Commercial photography commission for Comcast Beltway

Eric Kayne February 20, 2020

I’m proud to present some imagery I created for Comcast Beltway’s public relations team, published today to announce the installation of a huge solar panel array on the roof of their tech building on Michigan Ave. in Washington, DC.

The project was a technical challenge. The only access to the roof was a very solid, albeit utilitarian ladder. My first concern was for the safety of myself, my crew and the subjects, some of whom I worried might lack the ability to climb up and down the ladder.

Up in the bucket truck. It seems much higher up when you’re inside!

Another concern was timing and the weather. Although we could have made great pictures in almost any condition, our hope was for sunny weather to emphasize the solar panels. Thankfully, we picked a day with full sun and decent temperatures. Also, there were no problems with people going up and down the ladder with the exception of one person who decided to take a bucket from a bucket truck for a ride down. Thankfully, the client is a cable company with plenty of bucket trucks lying around.

The bucket truck also came in handy for the last shot of the day, an aerial showing the entire building. Being up that high is always a thrill. We are also lucky for the easy access to bucket trucks since drones are mostly banned in the DC region.

Check out the results below!

Fifty from 50 - Images from US Highway 50, from California to Maryland, fourth in a series of posts

Eric Kayne April 30, 2019

Constructed in 1926, US 50 was part of the original United States highway system and extends from California to Maryland. Our recent move from Oakland, California to Silver Spring, Maryland near Washington, DC inspired me to travel on this historic byway and document my journey. All work was shot on a Mamiya 6, a film camera that creates negatives that are six centimeters square. This camera really forces me to shoot with intention. The film stock is mostly Ektar 100, for those who are curious.

Nativity tableaux, Linn, Missouri.

Santa horse, Louisburg, Kansas.

Kaskaskia river, Carlyle, Illinois.

Spring Hill Cemetery, Shoals, Indiana.

A murmuration of starlings near Odin, Illinois.

East Saint Louis, Illinois.

Swing set, Cottonwood Falls, Kansas.

Wheatland Generating Plant, Wheatland, Indiana.

Roof cow, Rowlesburg, West Virginia.

Grafton, West Virginia.

Nativity tableaux, Odin, Illinois.

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

Motel door, Pleasant Valley, West Virginia.

Tanner's Creek Generating Station, Lawrenceburg, Indiana.

Sunrise, Ladue, Missouri.

Fifty from 50 - Images from US Highway 50, from California to Maryland, third in a series of posts

Eric Kayne March 15, 2019

Cañon City, Colorado. These colorful cider bottles with the sun streaking through them caught my eye, but not just because of the color, but because they were very dusty. It boggled my mind that someone would put these bottles out for display to entice shoppers to stop inside their store wouldn’t clean their product of dust I could see from a moving car passing by on the street. I stopped and grabbed a few shots of totally meaningless eye candy, and then noticed an old Chevy around the corner in the parking lot. I made a few shots when an older woman with a heavy Germanic accent aggressively confronted me to ask what I was doing. I told her I was taking a picture of the car and she replied that there had been a lot of vandalism lately. Mind you, this was in the middle of the day along a major artery of Cañon City, in a parking lot that was empty save for the Chevy. All in all, not a great first impression for Cañon City. I cut off her rant by apologizing for disturbing her and walked back to my car. It’s too bad because in hindsight, I would have loved to make her portrait and buy some cider.

Museum of Colorado Prisons, Cañon City, Colorado. The website compels visitors to “unlock the past and experience the colorful history of prison life!”

A giant snow plow rests at Monarch Pass in Colorado. The pass sits on the continental divide at an elevation of 11,312 feet above sea level. I had great weather during the road trip and going through the pass in the middle of winter was a breeze – no snow plow required! Seeing this bright orange snow plow reminded me of a funny story my wife told me about learning to drive a stick-shift as a teenager. My mother-in-law told her she’d need to know how just in case she ever needed to drive a Snow-Cat. It seems hilarious because my wife is from St. Louis. But I suppose that since “The Shining” was still relatively fresh in people’s minds in those days, we all probably should have learned how to drive a Snow-Cat.

A decommissioned tank with the words “Spear Chucker” on the turret sits in the Offerle, Kansas city park.

Grain mill, Halstead, Kansas, photographed after eating a Subway sandwich. I realize grain mills at dusk are visual low hanging fruit, but I couldn’t resist!

A white-tailed deer sprints away from tracks left over from the old Santa Fe Trail near Dodge City, Kansas. Opened by Spaniards at the end of the 18th century, the Santa Fe Trail brought migrants into the west in the 19th century from 1821 until 1880.

Two views of the 8-ball water tower in Tipton, Missouri. The tower was built by Fisher Manufacturing, which for a time was the biggest maker of billiards tables, to protect its new factory from fire. The plant closed in 1977 and was bought by Fasco Manufacturing, which painted over the tower with its logo. Fasco closed in 1989 and the town decided to repaint the tower with an 8-ball in 1999. The tower is sometimes recognized as the world’s largest 8-ball.

Two views of the capitol building in Jefferson City, Missouri. The building is undergoing renovations but it looked like Christo and Jeanne-Claude had been by and wrapped the building like they did the Reichstag.

Two views of an abandoned school in Bushong, Kansas, population 34. The town was named after St. Louis Browns catcher Albert J. "Doc" Bushong who played in the 1886 World Series, beating the Chicago White Stockings. Bushong was also the location of an Atlas missile base, abandoned in 1965. Unfortunately, I didn’t know about the missile base while I was in the town, despite it being only 10 minutes away. However, it’s a great reason to head back out on the road!

“Paulhenge,” located in Versailles, Indiana. The sun shines through the holes on solstices and equinoxes .

