Travel – Page 8 – Journeys of a Hybrid

February 11, 2010February 11, 2010

Cultural Context and Photography

I became a photographer because of my passion for people and the cultures of the world. Photography has given me access to all sorts of people from various cultures and backgrounds. My camera is my tool – my means to my end. And that is to tell peoples’ stories through my images – whether they be still or moving.

I was going through some images this week that I had shot in Easter Island a few years ago. Easter Island had always been a destination high on my list of “must sees” and it lived up to my every expectation. It was remote and wild with a constant wind that energized me. A place in the world that somehow felt untouched, unlike so many other destinations in the world that have suffered from the negative effects of the onslaught of visitors due to their own intrigue or beauty. In Easter Island the culture still felt real.

The first few days my partner and I spent driving around the island, which isn’t hard to do because of the virtue of its size. In the main town, I noticed that most of the people I saw out and about were men. Men with exotic looks riding through town bareback on horses with their long black hair blowing in the wind. It was quite a provocative sight speaking both as a photographer and as a woman.

After attending a dance performance one evening I made arrangements to photograph one of the dancers – out in the natural environs of the island. I wanted to capture the spirit and the feeling of the people and the land. Tom, my partner and I met up with our subject who was in typical “western” attire and not made up. He asked us if we would transport his “weapons” in our vehicle as he couldn’t manage that on his scooter, and we obliged.

He followed behind us on his scooter to the location that we had previously scouted and then he proceeded to strip down to nothing. Here we were in this incredible wild environment between an extinct volcano and the sea with a native man totally naked standing in the road – applying his makeup, using the side mirror of our car. I instinctively knew that even though these were not the images that I had planned in my head – these were images that told the story of his culture in a unique context.

We went on to photograph a wonderful array of environmental portraits and at the end of the day we took a “crew” photo of our little group. And then he got back on his modern day scooter, in all his tribal glory and I took a few parting shots. It’s days like this that is why I became a photographer.

January 18, 2010

On the Road (Again)

I’ve been doing a lot of traveling these days, quick one or two-day stays in cities all around the US. But that’s not the kind of traveling I do when I’m on a destination shoot where get totally absorbed in a city because I’m there to tell that city’s story through my images.

These days a lot of my travels are quick trips in and out of cities all around the country, giving seminars for AMSP to still photographers who are thinking about getting into video. So I rarely have time to see the “sights” of the cities and really get my bearings on where I am.

One thing I do try to do while I’m on the road is walk because that is what I do when I’m home and it helps me get clarity on the day. This morning I went out for a walk in the area just outside my hotel. As I walked by various chain restaurants and stores, I almost forgot where I was, because it could have been just about anywhere in America. And that kind of made me sad – that in the US, our towns and cities have lost their unique attributes.

When I got back to my hotel, I saw a posting from a friend on Facebook on how photography introduces you to people whose lives and stories humble you. His words really hit home because I became a photographer for this very reason – to allow me the privilege of meeting people and hearing their stories. For me, photography and my camera have always been a “means to an end”.

Then I realized, that a place isn’t really defined or not defined by its stores and restaurants but by its people. And that even though I may only be in a place for a quick overnight – I always try to connect with the people. Whether that may be a chat with a taxi driver or a waitress or with some of the wonderful people I meet when I do a seminar.

Such is my life, enjoying and being humbled by all the people and their stories as I continue my travels. How lucky I am – to be able to combine my career in photography with my passions.

January 7, 2010

The Power of Social Media

My last blog entry, I wrote about the DO’s and DON’T’s of Social Media. The next day I put some of some of those tips to work.

I am embarking on a personal project, Opening Our Eyes. The idea behind the project is to make a documentary that features people who are making a difference around the world – people who have followed their dreams, passions and ambitions and started their own personal projects that help make the world a better place. Ordinary people who are doing extraordinary things.

In looking for these people or subjects of the documentary, I wanted to utilize the power of social media and my connections and friends, to not only find “leads” but also to make the entire project an interactive experience from the start. So, two days ago I launched a simple website and blog and gave the idea a name, “Opening Our Eyes – Global Stories About the Power of One”.

My daughter Erin is teaming up with me on this project. She lives in Chicago – I live in NJ – but with social media we can bridge that divide as well as get the involvement of all our separate “friends”. Using a company called SquareSpace and their amazing publishing software, I was able to set up a simple blog and website and get it online in less than a day. It site will grow as we both continue to add content and relevant links and information, but by getting the idea “out there” and providing a way for feedback and dialog to take place – we are building our own community at the same time.

