Updates…Studio & Community Art Stuff
June 23, 2010 by vard · Leave a Comment
We spent the last 5 days in Colorado visiting some friends that moved from Berwick. Caught a Rockies game, hit up a museum and had a blast catching up with them. We’ve now moved on to Sedona, Arizona…the force behind this trip. This is the first family reunion my mom’s side of the family has ever put together. Apparently my grandmother thinks Sedona, AZ is 1/2 way between the East and West coasts! lol Just kidding…she’s a rockstar and my favorite person in the world to torture and tease. She takes it like a champ and dishes it back like a pro.
Anywho, this is just a quick update while we’re on the road. When I can, I’m making progress on the editing (those waiting, I thank you massively!).
…Firstly…
I need to officially thank everyone that showed up at the www.300AlmostNakedPeople.com shoot on the 13th. Besides the nerves and stress that I was ‘enjoying’ we had a great time and got some cool images. Hoping to have those done up soon. Big props to Ben T. and M.J. at the Press Enterprise from stopping down to cover the event…and then for the amazingly awesome FRONT PAGE article in this past Sunday’s P.E. Thank you both for helping to get the word out!
Tara and Leah Mangan blew everyone’s mind with the cake of cake’s! Thank you both mucho! There’s so many more people that NEED to be called out…once I have the images ready, they’ll all get the props they deserve. I’m definitely looking forward to doing it all over again soon. I’ll be posting more info on that as it becomes available.
Other things:
The Berwick Mural Project is rockin big time already. Alley Art is making major progress and the YMCA retaining wall will be in full swing once we return to PA. The blog is a touch outdated, but I’ll be making that right in the near future. We’ll be posting ‘artist profiles’ soon so everyone can get to know the great people MAKING this a reality. As always, we’re looking for volunteers all the time. Whether you can paint or not, there’s plenty of ways to get involved. Touch base with Connie through the BMP blog if you’re ready to be part of something HUGE!
Things To Do In Berwick
Check out this cool new Facebook group started by Berwick doer Steve Hampton. How smart is this…whether you’re looking for, or know of something to do in Berwick, share it here. Props to Steve for making this convenient and totally useful community board.
…and lastly…
I’ve got the goods on ANOTHER community art project that will need LOTS of people…about 100 I’d say. 
That’s all I want to dish on that right now as we have a few things to finalize, but if your interested you can talk to the man himself that came up with the idea. Berwick native, Zach Bremmer. Bro doesn’t even live here anymore and is rockin the creativity for the hometown. When I have more info set in stone, I’ll post it for sure…until then, dig it out of Zach if you can.
That’s it…time to go prospect for gold…Uncle Steve scored some yesterday and I need a tan, so why not!
Teaser Commercial Bodies Needed
April 5, 2010 by vard · Leave a Comment
Hey…just a quick post asking for help from anyone with a few minutes on their hands. This Thursday evening starting at 6:30pm a couple of us are getting together down at A Perfect Blend during their Open Mic Nite to shoot a little footage for the 300AlmostNakedPeople.com project teaser video. We need people willing to stand still for a few seconds. We’re shooting body parts for a montage clip that we’ll be posting on YouTube and on the project sight. If anyone is interested in being part of this, show up! Shoulders, legs, hips, feet…etc. That sort of thing. (Just to cover my butt, you gotta be 18 to play along…thanks for understanding)
Connie (who can be reached at 570-578-9412) will also have some info about the Berwick Mural Project, and an opportunity for you to paint something THURSDAY NIGHT @ A Perfect Blend in support of the project. Painting starts in Euclid Alley on Saturday, April 24th. Hope to see you at Open Mic Nite on Thursday for more info.
That’s about it…if you’re interested, we’ll see you there…if not, thanks for reading anyway! :D
Rock On!
April Fool’s Hijinks
April 1, 2010 by vard · 4 Comments
Man I had some fun today. For four years I’ve wanted to pull what I thought would be one hell of a funny April Fool’s Day prank: making it look like A Perfect Blend, my mother-in-law’s coffee shop here in Berwick, PA, was closed and out of business. For four years all I’ve ever done was wish I was doing it. This year I finally made the decision to just get it done. Last night Connie & I stopped in and covered the entire front window area of the shop with newspapers and hung an ‘Out of Business’ sign on the front door. We also tethered a video cam pointed outside to a T.V. on the inside. The idea here was to be able to see the expressions of the locals walking up for their morning fix, as well as a way for me to see outside so I’d be able to run down anyone that ACTUALLY thought we were closed.
