All My Friends Are Funeral Singers - Califone

Here is a partial list of cities Califone played on their last US tour: Missoula, Madison, Milwaukee—iron-and-steel cities that hold as much mythology for Angelenos as Los Angeles might for them (by the way, L.A. wasn't included in the first leg of this tour).

It's difficult to be a Califone fan living in Los Angeles. Califone, as a band, are more khaki work trousers than tight black jeans, the electronics that structure their songs aimed more towards distortion than dancing. For the better part of 12 years, they've removed themselves from trends. To paraphrase fellow music critic Andrew Gaerig, Califone has always been one movie soundtrack song away from coffeeshop stardom.

Well, maybe they grew tired of waiting for a call from Hollywood: lead singer Tim Rutili secured financing to direct and write his own movie, with a soundtrack played entirely by the band. They screened the film, All My Friends Are Funeral Singers at the Hammer's Billy Wilder Theatre on Wednesday, Dec 9th. I was told to arrive early. The museum was expecting a crowd. I knew better.

The film concerns Zel, a young Midwestern woman living in a farmhouse with a dozen ghosts bequeathed to her by her grandmother, a psychic. The ghosts are sometimes funny and sometimes frightening in this rickety film. I'm can’t say for certain, but it’s possible the subject matter had something to do with two members of the audience vomiting mid-film.

The kindest words I have for the whole production are reserved for its soundtrack, which was played live on stage by Califone. Like I said, It's difficult to be a Califone fan. But it's worth it: Ten minutes after the credits rolled, the band walked back on stage for a quick set from their most recent (and least-remarkable) album. Three songs played towards the end—“The Orchids", "Michigan Girls", and "Fisherman's Wife"—grabbed me. During these songs, I didn't care that I was with only 200 other fans far from the Midwest. I didn't care about the time I'd wasted watching All My Friends. Tim Rutili's cold-weather rasp was warm enough to crawl inside; the band's sound open and vulnerable enough to remind me of home. With these songs, Califone conjured rust belt agony so real I had to shut my eyes to keep from crying.

Maybe Tim Rutili learned one lesson from his dance with Hollywood – whatever you do, go out with a bang.

Originally in Los Angeles Magazine at: http://www.lamag.com/do/blog_post.aspx?id=22789

The Man Show - Shepard Fairey and Matt Weiner

Shepard Fairey grew up one town over from mine in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. On the walk back home from my elementary school, my friend Albert, the coolest kid I knew, showed me the first of Fairey's "Obey" series, an inkblot caricature of Andre the Giant with a tiny declaration that the deceased wrestler "had a posse." These stickers went on lampposts and attached to bathroom stalls in my school, giving the custodians one hell of a mess to clean up.

Since then, Fairey's drawings have been slapped on buildings far from South Carolina. His most famous image, which last I checked is still hanging in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C., is the often-duplicated, stenciled, and possibly plagiarized (but nevertheless iconic) portrait of Barack Obama entitled Hope.

This image, and the controversy surrounding it, likely didn't win Fairey many friends back in McCain Country, SC. This much was obvious, but I was still surprised to find that it didn't keep him from one of the highest honors I've seen bestowed to anyone on this left-leaning coast: An invitation to sit on a panel to represent and discuss "Good Men."

The two good men who founded the panel, Tom Matlack and James Houghton, were self-described as "bored" financiers, burnt out after nine years of hard success as venture capitalists. And, like the silent majority of the bored upper-class, they inadvertently founded something "good" for the rest of us. Matlack's memoir turned into a book of around 30 mini-memoirs from "Good Men," which in turn inspired a documentary film and a foundation. These "Good Men" were described to me by Matlack as ordinary guys who have faed a kind of crucible in their roles as husbands, fathers, workers, or sons.

To discuss these roles, and indeed manhood itself, T.M. recruited Matt Weiner, creator of the TV show Mad Men and Fairey for a panel held at Raleigh Studios in Hollywood on Dec 7th. As far as I'm concerned, Weiner's place on the panel was guaranteed the second he gave life to Don Draper, perhaps the most classic fictional male role model we see on screen today. But Weiner's genius is in his portrayal of Draper's private life, his quiet moments, the time between 5 PM to 9 AM when most macho role models are off-duty. It's during this time of reflection that Draper is shown as a real man with true vulnerability.

Weiner's expanded view of manhood is much the same one championed by Matlack in his "Good Man" project. Matlack's aim is to air these vulnerabilities without judgment – to allow fallibility entrance to the identity of "good men."

And this brings us to Fairey. When I asked him about his battles with perfection, legality, and the idea of being being a male role model himself, he danced around the question a bit, discussing briefly that most classic symbol of masculinity, John Wayne.

Then Fairey did something unexpected and unquestionably masculine – he addressed his problem with plagiarism head-on. He talked about sidestepping the allegations at first, how he tried to cover them up, how he would have done anything to avoid admitting he made a simple mistake. And how he still had to confront this idea of masculine perfection established 50 years prior, courtesy of John Wayne and George Patton and Frank Sinatra.

Suddenly, I saw what Matlack meant about not passing judgment on a man before hearing his story. I saw the point and the purpose of the project itself. And I saw Shep Fairey – neighbor, iconoclast, artist – become a good man before my eyes.

Originally in Los Angeles Magazine at: http://www.lamag.com/do/blog_post.aspx?id=22602&blogid=1592&blogid=1592

Tips For New D-SLR Owners

Judging by the pile of camera bags on sale at my neighborhood Best Buy on Black Friday, many of you might find new digital Single-Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras under your tree/Yarmulke/Kwanzaa log.

