CCSF Student Scholarhips to Attend the SPE Conference

HELP! $1,345.32 saved / $1,500.00 goal!!

Hi everyone – thanks to all of you we are 90% to our goal of providing  ten student scholarships for CCSF Photography students to attend the 49th Annual SPE National Conference March 22-25, 2012 in San Francisco. Students will be selected based on financial need, academic success, interest and availability to attend all three days. It costs approximately $145 each student to attend so our goal is approximately $1500. Thank you for your support of $10, $15, $25 or whatever you may offer. To help us reach our goal visit: https://www.smartypig.com/loves/erikagentry or email me to send a personal check. Thanks!

The 2012 SPE National Conference “Intimacy and Voyeurism ” will showcase exciting and timely presentations about photography’s ongoing tensions between public and private domains, and will explore how the lines between those domains are often blurred. Join over 1,000 artists, educators and photographic professionals for programming and dialogue that will fuel your creativity. Explore our exhibits fair featuring over 70 exhibitors showing the latest equipment, processes, publications and schools with photo-related programs. Participate in one-on-one student portfolio critiques, professional portfolio reviews, informal portfolio sharing and take advantage of student volunteer opportunities for reduced admission. Other conference highlights include a print raffle, silent auction, film screenings, exhibitions, tours, receptions, a dance party and more!

Keynote Speakers: Sally Mann
Featured Speakers: Sharon Olds, Trevor Paglen, Sandra S. Phillips, Hasan Elahi
Honored Educator: Reed Estabrook

APPLY FOR A SCHOLARSHIP

APPLICANTS MUST:

• Be available to attend all three days of the conference (March 22-25, 2012)
• Be a current CCSF student enrolled in at least one photo course and six total CCSF units.
• Attend a ½ hour “registration” orientation date tba or by appointment after notification.
• If you’ve already registered for the conference and are awarded a scholarship, you’ll be reimbursed.

TO APPLY SUBMIT:

• Email: a 250 word statement of interest describing why you want to attend SPE to Erika Gentry: egentry@ccsf.edu and attach the following:
• (3) 72ppi (no larger than 5×7) jpgs of your current work (within 2 years)
• A screen shot of an unofficial transcript showing your CCSF GPA
• A Screen shot of your schedule showing you are enrolled for 6 units

SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS DUE: February 10, 2012

Ten scholarships will be awarded, a $150 value each. Sponsored by the generosity of micro-donations from people like you!
www.spenational.org

Photography in France Summer 7/9-7/15/2012

Sunflowers, Arles, France ©Erika Gentry

Hi All – I’m testing the waters to guage your interest before I put the hotel deposit down for this years “Photography in France Tour”. Please send me an email of interest (no obligation required … yet) if you think you may be interested. Knowing your interest will help me know how many reservations to make! THANKS!

Erika Gentry invites seven photography lovers to join her this July 9-15, 2012 for a workshop and tour entitled Photography in France: A Photographic Journey. This special tour is designed for photographers and photography lovers. We’ll visit the world famous Recontres  d’Arles in Arles, France as well as various photogenic spots in Provence. Opportunities to make photographs and visit exhibits from today’s most exciting emerging and established photographic artists are on the agenda.

Photographic opportunities abound in this region as well as the opportunity to experience one of the worlds premiere photography festivals, the Recontres d’Arles, to inspire your own work. Experience guided visits of the most contemporary photography festival in the world in the beautiful roman city of Arles, France. Make photographs via excursions to surrounding Provencal towns and subjects explored by the likes of Van Gogh, Gaugin and Koudelka. Get one-on-one help in the photographic field and feedback from expert Instructor Erika Gentry. Experience food, art, culture and camaraderie on this very special guided tour designed for serious photography enthusiasts.

