All In A Days Work:

Engagement Shoot: Marty + Mel

nattles08 — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:29:11 +0000

Over Christmas break, as I mentioned before, I was in 6 different cities in 4 weeks. One of the cities I visited was Houston, TX to spend New Years with my good friends Martin and Melanie. Over that weekend, I shot their engagement photos in Houston. This shoot was very different from any shoot I’ve ever done, mostly because the plan we (Mel and I) had was thrown out the window as soon as Marty got involved, (which is not surprising honestly). This shoot was the most random shoot I have ever done, but I loved it. So many different environments in one engagement shoot.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy:

If you want to see some of these bigger or see the rest of the shoot you can go to my smugmug. Anyway, thanks for viewing! next blog should be about my adventures with gum bichromate!

Neon Sign Boneyard Engagement Shoot: Kurt + Rosey

nattles08 — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 07:04:21 +0000

Well, I have had a crazy few weeks. 6 cities in 4 weeks, 2 engagement shoots 1 wedding shoot and a holiday, what was suppose to be a break was exhausting. I did take a few days off to sleep, but anyway, I took Kurt and Rosey’s engagement photos in a place called the “neon boneyard” in Las Vegas, NV. We only had an hour, and the management was serious about that hour. I did a walk thru that lasted about 5 minutes, and then we were off. It felt a bit like a race in the moment, which stressed me out intially. But I am really happy with what we got out of the shoot and I had a great time doing it.

Anyway, here it is:

As always, there are more photos to be seen on my flickr site. I had a blast with these guys at the boneyard, hope you guys enjoyed seeing them

-nattles

Screen Printed Book: Completed

nattles08 — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 03:31:11 +0000

So over the last few months I have been designing an accordion fold book to be screen printed for, oddly enough, screen printing class. The book has images in it that I scavenged from my grandmothers photo album of her father on a buffalo ranch in South Dakota in the early 1900′s. The writing that accompanies the imagery is her handwriting retelling the stories of why these photos are so important to her. By the end of the 2012 spring semester I should have an interactive piece to accompany this piece. But that’s a whole different story.

Anyway, if you want to see the making of, go here

So after….

20oz of glue
51 ft of chip board
612 ft of paper
140oz of ink

Here is the final piece.

There are also some detail shots here

Anyway, as always. thanks for reading! When I get back from my trip I’ll have some photos from a boneyard of sorts…more info to follow…

-nattles

New Photo/Design: Rosey Charles Graduation Announcement

nattles08 — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 02:48:21 +0000

Over thanksgiving I was asked to photograph and design a university graduation announcement for Rosey Charles. One of her heroes is Rosie the Riveter, and we thought it might be fun to theme her graduation announcement. The front is a parody of the “We Can Do It” Rosie the Riveter WWII propaganda poster, and the back is written like a breaking news story. I really enjoyed photographing. Rosey and working on this post card. I hope you enjoy browsing through the design and photography.

Thanks for Reading! – Nattles

Awesome Nameplate

nattles08 — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 04:32:26 +0000

So, last weekend, I went to Springfield, MO to attend an antique show my friend Scott and Gail put together. (Check it out here )

Anyway, I ran into a fellow there that sold letterpress letters, and i got this idea to buy the letters to make a name plate for my desk that i eventually have when i teach somewhere, some day. (for now…i’ll just put it in my studio…) but anyway, I thought it’d be a nice thing to have, because I am a printmaker/designer/photographer, and it’s letter press letters…how perfect is it really?

Anyway, here’s how it turned out:

putting together the sign

the finished piece

Anyway, there you have it. If you want one of your own name plates made out of letterpress letters let me know, and i’ll see if we can make it happen.

-nattles

NYC and Beyond

nattles08 — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 17:23:54 +0000

Well, for those of you that don’t know, I helped lead a trip to NYC this last “weekend.” I say “weekend” because we were there from Wednesday to Sunday. I and twelve undergrad students went to New York City to visit design firms, and museums. It was a great trip, and an incredible learning experience. Having an undergrad degree in graphic design and photography it was really cool to see big design firms, and famous designers at work in their offices in NYC. Here are a few photos from our excursion:

First we went to see some designers at Method Inc, they did such things as redesigned the interface for TED and the interface for all kinds of devices for March Madness. They showed us around their offices, and convinced us to play this dice game that was apparently an office tradition…but i think they were just trying to take our dollar bills

Name plate inside of method offices

Method Inc, Offices

Dice game that Method taught us how to play

The next day we went to see Mirko, who is a designer famous for firing clients. He sat with us at his desk and showed us his sketch books. Mirko talked us through his process from brainstorming ideas to finished product. It was a great experience and very encouraging for me and the rest of the students. Mirko designed the opening graphics for You’ve Got Mail, and has worked on logos for all kinds of different companies.

