Why I shut down the previous post, “Truth in our Industry“,  is that it started becoming less productive and less about the true talk of photography, more about the personal attacks. The personal attacks have detracted from the value of the dialogue that this blog was originally started for. We are part of a buyer beware society, so many of you do have opinions of workshops and or products. Looking past all the negativity that has been said, there has been a lot of positive that has come out in the past 2 weeks. Let’s keep the positive going. Many of you have found your voice in seeking the Truth, the truth shall set you free, and it has for all of you.

In moving forward, I want everyone to know that I am going to keep the conversation open and I am not going to edit anything you have to say if you feel you still have to vent or call someone out. The only thing I want all to know is to keep it professional and a respectful position, on the up and up, so to speak. I invite all of you to write in all the positive that you have taken from the previous post in these past 2 weeks. I am a small voice like yours and my heart is in this to improve our industry.

I’m not a grumpy, I care. I care about how my industry is perceived. I care about our art. Its not all about the money. Its a passion, a passion that I have been working on for over 25 years now. So whether you are a “newbie” or  a “veteran” of this industry, let’s show how much we care about photography and keep the art alive. I want everyone to learn, I welcome new people in our industry, just learn and respect all the hard work those before us have done.

From author John of Salisbury in 1159. “We are like dwarfs sitting on the shoulders of giants. We see more, and things that are more distant, than they did, not because our sight is superior or because we are taller than they, but because they raise us up, and by their great stature add to ours.”

Legends of Jazz Photography

Herman Leonard

William Gottlieb

William Claxton

April 1 through May 15, 2010
Reception for Herman Leonard: Thursday, April 1, 7-9 pm

The Fahey/Klein Gallery is pleased to present Legends of Jazz Photography, featuring the works of Herman Leonard, William Gottlieb, and William Claxton.  This exhibition is a photographic journey through the golden years of the Jazz, Blues and Bebop eras that document the larger-than-life legends that comprise the visual album of America’s music. Focusing on the life and times of famed artists such as Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk among countless others, this exhibition features a selection from their extensive photographic history.

Herman Leonard was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania in 1923. Discovering the camera at the age of 11, Leonard began his career by photographing friends in school. As a teenager, Leonard discovered that the camera could grant him access into many concert venues. Leonard attended Ohio University to pursue a bachelor’s degree in photography–a relatively new course of study in the 1940s. In 1943, World War II interrupted his studies and Leonard joined the Army Medical Corps in Burma, but continued his affair with the camera, developing film late at night in his combat helmet. After the war, Leonard continued his coursework and graduated in 1947. Undergoing a series of projects throughout his early years, Herman Leonard studied under Canadian portraiture photographer Yousuf Karsh for a year, which granted Leonard the invaluable opportunity to photograph the likes of Albert Einstein, Harry S. Truman and Clark Gable among others. In the 1950s, Leonard became the personal photographer to Marlon Brando and later moved to Paris where he worked fashion and advertising jobs for magazines such as Playboy, Life, and Time. Most recently, the Smithsonian Institution honored Herman Leonard by acquiring a complete set of his most important photographs for their permanent archives of musical history.

William Claxton (1927-2008) spent six decades capturing images of Hollywood celebrities, Fashion, and many of the significant jazz musicians of the period. His iconic images of Chet Baker, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday and many others reflect his preeminence among photographers of jazz music. Claxton began his career shooting jazz record cover art and continued throughout his career to work for many of the biggest publishers including Life, Paris Match, and Vogue magazines. His work has been shown in galleries and museums around the world. He passed away on October 11, 2008 in his hometown Los Angeles just shy of this 81^st birthday.

William Gottlieb’s photographs reveal America’s musical giants from a uniquely intimate perspective.   His ability to show the soul and energy of jazz goes back to his roots as a journalist for The Washington Post.  White covering the music beat in his weekly column, Gottlieb traveled with the Big Bands and frequented Harlem’s legendary jazz clubs.  Through his passion for the music and deep respect for the artists Gottlieb was able to capture the fervor and glamour of the golden era of Jazz.  Gottlieb’s catalogue of photographs have appeared in newspapers, television documentaries, magazines, museums, and on over 250 album covers.  The Library of Congress houses over 2,000 black-and-white photographs and in 1994, four of his images of Charlie “Bird” Parker, Billie Holiday, Mildred Bailey, and Jimmy Rushing became stamps.  Gottlieb died April 24, 2005 at his home in Great Neck, New York at the age of 89.

Jim Marshall

Trust

April 1 through May 15, 2010
Reception in Memory of the Artist: Thursday, April 1, 7-9 pm

The Fahey/Klein Gallery is pleased to present “Trust,” a series of new photographs by renowned Rock and Roll photographer Jim Marshall. For the first time, Marshall shares images from his archive of color photographs – many which have never been seen. Published in his recent book of the same title (Trust, Omnibus 2009), the title refers to Marshall’s notion that having the artist’s trust is what led him to be able to take such revealing photographs:  “I feel that in my photographs there is a trust given by the artists. When I point the camera at somebody, there’s a covenant, and I will not violate that trust.”