The Recontres d’Arles , with over 50 exhibitions of photography showcased at hertitage sites (12th century churches and abbeys, 18th century townhouses, 19th century industrial buildings) throughout the ancient city of Arles, France includes debates, nightly projections in the antique theatre, awards for photographers and books of the year, an “off” festival and book pavillion, guided tours by your Instructor and special guests.

The tour is designed for intermediate photographers that own Digital SLR cameras. We will review and critique photographs, discuss capture techniques and put together a slideshow to show peers during the final night of the workshop. While no specific post production processes will be covered – the Instructor is an expert in Photoshop and Lightroom and  will be available to answer questions about these topics. Students should plan to be comfortable digitally editing work on their own with guidance. FIND OUT MORE

Student Spotlight: Phyllis Nabhan, Since 1964

Phyllis Nabhan first attended CCSF in 1964, at the age of 17 (pictured left) graduating with an AA degree in Photography and then transferring to SF Sate to finish her BFA degree. She says that she and her friend Janet Silva were the first women in the CCSF Photography department and remembers attending guest lectures by photography luminaries such as Imogen Cunningham and Ansel Adams – both who lived and worked around the bay area during that time. After her graduation, Nabhan moved to Afghanastan to design women’s fashions and to export antiques back to the United States. In 1976, she opened her antique store “Gaslight & Shadows Antiques” located on Clement Street in San Francisco which she still owns and operates today.

Nabhan credits part of her businesses success with her ability to re-enter classes at City College, 47 years after graduating. Six years ago, Nabhan  came back to take computer classes concentrating in web design, business, and Photoshop. “I am back in the Photography department 47 years later and the knowledge I have gained at CCSF has kept me in business. The Dreamweaver and Photography classes have taught me how to generate content and to build websites to promote my store. In addition, thanks to the Photoshop classes I have taken, I have started a Photo Restoration business, and have generated a large roster of clients which dovetails my interests in photography and antiques! I am so grateful that CCSF still accepts me as a student.”

Nabhan adds that “The difference in being a student at 17 and now at 64 is that I am in school now because I really want more knowledge and want to learn new skills. When I was 17, just out of High School, I went to college because I did not know what else I wanted to do.”  Nabhan’s story is an important one, and is representative of thousands of people in the bay area community that need access to continuing education to update their skill sets in order to continue to be successful contributing members of our community. Nabhan is pictured with her sister today (pictured right) .

If the hotly debated California Community College’s “Student Success Task Force” has their way, students like Nabhan may no longer have access to the types of classes they need under continuing education. Read more about the debate here.

Artist Spotlight: Taryn Simon: Shot True – NOWNESS

Taryn Simon: Shot True (from the blog NOWNESS)
The Celebrated American Artist Reveals the Ideas Pushing Her to the Limits of Photography

Acclaimed artist Taryn Simon questions meaning and photographic truth while exploring the evolution of her work in filmmaker Matt Black’s new short. Playing upon an uneasy marriage of image and context, Simon blurs the lines between reportage, conceptual art and portraiture.

Her latest and best-known piece, A Living Man Declared Dead and Other Chapters, juxtaposes portraits of subjects ranging from victims of genocide in Bosnia to the body double of Uday Hussein with census-like text and abstract imagery. Featured this year at the Venice Biennale, Tate Modern, London, Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin, and opening at MOMA in New York in May, the piece is an exhaustive and poetic exploration of bloodlines and man’s will to survive. Trained as a photographer, Simon started out shooting for The New York Times before winning a grant to pursue her first project The Innocents, a series of portraits of people wrongly convicted of crimes that explored the ambiguity of photography. With An American Index of the Hidden and Unfamiliar she unveiled secret sites within America hidden from mainstream consciousness while Contraband disclosed the nation’s fears and desires through the mundane items and counterfeit goods smuggled into the US. “Even as she is stripping back her images, they are always beautiful,” offers Black. “There is always a political element, a sense of paranoia, and government.”

A Living Man Declared Dead and Other Chapters by Taryn Simon is at the Tate Modern, London, until January 2 2012, and opens at MOMA in New York on May 1 2012.

