Dear Ke$ha

You seem like a crack hooch to me.

Some of your costumes seem like glitter, alcohol, and throw up.

You talk about booze in EVERY single song of yours.

You're music is a horrible guilty pleasure for me.....

Because your love, your love, your love is my drug.

Sincerely, Spencer

Something happens today....

I forget exactly what it is.... Maybe it's a birthday or something..... OH YEAH!!

TODAY IS MY 22 BIRTHDAY!!!!!

I know that I haven't blogged in a while so this might be something good to mention. I don't want to toot my own horn, but yes, birthday happiness is nice.

I'm happy to be home for this birthday, because my last 2 birthdays were celebrated in Peru. I do love those people and I loved my birthdays because they made me realize just how unimportant it is. But I am so happy to be with my family and to go to places like Tucano's tonight!!

There will be photos coming up.

It's a goal to have a photoshoot while I'm home on break. 

So guess what happened....

I was accepted into the Photography Program here at BYU.

I am officially a BA Photography Major! Woot!

Now I just need to go on to the BFA and get into that program. And from there I'll move onto an MFA. And then from there I'll work at a magazine or at a University.

I feel pretty happy. :)

Thanks to everyone for your support, love, and help in my photo shoots. There will be a lot more to come!

Final Photography Portfolio

So here is my final portfolio that I will be submitting to be accepted into the Photo program here at the Y.
It's taken months of work, tons of preparation, and dollars out of my pocket, but finally I feel comfortable presenting it to the professors. I know that I've worked hard and I've put everything I've got into it. And if I don't get in, then I'll know that I made good images.
So here is the portfolio that I turned in.

So these are the images that I used. I got various good and productive comments from the Photo department here. Now I can only hope and pray that all goes well and that I get in. :)

Long time, no blog

I'm sorry blog. I've had my reasons for avoiding you for a short time.
First of all, I got back with Facebook. I know, this may seem like you and I are on the fringe of breaking up, but do not worry. I will not spend too much time on Facebook and I promise to still give you the time that you deserve and that you need.
B. Thanksgiving happened. Oh Thanksgiving. I just spent 4 days with my wonderful family! We had such a great time that I forgot to write a blog post about it. We played board games and watched movies, and of course, we ate a ton of food. I really love my family. I love the time that we spend together and I think they really help me to calm down about some things and see the real picture.
Which brings me to Roman Numeral III. Today is the last day before my Photography portfolio is due! Dun dun dun!!! Even though I was able to rest and have fun over the vacation, I had a slight nagging at the back of my brain reminding me that my portfolio still wasn't finished.
Do you remember my "Sweet" photoshoot idea? Well, while I was at Barnes & Noble with my dad and poor sick sister, we ordered some tea. And then I saw it! The sugar and creamer counter. Do you know how many different sweeteners and sugars there are on one of those counters? 6-7 different types! I knew that I had to do something with those sugar packets. So here are the images that I obtained for "Sweet"

I really really like the middle image. I think it has more of a concept. However, after much consideration and thinking, I will use the final image of the sugar piles in my portfolio.
So here is my Thanksgiving photo shoot. :) Sweet, huh? (pun totally intended)

Some triumphs and some stumbling blocks

Well I have some good news and some bad news.
I was able to get one of my last photos finished yesterday. It looks alright.

Mine is the photo on top and the bottom was my reference. I think that I did pretty well on the contrast parts of the image and my model has a really good expression.
I think that the reference did a better job in the cleanliness of the photo but at the same time the grittiness of my photo gives it a little more character, I feel. So here's my 9th photo. Woot!
Now the stumbling block. I was supposed to have gone to the Salt Flats early this morning to have a shoot. However, my model bailed last night. I was pretty disappointed. I now either have to do it with another model on short notice or I'll just have to wait until after the application process. It's too bad, because it would have been a killer image for my portfolio. :( All is not lost yet, but I'm thinking that another shoot would be a lot easier.
So here's what I'm thinking. For DeviantArt there is a contest that has the name of "Sweet". what I wanted to do was make it a photo of either an addict, or a patient taking Sugar in an IV or something like that. It's supposed to be a little weird and it'll take some good editing. But my question is, does anyone know where I can get medical supplies like an IV and the bag that goes with it?
Anyway, these are my ideas as of late.
Also, as a side note, in my free time I watch shows. And I just finished this really really sweet one from Korea called My Lovely Kim Sam Soon. It's on Hulu. Go check it out if you want a good laugh and if you want a good romance. But also, be ready to read subtitles!

