Wonder of flight

As a child, I used to closely watch as airplanes flew overhead, and I'd ask my Dad why they don't fall out of the sky.

"Because God holds them up with his hand," he said. I still recall the wonderment and reassurance I felt as I pondered his answer.

Today, I jump at every opportunity to fly, especially on assignment with my cameras. My Monday assignment took me to Stinson Field, where two middle school students won opportunities to fly with famed stunt pilot Greg Poe.


I saw in Francisco Simental and Jazmine Castro, the lucky students, the wonder and awe of flight that I felt those many years ago when my Dad answered my question about flight.

And pilot Poe's motivation for offering the experience of flight to these San Antonio students? "My son died of drug abuse in 2003," he said, adding that he wants to encourage young people to dream and accomplish the dreams that his own son never did.

Curious about cameras

What a joy. A lighthearted assignment at the Daughters of Charity Services of San Antonio DePaul Family Center...

Kids in a playground. Little Abraham can't keep his hands off of my cameras. I'm barely able to work. But it's alright. I hope I made his day. He certainly made me laugh.

A World War II vet's birthday

As I munched on a breakfast of chilaquiles tacos, I overheard the words "happy birthday."

I looked to see an elderly man charming the waitresses at Garibaldi's Mexican Restaurant on Fredericksburg Road. Accompanied by his sons, he was all too happy to be the center of attention.

He reminded me of my own father. Same age, same complexion, three sons. So, I ran to my car, fumbled for my camera, and made it to their table as the first chorus of "happy birthday" was sung.

His name is Jesus E. De Leon Sr. and he is a World War II veteran. He proudly proclaimed that he was a member of the "Band of Brothers," part of the 101st Airborne Division, and that he had parachuted near Sainte Mere Eglise in Normandy on June 6, 1944.

Tom Brokaw refers to men like him as members of the "Greatest Generation." I like to say that they saved the world from tyranny.

Mr. De Leon holds a Purple Heart which he says was lost long ago.

Summer swing

I worked a delightful assignment at Bracken Christian School on Tuesday morning, where I made photos of the state champion girls volleyball team. Once done there, I went to a coffee shop, where I edited and sent my pictures to the Express-News. I wrapped up at lunch time, but I figured that since I was in the beautiful Texas Hill Country, I'd embark on a picture hunt. I remembered that, a few years ago, I had shot video at a watering hole that was not so far away from where I now stood. But where was it? I drove north on 281 from Bulverde, and my eyes strained for the sight of something familiar. Approaching Spring Branch Road, things looked right, and I took the turn. A brahma bull, a uniquely patterned fence, a junked antique car... they all seemed strangely familiar. I'm pleased to report that my sense of direction is as sharp as ever, because I found the place - Nichol's Landing! This tranquil place was deserted, except for a three young men that swung from a rope, splashing into the waters of the Guadalupe. I hung precariously from the bank as I shot the photos, but if I had fallen in, but for the camera, I wouldn't have cared.

At the bullfight

I once was in a bullring in Mexico, shooting the bullfights from the "alley," the circular fenced area.

As I was intently focusing on the matador and the bull in the ring, I saw in the out-of-focus background of my frame what appeared to be a person jump. Than another, and another.

I laughed within myself as I thought, that's weird. I shot several more frames of the bullfight when it suddenly dawned on me....

Many in the crowd laughed and gasped.

I looked right as a raging bull emerged in the alley, bearing down on me and other photographers by me. Instinctively, I pressed myself against the fence, and watched the animal's wild eye and horn flash inches by me. It's huge and thundering presence was overpowering.

The news videographer to my side attempted to escape by climbing up on the fence when the bull, using its horns, flipped him over and into the bullring. He lay stunned for a moment, but quickly got up. He handed his camera to me and climbed back out of the bullring.

It was one of the most exhilarating and frightening experiences of my life.

Summer squirrel

So, I cranked out this mindless, albeit charming (imho) video of a furry little guy....

A video/still photo assignment

Shooting video while also shooting still photos is a challenge. While shooting this cardboard canoe race, I shot dozens of frames on Nikon D3, but found that the best pictures were on video. I shot HD video on my Sony V1U, and was able to pull frame grabs.

Make no mistake about it, frame grabs don't have the quality of a still-camera image, but in this case the vidcam amounted to a 30-fps motor drive. With careful handling, the frame grabs turned out to be of decent quality.

The drawback was that on deadline, it was much easier to edit through still pix than finding a frame to grab on video.

I have a very specific way of treating frame grabs. For this, check several posts below.

Click on pictures to enlarge.

First camera

My first camera was Pentax K1000.

Birkat Hachamah

Thank God for the sun.
©2009

Days of Tri-X

I hope you like the soundtrack *
©2009 Billy Calzada

Vidcam tape

Always use same brand tape in vidcam - lubrications used by different manufacturers don't play well together; sometimes causing dropped frames.

