Craig Norris Photo

Ezekiel Fall 2012 Lookbook Video

2012-01-19T21:43:00.000-08:00

Clearly I have not made any new year resolutions to write more blog posts or anything which would promote my business. I guess I'm busy enough as it is, so writing about recent shoots is a bit hard to make time for. But, when something like this comes along, I can hardly contain my excitement.

A couple of weeks ago, I was enlisted by the fine folks at Ezekiel USA to shoot a behind the scenes video for their Fall 2012 Lookbook. Our destination was not glamorous in the least, but provided the back drop for the look the folks at Ezekiel are going for with next fall's line.

Model was Grey Thornton, edited by Jay Diebel, additional filming by Jack Bazz.

Best viewed full screen at full, 1080 resolution.

For further information regarding high quality lookbook video and photo shoots, please contact me.

Craig
714-599-0179
craig@craignorrisphoto.com

Life Rolls On/Ezekiel/Venice Beach

2011-07-05T18:03:00.000-07:00

June 25th @ Venice Skatepark

I was invited to shoot an event by the crew at Ezekiel that they were sponsoring on June 25th. It was unlike any event I had ever shot before. Life Rolls On is an amazing organization. Since I can't describe what they do better than they can, here is their mission statement:

"Life Rolls On, a subsidiary of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, is dedicated to improving the quality of life for young people affected by spinal cord injury and utilizes action sports as a platform to inspire infinite possibilities despite paralysis."

They have a few different programs they run to help benefit those affected by these injuries. Their flagship is called "They Will Surf Again." It is a no cost program where individuals with spinal cord injuries get an opportunity to surf. No surfing experience is necessary and they always provide lifeguards, experienced water assistance, and emergency services.

The event I had the opportunity to shoot was a variation of "They Will Surf Again" called "They Will Skate Again." The folks at Life Rolls On teamed up with Shoe City, Ezekiel, and KROQ among others, to have the 1st annual Shoe City Open featuring individuals with disabilities such as spina bifida, amputations, and birth defects. The competition is dubbed an "Adaptive Skateboard Competition" since not all of the competitors can ride on a skateboard.

We began our trip to Venice by stopping to pick up a few of the Ezekiel pro riders so they could participate in a pro skate demo prior to the competition and also lend a hand to the participants in the "learn-to-ride" clinic in the morning. When we arrived in Venice I was amazed to see quite a crowd of adaptive skaters had already showed up and were ready to learn how to navigate the hips, quaterpipes, and even drop into the bowls.

I shot throughout the day, watching, thinking, and being blown away by these people.

In the face of what we able-bodied people call "disability," they have learned to push fear out of their minds and accomplish physical feats that none of us would attempt. And they smile from ear to ear the entire time.

Thanks to Ezekiel and Jayson Diebel for asking me to shoot this event. Thank you to Life Rolls On for having a vision for creating inspiration in people with disabilities to be active and enjoy aspects of their lives that most couldn't imagine.

Here are a couple of my favorite images from the event. To see the rest, click here.

Steven Reeves. If you don't go, he will.

Steven is from Portland, land of many concrete bowls and pools. As you can see he felt at home in Venice.

Cutest kid on earth.

Hitting the coping with a little assistance from Dad (left) and dropping in the box for the first time (right).

Evan Strong. Evan still rock climbs, mountain bikes, and skates regardless of losing his leg at 17.

Aaron "Wheelz" Fotheringham, does backflips on the regular and has also front flipped a mega ramp. Nuts!

He says he "rides a wheelchair" instead of rides in a wheelchair. I get it. I agree.

Honestly, I can't say enough about this event.

Good vibes!

Craig

All images copyright Craig Norris, 2011. For further information about my photography or information regarding image usage, please contact me at craig@craignorrisphoto.com or 714-599-0179.

Some new work, some old

2011-05-19T14:57:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy working on projects like editing all 1400 photos (whew!) The Full Monty Live, I have had no time to blog. Today, though I am taking some time to update because it has been so long. Nothing super exciting but still blog-worthy.

Here are a couple professional portrait shoots I've done in the last month or so.

Mindy Gulati is a Criminal Defense attorney located in Tustin, CA. She is a very ambitious, bright woman who has been practicing law for quite a few years. If you're ever in trouble with the law, contact Lauren first, and if she can't help you, contact Mindy second, and one way or another, you will be on the right track!

Sorry, Mindy. I am obliged to recommend Lauren first. ;)

Next, is new law school grad, Ingrid Arriaga. She contacted me 4 days before her graduation party saying she was dissatisfied with the graduation photos she had done at Whittier Law School and needed photos right away. So, I took the initiative and got her some graduation photos done the right way, in the studio!

The best part was delivering her photos to the party. She unwrapped a sleek 16x20 frame with a vibrant 11x14 print (of the second image here) and her mom, Olga, started crying! It was such a nice moment. Congratulations, Ingrid!

If you or anyone you know needs professional portraits for any occasion or use, please contact me at craig@craignorrisphoto.com or 714-599-0179.

Best Wishes!
Craig

Photography Show Opening Tonight!

2011-05-05T12:37:00.000-07:00

The Cypress College 21st annual Student Photography Show and Awards Ceremony is tonight. I submitted 9 pieces of which 8 were accepted. They range from photojournalism to portraiture to travel photography. I am very excited for the festivities tonight. There is quite a buzz online in anticipation for the opening. Many former students say they are planning on being there along with most of the entrants. Here are the images I had accepted to the show and are on the wall in the gallery right now!

Peter, fellow photographer and light explorer. He has seen this on the wall already.

I titled this "Time Traveler." The top photo was taken in Austin's Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas. I caught a brief moment where no one was walking by. That image was probably composed for 30 mins before I pressed the shutter. The lower image is from the airplane (duh!). Good thing airplanes are loud, the Keiv Salut C sounds like a gunshot!

This is titled "End Days." Captured on 9/11/2010 in New York City. This is by far one of the most meaningful photographs I've ever taken. Hey guys, I know it's a little late to get a flight, but just in case you're interested, there is a photo of you on the wall at Cypress College.

Reid at home. Reid, if you're reading this, you're on the wall at Cypress College.

This is titled "Jesus Men" for their mockery of walking on water. These dudes don't even know there is a photo of them. But if you're one of these guys, there's a photo on the wall at Cypress College of you doing your best Jesus impersonation.

This is "Scuba Chob." Chob is a wonderful scuba instructor. He travels all over the world teaching people how to scuba dive while taking some amazing underwater photos. Chob will be there tonight, and he has already seen the wall.

George Katz. George is a a huge fan of ice cream. He once told me a story (that seemed to last for days) about how he would eat a half pint of ice cream every night while he was in the Army during World War II. He then handed me ice cream and told me I couldn't turn it down. This photo is a part of the "Scowl" series. George, I doubt you use the Internet, but if you're reading this, you have made it on the wall at Cypress College.

Nate. Nate made an appearance in the blog post http://craignorrisphoto.blogspot.com/2011/01/new-year-new-ideas.html.
Nate is moving to San Fransisco in a couple of weeks. I'm glad I was able to capture this image before he is gone. Thanks, Nate! You're on the wall too!

Funny note, the only image I submitted that was shot with a digital camera was not accepted to the show.
I must be doing something right!

;)
Craig

Moved!

2011-04-07T09:27:00.000-07:00

About once a year for the past few years, I've moved. This week has been really busy. Between moving, unpacking (it takes so much longer to unpack than pack!), school, editing shoots, printing and cutting mattes for two shows, there has been little time to do much aside from eating and sleeping. But, our new house is simply amazing. We have basically doubled our living space. There is so much room in this place! At least twice a day, I place my iPhone in a different spot and spend the next 30 minutes searching for it. I'm so thankful being here. It's very quiet. There is no describing what a difference a quiet house makes when focusing on work.

On moving day I made an exciting discovery: the previous tenant left 2 banks of fluorescent lights! Some of the best light sources a portrait photographer can ask for. Versatile, soft, cheap, and beautiful catch lights. But just to verify they worked as expected, I made a couple self portraits. ;)

For more information about my portrait photography, please contact me at craig@craignorrisphoto.com or 714-599-0179

Craig

Cypress College Presents: Romeo and Juliet

2011-03-16T21:17:00.000-07:00

Mark Majarian directs this classic drama that opens April 8th, 2011 at Cypress College. Here are a few images I created with the help of Peter Flores (digital tech) and John Wear (first assistant) Monday night that they plan on using for their advertising material. Images shot with Phase P40+ and Canon 5D MK II.

