How to be creative?

 

Every photographer/artist  have those days when there are no new ideas or simple there is no mood to "create", to pick the camera, the brush or pencil to take photos, to paint or draw.

If you are in those days, maybe you are waiting for the ideas to come to your mind, waiting for the magical spark that will bring you an original idea for a new series or project. You may be as well surfing the web looking at blogs, stories, others artist work in order to get inspired but is all this worthy?

No, you may get motivation but no inspiration. Inspiration comes from work and more work; not from magic.

You want ideas? Go and look for them. Make what you most like when you most dislike it. If you want to take photos but have no idea of what, the only way to find out is taking photos of everything (portraits, landscapes, still life, etc) only in that way you will discover what you don't like and what give you more pleasure or you are better. After that, you will have to narrow even more. Let's say you choose on work landscapes, now what kind? urban or nature? color or black and white? they will show loneliness or they will be cheerful? etc, etc. In this way after a while you find your theme for a project or series and only after a long period of time you will discover your style.

Creativity is spontaneous for many and for others no at all. Those who lack of it must cultivate it. There is no shortcut or easy way. They must push their selves to think out of the box and don't be afraid of failure. Failure and mistakes are sources for ideas. If something does not work, twist it and you will have a new concept, then keep working.

Extras 6 - Linda

After a while I come back with the "extras", the photographs that did not pass the final edition process for my project "Intimacy". This time my model is Linda, as well from Brno, Czech Republic.
Hope you like them, two different looks for the same person. 

 

The Bratislava portfolio review

Last weekend I attended the Bratislava portfolio review as part of the month of  photography. It were two fantastic days were I had the opportunity to show last work to a a series of gallery owners, curators,  art researches, art critics and photo editors.

This was my first time in this kind of events and it couldn't be better. The chance to hear what other "specialized" people think about your work is invaluable. Obviously, you must be prepared to hear from: "I don't see coherence in what you say and your photos show", "something is missing here,"  "looks commercial" to "I think your work is good". You cannot make everybody happy and to some you will make concessions and to others you will only remember theirs words as wise advices but you won't apply them in to your work because as many of them said carefully before criticize your work: "this is just my opinion". And portfolio reviews are for that, to hear opinions from "experts in the field", make contacts and to tell to a little part of the art world that you exist.

This event take place in the faculty of film and television, a nice place but not the best. The rooms are OK, but it will be better if for next years a place with bigger rooms can be used.

About the reviewers, they a have a good selection: Regina Maria Anzenberger from Anzenberger Agency, Daniela Billner, editor of Camera Austria, Joanne Junga Yang, director of Y&G Art Global Contemporary Project, Horst Kloever, curator and writer from photeurblog.de between others. There were around 25 reviewers and I personally could show my work to 17 of them and the feedback is invaluable.

The cost of this portfolio review is very affordable, only 49 euros for two days. Compared with others that usually goes at least 200 euros is a great deal.

So I hope to see you next year there.

A portrait from the series I presented at the review and I was going to make public this week, but after all the feedback I will "reorganize it" to make it more consistent, stronger and solid. So be patient if you want to see more here soon. :-)

Photographs that inspire me.

Everybody has his own heroes and paradigms, from family, work and pop culture icons, everybody always admire someone, his work or personality. If you say no, "I just explore my inner world I dont need to see other people work" you are a liar and stupid. The great masters admired older great masters and always has been like that.

When it is about artist, it is hard for some admit theirs influences because everybody want to be original, the first one!.  From my side, today I am sharing with you some of the photographs that made a big impact in my life and inspired/push me as a photographer to keep trying new things and explore /see the world in a different way.

One of favorities from all the time: Jan Saudek: the photo of the hands, so simple, so tragic and so many ways to be interpreted.

Joel Peter Witkin

Currently there is an exhibition of  photographs of Joel Peter Witkin  in Brno house of arts as part of the project Decadence now! which take place simultaneously at the Rudolfinum Gallery in Prague.

This is the first time I have the chance to see a complete exhibition of him, so kind of a dream made reality plus the fact that next day after the opening there was a small presentation about his work with him in person!

I saw his work  first time in a classroom back in 1997 in college and immediately I liked his work. Those dark photograhs showing deformed people, corpses and all what was outside the "normal" but in such a way that you could see and feel the complexity of live. The impression of his work was such that one of my series during college, influenced by his work, was about death and respect to the animals we use for our feeding (Animals of the paradise) with which I got a very good qualification. :-)

The  photographs of Witkin are powerful and disturbing. They have a lot of symbolism from Greek mythology and christian religion but something I have realized is that his recent work is lighter or better said no so dark and shocking as his early work. Now many of his images have a surrealistic atmosphere and lighter tones, pretty women and nice bodies. His paintings are present in many of them as well as part of the background and some of them are including text on it (and in Spanish)

During the small seminar that was held, he explained how she started with a  camera that could take two scenes into one photogram, his period of photographing fetuses when his first son was going to be born, his experience as a war photographer and his love for beauty and live which of course for many people is hard to understand due to the nature and subjects of his work.

a poem - Birth of an insurrection against profanes gods

I opened my heart with a silver knife
let my blood pray to evil gods
let my sins clean confused hands
and dreamed deep into purple nightmares
in whose lands
there won't be sunrise to forgive me
either no hands to warm my pain

Poor my penitent soul,
sleeping in unknown regions
will face greedy heavens
and will curse their sacred power.
                                        Carlos Lopez 2010

SEO - Search engine optimization for photographers

The company that host my website and all my images at full resolution: www.photoshelter.com has updated its famous booklet the SEO Cookbook for photographers, now 2010 version.

