BP= Photographers Not Allowed_Photographs They don't want you to see

Photographers say BP and government officials are preventing them from documenting the impact of the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

British Petroleum, BP, a foreign company to the United States is now limiting access and totally in charge of our Gulf Coast beaches, airspace and our Gulf of Mexico water ways. They appear to be censoring our news coverage of their oil spill by not allowing photographers access to our public beaches and controlling the Gulf's airspace and water ways. They don't want us to see the destruction they have caused and the pictures like the ones here posted on my blog, you can see more HERE at the Boston Globe. News photographers are complaining that their efforts to document the slow-motion disaster in the Gulf of Mexico are being thwarted by local and federal officials—working with BP—who are blocking access to the sites where the effects of the spill are most visible. The ability to document a disaster, particularly through images, is key to focusing the nation’s attention on it, and the resulting clean-up efforts. For more read HERE from Newsweek. And another good article from Mother Jones about a first hand account of a journalist trying to access the oil spill area_When I tell Chief Aubrey Chaisson that I would like to get a comment on Barbara's intimations—and my experience so far—that BP is running the show, he says he'll meet me in a parking lot. He pulls in, rolls down the window of his maroon Crown Victoria, and tells me that I can't trust the government or big corporations. When everyone saw the oil coming in as clear as day several days before that, BP insisted it was red tide—algae. Chaisson says he's half-Indian and grew up here and just wants to protect the land. When I tell him BP says the inland side of the island is still clean, he spits, "They're fucking liars. There's oil over there. It's already all up through the pass." Read the Mother Jones article HERE. Oh yea, one last thing I forgot to say, fuck you BP, and get the hell off our property.

A New Way to Fund & Follow Creativity

Here's a site with a new idea that was brought to my attention by my trusted assistant (and very good photographer, and friend) Nick. This site takes people's creative projects and creates a funding format to fulfill their dreams. I love the idea, although it is not just photographic in nature. Theatre, writing, technology as well as photography is produced here, and you can become a part of these projects and follow along as they are produced, and receive gifts for your involvement and donation to fund these projects. Check out kickstarter.com HERE.

Create Advertising and Enjoy it!

II came upon this quotation from "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller. It made me think of advertising.

"He knew everything there was to know about literature, except how to enjoy it."

It seems that much of the problem in the world today is that we're too smart, too professional, too schooled and too scared.

Liking something--and responding with a gasp or a chortle or anger or a laugh is like a fart or a hiccup. Liking something is involuntary and a reaction. Such things are not meant to be controlled by our intellect. However, in the corporate world brains rule and hearts are something you use on the weekend when you're pushing your kids in a $500 stroller.

In short, how many people do you work with--including creative people--who know everything about advertising or marketing, except how to enjoy it.

Maybe the difference between good advertising and bad advertising is enjoyment. Good advertising should be enjoyable. You should feel enriched by it. It should elevate, educate or amuse. It shouldn't just lay there like a lox.

source of this info is from: http://adaged.blogspot.com/2010/06/experts.html

Dennis Hopper_Photographer

He photographed most avidly during the 1960's. The self taught photographer again picked up the camera during the 1980's to capture mostly texture...the abraded surfaces of peeling walls and billboards. Read full story of: Remembering Dennis Hopper, Photographer, from the LA Times HERE. I also did a little searching for more of his photos on the web and did not find much, but a few did show up HERE at artnet.