Miami Swim Week 2022

For those of you who continue to read my blogs I thank you very much. I am reminded every day that there are many out there who read my blogs and enjoy them but never let me know. For those silent blog readers I thank you as well. Please note that verbalizing your appreciation will encourage me to continue my blog writing.

This blog will be about my experiences and feelings about the Miami swim week 2022. It really goes much deeper than that.  I will delve into the very sensitive subject of "free", focusing  on the photographers and models that continue to work these venues for nothing. I may offend many but please understand these are all my perspectives. I write in transparency. I hope this is why you like to read my blogs.

What is Miami Swim Week

https://www.racked.com/platform/amp/2014/7/25/7584867/miami-swim-week-history

Miami Swim Week is Mercedes-Benz's official fashion week for all things beach (and pool, and summer in general). And in the ten years since its inception, it's gotten seriously huge.

What began as just a handful of shows has now grown to include presentations from 50 brands at a variety of venues both official and not; this year alone attracted more than 600 media outlets and buyers from all over, accounting for a chunk of the 10,000 guests who made their way to Florida. It is, without a doubt, the most important event for swim and resort wear in the country—if not the world.

My experience photographing Miami Swim Week

In all honesty I have only photographed swim week 2-3 times of its 10+ years of existence. This has not been because I didn't want to nor because I was not qualified.  For me it was more of a matter of receiving proper invites and or photographer credentials to photograph the shows. It is very clear that hundreds of photographers want to be on the "official" list and receive a photographer pass to bring your long lens in and join the other photographers in the pit.

Why am I not on the list?

Thomas Schmuki - Photographer

This year I put out multiple marketing requests on both facebook and instagram to receive invites from the designers, models or venues.  I heard crickets louder in the campfires as a Boy Scout in the mountains of Colorado. I finally received invites to 3 different shows.  The last one at the Hard Rock came to me the day of the show. What are my thoughts about this?  Personally, I question my product, my brand, my marketing, everything.  I personally know my product stands out against nearly any peer in the business. It is probably more about who I know and don't know.

Sample photos from Miami Swim Week 2022 at the Hard Rock Hotel

My photographer friends as peers

I have associated with, shot with and admired many local and national photographers.  I am not shy to acknowledge their talent and product when a fantastic photo is posted.  When I meet them personally at photo shoots I acknowledge your talents. I can see a little uneasiness set in when they know I have praised their work socially and there has been no reciprocation. I have no problem acknowledging talent and work. I have a lot to learn from all of you!

Why do we all work for free?

It may come as a surprise to many of my readers and fans of my photography that much of my work is done out of the goodness of my heart... free, no tip, many times not even a thank you.  I mostly thank the Iphone camera craze for this.  Everyone has a camera, can take pretty good pictures and have an immediate outcome that can be shared socially in a click of a finger. Your photo is clicked once, shared and likely never enjoyed again. I ask you, is your iPhone phot worthy of a magazine publication or a 20x30 print hanging in your house?

We are all to blame

I certainly do NOT want to put everyone in the same bucket but we are ALL to blame. Models who walk the runway for free, photographers and videographers who work for hours on end for free, and the list goes on.

There are real exceptions

I have been paid by many models in both private shoots and runway edits.

Fashion designers have graciously paid me.

Can I have all the photos you took of me at the runway?

This is a very common request I get from models, fashion designers, makeup artists and other show participants.

This very day I was asked by a model if I could please provide her with free photos.  She told me she walked the runway for free and was upset she was not paid. This pretty much says it all.

There may be an assumption that I was HIRED by a designer or the venue, and therefore the photos are included as a PERK to their runway walk. No, I am not hired by the venue, and have only on occasion been hired by a fashion designer.

The conversation flow

After I am asked for all the photos I usually provide a listing of my show special pricing for editing and providing high quality photos. "No, just send me all of them and if I like any of them I will pay you...". I even have provided PROOF watermarked photos to models for choosing edits that proceeded to post the photos with the PROOF watermark on it. I have even had models remove the PROOF watermark from the photo and then post it.

