The Best Damn Photo Blog Period

TBDPBP is moving...

2008-01-16T11:04:00.000-08:00

TBDPBP has sucked lately. But don't despair. It's all been for the best. I've finally gotten around to launching my new blog, 'The 61st Blog".

The new website for my photography company, Sixty One Studio has finally launched, and with it the new blog. I'm hoping to bring a whole new insight into my6 photographic world, and return to my regular updates.

I'm looking to devote a lot more time to personal projects, and hopefully it will lead to some interesting blogging.

Check it out over at www.61studio.com.

Thanks everyone.

It's been awhile...

2007-06-17T21:45:00.000-07:00

...but it feels good to be shooting again.

A mid-morning winter walk

2007-01-04T15:49:00.000-08:00

Fruit Stand

2006-12-03T14:29:00.000-08:00

Stop light

2006-12-03T14:13:00.000-08:00

Testing a new lens

2006-12-03T11:06:00.000-08:00

Rediscovering an Old Photo

2006-11-09T20:01:00.000-08:00

Denley sporting WTD gear

2006-11-02T15:15:00.000-08:00

Best comic strip ever.

Fun with cross-processing/Happy Halloween

2006-10-28T21:08:00.000-07:00

Kitchen Art

2006-10-25T20:05:00.000-07:00

Dining room table

2006-10-12T20:28:00.000-07:00

Snow in October?

2006-10-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

In the park...

2006-09-27T20:01:00.000-07:00

The changing world of photography...

2006-09-22T23:39:00.000-07:00

We live in a society of accreditation. Most professionals are licensed in some way. Photographers on the other hand have long been one profession where the accreditation was self-evident. The proof was in the pictures so to speak. However at one time being able to help a fever made you a doctor. Being a good orator made you a lawyer. Has the time come for photography to undergo a similar change?

It used to be you could go look at photos and know that the person showing you the photo actually took it. The digital age has brought a revolution that has allowed photo plagiarism to run rampant and nearly impossible to trace. The sheer volume of photographs displayed on the internet makes it unlikely that someone would ever discover the plagiarized photos amidst the genuine. Glitzy marketing seems to have overcome photographic skill in many business strategies. It’s hard for many people to see past the schemes to judge the quality of the photos.

The term “professional photographer” means little these days. Anyone with a DSLR and some free time is now a professional. The industry is losing respect because of every Joe with a camera claiming to be a pro. At current pace there will be no market for real pro’s in 20 years because of the saturation of hobbyist “pro’s” in the industry.

Maybe the solution is accreditation. As post-secondary institutions allowing students to specialize in photography become more common, a system of licensing photographers based on education and body of work becomes ever more attractive. If as a consumer you could see the term “professional photographer” and know that an inherent level of quality is guaranteed, the marketplace would be simpler to navigate. There is a reason why you don’t have to worry that a heart surgeon is just some guy with a scalpel. Wouldn’t it be nice to have the same reassurance with your photographer?

I’m not advocating the prevention of Uncle Bob shooting your wedding for you. I don’t care if amateurs want to go out and make money with photography. But once they start calling themselves a Professional it should carry certain responsibilities inherit in the term. It should be a promise of quality, honesty, and professionalism. An institution charged with the certification of photographers is the only reasonable method of insuring this.

So here’s to a world of real professionals. Let’s just hope they let me in.

A great moment...or a great photo?

2006-09-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

Rare flowers or crappy photo?

I've seen about 10,000 blurry, underexposed, and generally crappy (to use a technical term) photos lately, the owner of which is always extolling its virtue.

Maybe they stumbled onto a group of bear cubs playing in the woods, spotted a hawk stooping down onto its prey, or their 3 yr old spontaneously started juggling swords. Whatever.

All great moments. Maybe things you will never see again. Great. Be excited for what you saw. However the thing they all fail to realize is that a great moment does not make a great photo in of itself.

Guess what, I don't care how cute the bear cubs are, if the photo is blurry, from a photographic standpoint it belongs in the trash. I'm sure your grandmother would be impressed by it, so go show it to her. But don't stand there and try to tell me that it doesn't matter that the photo sucks because of the subject you captured.

And guess what? If people stopped telling you that the photo was great, you might actually sit down and figure out how to not screw up the photo the next time you come across some poor schmuck in a stupid situation whose life you'd like to exploit.

