Meals for Haiti from Kevin Sherman on Vimeo.

Filmed during an event managed by the Salvation Army in Elgin to pack 1,000,000 meals for relief efforts in Haiti. Each meal feeds six people.

Shot with a Canon EOS 7D, 16-35L and 70-200L IS.

Edited in Adobe Premiere Pro and title text done in Adobe After Effects.

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Let me know what you think. I’m by no means a video expert or professional, just takin’ a stab at something new. I’d write more, but I’m super tired. Long day.

Oh, and I love the duo of Adobe After Effects and Adobe Premiere Pro. I ‘lol’ at Final Cut Studio.

Peace
- KS

Today’s title comes from the song “You Gotta Believe” by The Rocket Summer from his latest album Of Men and Angels. I just downloaded this album this afternoon and I absolutely love it!

Yellow Smith! How are you? That’s good. Me? Oh, where do I start? Hmm, good idea, I should post some pictures from the wedding of John and Mandy Ritchey (follow the link to their engagement pictures!) that I just finished shooting earlier today!

It’s been a long time since I last shot a wedding solo. Was a little anxious the day before, but once by the time I left this morning, I didn’t feel like I was forgetting anything, which was pretty awesome. I always seem to have that feeling. And I ended up having a great time, even with the really really really tight morning schedule. I’m pretty happy with the day’s events. However, I am not happy with the focusing speed of the Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8L. Further evidence that I should trade up my 24-105 f4L IS for the 24-70 f2.8L… But the IS of the 24-105L really can be useful for video. What evs.

So, what’s been going on since I last posted? A LOT. Been super busy with work at the shop for a change and its driving me slightly crazy and making me super busy. Which, come thing of it, its been over a month since I posted. Where the crap did February go!?!!!?!!!? I’ve actually been shooting a decent amount, but just haven’t gotten around to popping up a post.

I sold my 5D and my 1D Mark II and picked up a 1D Mark III in replacement. Just got it on Friday, used it a ton at this wedding. In fact, all but three of these came from the Mark III. Really really liking it.

Other big news is that I got “accepted into the [DePaul University] MA in Journalism program by the unanimous and enthusiastic vote of the graduate board in journalism. That now sets a land speed record in the shortest time it has taken between a candidate submitting his credentials and the graduate board acting,” at 1:33am February 26th. Woop! I start around the end of March and I am super excited. Its a pretty slick program.

You know, I had intended to write a whole bunch here, but my brain is really super scattered right now. So, that’s it! I’m done.

Peace
- KS

Today’s title comes to you from the song “Needle and Haystack Life” by Switchfoot from their recent album Hello Hurricane. Mind blowing album. These guys just can’t write a bad song.

Today’s series comes from my beginning of my endeavor to piece together a portfolio of recent that we have done at the shop, the goal of which is to develop a new website (also an endeavor of mine) so we can hopefully drum up some work. Tough times in the industry, lots of people selling off work at super low prices that make it hard to compete. Here’s to hoping I can some part in keeping us around for a while longer.

The more I edit HTML content for either here or the Judson website, the more I find my self writing in the source code view. Just not trusting the WYSIWYG editors to actually work right. Sure its tedious, but so far way easier in the long run.

And I am now fully moved into my apartment. I’m really enjoying it so far. Great feeling being under your own steam, in terms of a living space. I find I have more free time, though maybe that’s a correlation between no more classes and not much work at the Shop. I also am feeling really bored of late. Just not a lot to do I guess. Hopefully that’ll change soon!

BTW, the 7D is definitely my last 1.6x/APS-C camera. Only reason I plan to keep it around is because of the newer technology, ie its ability to do amazing video and everything else except the sensor is pretty slick. Planning to sell my 5D and 1D Mark II and get a 1D Mark III. Probably going to miss the full-frame camera…

Peace,
- KS

Today’s title comes from the song “Gone Away” by Safetysuit from their album Life Left to Go. If your ever pissed about relationshippie things, this is the album for you!

Volkman Hall, 2007. This is actually one of the first images I ever took with a digital SLR. I had gotten a Canon EOS 20D about halfway through my film photography class after being frustrated with the whole developing process. I just wanted to shoot without worrying about wasting money and time on film… Someday maybe I’ll get an old Leica film camera, otherwise I don’t plan to shoot film ever again.

