Each man or woman on the planet has their own private Mount Everest. You know, the challenge of challenges, the jewel in the crown of personal definition.

I can’t say that I even have a personal Everest, but from everything I read,  shooting a Mixed Martial Arts fight was as close to that as it gets for sports photographers. Having not shot much sports (but being a huge sports fan), it appealed to my nature to dive into the deepest end of the photographic pool and see if I would sink or swim.

But just like everything I seem to do, I had to find a personal twist, an angle if you will.  My imagination kept straying from the brutality to the courage and commitment these fighters not only demonstrated for the paying crowds, but lived. This decision to climb into a cage and fight another human being is not made lightly.  The training, conditioning and dieting that goes into 3 three minute rounds cannot be glossed over. I know if I had to diet to take pictures, well – we’d be talking about something else right now.

And because I’m just wired differently from normal people, I saw these fights as intimate.

Yes, intimate.

more…

Good news! The NEW Marcotte Photography website is live!

Bad News! All the blog pix got wiped out in the move! I’m working on it.

In the meantime, go check out the new site and leave some feedback!

Thanks.
Bob

The uranic charachter of Diana is well reflected in her connexion to light, inaccessibility, virginity, dwelling on high mountains and in sacred woods. Diana is thus the representation of the heavenly world (dium) in its character of sovereignity, supremacy, impassibility, indifference towards secular matters as the fate of men and states, while at the same time ensuring the succession of kings and the preservation of mankind through the protection of childbirth.

Diana was the goddess of the hunt in Roman mythology.  She is often depicted in statue with a deer which is a reference to another myth, that of Actaeon.  He saw Diana bathing naked in the forest and she turned him into a stag and set his own hunting dogs upon him. Yeah, Diana had a bit of a temper.

How does this relate to photography?

After a short break, I pick up the camera and start shooting regularly again (I hope).  Throughout all the assignments from the Bee ( I love those guys!) and opportunities to shoot for new and existing customers, I will still be hunting for that singular thing that I am still seeking in my photography – art.

Yes, you can shoot that hot dog stand, and it can be very factual and informative, but can you make it ‘pop’? Can you make it the most compelling shot of a hot dog stand that the reader can remember?  Can you deliver a ‘gourmet’ shot of a ‘fast food’ situation?

So frame after frame in 2010, I hope to ask myself the same question.  No, not ‘Is that lady over there in the woods naked?’ but ‘Is there something that I am missing that will turn this shot into something worthy of a second, or even a third look?’.

Editors can be tough, comments on the blog can be tougher, but getting the elusive and reclusive Diana to raise her head and take notice of my work is the prize for 2010.

I don’t make New Year’s resolutions but I do hope to take that extra second, that extra breath at every shot to ask myself if I am doing everything I can to make this frame THE frame of 2010.

If I get the shot, I will post it faster than Mercury can run but I will be relying on my family and friends to pull the doggie teeth out of my backside.

And since we’re talking ancient history…

A Portrait of the Artist As A Young Man

Here’s to Chasing Diana in 2010!

On Geary street in San Francisco rises a huge and spectacular concrete structure that stands out from all the concrete structures around it in its bold architecture -  and its bolder purpose.  It’s full name is the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption. Unlike Alcatraz, every person who walks into St. Mary’s is not only considered worthy to be saved, but that exact purpose is the reason for the Cathedral’s existence.  While tons of concrete were poured to break the spirit of the men who occupied Alcatraz, each ton of concrete in St. Mary’s was poured to uplift the spirits of the people who enter and worship in this church.

The closest thing to bars you will see in St. Mary’s are the pipes of the organ.

more…

I admit that I am not much of a ‘flower’ guy.  I send flowers on anniversaries and special occasions but otherwise I really don’t know what I’m looking at.

Now that I’ve confessed my flower ignorance, you might think that its strange that I visited the Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco.  On the contrary, I jumped at the opportunity to see one of the most important places in the country, according to people in the flower community. I wanted to see what the excitement was about and hopefully shoot it, but I have yet another confession. I have a Canon 100 mm f/ 2.8 macro lens that I wanted to put through its paces.  What I ended up with really (pleasantly) surprised me!

And some of the shots downright amazed me…

more…

First of all, Happy Holidays to you and your family.  I sincerely hope that 2010 brings you much prosperity and joy.

Speaking of joy, my wife and I have just arrived home after 4 days in San Francisco. The getaway was well deserved for both of us, but after 20+ shoots in December (plus a day job and an additional part-time job), I needed a creative re-charge.  San Francisco never fails to give me that.  It’s a world class city with an exceptional sense of its own identity. It combines history with future and makes it all seamless and somehow connected.  I don’t know if I could live in SF (there are LOTS of people) but I certainly visit there as often as the opportunity presents itself.

OK, you beat it out of me – my wife is a foodie.  We shopped for the perfect cheese, the perfect wine, the perfect entre and enjoyed it all. But in between the culinary adventures I did have time to shoot two SF landmarks that, at least to my very convoluted mind, are deeply connected.

First is the Cathedral of St. Mary on Geary street.  It’s a massive and inspiring structure. The outside is defined by courageous architecture just as its inside is defined by creative use of space, light and art.  Believe me, regardless of what you believe in,  your eyes will lift heavenward when you see the inside or outside of this building.

But first, I have to start with another famous SF landmark.  A landmark that exemplifies the complete opposite of St. Mary’s.  Whereas the Cathedral is all about hope and redemption, Alcatraz is all about suffocating hope for a population deemed un-savable.

Both are very large concrete structures built for opposite purposes but that brings me to another point.  Before I even left for this trip I promised myself I would not blow off frame after frame and hope to get some good shots.  Nope, this time I decided to slow down and ’see’ through the lens. Each frame (more or less) was taken with ‘concrete’ intent and I am happy to report that I like what I’ve seen.

Hopefully, you’ll agree.

more…

Let me start out right by saying I love shooting assignments for the Fresno Bee. I get to go places and meet people I never would have imagined even existed. I guess that’s part of the allure of news – getting to see lives you never would have had a chance to know about otherwise.

Sometimes, however, the types of assignments I get are paradoxical. (OK, I finally got to use the word ‘paradoxical’ in a sentence. My life is complete). This week for example I had the assignment to shoot a business called ‘Thimble Towne’. They are absolutely dedicated to the full contact artist expressions of quilting and sewing. Need fabric? TT is the place. Lessons? Everyday of the week! Sewing machines? You betcha!

Here is photographic evidence that I shot my assignment with all the due professionalism I could muster…

My second assignment was not the ‘normal’ run of the mill assignment. In fact, it was paranormal…

more…