March 2010

30 Strangers is about to begin

by justin on March 31, 2010

in 30 Strangers-2010

Tomorrow we begin the 30 Strangers portrait project and fund-raiser. I’m so excited.

Over the next 30 days I’ll photograph people I’ve never met before. Strangers. Every day in April I get to meet someone new and make a portrait of them with someone they love. I just can’t say enough how much I love my job.

I’ll be making updates on the blog as the project moves along.

And now, a quote from Peter London’s book, No More Secondhand Art:
The greatness of a poem or painting in not that it portrays the
thing observed or experienced, but that it portrays the artist’s or the poet’s vision cued off by his encounter with the reality. Hence the poem or the painting is unique, original, never to be duplicated.

Good things are about to happen.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Logan Utah Wedding – Brandon + Emily

by justin on March 25, 2010

in Weddings

Emily and Brandon had a party in Mapleton the night before they got married. The next day everyone drove to Cache Valley for their wedding at the LDS Temple in Logan, Utah. You just never know what kind of weather you’re going to get in Logan in February, but it turned about to be about as pleasant a day as you could hope for.

Then, lunch at Hamiltons. That place is great. I’d go back there in a heartbeat.

And now, Emily and Brandon, in love.

…..

Justin Hackworth photographs happy people and beautiful events and wants to photograph you. Getting married? We should talk.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Yesterday Amy and I spent some time going through all of the weddings and portrait sessions I’ve done over the last year. The purpose is to get some new display prints in my office. Freshen things up a bit. Springtime. Newness. All of that, see. And it was so great to go back and see some of my favorite wedding and portrait pictures from the last few months. And it was fun to discover some new favorites that I just hadn’t seen the first time around.

Back when I shot film, I loved busting out the contact sheets from the previous years and seeing if there was an undiscovered gem that I hadn’t found before. Like a little treasure hunt. You go back with fresh eyes, and maybe the emotion you felt when taking the pictures has faded a little, so you’re looking at the images with a new perspective.

One of my favorite photographers, Gary Winnogrand, used to wait a full year before he developed his film for this very reason. He would shoot the film and set it aside for one year before he even developed it! I could never do that. I’m too impatient. But for him, looking at them too soon clouded his ability to select the strongest images based on the image itself, not on how he felt at the time he made the picture.

So for me, what I’ve discovered, is that some of the pictures I respond to initially are the same pictures I respond to a year later. And yet, there are some surprises when you find a really great picture that you really didn’t notice the first time around. And I like that feeling. Like when you find a 20 dollar bill in some pants you haven’t worn in a month.

So, if you care to spend five minutes, this slideshow is a portfolio of my images from the past year that I find compelling. (There might be a handful that fall outside that one year range). Enjoy.

…..

Justin Hackworth photographs happy people and beautiful events and he wants to photograph you.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

How to photograph a photographer

by justin on March 16, 2010

in Photographers

Do you want to know who I love? Angelica Glass. She’s a wedding photographer in New York. I met her last year in Vegas at WPPI. She was there again this year and I asked her if I could photograph her. She told me she didn’t want to, and she said she doesn’t like to be photographed. I think she was starting to wish she didn’t know me. But she’s gracious, and as it turns out, she went along with it. Thanks, Angelica. It was great to see you again. Let’s do it again next year!

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Engagement pictures for Lovebirds

by justin on March 15, 2010

in Engagements

Rebecca and Jason are getting married in April. I’ll be there to photograph the happy day.

Jason had the grand idea of taking engagement pictures at the same place where he proposed. They told me all about how he had flowers ready and had the ring placed just so in her favorite book. She knew something was up. Still, a perfect evening. It all took place at The Chocolate Dessert Cafe in Orem, Utah.

Snow storm the day of their engagement pictures. Snow. Storm. But that didn’t stop us from taking pictures outside, too. So here they are: Rebecca and Jason. Just two crazy kids in love.

Read the story of their engagement on Utah Bride and Groom.

…..

