Online Advice Column

I have a friend who’s starting an online advice column. General advice – work problems, family, relationships, all the usual trouble spots. It’s going to be called “Dear John.” If you have a problem you’d like a complete stranger’s point of view on, write to him at deardearjohn@gmail.com. (That’s 2 “dears.”) Rest assured this is totally sincere and as it appears, not some kind of prank or marketing scheme. For discretion’s sake, feel free to change people names, including yours. And be aware your letter may appear on a soon-to-launch website. I’ll let you know when it’s up in a month or so by announcing it on this blog.

Please vote for Revealed!

I have entered Revealed into a new contest that looks interesting. Please cast your vote! It only takes a few seconds and a log-in is NOT necessary. :)

Just click on the link and then click on the vote and share icon. Optional - leave a comment. Please share this with your friends.

http://www.viewbookphotostory.com/2009/07/revealed/

Cruise some other contestants. There's some very nice photography being posted.

I'm considering displaying my Revealed project on a site just dedicated to Revealed and Viewbook is a nice way to display Revealed. Email me any comments on what you think.

http://www.viewbookphotostory.com/2009/07/revealed/

Thank you for your support!

This I Believe - Revealed Grant!!

Today I received notification that I was awarded a grant from RISCA (Rhode Island State Council on the Arts) to help fund the Revealed collaboration with WRNI's This I Believe. I'm very excited about this grant!

I will integrate my Revealed project with Rhode Island Public Radio (WRNI) This I Believe - Rhode Island series by making a special call for up to 15 new subjects to write essays around their spirituality and the essence of who they are. Subjects will verbally record their essay and be photographed as a Revealed subject. Up to fifteen radio shows will be produced and aired on WRNI. The portraits and essays will be displayed on websites, and up to 3 traveling presentations and additional public exhibits will be created.

This I Believe is an international project engaging people in writing and sharing essays describing the core values that guide their daily lives. Over 60,000 of these essays, written by people from all walks of life, are archived on the national website, heard on public radio, and featured in weekly podcasts. The project is based on the popular 1950s radio series of the same name hosted by Edward R. Murrow.

We will begin looking for subjects in August. If you are interested, please contact me. The opening presentation and traveling exhibit will begin in October. You can find out more at WRNI's Revealed website. You can also view additional Revealed subjects at revealedproject.com. Also, don't forget to become a fan of Revealed on Facebook.

Buying a new camera

One of the most popular questions I get from my friends, during my travels, and photography assignments is what kind of camera I recommend. Some people are looking for a point-and-shoot camera to take casual vacation photographs and to photograph their children around the house. Others are thinking about stepping up to more of a pro-amateur camera, or maybe even a more sophisticated camera.

This is not an easy question to answer for me. I know the ins-and-outs of my camera and that is about it. I don't follow all the latest greatest cameras. I used to follow that, though now I realize the camera is really just a tool and as long as it makes sense to me and I don't have to think about how to use it, then it's a good camera. I don't care if it's a Canon or Nikon. If it feels right to you, it will be wonderful. Yes, there are other cameras you should consider other than Canon or Nikon.

A great online resource to research cameras and get very extensive reviews is Digital Photography Review. Their reviews of cameras are really good and include side-by-side comparisons. Don't get too caught up in all the techie stuff. Well, unless you are secretly a nerdy techie camera person. :) I usually scan all the techie stuff and go directly to the conclusion. Maybe that is cheating, though after I find a camera or two that looks good, I then go back and scan the rest of the review.

Your next step is to take a few cameras that look good "on paper" and head to your local camera store or even Best Buy, etc. Hold the cameras. See how it feels in your hand and how the buttons and menus work. For example, I switched from Nikon to Canon many years ago because the buttons made more sense to me. It was very comfortable to change settings and made more sense to me vs. the Nikon. Cameras were much different back then vs. today. You remember film?

The last thing you want to do is buy a camera because it got the best review and then you get it and it doesn't feel right in your hand or you are always stumbling over the buttons and menus. Of course, I'd steer away from the cameras with weak reviews.

There are some very cool small point-and-shoot cameras. And yes, I even use them when I vacation. Including the camera in my iphone. Right now I photograph with a Canon 1ds Mark ii and in the house we also have a Canon Rebel (digital not sure on the model) and a few other Canon point-and-shoots. So, I guess we are a Canon family. Though the next one may not be a Canon. It just worked out that way.

Corporate Photojournalism

Corporate Photojournalism - Images by Scott indermaur

I began my career in newspapers as a photojournalist. I loved the excitement of tight deadlines, the multiple assignments in a day, meeting so many people, experience life in a different way than I would in an office or studio, the daily grind of shooting everyday, and the many other perks that come with working with a newspaper. It was a wonderful experience.

One day I decided to get away from the daily grind of a newspaper and get into the corporate photography arena. Over the years the experience as a photojournalist has been very beneficial. The deadlines, the ability to think quick on my feet, connecting with people, work in all types of conditions and I'm sure this list can go on and on. As many of my corporate assignments may be larger productions, I also find many assignments that take me back to those roots of documenting the daily life of the workplace. Capturing a candid moment as the ideal photograph. I feel I have gone full circle in my career and I have really enjoyed these photojournalist style assignments.

I have introduced a new portfolio called "corporate photojournalism". It contains two projects. One that is ongoing as I document the growth of a new startup company. The other was also a very enjoyable assignment were we documented the making of the GM Malibu in Fairfax, KS.

This is my July email promotion. It is a corporate environmental portrait of Pratt & Whitney President David P. Hess taken at their training facility in Hartford, CT.

The email verbage:


The last 6 months have been full of amazing new projects, opportunities and changes. A major change is my brand new website featuring 50+ new images!

I photographed some amazing people during the first half of this year...the president of Pratt & Whitney, a CEO of a major pharmaceutical company, and in partnership with National Public Radio's This I Believe, unveiled my Revealed project - an exploration of an individual's essence and spirituality.

Another Breakthrough is a new Web site, featuring more than 10+ projects!

Ultimately through WHAT we do...
HOW we do what we do...
and for what PURPOSE do we do what we do...every day...
we can make a better tomorrow for someone else.

Today, what OPPORTUNITY was given to you that will get someone closer to a better tomorrow?

It's how you pay it FORWARD that makes it work...

Keep that MOMENTUM going,

Scott Indermaur

HOT STUFF --- NEW portfolios!!! NEW website!!!

Also, Check Out My new This I Believe - Revealed Multi-Media

Back into the blogging world

I started blogging a few years ago and wasn't really into it. Now I'm back. :) I find myself thinking about my experiences and how fun it will be to share that. Now I can.

Lets start with the other day I was walking around East Greenwich, Rhode Island and the chalkboard on an ice cream store said "It was once against the law to put a scoop of ice cream on apple pie in Kansas." Wow. I never had heard of that and lived there for 14 years. I wonder how long ago that law was created and I'm assuming taken off the law books.

Why would anyone make a law like that? Don't they have something better to do. Some of these funky laws crack me up.