This is a composite/panoramic from two shoots of downtown Chicago. Really would love to go back down and do a better one, though this one came out pretty nicely.

Ha, I just learned about doing the whole long-exposure-while-zooming trick. Reminds me of the Twilight Zone.

Ah, Randy Stonehill. I grew up on his music. This was at a concert he did at Judson while I was on Chapel Tech. An I got a tour of his tour bus. woop!

Lil’ sister Rachel playing with my venerable Canon PowerShot SD450, most pictures from my last post where done with that camera. Sadly, lens mechanism is dead, so the camera is effectively done for.

My friend Lynsey holding my long-time friend Shiloh’s first daughter… Hard to believe she’s getting close to being three years old!

Ian Simkins! This is from the early days when I started working with him at the Matchbox for my Youth Min practicum. I think he was trying to part the Red Sea.

Of course, a photographer isn’t a photographer if he/she doesn’t test their new gear on pets. Eddie is the first cat, George the second. Pretty sure these were both with the Canon EF 100mm f2.8 Macro lens. Solid piece of glass, too bad I didn’t keep it around longer.

Another stroll down Compact Flash Memory lane! There are a TON of pictures from the early days of VIP that I didn’t post, mostly the beginnings of my Sports Action days. While this year wasn’t formative/epiphany ridden like 2006 was, BUT this year I learned a truck load about how to use my camera. I started shooting for Visual Image Photography, based out of Wisconsin in 2007 as well, which meant that I was getting paid to take pictures. This was HUGE, it let me buy new and better gear eventually and got me shooting a lot more than if I wasn’t working for them. They also put me in a wide variety of situations and I did a lot of learning  on-the-job which is my favorite. All-in-all, 2007 was a hoot!

Peace
- KS

Today’s post title is brought to you by Relient K’s “I Don’t Need a Soul (To Hold)” from their album entitled Forget and Not Slow Down.

First set here are from a trip to Mississippi to help with hurricane relief efforts when I was a part of campus life. This was really sort of a life-changing trip, but not in the usual way and not something I realized until recently. It wasn’t so much the destruction and the trip’s goal itself that changed me, it was that I first realized that photography (and videography) can be used to tell a story. The Daily Herald (probably the start of my endearing love for that paper) sent a reporter and a photographer down with us. I got a chance to talk with Laura Stoecker, the photog that went down, a bit here and there and it was really the first time I had ever heard of ‘photojournalism’. Sort of that little seed was planted and I was hooked.

That last one of my little sisters from 2006 cracks me up. They both look soooooo pissed. Maggie on the right (she’s 12 now!!) and Rachel on the left (9??!).

So here was a little look at 2006. What I wouldn’t give to be able to go back on that trip to Mississippi with a legit camera and experience.. Looking through the 1,200 pictures I took down there, I couldn’t help but laugh at where I choose to shoot from. Lots of the backs of people’s heads and such. It was also funny to see how much I had learned in a week; pictures from the last half of the trip were still LEAGUES better then the first half. Still not great of course. Lolz.

Peace
- KS

Today’s title is taken from the Bob Dylan song “Like a Rolling Stone”.

I apologize for the water marks. I just recently re-discovered these from my ftp site. As I might have mentioned, I had a horrid hard drive debacle in late 2008 and I haven’t quite organizationally recovered. Well, now that I have some more free time (ha!) I am planning to go back through my drives and check out the situation. As such, I might actually be posting old stuff from time to time. Always a blast looking back. I hope I don’t repost anything. If so, what ever. Deal. Man, I’m hanging out with Robb too much! Also might be interesting to note that this was about two weeks after I got my 5D with the 24-105L. One or two of these might also have been with the Sigma 12-24mm lens I had for a few months. Wow, that feels like forever ago.

Architectural photography is one of my favorite forms of photography. Being that I work in the industry (BTW, for those that don’t get what I do, I make the drawings for projects like this so the guys in the shop know what to build. Ballin’), its always a blast seeing the talented work of the guys back in the shop. Its easy for me to draw crap up, but they really are the masters, turning those line drawings into a spectacular product. On top of that, there are architects and owners with their own visions for the project; plumbers and electricians and other trades have touched a project like this, all working together to come up with a result like this. Truly incredible when you think about it.

