i just want subjects!

[lilangelstarz7]

do you ever sit around desperately wanting someone to photograph? i am always in the mood to take pictures of people, and i find myself always asking my friends to model for me, or to let me take pics of their children. ughhh today is just one of those days and there is no one for my camera and i really wanna play

 

[shingfan]

how about self-portrait?

 

[KaraM]

That's what my co-workers are for... :hug::

 

[neea]

I know EXACTLY how you feel.
Self portraits is a really good idea. I never really think of that. Depending on the weather I usually leave the house. Back alleys, random streets, ya never know what you'll find.

 

[craig]

Self portraits!!!!!!! Then check out what is going in community theater. Those folks love photos and they are good at it. Timing may be an issue, but as always do not get discouraged.

 

[Torus34]

Make sure that you always repay a sitter with some great free prints. [Local print operations of any size can provide 8x10's for about $3 each.] Matte them out as 11 x 14's.

Word of mouth should take it from there.

 

[Majik Imaje]

Right on Torus !! right on!

Yes! and to #1 lilanglz7 here is what I have to say. You want subjects?
good, do this and make some good money while your doing it.

Go to a little league game. Sit there and have some fun with your best camera. DO YOUR BEST. use tele don't get close to people and use tripod if possible..DO THE SHOOT AND LEAVE. find out when the next game is going to be played.. that shouldnt be hard.. I GUARANTEE YOU.. when you go to that next game with a hand ful of nice clean sharp 8x 10 @ 3 bucks each.. your gonna make a lot of money!

I got a dozen different ways to do this, that work no matter where you are in the world. I have been there and done this for over 40 years.!

I just gave you one.! time to think!
constructon jobs.! wow!
I took one picture once. one click 250 @ f11 a picture of a crane on a construction project in the desert. I made 12,000 of that one print @ 3.00 each in 4 months.
here is a link to the sink ha ha.. where i did this in 1980 http://majikimaje.com/drkrm15.jpg
gotta have tele.. look for "steel" , Iron workers will buy dozens if you catch them high (no pun intended)

I am just an electrcian, retired. but in 1969 I fell in love with photography.. ESPECIALLY THE DARKROOM. color !

I made good pay checks and everything I made went into my lab.

all I ever did was read books. I have never taken one class.

I have taught in college, I have taught in color labs. I have taught Pro's

I even taught Kodak! .. .. TRUE STORY thier EXACT WORDS.. "we have been trying to do this for over 60 years.. ! Get this patented is what they said to ME!...ten million dollars was on the table!

Its a funny true story !! and I am going to post it on this site shortly.
watch... listen.. & you are going to learn .. ! I PROMISE.

who am I ? nobody!..I just know how to read! & remember what I have read. more info.. Feb Long Exposure thread.. check out my rant

A world renoun Artist. tops in his field. the best of the best an ADVANCED photographer.!!! told me.. it can't be done! I did it with just one click
of a shutter 2 minutes @ f45

there is a whole world of subjects. I just happeed to walk into an art gallery.. just at the right time.! "get out of the house now" ! z7 play

 

[theusher]

I feel like the OP all the time. I just can't get my sh*t together and find something to photograph most of the time.

 

[Majik Imaje]

you dont know how to look.. .. YET !

LET ME TEACH YOU HOW.....you are thinking too big.!

you don't know how to see.. .. yet !

I would like to put you in an empty room and not let you out. until you find something in that room to take a photograph of.


chuckle.. how many hours is it going to take before you see it ?!!

 

[Icon72]

I seriously admire the way you think Majik. Bravo.

 

[Majik Imaje]

At least ONE PERSON.. is starting to understand what I am trying to tell ALL OF YOU!

You have a camera.. it doesn't matter which kind. type etc.

can you print: ? if you can't then make that happen as quickly as possible
either via an Epson 1280 color printer or via chemicals in a darkroom


now.. lets go out and make a lot of money!


