A Photographer's Journey #1: Warrior Dash - Charlotte, NC

Typically this time of the year I am traveling and working at Renaissance Festivals where I have a "stable home" in a tent and stable work every weekend, exploring the area during the week when I am not working. But, for the most part during this time, I am doing little with my photography, rather than the in-between product photography and possible promo video or photo work. This year I am doing things a bit different.

For the last two years, before beginning my Renaissance Festival season at the Arizona Renaissance Festival, I am paid by a company called Gameface Media to photograph the St. George Half Marathon in St. George, UT. This helps as a way to recover from the dwindling savings I had as I "winter" at my Sister's from December to January. It gives me a boost to allow me to get to my first festival of the year in Arizona. At this point, I typically spend February til the end of November working these festivals. Then I begin my wintering yet again. Rince and repeat.

Well, a photographer needs to photograph and to pursue a future in such endeavors one must take risks. So, upon the completion of my second festival of the year in Texas, I arranged and scheduled to travel and photograph 21 races throughout the East Coast and Mid-west. This 4-month period of traveling will undoubtedly surface even more difficulties, but also allow me to visit the places I have yet to venture to while making a living.

The Plan

One of the challenges I have to overcome, or at least manage is continuous wear and tear on my 1999 Ford Explorer. While it has only 145k miles and is in good condition, man-oh-man the miles I will be putting on it. Not only will I have to deal with this potential issue "knock on wood", but I also face the joy of sleeping and living in a packed down truck not built for sleeping. Sleeping will consist of finding a quiet place at Walmarts, Rest Areas, Truck Stops, and the like. I chose early on that if I am going to do this, I will at least get an inexpensive motel room for the night before each of my races. This way I can have a good shower, charge and get my equipment ready, and a good rest. If I am going to put myself through all this, I might as well find some comfort as I do it.

While the majority of each race will occur on one if not both days of the weekend, that leaves a lot of time during the week. So, what do I do to past the time?

1. DoorDash: I will be a food delivery driver for DoorDash to make extra money and replenish anything I use for food, gas and other expenses so I can at least save.
2. Stringr: I will continue to work as a video journalist capturing any news-worthy footage for the media company Stringr for use by local News Stations and Newspapers.
3. WeGoLook: I frequently get requests in the area I am at to go out, using my smartphone to take damage verification photos of vehicles for insurance companies for a company called WeGoLook.
4. BallterTV: I go around in the local area doing live streaming of amateur sporting events, using their equipment. I just have to show up and film the game with their iPad camera.
5. AMC A-List: I decided to spend the $20 per month to become A-List status with AMC. Among other cool perks, I get to watch any 3 movies a week, whether they are regular digital, Dolby, 3D or the like. It helps to pass the time when I want to take some free time.
6. Explore New Things: Work aside, part of why I am doing all this, is to be able to see new places and to take the time to do that. For that, when I come upon a new area or a place I have yet to visit, I want to step outside my comfort zone and do it, no matter what anxiety turmoil of a new place surfaces.

Warrior Dash North Carolina - June 1, 2019 - race 1 of 21

Having just completed the Scarborough Renaissance Festival in Texas at the end of May, my first race of these 4 months arrived. With the obstacle course set for the following Saturday, I headed out right away on Tuesday, May 28th. Passing through Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and South Carolina without trouble, I arrived in the Charlotte NC area Thursday, May 30th.

I began and will end my 4 months of races in this area. For the last 2 years I have worked the Carolina Renaissance Festival in Huntersville, NC. My race season will lead me back to this area at the end of September as I return for this year's festival. So, suffice to say I am familiar with where things are. It felt relatively comfortable hanging out in the area.

I spent the day I had in limbo there delivering with DoorDash. It is an interesting area, north of Charlotte. So much is spread out in these outskirt towns, but travel on the highways seem relatively easy. So, it made my extra time there enjoyable. After staying overnight at the local Walmart, I checked in at the local Super 8. After nearly 4 days of traveling and sleeping in my truck, the rest, showers and sleep was welcome. I took this opportunity to recharge my gear, and get everything ready for the big day the next day.