For more information regarding my portrait photography, please contact me at 714-599-0179 or email craig@craignorrisphoto.com

Craig

All images copyright protected, Craig Norris 2011

Santa Barbara

2011-03-10T10:24:00.000-08:00

Lauren and I hopped in the car and headed to Santa Barbara on Saturday. It was such a beautiful day. We took Pacific Coast Highway as far as we could until it turned into Highway 101. It was about 68 in Santa Barbara when we arrived, sunny, beautiful, and teeming with tourists. We walked around for a bit, had a bite to eat at a small Mexican restaurant. They had three different green salsa, which I personally couldn't live without. One was an avocado style, another was tomatillo, and I don't know what the third was, but it was smoky and delicious. After we ate, we walked around a little more then went back to the Hotel Oceana. The room was cozy and quiet minus the guests in the jacuzzi, but nonetheless relaxing.

After recuperating we walked around Stearns Wharf. I brought my 35mm film camera with me. The light was wonderful, just after sunset, soft, beautiful evening light.

On the beach in Santa Barbara

A restaurant in Stearns Wharf named The Harbor

She is my favorite subject right now. ;)

Looking all lawyerish haha

The next morning we unfortunately woke up early to a knocking pipe in the wall. Roughly every 15-20 seconds, a pipe in the bathroom would say, "Hi! I'm awake, are you?!" I couldn't go back to sleep. I think these things happen for a reason. I rolled out of bed, grabbed the 35mm again and went for a nice, pre-sun walk. I walked to the south side of Stearns Wharf and found a cool little scene. I have never shot a panorama on film, but this situation begged for it and all I had was film. There is something about this photo that I absolutely cannot explain. It gives me one of those physical feelings in the gut of my stomach when I look at it. I swear it's like I was there in the 40's to make this photo, like I time travelled for 20 seconds or so to take 9 shots and make this.

Overall Santa Barbara is really beautiful. We didn't venture far off into anything that is not a tourist area, but that was OK with me. I was fortunate enough to capture a few images that will help me remember that day for the rest of my life.

Craig

Mamiya USA Blog

2011-02-26T13:20:00.000-08:00

About a month and half ago, the team at Mamiya USA picked up my blog and posted a link to it on their blog. At the time I had just posted my first photos taken with the Mamiya my Mom gave me for X-mas. Occasionally I go check out what's new on their blog. Today I found a story about Mary Ellen Mark and her new website. One of my instructors, Max Gerber, began his career by interning for her. I'm still blown away they took the time to feature me. It's so cool to be on the same pages as some of the world's most legendary photographers.

Just thought I'd share ;)

Craig

Do Work!

2011-02-26T01:06:00.000-08:00

Since coming back from WPPI, I've been spending some time branding my work. I'm going to be making a completely new weblog dedicated to wedding and portraiture only. I don't think it's a good idea to have potential clients coming here to see if they like my wedding photography enough to hire me and being confronted by some mostly nude amatuer male strippers. With that said, here are a couple promo pieces for my wedding and portrait photography I've put together over the past couple days.

It's time!
Craig

Take a trip back in time...to 2010.

2011-02-24T18:31:00.000-08:00

December 11th I headed down to Ocean Beach to meet up with an old friend from the Coast Guard to shoot his engagement photo. John and I were stationed on the "Mighty Warship" US Coast Guard Cutter Chase. We both worked in the Main Propulsion division, arguably the roughest, toughest, sweatiest, smelliest bunch of sailors imaginable. After 1.5 or 2 years of sleeping in adjacent racks (beds), John headed off to the air station in San Diego to pursue his career as an AMT (Aviation Maintenance Technician) in the Coast Guard. I think we ran into each other one time after that before I was honorably discharged from service in 2004.

Fast forward to 2010.

John and I link up on the infamous Facebook, you may have heard of it. You too may have come in contact with people from your past via Facebook. It's inevitable. I digress...Shortly after John and I connected, he proposed to his then girlfriend, Ali. A few weeks later John contacted me to see if we could talk about possibly shooting his engagement and wedding. I was absolutely thrilled! We decided to get together on December 11th to do the engagement session. I told them if they're comfortable with me during the shoot to please consider me to shoot their ceremony and reception. We began with lunch. John and I spent more time catching up, telling stories from the sea (sorry, Ali!) than discussing the wedding. We then moved on to a great location John and Ali had picked just outside of Ocean Beach on Sunset Cliffs.

The shoot went amazing! They were perfect subjects and from the photos is it evident perfect for each other. They've reserved their wedding for late July in the northern San Diego city named Vista. Here are some photos from their engagement shoot.

I really like this image. There is some serious chemistry going on here.

So much sass going on in this one!

I love the feeling of this photo. So genuine!

Three separate photos, all shot on 4x5 black and white film. By far my favorite!

I'm feel so honored and grateful to be shooting this wedding. It's going to be a blast!

Congrats, John and Ali!

Craig

WPPI Next Week!

2011-02-18T16:49:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce I will be attending WPPI 2011. I will arrive Sunday morning just in time to hear Julieanne Kost, The Digital Imaging Evangelist, go over numerous techniques related to post production. The following day, Monday, I will be in attendance for Elizabeth Messina, a fellow film shooter. I'm excited to hear her strategies for reloading film during a wedding ;) Shortly after her is Michael Grecco's presentation on lighting. Grecco's work is world famous; he is in high demand. On Tuesday I will start bright and early with Beth Forester as I take notes on her advice for business and marketing. And finally, closing with a bang, celebrity photographer Brian Smith from Miami will discuss his techniques for creating award winning portraits.

Hopefully I'll see you there!

Craig

Film Scanning Advice

2011-02-17T08:39:00.000-08:00

Occasionally I get an e-mail from someone asking for advice on the subject of scanning film. Here is one I received yesterday.

Hi, my name is Stephen Anthony and I've come across your blog. In it you say that you regularly scan your photos instead of processing them. I've been thinking if it is ideal to switch to film, the price of medium film format is considerable (Mamiya 645 AFD) and a good film scanner is not so expensive nowadays.

The reason I e-mail you is for a question involving film; where do you scan your print?

I've seen professional people take film out of view cameras and insert other in dim lit rooms and amateurs put negatives on diffused/ dimmed lamps and I'm kind of clueless where to find that info on the internet. Aren't you supposed to do all those stuff in a darkroom; to scan a film, must I take the scanner and load the film in total darkness. Also, doesn't the film scanner come with proprietary software to use for negatives/ transparencies? I've noticed that many people use Silverfast and similar software.
It would help a lot if you could share some of your insight on this.
Stephen Anthony

Stephen asked some interesting questions which I address in my response:

Hi Stephen,

I do personally scan all of my film. I have a Mamiya m645 and a 6x6cm Russian thing that looks like a Hasselblad 503c. I have found that shooting medium format film is beneficial to me because it simplifies my work flow from the very beginning when I compose an image to scanning the film. I hand process all of my black and white stuff to reduce cost. Unfortunately color processing is a whole different ordeal that I don't have access to, so I have to bite the bullet at $6/roll for a 120 roll and $12/roll for 220 for color negative. Double that for transparencies! If I could afford a medium format digital, preferably Phase, I would, but the cost of film has to do for now.

Most scanners have proprietary software that will work in conjunction with Photoshop CS 2, 3, 4, or 5. I tried to use a trial version of Silverfast with my Canon 8800f, but the interface was really confusing so I didn't purchase it. The reason most people want to use Silverfast is for 16 and 48 bit scanning. It's such a huge advantage to have the extra color and tone information in those higher bit modes. Canon software will not scan in anything other than 8 bit mode without third party software. Epson, though, does offer a scanner with proprietary software that scans in 16 bit gray scale and 48 bit color. But, some of the Epson flatbed glass will scan a moire pattern into your digital image.
You can put your scanner in a dark room to eliminate the possibility of any outside light affecting the color of your image. I think most people editing or scanning images do it in the dark or dimly lit room because limiting the influence of outside light on the screen of the monitor allows for more accurate color balancing and contrast. Editing under a tungsten lighting situation can trick you eyes into thinking your image is warmer than it really is. When viewed under daylight balanced fluorescent lighting, that same image may appear cooler than you thought it was.