My X-wife .. .. demanded my pay check every week.

My Y-wife .. .. blew all my pay check every week.

My Z wife.. well that's the end of that story right there.

now lets go make money

I had no money to buy equipment.! the only way I was ever gonna get anything that I wanted was to make money myself.!

I remember so clearly 1970.. I came walking into the house.. Oh so PROUD. so happy.. I had just saved enough money to purchase a Besler 23C I was on cloud nine.. (over time & junk money copper wire)

I came into the house and my wife looked up at me with the most contemtable look possible and shook her head and said: what an absolute waste of money.. YOU will never make as much as one dime off that thing

SO AN AGREEMENT was made right then and there.. ANYTHING I make photography($$$)

I get to keep.. she laughed and said ok.

ha ha ha ha ha ha! man was she upset! when she started to see the $$ come in.. slowly at first..! and every cent was spent at HUNTS.

I NEEDED a BESLER color analyser! at the tme the price was about 300.

I am working as an electrican at Revere High School.. 1972 everyone on that job site.. started work at 7 a.m.

Electricans for some reason started at 8 am.. wow..

I always got to work an hour early.! 35 mm camera 200 mm tele lens.

kodak color film (NOT VERICOLOR) and I would stay back and take shots of some of the people I was friendly with..on the job site. I made darn sure they didnt see what I was up to. at night when working in the darkroom. all images that I thought might be "saleable" were printed 8 x 10" gorgeous color. My darkroom is small and I can only process about 5 images each evening using "drums"

Every morning at work now I am starting to go around and show the images at Lunch time... I made a few sales hooray! @ 3 bux each

People just can't turn down.. that price. I remember one Italian laborer that could barely speak english.. Hey luigi.. check this out.! and I held up a most wonderul image of him up close (he never knew it or saw me) but this was up close and personal with him pushing a wheell barrow filled with cement. and the detail was superb.. ! I held it up and said. 3 bux. he said (much to my surprise) 25 cents. I laughed and said look .!! your wife and kids wil love this.. he said 25 cents. I ripped it up right in front of him. and said NO! and took the trash with me.

The next day .. I went up to him. and said (showing the exact same image) hey luigi.. LOOK!..his hand went into his pocket so fast!

I don't care where you live n the world.. CONSTRCUTION job sites are everywhere.. these people make very good money!

GO GET SOME!..now use your IMAGINATION.. ! you can't fail!

practice this ONE techinque along with the little league games.

here's another way.. GOLF. courses..! oh yeah!! ha ha ha. take the image.. but be careful that they never spot you.. if they do.. ignore them and move on.. or don't even take the image.

your out there looking for COLOR that is different. that stands out!

this will not work.. UNLESS YOU CAN MAKE A PICTURE .. that makes their eyes POP!

FIRST YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLSH THAT!

practice until you can do it consistently.

at work when lunch time came. do you actually think I was sitting down eating lunch? ha ha ha ha ha.. no! I was out .. taking pictures.

being in the right place at the right time.. CAN'T POSSIBLLY HAPPEN IF YOUR AT HOME ON YOUR COMPUTER!

I just happend to walk into an Art Gallery at the right momet just as an AVANCED photographer said it can't be done.!

I made tens of thousands of dollars. from that one entrance into that one place! because I could prove him WRONG!

Joseph Trippetti.. is ONE of only three people in the entire world who can do this sterling silver clossinane on white porcelean. with magnificent saturated color.. he taught the other two.!

my long winded rant about this is in the feb long exposure thread.

I am just an electrician, who read everything I could get my hands on.

I am obsessed with photography.. ! I want to learn this.because I love "beauty" and COLOR. now combine the two.. add your imagination..!


the boundaries are truely UNLIMITED. ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE.!

