moving along…

© kevin t vu

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the goal was comprehension, and the only way to comprehend the world was by making myself vulnerable to it so that it could change me. the challenge was to lay myself open to everybody and everything that came my way. the prize was to change and grow big enough to feel one with the whole world. the real danger was death by exposure.

~ ted simon \ jupiter’s travels

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moving forward

florian and elheme. coubron, france.

© kevin t vu

i can’t believe that we’re gonna be in september of 2010 already! how fast this year has gone! i just got back from san francisco shooting some video for an advertising campaign. embry rucker was the director and photographer. he brought me along to be the director of photography. i had an amazing time shooting video for him! i love working w/ embry because he has such a great mentality on set! i always love being a part of his crew!

assisting has been consistent income for the past year or so. but i’ve gotten complacent from the stability. i’m ready to head off towards a new direction. its scary and daunting, but i am so excited about my possibilities! i’m confident in my ability to manage a set and get the picture for the client. therefore, i’m committing myself to the act of shooting. and not just shooting, but having amazing clients that pay me to shoot subjects that i want to shoot! here we go!!!

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.

killing time

jen and her sisters waiting for the commencement of the ceremony. san diego, california.
© kevin t vu

the bridesmaids looking off towards the couple. san diego, california.
© kevin t vu

i really like the above image of the 3 bridesmaids. i don’t know why, but they remind me of the 3 ‘graces’ in botticelli’s ‘la primavera.’ its the sinuousness of their bodies and how the dresses are draped over them. i, however, did manipulate the image a bit. i photoshopped out some jackets that were laying on the ground. i also boosted the saturation of the girls while desaturating the background. it helps to pull out the form and bring attention to the ladies. i do wish i would’ve done a better job of composing the image though. it really bothers me that i cut the bottom of one of the bridesmaid’s dress. there’s no place for mediocrity! i have no excuse.

the top image, i mostly saturated it and did some burning or dodging. i also made sure to keep the whiteness of the dress while i was playing w/ the saturation.

ok, enough of me blabbering about photoshop. some friends and i decided to sign-up to a softball league. it should be good fun! i havent played in a while and will def. need to practice quite a lot beforehand. i have a brand new glove that i received as a birthday gift many years back. finally, i’ll get to break it in.

and the show goes on….

jen waiting for the makeup artist on the morning of her wedding. san diego, california
© kevin t vu

hey all, its been a while since i’ve written a post. that’s probably because i dont have very many new images to post nor is my life all that exciting at the moment. but it def. has started to pick up and i’m excited to see where it goes. i just helped a friend on sat. shoot a wedding. i’m not much of a wedding photographer, but any excuse to run around w/ a camera is quite intoxicating. it was an all day job and i had a great time. the bride and her fiancee were great. i pretty much assumed the ‘fly on the wall’ mentality while my friend jinna was in charge of the normal bureaucracy that has to do w/ weddings ie. family members telling u what to shoot, organizing and taking group shots, etc etc. i was in my own world, which is where i like to be when i shoot. i think i got some really good shots and now i have a wedding portfolio. though i would never want to do this type of photography full time.

as for other matters… i’ve recently applied to the santa fe workshops and just got word on friday that i got the position!!! i was very anxious about it, but am now thrilled to move on to the next chapter of my life. i applied for a course assistant position, but somehow managed to get a better position as the studio manager. i have to say, my good friend Hubert from grad school helped me out a lot w/ the application process and letter of rec. he worked there before and briefed me in on how to apply and what to expect. so i have to say a big thank you to him. thanks hubert!!! and paul lowe, my course director from grad school also put in another letter of rec. so thanks paul! the workshops are seasonal and the summer season (the one i will be working at) will last 10 weeks. a lot of the big name guys come and teach so i am hoping to learn a lot as well as make contacts. i leave the end of may/early june for santa fe. i cant wait as my life here in orange county has turned quite mundane.