After the site was created, I created a fan page on Facebook with information about the project and links to the website. I also registered the blog with Network Blogs and inserted a “follow this blog” button on the fan page. And then I tweeted about project on Twitter, which automatically shows up, on my own personal FB . I also sent out about 50 emails to people I know.

The response has been overwhelming. Within a day I have received over 50 ideas about people and their projects. We’ve had well over 300 hits on the site and almost 40 fans on Facebook. Now that might not seem like a lot to some people – but to us it was an amazing response in such a short time.

As the project takes shape fueled by the interest and eagerness of our participants we are building a community and opening others’ eyes to the “power of one”.

December 13, 2009December 14, 2009

Reconnecting with The Ancient Ones

What started out as a mileage run to the West Coast on Friday, turned out to be a day of interesting connections. My plan was to fly out to San Francisco on Friday morning and return the next morning. I needed one more flight – the cost of a cheap ticket – to reach the next level of my airline elite status. I have a pretty full travel schedule next year and the upgrade in status will be beneficial.

Since I had the time, I decided reconnect with an old college friend whom I hadn’t seen in over 25 years. He picked me up at the airport and from the moment I got into the car until we parted company later that afternoon, it was like we hadn’t missed a beat. Both older, yet fundamentally the same people we were back in college. There was a comfortable feeling being with each other even though so many years had gone by.

Later that evening I had drinks with a colleague whom I had met a few years back at SATW’s (Society of American Travel Writers) conference in England. During the evening I mentioned a personal project I was embarking on “People Making a Difference” and queried him about story ideas and people he may know. That conversation led us to talking about the travels we’ve each had over the years. We quickly discovered that we had made similar backpacking odysseys back in the early 70’s. We began to retrace the paths we had each taken – I spoke of traveling from Cairo to Beirut, then on to Damascus and through Iraq to Kuwait. He followed with a nearly identical itinerary and picked up the journey from Kuwait by boat to Abadon, Iran and overland to Afghanistan. We soon realized that we had been to the same places during the same period of time.

We both commented on the fact that we never come across people in our lives that have had that kind of parallel experience. He then told me a funny story. He had traveled back to India with his grown son when a young traveler came up to him asking for money so he could get something to eat. My friend told the traveler about his own journeys when he was his age. The young traveler responded by saying “Whoa – you’re one of the Ancient Ones”. My friend relayed this story to me and pointed out that traveler’s comment had been spoken in a manner of respect, the same manner of respect with which native indigenous peoples refer to their elders or “ancient ones”.

It was an unusual day where I set out to take a trip for the sake of miles and ended up reconnecting with my past on a couple of different levels. I tend to look forward in my life rather than at the past but sometimes reconnecting with your past connects circles and reminds of us who we really are. I kind of like being an Ancient One.

December 6, 2009December 14, 2009

And Me Without My Camera

I flew out to LA on Friday and had a free afternoon before giving a seminar the next day. I had packed light. I was only in town for a short stay and most of it devoted to my presentation. So I left my cameras at home.

I was staying in Santa Monica so when I got into LA that Friday afternoon I headed to the Santa Monica Pier. It was the quintessential California day – weather wise bringing back a lot of memories from when I used to live in Santa Barbara. For anyone who has ever been to the pier you’ll understand when I say it was like a circus of vibrant visuals. Within a matter of minutes I was regretting the fact that I didn’t have a camera. And then a funny thing happened – I started recording the visuals in my head and using words instead.

Colorful bumper cars against a bright green wall that vibrated in the late afternoon light.
Two men crossing paths each recording their own observations with their mobile devices silhouetted against the glare of the sun on the water.
Garry King “on the scene” the street musician doing his own thing pumping out smooth sounds that drifted off in the wind.
A man who looked like Santa Claus and sounded like Cat Stevens singing the House of the Rising Sun, quickly followed by I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas.
A fisherman weathered and alone.
A 400 lb mime painted silver and pulling his pedestal down the pier behind him.

Today as I headed to the airport in my rented hybrid car an old flatbed pick up, era 1920’s pulled up beside me at the light. For an instant I locked eyes with the old Mexican gentlemen who gave me a quick smile and I thought to myself – and me without a camera.

Maybe it’s time for me to get an iPhone. If only the phone part was better.

November 23, 2009December 14, 2009

A Time of Opportunity

You can look in the rear view mirror and lament the past or you can get excited about the future. With all the gloom and doom in the photography business in this poor economic climate, I remain optimistic and see it as a time of opportunity. It’s tough to be an optimist in times like this but if you look back through history you’ll see that many businesses got their starts in bad economic times.