Anyway, I really hope to get out pretty soon to do more architectural photography for my company’s portfolio. This really was the last one I did. Sad, I know.

Peace
- KS

This post’s title comes from the song “Chandeliers” by Sleeping at Last from their recent album Storyboards.

Thanks for watching!

Peace
- KS

Today’s titles comes to you from the song “Goodbye Waves and Driveways” by the Rocket Summer on the album Hello, Good Friend. Love this song.

So I’m not working at the Daily Herald at present. Too bad. But, I’ve still been able to keep busy. Wedding over the weekend and an event at Judson today. There is a care being manufactured by Tata motors for sale in India. The car costs approximately $2,500 USD and will eventually be on sale soon in Europe, maybe even in the US at one point. Pretty slick car, actually fairly roomy for what it is. So, here are some pictures from the event! Decided to throw them in a SlideShow this time around. Sorry to the mobile users…

Pretty slick, eh?

Well, I also got a chance to talk with one of the two [:'-(] photogs remaining at the Courier News in Elgin. Hoping to possibly freelance for them in the up-coming future. Really hope that works out! And still the possibility of shooting for the Daily Herald lingers, but not counting on that… Too bad! Loved working there. Time will tell.

Peace,
- KS

Today’s post title comes from the song “Don’t Rain on My Parade” which I got from the Glee Volume 2 soundtrack. Could it be that by the end of their first season they could have 4 volumes of songs?! NUTS!

Angela Boule from Pittsburgh carries off a large piece of brush from the Bliss Woods Forest Preserve in Sugar Grove during some habitat restoration work at the Forest Preserve. Angela and her husband Tom are in town visiting family in Sugar Grove for the holidays. Kevin Sherman | © Daily Herald

Linda Cox, of St. Charles, enjoys a stroll through the snow on Saturday morning. Kevin Sherman | © Daily Herald

I can’t even imagine the things I can do when I get the opportunity to shoot full time. I feel right now that time is so tight, better now that school is over, but only shooting a few hours here and there is frustrating. Been shooting a ton of basketball, good fun and all but I’m yearning for something a little different. So many thing I want to learn how to do, but seems I don’t have sufficient opportunities. Guess this is that quarter-life crisis John Mayer sings about. Nice.

A lot of changes coming up, maybe this is an opportunity to put a new step forward, and make happen the things I want to happen. Woot.

Something new: reading for fun and not reading Tom Clancy. I LOVE Tom Clancy books, well the Jack Ryan series anyway. I have read many of them twice, that good. Incidentally, those are pretty much the only books I have eer read for fun. Well, for the last week or so I have been reading a Stephen King book, Duma Key. Its a long one, so this will be rough to finish. My first Stephen King too, its good fun. May sound silly, but thats a bit of step in my book; something new. Thanks Ashley for recommending it!

Anywhoose, I am sure no one reads these parts any way! Could be the last post of the year, but no promises. After I move, I’m going to be looking at actually putting together galleries of pictures. I had hard drive issues about 8 months ago and haven’t fully recovered, organizationally. I actually just discovered yesterday that I have lost nearly all my Israel pictures. Only saving grace was that I gave out a few DVDs to the other team members. But that means all my panoramics are gone. Ah well. Needless to say I have two copies of all my pictures locally and am about 4 days away from a complete online backup.

Peace
- KS

Today’s title was brought to you by the song entitled “Take Back the City” by Snow Patrol (I HUGE favorite band of mine, always puts me in a good mood) form their recent album A Hundred Million Suns. Blazes, caption writing is affecting my writing style.

These are from the second wedding I shoot with Robb Davidson. Wicked fun, this stuff is great.

Still trying to land some pay from The Daily Herald. Getting close I feel. Otherwise, grad school is coming up! Can’t believe 2009 is coming to an end. Well, yes I can. Moving out in about a week, should be interesting!

See ya around. Might have some basketball to post this week.

Peace
- KS

Today’s title is brought to you by Bob Dylan’s song “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right.” What a song writer.