Picture Stories by Stephen Alvarez

Adding Video to a shoot

I'm packing to head out the door on still shoot and I have to make this decision, do I take the extra 2 lbs of stuff to do basic video too? I have Magik Lantern installed on all my cf cards so all it takes to add basic video is the Juiced Link, Rode NTG-1, a Zacuto Z-Finder and some cords. 

Tempting. Maybe instead of mulling this over anymore I should throw this stuff in a bag then clean my studio floor...

-Stephen Alvarez

New reports secrets, now everyone can be a reporter

Now you can report the news too. Thanks to  Bob Krist for pointing out this gem.

-Stephen Alvarez

My Work Flow explained/ Expression Media and photoshop cs 4

A couple of people have asked me -both in email and personally- about my workflow. It is a good question. A bad workflow can sink your business, a good workflow makes your life easier. So here is a down and dirty explanation of mine.

I do all the archiving and editing on Expression Media (about $200 here ). It is a microsoft product I know, but it works well with canon raw files. Most of the raw conversions are done with Photoshop (student addition $200 here ) or DPP.

Boston

 View from my room, Boston. 

Foreclosure by Lauren Greenfield

"Foreclosure: Death of the American Dream" by Lauren Greenfield (with final credits) from Lauren Greenfield on Vimeo.

Lauren Greenfield's Foreclosure (thanks to Duckrabbit for pointing this out).

Great essay.

-Stephen Alvarez

Burn Emerging Photographer's Grant

 Burn is accepting applications for a $15000 Emerging Photographer grant (apply here). That is a lot of money in this economy for an emerging photographer. 

First Commissions, now a sizable grant way to lead the way in 2010 Burn.

-Stephen Alvarez

Neither rain nor snow nor dark of night...

We are in the middle of a massive winter storm in the Southeast. There is snow and rain and sleet. Crazy winter weather. I'm trying to shoot a story in the middle of this, and weather doesn't make things easier. The drive from one site that I am shooting to another should have taken 4 hours yesterday. Instead it took 12 through rain sleet and snow. I have to shoot today operating on 4 hours of sleep.

On the upside 1/2 a foot of snow makes everything pretty.

-Stephen Alvarez

Rogersville, TN

 

Bishop's office Juba, South Sudan

Bishop's office, Juba South Sudan October 2009

Last week Human Rights Watch released a report saying that abuses by both the Northern and the Southern security forces threaten to undermine the upcoming elections. That corroborates  what I found in my informal survey in October. As one man told me, "at least during the war I knew who my enemies were."

-Stephen Alvarez

Stanley Greene's Black Passport

 

Stanley Greene is a brilliant  photographer. His new book Black Passport is available for preorder ($37.80 here). 

 Thanks to Aphotoeditor.

-Stephen Alvarez

White Nose Syndrome, what is killing the bats?

 Ok this photo is a bit misleading. Yes the bat is dead, but it died thousands of years ago in Belize. It is sealed in rock deep inside Chiquibul cave.

But there is something killing bats in the US (here). White Nose Syndrome has killed close to 90% of the hibernating bats in the Northeast US and the disease is moving south. I am researching  a story now and frankly I am scared.