There’s nothing new about video but with increased bandwidth and the proliferation of mobile devices video is “hot” right now. In some markets like the corporate and institutional sectors, I’m seeing more of a demand for video. I’m hearing from traditional print graphic designers who are asking me if I shoot video because their clients are requesting it. Their clients want to add a video presence to their online communications that can be distributed internally and externally. And can also be spread virally through social media networking.

Editorial markets have expanded into video. Just about every magazine has an online presence and nowadays it’s not just a regurgitation of their print edition but a lot more. Take a look at NY Magazine or Zagats.com.

The travel market is ripe for video. When I’m researching a destination I like to get as much information as possible so if I can watch a 2 minute video – it usually hooks me further into that website to explore more and link to other sites where I can facilitate my travel plans. Many times videos made for online travel sites are repurposed and used at trade shows. Check out what Intercontinental offers as destination pieces about places where they have properties.

Of course there are hundreds of instructional videos and pod casts, and on the retail end there’s weddings and family biographies.

Even if you don’t shoot video or want to offer video to your clients, you may want to consider using it to promote your own business. A short web video about your business or your creative approach with some behind the scenes footage of you working provides added insight and information to potential clients.

These are just some of the areas I see opportunities in. I love to hear from other optimists where they think the opportunities are.

November 18, 2009March 24, 2014

Looking For People Making a Difference

Maybe it started after seeing James Natchwey speak at Photo Plus Expo – the desire to create awareness with my camera. But I think it started long ago and in fact goes back to my roots and why I wanted to be a photographer. Simply put, I know that a camera can be a powerful tool in bringing awareness to a cause and with that the ability to bring about change.

I’ve always been interested in the power of the individual, those that are so passionate about a conviction they let nothing stop them. One young woman Maggie Doyne who graduated from high school with my daughter 5 years ago, decided to travel instead of going off to college. She wound up in a small village in Nepal and using her babysitting money, started a school/orphanage for Nepalese children orphaned by war. Learn more about Maggie’s Kopila Valley Children’s Home.

But what’s equally impressive about Maggie is that she speaks to students about how they can make a difference, thus planting seeds in the minds of our youth. That’s a powerful thing and each one of those people she speaks to has the potential do something that could make a difference.

This leads me to the point of this blog and how you can help. I’m embarking on an international project – to make a documentary that features people who are truly making a difference around the world. I am currently searching for those people who have a compelling story to tell. For this project, I am not looking for those who are specifically working for an NGO or some type of organization, such as the Peace Corps, because their stories – the stories of those organizations – have already been widely told.

I am searching for individuals who have embarked on their own personal projects to help make the world a better place – people who have followed their passions, ambitions, dreams, to start something that they care about. Their projects do not have to be massive or overly ambitious – it could be something as basic as restoring old churches in Russia. The people can be natives of their country or expatriates, young or old. Ideally, I would like to find 7 people, one on each continent.

So, if you know someone who is making a difference, please let me know. gail@kellymooney.com And if you don’t know someone, please pass this blog along and get the word out virally. My hope is that by using my skills to tell these stories, I will play my part in paying it forward.

November 10, 2009December 14, 2009

If the Idea Just Won’t Quit Ya – Take Notice

If anyone’s been paying attention to my last few posts you would have noticed that I’ve been very introspective of late. That’s usually what happens to me when I’m about to make a change or embark on a personal project. '60's psychedelic VW van I have found that when unexpected and random events happen in my life and I take notice and then question why – I’m ready for my next chapter.

I have a friend who is a freelance writer and lives nearby. We frequently take long walks through the miles of preserved natural open land that lie within our community. We are both creatives and we’ve discovered that it’s a wonderful environment for conversation and bouncing ideas off of one another. On a recent walk I was talking about an idea that just won’t leave my head and another thought that’s just starting to morph into a more concrete plan.

At one point she questioned that perhaps I should segway the ideas into assignments from magazines or online publishers – like that would somehow legitimize my effort. I told her that if I have an idea that I feel so strongly about that I’m ready to proceed on my own – then I didn’t feel the need to get validation from someone else. That my passion for the subject matter usually carried me through and was all the validation I needed.

I’ve worked on a quite few personal projects over the years, both still photography and video as well as combinations of both. There hasn’t been one project that hasn’t been rewarding on many levels. Of course there’s the personal satisfaction and growth that I initially receive. And there’s the incredible feeling I get from knowing my work has touched someone or had an impact on them. And there are always the residual rewards that lead to new connections and future projects or jobs.

Someone once told me “pay attention to those thoughts in your head that just won’t quit ya”. So I think I will.