Hand Art

Okay, so here's the thing. I can't draw. I can't paint. I can't collage very well. I cannot use my hands to make art, other than setting up things and then pushing a button on a camera.
However, here at BYU, they have a Visual Arts Core. This core is a series of classes that one must take in order to be able to enter into their program of choice. Well guess what these classes are. There is a Seminar for all students to take where we listen to the professors and other professional artists speak about their emphasis and experiences. Then there's Drawing and 2D Design.
These are the fun classes and rather interesting, but I just can't really excel in them. :( As I said earlier, I can't draw or paint. And when I do it ends up looking just alright. I wish that I could be better at it, and I know that I should just practice and practice and practice. But then I always end up thinking, why? I am going into Photography. I don't need to draw. But alas, I'm still getting a grade.
Here are some things that I've been working on lately.
Remember how I can't use photo for my 2D final? Well, my teacher taught me a nice trick called a Gesso transfer. She said I could xerox my photos and then transfer them to a piece of art paper and draw and paint around them. My idea was Stereotypes and I asked my sister and dad to help. I want to portray stereotypes breaking the stereotypes.
So this is The Bookworm.

 Since I took this photo, I actually went back and drew in some more hair to make it longer and seem a little more feminine. Just because my editing of the photo didn't get all of my sisters hair.
Then I also saw some customized headphones on Bobsmade.com Go check them out! They're awesome. Well I had the idea to do some winger headphones to have sort of an anime feel. And here are the ones I finished, thanks for the tutorial on Bobsmade.

Pretty cool no? I know, there are some flaws, but still, I had a good time and not I'm thinking about doing some with little Nightmare wings on them. ^_^
It's going to be great.

Today I went and spoke with Paul, my former photo teacher, about my portfolio. He had pretty good things to say about my new photos, Censored and Gluttony. But Gluttony seems to not be as strong as I would have liked. Two professors have said that it lacks a professional feel to it and it can definitely be seem as a Freshman piece of work. This worries me just a little because they both said that I had a good concept and I executed it well for my level of experience. So I will still include it in my portfolio. But all the same, it leaves more doubts in my mind. I have to have 2 more photos, and I'm just praying that I'll be able to take them correctly and in interesting ways.
Tomorrow I'm going to take my piece Without Color and on Saturday I'll be doing the Good vs. Evil Piece. I just pray that it's not storming on Saturday when I go out to the Salt Flats.
Cross your fingers!

Tick tock...

Oh goodness, the panic is starting to set in. I know that I should definitely be concentrating more on my General Education classes like New Testament and Geography, but no. I'm more worried about my photo application. The due date is coming up soon guys!! All of a sudden November is half way over!!
BTW, on the 15th is my BESTEST BESTEST FRIENDS BIRTHDAY!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRITTNEY!!!
Okay, so anyways, the final entry date for the application is the 30th of November. AcK! I only have 8 photos! Well maybe 9, but I want to replace one. I'm dealing with the necessity to have some shoots.
This application is crucial everyone. It's this or bust. Either I get in or I don't, forever. :( I think I have the right to be scared a little bit. I know that I have good images. Better than others. And luckily all of the professors have said that I have a voice, concepts, creativity, and all have said that for my level I do exceptionally well.
But that's doesn't help when it comes to competition. What if everyone else has amazing pieces? It's hard to think that maybe even my best ideas will not be good enough.
I have a 1 in 15 chance. Will I be good enough? Oh goodness....
Okay so here are the alternatives. I was thinking that Graphic Design would be fun. But I can't draw for my life.
Also, I would love to do Broadcast Journalism or Film, but those require applications as well. And by the end of my application processes of those, I'd be graduating.
Then there's this.

Sadly this beautiful luscious photo is not mine. But it portrays the very thing I would like to do if not Photography. Patisserie and Baking.
There is not a major for culinary arts here at BYU but there is the Food Science major. I hate Science, but I LOVE food! I think that I could look over the whole science thing. :p
Food science majors, I hear, go on to be chefs as well as other scientific things dealing with food. I really want to take some patisserie classes and learn how to makes desserts like cakes, pies, tarts (especially raspberry ones as seen above) and chocolates. I could even open up a small dessert cafe and take my own photos!
But for now, the Photo program is my goal. And I really need to get in.