Reflecting Christ

FRAME GRABBING

Still Pictures from HD Video

Try this:

Shoot with your vidcamera set on HD and on progressive scan. Gain always on 0 (I suggest you don't try this with gain cranked up). Shutter speed applies (If you're shutter is slow, you'll have lots of motion blur, which is often not a problem in video, but in a frame grab, it's like shooting with still cam and slow shutter speed).

In FCP, pick your frame. Rock the frame back and forth; often, there is a clear difference in definition from one frame to another. Pick sharpest frame.

Export that frame using FCP:

EXPORT: USE QUICKTIME CONVERSION: STILL IMAGE:
OPTIONS:
FORMAT-->TIFF
OPTIONS-->MILLIONS OF COLORS+
COMPRESSION--> NONE

OPEN IN PHOTOSHOP
IF YOUR CAMERA CANNOT SHOOT IN PROGRESSIVE SCAN MODE, DE-INTERLACE NOW.

COLOR CORRECT (YOU WILL ALMOST ALWAYS HAVE TO BOOST SATURATION ABOUT +10, GIVE OR TAKE A FEW).

SHARPEN OR BLUR? HARD TO SAY, DEPENDS ON INDIVIDUAL FRAME. SOMETIMES FRAME GRABS LOOK OVERLY SHARPENED, SOMETIMES NOT. YOU DECIDE. CAREFUL, THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT STEP.

TRY GAUSSIAN BLUR, AND THEN SHARPEN.

IMAGE SIZE: FIX PROPORTIONS IF NECESSARY (uncheck constrain proportions) by changing horizontal from 1440 to 1900. CHANGE DPI FROM 72 TO 200. This should give you a file size of about 45 mb.

SAVE.

IMAGE SIZE: Change image size to your standard (10 inches by 200 dpi).

SAVE AS JPG, ABOUT 10-12 COMPRESSION (MAXIMUM).

Learning from my fellow photogs

I love video assignments where I run into my Express-News photo colleagues. These occasions offer a great opportunity to see them in action and to learn from them. I've observed how some interact greatly with their photo subjects, reminding me of a well-choreographed dance. Others politely introduce themselves and back away, apparently preferring to work as the proverbial fly on the wall, often shooting pictures very sporadically.

The lesson they've taught me is that the best pictures come from spending much time with the people that we photograph.

In my own still photography, I tend to want to work quickly; minimizing the time that I am an "inconvenience" to the people that I'm sent to photograph. This is my nature; I'm really quite shy, quick to apologize and quick to say "excuse me."

I'm trying to change that.

Lately, I've been working on building a new attitude. One where I realize how important it is that I witness the moment and make pictures. This new attitude includes the realization that the more time I spend with people, the more depth my pictures will have.

By the way, that's the very talented Nicole Fruge making pictures at the funeral of the Rev. Claude Black, a great civil rights leader in San Antonio, Texas.

Concordia Cemetery, El Paso, Texas, 1986

My brother, grandmother and aunt were laid to rest here. ©Billy Calzada

About the National Press Photographers Association

News photographers, staff and freelance, should continue their memberships in NPPA, even in these difficult days of economic downsizing and layoffs.

News staff photographers are losing their jobs, and those that remain employed by news organizations are finding that their employers are often not willing to pay membership dues anymore.

But membership in NPPA has never been more important.

Why? Because the battle for our rights to gather visual information as news photographers continues.

News photographers continue to be harassed and denied access. News photographers continue to be arrested for lawfully doing our jobs. The NPPA is a leader in the fight to preserve our First Amendment rights of freedom of the press and freedom of expression.

For example, the NPPA recently worked diligently to cause Amtrak to change its policy, whether official or not, of harassing photographers making pictures in places of public access.

NPPA officials met this week with representatives in Washington to discuss "orphan works" legislation, which, if passed, many believe, would threaten to some degree the web copyrights of photographers. They also discussed the recently lifted ban on photography of flag-draped caskets of our war dead arriving at Dover Air Force Base.

Some years ago, the city of Miami considered passing a city ordinance that would have made it illegal for anyone, other than law enforcement personnel, to wear protective gear in a riot situation. NPPA helped fight this battle.

Many former staff photographers that have lost their jobs at newspapers are going into the freelance market. The NPPA provides several resources to freelance photographers, including the "Cost of Doing Business Calculator," the "Find A Photographer" listing, and the NPPA "Independent Photographer's Toolkit."

Speaking at Southwestern Photojournalism Conference

I was a speaker at the Southwestern Photojournalism Conference in Ft. Worth last weekend. I am not a pro at speaking by any means, but I felt strongly about messages that I wanted to convey.

In these difficult days of newspaper downsizing, I wanted to encourage people blessed with the "gift" of photography to find ways to make pictures and find ways to get them out. Photos made by the passionate ones need to be seen. The stories that these photos convey are important and must be seen.

I believe that God puts love in your heart, and if one of the loves in your heart is for telling stories visually, then I hope and pray that you will tell those stories.

As North Carolina State basketball coach Jim Valvano once said even as he was dying of cancer, "Never give up, never, ever give up."

