thesis show costs

now that it's all over, i thought it might be helpful to make a "shopping list" for the semester you're having your BFA thesis show. here's everything i bought:

1 box of 25 sheets of 17x22" epson ultra premium photo paper luster--$73.56 (denver pro photo)
1 test/spare frame and 10 frames, 22x28", white wood, plexiglas, hanging hardware, and shipping--$307.59 (amazon.com--craig frames inc.)
11 sheets 32x40" crescent board--$91.12 (meininger)
11 windows cut in mat board--$29.66 (frame de art)
photo corners--$21.09 (meininger)
250 postcards, uploaded photo front, uploaded photo back, and shipping--$51.71 (vistaprint)
avery mailing labels--$13.45 (office max)
100 postcard stamps--$29.00
avery CD labels--$4.86 (walmart)

$622.04 TOTAL

i think it's smart to have about a $100 buffer, too, in case things don't work out the way you thought they would, you need to rush order something, or, like me, you think you can cut mats well but actually cannot and need to buy 11 more sheets of mat board. for that last reason, i absolutely recommend having frame de art on broadway in englewood cut your mats if you have any doubt whatsoever in your skills. frame de art charges $2.50 per window, any size. they have a computer mat cutter so the beveled edges look perfect and they are such a great, small, local company. their competitor, fastframe of lodo, charges $8 per window.
also keep in mind that since the group of graduating BFA candidates was so small this year, i was able to have ten pieces in the show but, obviously, you'll have to spend less if you're presenting less pieces.
another note--to get lower prices on vistaprint postcards, google "vistaprint postcards" as opposed to searching their site.
(if you have any questions about specifics here, feel free to email me.)

thanks for a great semester. i really enjoyed looking at and talking about everyone's images, and i think all the work in the show looked great. good luck! :)

i licked all your prints

looking for feedback

hey guys,
thanks to bethany's help, i was finally able to find and photograph a fox for my project this weekend. i'm wondering if y'all could help me decide which image to print? i know the crops are a little close, and that can be adjusted, but which memorial set-up do you like the most?


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i only have a couple of pieces of paper left, and i wanted to use them all making an edition of this image. thanks for any feedback!

print exchage

i am really hoping we can get metro's class in on our end-of-the-year print exchange.

my thoughts are:
-each student will make 20 identical 8x10 prints in their medium of choice (8 students in our class, plus carol, and 10 (?) in metro's, plus tomiko. i'm waiting to hear back from tomiko to double-check)
-on an evening or class period during finals week, we hold a potluck and sign and number prints and put together portfolios
-for anyone who will not be able to attend, i will collect and assemble portfolios
-everyone who is interested must commit, so no student is "wasting" paper providing a print for someone who in turn does not provide one of theirs

i have also toyed with the idea of creating a print-on-demand book with a couple of images from each student in the program. if students were interested, they could buy a $20 printed book representing advanced photographers of the auraria campus (this is perhaps only if the UCD/metro print exchange does not work out).

i will let everyone know whether or not tomiko's class is in so we can all plan on how many prints to make (9 or 20).
i think everyone's work is looking great, and i'm so excited for the thesis show.

notes from wednesday's critique

bethany, i found this article about the cleanliness of women's vs. men's restrooms that some of us were talking about during the critique. "womens restrooms just get more traffic than mens rooms. women use the bathroom more often and stay longer?" crazy.
i also noticed in your pictures that there is a pay phone in the restroom?! that is so funny to me. i think including a lot of pictures of how often girls are on their phones, even when they're out, supposed to be having fun, would add a really interesting aspect to the work, especially since you are using your cell phone to make the images.

loon, a year or so ago a found this old photo album at a dump in boulder. i kept it, thinking i would do something with it, but you're more than welcome to it for your project. it's pretty damaged and weird, there are about 40 or 50 pictures i'd guess and most of them are of people with fish they've caught. the emulsion is peeling off of a lot of them and maybe you could use that for some photograms? i also have 9 national geographic magazines i'm not using if you're looking for some "found" imagery.



for playing with composition using found images, i think you should look at olivia parker. not photograms, but i think the way she sets things up is really successful.



dominic, i was thinking about how someone in critique said some of your images make them think of sound. there is a radiolab story about cities, particularly this segment, that i think you might like. might be totally irrelevant, but i am trying to think of ways we use technology to experience place, whether or not we've actually been there, and this keeps popping into my head. maybe thinking about this sort of "pace of place" will give you some ideas?

ashley, during your critique i thought of a radiolab story about alzheimer's and dementia patients in a german nursing home (the segment is only about 15 minutes). i also realized that there is a retirement home, hirschfeld towers, in my neighborhood and i thought about the possibility of you photographing in places like that? i know many of the people who live there are physically disabled and since their lives are not so regimented by a more hospitalized atmosphere, although support is offered by the institution, maybe people would be a little looser and more willing to chat with you and be photographed at places like this? i don't know, just a thought.

our next and last critique before the final is november 7. especially for editing down and out, i think posting here between now and then could be really helpful!

notes from monday's critique

will, i think your new images are beautiful and you're well on your way to making a solid series. i'll be thinking of examples of the figure interacting with the landscape, but for now i actually just today found out about this artist, josh winegar, whose work i think you would like. check out "folds." i don't think your concepts are related but you might be interested in some of his imagery.



i've also been thinking about bodies of water where you could shoot:
bear lake in rocky mountain national park
montezuma hot springs in las vegas, NM, and pagosa hot springs, or the river nearby (a little man-modified but you could work with the location, especially if you were interested in close-ups, and also not freezing. both are (sort of) on the way to/from santa fe)

conor, i can't remember who in the critique mentioned marla rutherford, but i checked out her work and it might be really inspirational since you brought up adding a few more images with people to your series. her work is definitely more straight than yours, but i think some funky portraiture would be good for you to look at! along the same lines, i also thought of david lachapelle. some surreal portraiture/imagery in general.



jesse, i saw this and thought of you. have you considered recreating classic artworks solely photographically, or are you only interested in making digital collages using collections? if you are still thinking of aiming for ten final pieces this might be a fun, relatively easy way to add some pieces to your series.



also, i think those vik muniz pictures of garbage/junk/thread that were mentioned during the critique are great to look at.

i really appreciated everyone's input in the critique this week. sometimes it's really helpful to just go through each image and hear "yes" and "no." thanks!

portfolios, haters

came across these two articles recently, thought some of you guys might appreciate them.

http://www.noahbradley.com/blog/2011/i-hate-your-portfolio/

http://www.jonacuff.com/blog/haters-hurt-your-feelings-good/