The exhibition features iconic photographs that take the audience on a historical tour of rock music taken over Marshall’s 50-year career. Totally relentless in his approach by demanding complete access to his subjects, Marshall documented the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, and John Coltrane with candid poignancy that few could ever really emulate. Marshall reveals, “When I’m able to capture the essence of my subject and show something of what they do or reveal who this person is, then I’ve achieved what I want to do. It’s such an elusive thing, and sometimes I feel like a sniper waiting for that shot or moment to happen… I think my style is that I don’t have a style – I never do anything the same twice. When you see my pictures, it’s about the person in the photograph, not me – not the guy behind the lens.”

Jim Marshall’s photographs from the 1960′s and 1970′s are the most memorable of the era. With work covering everything from what may have been Otis Redding’s last major performance at the Monterey Pop festival before his untimely death, to his iconic images of Bob Dylan pushing a tire down the street, Janis Joplin lounging backstage, and Johnny Cash flipping the bird at the lens, Marshall has been one of the best “musician” photographers. He penetrated their world and not only became an eyewitness, but a friend, comrade, and conspirator.  “Trust” is the evidence of a lifetime of rock and roll.

Having worked on innumerable assignments for periodicals, including Rolling Stone, Life, Saturday Evening Post and Newsweek, Marshall is also responsible for more than 500 album and CD covers. He has co-authored and collaborated on such publications as Early Dylan (Bulfinch, 1999), Not Fade Away (Bulfinch, 1997), and Monterey Pop (Chronicle Books, 1992). His work has been published worldwide and is included in the permanent collection at the Smithsonian.

Jim Marshall died Wednesday morning, March 24^th in New York City.  He was 74.

This interview is being shared with True Photo Talk by my friend Scott Anderson of Folio Podcast who did the interview with Kim Weston, who comes from a long line of photographers in the Weston family. Please listen and enjoy. Check out Folio Podcast for other cool interviews.

I’m thrilled about this episode featuring a conversation with fine art photographer Kim Weston. Kim has been a personal inspiration since I had the opportunity to first meet him at one of his workshops nearly 6 years ago. I’ve since attended additional workshops of his, and have grown a great deal (both personally and professionally) as a direct result of Kim’s teachings and influence.

Kim has been a fine art photographer for over 30 years specializing in large format photography and the human figure, and is a third-generation member of one of the most important and creative families in the history of fine art photography (Kim learned his craft alongside his Father Cole and his Uncle Brett, and assisted in the darkroom making gallery prints from his Grandfather Edward’s original negatives).

Famous last name aside, Kim has created a very important and valuable body of work over the years, and as you’ll learn in this episode, he is continually evolving and growing as a visual artist. Perhaps most inspiring about Kim is his genuine artful life. Kim has said that his life is his art, and this is clearly evident in his thoughtfulness, his lifestyle and the unique ways in which he sees and experiences the world around him. Kim and his wonderful wife Gina generously share their passion, energy and artistic vision with workshop participants throughout the year. In addition, they run a unique scholarship program in the spirit of celebrating the roots of photographic history and keeping the traditional process of the black and white photographic medium alive.

Kim and I address many topics in our conversation, with a great deal of discussion about the complete process of photography, and the nuances of living an artful life. Also evident throughout our conversation is Kim’s passion and commitment to his family, along with his genuine interest in maintaining the value and integrity of fine art photography, and giving back to the community through continual teaching and workshops.

I am honored to have Kim as a guest, and I encourage all of you to visit his website and follow along on his journey through his blog. You can also find links to Kim and Gina’s scholarship, workshops and other events on his website.

Join me now for an inspiring conversation with Kim Weston.

By the way, I am not a “Grumpy”, a label these supposed leaders came up with to downplay those photographers, myself included, who have been practicing this craft and art of photography for over 20 years with a driven passion. They don’t want us “grumpies’ / experienced photographers having a voice or more importantly an opinion on the state of our industry. As he said (supposed wedding photography leader), “Death to the grumpies”. How dare you try to make us look bad, professional photographers who believe in the art and this is our passion. I have studied photography on the university level, even taught at the same level. I have mentored many, lectured, studied and lived my passion, photography.

So go ahead and self destruct through your vain self promotion. I still have plenty of career ahead of me, because what is important to me is my craft of photography and my happy clients, real clients, that I still shoot weddings and other events and jobs for.

So long live the TRUTH!

As we know, there many more photography fields other then weddings. Fine art, commercial, editorial, fashion, industrial, photojournalism, and many more. So let’s be real here. Let’s keep the focus on what we know that the masters of our industry worked really hard to make photography acceptable as art. I’m sure this week with my visit to WPPI I will have many conversations that will give us more ideas to grow this venture together, you and I.

Also, just something quick for those who visit this site, here is a world renown photographer that I was fortunate enough to assist on occasion when he would come to Miami, Helmut Newton. This is to open the mind to some of you who have never heard of him, or other GREATS we plan on talking about here. How many photographers you know have their own museum.

And one of his most famous images