Zoe Wiseman Photography

I love working with my Diana. When I started shooting as a photographer I bought a Holga on the advice of Carlton Mickle. I soon learned about the toy camera junkies when Holga’s only cost $9.99. They had stopped production of the Diana camera by the time I started photography so I kept my eye out for people selling theirs and got lucky when Susan Burnstine sold hers to me. Now Holga’s cost upwards of $75.00 and so do Diana’s now that they’re making them again. I’m glad people are into toy cameras now, and I’m glad I bought mine when they weren’t this expensive. I know compared to other cameras they don’t seem so costly, but my head shaking commences when I see the price tags these days. At least they last longer than a D700. I’ve used my first Holga for 15 years now. Not bad for a “toy.” The Ilford PanF works awesome too.

Sara Liz @saraliz stopped by about a week ago and we played with light and a Rolleicord and a Nikon FM.

Enjoy.

Enjoy some photos with Rei. 35mm Film and a couple of Lensbabies too.

Enjoy some of my new work with Floofie. She rocks.

Just a few images from our last picture making fun. Just a Nikon FM and my new Composer Pro Lensbaby (so fun!) and some Kodak Tri-X 400. And an interesting studio set up. Plus, some Ilford 50 with my Rollei (my fave).

Enjoy.

Title, yeah, I’m a Prince fan. And a Zinn fan! This is why:

I never shoot 6 rolls of film! ha. Had no idea there was color film (Kodak Portra) in my Nikon FM, but sort of like it. All the rest, Ilford panF 50, Ilford Delta 400 and Fuji Neopan 400 with my Rollei. I love my Rollei.

I have the craziest dreams. If only I could record them so I could play them back for everyone to gasp at. The latest insanity during my sleep was marrying George W. Bush. I’m not kidding. I woke up in tears, literally sobbing and looking at my husband and asking him why he didn’t step in and stop that. Here is the dream:

My real husband and I were traveling to Texas via the swamps and bayous of Louisiana. We had to dodge swamp gas, swamp flames and alligators. We made it out into the gulf only to be capsized and our boat obliterated. For some reason I knew of a place under water where they kept a submarine, so we swam underwater and made it into the sub. Swimming underwater dodging the oil spill and pissed off dolphins. One of the dolphins tried to blame me for the spill and I had to have a conversation with him to explain that it was our screwed up government up here on the dry part that enabled it and that I had nothing to do with it and I was just trying to swim to safety, would the dolphin help us? So my real husband and I caught hold of the dolphins fin and it took us to the sub. WTF? right? But it doesn’t end there… in the sub there were these crazy totalitarians that put my husband in a cell and took me to the captain.

This captain called GWB on the phone and told him that he captured me. Next thing I know I’m at the Alamo (the freaking Alamo!) preparing to marry him. I’m on a balcony talking with my real husband begging him to protect me from these monsters, but he looks the other way as I see how badly they’ve beaten him. Then I’m standing at the alter and GWB prepares to put the ring on my finger but I haven’t taken off my real wedding ring and I struggle to take it off and handed it to my mother. Then I woke up sobbing with my cat and my husband looking over me asking me what could be so troubling in my dream. I said that he made me marry George Bush and he had a good laugh.

Dreams are insane. Dreams are monkey brains after they’ve been stung by a scorpion. In ode to my dreams, here are some images I made with my dreams as inspiration. I hope I’m not the only one who has crazy dreams.

There was a time when I was a fashion model when perfection was forced and instilled into every one of my brain cells that I was unable to appreciate flaws. Especially when it came to photography, because body image was so important back then, the camera had to perfect perfection even more. You could have been a perfectly poised woman with flawless skin and a perfect figure, but the camera had to make you even more flawless and perfect. A hyper sense of perfection. And that was when all photographers shot film. Fast forward to today and the hyper-perfection is on some other trip. I look at photos now and the models look like plastic dolls. They have no hips. No breasts. They are androgynous drones chiseled with photoshop to be made into unreal versions of humanity. I find myself searching for imperfection because of it. Even if I’m photographing someone with a perfect body.

It really doesn’t matter how perfect someone’s body is in the world of art, but I see fashion influencing artists. I see photographic artists utilizing the hyperreal tools of the fashion industry in order to perfect their images. While I would never publish a photograph of a woman in a compromising view to make her seem less ideal, I want her to look good, I’m also not going to do something to compromise my vision for my own art to satisfy the status quo. I love the imperfections in film. I adore freaking out my Polaroid negatives, scratches, solarization, funky borders… they allow me to understand LIGHT what it does, how it feels. The luxury of shadows and the mystery it emboldens.