I Deactivated my Facebook.

That's right. I did it. I want to see how long I can go without looking at my profile or contacting people through the social network. It's only temporary, I'm thinking about doing it for about a month. I think it'll be sort of like an oil change. :D Any old stuff will just be left behind and then I can start anew. Plus, I already left Facebook for 2 years, I think I can take a month more.
So lately I've been a little worried about the Photo Application. I know that I have better photos than I did the first time. And I know that I can do more photos, but it's just the part of finding time that is sort of hard! I have classes and homework and I don't have too much time to catch some good light. Lately, the weather has been HORRIBLE! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE snow and rain, but it is a bad thing when you are looking to take some good well-lit photos.
I have settled down since my last post, especially with the help of other art students and my good friends on this blog! Thanks Londi and Sophie!! So I decided that I can still do my photos, while just adding some collage or paint into them. I was thinking about taking simple portraits of the stereotypes and then cutting them, painting over them and adding other mediums to accentuate the moods with color and texture.  Let's hope, yes?
My other photo ideas that are coming up will be the final shoots before I turn in my portfolio, which will hopefully be the 20th.
Without Color- Many of you have probably seen this kind of photo. I will have my model pose with a paint brush as if wiping their eyes. The image will be grey and where the brush is wiping, there will be a trail of color. Its a fairly simple idea and but it is a good concept and hopefully it'll find favor with the professors.
Par example:

Good vs. Evil- I am taking a trip to the great Salt Flats for this photo. The concept is the battle between Good and Evil pulling on a human being. So my model, male, will be have red and white fabric wrapped around his feet, waist, arms, eyes, and mouth. The fabric will be pulled in all directions, like a sort of rough movement. Then I will have the model jump in the air and do crazy poses as if writhing. This has also been a photo I've had working around in my head for a while now.

Sweet- My best friend Brittney sent me a link on DeviantArt. The link is to a contest that someone is holding and the theme is "Sweet". I thought of doing a sort of darker image that was sort of gritty and almost gross. Depending on how the photos seem to be going. I was thinking of having a model sitting in a chair or lying on a table with an IV in their arm (obviously fake) and the IV is from a bag of Sugar. Then I would have the model with creepy make-up to look like a junky or maybe a creepy smile. Once again, somewhat simple. If not this idea, maybe a gross one where my model is pouring a bag of sugar into their mouth. I just don't know how to fake that. XD

I NEED to get into photography this time around. I don't know if I mentioned, but the 20 available spaces has gone down to 15 thanks to the bloody receivers of the Talent Awards (scholarships). So my chances went down by 5. But I think I have a pretty good chance cause the professors have said that I have pieces that they have never seen nor ever thought about.
This is really starting to weigh on my mind though. Seriously. I've had dreams about it. Luckily in each dream I was told that I was accepted with no problem, but still, I don't want to get into a false sense of security. I'm praying, please pray for me.
Other than that life is pretty good. I've been in sort of a weird mood lately. I've wanted to travel, but it's just not the time cause I don't have time and I don't have money. I also, for some odd reason, want to remember youth things. Like anime and cosplay. I want to go cosplaying so much!! I am so weird. XD But really, I realized that I wouldn't mind wearing those crazy cool hats or hoodies that have ears and stuff. (But NO tails!!) I mean look at this one.

Isn't it cool?? I know, I know, "What the heck Spencer?" But I LOVE things like this! People have great talents don't they. I wouldn't wear this one if it had the tail, but the rest of it is so awesome.

Or look at this!

Okay, I would wear this in the winter time! But then again, I think of all the looks that I would get. But oh well! There are other people who wear really strange things!

I know, I know, I'm done ranting and being weird. Basically, you won't see me in these types of clothes, but one of these days I'm going Cosplaying and I'm gonna geek out.

Oh blog, I can tell that my temporary break up with Facebook is going to give us some quality time. :)

PS, these images are copyrighted by the artist on DeviantArt. Don't steal them.