Hurray for love! Justin photographs happy couples and beautiful events in Salt Lake and beyond. Getting married? We should talk. Getting married in Greece or Italy? My passport is current. Just saying…

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

How to Photograph a Photographer

by justin on March 13, 2010

in friends,portraits

She goes by Cat. Her name is Catalina Ayubi and she’s a wedding and portrait photographer in Miami. She’s a friend of mine that I met at WPPI last year. It was great to see her again this year and she was good enough to give me some of her time so I could photograph her. Look how adorable she is. And, unlike an actual cat, she never scratched or licked me.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

First of all, an update on the 30 Strangers. If you left a comment and are waiting to hear from me, sorry to keep you hanging. I went to Las Vegas last week and was hoping to get everything sorted out before I left. That didn’t happen, and while I was in Vegas, access to email was extremely limited. I mean, I may as well have been without electricity. In the hotel, I paid the 10 dollars a day for internet but the signal was so weak I could hardly send an email before the sucker timed out.

So, hang tight on that. I’m home now, so we’ll get that straightened out very soon.

Vegas. My wife and I went there for WPPI. It’s a convention for wedding and portrait photographers. 12,000 attended. Sometimes, it seems like there are that many wedding photographers here in Provo. Maybe there are that many. Who knows. And so, for the last few days, we’ve been meeting new people and saying hello to old friends. We got up early and stayed up late. Fun, yes, but also exhausting. It’s good to be home.

We were supposed to come home yesterday, but I was riding my son’s scooter, trying to chase him. He was on another scooter. I fell down on the cement, and on the way down, somehow jacked my foot. I think I smashed it into the scooter on the way down. In any case, I couldn’t walk on it, so we decided to stay another night in St. George. (Truth is, I find every excuse I can to stay as long as I can down there.) This morning I woke up and my foot was nearly as good as new.

So we packed up the car and drove back to Provo. We got here about 45 minutes before I had an engagement session scheduled. I’ll post them soon. Cute couple. You’ll like them. They’re in love and they can hardly stop smiling. Before I left St. George I sent out a Tweet and asked if anyone wanted to help me out on the shoot. To my great fortune, Mindy Gledhill said she could help me out. Great thing about that, is I’ve been wanting to meet Mindy, so it turned out just perfect. And just as I suspected, Mindy is charming, charming.

I’ve got a quite a few things to post on the blog over the next week, so stay tuned. Mostly, I just wanted to say I’m back from Vegas and I’ll get going on the 30 Strangers.

And now, Mindy Gledhill.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Vegas, Baby – WPPI

by justin on March 5, 2010

in Learn,Photography,Travel

Don’t wait up. I’m headed to Vegas. Every year, there is a trade show and convention for wedding and portrait photographers. It’s called WPPI. I love being there and meeting other photographers doing great work and meeting with vendors that can help us make our business better and increase our service to our clients. This year, the keynote speaker is Gregory Heisler. This year, WPPI is legit.

Suitcases are packed. I just need to put them in the car, right after I make this post. Then, I’m hitting the road.

Update on the 30 Strangers. If you haven’t already put your name on the list, you have until midnight tonight. Tomorrow morning we’ll randomly select the participants and send an email to confirm the date we’d like to photograph you. Thanks to everyone that expressed an interest.

And now, Vegas, baby.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Here we go! Announcing year three of the 30 Strangers Portrait Project and fund raiser. Once again, we’ll be doing portraits of mothers and daughters and collecting donations to the Center for Women and Children in Crisis.

Last year, it was first come, first served. This year, all you need to do is leave a comment on this blog post and we’ll be selecting people at random. You have until March 5, 2010, at midnight. If you are selected you must respond to my email within two days.

Please, please, read the following info before you leave a comment. We want to make sure you have all the details (which is to say, we want to make sure you know the parameters of the project) and that you have all the info you’ll need. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me.

What is 30 Strangers?
A Justin Hackworth Photography project. It works like this. For the entire month of April 2010 I will make a portrait of a mother and daughter every day. 30 portraits – 30 days.

Pick me! Pick me! Pick me! How do I get picked?
Hold on, tiger. I’d love to pick you so please leave a comment on this blog post and we’ll randomly select you. Keep in mind, there are some guidelines. Please read carefully.

