recuperating

doc in the studio. santa fe, new mexico.
© kevin t vu

don in the studio. santa fe, new mexico.
© kevin t vu

this past week has been an absolute roller coaster. it had highs and lows and it went by real quick. we’ve photographed, we ate, and we drank. alan thornton, the photographer/instructor was great. very funny and down to earth. the class loved him and i learned a lot in the process. not necessarily photographically since it was a beginning light course, but my people skills definitely improved.

a new photographer comes in today, art streiber. he does a lot of celebrity portraiture and his images are fantastic. he’ll be discussing how to work as a freelance so i’m hoping to learn a lot. a week under my belt, lets see how the next 7 will be.

exhausted

on the road. somewhere between here and there.
© kevin t vu

on the road. somewhere closer to there than here.
© kevin t vu

prep week for the workshops started this past week. i’m absolutely exhausted. its been a good and challenging week. i’ve been quite frustrated w/ myself. as the ‘studio manager,’ i’m supposed to know how to setup the studio. unfortunately, its only my first season so i dont know the routine and expectations. so i’ve had to take a back seat as my studio assistant has had to take care of a lot of the operational side of things. the workshops start tomorrow so i’m hoping to get into rhythm once it starts. its been utterly taxing, but i’ve enjoyed every moment of it. hopefully, some opportunities will come from this. fingers crossed!

elheme |L-M|

snapshots during our trip through california and the southwest.
© kevin t vu

elheme was my flatmate in italy. somehow we miraculously kept in touch these past 6 years. i’ve seen her only a handful of times since we lived together. she’s from paris, but had been living in rome for the past 4 years. i was able to see her once while i was in florence last year. but before that, we hadnt seen each other in years. she’s one of those friends that u dont see for a while, but when u do, its just all very natural, as if we saw each other just the other day.

so she decided to come and visit me for about 3 weeks. and that is why i’ve been traveling. we were able to get our schedules perfectly aligned so i could make my move to santa fe as well.

she became my muse on this trip. she is very natural and carefree and i love that about her, even when i had a camera right in her face. so i decided to try to do some lifestyle/stock photography. i’m not sure if it’s stock material, but i love the pictures anyways.

she’s in new york now and i dont have a muse anymore. maybe i’ll go visit her in paris to do some more shots! an excuse to shoot and travel, why not?!

patterns and me

from time to time, i look down and find myself above interesting patterns.
© kevin t vu

i went into the santa fe workshop studios today. and i’ve met a lot of the course assistants and administrative people. everyone seems very nice. like i said previously, i dont start til monday. but i wanted to come in and see what i should expect. the space itself isnt great. its a big gymnasium. not an ideal studio, especially when u divide it into 6 small ‘bays.’ and w/ new mexico heat, 20+ participants and no air conditioning, it’ll be a struggle. but a struggle i gladly want to be a part of.

i fell in love w/ the equipment! i mean, when there are about 10 elinchrom lighting kits + some 10 profoto kits + 20 odd pocket wizards, thats just heaven!!! and thats not all. there’s so much more!!! i felt like a kid in a candyshop. i wish i could have it all to myself though.

i’ve been talking to some of the already seasoned employees about the season and what my duties would entail. apparently, since i’m studio ‘manager,’ i’ll probably be the busiest person here. which again, is a duty i gladly take on. i hate having free time while i’m at a job. so a job that keeps me running all day is perfect for me. i think it’ll be a lot of inventorying since i’m in charge of about $500,000 worth of equipment. karen, my studio assistant, said i’ll probably be working a lot of 14 hr days. so its pretty much like some assisting gigs that i’ve done. making sure the photographer gets what he/she needs. ie. kiss ass. i’m excited to get this season started and be part of a photographic community again, something i really miss from london.

which brings me to another point, i’ve been contemplating of moving back to the uk. so we shall see. the crappy things about that are the exchange rate and that my work permit would cost me about $800. i’ll make a final decision as this summer season ends.

landscapes

lowest elevation in the western hemisphere. death valley, california.
© kevin t vu

death valley, california.
© kevin t vu

view from the southern rim of the Grand Canyon. Grand Canyon, Arizona.
© kevin t vu

elheme scaling the southern rim. grand canyon, arizona.
© kevin t vu

the 2nd deepest lake in america, 16th deepest in the world. lake tahoe, california.
©kevin t vu

i took elheme and carol to the airport in albuquerque yesterday. we checked out the sites there before they left, but i have to say, new mexico doesnt have a lot to do. its a very sleepy town. so now, i am ready to get back on track and start working. i’m heading into work today to do some preparations. the studio position doesnt technically start til monday, but i wanted to give myself a head start.

these past 3 weeks traveling have been exhilarating! i love the backpacking, ‘on the go’ life. we had a great time and shared a vast amount of experiences. it was great to catch up w/ carol and elheme. it’s weird to not see them now. but i’m ready to start working.