Even though the first images these cameras might capture will probably be egg-nogged uncles and the action down at the kids' table, I have great reason to believe that this batch of holiday SLRs will see great things—concerts and museums, political figures and celebrities, sporting events and National Parks.

Along the way, these budding amateurs will probably run into people like me—professional photographers who shoot events to pay the bills. Photography has been democratized with the advent of digital imaging. Amateurs don't have to worry about film stock or developing costs. In basic terms, these new SLRs mean that amateurs now have equipment as good or better than many of the seasoned newspaper pros out there. Their images can be viewed and printed with the same quality in a corner drugstore kiosk or on the front page of The New York Times.

Needless to say, this pisses the old guys off. But there are a few tips you can use to separate yourself from the rest of the amateurs.

No Chimping
The ability to view your photos instantly is the most significant leap forward in photography since the invention of color processing. No more waiting at the developer—on a shoot, “one hour photo” is one hour too long. Before digital, pro film shooters used to snap review images with a Polaroid camera to check exposure, a process which now seems about as advanced as looking up a phone number in the Yellow Pages. Instant digital review made Polaroid imaging obsolete singlehandedly.

"Chimping" is the name that pro photogs have given to this instant review process. The origin of the word comes from the ape-like, "ooh ooh ooh," that photogs are said to utter when viewing their own work.

In theory, chimping is an indispensable tool for checking light levels and framing, but not when it comes at the expense of coverage. And it doesn't just affect amateurs. If you watch the sidelines of pro football or basketball games, you'll see gray-haired pro photogs chimping right after the big play, oblivious to the emotional drama unfolding right in front of them. Sometimes, capturing the reaction is far better than the action that preceded it, and it's far too easy to miss when you're transfixed by your own images.

Most cameras have a "review time" setting that should be kept at zero seconds. That way, every picture you take won't be sent instantly to the screen and you can get back to the action (or reaction) at hand.

Turn Off Your Flash
Back when disposable film cameras sat jammed in the back pockets of soccer moms everywhere, waiting to snap candids of the next great soccer star, nearly every photograph had to be taken with a flash. The inexpensive film used in these cameras wasn't very sensitive to light, so the built-in flash had to be used both indoors and outdoors.

Today, your digital SLR has no film. And yet I still see amateurs blinding their subjects with flash. Most young amateurs are frightened of terms like "aperture" and "shutter speed" and "exposure" and "ISO" and keep their cameras permanently set to Auto mode. I'm not going to nag you about making the switch to full Manual mode (except this once: make the switch to full Manual mode), but here’s a small tip:

The higher the ISO setting on your camera, the brighter your pictures will be. You can shoot in low light without having to worry about blurriness or flash. And unlike a film camera, your new digital SLR can change ISO quickly. Some cameras even have an "Expanded ISO" option hidden in their menus options, which can "boost" the ISO even higher for shooting in near-darkness.

Try it out. Your photos will begin to look like your memories of the event, no matter the lighting, and the subjects will thank you.

More Low Light Tips
The main difference between pros and amateurs as far as equipment goes is this ability to shoot with available light. If you like the look of non-flash photos and the ISO tip isn't quite cutting it, try these:

Pick up some faster glass. The kit lens that came with your camera likely has a variable aperture of f3.5-f4.5. You don't need to know what this means. Just remember this: the lower the number after the "f," the brighter your pictures can be. Usually, low-aperture zoom lenses are expensive (a Canon wide-angle zoom lens at f2.8, only a bit lower than your f3.5, retails for nearly $1300). But don’t worry: Canon and Nikon both sell a 50mm f1.8 lens that will let you shoot in far lower light for around $100. The only catch is that it isn't a zoom lens—if you want to get closer to your subject, you'll have to walk closer. But you might not have to use flash again. It's the perfect lens for shooting concerts.

Second, hold your camera correctly. This is the most physical difference between amateurs and pros and it's so simple to correct. When taking a vertical photo, make sure your right hand is the topmost hand and your left hand is supporting the camera from the bottom.

Why is this such a big deal? Think of architecture—two beams in the shape of a triangle supports more weight than two beams standing straight up. When you hold the camera incorrectly, with your right hand supporting the bottom, your arms are those two beams standing straight up. If you hold your arms in the shape of a triangle, with your right hand on top, your camera will be more stable and your pictures will be sharper at lower shutter speeds. How's that for a low-cost solution?

Keep Shooting
By far the best tip is the most intuitive. The more photos you take, the better you will be as a photographer. Digital photography makes this cheaper and easier.

Originally in SpliceToday at: http://www.splicetoday.com/digital/kids-you-need-some-faster-glass

A World Of Pure Imagination - LA Auto Show 2009

For the majority of us, the most interesting cars at the 2009 L.A. Auto Show—the concept cars, the supercars, the outrageously expensive luxury barges—exist only for our imaginations.

Crowds have already begun to form lines to see Corvettes and Challengers; to kick the tires of the TSX and the Tuscon; to see and touch and feel and pretend. That’s important, because the galleries and galleries of images on the internet don't do these cars justice. They must be seen and sat in and, ideally, grabbed by the steering wheel and run through imaginary gears with a soundtrack straight from a kindergarten playground: "Vrooom."

Sharp pictures don't capture the feeling of sitting inside a supercar, so we went in the opposite direction. We photographed the hazy dream of the auto show, which runs through Jan 13 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, with Lomography's new Diana F+ lens adaptor, which lets you attach any of the gloriously imprecise plastic lenses from the Diana F+ camera to any pro Canon or Nikon digital or film camera and gives those megapixels a bit more feeling. Dream on.