I was pretty nervous about this first race. For starters, I was asked to be the team leader. This is a good thing, as it provided me an additional $25/hr making my pay $75/hr for a minimum of 8 hours. My duties composed of making sure all the photographers had their cameras set up the way they should and got to the locations they needed and also was in charge of taking the promo photos. You wouldn't think this was much of a big deal. But, this was the Warrior Dash Obstacle Course. They wanted me to not only get photos of the sponsors, peoples interactions in the big area where the "party" was taking place but also to get shots at each of the obstacles. What you don't understand is that Warrior Dash is not

only a 1-mile marathon race, but also a 5k, and 10k marathon....with at least 12 Obstacles. We are talking about at least 6 miles for the 10k. Taking place at the historic Rural Hill near Huntersville, it was all grass and trees. You might wonder what the big deal was. You have to remember, this was needed to be done all on foot while carrying the camera equipment I needed with trails winding up and down slopes through the trees. I knew there as no way I would be able to capture all the obstacles and get all the requested sponsor promo shots, so I decided to get what I could get in the time I had, and do the best I could. I was already dealing with some health issues, including problems with my back, water retention, heart, breathing, that I was already worried, but decided to do what I could without killing myself....hopefully.

Historic Rural Hill
click to enlarge

With backpack and camera harness packed down with camera gear and water, I spent the next 7 hours hiking the trails and fields capturing mud-caked, sweat-drenched smiling faces, resting when I needed. The important part is, I kept going, kept moving, kept pushing myself, kept telling myself not to give up. Telling myself that it will only get better the more and more I did it. And you know what? I was right. I did not die. My back did not give out. I did not die of thirst. I did not fail. It was a big thing for me when it came to the issues with my health. My issues don't get worse when I do the activity. They get worse when I don't. I also realized that carrying a backpack full of water was actually better for me. It helped straighten my body out so I was not leaning forward due to the weight of my stomach. While carrying more, I could do more. So, I kept going. And after 7 hours of sweat and fatigue, and pushing myself to the limits, not only did I succeed at not giving in to my doubt, but I succeeded as a Team leader, and got the job done.

But, something I did decide to do, to allow me to do more and faster, is to go ahead and invest in a bike. It is the only sensible thing to do, considering all the other Warrior Dashes, Marathons, Rugged Maniacs and other races I will be at requiring me to move around. 

Next Stop: Kid's Obstacle Challenge - Raleigh/Durnam

Top 10 Gear for New Photographers (Updated 7/18/15)

So, you want to be a photographer, but don't know what you should get? Well, there is a list of equipment that any new photographer should look into having.

Any gear you get, used is just as good as new. Plus, high tech doesn't mean high skill. While higher priced items are beneficial to the experienced photographer, if you have the eye and understanding of light, exposure, and your camera, as long as it is an SLR you will do fine.

When buying anything on Amazon or eBay or other similar sites, AVOID buying from Chinese sellers as many have been found to be fakes.

1. CAMERA: First and foremost, you need an SLR (Single Lens Reflex) Camera. You will need to be able to manually adjust the exposure, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, etc. You will also want to be able to exchange lenses. You can find one of these very inexpensively on Amazon.com.

Get a 

Canon EOS Rebel T5 Digital SLR Camera Body with EF-S 18-55mm IS II f/3.5-5.6 Lens + Polaroid Studio Series .43x...

Grab it used, it is inexpensive this way with an alright resolution, and comes with a stock wide-angle lens. New it all is around $1200 but you can get it used for only $449.95. Great starter camera kit

2. MEMORY CARD: You will need to store your photos of course. A good size would be 8-16 GB. You want one with a fast speed so you can take multiple subsequent images. An 8GB card can store around 1,400 images at  Large format file size. Be care with buying cards on Amazon. Try to avoid off brand card names as many are fakes. Even some of the SanDisks have been faked. Although, I have found SanDisk to be more reliable. If you can grab an 8GB card at Walmart, Radio Shack or any other physical stores for around 16-40, go for it. With an higher capacity card you will be less likely to need a back up. If the card is a bit high for you in price, go with 2 4GB cards.

Get a SanDisk Extreme 32GB UHS-I/U3 SDHC Memory Card Up To 60MB/s Read - SDSDXN-032G-G46 [Newest Version]


3. CAMERA BAG: This is one of those essential pieces of gear that can either hinder your or make your day of shooting enjoyable. Avoid the bulky squarish camera bags. They are hard to carry and can make life difficult. Go with a shoulder sling back that will make on-the-go shooting fast and easy, and in relative comfort. You want one that is easy to access, fully enclosed to avoid pickpocketing, space for all your gear, and durable for continued use. Avoid Camera Backpacks if you are doing photography in public places. They are bulky and can be lifted if you set them down. You want something that stays with you everywhere you go.