November 1, 2009December 14, 2009

“You’re Only 25 And You’re Already Making Compromises?”

There’s a story that I love to tell because it explains why I followed the path I did – in my career and my life.

It was 1976 and I had just graduated from Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara, California. I had my technically perfect portfolio and I was ready to set the world on fire. British schoolboy, Bath, England My plan was to move back East, and pursue my dream of becoming a photojournalist. That was where my heart was – “telling the story” through my images and I wanted to share those images through the pages of magazines. But even back then photo essays and the magazines that printed them were threatened by a bad economy and changing times. Look had just folded and Life was seeing its demise – the first time around.

Back then everyone told me that to make a living in photography you needed to get a studio and shoot commercially. I bought into that, geared my first portfolio toward that and got a job assisting a commercial still life photographer. But it didn’t feel right -it wasn’t the right fit for me. I had wanted to become a photographer to capture people and their cultures and what was going on in the world – not to shoot static objects in a New York City studio.

I had admired Jay Maisel’s work at the time, his eye for the detail and the streets of New York. I decided to give him a call and ask if he had time to look at my portfolio and maybe give me a critique or some advice. He agreed so we set up a time at his studio down in the Bowery. The late ’70’s was not a great time for NYC – economically speaking it was broke and Mayor Beame had just been turned down by the Feds for a bailout. Just taking the trek down to that part of Manhattan at that time, was an adventure in itself. Jay was a true pioneer in buying that old bank building back then. I’ll never forget the contrast between the graffiti covered exterior and amazing space inside.

Jay looked at every perfectly mounted print of technically perfect photographs and tossed them aside. He looked at me and asked me if this was what I really wanted to do. I started to go into a lengthy explanation of how I really wanted to be a photojournalist and proceeded to tell him all the reasons that I had given myself when I talked myself out of pursuing that dream. And then I took out some snapshots of things I had shot on my travels before I even went to Brooks. He looked at the images and told me that he could tell that this was what I should be doing. And then he asked me how old I was. I replied that I was 25. He looked me straight in the eye and said “You’re 25 years old and you’re already making compromises?”.

It was a turning point in my life. Every time I’m tempted to go off course, I remind myself of Jay’s words and I get back on track.

October 27, 2009December 14, 2009

Life on the Road and My Favorite Place

When I was a little girl my mom used to take my sister and I to Walgreens to get an ice cream sundae. Back then, like other drug stores and five and dimes, you could get a bite to eat at the counter. I had a game that I’d play every time we’d go. I’d sit on the stool and spin myself around. I would assign exotic destinations to various landing spots that the stool would stop spinning – and determine that those were the places that I would travel to in my life. I somehow knew back then that “the road” would become a huge part of my life.

Over the years people have asked me “Where is your favorite place that you’ve ever been?”. To be honest, I hated that question because I never had an answer. There were too many places, all different in their own way that attracted me to them. Iom peel boat And then about 10 years ago I had an assignment for Islands Magazine to cover the Isle of Man.

The island pulled me in from the start. I felt a strange sense of belonging, a connection that I couldn’t explain. The air was cool and pure with a constant wind that blew across the island from one sea to the other. It’s a small island located in the Irish Sea somewhere between Ireland and Scotland. An island that’s reminiscent of Ireland 50 years ago – port erin an island where time seems to have stopped.

Because the island is small, I didn’t feel the usual rapid pace that I have felt on previous assignments where I was given too much to cover and too little time. I could linger and catch the moods of the island and the vibe of the people. It was a magical place with open, cinematic vistas of a iom scenic patchwork of every shade of green you can imagine, stretching from the barren upland’s to the blue of the sea. The sea was always present.

There were secret glens with waterfalls and I thought that fairies must surely live there, somewhere beneath the ferns. The island was enchanting on every level. One day I came upon a crowd of people in a field. I asked someone what was going on and they replied that it was a turnip weeding contest. How wonderful I thought, a contest to weed a field. I spent the morning caught up in the event, taking a few images, but mostly just talking with people men iom and storing those conversations in my head.

And then like every other time I’ve taken to the road – my journey came to an end and it was time for me to leave. There’s a legend on the island that every time the Queen of England comes to the Isle of Man (the island is an independent nation), the great god Mananan covers the island in a mist, so that she won’t find her way there and take the isle back. The night before I left, a dense fog enveloped the isle and I thought the gods didn’t want me to leave – and I didn’t want to leave. But the fog lifted and it was my time to go, but I knew that I finally had an answer to the question “Where is your favorite place you’ve been?”