And another thing. What is with the excuses? Any time I say something negative about a photo I hear "well the photo would have been better but I couldn't get any closer" or "well if there was more light the photo would have been perfect" Do I look like I care why your photos suck? A crappy photo is still a crappy photo, no matter how many excuses you invent for it. You know what makes a good photographer? Instead of whining about what they couldn't do, they go out and figure out what they can do to get a good photo.

So talk less, and shoot more. And if you still insist on telling me that your photo would have been great if only.....whatever, please take it personally when I run you over with my car. Repeatedly.

What the Duck

2006-09-12T20:54:00.000-07:00

If you haven't started reading What the Duck yet you must live in a cave. Or just not find photography humor funny. But since everyone finds photo geeks funny, you should probably get wireless internet in your cave or something.

And clean up a little bit. It's looking pretty gross in there.

What do you live in a cave or something?

Ohhhhh right. Nevermind.

Chris Deyoe Photography

2006-09-04T22:27:00.000-07:00

The website that has been somewhat defunct has now been updated. So why are you still here? Just kidding. Don't leave me.

Chris Deyoe Photography

Surreal Bison

2006-09-03T23:30:00.000-07:00

"The Denley"

2006-09-03T21:35:00.000-07:00

That's a Pecker

2006-09-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

If you don't understand, go rent this.

M&C

2006-09-02T22:25:00.000-07:00

Riding Mountain

2006-09-01T21:52:00.000-07:00

Why I hate Tim Horton's.

2006-08-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

Not photo related, but I walked into Tim Horton's this morning to buy some doughnuts and it went like this...

Me: Hi, Can I get 3 Honey Dip & 3 Boston Creme doughnuts.

Idiot at TH: Uh, um....yeah...but....uh....you might want to get 6 doughnuts, cause that might be cheaper.

Me: You can't be serious.

Idiot: So, uh....does that mean you want 6?

Me: Please never have children.

Empire State Building

2006-08-24T22:06:00.000-07:00

Table Shots

2006-08-24T22:01:00.000-07:00

NY Public Library

2006-08-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

Cars

2006-08-22T22:59:00.000-07:00

Making kids cry = War is bad. Or something.

2006-08-21T18:13:00.000-07:00

Not to beat the proverbial dead horse, but thinking about the criteria for art reminds me of the Jill Greenberg controversy.

For those of you who still haven't heard about this, Ms. Greenberg is a photographer who took photos of screaming children in order to protest war or some such thing. Ignoring the obvious stupidity of that part of the story, we get to the interesting part. In order to get the emotion she wanted from the small kids, she would basically antagonize the children until they burst into tears. To read more on the story visit PDB: Special Permission or
Thomas Hawk - Jill Greenberg is a sick woman

Now instead of being insulted at Ms. Greenberg's idiocy in the name or art, I was instead inspired. My next exhibit will be a showcase on poverty. I shot the whole series from a tripod with the camera locked in motor drive while I beat random people on the street half to death with a baseball bat. The emotion captured was just amazing. They almost looked like they were in pain they were so saddened by poverty. Anyway, I'm sure I'll be rich and famous in a couple weeks.

Connor - 08/06/06

2006-08-21T14:35:00.000-07:00

What is art? Oh, I'll tell you.

2006-08-17T21:25:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has to deal with people in the "art" world knows that there a lot of folks out there who think that anything is art if you call it art. I don't know when this copout became acceptable, but it I want to scream every time I have to sit through a discussion where something is defended solely on the basis that it is "art".

I have a simple solution to what art is. Art is something that consists of these 3 simple criteria.

1) It must be a creative endeavor. Pretty self explanatory. If it's not creative, its not art.

2) It must take artistic skill. Again simple. If anoyone off the street could do it, it's probably not art. Art in its nature is elitist because it's a skill that the majority of society lacks.

3) It must have artistic merit. A little more complex. Basically if it's created to enhance the world of art or to express true emotion, it probably has merit. If it was created simply to be sensational, controversial, shock people, or just be artsy, then it lacks merit.

So remember kids -

Picasso's works = Art

That woman shoving rat droppings into tubing = A crazy chick, a really smelly mess, and nothing even remotely resembleing art.

The Best Damn Photo Blog Period

2006-08-16T21:28:00.000-07:00

Here we go again folks. Needing a new outlet to vent, I'm abandoning the Pinstriped Blog in order to express myself a little more freely here. Hopefully any rants I have will be tempered with some brilliant photographs, but we will have to wait and see about that.

-Chris