I can thank the fashion industry for shunning my eyes from their unrealistic version of woman. When I see plastic faces with no pores, I can look in the mirror and tell myself that I’m beautiful for not being a plastic doll. And I can view the art I create and be refreshed that it looks nothing like anything I see in a fashion magazine. I left fashion for a reason.

Enjoy some Polaroids and some Rollei photos I shot of model, Stephanie Anne last month.

Fish Haul Beach - Hilton Head Island Model: Katharine

I’ve donated this print to benefit Sendai, Japan. It will be available at The Kona Gallery in San Clemente, California this Saturday April 16, 2011. I have extended family just outside of Tokyo, so it’s also a personal uplifting thing for me to do.

412 N. El Camino Real, San Clemente, CA 92672

View Larger Map

NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Rebekah Colby, Corporate Communications

Office: +1.949.481.3747
Fax:     +1.949.481.3941

Email: Rebekah@TheKONAGallery.com

9.0 JAPAN QUAKE BENEFIT: IMC, ZUMA + SAN CLEMENTE MERCHANTS TEAM UP

Silent Auction and Raffle at Free Event
SAN CLEMENTE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.–– The KONA Gallery invites you to a silent auction and raffle to raise money for the victims of the Sendai area earthquake and tsunami. Join us at The KONA Gallery and Photojournalism Center at 412 North El Camino Real, San Clemente, U.S., on Saturday April 16^th from 6p.m. until 9p.m. to participate in this cause and to be apart of a silent auction/raffle and general event to remember and benefit the victims.

It has been a month since the devastating 9.0 earthquake and ensuring deadly tsunami hit Japan. The fallout is still being felt worldwide. International Medical Corps, ZUMA Press, DOUBLEtruck Magazine, plus over two dozen merchants in San Clemente area have teamed up with the KONA Gallery and Photojournalism Workshop Center to throw a benefit for the victims. The benefit will auction and raffle off over $100,000 worth of goods and services.

Scott Mc Kiernan, owner of The KONA Gallery and Photojournalism Center, has generously donated all of the Limited Edition DOUBLEtruck Magazine prints in the current exhibition of 29 Seeing Double Exhibition, the 20×30 prints are framed in museum frames, valued at $1,500 each, to be auctioned off, totaling over $ 43,000 worth. A great way to support the cause and get a beautiful photograph that tells a story that people should know.

The night is one you are not going to want to miss. The following is a list of the San Clemente companies who have contributed to the silent auction: Del Mar Beauty Supply/ Salon Bamboo, Chin’s Acupuncture, 5 Elements Spa, Sonny’s Pizza, The Cellar, Peligroso, Pizza Port, Bliss Boutique, San Clemente Wine Co, Beachfire, Skullcandy, Rainbow, Casa Tropicana, Nick’s, Hobie, Asana Fit, First Team Real Estate, Runmore, OltreMare, OC Tykes, Beach City Florist and St. Roy at Vine.

If you cannot attend in person, feel free to send a check to the gallery, put in memo: Quake Benefit.

100% of the proceeds will go to Japan, through International Medical Corps and ZUMA Press’s Tokyo Bureau. For more information about the silent auction and The KONA Gallery, please contact Rebekah Colby at +1.949. 481.3747 or email Rebekah@TheKONAGallery.com.

INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CORPS ––Established in 1984, International Medical Corps is a global, humanitarian, nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through health care training and relief and development programs.

THE KONA GALLERYAND PHOTOJOURNALISM CENTER––Unveiled on October 7, 2009 by photojournalist and entrepreneur, Scott Mc Kiernan, The KONA Gallery is a space dedicated to the presentation and discourse of photojournalism. The vision of The KONA Gallery has been to expose a broad audience to moving historical moments through the lens of acclaimed photographers. The center will be holding exhibits in its’ two galleries and a monthly lecture series will be held in the BIG WEDNESDAY Gallery, along with workshops thru out the year and other educational presentations.

Japan Quake Tsunami Benefit - The Kona Gallery

Truly. Candace is a ridiculously great model. I know it takes two so I’m not too humble not to pat myself on the back, but it’s pretty insane when you can’t decide what image should be THE ONE from a roll of film. This is from 1/2 hours work. I’m almost terrified to work for longer for fear the decision making will prove to be that much more intense. But after all these years of working with Candace I never get tired of seeing the results. What’s YOUR favorite?