Archive for category documentary
parhelic circles
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary, nature, travel on March 27, 2017
i was in flagstaff, AZ shooting some of those purina ads you see a few entries ago when one of the local crew told me there was something cool happening in the sky and that i should shoot it. he mentioned some a circle of light and talked about arcs, the shape of ice crystals in the atmosphere, angles and light, and a whole bunch of other confusing things that i was nodding my head while listening to but was completely lost. i threw a 16-35mm lens on my camera at 16mm and quickly shot a panorama of the sky. it kind of got lost in the mix for a while, but i came across the photos, stitched them together, and emailed it to the flagstaff local who clued me in. he asked me to send it to a website called Atmospheric Optics, and they asked if they could use it in a “picture of the day.”
if you spend a few minutes cruising through the Atmospheric Optics website there are some incredible pictures of skyward phenomenon. makes me want to learn more about arcs, the shape of ice crystals in the atmosphere, and angles of light.
it’s electric, boogie woogie, woogie
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary, travel on September 2, 2016
i snuck down to my hometown beach, Topsail (pronounced Tops’l) Beach, where i hung with family for a spell. there was an awesome lightning storm passing through one night and i grabbed my camera to snap a couple frames.
i came back inside and sat for a while and as the storm moved on through i set up a little time lapse. it wasn’t fully thought through. i should have done it from the very beginning, and there are a couple glitches where i had to make some adjustments – but ease up on me, dude – it was late and i was on vacation. gosh.
mallwalkers
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary, video on April 23, 2015
my little brother is the VP of sales and marketing of Ridge Care Senior Living Communities. the first and most important thing you should know is that the Ridge Care family of facilities are NOT nursing homes, so don’t call them nursing homes – unless you do it just for fun to ruffle my brother’s feathers and watch him start to twitch while he explains that they are NOT nursing homes. my little bro asked me if i’d shoot some photos and videos for ridge care so i drove an SUV chocked-full of equipment back to my motherland of NC and made it happen.
i was really impressed with the whole operation. every facility we shot at was clean and classy. all the staff we interviewed – from the head honcho all the way down the line – felt like they really cared about what they were doing; and all of the residents and residents’ family members we interviewed had nothing but good to say. it was nice to see people who couldn’t or didn’t want to live alone find a dignified place to call home.
one day i was talking to my brother and randomly mentioned that i wanted to interview mallwalkers – just to see what makes them tick. my brother got excited and said, “Well, we can do this! Ridge Care actually sponsors a mall walking group called Hearts and Soles. Do you want me to make some calls and set you up with some people to interview?” when i told him “Heck yes,” he got on the horn and a few minutes later said, “Be at the mall tomorrow at 8am.”
and just like that…
ray’s candy store
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary, video on August 5, 2014
60-some years ago Asghar Ghahraman wanted to live in america but he couldn’t afford the trip – so he did what any other level-headed iranian would do: he joined the iranian navy, waited 9 years to dock in america, jumped ship, and swam to the land of liberty. the next few months took him far south, then far north. being homeless in nyc, he realized the american dream of building something out of nothing. at the time of this interview, mr. ray (he learned spanish to forge a drivers license/new identity as “raymond alvarez”) is 81 and has been running his candy store on avenue A. for 40 years without ever taking a vacation. i love this guy, i love his store, and i love his chocolate milkshakes. this is my tribute to the nicest guy in the east village.
drums along the hudson
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary on June 16, 2014
i finally brought my camera this year. here are a few of my favorite shots:
abuelo turns 99. or maybe 100.
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary on February 4, 2014
his family records say he’s 99 – his military records say he’s 100. nobody really knows, so next year he’ll celebrate his 100th again just to be sure. you would NEVER KNOW he’s 99 (or maybe 100). his mind is sharp as a tack and his body is in better shape than most americans half his age. in fact the last time we visited abuelo, he was all stove up because he fell while riding his bicycle. all that and the guy plays a mean game of dominos. see you next year at your 100/101 year party, abuelo.
i am unbeautiful
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary on April 26, 2013
i’ve always been fascinated with the concept of beauty and why people feel attractive or unattractive. one might feel attractive for having a particularly strong facial/bodily features, and another might feel unattractive for having the same features. as styles and fads come and go, the light by which we perceive ourselves is constantly flickering. it’s so wild to think about. in 2007 i decided to post ads on craigslist and some other online classified ad sites searching for people who felt ugly or unattractive who would be willing to let me interview them and take their photo. i interviewed and shot 4 people, but i ran out of free time and the project got buried under the massive pile of everything else in my brain. now, years later, i was digging through the mountain of stuff in my head and found the project. i changed the art direction a little and added video to the mix. now, finally i give you i am unbeautiful.
type 1 diabetes
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary, fitness/sports on March 8, 2013
diabetes is one word, but covers two diseases. when people mention “diabetes” they’re most likely talking about type 2 diabetes. type 2 diabetes usually develops in people because of the way they choose to live their lives – but type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks and kills off its own insulin producing cells. in fact, most people with type 1 diabetes prefer to call it “type 1” or “T1D” to differentiate themselves from others whose diabetes developed because of their lifestyle choices. people who have T1D have to regulate their blood sugar by injecting insulin into their bodies. insulin is a hormone that allows the body to metabolize glucose. to inject insulin, they can use a syringe or insulin pen (looks like a large pen with a needle. it has a multi-dose cartridge with selectable dose amounts), or a small insulin pump (about the size of a pager) they can wear 24 hours a day that feeds a pre-programmed amount of insulin through a cannula (small tube with a needle) into the subcutaneous space (under the skin) somewhere in the body. there are 5 or 6 things that affect blood sugar and we can only measure two of them, so regulating blood sugar is a delicate 24/7 balancing act that can’t be taken lightly – but that doesn’t mean it has to slow you down…
in 1983 bill carlson was the first person with T1D to finish the ironman triathlon. ever since he’s inspired others with T1D to turn stumbling blocks into stepping stones. here are some pictures i shot in san diego of a crew of triathletes and friends who have T1D who were training for an upcoming race.
the crew would stop every 30 minutes or so for a quick blood sugar check
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- checking blood sugar after breakfast
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- bringin ’em in
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- we hugged the ocean for most of the ride
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- the crew would stop every 30 minutes or so for a quick blood sugar check
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- nothin jolts the system like pop tarts, energy gel and dr. pepper
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- i either shot out of the back hatch or out of the backseat passenger window, superman-style, with my stomach on the door and my head close to the ground. safety first.
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- my fail-proof protection mechanism was activated by wedging my feet into nooks and crannies as i was hovering over the road for a closer shot.
lightning at topsail beach
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary on July 25, 2012
legend has it that blackbeard, stede bonnet and the likes would hang in the marshes of north carolina waiting to attack ships. if the merchant ships were lucky enough to see the top sail of a pirate ship peeking over the tops of the live oak trees, they’d hightail it to safety. i spent a lot of time at topsail beach as a kid during the summers. never saw any pirates, but i got ambushed by an angry crab one time. i was walking in a foot or so of water and it locked onto my toe; i screamed like a girl, flung my foot out of the water and ol’ captain pinchy fingers went flying through the air as i hightailed it back to mama and cried. oh, by the way — topsail isn’t pronounced “top-sail.” it’s “tops’l.” if you go there and call it “top-sail” the locals will roll their eyes and think you’re an idiot as they gladly accept your yankee dollars.
up in smoke
Posted by mareadyphotography in documentary on January 4, 2012
last night i looked out of the window and saw this
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