Now to locate just your photos

Let's assume I took 2,500 photos at a fashion show. To locate every photo a model was in I need to cull through all of them to find those precious few.  I then choose the photos to edit.  Each edit takes from 3-10 minutes depending on what I want as a result.  No, I never ever give out photos right out of my camera. I must protect my brand.

To ask for free photos is an insult to my soul. It's like asking a dentist for a free crown or a plastic surgeon for a free facelift or botox treatments. I would be embarrassed to tell you the monetary value of the gear I bring to a shoot. Free, really?

My NIKON camera gear I brought to the Hard Rock show. Nikon Z9, Z6 II and D850

I am pretty sure I am safe here because those I am talking about would never read my blog anyway.

How much time do I spend on 1 fashion show?

Rather than itemize the details which I would gladly do, the average 3 hour fashion show requires around 25-35 hours of work. This include driving, setup and breakdown, photo editing and communications with clients about the photos. This becomes a labor of love... a unidirectional love.

How do we fix this problem?

Every photographer, videographer, model and show participant who continues to agree to free will only perpetuate the problem. I am part of the problem. I admit it. I think we all are. Stop giving away your work for free.

Why do I photograph fashion and runways

The pure and simple answer is that I love doing it. I love it in spite of the all knowing back end barrage of free I will get.  I love the energy, the music the entertainment. The Hard Rock show was so awesome.

I do it because I think there are very few who produce the product I do.  I am very proud of that.  I admire and respect many of my peers both personally and on social media. You know who you are.

Italy Trip Planning - my first blog about our trip

Map of Italy

A birthday gift from Alice

It was my birthday last year when I was surprised with Alice’s offer to fly us Business Class to Italy.  Due to her business commitments and scheduling we decided the best time to go would be the month of May.  We finally set our specific dates from May 23rd through June 23rd.  One month in Italy.  WOW! The plane tickets have been purchased and we are flying Air France to Paris, then a plane with 1 hour layover time to Venice Italy.  We are a bit concerned about the short layover time.  We are assuming if we miss the connection, Opps, lunch in Paris and we take the next flight.

I have never in my life flown first class or business class.  I smile at the SNOBS in the front seats as I clank people on the head with my luggage as I am passing by.  Alice tells me they want you to fall to sleep on the plane as we fly over the “big pond.”  Here is a photo of what the business class seats look like on Air France.  Oh Alice, where are you?

Air France Away…

When the lights go out the bed goes down. Oh flight attendant, where is my cognac?

Amenities of flying business class

Some of the amenities of flying Business class on this airline include: socks, an eye mask, a tooth brush and Clarins skin care products. We will be offered a multi course meal designed by a rotating cadre of top chefs. Starters include things like lobster or shrimp, foie gras, hot bread and of course French butter. Alcohol is complimentary. I think we will be drinking wine and a cognac after dinner.

Time to plan

As of September 12th last year (my birthday) we have been planning our agenda.  Alice has been to Italy two times in the past, last time being about 11 years ago.  I have basically never been out of the country except for cruise line ports in most of the Caribbean.  I have never been to any country in the Eastern Hemisphere.  Go figure, my heritage is German and Swiss.  Where do you think I got my blue eyes and blond hair from?  Yes I have most of the features of a handsome German man — NOT.

Alice the master planner

Let me introduce you to a planner…… Alice.  She has diligently spearheaded our agenda including flights, cities to visit, hotels, tours, etc.  Of course she has included me in every decision.  Take a look at the stack of books and brochures Alice poured over to plan this trip.  If I move that stack of books I get the “don’t move those books.”

Just a subset of all the books, periodicals, internet queries (GOOGLE) and of course Rick Steves video series

Lets buy some luggage

Of course we needed matching luggage. I just hope there will be enough room for my Nikon ha ha.