I originally had a Tamrac 5767 Velocity 7x Photo Sling Pack (Black).

But with the addition of a Battery Grip to the camera, the bag is too small. Though, these are nice and durable, and allows for extra "lens bags" on either end to be attached. The internal compartment has enough space for a medium size camera with a zoom lens or wide angle attached, and another lens next to it. The front compartment has space for spare memory cards, batteries for camera and external flash, remote, etc.

With the extra components, its better to go with a larger Sling bag, or even a standard shoulder back such as the:

Evecase Large Canvas Messenger DSLR Digital Camera Bag

4. ZOOM LENS:  This is essential to any good wildlife, street, concert, and other photography needed nice crisp close shots. Best to pick a 70-300mm. If you have only one camera, and use both often at a particular location, you will find yourself switching back and forth. This is no issue of you know why you are using it. If you get another body, it would be preferred to have one of each kind of lens on each body that way if you have a 2-Camera harness you can easily switch back and forth. Zoom lens  will have a narrow depth of field "subject in focus while background out of focus". I use it quite often in Concerts to get those nice close up shots of faces and objects. Works quite well if you are using the right shutter/f-stop settings.


Grab a

Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III Telephoto Zoom Lens for T3, T3i, T4i, T5, T5i, SL1, 5D, 6D, 60D, 7D, 70D, 600D

$150 new, but currently available for $100 used, which is the one I have now.  

5. EXTERNAL BOUNCE FLASH: This is definitely a need to be able to take photographs in low light situations. You will need it to use as light filler to take out any unneeded shadows. If using in a concert situation, DO NOT use it straight on. Get one that can rotate both horizontal and vertical, so you can bounce the flash off walls and ceilings, whether you are in landscape or portrait orientation with your camera. If you bounce the flash, it will help fill in shadow, while maintaining the natural lighting of the subject, ie stage lighting, or artistic shadowing during the day.

Get a

Yongnuo Professional Flash Speedlight Flashlight Yongnuo YN 560 III for Canon Nikon Pentax Olympus Camera

6. LENS DIFFUSER: Even when bouncing your light with an external flash, the light can be harsh at times. Get a diffuser to soften the light. It also helps to reduce shadowing of the subject and helps with a muted lighting of the subject. I use this all the time whether outdoor or at a concert.

Get a

Opteka SB-1 Universal Studio Soft Box Flash Diffuser for Canon EOS, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, Sony, Sigma, & Other

7. BATTERY GRIP: If you are going to be out for long durations, the Battery Grip allows you to have the power you need. It is inserted in the bottom battery slot of your camera after you remove the door. It uses 2 camera batteries to give you twice the battery life. Additionally, if you orient it to the side for portraits, there is a handing second trigger, finger wheel, aperture adjustment, and focus target button to make it easier to handle while on its side. The one below also includes another "cartridge" that will fit 6-AAs as backup. But, it is always good to carry a backup 3rd if not 4th camera battery you can just change out when the others diminish.

If you have got an T5 get the

NEEWER® Vertical Battery Grip Hold 2PCS LP-E10 Li-ion Battery

 8. EXTRA BATTERIES and CHARGER: Always carry spare batteries. If you bought a camera used/new it should come with one battery. You will need a second if you plan to use a Battery Grip. Some of the used cameras on Amazon may  not come with a charger. Get a charger that allows for both wall and vehicle charging. The below comes with 2 batteries and a charger for both wall and vehicle.

Get the

Pack Of 2 Replacement LP-E10 Batterie

9. REMOTE TRIGGER: If you plan to do any portrait photography, this is a nice inexpensive option. You can either get a wired or wireless remove. Some even have a lock for multiple shots. This is also  good option for such uses as Astrophotography to reduce camera shake when you press the button.