Student Spotlight: Berry Evans III, Sports Photo-Illustration

City College of San Francisco 2nd year photography and graphic communications student Berry Evans III shows us his sports photography and photo illustration project for CCSF’s men’s basketball team. Evans is currently a student in my Intermediate Photoshop class (P60B) but came to the class with a lot of self taught skills as he is highly motivated to learn techniques through experimentation and online tutorials. Evans will be graduating from CCSF’s photography program Spring 2012 but already has a flourishing freelance business specializing in event, sports and portrait photography. As a capstone to his college experience, Evans would also like to work as an intern for a major sports team, company or publication. Dream job? ESPN! To see more of Evan’s work visit his website at www.foto-pros.com.

More of Evan's work is on his website at www.foto-pros.com.

Tools used: Adobe Photoshop CS 5.5, Green screen wizard to drop out backgrounds, Topaz filter plug ins, DSLR camera, strobe lighting, imagination.

Six Holiday Gifts for Photo Geeks Under $50

Hey there! Nope – I’m not a paid reviewer, but yes some of these folks are friends with great products! These are my picks for gifts under $50 for the photo geek or photo lover in your life. Feel free to forward me your favs to  check out too. -Erika

Tintype Portrait of Your Loved One, Rayko Photo, SF, CA – Price: $50.00
For a holiday special our studio is be open for those looking for an affordable but one-of-a-kind gift: tintype portraits!! What could be better than a tintype of you and your loved ones! Dress up in fancy finery or pull out those knitted holiday sweaters, we’ll also have props available to add a variety of holiday accents. What kind of props you ask? Oh you know the traditional santa hats, reindeer noses, a Menorah, and cartoonishly giant ornaments. There are a limited number of slots and we’re expecting to sell-out, so register now! Please note, the plates do not come with fancy holiday cards like the graphic above.

Click here to reserve your spot now.

The Light Scoop by Professor Kobre – Price: $34.95
Lightscoop® is a smart low-tech device that creates soft, flattering light by redirecting your camera’s pop-up flash to a ceiling or wall. Don’t let your convenient little pop-up flash ruin your photos with evil red eye, ugly shadows, hot spots, bleached out faces, underexposed colors, and blurry movement that exist only in your photographs, not in the real world.

Joby Gorillamobile -  Price: $35-40.00
You could just shoot video on an iPhone, all shaky-hands-style, and pretend it’s part of the Bourne series, but more committed videographers will appreciate Joby’s Gorillamobile, a simple, versatile accessory that gives an iPhone (or other hand-held device) a clingy, grippy tripod. Unlike traditional tripods, which have rigid legs, the Gorillamobile tripod has three flexible legs that can stand up straight or be wrapped around poles, handles or other good places to park a videocam. A free app from Joby, called Frame X Frame, works well with the tripod. It has a self-timer, a time-lapse mode and a simulated ball level to make sure the shot is not awkwardly angled.

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Op/Tech 19″ Velcro Soft Wrap with extra 5″ removeable Pad – Price $12.95 Black/Steel. SOFT WRAPS provide extra protection for lenses, cameras, binoculars, light meters, small tripods, monopods, tools, outdoor gear and other accessories. They offer an extra 5″ pad within the wrap which can be moved around to provide extra protection where needed.  A photographer can never have too many!

Blurb Photo Books -Prices start at $12.95
Create your books with our free, easy to use bookmaking software for Mac and PC OR Want complete creative control? Design your book using your favorite publishing software, then upload it as a PDF.

Gray Caps  -Prices 3 for $15
Many gray cards are not well-suited for digital photography. They often are not really neutral, and were designed for use with film as exposure guides, not as gray balance sources. The simple Digital GrayCap^TM solves these problems as a sturdy plastic card with a spectrally flat color response.The Digital gray card you will always have with you, even among 10,000 penguins. 1×1 inch, foam adhesive included.