New luggage arrived just in time

Tri Rail test ride

We decided to try using Tri-Rail from the Delray station to the Miami Airport.  In our planning mode we decided today to test the theory.  We love it.  The train takes about 1.5 hours, just a few steps to the shuttle which takes just a few minutes to the airport.  All in it takes 2 hours from the train station in Delray Beach to walking in to the airport and checking our bags.  I highly recommend this!  Here are a few photos of our Tai-Rail planning day:

Cities we are staying in

Venice, Verona, Florence, Naples, Sorrento (Amalfi Coast), and Rome.  

Some of the tours we have already booked

Tours we have already scheduled: Vatican and Saint Peters, Colosseum and underground Rome, cooking classes, Pietrantoni Palazzo Colonna and others.

Ilian Rochev - an amazing artist and talent!

I also plan on meeting my friend and fantastic artist Ilian Rochov in Rome.  I hope to be shown many of his great works.  He is also going to help coordinate a few hours with a model in Rome.

I will be bringing my Nikon mirrorless camera with just a few lenses and flash. Alice is concerned about what fashion to bring, I am concerned about what camera gear to schlep around the country. I plan on taking many fantastic photos and writing and sharing my blogs with those photos as much as I can.  Stay tuned for my next blog which may be the day we leave.

Read all my blogs

You can read all my blogs in reverse order as I have created them. I am always amazed when I run into people who I never knew would read my blogs but have been all along. Just follow the link air the bottom of each blog to the previous blog. This makes me very happy. Support me with some encouragement and you will see some great blogs with photos on our trip of a lifetime to Italy.

Photographer Challenge #2 - Know your Camera

I call this GET TO KNOW YOUR CAMERA CHALLENGE.  I am convinced after watching many photographers struggle with their equipment they have NOT spent the time to KNOW their camera.  Knowledge is POWER and confidence give you the freedom to SEE the shot and GET the shot and receive the DESIRED results.

I am a very fast typist on the keyboard, clocked at more than 105 WPM on a standard typewriter in High School.  Why am I so FAST?  It’s simple, proper technique, and NOT looking at your fingers or hands while you type.  I know where the keys are instinctively.  Your challenge is to get to know your camera that intimately.

HERE is your TEST:

IN the DARK, with no lights on, can you adjust the following settings without taking your eyes from the viewfinder in under 5 seconds:

• Change your FOCUS from Manual, to Continuous, to automatic

• Change your focus SPOT from Single point to multiple point/Wide

• Change your ISO from 100 to 400

• Change your ISO from 100 to Auto ISO

• Turn your Flash or strobe on or off (on your camera, not your FLASH)

• Change your shutter speed from 1/200 to 1/1000 to 1/30

• Change your F-Stop from fully OPEN to totally shut down, and back to F8

• Change your MODE from Aperture Priority to Manual, to Shutter Priority (S mode on Nikon) and back to Aperture Priority

• Change your White Balance to Auto, then to Cloudy, then to 5200K and back to Auto

• Replace your battery on your camera

• Replace your batteries on your FLASH (this is a HARD one!) - I’ll give you 60 seconds on this one

On my NIKON I MUST KHOW where the following keys/buttons/switches are and my fingers must find them with my eyes closed:

• Camera on/off switch

• ISO button

• Camera mode dial (M/A/P/…)

• Display button

• AF on (Auto focus button - I use BACK BUTTON Focus)

• Info button (i)

• OK button

• Main Command dial

• Sub Command dial

TIP: You can program your buttons and view finder displays to your specific needs.  For example I program the following programmable buttons:

F1: White balance

F2: Auto Focus modes allowing me to switch from AFC/AFM/AFS 

Nikon Tip: 

The Display button toggles various displays available in your view finder and on your display.   This button is VERY helpful in DARK shooting

The Info button (i) show’s your current configuration of very important settings and allows you to change them on the fly by rotating your COMMAND dial.

Practice, practice practice. I did not learn to type 105 WPM on a manual typewriter by reading a manual!