I hope this helps you out!

Craig Norris

Cypress College Presents: The Full Monty

2011-02-10T16:17:00.000-08:00

Last week I shot with the cast of The Full Monty at Cypress College so they could get some advertising out for their new show starting March 11th and running until the 20th. The show is directed by Jim Hormel. He asked me to shoot these. It was a ton of fun. Even though I had the flu, in full effect, the shoot went smoothly thanks to my crew: Peter Flores and Luis Munoz-Najar. I had that nasty flu that has been going around, so I wasn't much help, besides holding the camera and pressing the shutter button. Peter had the digi-tech position. He got the Phase P41+ and computer tethered and handled everything perfectly from capture to download. Luis was running around filling in shadows with reflectors and moving lights as I requested. The shoot was great!

Winners and Outtakes:

It was a good time had by all. Go see the show, the guys are all great actors. I'm definitely going!

Craig

Irvine 11 Protest

2011-02-02T17:03:00.000-08:00

On a far more serious note:

Yesterday I headed to Santa Ana with Lauren for a protest. As a founding member of the National Lawyers Guild, Orange County Chapter, part of her duty is to observe protests and report police misconduct similar to what happened on May 1, 2007. She asked me to go with her and take some photos.

The protesters: A group of 11 students, each formally charged with a felony count of conspiracy for practicing non-violent free speech during a presentation at UCI by the Israeli Ambassador, Michael Oren.

Fortunately the protest was peaceful. In closing, the students presented another formal letter to Orange County District Attorney, Tony Rackauckas, demanding the charges be dropped. This kind of prosecution is unheard of in situations where politicians have been heckled (or even kicked off stage) in settings similar to the one at UCI. These students not only face the felony charge, but eight are facing possible expulsion from UCI and three from UCR.

Here are some photos from the event:

Stop Hate

Spread the word.

Craig

Product Stuff...

2011-01-18T20:46:00.000-08:00

It's amazing the detail our brains can remember. I was digging through my archives when I stumbled upon a couple product images. It got me going. I had to find more of them. Kind of like when you're cleaning your room or preparing to move. You find a book or 4x6 photos and suddenly 2 hours have passed. That just happened.

Every one of these images has a story behind it.

1 second exposures with Xmas lights!

Ever try to get a puppy to sit still?

Equivalent to shooting a Ferrari

Optic Remix marathon speed shoot

Phones have come pretty far from this

Circa 2003ish?

Its a real reflection, I swear!

I LOVE COFFEE

This one made me sweat, Richard Simmons style

That was fun!

Craig

New Year, New Ideas!

2011-01-06T19:45:00.000-08:00

In between shooting and working on my new website I breathe. Few and far between, but the only way to get there is remembering to take a seldom breath, lower the shoulders, and refocus. 2011 is gonna be huge!

Funny story leading up to xmas. I was in the middle of an engagement shoot 2 weeks prior to xmas and my Mom texts me with a picture of a Mamiya c330. She had piqued my curiosity when the text accompanying the picture said, "Call me." I gave her a ring as soon as I could. Turns out she was at Fullerton Camera looking to buy me either a c330 or a M645 for xmas. I said 645! Absolutely, you couldn't find me anything better. (I mean a Phase One P45 would be cool, then again what planet am I on?) Back to reality. The anticipation killed me for 2 weeks. Finally xmas came and within five minutes of arriving at Mom's I had a roll of Fuji Provia 400 in and began shooting. These first three images are c-41 process. I love the effect transparencies into negatives gives. The color correction is very manageable and I always get fun unexpected colors in the shadows.

LJ and Randy

Randy the Beagle

Luis Munoz-Najar

Working with Kodak Ektar 100 has given me great results. I had to do virtually zero color correction when I scanned this film. The saturation is wonderful and the grain is super fine. I hope Kodak continues to make this film.

Luis Munoz-Najar

If you follow this blog (thank you) you might have noticed a few months ago I began scanning more of the negative than you "should." Oh well.

Nate Scott

This is my first time using any 3200 ISO medium format film. I guess Ilford is one of the last remaining producers of black and white film in such a high ISO. I'm not thrilled by the results. The grain is incredibly low, but the contrast is a bit out of control.

Here's where my scanning formats go bizerk! My scanner decided this was the correct way to split up the frames on this strip of film. I said, "Ok, scanner. I see what you're doing here and I'm kind of intrigued."

Luis Munoz-Najar

Nate's looking for movie roles if anyone who comes across this blog sees these. His number is 555-....On second thought you better call his agent.

Nate Scott

Here's a little triptych of Nate. I find these all the time in my shooting. They go together really well and this is when I know I'm connecting well with a subject.

Nate Scott

I'm thrilled by the results from this camera. It's such a wonderful investment and it's a shame these things go for so cheap these days.

I'm really looking forward to 2011, it's going to be a great year!

Craig

The time has come, to say good buy!

2010-12-22T12:32:00.000-08:00

I'm seriously selling this. It's like the 5th time I've tried. I had a little dilemma though. How do you take a photo of digital equipment you're selling if it's the only digital camera you've got?!
Droid saves the day! Amazing quality from a phone. Who knew?!

http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/pho/2125843967.html

Year in Photos

2010-12-16T12:06:00.000-08:00

Thanks you for joining me in reviewing my year in photography! Please leave any comments or questions you have at the bottom of the page!

I really feel this has been a great year for me photographically.
The first half of the year was a little slow. I was only taking one photo class in the spring and wasn't feeling very motivated to shoot. There were some bright spots, however. I published my first book, Meet Me on the Moon at the end of April. In May a friend of mine, Jayson Diebel, was hired by Matrix Services, Inc. to make a video of their company performing a lift of an oil tank roof. He asked me to come along and shoot video as well. I brought my digital still camera also and took about 400 photos before and during the operation. It was quite an experience to see a plane of steel plates welded together, 180 ft in diameter, lifted only by air pressure. The crew was great. They seemed excited to get the roof in the air, and were more than willing to have us around taking video and photos. I made a book for them after the project was done and mailed it to them.

Panorama of the inside of the tank prior to the roof lift. Click on the photo for a larger view.

Two of the crew prior to lifting. The goal was to lift the roof to 6.5ft, as marked on the tank wall.

Three of the guys completing a safety check prior to lifting.

Scale shot so you can get an idea of how huge these tanks are.

I had a quite a lull in creative achievement after this was over. I spent 6 weeks of the summer in math class 4 mornings a week. It really kicked my ass. But once the new semester began I felt more focused than ever. I was really inspired by one of my instructors, Max Gerber.

Max's honest approach to reality, though sometimes (most of the time) harsh, helped me focus on simplifying my approach to shooting. His open attitude towards different ideas in regards to assignments, took the pressure off and allowed for creative thought to flow. I really can't say how much I appreciate him helping me find that inside of me. I liken it to when cavemen were consistently able to light their campfires (though I'm sure they didn't call it a campfire).

Here are some portraits I've taken this year.

The old LA Zoo at Griffith Park has some hidden treasures. Here fellow photog Brent Matsuno poses for a triptych. I began scanning entire negatives around this time. I love the format of this look. It doesn't always translate for every image, but I think it adds to this particular set.

Here on a field trip to Victorville, I took a moment to use this sliver of light to create an interesting portrait of Carly Cram, another photographer at Cypress College.

A disclaimer for this image: I did not shoot this in 2010! It was shot in 2007, processed and printed in 2010. This is one of my favorite images. It has an iconic feel and is representative of what I try to accomplish when I shoot.

Ellie Hamblin. My favorite image from my shoot with Ellie in her front yard. Currently Ellie is somewhere in Mexico. She heads south every winter to relax by a lake deep in the mainland.

Jesus Men. I trip out every time I see these guys in the water. Sometimes it looks like they are walking on water as the legend has it.

Reid Collier. Reed was a great subject to shoot. He was easy going and not shy. And his apartment has AMAZING window light. Many thanks to Reid.

Yesterday's Tales. I shot this during Yom Kippur at Lauren's grandparent's house. Her grandparents on the outer two who are holding a conversation with the inner two, who are a couple as well. I feel this image is very telling of that generation. Although the men and women aren't interacting with each other directly, they are still communicating with each other.

