Q&A

Patrick Smith on WHNPA recognition, photo assignments and Pickles

Patrick Smith on WHNPA recognition, photo assignments and Pickles

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8 photos

“Cliche sounding I’m sure, but life is one big assignment. All I ask for is to be healthy and have a new photographic challenge every day.” — Patrick Smith

Patrick Smith is a freelance photojournalist based in Baltimore, Md. whose work has been distributed and published by Getty Images, Reuters, New York Times, and The Baltimore Sun, to just name a few of the publications where you might have seen his name. Recognized as the Still Photographer of the Year by the White House News Photographers Association (WHNPA) in their 2013 Eyes of History competition, The Darkroom caught up with the Baltimore native, who dished on photographing the Penn State scandal, gear setup on shoots and his Pickles Pup photo series.

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Instagrammer feature with @rockinbrock: Baltimore and beyond with his head in the clouds

Instagrammer feature with @rockinbrock: Baltimore and beyond with his head in the clouds

2 Comments Instagrammer Feature, Maryland, Q&A, The Baltimore Sun , ,

18 photos

What sticks out to us about John Brock’s (aka @rockinbrock) photography is the vivid way he captures everyday life living in Baltimore. Architecture, clouds and people are recurring subjects for the adventurous father of two.

The Darkroom caught up with Brock about how he edits his images, what he loves about Baltimore and where he found his love of photography.

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Courage and strength: Living with stage IV breast cancer

Courage and strength: Living with stage IV breast cancer

7 Comments Maryland, Q&A, The Baltimore Sun , ,

5 photos

In September 2012, I photographed a group of women diagnosed with terminal stage IV breast cancer. Kay, Gretchen, CJ, Cece and Sally, as well as other members of METAvivor Research and Support, often held informal gatherings. A non-profit organization, METAvivor provides support to patients, raises awareness, and awards annual research grants for stage IV breast cancer. Many of its members form close friendships in the process of sharing their struggles and triumphs.

As I photographed these women, I was struck by their energy, joyful demeanor and dedication in helping others with the same diagnosis. I wondered how these ladies live with the possibility of death so close at hand while at the same time not only managing the painful and debilitating effects of the disease and its treatment. What gives them the courage to carry on with such grace? Has their philosophy of life changed? Their view of death? Here are their answers.

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Instagrammer feature with @flynnfinity: Adventures in Baltimore with a dog named Bailey

Instagrammer feature with @flynnfinity: Adventures in Baltimore with a dog named Bailey

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17 photos

If you live in Baltimore and you’re on Instagram, there’s a good chance you’ve come across @flynnfinity aka Josh Flynn. Flynn, who lives and works in Baltimore, won the award for “Best Instagram” at the Mobbies this year.

The Darkroom caught up with Flynn about Instagram’s Terms of Service debacle, his series #baileystraightchillin and the advantages of using a camera phone on the fly.

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Old School-New School photography chat with local photographer John Milleker Jr.

Old School-New School photography chat with local photographer John Milleker Jr.

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23 photos, 1 video

In today’s technology-laden society, almost everyone has a camera on them at all times. However, many have claimed that the abundant snapping of pictures with a cell phone has belittled thoughtfully composed photography in a similar way that text messages and emails have bastardized grammatically correct, handwritten letters.

Amongst the quiet homes of Glen Burnie, Maryland lives a mustachioed gentleman working to bring class and artistry back to photography. With techniques ranging from Civil War era Wet Plate Collodion to the latest innovations in the digital realm, John Milleker Jr. always approaches a job with an eye for composition no matter the medium.

In the interview and video below, John talks about his hefty photographic arsenal and the lengths he’s taken to protect the more ‘analogue’ weapons he occasionally wields.
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Instagrammer Feature with @strange_agent: Finding beauty in the ordinary

Instagrammer Feature with @strange_agent: Finding beauty in the ordinary

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21 photos

The Darkroom caught up with instagrammer Jen DuMars, aka @strange_agent, about being motivated by failure, what makes a place and why most of her photos aren’t captioned.

The longtime Maryland resident, who splits time between West Annapolis and Charles Village, shoots her Instagram photos with an iPhone 4S, many while commuting to her public policy job in Washington.

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Through the lens: A look at the American Nurse

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22 photos

In a series of interviews and portraits, photographer Carolyn Jones set out to answer who is the American nurse.

Commissioned by Fresenius Kabi USA, the coffee-table photo book documents 75 nurses from around the country including 13 Baltimore area nurses, providing an inside view of the joys and challenges they face.

Jones talks to The Darkroom about why she took on the project “The American Nurse”, shooting with a Hasselblad medium format camera, and the men and women in scrubs that represent the microcosm of nurses today.

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Double exposed film creates breathtaking photos in People vs. Places

Double exposed film creates breathtaking photos in People vs. Places

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12 photos

Two photographers, one roll of film, exposed twice — once of people, then of places. That’s the concept behind People vs. Places, a new double exposure photo series from Chicago-based photographers Timothy Burkhart and Stephanie Bassos. With a little ingenuity, a great eye and some luck, the result of their dueling effort is a more hauntingly beautiful view of the world we live in.

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‘West Side Story’ takes Maryland dancers on a European adventure

‘West Side Story’ takes Maryland dancers on a European adventure

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25 photos

For a musical to resonate on an international level more than 50 years after its original Broadway debut demonstrates the brilliance of its creators.

With a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and choreography by Jerome Robbins, West Side Story battled its way onto Broadway from a vision of updating Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet for a beatnik and ballet proficient generation. Many Tony nominations followed in 1957, resulting in a win for Robbins’ choreography, but it lost the “Best Musical” award to the wholesome River City, Iowa spectacle The Music Man. The film adaptation fared much better earning ten Academy Awards including “Best Picture” in 1961.

All of this happened long before our two subjects jetéd into their parent’s lives. Courtney Ortiz and Nicholas Sipes joined the international touring cast earlier this year bringing the original magic of West Side Story to the European stage. The following interview was conducted in August, just before a short break brought them home to the States. They head back to Germany in October and finish out 2012 in Paris.
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