It worked better than I could have ever imagined. All day long we were able to enjoy the hilarious expressions on people as the thought of the shop actually be gone from their daily routines crossed their lost faces. Slightly evil, perhaps, but everyone enjoyed the laugh and seemed to have a lot of fun. The newspaper and T.V. station showing up was an unexpected bonus as well. 
I’ll file this in my war chest of examples I use when people tell me they have nothing to do, or that there’s nothing to do in this town. Make your fun. Be bold, do something…but never stop having fun! Thank you Mary Lou for letting me do this. I really appreciate the chance to mess with so many people! :D
Rock On!
Coffee Shop Love & Twitter
March 25, 2010 by vard · Leave a Comment
It’s no secret that I like social media. I like it because it’s fun and because it works…it’s definitely different than all other forms of advertising, which are mostly passive. Social Media is NOT passive. It’s engaging and dynamic. I look at it as part of what I do to make my business go round. I make and edit images, I know I should always try harder, I learn something new every day, and I social media…it’s just one of the things I have to do in the course of my life. It doesn’t hurt that it’s actually fun for me too.
So, as I sit around and try to make social media work for Studio D, it dawned on me that I’ve been completely blind to the opportunity to use A Perfect Blend as a little test business…it’ll help me better understand what works, what might not, and how to implement different ideas, AND!, it’ll help my mother-in-law’s business as well. She doesn’t have time or even the interest in adding more to her plate, but I can…and besides, it’s fun! :D (yes, I’ve said that)
In reality, Connie and I will be working on this together…
So here it. All you have to do is get a Twitter account (I mean, that is, for both of you that don’t already have one, right?) and follow @BerwickBlend. If you can, send the tweets down to your mobile device so you always have it at the ready. Starting April 1st, a week from today, we’ll start tweeting from the @BerwickBlend account. We’ll let you know what soups are up for the day and what the daily special is…how many times have you called in at 11:30am to find out that Arden’s BBQ or the Chicken Caesar Salad just sold out……ya, that sucks? We’ll also be giving away a free drink every day. We’ll tweet a code…then it’s a foot race to be the first one at the counter with the code. On the surface, it might look like this is a pretty small group of people to aim at, but these are exactly the people that make this business possible. Without the support of the businesses and downtown locals, A Perfect Blend wouldn’t exist. That said, we’re not forgetting that some people like to visit Berwick AND eat all in one eventful day. So we’ll also be tweeting, occasionally, for a free lunch for the first person to retweet the daily special. We’re going to start a little slower on this one, perhaps once a week. But I do see this becoming more regular in time. Don’t worry that you have no clue what the last couple of sentences meant…get the Twitter account and follow, and then ask me on the phone or here in the comments how to do something. I’m happy to explain.
This is planned for the long haul, so don’t sweat it if you don’t have it all figured out by next Thursday. Over time we see this as a great way to let as many people know, as easily as possible, what The Blend has to offer. And on top of it all…this is fun!
I’m such a dork! :P
Berwick Mural Project Involvement
March 24, 2010 by vard · 2 Comments
Anyone like painting – REALLY HUGE things? Connie has been interested in getting some murals in Berwick for quite a while now. She’s working with a small committee of local people to get it done. They have the support of the borough and building/location owners as well. What they need is help. If anyone reading this feels like getting creative in a BIG way, drop Connie a line at 570-578-9412 and let her know. It all starts on the 24th of April! THIS IS HAPPENING this spring/summer…might make for a nice creative outlet project! :D
The Nationwide Insurance building wall
Prime location for some public art (decent photography on the 2nd floor as well, I’ve heard )
Berwick Theater wall
Another cool spot with a lot of viewing opportunity
BIDA wall on LaSalle St.
I’m excited for this one. LaSalle’s already got a lot of character…this could really go a bunch of cool ways!
