The Ellen Thommesen Ozark String Band

"April 26, 2011 marked the first and final performance of the now legendary Ellen Thommesen Ozark String Band." 

This was the last weekly assignment for my photo class. For the assignment, four of use got together in my backyard to make this photo. The image was made by leaving the shutter open for a minute or two in total darkness. Someone then shot Ellen with a hand-held flash with a yellow gel over it. When that was completed, we drew some music notes with a flashlight. There were a variety of set-ups with different colored lights, set-ups, and instruments before we came to this one. Before last week, I had never played with this style of photography. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out but look forward to improving on some of techniques (and my music note-drawing skills.)

Lighting Diagram

Frozen Land, forgotten people

As we are working on multimedia projects, I selected the piece "Frozen land, forgotten people" by Barbara Davidson to discuss in class. I think this project is well done all around. It tells an interesting and important story with some great still images and lush audio. The thing that jumped out at me about this piece was the combination of the character's telling their stories with the rather desolate images on screen. It would have been very easy to find several people crying in weak voices about how horrible life was. If that had been combined with the photos, it would have made for a story about people who could be viewed with nothing but pity and sorrow. Instead, Davidson let several strong people tell their stories about problems, but also about how much they enjoyed where they lived. The viewer can see the impact that poverty is having on the community, but by having strong, positive narrators, it makes the whole situation into something that anyone can relate with.

Multiple Flash Vampiras

Last night, I went out and photographed the set of "Vampiras"again. This week, several scenes were being shot inside Ravenswood Mansion. I spent part of the night shooting with multiple flashes as part of a class assignment. This photo was made by placing a Norman portable strobe behind the chair for backlighting and then bouncing my handheld flash off the ceiling. The Norman is a little overpowering and the assignment would have turned out better with a smaller flash back there. Overall, it was a lot of fun to shoot and it turned out OK.

The film crew for "Vampiras" sets up a scene at Ravenswood Mansion near Booneville, Missouri. The film, which director Andy Neitzert describes as a "roller derby/vampire" movie is being produced by the Film Studies Department at University of Missouri.

Lighting Diagram:

The Biggest Vampire Roller Derby Movie in Central Missouri

This month, several photojournalism students and myself are following the production of "Vampiras," a movie being made by the film studies department at University of Missouri. We will eventually be putting together a larger multimedia piece on the making of the movie, but for the time being, enjoy these teaser shots from my first couple days on set with the film crew and the Como Derby Dames.

Knitting with vampires 

Ben Loves Trees

Ben Loves Trees from Ellen Thommesen on Vimeo.

We spent the week playing with green screens and Final Cut Express in class. All of us made videos of classmates discussing some of their favorite photos. Ellen made this video on me and you can look at her blog to see the video I put together on her and her brother.

Rain Barrel Art

Margaret McGeehon paints a protective coat on a decorated rain barrel Wednesday afternoon. The barrels are painted by local artists and auctioned off in the Rain Barrel Art Review, an annual fundraiser for the Missouri River Community Network.

This is what happens when you get so engaged in conversation with a person that you are photographing that you aren't taking great pictures. I shot this for class as part of an assignment on using fill flash in direct sunlight. I had a nice conversation with Margaret about canoeing, the Rain Barrel Art Review and the Missouri River. But by the time we had finished talking, and she finished with the barrels, I hadn't shot any decent photos that also illustrated the techniques needed for class.




How it was shot:

Klunks Bicycles & Repair

Karl Kimbel, the owner of Klunk Bicycles & Repair, adjusts the derailleurs on a customer’s bike in his shop. Kimbel says business has been coming and going in spurts as the spring weather fluctuates between 60-degree days and snowstorms.

The last week of class has been a lesson in how horrible fluorescent lights are for photography. I shot in a few spots around town but the final photo I've selected from the week is from Klunks bike shop near downtown Columbia. Great shop. Nice people. Good bikes. Friendly service. Horrible photo lighting. The shop was lit by a combination of different types of fluorescent bulbs as well as a few windows.

I also discovered how tough it is to place a flash in a bike shop. Every little piece of the bikes has potential to cast strange shadows, especially when someone is working on the bike just inches from their face. I was also attempting to shoot up underneath the brim of Karl's hat in order to get some detail in his face. This all took place in an area with dark walls that had few options for bouncing the light. The image above turned out OK with a little additional adjustment to the levels and colors in photoshop.

Lighting diagram