While watching TV I often grab a camera and play these GAMES with it.  My challenge is although I only shoot Nikon, all cameras are slightly different.  When I switch cameras I have to cheat for a while because the setup is not only different but the buttons and knobs are also different.  This is ONE REAL reason to stick with one camera BODY!  I have a Nikon D850, D500 and Z6, ALL different and special in their own way.

If you can do this with your camera in the DARK you KNOW your camera and can concentrate on the composition and capture.  If you don’t you may miss it.

My challenge: Practice this UNTIL you have it, maybe just 15 minutes a day, in the DARK.  No cheating, you are allowed to look at the display in your viewfinder but NOT on your back screen!

Points awarded: - you can have up to 13 days to complete, practice up!

• 5 points if you can do ALL the above items in less than 5 seconds each

• 3 points if you can do at least 6 of the items in the list

• 1 point for trying and putting up with my BLOGS

• 2 points extra credit if you can do at least 6 items in under 2 seconds

NOTE: points are only awarded with your active participation on my BLOG entries.  You MUST put your achievement and points earned in the comments section of the blogs.

Five things you probably don't know about me

A number of people have told me their favorite blog was my “10 Things you don’t know about me”. Well, here are 5 more

1. I was asked to try out for the Donny and Marie Osmond show as a backup singer. I was not interested in being anything but the LEAD singer with mike in my hand and a whole band around me.

2. My generation is the first generation in the USA without a mandatory draft to fight in a world war or major war. I missed the draft of the tail end of the Vietnam war by the skin of my chinny chin chin. My father fought in World War II in the Navy on a destroyer. He observed fellow ships go down and watched dozens if not hundreds of sailors get eaten up by sharks in a feeding frenzy as their destroyer went down to the bottom of the ocean. His ship was hit by multiple Kamikaze planes and my dad to this day rides with his Purple Heart license plate from his Kamikaze war wounds - shrapnel right in his derriere. He can’t talk about his experiences in the war, too painful much like I cannot talk about the loss of my son Eric. His ship was very similar to the picture posted in this blog. My grandfather Augustine Schmuki fought in World War I. 

3. For the real techies out there I started programming in Oracle version 3 with a release date of 1981. To install Oracle Development version I had 70-100 CD’s to install, one by one, only to find out # 48 of 70 is bad, have to order it and start all over when it arrives. My how times have changed.

4. I grew up using a rotary dial telephone. My first cell phone was a Motorola Brick. Motorola’s first cell phone cost 4-5 thousand dollars and had about 30 minutes of talk time. For the record that first phone was NOT the Motorola Brick, but was more like the Motorola Elephant! I just purchased Apples new iPhones 10s max that has more processing power than many main frame computers I grew up staring down in the raised floor data centers. Motorola dominated the cellular phone market for years, and my kids have never even seen one.

5. I played tennis with Bjorn Borg once during the inaugural year of the Tennis Champions tour. I enjoyed surprising him with my play.   Ok I know he was just toying with me. For those who don’t know who Bjorn Borg is…. He is a Swedish former world No 1 tennis player widely considered to be one of the greatest tennis player of all time. He won 11 Grand Slam singles including six French Opens, and five consecutive Wimbledon Championships.

There you have it. Hope you enjoyed it.

Tom

My Birthday Wish

Photo taken by my son Ryan when the light hit me just perfect

September 12, 1955… the day I was born. 

To give a little perspective. 

In the 50’s houses cost on average $15,000, a brand new Chrysler New Yorker cost $4,500, and gasoline was about 25 cents a gallon.  Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Patti Page and Tony Bennett were amongst the most popular musicians.  Sit down in front of your black and white TV and watch Bonanza, Gunsmoke and the Twilight Zone.  There were no computers, no internet, no NASA, no iPhone, and no Xbox 360’s.

So what do I want for my birthday, what is my real birthday wish?  Here is a short list:

• American government, FIX it.  Come on, it has been broken for years.  Can’t we come up with 2 presidential candidates we can all be proud of and not have to always vote for the best of two really bad choices?