Mirko talking with us about why we are designers

Mirko showing us files that he has been working on recently

MIrkos blocks for what he tells clients on a regular basis

Mirko and Milton Glaser have studios in the same building, so after meeting Mirko, we walked down two flights of stairs to meet Milton Glaser. Glaser was open to answering any of our questions and showed us what he was currently working on, it was an incredible experience to chat with Milton Glaser. Also, Glaser is known for designing the I(heart)NYC logo, and the Bob Dylan Poster with the crazy hair.

Milton Glaser answering our questions

Glaser showing us his most recent work

The next day we visited a design firm in Brooklyn called “Huge.” They showed us around their space and were very helpful in answering questions about how to put together a portfolio for a studio like theirs. They mostly do interactive design and website design, the interactivity for IKEA and Adult Swim…

Huge front desk

Showing us around the office

their war room

After Huge, we went to a design firm in Little Italy called “R/GA” they have been responsible for special effects for movies such as Alien and ET, but more recently they worked on the ad campagin for Nike + We got to talk with the art director in charge of the Nike account and ask him all kinds of questions about his job. It was really interesting to get to pick the brain of a company in charge of such big accounts.

Outside of R/GA main office

Showing us around R/GA

They label their conference rooms with pantone colors. Design nerdz, right?

This is how they show off their awards, if you look closely you can find 3 Oscars

Anyway, that was the trip. It was an incredible experience and I really enjoyed being part of the leadership team for it. I wish we had had a bit more time, we made it to a few museums and even the Brooklyn Flea Market! but, anyway, I’ll leave you with these few random photos I took in NYC.

Beauitful reflection right?

We walked passed a dog park in Central Park

This man was riding around telling everyone "Peace" We saw him twice.

This is about half the group that went with us. Good group right?

Anyway thanks for reading!

-nattles

School Starts

nattles08 — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 22:47:25 +0000

Well, it’s been a crazy summer, and when summer started, I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish over the summer, so I thought I’d update you on what it is that I _actually_ accomplished.

Reel Big Fish & Streelight Manifesto in Dallas

I told you guys I would be going to this concert. and it was incredible. If you ever get a chance to see either Streetlight Manifesto or Reel Big Fish in concert. You should definitely do it!

Hung out with my friends in Dallas (this is jesse)

While in Dallas for the show, I got to see some friends from high school, and I can never pass up an opportunity to take pictures of them (usually). Anyway, this is Jesse. and…he’s pretty cool, as you can see.

Did a Crazy photo shoot in a garage (thanks Tyson)

From a blog post a few months ago, some of you may remember this TV photo shoot. Tyson (my model for the shoot) did a music video with all of these TVs in the Spring, and I wanted to jump on that wagon and see what a photo shoot looked like. Thanks again Tyson for helping me set up and take down the whole thing, and being my model. It’s always a pleasure. If you want to see the other photos from the shoot check it out here

Work on a collab show with Joel Armstrong

An artist friend of mine, Joel Armstrong, is working on (and currently advertising for) a wire show about garage sales. He asked me to document garage sales via photography. So, I spent a lot of the summer going to garage sales with Joel, and shooting random items. It was a lot of fun. If you’re interested in the show, check it out here!

Work on more Collab with Joel Armstrong

Originally, Joel has asked me to photograph all the items he was drawing in wire. This was my first concept shot of what that might look like. In the end, he decided to go a different route due to a list of reasons, but I learned a lot figuring out this shoot, and the editing style.

Bought a Motorcycle!

I bought a motorcycle! My dad, uncle and I drove around the black hills in South Dakota on our motorcycles. I shot this the night before Dad came up and picked me up to trailer to South Dakota. It was a lot of fun. Learned a lot. Saw some giant heads on a mountain. The photo below is one of the places at the end of Spearfish Canyon on the West side of South Dakota. It is very much the middle of nowhere, but there were surprisingly a lot of people in this restaurant. Want to see more pictures from that trip? Check them out here!