THE ONLY LIMIT .. is YOUR imaginaton.!

now in order to DEVELOP your imagination and make it STRONGER

you gotta do excercies! go think about that. OUTSIDE.. with your camera. I will be back to continue!

then I wll tell you the story right here. how Kodak had ten million on the table for me.!

now get out! take photographs.. today. then send me the results of just one of your best shots send it tommorrow. with the subject line

KODAK i will edit this poRtion out later tonight.. this is open for one day only.. let me see what all of you on this thread can do!

let me teach YOU!........... I AM AN EXPERT !

David Levine is / was a friend of mine. he put an add in the newspaper. wanted / needed Color printer (person) to print wedding photograhs

I applied for the job at his house. he asked for my credentials. I said I have none. I am an electrican (industrial not homes) but I know how to print color very well. we started to talk and I could sense the aprehension. I said.. lets take a look at your darkroom I almost fell over when I saw a 30,000 dollar kreonite processor ! whoa!

he had a Besler 4x5 color enlarger w/dicrohic color head. and the same color analyzer I had.! whew.!

he asked . do you know how to use this stuff. I said yes I have the same basic enlarger and I have the exact same analyzer! his tensions subsided. and he asked make me one copy of this negative. I am going to give you 15 sheets of color paper. I was a bit loud when I said for what? his eyebrows raised and he looed at me and said. it is going to take you many sheets of paper to get the filter pack correct. I said no it doesn't it only takes two sheets. NOW ... I got his attention.!! NOBODY can do it with just wo sheets.

I said watch! the first print went through that processor and it came out too magenta by 25! I can see it. I have been PRACTCING COLOR CORECTION FOR YEARS.. the kodak way..it took time.. but I learned how to see, determine and correct with just a blink or two.

I went over to the color head and made the correcton. made the print and he fell over! I was hired on the spot. I quit two weeks later. 4 bucks an hour for my talent.. go get someone else. but. we became very good friends. ! 3 of bostons biggest color labs wanted me. but they were only willing to pay 12 bux an hour I am making 22 an hour! bye!

read read read until you can remember all the words..then practice practice practice until you can accomplsh what those words said.!

i did.. .. so can you.!

 

[montresor]

Wow, Majik, very inspiring! Sometimes circumstances can get a little overwhelming, and we find we're forgetting to focus on the main thing, which is taking lots of pictures!

 

[Majik Imaje]

Usher! you can go outside with your camera and 'shoot lots of pictures"

and come home with a bunch of pictures. Anyone can do that, and it is a lot of fun, all the time.

But I am trying to get you to LEARN..(this takes time) HOW TO SEE... how to look.. sure you can walk around and look & see and take lots and lots and lots of photos.OR .YOU CAN look! all around you..and PLAN .

Ansel Adams.. .. .. didn't just point and shoot.. he always had a plan. he planned his composition & his subject(s)

this takes time to learn.. by taking lots & lots of pictures.. Ansel Adams did not "learn" this overnight, either will you!

 

[silentrunning]

I could never find anything to photograph until a friend told me to quit looking for "BIG" pictures. Look for little things that will make great pictures. Don't photograph the entire puzzle, photograph the pieces. A broken branch on a tree is more interesting than just another tree picture. Such mundane things as moss can be great pictures. Photograph an exit sign over an open door. Anything can make a great picture if you are just willing to make your view small enough to catch it.

 

[markc]

Go to a little league game. Sit there and have some fun with your best camera. DO YOUR BEST. use tele don't get close to people and use tripod if possible..DO THE SHOOT AND LEAVE. find out when the next game is going to be played.. that shouldnt be hard.. I GUARANTEE YOU.. when you go to that next game with a hand ful of nice clean sharp 8x 10 @ 3 bucks each.. your gonna make a lot of money!

I know people do this, but be careful with it. You have no right to sell a person's image that can be recognized unless you have a release (or if it's for a news story), even if it's to the person in the picture. If they knew this and wanted to, they could get you in trouble. If you plan on selling them, it's best to get releases for any images that have recognizable people in them.