• In addition to WORLD peace, I want inner peace.  Have not had it for years.  My soul left when my son Eric was diagnosed Paranoid Schizophrenic when he was 19 and then died in his sleep over 6 years ago.

• I want to feel like I made a real contribution to the world even in my own small way.  What kind of legacy will I really leave?

• I want my photography to be so unique, interesting and beautiful that I will be unable to keep up with the work.

• I want my photography to be valued by more than a passing “like” or a single comment on social networks. 

• I want to feel young again.  I am stiff, sore and inflexible created by a lifetime of sports and orthopedic surgeries. I won the battle of multiple club championships in golf and tennis but lost the war of flexibility. While I am wishing, how about single vision instead of double vision created by my health incident a few months back?

• I want to hear one person whisper to another…… “hey, isn’t that Thomas Schmuki, the world famous photographer?”

• Two months from now I want to look back and say, “MAN I SHOULD HAVE RETIRED YEARS AGO, now I can do what I really love 24/7 – Photography”

• How about a real friend?

I know most of my wishes are unrealistic, but I do frequently think about these things.

That’s all I want….. But hey, there is always Christmas.

Tom

Is it FREE, or What's the cost?

Self Portrait taken in Gatlinburg Tennessee

What is YOUR opportunity cost, here is a stab at mine.

Why am I writing this article anyway?  One of the first questions I get from a photo shoot potential participant is what is the cost, or is it FREE?  These are the things that go through my mind every time that question is posed to me.

Here I go again writing a controversial article.  My college degree was in finance with a dual minor in accounting and economics.  My first economics class was a huge discussion on... "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".  This lesson should be learned early in life and not as a freshman in college.  However, my discussion  of free will relate only to photography shoots which are done with models on a TFP basis (Time for Print).  Historically this term has evolved over the years and frankly has a different meaning to every photographer and model.  I do a LOT of TFP work, as many as 2-3 per month.  Let me digress to discuss the true costs of a photography shoot that I do, not to compare with any other photographer.  My opportunity cost of time spent can only be compared with my other occupation as a software professional and developer with over 30 year's experience.  Contracting rates range from $75-$225 per hour in my field.  I will use $100 in my opportunity cost calculation. 

Actual Hours Calculation

• Shoot preparation, planning and preparation: 2 hours
• Pack up appropriate gear for shoot: 1 hour
• Drive time 2 and from shoot: 2 hours
• Actual shoot time: 3 hours
• Break down and put away equipment: 1 hour
• Culling, Editing and posting images: 12 hours
• Communication with participants before and after shoot: emails, IM's shot sheets, etc: 2 hours 

Total Hours: 23 hours @ $100/hour = $2,300

That is the number I think of when I decide on doing a shoot TFP.  It is a real commitment, and when I am committed, I do all I can do to execute EVERY time.  There is no question my opportunity cost in high school, college and at the beginning of my career is was much less than it is today.

So let's make more sense out of that $2,300 commitment to a TFP collaboration shoot. 

What is MY return on Investment (ROI)

1.  Marketing of REAL paid business in the future. Value unknown but is REAL
2.  I become a better photographer, better at my craft, better at everything
3.  Participants return to me with PAID business
4. Participants refer PAID business … wedding and event photography, head shots, model and fashion shoots, etc. 
5. And most importantly, the FUN factor.  What is my opportunity cost of the real FUN and satisfaction I get out of these shoots. 
6. The real internal value of a JOB well done, the value of a pat on the back or an accolade from a respected peer. 

If the intrinsic or real value I receive from items 1-6 does not come close to $2,300, my opportunity cost, then I need to re-evaluate the whole concept of TFP.

Not included in this COST calculation is sunk costs like thousands of dollars of photography equipment brought to a shoot and put at risk.  A lifetime of study, preparation and a gift from GOD to visualize, see, create and execute my craft.

This gets to my REAL point of TFP.  I would like to get rid of the term TFP.  I would rather use the term collaboration.  A true collaboration means disparate parties get together to create something they could NEVER have created alone, no matter how great their individual talents and skills are.  A true collaboration means each participant will receive compensation or benefits commensurate with their contribution. 

