Jones Gap State Park

I'm down in South Carolina for a few days (after an unplanned stay in Tennessee with a broken transmission.) This weekend we went hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains at Jones Gap State Park.

Atlante

I recently had the opportunity to meet with and photograph local rapper Atlante down at the Blue Fugue. It probably qualifies as the lowest light I have ever photographed in which made for some interesting challenges. (i.e. how do you shoot someone moving on a dark stage lit only by some christmas lights?) A fun night though, and a great musician if you get a chance to check him out.

Dendrology

In between the photojournalism classes I'm taking at Mizzou, I'm also working on a minor in forestry. Here are a few photos from this semester's dendrology class.

Larrabee State Park

After a full Thanksgiving week, I spent the weekend up in Bellingham, Washington, and on Saturday afternoon, we had a chance to get out for a short hike in Larrabee State Park. Somehow we lucked out, and got a break from the rain and snow that filled the rest of the week in Washington.

Bonfire

After moving into our new house, we finally had a bonfire last night. Along with the good weather and good company, it was also a good time to play around with some different lighting for photos.

White-Nose Syndrome

This last week I've been spending more time trying to schedule photos than actually shooting them. On the print side of the journalism world, I'm working on a project on White-Nose Syndrome, a new unknown disease that is currently killing bats with unheard of speed (over one to two million bats in the last three years.) It is not the most photogenic project but here are a few photos I did shoot from a recent interview with Sybill Amelon, a research wildlife biologist with the Forest Service.

Sybill Amelon listens to a bat echolocate

Help a Fellow Photographer

If you haven't heard, Joao Silva, one of the best photojournalists around, recently lost his legs after stepping on a mine while in Afghanistan. A website has been set up to help support him and his family as he begins his recovery.  Take a look:
http://joaosilva.photoshelter.com/

Joao Silva

High School Football

Missouri rural high schools are in the middle of football playoffs right now. Earlier this week I went out to the Centralia v Macon game for my first time ever shooting a football game. It was my first time shooting with a lens with some serious heft. That meant a lot of time struggling with equipment but over all it was a fun night. (Maybe not a fun night if you're from Centralia, but fun if you're a photographer or from Macon.)

Paulette Portrait

I met Paulette a few months ago while shooting portraits in downtown Columbia. The photo I made of her turned out pretty horrible. So when we had an assignment to shoot environmental portraits a few weeks ago, I went back and photographed some more as she showed me around the neighborhood.

Paulette, October 2010

Paulette, October 2010

Paulette, October 2010

Halloween at Off Broadway, Pt. 2

Last weekend we headed to St. Louis for the Halloween Hootenanny at Off Broadway. It was the final concert for Strawfoot (pictured here) and the Monads (see the previous post for photos from their set.) It was one hell of a night.

Strawfoot at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

Strawfoot at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

Strawfoot at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

Strawfoot at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

End of the night, Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

Halloween at Off Broadway

We went to St. Louis last weekend for the Halloween Hootenanny at Off Broadway. This was the final concert for Strawfoot and the Monads. A sad night if you're a fan of south city music but an amazing show nonetheless. Here are some photos from the Monads set. (Yes, they were dressed as hungry hungry hippos.) I'll have more up later on from Strawfoot.

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

The Monads at Off Broadway, October 30, 2010

Welcome

Hi, and welcome to my new blog. My name is Benjamin Zack and I am a photographer in Columbia Missouri, studying photojournalism at the University of Missouri. I will be posting here regularly with photos from projects I'm working on as well as photographs from everyday life. Check back regularly, tell your friends, and enjoy.

Quito, Ecuador