It’s not called 30 Strangers for nothing. To participate, you and I must have never met.

Also, we’re looking for people that are age 6 to 108. Why not under the age of 6? Too fidgety. Why not over 108? There are some stairs to my office.

When you leave a comment on the blog, be sure to include your email address. Don’t worry. Your email won’t show up for all to see, but I’ll be able to see it and get a hold of you if (when!) you are selected. All portrait sessions will take place at 4:00pm each day. Remember, this is for April 2010. When you arrive, I’ll ask that you sign a model release (pretty standard stuff). In your blog comment, if you’d like to mention 3 days that will work best for you, that will really help me out.

Although we’ll be strangers when I photograph you, I certainly hope we don’t remain that way. Part of what makes this project great is the people I get to know.

Now, those are the essential details so feel free to post your comment. And if you’re dying to know more, keep reading.

What do I get out of it?
I’m glad you asked. You’ll be part of this historic project and donating to a good cause. You’ll experience an artistic, professional portrait session with the most important people in your life. I’ll create something personal and unique that will become more important to you over time.

Each session will receive one signed 8×10 fine art print and further prints will be available for purchase.

What’s this about donations to a worthy cause?
Great question. The thing you should know about the 30 Strangers project is that the $250 session fee is waived. Instead, we’ll be collecting a $45 donation per session for the Center for Women and Children in Crisis, in Provo.

Can I see what you’ve done in the past?
Go here to see portraits from 30 Strangers 2009, and here for 30 Strangers 2008. And here’s where you can see more of my portrait work.

What type of person are you looking for?
A mother and daughter combination. What would be even better than that would be a grandmother, mother and daughter. What would be even better than that would be a great-grandmother, grandmother, mother, daughter. What would be even better than that would be any of those groups I just mentioned, but when they came to the studio, they brought me a pie or a Henry Wienhard’s vanilla creme soda.

I’m going to take my time and think about whether or not I want to participate.
Well, that’s up to you, but last year I filled all 30 spots in under 2 hours. This year, you have until March 5 at midnight to leave a comment on the blog. Participants will be randomly selected from those that leave a comment.

Where will the photographs be taken?
My studio
in Provo, Utah.

Can I include more than one of my daughters?
You’re welcome to bring them and if there is time, we can photograph you all together. For this project, however, I am looking for one person from each generation. That is the focus of the project and I can’t guarantee that we’ll have time for anything beyond that. (But we’ll probably have time, and come on, what am I going to do, turn away your other two daughters? Look at them. All dressed up and that one is wearing make up. She never wears make up.)

How long do the portrait sessions last?
Usually about 1 hour. Sometimes less, sometimes a little more.

Why are you doing this?
There’s something about a project with structure and tight parameters that fuels the creation of an expressive body of work, in this case, exploring the relationship between mothers and daughters. I love being a portrait photographer. Making images that move people and offer a sense of the subject’s personality is deeply fulfilling.

I’m also looking forward to raising money and awareness for the Center for Women and Children in Crisis, an organization founded on protecting these vital relationships.

I can’t wait to see who walks through the door and the images we’ll make. This is my third year doing the 30 Strangers project and I have been looking forward to this ever since we finished last year’s project.

When can I see the photographs from my session?
In the studio, one to two weeks after your session. We’ll schedule an appointment and together we’ll view your images. Each session will recieve one signed 8×10 print and you’ll have the opportunity to purchase additional prints. I’ll also update the blog daily with favorites.

I wish you were doing a cool photography project related to weddings.
We are! It’s called Love’s First Year and you can read about it here.

I am extremely beautiful. Will you be intimidated by my good looks?
Probably not. I’m married to a very beautiful girl, so I’m used to being around lovely people.

Do you like cheese?
Well sure–who doesn’t, but what does that have to do with this project?

Do these pants make me look fat?
Are you kidding me? You look fabulous! I wish I had a picture of you.

Do you think it’s funny when a lot of clowns get out of a tiny car all at once?
Ok, enough with the questions. Just leave a comment on this blog post if you want to be a part of 30 Strangers.

Spread the love
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

{ Comments on this entry are closed }