Models and Fashion Participants, I ask YOU to calculate your own true opportunity cost of doing a TFP shoot.

So, next time I am asked if the shoot is FREE, you know what is going through my mind. 

Does your photographer?

• Study new photography techniques at least 5 hours a week?
• Teach photography classes?
• Scout out a venue before the event to determine best time of day to shoot, locations and lighting?
• Invest in the finest photography equipment available and then spend the required time to optimize that gear to the best results?
• Shoot over 20,000 pictures a year?
• Come to location shoots with professional strobes and light modifiers?
• Have photographic timing and composition skills? 
• Give you an incredible photographic session experience: fun, challenging, exciting?
• Even ask you what your best side is?
• In the post processing editing process, does your photographer:
• Make sure white balance and colors are on point?
• Do face sculpting including double chin lessening?
• Paint face with highlights, mid-tones and shadows to create the best you possible?
• Selective adjust width of one or more eye to balance them out?
• Selectively sharpen specific items that are important to you like: jewelry, shoes, lipstick, hair, clothing?
• Spend time on each edited photo to make it “magazine worthy?”
• Crop the photo to maximize composition?
• Do portrait retouching including:Full Makeup (lipstick in a full range of colors and textures, false eyelashes, eyeshadow, blusher, mascara, eyeliner, rouge)? Skin smoothing and blemishing removal? Eye clarity, whitening and sharpening? Teeth whitening and sharpening?
• Create beautiful artistic effects that can make your picture look interesting, dramatic, different, like a painting?
• Does your photographer consider all shades of black and white when considering black and white?
• Optimize exported JPEG for intended purpose including social networking sites and printing/enlargements?
• Backup your photos to 3 separate sources including cloud storage and off-site backups?

• Get up at 4:30 am because he/she is so excited to do another sunrise photo shoot at the beach?

  If you have found a photographer that does these things, you have found a true GEM. 

Instagram - Fake users or am I just confused

I have in the past been a very casual user of Instagram focusing most of my social network posts on Facebook.  I have decided to give Instagram a more focused trial.  So far, I am very confused.  

Confusion #1: as soon as I post a picture, dozens of followers “like” the picture.  There is no way they even had a chance to pull the picture up and see it in that amount of time.  I have been a  software developer for decades and have focused most of my programming in the last 5 years on SPIDER BOTS.  Whats is that you say?  Well - automated routines to touch web sites and do things. GOOGLE does this so they know where all the content exists.  Clearly there are dozens if not thousands of Instagram BOTS out there.  Not real people, just fake account acting like they have looked at your photo and liked it.  I am also sure they also can and do automate actual written comments like - “beautiful, nice, great shot, I love your site….”

Confusion #2: How is it when that dozens of people add me as a “follow”.  I see it happening on line.  While they are adding my follower count is going down.  How can 15 new people follow me in 10 minutes and 30 people stop following me in the same period of time.  ---- FAKE stuff happening out there.

Beware: Be careful if you are lured into buying Instagram followers.  

https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/12/18/millions-of-fake-instagram-users-disappear-in-purge/

https://boostlikes.com/blog/2016/09/check-instagram-followers-fake

Why I shoot in RAW

Most photographs taken  and posted today on social networks are not taken in RAW but taken in standard JPEG format.  Most of these photos are taken by your mobile phone, mine being an Iphone.  

What do you mean my phone is taking JPEG’s not RAW?

I primarily shoot Nikon cameras, including D850, D810 and D500.  My D850 captures and saves 45.7 megapixels of data when I shoot RAW  When I use that same D850 in JPEG (High Density/Fine) mode, my file sizes are approximately the files range from 18MB-25MB in size.  In either case these numbers are INSANE.  So what is the difference?  When I shoot in JPEG mode instead of RAW, my camera makes the following choices for me:

• Contrast – (What to capture in highlights, mid-tones, and shadows). Probably the most important thing to me
• Sharpness
• Hue/Saturation
• Sharpness
• Etc.