4x5 Portraits:
I began using the 4x5 camera for shooting portraits this semester. We have some high resolution medium format digital cameras at school but they aren't allowed off campus. The alternative method to getting super high resolution images is the 4x5.

John Wear. John and I have been friends for about 6 years. This is exactly how I have always know John to be. Goofy, funny, silly.

George Katz. George has stories for days. From IRS agent to fighting in WWII. Though George is 87, he's still sharp as a tack.

Larry. This is my Mom's boyfriend of 6 or so years. Larry is the most easy going person I've ever met. He works for Boeing, and there's a lot that no one knows about going on behind those eyes.

Cypress College Make-up Class:
One project this semester was to shoot for another department at school. I had the opportunity to shoot this class for 2 weeks. Instructed by Barbara Braden Meyer, these students are super talented in applying stage make-up. I really enjoyed shooting this project and I hope I created a need for professional quality photos of the work these students do on a weekly basis.

Pedro:
Pedro, Pedro, Pedro. Where do I start. Pedro was one of my favorite subjects this semester. He was always down for whatever weird, crazy idea I had and pulled it off every time. Great actor, if there was some sort of award like an Oscar, but for photography, he should get it. Thanks for all your help this semester, dude!

The Scowl:
This project was kicked off by Pedro. He grabbed a chair and nailed the pose, and I ran with it. I find it interesting to examine each individual person's scowl. We all have our own way of glaring at someone. Our minds are good at erasing the bad and remembering the good. I wanted to capture the bad and remember it for once.

And, last but definitely not least, John and Ali:

John and I met in the Coast Guard. We slept in adjacent racks for about 2 years. Both of us have since left the organization. I was really happy to hear John met the love of his life, Ali. They contacted me to inquire about me possibly shooting their wedding. We talked for a while and decided to proceed with an engagement shoot in mid December. I decided to take a different route than a traditional engagement shoot since John had arranged to have this truck for their photos. I brought a 4x5 camera and a bunch of black and white film to take their photo. I had a wonderful few hours with them. It was really great to see John, catch up with him, and reminisce all the old salty stories from the Mighty Warship Chase. I am absolutely thrilled to be shooting their wedding in July. And 100% thrilled to see Johnny boy getting hitched! Congrats to the both of you!

I created this triptych for them. I got the idea from some of Richard Avedon's group portraits and really like the way these photos show together. I have since scanned higher resolution copies of these negatives, retouched them and am in the process of making them perfect for printing, and hopefully displaying at their ceremony.

What a way to finish off the year!

Pre-thanks to Mom and Larry for the Mamiya 645 I'm about to get for X-mas! I can't wait to get it and run thousands of rolls of 120 film through it!

Thanks to all the staff in the Cypress College photo dept for your support. You only have me around for one more semester. I know how sad you must be.

Special thanks to everyone who let me take their photo this year and previous years.

Extra special thanks to Lauren Johnson for all the hours she put in sitting on the couch next to me while I edited photos and she watched TV.

I hear the music playing, I guess that means it's time to wrap up my thank you speech.

See you next year!

Craig

Damn, that's a big camera!

2010-12-02T09:17:00.000-08:00

A couple of days ago, Peter Flores was asked to to shoot the medium format cameras we have at Cypress College. I gave him a hand. These things are pretty difficult to light. They suck up a ton of light due to being black and having dull surfaces. It took a while to dial in the first one, but after that it was easy breezy. Here's the link to Peter's blog where the images lie.

http://peterispetrus.blogspot.com/2010/12/cameras.html

Yeah!
Craig

The sky cannot be modified.

2010-11-28T12:19:00.000-08:00

A last minute decision led to an overnight trip up Interstate 5 to northern CA. Lauren and I have been doing a little extracurricular traveling in an effort to find an affordable place to begin growing roots. The overpopulation of southern California has caused housing to become unaffordable. Spending money on rent has always been something I wasn't comfortable with. Sometimes renting gives me a hopeless feeling that I will always be paying someone elses mortgage while occupying their property. While I appreciate the owner of the property allowing me to live under their roof for an exceptional fee, I feel it's time for me to give myself the opportunity to put a roof over my head. Often I wonder how people from my generation will be able to purchase affordable housing in the areas we grew up in with no substantial help from our parents. While I would love to continue to live in southern California, close to all the things I love, it truly has turned into juggling swords.

In between driving shifts I peered out the window at the flat, typically boring drive up and down the 5, got out my camera and began capturing what short glimpses of time I could through the tinted windows of Lauren's Saturn Vue (no pun intended). Here they are:

Can we get a few more of these?

And a few less of these?

I wonder how many cars have passed this road without turning right...

...or how many cars this cow has seen drive down the highway

After sitting in traffic for about an hour, we were finally able to pass this accident. It's sad to know these people were probably traveling home from the holiday weekend.

A conclusion I came to while traveling north and south on the 5 is that it's pretty boring while you're driving, but there's tons of little things to see when you're not. I also have began examining a theory related to modification of the sky. Gravity may be our best friend. If overcoming gravity ever becomes efficiently achievable, we are in trouble. The belief that the earth was put here for our use and benefit is defiantly short sighted when applied without the thought of consequence.

Pear Blossom Hwy: Land of...how do you say...not much?

2010-11-22T09:35:00.000-08:00

The latest weird adventure in a series of "getaways" this semester.

Walk a mile in my shoes.

Where tire meets nature

Carly with the "trolley wave."

Unfortunately Pedro looks like he's lost a leg.

Stuck between 2 palm trees and a telephone pole.

The ruins at methadonia.

In the orchard on a horse with no name.

Outside the orchard you get the big picture.

Old faithful.

A tourist.

Multiple stop sign.

That's it!

Craig

New projects

2010-11-10T20:25:00.000-08:00

I've been working with Barbara Meyer in the theater department at Cypress College. Barbara teaches many different theater arts classes like Stage Make-up and handles all of the set design for productions in the theater. Here are some images from my first meeting with her Stage Make-up class. Their theme was "fantasy." Click on an image for a larger view.

Hope you enjoyed!

Craig

Linda Vista Hospital

2010-10-31T11:01:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago one of my classes went on a field trip to an abandoned hospital in East LA named Linda Vista hospital. The place is really awesome. It's been well maintained unlike the abandoned hospital on George Air Force base which was D-stroyed. Linda Vista hospital is frequently used to film shows like CSI and NCIS. In the spirit (no pun intended) of Halloween, here are some images I created while we were there.

Spooooooky!
:) Craig

More Huey

2010-10-19T20:39:00.000-07:00

I always make a point after a shoot to get some good personal shots since lights are set up. These are some of my all time favorites without a doubt.

Love that little dude.

Craig

Huey and Headstones

2010-10-09T20:50:00.000-07:00

It's almost like he knows he's a black cat.

New Directions, Wall-space Gallery

2010-10-07T11:19:00.000-07:00

I was turned on to this photography contest being put on by Wall Space Gallery called New Directions by Ross Sonnenberg. Ross is well known for his book The Big Bang in which he shows copies of prints made using large sheets of color photographic printing paper that he lights fireworks on top of. He viewed a photo of a friend of ours and suggested I enter it into the New Directions contest. I was excited when I read about the contest. It seems to be something I've been on the right path to do lately. I decided to enter 4 images. I've titled them according to how they make me feel. I left blank spaces in the titles for the viewer to use their own operative word. Please put your word for each image in the comment section.

Click on each image if they're too small to view.

"Just before you _____ me."

"I go to that place when I'm _____."

"We used to be so _____."

"When I grow up I want to be a _____."

Please let me know how you think the titles work with the images.

Thanks!
Craig

Dumb Luck

2010-10-04T09:21:00.000-07:00

Call it one of those moments. You spend your whole life shooting sports photos in Europe, which mostly involves rainy games of "footy on the pitch". The Ryder Cup lands in England and the paper you work for sends you on assignment to capture it. Arguably the world's best/most infamous golfer is right in front of you along with thousands of people, their eyes glued to him, surrounding both of you on all sides. He hits the ball and it hits your camera.

Your relationship with this golfer has changed forever.