It's the Hard Knock Life

Oh goodness, Little Orphan Annie didn't know how right she was when she sang that lovely song with her fellow orphans.
Sometimes life just isn't easy is it? I know, it's not supposed to be. But there are times when I wish I could do something that I want to without any problem!
Luckily this only has limited reference to Photography (for now).
In my 2D design class we have to start planning and completing our final class project. This is accompanied by a written proposal to our teacher about a certain idea that we can expound on.
Okay so here's what I was thinking. My professor has allowed me to do photography on other assignments, for example my Censored and Gluttony photos. I really liked the idea of doing this final project cause it was going to be a sort of MINI BFA show, very mini. I even began coming up with an idea of shooting headshots of several Stereotypes. I wanted to do portraits of stereotypical things like Jock, Emo, Cowboy, Artist, etc. It's an alright concept right?
Well guess what!! My professors comes out with the catch, this time I CAN'T use Photo! I have to use paint, or collage, or something else.
My desire to do this project was taken away. I can't do five different continuous collages and I can't paint for my life! I HATE that everyone gets to use their medium of choice just because they are oil painters or pastel users (I mean no hatred or anger to the artists themselves, they're awesome friends!) It's just not that fair because apparently, photo does not take as much effort as handheld mediums.
Why is life unfair sometimes? I can tell that one day I'm going to face the same type of problem when I'm in the photo program. I don't like taking photos of Landscapes and I don't like corny feel good portraiture, but I'm most likely going to have to do it.
Sometimes I just hate how the Visual Arts Core Classes are full semester classes. Especially for photo majors. What it that?! They should be block classes cause I'm really starting to not care about my assignments and trying to please the professors. I think Photo should be allowed.
And now I'm done ranting. DX

New Photos!! CENSORSHIP

My photoshoot this week was inspired by the pain of Censorship.
I love BYU, and I love the arts program here. But I have recently found out about several Censorships that have taken place in these last few years. I think that BYU obviously has the right to accept or decline whatever it wants being a private school, but I also feel that they should have a genuine reason for censoring a students work.
So here are my photos.

I will most likely use the first in my portfolio. I wanted to put a smile on the model to make as if someone censored him, then put a smile to hide the bad image of censorship. But you can see the emotions of the model even beyond the smile.
This makes 9 out of 10 photos that I have ready for the portfolio this upcoming 15th! I'm so excited and I'm proud of how far I've gotten. Before I turn in my portfolio I'll make sure to put up a post that showcases the 10 photographs that I'll be using.

Happy Halloween!

On this day of All Hallows Eve, I celebrate all that is scary, horrifying, and dark.

By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes.

Blast from the past!

For those of my friends who remember my photos from high school.
Do you remember my Seven Deadly Sins series?
I really liked this series and I liked the photos that I produced. But now I've learned a lot more about photography, and now I have more equipment to use.
So here is my latest photo shoot. My old roommate, Matt, helped me out as my model and he did great! Luckily he was willing to get a little messy. It was a great experience that I even needed to get a shot of myself.

I think that the top photo is fitting for this Halloween time, no?

High Hopes

Today I was able to go and talk with Val Brinkerhoff, the third and final photography professor. Sadly, I haven't been able to catch him at his office during his office hours, but today lady luck struck me.
I went to his office after my new testament class and he was on his way to a faculty meeting. However, he heard my silent pleas for a moment of his time and invited me to quickly show him my photos.
There were nothing but good comments about what he saw! :D XD
He said that I have talent, that I photos that are technically well done, and he even said that I'll have no problem in the application process! Lastly he said that I have ideas that he's never seen before.
Okay, I hope I'm not too high on the horse, and I'll watch my pride. But do you know what this means!!?? I'm fairly known by, and complimented by, and encouraged by each of the photography professors here at BYU!!
So I have some high hopes! Here's to wishing and hoping and dreaming!
And to celebrate, here is a not-so-great lighting self portrait!

PS, yesterday my photography class ended cause it was only a block class. I'm pretty sad about it. :( But all is well with the other good news!

Good and Bad

There are some good and bad things happening. All of them have to do with the photography major. Today was the last day of assignments. I turned in my portraits from the previous post. I was fantastic! There were basically only good comments. No one said anything that I could improve on, and when someone said something, the professor said "Actually I think it looks good like that."

It was great! I am quite proud of the photos and I'm glad because not only did they turn out well, Paul, my teacher, said that I could use one of them for my portfolio in November! Woot!

Okay so those are only a few of the good things that are happening.

Now the bad things. This upcoming week will be the last day of my photo class. This is sort of good and bad because it means that from now on mondays and wednesdays I'll be out of school at 1. Yay. But I'm really going to miss this class. It gave me the opportunity to do photo shoots and exercise my creativity. I wonder if I'll have more incentive to do photo shoots outside of class. And now I'm going to have to put forth more effort in communicating with the photography professors.

