to move up and down
Maureen MacGregor
I'm still learning
Photos taken 6/8/2013
I took a class Spring quarter called “The Camera’s Eye II”.
I struggled. The goal was to document Routes 5 and 20 along the northern tier of the finger lakes. And I didn’t have a car. I relied on rides, and it was hard to be out there with a group (Driver wanted to photograph this, I wanted to photograph this, etc, etc.) I made okay photos, but I didn’t do my best work by any means. We were assigned Leica M-4’s, which slowed us down. It was difficult. Near the end of the quarter, I got a car, but it was almost too late to do anything.
I was also in Elements of Advertising, the last of my foundation photo courses. My mediocre photos for Ad, along with my mediocre photos in Camera’s Eye, were draining my self confidence and desire to make images.
But some friends in Camera’s Eye went to Paradise Speedway, a dirt track speedway in Geneva, and brought back great photos. I knew that my first free Saturday this summer I needed to go out there.
The speedway is a Saturday staple for that area of New York. It is a community. My father would probably liken photographing there to “shooting fish in a barrel.”
I drove there yesterday afternoon and just wandered around and photographed for a couple of hours. I got to go out to the center of the track but only stayed for about 20 minutes because I nearly shat myself for being that close to the cars.
I haven’t gone out to shoot by myself in far too long. When I shoot with other people around, I get self conscious. I start comparing my photos to theirs and I just shut down and make really terrible images. Yesterday was a welcome change to my normal grind. I plan to go back throughout the summer.
Stopped at Seneca Lake this evening on my way home . I miss living near the water.
Paradise burger #paradisespeedway #geneva #upstate #5and20
And then they came into the crowd!!!!!
Today is my 20th birthday. And it was one of the best so far.
#buckets
Stop this can’t be the last show @gcaliolo @awbphoto #buckets
Lonely truck #latergram #sunset
Got a second job. #storyboarding #preproduction