As the previous release it is free! no catch, payment, trick or need to create an account, simply a write your email  and click submit, you will receive it at your email within th next minutes.

It contains a lot of very useful information for photographers who want to understand  how Google and other search engines work and the most important how you can improve your ranking in google search to be found and drive more traffic to your website.

Don't forget to take a tour for their services or check my review and if you like them you can use this photoshelter discount link or share it: CA2LX24B. I am sure you won't regret.

Šlapanické Slavnosti 2010

Last Sunday while all the attention was on the Grand Prix  there was another event going on in a the  small town of Šlapanice u Brna about ten kilometers South- East from Brno. Less known, less noisy but not less interesting if you want to learn something about Czech traditions.
The festival called Šlapanické slavnosti is one of the many that almost all the villages around the city of Brno have to celebrate its anniversary during the year. This one in particular have a long tradition that started on August 1932.  It consisted of a traditional parade where was possible see young and old couples walk trough the streets, dressed in traditional clothes,  each male carrying a jar full of wine to drink and share with the spectators while singing old traditional songs.
The parade will continued till  the central park where they danced in groups and interacted with the assistants. The major gave then a short speech and the party continued till night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Special offer!!!

I am giving an speciall offer to my few but faithfull readers and "admirers." You can have a discount of 20% in the purchase of prints from my website, just browse it, choose your photo or photos and during the checkout process use the code MY20%. 

The transactions are made trough Paypal system, so you can use your paypal acount or credit/debit cradit with total confidence. It is 100% secure and if there is some photo you like but it is not avaliable for sale please online contact me directly.
They are printed and shipped from the USA trough the company EZ prints and they ship worlwide so if you live within the United States of America shipping will be very cheap and for the rest of the world their prices are very reasonable. Give it a try.

In my website you can find some commercial images like this:

or some more artistic like this one:


Or touristic:


See all my galleries and enjoy them. The special run until August 31.

Extras 4 - Tereza

I like to play with emotions when I took photographs, I known my models personally very little.  And that is an advantage I think, at least for the kind of work I do. Most of them are girls I saw waking on the street or working in hotels, pubs, etc, that call my attention in someway. So after a short introduction an exchange of mails and a meeting to explain my idea of what I want to get from the shot and expect from them as a models, we close the deal. Obviously not always work. Some never reply the email, or politely say that are no interested and others change of mind one day before the shoot. But that make life more interesting at least for me. Many times the shy looking girl have been who took the challenge to be photographed.
The following shots are from another student. Three different looks for the same person that as I mention in an previous post, these are more a reflexion of my emotions than hers.

Other world

Long time ago, during my days as a staff photographer for cruise line I used to travel around the Caribbean, surrounded by beautiful beaches, white sand, palm trees and an eternal summer, I took these photographs. Instead of the traditional Caribbean landscapes and sunsets, sexy girls in the beach, wild parties or some exotic attraction/place I was taking blurry photos (in purpose). 

Something was not going ok. My mind was "out of place".

I like darkness. Most of my portraits are done in my studio, and in a 95% I use a black background, I like black metal, small spaces where I can control all, artists like Joel Peter Witkin and John Santerineross. So all these sunny days and prettiness were too much, obviously I enjoyed it, but it was not good for the kind of images I wanted to create until I realized that the solution/escape was very simple.

As artists, we are always looking to make something original and different, not always happen but we still try. In this case if I did not want to take landscapes or people as they usually are taken in this kind of environment why not simple distort it. I have no need of glasses and have a pretty good sight, therefore have to "see" the world in this way to be able to express myself was really challenging. I like the results, hope you too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Life in PORNO VILLA

This is an amazing animation video from a group of  artist from Prague. It was made in what they call "Porno Villa", the place where they live and work. There is a web site too (Czech only), a bit clutter to my taste, with more images and interesting content that make it worth visit it.

The video is about a crazy journey, transformations (or mutations) and rebirth  of a "porno lover" by the logo in his t-shirt trough different environments of the house. Enjoy it.

 

World Wide Photowalk 2010

Last Saturday I had the opportunity to be a leader for a photo walk as part of the Scott Kelby's worldwide photowalk here in the city of Brno. We were only four in total but despite our short number we had a very good time. We were Tomaš Burian and Viktor both czech, Marison from Philippines and me of course from Peru.

We had had very sunny and hot days during that week but on that Saturday the weather betrayed us! Earlier in the mooring a rain welcome the weekend so our international group had to deal with a cloudy day but we anyway we spent a fantastic time walking trough the park Lužanky photographing almost anything to then finish in a great restaurant called Cerny medved with czech food an of course with south Moravian beer.

The photographers

 

A great shot from Tomaš Burian.

 Remembering my ground pollution series.

 A pretty actress from the city theater.

 uhm.. no coments

You can see more in the Flickr  photo walk page.

Brno, mask party ( Slavnost masek ) 2010

On June 19 th there was the Brno masquerade party as part of the International festival: theater world Brno 2010 (Divalní Svět Brno) and as the last year all the theater schools and companies participating in the festival went out to the streets to make of this party a really good visual show. Enjoy it. 

 The man dressed as a easter bunny measure around 1.85 meters (6.1 feet) and later I found out he is announcer at popular czech radio. Can you imagine this scene: Wife: honey, what plans for the weekend? He: I will dress as a sexy easter bunny and walk around the city.

Ready for a kiss?

mua...

muaaah...

You can see the more in the brno maquerade party of my website and have a look to the one from last year here.