Arlington County Fair Day 3

So I got back a little while ago from the third day of photography at the Arlington County Fair. Today we got the most photos of any day and I finally nailed down the perfect strategy for taking photos, too bad it was on the last day but no fear I got about 30 different people today so plenty to choose from. It was my longest day working (12-5) and it was the day we had to break down all the tents and junk (clean up is my least favorite part). However it was my first official big gig as a photographer so I feel pretty proud of myself for turning something that was once a hobby into a fairly steady little gig.

Looking back at this week I have to say again I am extremely proud of myself. Monday I was able to take a trip to Virginia to finalize a photo contract, then come back to Maryland and finish the performance part of the Three Beers Later music video. Tuesday I was able to record foley for a ADR/Color correction project, then come back from Forest Hill, Md, go home, and like five minutes later head out to Baltimore City for a volunteer photography gig. Wednesday I picked out new glasses (so yay for that!). Thursday, I was out at Render Perfect doing some tape transfer to Final Cut Pro and learning FCP all over again for what will be either a freelance job or a part time job at that company (it is my choice, I will have to see). Then finally Friday-Sunday traveling down to Arlington from good old Edgemere to do more photography. This has to have been the busiest week ever for me and like I said before and proud of myself. To me this is the start of something great, and I am glad I am the one paving my path...I feel truly independent in the video/photo world which is amazing! I hope things keep up this way.

Random Movie Fact: In the 1986 animated film An American Tail, the opening scene of the ship's arrival in America (at Castle Garden) is based on a photograph in Christian Weekly magazine from March 28, 1874. On the barge is written, Einwanderer Beforderung, which means "Immigrant Transfer" in German.

Thanks for the support,
Daniel Hess

Chill Work Day

Today I finished up another treatment for a music video, which I hope to finish before the end of August. I tried to keep the video as confined as possible but at the same time tell a good story to go along with the song. I feel I accomplished both very well, now it is just time to get feedback from the client. I hope they like it since it will make production easier and also help me to stay focused on the vision a little bit better. I really want things to work out with this gig since I really like the artist and just simply really want to make this music video. Also today I am working on some color correction for a client who recently finished up a little short film, the biggest issue is blown out backgrounds, like where the light comes in. I was asked to get rid of it but the light is peaking really bad so I don't know if there is going to be much I can do at the end of the day the only thing that may save the shoot is to redo it, but I will do what I can. Otherwise today I want to try and wash my car and maybe write up a little photo contract for another upcoming gig.

Random Movie Fact: In the 2002 film Phone Booth, during the movie, when the Caller warns Stu not to move, he says that "you pull out your wallet and BOOM! - you get shot at 41 times". This is a reference to the killing of Amadou Diallo, an innocent man who matched the description of a serial rapist. The police approached him and he pulled out his wallet. They mistakenly thought it was a gun and shot 41 times between four officers, hitting him 19 times and killing him.

Thanks for the support,
Daniel Hess

Big Stuff Coming

So today I had a pretty sweet business meeting/interview with an actor I used to work with on a couple of past projects, Nick H. He is a great guy and invited me to meet with some people at the company he works for called Neo Niche Strategies, they are a company which seems to just recently start investing in video production and Nick is sort of the head guy for everything. Well he invited me down as I said and I have been offered two gigs one a small photobooth gig at a county fair down in Virginia and the other is a lucrative gig as an editor which would involve a lot of travel. The second gig would take me away from Maryland for 5 weeks, with a week break in between, I am excited and hope it all works out because this gig would be huge for me! When I know more about it trust me I will be sure to update it here. Wish me luck!

Random Movie Fact: In the 2005 film Cinderella Man, the cinematographer invented a "tire-cam" which is a camera cushioned inside a tire and behind Plexiglas. This allowed the professional boxers to hit the tire to create realistic reactions from a first-person point-of-view.

Thanks for the support,
Daniel Hess