You send him a print of the photo with your signature and a note that reads, "Thanks for the shot out!" or "You really nailed me/that shot!" or "Look at the guy with the cigar in his mouth on the right, he knew you were gonna hit that shot!"

In the comment section leave me what you would say in the note to Tiger!

Tiger Woods hits a ball directly at photographer Mark Pain

This has to be one of the best sports images ever made. After all the controversy surrounding Tiger Woods, this image is perfectly telling his sob story from start to finish, first to last, top to bottom. Cigar guy and the guys standing to his left and right, to Tiger's face, and to the guy on the left side of the picture in the orange jacket and the look of terror on his face.

Congrats, Mark Pain! This is a photo of a lifetime.

New study: Thunder/PTSD causes sleep loss.

2010-10-02T13:17:00.000-07:00

At 5 am this morning I was having a dream I lived in a giant dumpster. The company that owned the dumpster came to pick it up. This crazy, crashing, banging, noise came thundering (pun intended) through my ear drums, into my brain and BAM, I was awake.

I might be the lightest sleeper alive.

I attribute this to my service in the Coast Guard. Engine room fires plagued our division. Our engines were held together with duct tape and bubble gum as some would say. The ship I was on (USCGC CHASE, WHEC-718) was commissioned sometime in the 1960's. Part of being prepared for a midnight or 4 am engine room fire General Quarters Condition 1 alarm was sleeping with one eye open. It's not exactly something you can hit the snooze button for. My responsibility for an engine room fire was #1 nozzle man at the site of the fire. Not only was it my job to put a raging lube oil or diesel fuel fire out, but I was protecting my own life and every life on the ship. There's no, "Hold on, I need to brush my teeth" in one of these situations. When you're 300 miles off the coast of the Aleutian Islands in the Bering Sea with 30 foot seas in "hot" pursuit (more like cold pursuit) of a Russian fishing vessel that may or may not have crossed into US waters, no one is coming to rescue 160 crew members; Serious Fucking Business.

Hence why I wake up every time a car drives by, the dog scratches himself, or the neighbor comes home late. My condition is worse now than ever. I self medicated with alcohol for 10 years and slept like a baby. Since that's no longer an option, when a thunderstorm is in the area at 5am, you can bet I'm gonna go get some photos of it.

Scanning Old Negs!

2010-10-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

I believe part of evolving as a photographer is looking through old images and remembering why you make a certain image. From time to time I find myself searching through old negatives and find good images I didn't think were good at the time. Here's a strip of film I found this morning. Click on it to view the larger version.

Available Light Night Photography Field Trip

2010-09-27T09:42:00.000-07:00

This trip was put on by Joe Reed. Joe is a Night Photography/Light Painting/Trespassing specialist. We began the day by driving to an abandoned military hospital near Victorville. The hospital was wrecked. Graffiti, broken glass, drywall, and insulation everywhere. Literally every window in the place was broken. It was kind of difficult to navigate through the hospital. I would have been lost for sure if I was by myself. An iPhone is no good if you don't have cell service! After about 30 minutes of walking through the hospital, looking for good stuff to shoot, we settled in the pediatric area. They had a cartoon theme going throughout. Peanuts characters, Mickey and Minnie, Pooh Bear, Etc. It was interesting. The dust was pretty crazy. I was definitely feeling it by the end of the night. Here are some images from the hospital.

Here at the pediatric reception desk, this armless ghost was hanging out.

"Playing on the Swing"
We came upon this broken window. The glass was still intact around the edges of the frame. Carly Cram brought a couple dolls with her. There was a small electrical wire hanging from the ceiling just in front of the window. I thought hanging the doll in front of the window and painting it with a light to separate the edges from the background was appropriate.

"Bride of Chucky"
This was inside one of the pediatric exam rooms. The wall opposite this mirror was a cute little cartoon painting. I wanted to incorporate that into my image but there was nothing around it but blank walls. I turned around and Bingo! Found the broken mirror and exam table right next to it. On the floor was the curtain used to shield patients changing clothes from an accidental exposure to anyone passing in the hallway, which was used for her veil. This mirror was broken perfectly for this image. I set up for a 30 second exposure. The first try came out really well, but the backing of the mirror was a little overexposed. A few suggestions and tries later, I changed the angle of the light on her face, hit the backside with a deep blue gel, and came out with this shot.

Shortly after "Bride of Chucky" was complete, we headed up to the roof to walk around. There wasn't much up there and time was running short, so we headed out to the junkyard off HWY 138.

"Mystery Machine"
This shot is a little out of focus. I did that intentionally to add a little mystery to it. No, not really. This was my first shot of the night. I messed it up, even though the colors look pretty cool. Scooby snacks.

"Valiant One"
I guess the owner of this car died and no one in their family wanted this car. Totally clean, no dents, still had all it's emblems in place. I would drive this car for sure. It took me a few shots to get this one right. My camera was a little off center for the first three. The light on the hood is moonlight. I was a little late on the timing to get the shadow perfect. I reflected light off the ground into the grill. Popped a magenta gel from the driver seat and hit the headlights with a flashlight to give the car some life. I love this shot, I think this was the best one I got all night.

"A Fire Inside"
This poor truck was gutless. Someone removed the engine and headlights. I hooked him up though, and gave him a little fire under the hood again.

"Mercury is Green"
This two door boat was in pretty good shape. The insulation hanging from the hood is a problem. The green paint was flawless. I didn't spend too much time on this shot. I like the way the moon was hitting the driver side and called it a wrap.

"Glory Days"
If they could go back to the way it used to be, I think it would look something like this.

"These Shoes Are Made For Walkin'"
Pedro took this shot of my feet while I was sitting on this old dog. He lit up the headlights and popped me with a flash. I like it.

"The Bone Yard"
So many carcasses that just need a little TLC.

"Pretty in Pink"
I went back to the Valiant again. There are so many cool emblems on this car. I wanted to showcase this one because of it's good lines and reflective quality. The chrome on this car looked like it had been polished yesterday. Maybe it's a reflection, no pun intended, of our values today versus in the days this car was made. A car today wouldn't hold up the way this one has.

Overall I had a really good time on this trip. I've been known to prefer shooting by myself at times. Though never in the middle of the night, I get freaked out by noises and such. Joe can attest to that from our LA Zoo trip a year ago.

I was pretty tired by the time we left. Thanks to Joe for being so passionate about his artwork. It definitely rubbed off on me, and helped me create some really cool images.

Portrait Class: Assignment 3

2010-09-16T16:28:00.000-07:00

Doug King: Realtor, Bartender Extraordinaire

These were shot digitally (GASP!). But don't worry, I shot 3 rolls of film too.

East Coast + 9-11 NYC/My Religion is Better Than Yours Day

2010-09-15T09:16:00.000-07:00

Our trip to the far east.

All packed up and ready to go in Long Beach. I hadn't flown back east since going to USCG boot camp in September of 2000. Our flight left Long Beach at 8:45pm and arrived in Boston 5am local time.

This is the oldest Synagogue in the US. The early Jewish settlers founded it in what is now Newport, RI in the year 1658.

Lauren, on the street next to the Synagogue. I love her expression here.

This is in Bristol, RI. After leaving Newport, we cruised around the coast and stumbled upon this gem of a town. I love the old walls all over the place on the east coast. I imagine civil-war-era-dudes hiding behind them with muskets shooting at each other. But this scene is by far the best one I could imagine.

This house is in Providence, RI near The Rhode Island School of Design. People on the east coast seem to be much more patriotic than on the west. I estimate 2/3rd's of the houses in every town flew an American flag from the front. This flag in particular was probably 8 feet long.

On the train to NYC from Stamford, CT. Most people keep to themselves on the train. It was sort of like being at an amusement park to me. I hadn't ridden a train, besides Knott's Berry Farm or Disneyland, since I was a little kid.

Grand Central Station, September 11. There is no way to show how enormous this place is. Lucky for me, Lauren spent 3 years in New York while in school. She knew exactly how to get anywhere we wanted to go. I would have ended up on the back of a milk carton.

Here she is looking at me like "Can we go yet?"

Then we were thrust into the chaos.

Here a younger Jewish kid argues with an Evangelist about whether the proposed Mosque should be built, just down the street from the actual site.

There plenty of these dudes roaming about.