So here's what I'm thinking. I will go to them and pretty much have them check and re check my portfolio between now and the 30th of November so that they can remember my name and my photos. So when the time comes for them to review all of the 100-something portfolios, they will remember seeing certain photos!

At least that's the plan. :D I just hope it works. So far I have 2/3 of the professors visited. They sure are hard to get a hold of though. But things seem to be looking up.

To just put the cherry on top of the sundae, the other day, while looking at my photos, Paul was teaching me some stuff on Photoshop. He asked me if I knew about a certain filter and when I told him "No", he proceeded to describe it and then said "But no worries, you'll learn about those things in your future classes."

AHH!!! :D :D :D :D :D I might be reading too much into it, but the fact that he says I'll be in future photography classes helps! Anyways, I'm just going to keep doing some shoots. I need at least 4 more stunning photos.

BTW, if I see awesome photos and redo them in my own way, does that mean it's plagiarism?

Just wondering.

Cupcakes anyone???

I had a new photoshoot with my good friend Kelsey. I had the idea of doing a portrait that was based on a food fight. My original idea involved spaghetti sauce and noodles as well as cookies and chocolate sauce. But then I bought some wonderful cupcakes from The Cocoa Bean. And let's just say that the shoot came together right in front of my eyes.
First of all, Kelsey was my model and my friend Eldon was my assistant (the first time I've ever had an assistant!). The lighting was great and we just started to take the photos. So the assignment is two portrait photos that give depth and life to the subject.
Here are the photos that I ended up getting:

Here are the two that I'll be using for the assignment:

Oh! And I got a good photo as well!

So I'm officially a weirdo....

Seriously though. Why do I have weird ideas for photos? I mean, sure we could say that I am very creative, and I'm fine with that, but to what does my creativity work?
There are times when people can see my photos and say "Wow, I really like that one!" but then they don't get why I took it! So I think that's something that I need to look out for while turning in my portfolio.
I have many ideas, but I need to be able to put my own character into them without it being extremely weird.
It's not that I'm hurt by the comments of others, I know that I need to accept criticism and not only that. I need to disconnect from my work. Because once it's finished and edited, it should stand alone. But today I turned in my lighting assignment.
Truthfully, I don't think I did my best work on this shoot. I feel like I just did the assignment and didn't really apply it to myself and apply too much of my creativity. But then one of the three photos I turned in was this one...

For all of you who know me on Facebook, which is everyone who would read this blog, I have this set as my profile picture. I think it looks pretty cool. Sure, it's not exactly the image that I wanted from the get go with this shoot but it still looks visually interesting.

However, it was sort of strange for the kids in class. No one said anything mean, no one said anything derogatory, however it was joked that I should put this into the ward directory to introduce myself.

I'm such a weirdy. But I have a lot of other weird photos from the mind where this one came from! So I guess that sometimes I have weird ideas and stuff, but if creativity is what I need to get into the photography program, you can't argue that I don't have it.

4 out of 10

Usually a 4 out of 10 is less than failing. Usually 4 out of 10 people own a Movistar phone in Peru. Usually 4 our of 10 is considered something bad...
Well my blogger friends and readers, I tell you that 4 out of 10 has now upgraded. It is no longer looked down on as something to avoid.
I am lucky enough to have 4 out of 10 photos for my portfolio for the Photography Major!
I only can have a portfolio of 10 images that will be looked at for about a minute.
Lately I've been a little worried because the application deadline is on November 30th and I have only done a few photo shoots. But I met with some of the photo professors here at BYU to get to know them a little bit more and then to show them my pieces.
The feedback that I got was fantastic! I was happy to hear that I was "doing a great job" and "controlling my images". But I was also helped with some constructive criticism and some new ideas on how to improve my images. So here are the photos that I have. You've already seen 2 of them.

 

These photos received the best comments from the professors as to technical build and creativity. So they will be entering into my portfolio for november. Woot!
I think that I'm very lucky to have at least 4 of the 10. Now I only have to get on some new photoshoots!
So here are my new thought out shoots that I am planning.

• Spontaneous Liquification
• Milk and Cookies
• Food Fight Portrait
• Gluttony

So don't steal these ideas!  I mean it.