Apache Child

Medal of Honor

John Finn, 99, received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Japanese surprise attack on U.S; military facilities at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941. He was born in 1909 and enlisted in the Navy in 1926. During the attack, he manned a machine gun and was wounded five times by Japanese strafing. I made his picture at the The National Pearl Harbor Survivors Reunion 2008 in Fredericksburg, Texas.

He made me laugh many times over; telling me about his days as a photographer in Navy.

Light in the Night

A tepee of the American Indians of Texas at San Juan Capistrano Mission in San Antonio, Texas, on Nov. 28, 2008.

To my first-grade teacher

Dear Ms. Nuñez,

You were my first-grade teacher at Thomas Manor Elementary School, and I was afraid of you. You were firm with your students, and I thought you didn't like me.

I still remember how surprised I was when, during open-house for parents to visit with teachers, I heard you tell my parents that I was a very good student. It meant much to me back then in 1968. Up until that moment, I really thought you didn't like me at all.

I have a very clear memory of how you opened my brain to what now seems like such a simple idea. You were teaching us students to add and subtract, but I simply could not grasp the concept. You used many examples and tried to make it as easy as possible. But it was not until you said that if you had three apples and ate two of them, leaving only one for me, did I understand.

To this day, I remember the incredible feeling that we now verbalize as, "Oh, I get it!"

It's funny, but I remember that thrill not in my brain, but in my entire body, the momentary weightlessness, the tickle in my tummy that I felt the moment I finally understood.

Your grateful and humble student,
Billy

A critical moment revisited

I once stopped to grab a quick feature photo in a park beneath a "spaghetti bowl" in a big city. A child played in the grass, I forget what exactly it was about her that caught my visual attention, but I shot a photo. I approached her to get caption information. As we spoke, I heard a whoosh sound, followed by what seemed like a short but intense earthquake.

I looked over to see a sandbag, probably weighing 40 lbs., on the grass just two feet away from us. The girl and I both looked at each other, wide-eyed and mouths agape.

Her picture ran in the newspaper the next day with my byline; and I hope that she is having a happy life today, as I am.

A Veterans Day tear

Army Capt. Bridget Washington wipes a tear during Veterans Day ceremony. I was moved, simply watching her for several minutes. What has she seen? Where has she been? How long was she far from her loved ones?

Buffalo soldiers

Buffalo soldier re-enactors at San Antonio National Cemetery on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2008.

Joy

Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008. Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008. Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008. Remember the date. It's going to be in the history books. As president-elect Obama spoke on the big-screen television, I wanted to watch. But I gave him my back; because the story was being told through these faces before me. I was witnessing the story through my camera lens. I really don't remember shooting these pictures; moments simply unfolded before me and I acted - reacted.

Obama joy

The moment they see John McCain concede the election.

Obama joy

She really believed.

The last day of absentee voting in Texas coincided with Halloween....

Prayer for the departed

Alstyn Hartman at prayer service for family members that died in San Antonio flooding 10 years ago. The family gave prayers of thanks; yes, thanks, for 10 years of sustaining grace to live through the tragedy. I am humbled. Thankfulness is an under-rated emotion.

Carver Center fundraiser

On a sweet September evening, listenting to the great Mavis Staples.

A girl in the Orsay

A girl's moment.

Orsay, Paris

A vacation picture? Perhaps, but the lifeless stone forms seemed full of life at this moment.

Rue Monge, Paris

Ready to hoof it

San Antonio Area Miniature Horse Club Family Fiesta costume contest, Rose Palace, July 12, 2008.

There once was a trashy little robot with a cockroach for a friend....

Abuelito con su nieto

Artist Armando Hinojosa and his grandson, Nicolas Garcia; near Laredo, Texas

I seek

I seek; I'm sought.

The faster I run, the quicker I'm caught.

Perhaps I want to be taken prisoner
Put in a space where there is need;
A need for me.


I wreak, I'm wrought.

Eager to please, I was bruised when I fought.

Perhaps I am healed
Put in a place where my experiences;
are put to use.
- BC, 2008 June 21

Fight

The chihuahua sat.

The woman stood.

Driven by instinct, the dimunitive dog wagged its tail; indeed it's entire rear half. A kibble was tossed. A fight ensued. The woman won.

Sarah Squirrel

Sarah Squirrel buried her nut in my neighbors yard. I saw her do it. And she saw me see her do it. She scurried away, making a mental note in her gerbil head. X doesn't exactly mark the spot, but in the dream map she concocted, it does.

Each One of Us

Home at last

Removing my shoes, undoing my belt; an intimately tasty and private moment of the day. How does one shut off the mind?

Watch your columns

I dreamed that A and I went on a long trip. Upon our return, the columns that hold up our back porch had been stolen. I found that the former owner of my house was claiming to retain partial ownership, and had laid claim to the columns. I sought out my friend, Mark, and while I distracted the column thief, Mark quickly yet silently sawed the columns off of her porch and carted them back to my home.

In my head

The day is done, I've not cried, but I have laughed.

I've worried; a friend's dad is dying; my own Dad is elderly and suffers from Parkinson's.

I am weary, and I wonder what worth I assigned to this dying day. I fear that I shortchanged it.