Get the

Remote Shutter Release Cord for Canon EOS 5D, 50D, 40D, 20D, & 10D Digital SLR Cameras

or

Pixel Pro Digital & Film Camera 100M Wireless Shutter Remote Control Release

Wired is of course cheaper 

10. SHOULDER STRAP: While most cameras will come with a neck strap, you will find at times, especially doing moving portrait/modeling shoots, that many are too short.  You will want the flexibility holding the camera, then letting it go to adjust a set, a person, props etc. So what is better is getting a larger shoulder strap/harness. You can let the camera hang while you do your thing. These are also good for when you have heavier equipment. With a padded shoulder strap, you can let it hang while you are hiking, walking, or just standing, but are not specifically focused on capturing images.

Get the

WorthTrust Quick Neck Shoulder Strap for Canon Nikon Sony Cameras

 
 You might be wondering why I did not include a Tripod. The reason being is that I am often on the go and do not do posed portraits, but rather moving portrait shoots where I can shoot at any angle quickly. I included the Shutter Remote as that is one accessory many photographers do not think about. So, if you do plan to take still portraits, use both a Tripod and Trigger Remote. You can also include light shades, ring flashes, light lamps, or other accessories. But, I have found this list to be the basics all beginner photographers can use.

Its not on the list, but if you want to learn the basics of photography, pick up my book Digital Photography Field Guide: Turning your Snapshots into the Perfect shots in both Paperback and Kindle eBook formats.


I hope this list helps many of you aspiring photographers. If you have any questions regarding photography please reply here, or email me at errol.coder@gmail.com 

If you found this helpful, please let me know!
 

Where's the Emergency?

What do you get when you have a 6 fire trucks racing down a main street wailing away with their sirens, and a journalist hanging out eating a burger? A whole lot of chasing. You would assume chasing after this train of emergency vehicles you would find a whole lot of carnage...Nope, not this time. 10 minutes later, as ...we came upon one of the vehicles as we caught up, they had already turned off their siren. There was no fire in sight, nor any indication of where the others had ended up. Only a lone fire engine driving down Sunrise Rd. So, where did they all go, and where was the emergency?

Is local Boulder City water safe?

Is local water safe? This was a question that 4th Grader Victoria Griess posed to answer for her Grace Christian Academy science fair project. The results may surprise you. On April 7th, Victoria explained to Faculty judges and students that she tested the chemical, mineral and pH levels of six local drinking fountains. Using litmus strips she was able to measure the Chlorine, Iron, p.H., and Copper levels of the drinking fountains at GCA, Albertson's, Hemmingway Park, the park by the City Pool, Von's, and Veterans Memorial Park. While she initially hypothesized that the City Pool Park drinking fountain may have higher concentrations of Chlorine, she found different using the scientific processes that she and other students learned in school. While she determined that all the drinking fountains were safe to drink, she also discovered some other interesting information from her experiments. While both Hemmingway Park and Alberston's have a lower p.H. level then the others, Albertson's also had traces of Iron, which wasn't present in any of her other test fountains. Ultimately, she concluded based on her experiments and measurements that the drinking fountain found at Von's was the safest to drink. This gives a fine example of how unique experiments can be conducted by young scientists and have real results that can tell us something about the world around us.

The Science Fair gave first time students the chance to experience what experimentation was all about. Many great experiments past through the basement of the Grace Community Church. Students answered such questions as, which batteries last the longest, which toilette paper biodegrades better, and even which mouth wash works the best. While many of the projects were excellent, Victoria Griess came out on top. She will be entering her project "Is the Local Water Safe?" in the ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International) district Science Fair on May 3, 2010, at Green Valley Christian School in Henderson.

New Years Eve 2010, Vegas Style!

What a night folks, what a night! Nothing like street preacher riots, drunken mishaps, and police take-down and drag-outs to bring in the new year in Vegas!

Arriving at around 6pm, I got onto the strip just in time before they started closing it off from traffic. By this time you had a good number of people walking around. It wasn't until around 7pm that they opened up the street to everyone. It was crazy. Imagine the entire Las Vegas Blvd open to everyone. This early you didn't have a whole lot of people though. Despite the lower crowd, you could imagine people still got drunk.

