forksheds
people relaxing by a tree. laguna beach, ca.
© kevin t vu
its been a consistent month of work for me and i’ve started to realize that i’ve made some in-roads in the photo community of LA. its been a bit arduous and slow, but i’m getting there.
as this is happening, i’ve also been in talks w/ a photographer in chicago who needs a full-time assistant. this is where the dilemma comes in. do i pick up and go or do i keep scratching and clawing here in LA. both offer great opportunities, but i need to see what’s best for my work and personality.
i cant complain as both are great options either way.
i’ve been reading rodney smith’s blog recently. if you dont know him, then go to his website now! his work is whimsical and has a timeless quality to it. the way he uses graphical/textual elements in his new book is wonderfully fluid!
there has been one entry that has really stuck w/ me.
“To say a photographer has a vision is to say the photographer has something unique to say about the world. Why do some photographers have something unique to say, when so many others just shoot pictures that are general and lacking vision? Most people would say it has to do with talent. Maybe. But maybe not. Maybe it has nothing to do with talent. Maybe it has to do with the ability to express one’s feelings. The person who presents a strong vision has figured out a way to express his or her feelings, while others are struggling to do that. Talent, then becomes not so much artistic talent, though that may be a good part of it, but rather emotional talent.”
What i have come to realize is that I could never be a documentary photographer. I am run on my emotions. People who meet me and who know my imagery find it perplexing. They see a happy person and wonder why I have such dark imagery. But that’s because they don’t know all the aspects of my personality. The reason I shoot the way I do is because I’m traveling on this path that I have for myself, and it has, at times, been a very isolated road. My work deals with personal issues in context to what is happening around me. Its my view of how I see what is going on around me. Seems a bit selfish, but I just can’t help it. Its how I see the world.
hope
aiden running around the house. orange, ca.
© kevin t vu
to be honest, a lot of my friends have gotten married over the years, and a lot of them i’ve missed. but fortunately, i was able to attend my good friend’s melissa’s wedding this past weekend at the long beach aquarium.
frankly, i’m not a big fan of going to weddings. but i thoroughly enjoyed myself at this one. and that was due to melissa’s and mark’s genuineness of love (not to say that other weddings dont have that). but there was a love that permeated the room. a love that their families and friends could share with them.
and i was fortunate enough to take part in the festivities. celebrations like these help me to be optimistic about the world.
heading out
summer in california. © kevin t vu
it’s summer and the 4th of july is this saturday. so i’m heading out. gonna drive to santa fe to visit some friends, do some odd jobs and celebrate the 4th. then i’m not sure where i’m heading next. might just drive back home or just keep going east.
i’ve switched back to film and will be shooting it on this trip. i have no idea what story i’ll be shooting, but i head out early tomorrow morning and all i have in mind is a photographic journal of my trip. i’m excited to be shooting on film again! it’s been a while. we’ll see how it turns out.
settling in
light coming through a window on lauren devon. mexico d.f., mexico.
i cant believe it is 5 months into 2009! i’ve decided that the next half of this year is going to be dedicated to my business as a photographer. i need to work on the business side and build on the relationships that i have here in southern california. there’s a huge, albeit saturated, market. i need to be in one place for a bit so that i can build on my client relationships. therefore, i’m going to hunker down for a bit. that means no frivolous traveling or spending. lets see how i do.
old friends in different places
aiden trying out eating with a spoon. orange, california.
staying warm after a bath. orange, california.
he likes to put his whole fist into his mouth. orange, california
hanging out with mommy. orange, california.
i don’t know how long i’ve been back home for now. the concept of time is sucked away from thought when i am in suburbia land. luckily, i’ve been able to work on some jobs assisting with embry rucker since i’ve been back. that has helped me to pay the bills for this month.
but i have also had a lot of free time as well. and i have used that time to hang out w/ my nephew aiden. he is a cute little booger and he drools a tremendous amount.
i’ve also been able to catch up on some work that i haven’t done since i’ve been jumping around. my reality seems to catch up w/ me whenever i’m home. ie. bills and what not.
luckily, i’ve come home at the right time. i have been able to meet up with some great old friends from london who i haven’t seen for a year and a half. i caught up w/ my friends Hubert Kang and Claudia Leisinger a couple of weeks ago. They are both amazing people w/ great talent.
Today, I was able to pick my friend Paige Green. She also has a wonderful blog that inspires me to keep shooting. Once I picked her up from good o’ John Wayne airport, we caught up at my local Irish dive bar and drank guinness that was poured the correct way! It was like being back at a pub in London all over again! I have such fond memories of great conversations about life and photography while I was there. the best part of it were the friends/peers that i shared those with.
and now, one of them, paige is back in my life, only for a week, but i’ll take what i can get. i’ll be assisting her for a couple of days. she’s shooting some university students at Chapman college, which happens to be only 10 min. from me. it’ll be great fun!! She is a wonderful photographer and I’m sure I’ll have a lot to learn from her process. I can’t wait to play!
