I know it's been forever since I've posted anything... RealLife™ gets in the way sometimes.
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I spent the weekend in Harlingen, TX. It isn't exactly the top weekend getaway location in terms of desirability based on notoriety. If I were spinning a globe to place a random finger on my travel target and Harlingen found my print, I probably would whimper in disappointment. That being said and despite my preconceived ideals about the town, the weekend was busy and fun. I went at the chance to meet, learn from, and work with JT Smith and Dennis Keim. Friday after work, I picked up Raymund and we headed to my mother's house on the Corpus Christi Bay. I was already exhausted from staying up late with Ted at Harry's gig the night before. By the time we arrived at my mom's, it was late and I was like the cartoon narcoleptics that keep toothpicks between their eyelids to stay away. Four thirty aye emm came early for the next leg of the trip to Harlingen and the only thing that made it bearable was the fresh taquitos from the City Tortilla Factory.
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The morning was spent in Bruce's studio discussing technique and sharing thoughts over existing works. After some lunch amongst the strobes, radio slaves, boom stands, various props, and endless backdrops, we set a rendezvous point for the beach. The studio is in an old building with very high ceilings (20 or 30 feet maybe?) located in the historic district of the downtown area. It was an incredible photographers workshop with the rustic feel and perfect dimensions. I wish we could have spent more time putting it to use, but with the weather suiting an outdoor venture and South Padre Island seashore only 30-ish miles away, we opted for exploiting the opportunity. The island was relatively quiet considering it is one of the top worldwide destinations of the just-a-few-weeks-away Spring Break. The afternoon was nestled in the dunes. I learned a lot about working in this environment. Specifically, I can share with you that a beach shoot is one of the toughest environmental shoots you can attempt. I won't go into detail, but there are enough elements working against you to push it into a new category of difficulty. My next shoot on the beach will have more reflectors, scrims, and assistants at a bare minimum. If at all possible, strobes and a portable power system (like a Vagabond or something) are a huge plus would also be part of my rig. It was a tiresome afternoon. Raymund and I headed to Blackbeard's for seafood while on the island, but in retrospect, I would have rather just slept. I can't remember the last time I was so happy to see a hotel bed.
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The next morning began at the studio with a discussion on facial analysis. We spent most of the brunch hours working with light and shadow provided by modeling lights in a dark studio as the sun built energy just outside the door. There is a private residence between Harlingen and the beach that is nestled away in the woods and not visible from the road called Las Ratamas. It is an estate of sorts... a five or six million dollar mansion home on grounds bordering a lake rich with wildlife. I'm not talking 6 million San Francisco Bay area dollars... I am referring to South Texas dollars. If you have been around, you know the difference. The home had your typical gazillion rooms and ginormous kitchen with spiffy amenities throughout. It had a large patio, Jacuzzi, pool, pool house, fountains and bridges on the grounds, boat house, docks, multiple landings to the lake, several sun rooms and upstairs verandas, etc. It even had a spiral staircase leading up the bell tower to a couple of small rooms and yes.. a bell. It was an environmental portrait artists playground. You could shoot there for weeks and not run out of different settings.
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Most of my afternoon was spent familiarizing myself with the grounds and thinking about where I may want to shoot. I did work with models later in the day, but as the light began to fade, I was feeling the long drive, poor sleep, and mental drain. Sleepytime.
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Monday's studio morning started with huge goblets of coffee... which helped me immensely. We had a full day of shooting at the mansion and wrapped around 6:00. Raymund and I stopped for a bite to eat on our way out of town before heading to the Corpus area to pick up my truck (with new bed liner). Since he wanted to be in town to work the next day, we continued on to Houston. After dropping him off at his place on the south side and driving to Spring, I finally got to bed around 4:30 yesterday morning. I am still exhausted and I haven't really been through all the photos. I'll probably only end up keeping a few because I'm all picky like that, but I'll post the ones I keep here in subsequently... when I get around to finishing the development.
I have to get some work done. Cheers!