Here's another conspiracy theorist. I picked this image for the three subjects, 3 different opinions being offered. I assume the little girl on the left doesn't understand what the guy in the middle is yelling about. Literally yelling. She wasn't even born in 2001. The guy on the right probably doesn't really care about the Mosque being built or not. Camera time was more important as there were 3 other photographers shooting at the moment. The guy in middle insists that there is a correlation between the 3rd building that fell after the 2 towers collapsed, and that the US government must have been involved.

There's nothing like being humble.

Everyone had a message.

Captain America?

This guy on the left hung this sign in an effort to send a message a 3 year old could understand.

This was an abandoned sign in the old cemetery at St Paul's across the street from ground-zero. Actually the person who was sporting this "Jews for Jesus" sign abandoned all their stuff. We sat in the cemetery for an hour or so and never saw them come get their belongings. When those people were laid to rest in the 16 and 1700's, I bet they didn't think this kind of madness would be going on around them.

Meet Eugene O'Brien

Eugene was sitting in the cemetery, mourning, drinking from a flask in a paper bag. I went over and introduced myself, explaining I was a veteran enlisted during 9-11, and asked him if I could take his photo. I began asking him about how 9-11 affected him. He immediately began talking about how Giuliani hated the union he worked for during the cleanup because they kept asking for dust masks and other safety equipment. Unfortunately Eugene was surrounded by inconsiderate, crazy people, only interested in converting people of other religions to their own. People who had lost the meaning of the day and what it should be used for; mourning the loss of thousands of Americans. Eugene was incredibly nice. As we were wrapping up our conversation, he invited Lauren and I to an annual party his friend was throwing. Sorry we never made it, Gene!

Here a man walking the pro-mosque protest route, hands out copies of a socialist magazine, Workers World. The police officer seen here repeatedly told him to leave the area, violating his right to free speech.

America and the right to free speech, side by side.

Flying home.

Overall the trip was amazing. We enjoyed so many great moments and saw so much beauty there is to offer. RISD was great! I look forward to creating a portfolio to go with my application. There was a beautiful show at the RISD Museum by Linda Connor named The Odyssey. 8x10 film, contact printed in sunlight, then gold tinted. If you find yourself in Providence before October 30th, check it out. You'll be glad you did.

On the other hand, it was really saddening to see the heavy exploitation of such a terrible tragedy. Too often we take others grief for granted. Instead of being empathetic, we become angry because we don't know what or how to feel. It's ok to mourn and be sad. It's ok to comfort others when they are in pain.

Great learning experience overall. Looking forward to going back if I get accepted to RISD. Or if I don't. :)

Craig

Taking risks/destroying equipment

2010-09-05T00:24:00.000-07:00

I took the liberty of filing away the edges on my scanner's medium format film guide. I like this look better. Putting the same border from a scanned print over an image got old and looked cheezy. Tomorrow I will do the 35mm film guide.

Here is a diptic of my lovely girlfriend, Lauren, to demonstrate the end result.

;)
Craig

Portrait Class: Assignment 1

2010-08-20T18:35:00.000-07:00

Meet Ellie Hamblin.

At 79, Ellie is the self proclaimed "old fart" of Acacia Avenue in Corona Del Mar. Ellie comes over once every two weeks or so to ask "permission to steal" lemons from the tree in our front yard. She introduces herself and tells me the same story about how she has lived on our street the longest of anyone here and has been picking lemons from the tree for over 25 years. She even refers to herself as "the old bitch on the block" too. I've had a few encounters with her since May. She came over yesterday to tell me her story again. I was in the front yard trying to convince our dog to eat a rawhide when I saw her crossing the street. She did her usual speech; "I'm the oldest resident on this block", "I want permission to steal your lemons", "What's your name?" We said our salutations and went back to what we were doing. She must spend 3 or 4 hours sitting in the chair on her front lawn everyday. As I was walking back to the house I said to myself, "How do I make her remember me?" This was my opportunity. I went inside and loaded my Russian-made wanna-be Hasselblad with Fuji 800 ISO film, grabbed a model release and headed across the street in an attempt to infiltrate her crowded memory. I started shooting as she read the model release. I said to her, "I need your signature in case Vanity Fair wants to use you on the cover." She laughed and I began asking her questions about Corona Del Mar. She opened up to me and spoke of her husband "who lives upstairs" and pointed to the sky.

On the last frame of the roll I told her to make it a good one. She grabbed her chest and proclaimed, "Tits up, baby!"

Before I left I asked her to please make sure someone is home when she comes over to take lemons. I mentioned if she fell, I would be upset. She called me an asshole and I went back to my side of the street.

I don't know how long I'll stay in Ellie's memory. I guess the next time she comes over to tell me her story I'll grab my camera and write another blog about the crazy shit she says.

Piper!

2010-05-24T19:19:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we had a visitor named Piper come over. Piper is a 10 month old Great Dane. You might know I've been interested in getting one of these horses for a while. They're so cool! I love how clumsy they are. They're sweet, loving giants, and she is no different! Piper belongs to Lauren's friend's Mom and came from a backyard breeder in the Inland Empire.

As you can see we introduced Huey to Piper. Piper was very excited to play with the cat. I made the mistake of trying to protectHuey and he scratched the hell out of my hand. After a few minutes he began staying at claws distance while Piper tried to play with him. Good times were had by all and Huey slept like a baby for the rest of the day.

Cheers!

Craig

2010-05-20T08:40:00.000-07:00

Matrix by Craig Norris Make Your Own Book

My newest book! Please have a look!

Craig

Book!

2010-05-12T09:22:00.000-07:00

Here is a direct link to my first book! Check it out!

Meet Me on the...

By Craig Norris

Book Preview

Craig

Optic-remix.com

2010-03-15T21:30:00.001-07:00

A few days ago Brent Matsuno came to me and said he had a sunglass manufacturer that needs images for their website. So, of course I agreed to help him out. Here are a couple of the items we photographed.

The company is named Optic-Remix. They sell their glasses online and at music events. OR hopes to have their product all over Southern California in a few months. Check them out!

Craig

Apple: Sauced

2010-03-01T18:21:00.000-08:00

New project for Contemporary Photo. Find an everday item and photograph it in an extraordinary fashion.

As you might see, there's a common theme here.

Hope you enjoyed!
Craig

Jeff Reese exhibit at Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena, CA

2010-02-24T15:19:00.000-08:00

Jeff Reese

I found Jeff’s work to be somewhat interesting. I wouldn’t say I liked it. The intersting part was his incorporation of painting into photography. Historically photography has been thought of as second nature to painting. His images seem to reverse that way of thinking. He uses paint on negatives, then prints his paintings using projected light onto light sensitive paper. His way of thinking was definitely different from the way most of us operate daily. His emphasis on presentation was very interesting to me as well. His matting and framing are unique and flawless. The silk wrapped matte board is beautiful. Mahogany frames compliment his images as well as the luxurious nature of the silk.

I found a few different themes in his work. His earlier work seemed to be more focused on traditional photography. However, the quality of the images take on an early 1900’s feel. The slightly soft focus, heavy vignetting and slight underexposure add to this feeling.

His use of women in his images also raises some questions for me. I wonder if he had isues with women in his life. The juxtposition of a nude woman lying in the street with a piece of heavy machinery in the background raises many questions. What is he saying about women? How does this relate to his personal experiences with women? How does this relate to my own personal experiences with women?

Jeff’s middle set of images are much more attractive to me visually. I really enjoy the tones and graphic shapes in this set. It reminds me of a show I saw at MOCA recently where a painter from the late 1800’s used huge (8’x12’) canvases and painted very even tones of blue, red and yellow on them. They effected me physically depending on the color I was focused on. These images had a similar feel to them. Some of those images took on a texture also. I remember on of the blue toned images having an edge that almost looked like glass. Very beautiful work.

The last part of his exhibit showed what I felt was an angry side to Jeff. Lots of bold reds that literally screamed blood to me. This area of his work became too abstract for me. I began to question whether it was photography or not. I also began to question whether traditional photography is art or is art on a whole different level than simply pushing the shutter button on a camera. These images didn’t feel like photography to me. His work is very similar to Ross’ experimentation with fireworks. Alot of it felt like pure accident to me. Art without real intent. I do like it for it’s graphic nature, but I wonder if it’s any different from a three year-old with finger paints in a tempertantrum and a canvas. Matte it, put a frame around it and glass over the front of it and voila, you’ve got an “amazing” piece of art that people will be scratching thier heads over for 150 years because no-one has a clue what the hell you’ve created or why you created it.

oops I did it again...