Walking along the Blvd between Treasure Island and Paris, you would encounter so many different people. Parked along the sidewalks you had people selling the glowing glasses, hats, swords, and of course the massively over-sized beads that could be worn about the neck. For some, perhaps over compensation? Who knows. I suspect the highlight of the evening for many people where the "Street Preachers". These individuals would speak on scripture, damnation, and other aspects of their belief. In my opinion, it is fine as it is their right. But it ended up getting out of hand. They would set up just beyond where the police barricades were. They then began to banter, instigate, insult, and harass a number of men, women, AND children. This was quite uncool. There were a few times a man would take up for his wife or children, as they were just out there to enjoy themselves, and would get in the preachers face defending them. A few guys even got too close in the Damners faces, who were subsequently taken down by the police and pulled into the fenced off area. I appreciate freedom of thought and expression. I do not accept using the police as protection when people insult and instigate fights, over their "Word".

By 10pm it was shoulder to shoulder traffic all along the boulevard. It was a sea of people either trying to get somewhere, or having been "swept" away with the stream. I stood their on the side just watching and capturing the havoc. Quite enjoyable for an on looker.

While there was no grand event during the New Years Eve as there was last year when the son of Evel Keneval did his motorcycle jump, you still had entertainment. You enjoyed watching the either tear or joy of people who specifically went to the Vegas Strip to experience it Vegas Style.

I did not get home until around 6am, safe with not having drunk anything. I have to shoot straight, you know? :) I hope everyone made it home safe, or slept in their car like I know a few had done.

May the new year be great and prosperous!

The Wurstfest Ever...

...alright, not quite but a it makes for a great title doesn't it?

Wurstfest is a fall celebration in Boulder City, NV that is a mix of Octoberfest and a Harvest festival. Although, strangly enough, this is a desert so there is not much to harvest. Not unless you count the loads of brats and sausages drenched in natural juices, topped with sour kraut, onions, bell peppers, and of course Ketchup and mustard. No...this isn't a commercial...just an experience from a tastey delight. That's if your willing to pay $4 for one.




Early in the night they have an auction of various community donated items. These ranged from a crocheted basket, to bicycle from a local bike shop, to even a trip to Hawaii. They were presented by beautifully clad ladies dressed in home-made clothes meant to look like traditional German turn of the century, Recolla ad dames. Fortunately, with such beautiful faces they were the only once that could have pulled it off, and still looked good. Imagine women from a boxing match that normally walked around carrying round numbers, but here they were local ladies dressed in laderhossen. Part of the proceeds for the night goes to fund the local high school graduation party. What will stop rambunctious grads from getting in trouble? Supply them with as much pizza and prizes that they wouldn't want to do anything else. Since this program was implemented, there have been zero deaths during the night of graduation.

Unfortunately, due to the light by this time of day I couldn't capture the best shots as my flash would have just caused shadows. But, fortunately there was other forms of entertainment that kept my attention until the sun set. This included tormenting people I knew catching shots of them under the most candid of moments. Was quite entertaining.



As the sun crept beneath the western sky, a brilliant orange color illuminated horizon. It was stunning. Just as the callouge of color receded from the sky, the dark of night rose as Tommy Rocker climbed the stage steps. Were it not for R"V" sided background that they used, it may have left me in awe...alright not really but it seemed to have been the perfect moment for a dramatic entrance. Unfortunately, it wasn't. They climbed the rickety aluminum steps dressed in blue jeans, t-shirts, and a mix of Z-Z Top and Rollingstones hairstyles. While their first impression didn't strike a finely tuned cord, it wasn't until they started playing that their true skill emerged. With a sets of Pantera, Beach Boys, the Beatles, and a mix of other styles. It was apparent with the hordes of frantically dancing teenage girls and boys that they were popular.

Of course you had the park filled with families with their blankets and coolers enjoying their ground view of the concert. Although, the excitement came from the mob of dancers, gigglers, and drunken wobblers alike as they rocked through out the night. While they switched out from time to time with another two person group so they might rest their ears from the screaming girls, they kept a great crowd. From the congo lines, to a mass playing the Hokey Pokey, to teens jumping the stage to play the food song, Adults and kids alike had a great time.

Were it not for my memory cards filling up and my camera dying, I would have stayed much longer. Its difficult for a photographer to stand by and watch something, seeing great shots keep presenting themselves and not have the ability to grab them. Its like a women out shopping...and having no money. I know you ladies know what I mean! Here is a secret. Make sure your cards are empty before you go out for a shoot. Thus is the bane of a photographer...

So my journey for the night ended about 10pm as I faded back to my apartment to sift through the 600 photos I ended up with.

Check out the slideshow