The number one reason I shoot in RAW

 I want ALL the DATA

Once these decisions have been made when shot in JPEG – recovering DATA which the camera decided NOT to capture is NON-RECOVERABLE.  You cannot recover details from the darkest shadows, nor from the blown out highlights.  In other words, once the camera has made the decision what to capture, ALL the other DATA is thrown away and gone forever.

The number two reason I shoot in RAW

Non Destructive Editing

Every time you edit a JPEG the quality is diminished.  Edit the same photos 10 times and compare the quality with the original.  Shooting in RAW allows you to edit NON-DISTRUCTIVELY.  My original RAW file remains in-tact and never changes.  All my edits and edit history are back traceable right to the original RAW file.

If you are buying a new camera, buy one that can shoot in RAW even if you don’t know how.  You will thank me later.  You can always shoot in JPEG while you learn how to process RAW

What are the downsides to in shooting in RAW?

1.       File Size – your memory card on your camera  fills up faster, and your permanent storage requirements on your computer or in the cloud becomes much greater

2.       Slower- Your camera will BURST slower when saving RAW versus JPEG, it takes longer to save those big files.  Your camera’s BUFFER may even fill up faster while you are continuous shooting.

3.       Immediate results . JPEG’s are ready to go, as bad or as good as they may be.  You can share them on social networks and give them to friends right away

4.       Learning curve of editing and processing RAW images.  I believe you can learn within 1 hour of time a process that will allow you to edit your files in RAW and have better results than your JPEG’s out of the camera

5.       I am sure there are more downsides, but WHO cares, I shoot in RAW.  I often shoot in RAW and JPEG at the same time, and frankly NEVER use the JPEG images.

I welcome comments, conversation and rebuttals.  Hey, I don’t know everything.  As a matter of fact I know very little, but at least I am trying to learn and grow and get better each day.

Tom

Paparazzi – Now I understand

This is my first real attempt to start a BLOG.  My blog will definately be focused on my experiences in around photography.  I will discuss events, best practices, experiences, tutorials and of course point my peers to other postings I find interesting and useful.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pegasus_World_Cup

http://www.gulfstreampark.com/racing/contests/pegasus-world-cup-betting-championship

After photographing the Pegasus World Cup Invitational in Miami Florida I understand more clearly the world of Paparazzi.  I have always said I don’t want to be one of those …. Chasing after the famous, interrupting their world, getting their attention, begging for their photograph and of course fighting the other photographers who are all looking for the same.

Shame on you my fellow photographers for treating your peers with such disrespect.  I observed arguments, mostly about allowing other photographers in the back row to get the shot.  I was asked by a fellow photographer to move because he had his name on the floor.  Guess I was not one of the named privileged few.  He was not only rude, but he seemed 2 miles wide, taking up the space of 2 photographers with his girth.

No wonder celebrities avoid paparazzi like the plague.  I don’t blame them.  While photographing the celebrities on the blue carpet with the paparazzi all around me, I heard a constant barrage of pleas from the photographers … “Hey, look my way”, “Up here”, “Take our hat off”, “take your glasses of”, “put your hand on your hip”, “blow me a kiss”, “how about a wink”, “do you remember me at the …. Party?”, “can you come back, I never got the shot”, “loved you in … name the movie/event”.  Lenny Kravitz, now I know why you made a v-line move right through the paparazzi not allowing any pictures to be taken.

I always said I am a people photographer, and what I really mean is I totally enjoy taking photographs of people who want me to take their photograph.  When I got away from the crowd of the paparazzi I finally started to feel like myself again.  Almost everyone graciously respected me and anxiously wanted me to take their photo.  They were kind, courteous and respectful.  I could tell how excited they were to be there and to possibly get a fantastic photo to represent their day.  I got out of my comfort zone and approached people asking them if I could take their picture.  Not a soul said no.  After showing them my photo in the back of the camera, I got what I almost always get…. “that may be the best picture I have ever seen of me …. How do I get it?”