2010-02-16T21:50:00.001-08:00

Lauren got me this wonderful smelling bottle of Dolce and Gabbana "The One" smelly fragrance for men. I've made a decision to shoot everything new I get in studio. This is the first of the year. Took a little experimenting to get it right but turned out very clean.

Aaaaand I'm back!

2009-10-27T21:08:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, it's been 4 months since I've written a blog. I'm not doing my job. Life's been pretty upside-down over the last 6 months or so. My artistic drive and motivation has been on the back burner for quite a while now. However, it looks like I've found something to run with. Pinhole Cameras. I just made my first Pinhole Camera for the Photo History class at Cypress College and am absolutely in love with it.

It's a very simple piece of equipment and probably helps me produce some of the best black and white images I've ever made. It took me about 6 photos to figure out the correct exposure in daylight. From there I'll be able to estimate what my exposure will be in other lighting situations and maybe involve some strobe also! So much more to come, but for now I'll leave you with what I have so far.

Hope you enjoyed!
Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Finals!

2009-05-22T09:37:00.000-07:00

Finals are over with! Alot has happened this semester and I am definitely glad it is over. Last night was the last of my finals. The challenge was to capture a white coffee cup with steam, on a white saucer, with white sugar cubes, on a white background. So we worked in groups of 3, myself, Vergil and Robert. Oh and we had exactly one hour to set up, shoot, and upload the image to the public drive. Whew! But we performed under pressure and came out of it with a pretty good image considering the circumstances. Enjoy!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Shooting Glass!

2009-05-22T09:32:00.001-07:00

For the studio lighting class, we had to shoot glass. So i picked out one of my Mom's Waterford Crystal wine glasses and went to town. Enjoy!

This was quite a challenge. The glass looks beautiful though. I think shooting anything less than the quality of these, wouldn't have yielded such beautiful images in the end.

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Movie Shoot

2009-04-19T22:18:00.000-07:00

Tonight I was on set with Chuck Sullivan who is filming a full length feature. The title is escaping me for the moment. I will post the name when I remember it in the future. It's really difficult to shoot only when the camera is not rolling. You don't really capture the expressions that happen during the film. For that I would need to spend about $3000.00 for a sound proof case that is commonly used on movie sets. Here are the shots I got in between scenes. I kept them in black and white to keep the integrity of a kung fu type film.
Enjoy!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Glass in Class

2009-04-17T13:40:00.000-07:00

My next assignment is to shoot glass. There was a demo in class, I decided to take some shots during the demo since there were a couple of light sources in the room.

I have previously done this type of shot at home but not in the studio.

Check back for my final images in the next week or so!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Moab!

2009-04-09T22:29:00.000-07:00

Spring Break was spent in Moab, Ut. Visited and shot in Arches and Canyonland National Parks. It was a ton of fun, lots of driving and shooting. I have quite a bit of stitching and blending to do now if you know what I mean. :)

Here is some of what you can look forward to.

Check back soon!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

The Interrogation turns Juaquin Phoenix Portrait shoot

2009-04-01T06:33:00.000-07:00

I had an assignment to shoot a scene using gels to create a feel or mood. It could be any scene I wanted. I came up with the idea to shoot an interrogation scene. I used a couple friends as models. One looks like a cop; short haircut, clean shaven, is actually involved in a form of law enforcement. The other model hasn't shaved in a couple months, has long, scraggly hair, and has random tattoos on his arms. The two perfect candidates.
Here are the images.

After we were done with this shot, Jay wanted to do some Juaquin Phoenix style prtrait since some people have been coming into his work mentioning he looks like the guy. Here are those.

In the end, a successful shoot. I accomplished what I wanted to and feel more confident each time I go into the studio!
Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Mirror and Shutter Motion!

2009-03-22T15:25:00.000-07:00

How cool is this?

Opening Reception

2009-03-13T09:10:00.001-07:00

Last night was the opening reception for the Cypress College 2009 Spring Photography Show. There was a moderate turn out. In preparation for the show, Grace, Vergil, and I went to Albertsons to go shopping for some snacks and refreshments for the guests. The bean-dip got demolished in about 30 minutes. It was pretty delicious though.

The main artist of the show is Gina Genis. She has two different series of photographs; "The Night Lives of Seniors" and "Kala: Man's Time and Place in Nature". It was interesting to hear her speak about how she translated what she photographed in each photo in the "Seniors" series. I thought her assumptions were insightful, however very fairy tale like in nature. I think if she really wanted to elaborate on a photograph she should write a book about it. That would be more interesting.

I also had the pleasure of seeing Linda Drake last night. Linda is the widow of David Drake who was a longtime photography instructor at Cypress College. And as some of you may know, I received the first ever David Drake Memorial Scholarship last year. So I feel a great deal of gratitude towards Linda and her family. She is always great to talk to. Linda had very nice things to say about the 4 photos I had in the show, as she said she came just to see my work. So in my playful nature I told her she was obligated to come and see it since she had donated money for me to go to school.

With Linda was a very nice man name Ron Munoz of the Big Bear Arts Council. Ron had actually come to Jerry Burchfield's Conceptual Photography class earlier in the day and spoke about the 10th Annual Art on the Lake festival. I talked with him for a while about my prints and he said they would fit in very nicely with the festival. The festival will be going on during the weekend of August 15th.

All in all it was a very good night. My whole family showed up to support me. I had friends, family and colleagues there, all enjoying some shmoozing and snacking.

Thanks Grace for giving me ideas of what I should put in the show, because I really had no clue! Also thank you for helping with the mounting, printing, cutting, food etc. Thanks to John for all of his digital file knowledge and sacrificing the health of his lungs to help mount the prints.

"I hope everyone gets a chance to see the show while it is up. It runs until April 18th."

Thanks to everyone who came and saw!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Images in show

2009-03-05T23:04:00.000-08:00

Here are the four images that are in my show. These are small. Click on the image and you can view the whole entire thing. And if you are feeling brave, you can go to Cypress College and view them in person!

Enjoy!
Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Show at Cypress College!

2009-03-05T09:04:00.001-08:00

As some of you know I have a show coming up at Cypress College. I am going to be featuring 4 panoramas, ranging in sizes 57" to 75" wide. It's taken me over a month to complete this project, and I am really excited to be showing it. Last night was an adventure mounting them. Thanks to everyone who helped. I will put some small copies on my blog in a couple days however, you need to see them in person to get the full effect.

The show runs from March 9th to April 19th. The opening reception is on the evening of Thursday March 12th. Gina Genis, who is the main event, will be speaking about the 2 series of photographs she is showing. There will be refreshments and appetizers during the opening reception.

Please feel free to come enjoy yourself, some refreshments, and a whole lot of beautiful photographs.

Hope to see you there,
Craig
Craig Norris Photography

John and Jackie, Engagement Session

2009-01-31T23:31:00.000-08:00

John and I have been friends for about 4 or 5 years now. He and Jackie are getting married on the 13th of February of this year (2009, for when people read this blog in 2057). They were a pleasure to shoot. Nothing but fun, smiles, and laughter and I wish them the best of luck!

Craig Norris
Craig Norris Photography

New images

2009-01-24T11:14:00.000-08:00

I got this assignment from Cliff to shoot 3 items, potato chips, pinapple, and paper. I'm not too thrilled about how the chips or the pineapple came out, but the paper came out awesome! And then I decided to add another P, a phone. Here is the paper and the phone below.

Let me know what you think!

Craig

Craig Norris Photography

New Watch!