Euclid Alley (The Start of Alley Art)
This is the spot that started it all for Connie. She’s wanted to do ‘Alley Art’ since back in the day. Alley Art exploded into the Mural Project as more and more people wanted to help. If you spend any amount of time downtown, you’ll probably hit up Euclid Alley. Another really exciting wall waiting for some paint.
YMCA Retaining wall
Looooooooooooong and narrow…visually interesting possibilities here!
If you’re from the area and can visualize each of these spots, think about all of them done up in murals. What a cool, creative and interesting picture of Berwick that is. Come be part of something fun!
Photography Classes @ Studio D
March 16, 2010 by vard · Leave a Comment
OK…here we go! This might be all over the place, but I’ll try to keep it together. And I’ll put this out there right now; this is my first foray into trying to show someone how I shoot, so if it feels like I’m shooting (pun #1) from the hip, I probably am. And, an even more important point – these classes will be based around what I know about image making, which is limited to what I’ve been able to teach myself in the last 6ish years. I’m still teaching myself photography, and I hope these classes can show you how to do that as well.
We’ll lean HEAVILY towards DSLR shooting, particularly in the 1 on 1 sessions. If you’re more comfortable with, or only have, a point-n-shoot, we can definitely discuss that more as well. And, if those last 2 sentences didn’t make any english sense to you, please ask…I’ll be happy to explain.
Small Group Classes:
These classes will be limited to 5 people per class, on a first come, first served basis. To reserve a spot, the course fee will need to be paid in full. If you’re thinking about attending any of these, get a hold of someone at the studio ASAP. We can’t reserve a spot until the fee is paid. And on that note, each class is $75 and will be held at the studio.
The dates are:
- Wednesday April 28th 6-9 – Camera Control – ISO, aperture, shutter speed
- Wednesday May 12th 6-9 – Digital Darkroom – file management, workflow, editing
- Wednesday May 26th 6-9 – Lighting – natural, on-camera, off-camera, mixing
Camera Control
To me, this is where it all starts. If you don’t know what the camera is doing, you’re never going to get any better at making images. ’P’ mode works in very few situations. Actually taking control of the camera is essential to getting YOUR creativity into the image. And seriously, it’s easier than you think. MOST of the ’stuff’ on your camera can be ignored…understanding ISO, aperture and shutter speed, and how each plays into your image will allow you to make better images, more often, in more situations.
Digital Darkroom
This should actually be first, but I realize most people just want to shoot and might not KNOW that they SHOULD care about this part…by the end of Camera Control, I’ll have you convinced at just how important this part is, particularly to digital photographers. Don’t skip this class just because it might sound boring on the surface – I promise it wont be!
Lighting
Oh baby, do I love me some light! I can’t stop looking at, analyzing, playing with or talking about lighting. Ask Connie…it’d be a problem if it wasn’t a passion! :D (ooh…that was good…tweeted!) Understanding lighting and how YOU are in CONTROL of it will make for better images instantly. From simple to complex, we’ll talk about it all. Class note – if I jump around like a monkey trying to make my point on lighting, toss me a banana and wait for me to calm down…I like it THAT much!
I’m going to focus (pun #2) on having fun in these classes – cause seriously, has anyone ever picked up a camera with intent of irritating themselves? It’s about creativity and sharing with the world how you see life happening one frame at a time. I can’t tell you too much about the class setting itself, cause THAT’S one of the surprises for attending. I will say this however; I’m going for MORE than you’re expecting!
Alright…so that brings us to the 1 on 1 classes…a tad less info here as these are going to be specific to each person. But here are the details:
1 on 1 Photo Classes:
- Scheduled almost any time there’s an opening for your schedule and mine
- First class is a 2 hr intro class at $75. The intro class is designed to help me better understand your needs so I can tailor future classes accordingly.
- After the intro class, sessions are $50/hr, booked in 1-3 hour blocks
- You can also schedule a batch of classes for a reduced rate – 6 session hours for $250, scheduled however you’d like.
- Most classes will start in the studio – we’ll decide together where were headed from there if location work is the order of the day
- I have a basic plan for how I’d like these to go, but it’s YOUR PERSONAL class. We’ll work on whatever you’d like.
