Jay Watson Photography

Derrick going frontside at Pacifica Skatepark. © Jay Watson Photography

One responsibility in being a photographer involves teaching other photographers. This occurs through either working with assistants, or actually working as an instructor. Like kung-fu, any photographer worth their own salt has both learned from another photographer and mentored other photographers. Since 2002 I have been an adjunct photography instructor and I have taught classes ranging from photo history, advertising photography, digital capture, and the zone system. At the end of each semester I share advice to students from a lecture titled…”Important Things To Learn That Have Nothing To Do With A Camera.”

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Another anxious young photographer is up and coming.
Keep your eye out for Justin Nambiar.

Portrait of Justin Nambiar. © Jay Watson Photography

The identity of AYMIAH is a former student, intern, and assistant of mine named Justin Nambiar. This week marks a pivotal moment in Justin’s life. He is moving to New York to assist fashion photographers, and to start the next phase of his career. J Nam is super motivated and does not waste an opportunity (or a meal). No doubt his professionalism and dedication will take him far. When I see a kid like this go it inspires me, because everything in the photo industry is up in the air right now. Read the rest of this entry »

I have written a virtual letter to Richard Avedon in order to get a few simple answers regarding the state of the digital world today. Maybe he has some of the answers that I am looking for, or maybe he is holding out. Everyone is welcome to respond.

Richard Avedon May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004

Dear Mr. Avedon,
I have been a fan of your work for a number of years and have been inspired with your tireless dedication to photography. In this letter I wanted to ask you a few questions. I don’t know how you are going to answer me, but I am sure the universe will provide a way.

I hear so many modern photographers complaining about the current state of affairs. Way back when you were shooting in 2004, things must have been different. I know it is not wise to compare photographers of different eras, but surely you must have been somewhat effected by the technology from 4 years ago, albeit primitive by 2008 standards. That was then, and now we have CS3, dual quad processors in our computers, a full frame sensor by Nikon, and according to the marketplace we don’t even need Polaroid anymore. Did you contribute to any online forums? I never saw your user name or Flickr avatar, but maybe you used a pseudonym. Oh you crafty Avedon, I should have known! What about blogs? Did you subscribe to any blogs and what was in your feeder? Did they have feeders back then?

I am sure you had plenty to say about the technology of your time. Who can forget all the hype regarding fax machines, the death of cassette tapes, debates over answering machine ethics, and other lost forms of communication. It sure must have been much harder to connect with people in 2004. If a client needed files delivered I bet you would think Fed Ex. How 90’s of you. Oh you funny Avedon! We use FTP and YouSendIt now!

Mr. Avedon do you think your work would still have legs today? How would you stand out from the crowd? Would your strategy involve the super poke or do you honestly think you would meet with people face to face? Seems like a good idea, but it will never catch on. How many friends would be in your network? I bet you would also cast this aside as being trite and say we should concentrate more on making images. Oh you facetious Avedon! You must have kept the crew in stitches at the studio. Like it or not, some people think every business person needs an online presence to stay valid and up to date in 2008. Mr. Avedon, what would you do? It is a simple question. Facebook or LinkedIn?

I assume you’ll have an assistant hand deliver a letter or send it by pony express. Whatever works best for you is fine with me. Looking forward to your response. Until then, maybe I’ll play you in Second Life.

Sincerely,
JW

© Jay Watson Photography

Another anxious young photographer is up and coming.
Keep your eye out for JN.

© Jay Watson Photography

As a photographer now with a few freelance years under my belt, I was recently reminded what it felt like during the beginning when I fist started out. While I was a photographer’s assistant back in Baltimore, I wanted to be on my own so bad I could taste it. There was internal pressure, anxiety, and some left over teenage angst. I lost several nights sleep thinking about when my time would come to bust loose.

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