2009-01-03T12:49:00.000-08:00

I got a new watch! It's very comfortable. I like the fact it doesn't have links, because every watch I've had in the last 8 years had links. And every left arm I've had for the last 8 years (that was a joke)has been really hairy. So the links pull out my hairs and it is absolutely ridiculous. This watch though, has a rubber strap! It doesn't pull hairs! Plus it's really simple and looks classy. So I decided to try my hand at shooting watches, which is extremely specialized. All I had was the flash on my camera to work with. So I pulled out some old assignments that were over-matted and strategically placed them around the watch which I had lying on my external hard drive. The hard drive is black and very reflective as is the face of the watch. I flagged the flash using one of my black slippers to eliminate the reflection. Bouncing the flash off the white wall in my kitchen and then off the matte boards I was able to achieve the nice bright metal effect you see in the photo. I think it looks pretty cool. If I was shooting this for a client I would definitely pay to have the watch cleaned and handle it with cotton gloves. It is impossible to handle the watch without getting finger prints on it. Other than that I think it looks pretty good. I will continue working to perfect this type of product photography in the future. Here's the watch:

Let me know what you think!
Craig

Craig Norris Photography

Instructions for Getting a Cold

2008-12-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

Step 1. Sleep 5 hours, 2 consecutive nights.
Step 2. Sleep in a relative's house. (note to self: Don't drink so much beer that you can't drive yourself to your own bed :))
Step 3. Go surf for 1.5 hours the next morning (after it rains) when the water temp is 55 degrees and the wind is blowing from the north at 10-15kts.
Step 4. Then walk home .25 miles, against the wind, ensuring that you feet and hands are exposed and wet.
Step 5. Congratulations! You're on your way to having a miserable cold!
If you follow these directions, I accept no responsibility for feeling the way I feel right now. I warned you!

Craig

Craig Norris Photography

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T10:52:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season. Enjoy your time off with your family. It will help you in everything you do.

Much Love,
Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Books!

2008-12-14T11:10:00.000-08:00

My Dad just wrote his first fictional novel! It is called "The Gentleman Host". It is about a serial killer who throws women off of cruise ships and 2 detectives that are hot on his heels. It's a really exciting and captivating novel. You can get it at Amazon.com or visit his website at www.thegentlemanhost.com. Check it out!

Craig

Craig Norris Photography (and design:))

New Logo For Studio 35

2008-12-07T20:27:00.000-08:00

Let me know what you guys think. I'm trying out some different designs so we can finally make a card (Grace!). I know the repetition thing is kind of in for design right now. But that's right now, and not forever.

Hey, 2 blogs in 1 day! Incredible!
Craig

Learn Something New Everyday

2008-12-07T14:09:00.001-08:00

Powerful Words:
"When you agree to work free, you reinforce people’s misguided ideas that the self-employed are independently wealthy hobbyists. Don’t degrade your profession by letting a cheap client take advantage of you."

The truest thing I've read in a long time.
Craig

Stock Agency Crackdowns

2008-12-01T20:32:00.000-08:00

If anyone is interested, since we are talking about doing this stock agency thing, this article talks about how difficult it is for agencies to demand payment for unauthorized usage. Pretty interesting stuff since we are on the subject.

Story Here

Happy Copyrighting!
Craig Norris
Craig Norris Photography

Wow...

2008-11-24T17:02:00.000-08:00

I found this video on Yahoo! today. It's a really cool video. This guy has gone through tougher crap than any of us starting a photography business. It seems so hard sometimes. People like this are really inspirational for me.

Click here for the video.

More to come about photos in a bit. Writing a couple papers at the moment.

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

CD Projects

2008-11-07T08:47:00.000-08:00

I have finished designing the cd cover for "Blue Holiday" by Janna and Michael Morris. Here are the designs:
This is the cover.

This is the inside of the cover:

This is the what will be printed on the cd. You can see the circle on the guitar and the center hole also:

This is the back cover of the cd:

Overall I am really happy with the final product of this. My client gave me full creative control and pretty much everything I showed them, they loved. It can't get any better than that.
And now, along with ordering the original 100 cds, they want to order 50-100 more! And there is a rumor that I'm going to be designing their new demo album that the band The Flames will be giving to club promoters and bar owners. I'm really stoked about all this. I hope there is more of this to come.

Thanks for sharing in my good fortune and good news this morning,
Craig Norris
Craig Norris Photography

Dazed and Laughing....

2008-11-02T16:32:00.000-08:00

In my daze this afternoon I came across this story about Philly fans. It's a pretty funny read if you have a few seconds.

People in glass houses shouldn't throw rocks.
Story here

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Halloween!

2008-11-01T09:48:00.000-07:00

My Halloween costume!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

And how could i forget!?!?

2008-10-31T10:05:00.000-07:00

I have finished the guitar shooting and most of the cd cover design! This is what the outside cover will look like:

I'm going to put a fancy text on the bottom right area of the guitar and add a stroke and inner glow blending mode to it. A big challenge with this project was figuring out the proper crop area for the cd. The size of the insert s 4.75" by 4.75". So figuring out what will be shown and what to leave out is really difficult since the guitar has so many details that I want to include. The blue color isn't the natural color of the guitar, but since the title is going to be "Blue's Christmas" the musicians and I decided to go with the blue guitar. You can see the natural color of the guitar below.

This is the image that will go on the actual CD:

This one is even ore challenging to crop. I have serious things to consider when placing the hole of the cd. I think it's going just above the second set of pick-ups which will allow a couple of the knobs to be printed on the disc and someof the nice curves the guitar has to be printed as well.
And the frosting on the cake for this assignment is the musician like them so much, they have requested 3 canvas prints, approx. 24X36 to be made so they can put them in their living room! I am so excited!

Below are some of the other photo's and proofs I gave to them for approval:

What I really like about this photo is the kind of metallic blue hue I ended up with. It's hard when doing these adjustments, to end up with exactly the same duplicated color. This is more or less what the client had indicated to me she wanted. Some of the others were much more electric blue, which would be appropriate as well since this is a photo of an electric guitar.

This is my favorite photo by far. I really like the shapes the lights make and the guitar just looks plain classic!

This photo is a great angle on the neck. I also like how the lights almost look like fire. But this photo is really all about the long neck of the guitar.

These aren't the complete images, you can click on the photo and go to my website and view more copies of these photos!

That's what's going on for now! Look for updates on my new panoramic project soon!

Craig Norris
Craig Norris Photography

Good News!

2008-10-31T09:05:00.000-07:00

I got news on a project that took me about 2 weeks to do. It was actually completed about 4 weeks ago but due to time restrictions, I never saw what my grade was until last night. Here is a copy of the photo:

I got an A! This was a really challenging shoot. This photo was the only one I got out of about 100 where the dog's mouth was closed. The diamond is actually one of those giant paper weights that's cut like a diamond. I had to shoot that and the ring separately and use Photoshop CS3 to superimpose them on the dog. I had a little help from Grace, the lab tech at school. She showed me how to use the mask technique to make it look real.
Over all I am really happy with the outcome of this image. It was fun and new shooting an untrained Husky that was less than a year old, but I did it and it turned out great.

Till next time,
Craig Norris
Craig Norris Photography

Vanity Private Studio

2008-10-22T21:31:00.001-07:00

My sister has opened a new skin care salon in Toluca Lake. She waxes and gives facials and stuff. She has a pretty big following and gets new clients everyday. She has hired me to do the graphic design and photography for her new brochure and website, http://www.vanityprivatestudio.com. In return she is going to pay for me to print some photos and hang them in her salon! So I'm really stoked. Things are coming together and I don't think there's much that can stop me now.

Also coming up in the near future, I am shooting and designing an album cover for The Flames, they are a cover band who plays in local bars around Orange County. This should be fun. I'm going to be shooting a Les Paul wrapped in Christmas Lights. I have to also handle the production of the album. This should be interesting, but I am up to the challenge.

Check back to see more updates soon!

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

2008-10-18T08:28:00.000-07:00

Check out my wedding photography!
Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Photo Shoot!

2008-10-18T07:32:00.000-07:00

Today I am going to Brian and Amber Costello's home in Carlsbad, CA. Amber is 8.9999 months pregnant and would like some photos of her and Brian taken. There is quite a bit to think about when making maternity photos. A lot of which depends on how comfortable the person being shot is in front of the camera. So, I've been up early this morning doing a little bit of research. found some very nice websites with very well done examples. So with all of my creativity and a little stroke of luck I will make some photographs that compare to the examples I saw.

I will update all of you when the photos are edited and ready for publish in the next couple days.

Craig
Craig Norris Photography

Welcome to Me!

2008-10-16T17:42:00.001-07:00

Hey There!

This is my first Blog. I'm about to run off to class but I wanted to leave some words before I go. Visit my website and enjoy my photos. Craig Norris Photography

cheers,
Craig
Craig Norris Photography