeing a counselor and has definitely helped with my depression and has also opened my eyes to the way I think and why I think that way.

I have always been a person who is dedicated to whatever I would like to accomplish. To accomplish my Bachelors degree I went through numerous seizures, car accidents, brain surgery, and another surgery to take of a cancer I thought I had. No matter what, I was always focused on the goal of graduating from college. I accomplished that and then moved on. That is when my passion for photography just exploded and it has been a huge part of my life. I have decided to focus on photojournalism because I have always been interested in people, how they are raised, why they think how they think or do the things they do. I am so passionate about this that I have put myself in numerous dangerous positions just to get a good shot.

Speeking to my counselor, he saw how passionate I am about this but made me think about something. No matter how good of a photo I take, I never feel that it is good enough. No matter how many compliments I get, I never think it is good enough. I have never been able to take a compliment but still am always trying to satisfy the needs of others instead of my own. This opened my eyes to where it all started and it may be no surprise to a lot of you, but it all started with how I was never good enough for my father. No matter how hard I tried and what I accomplished, I never felt I satified him. This has led (unconsciously) to how I live today and always worry about what other people think and can never hold things in. I always feel a sense of guilt even though I have not done anything wrong.

This has made me think about how I should really live my life and what I need to do to keep a long term relationship because all this ties in.

In short, I have opened my eyes to how I have lived my life and now need to find a way to live it in a more happy and satisfying way.

Hope this isn't too corny but just thought this was an important stage in my life.

P.S. the photo above is of the Sacramento Water Pump in the early morning. I took it yesterday morning and was surprised how well it turned out.