Drove said motorcycle around South Dakota with family

Shot a Stair Trail!

I was able to shoot my first successful Star trail in South Dakota, right outside of Deadwood. Thanks to my dad for being patient with me while I set everything up.

Picked fresh fruit from an orchard with college friends (and children)

After South Dakota I hopped a plane to Washington. 10 Boarding passes later, I ended up in Spokane Washington with some very dear friends from college. We ended up picking berries and eating lunch at a fruit farm. The photo above on the right is the box of cherries we picked, and Jess’s son, Oliver in a cherry tree.

More Washington College Buddies hang out time

This is Shane and his son Benjamin sitting on the porch on a beautiful Washington afternoon. good times, good friends. beautiful weather.

Jess, Shane, Oliver and Benjamin in Washington

Zak Bek and Eli

These are the two families I went to visit in Washington. It had been too long, and I am so glad I was able to finally make it up there to see these guys.

Went to Portland!

After an epic journey to find a rental car that would let me drive one way from Spokane to Portland, I drove to meet my mom in Portland, OR. It’s a beautiful city, you should go sometime.

Drove Through the Redwood Forest!

A few days after Portland, my mom and I drove through the Redwood forest, and hung out in the area for a couple days. I tried to shoot as much as I could through these days, and if you want to see more of those photos check them out here!

Hung out in San Fran

After the Redwoods, obviously comes San Francisco. Peir 39 is where the seals hang out, so mom and I decided to stop by and see what was happening.

Shot Headshots for my friend that is going to grad school for acting (in London)

After I got back from that excursion, it was time to take my car down to Texas to get some work done on it. I rode a train to my home town, and met up with my dear friend Micah. He and I have been friends a very long time. Micah made it into grad school in Essex, England (which is very close to London). But because he is an actor, he needs an updated headshot every year. So, before he took off for across the pond, I did a handful of shots for him and designed a few things for his website. Check it out, he’s a pretty incredible fellow.

Had a Birthday! My Parents are the best.

So, last week, my second year of grad school started, every school year I have the joy of my birthday landing on the day of school starting, or very nearly on the day of school starting. But, my parents are the best, and even though they couldn’t make it up to Tulsa for my birthday, they did send incredible, beautiful gifts. Thanks again mom and dad.

Anyway, school is underway and I have some crazy cool things up my sleeve (or so I think). But if you’re in the Tulsa area, in a few weeks is the opening for Joels show (keep your eyes out for a blog about the photos I took for Joels show) and in about a month is the Indie Art Festival where a handful of art friends and I are going to be selling all kinds of incredible things that you can buy! Stop by if you get a chance.

Thanks for reading, see you soon!

Natalie

Erueka, CA – VW Van Sighting

nattles08 — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 01:20:47 +0000

Going on 2 weeks out on the West Coast, and as we drove down to the redwoods, I ran into this white VW Van.

VW Van 2

The trip is going well, and I am really looking forward to being home, but San Francisco is really great, got to go to the art musuem today and see the “Stein Collection” which included some very interesting Picasso’s and Matisse’s.

-nattles

Portland and Beyond

nattles08 — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 17:55:20 +0000

I’ve been out of town for a about a week, and am now driving from Portland to San Francisco via the Red Woods. But, as some of you know, I am working on a VW Van series, luckily, yesterday I got a bit lost and had to turn around. While turning around, I stumbled upon this beautiful VW.

Tan VW between Porland and Medford, OR

Detail Shot

Anyway, more photos when I get back. Enjoy.
-nattles

Different Light

nattles08 — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 23:26:28 +0000

This morning was a nice, cloudy day, beautiful, soft light coming in the west facing window of our living room. Seeing this I decided today was the day to try and take a picture of this little hand carved duck for a joint project I am working on with Joel Armstrong. I set up the shot, actually had to hand carve some wood shavings (thanks to my roommate, we have plenty of scraps laying around our apartment). I did the shot pretty quickly and then left it set up to clean the kitchen. As the day went on, I obvsered the light change on the small set up. I shot the setup again around 3pm and then again around 6pm. I wanted to show you guys the difference time of day makes on a simple little shot like this.

2pm

3pm

5pm

6pm

While each edit is slightly different, the lighting is uniquely different from hour to hour. While 2-3 isn’t all that different 5-6 is quite different…and it would be implied that 2-6 is very different. Anyway, I thought this was interesting and wanted to share it with you all.

Have an awesome night!
-nattles