Editing makes me dizzy.
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under editing, me
After a few days of trying to gather up images for College Photographer of the Year(CPOY) I don’t know left from right anymore or good images from bad. Although in my case it’s been easier to spot bad images since I seem pretty good at making those.
The only given it feels like is that the more you look at your work the more you hate it. It doesn’t take long and all your weaknesses seem to start leaking out of every crevice.
As Melissa pointed out on the APAD blog her favorite post on the new The Photo Editor blog is one that deals with the idea that everyone takes bad pictures. (You should have both blogs on your RSS feed if you don’t already.)
As many people say you’re only as good as your weakest image.
Here are a few images from a project I was working on last spring that I’m trying to edit into a tight essay.
I’m calling it American Trucker. It’s a personal exploration and commentary on an occupation(truck driving) that’s fascinated me since I was a kid.
Yep you guessed it. That’s me as a wee tot not knowing that in time I’d explore a topic I spent a decent amount of my childhood around.
Tags: editing, me, personal, portraits, truckers
Trucking along with my trucker project.
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
Here are a few frames from the book I laid out using blurb.com. It’s hard to believe you can have a hardcover 13×11″ book printed and delivered to your door for as little as 54 bucks. There’s nothing like calling your mom to say, “You want to buy a copy of my book?” Of course the feeling of joy is quickly deflated as she answers you with a no. I did sell one copy though. It’s fair to count myself right?
Tags: photojournalism, truckers, Uncategorized
Finding direction with truckers.
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
In the past few weeks I’ve been working on a project I love; truck driving. It takes me back to a time when I was a kid wheeling around with my Tonka trucks in the backyard sandbox. Or who can forget the joy on your face when as a child you gave a trucker the good ole fist pump and they gave you an ear pleasing salute with their horn?
I’ve also discovered how valuable it is to work with a sense of a direction and style. The first few weeks of this project I spent pointing my camera in every possible direction and using a variety of styles(strobed portraits, documentary pj, tilt shift, etc.) Not good if you’re looking to produce a body of work.
What did I learn? You can take pretty pictures using a variety of the formats and techniques, but if you want a body of work rather than a nice single you better stick with one format and technique and let the content do the talking.
Now with an approach defined I feel myself in the calm before the storm. It’ll only be a matter of days before the shooting ends washing me into the high tide of post-production and into a frenzy of caffeine filled nights. Sleep now my friend.
Me as a little trucker.
Tags: photojournalism, truckers
Meet Doug.
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
Doug is a former Marine who is now an OTR truck driver.
This is the doll his wife sent him while he was serving over in Iraq. He travels with it now and is named after his first son Casey.
Tags: photojournalism, portraits, truckers, Uncategorized