Stonehenge structure, Matfield Green, Kansas, population 47. According to Wikipedia, the village contains a small colony of artists and writers. I assume their Stonehenge structure is an art project and gathering place.

Fifty from 50 - Images from US Highway 50, from California to Maryland, first in a series of posts

Eric Kayne February 21, 2019

Constructed in 1926, US 50 was part of the original United States highway system and extends from California to Maryland. Our recent move from Oakland, California to Silver Spring, Maryland inspired me to travel on this historic byway and document my journey. This image was made in western Kansas, where the US 50 runs almost parallel to the old Santa Fe Trail, a critical transportation route in the 19th century.

A demilitarized tank sits at the Dixie Valley Naval Training Area. Dixie Valley was a small ranching community outside of Fallon, Nevada that was acquired by the US Navy for electronic warfare simulation in 1995. While most of the area is publicly accessible, a sign near the entrance states “The land beyond this sign is used by NAS Fallon for military training. Low flying aircraft, military vehicles and personnel may be using flares, smoke/simulator grenades, and blank fire ordinance on this area at any time.” Needless to say, I wasn’t attacked while I was there. The area was quiet and vast. While researching the area, where other demilitarized vehicles and radar stations are spread across the valley, it was suggested that Dixie Valley was used to mock an invasion by a foreign power on American soil. Also, the Navy’s “TOPGUN” program (Naval Fighter Weapons Program), moved from Miramar, California to the area a year after Dixie Valley was acquired. If anyone has an idea of what kind of tank this is, please let me know in the comments!

It’s hard to describe the isolation of Dixie Valley, a former ranching community in the Nevada desert now used for combat simulation by the US Navy. So, imagine my surprise when I met this cowboy as I was going down the last road I told myself I’d explore in the valley before moving on down US 50. I stopped and we chatted for a spell and he told me I was the first person he’d spoken with in weeks. Apparently, the valley is not just for combat simulation, but is also interspersed with ranchland. He was preparing to ride out into the desert to drive cattle to another pasture, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was completely jealous. He’s originally from Cleveland, Ohio but made his way to the desert after a series of moves that became more and more rural as time went on.

Street signs mark a former neighborhood in Dixie Valley, Nevada. The area was purchased by the US Navy in 1995 to use for combat simulation by fighter and electronic warfare pilots. There’s a part of me that is fascinated by neighborhoods that revert back to nature ever since portions of my childhood neighborhood were allowed to return to nature following a 100-year flood.

A demilitarized troop carrier, used as target practice inside the Dixie Valley Naval Training Area in the Nevada desert. The area was purchased by the US Navy in 1995 to use for combat simulation by fighter and electronic warfare pilots. The area is littered with decommissioned tanks, radar stations, troop vehicles and other abandoned structures. While the area is publicly accessible, there is still a warning sign at the entrance to the valley stating that the area is still actively used for training purposes.

Buses traveling back from the sierras to a school district near San Jose.

Cattle watering troughs near Dixie Valley, Nevada.

A Project Shoal Nuclear Test Site monitoring well in the Nevada desert. The underground nuclear test took place October 26, 1963 to compare seismic activity between a natural earthquake and a nuclear blast. The 12-kiloton device was detonated at 1,211 feet underground.

Graffiti covers a metal wall inside a target structure at the Dixie Valey Naval Training Area. The valley was acquired from local ranchers by the US Navy for electronic warfare simulation in 1995. The water table is very high in the area and many ranches in fact were beginning to experience sinkholes and subsidence.

Target structure at the Dixie Valey Naval Training Area. The valley was acquired from local ranchers by the US Navy for electronic warfare simulation in 1995. The water table is very high in the area and many ranches in fact were beginning to experience sinkholes and subsidence.

A wall of polaroids at La Fiesta restaurant in Ely, Nevada made on a dinner break on a cross country trip from California to Maryland on US Highway 50.

The Light Is Fantastic

Eric Kayne February 14, 2018

Photography: Portraits of a stage artist, student and tech wiz

I love working as a photographer in the San Francisco Bay Area. The light is fantastic, there are numerous locations offering great architecture or interior design, and because of the culture’s embrace of creativity and innovation, many of the subjects are game to play and experiment during photo shoots. To show you what I mean, I’ve selected just three images from some recent assignments.

Theater artist Taylor Mac won a MacArthur “Genius Grant” in 2017. Mac writes, directs, acts, sings, and performs experimental works that work as theatre and social commentary. I had about 15 minutes to photograph Mac for the MacArthur Foundation. Be… — Theater artist Taylor Mac won a MacArthur “Genius Grant” in 2017. Mac writes, directs, acts, sings, and performs experimental works that work as theatre and social commentary. I had about 15 minutes to photograph Mac for the MacArthur Foundation. Between performances of the groundbreaking “A 24-Decade History of Popular Music,” Mac was staying at the Hotel G in downtown San Francisco, built in 1909. The hotel room abutted a stairway; I peeked inside, saw the color of the walls and the window light, and immediately knew this was the place to make a picture. I had Mac play the ukulele, which was slightly difficult due to a hurt finger from stumbling in high heels during last night’s performance. Nonetheless, Mac was able to strum two or three chords, humming a quiet melody as I made pictures.
Photographed for the MacArthur Foundation.

Aaron Chow, an economics freshman at UC Berkeley, decided to research and investigate a real estate investment trust that a friend had invested in, only to discover that the trust had failed to file all kinds of SEC paperwork. Oops! Good for him, an… — Aaron Chow, an economics freshman at UC Berkeley, decided to research and investigate a real estate investment trust that a friend had invested in, only to discover that the trust had failed to file all kinds of SEC paperwork. Oops! Good for him, and probably bad for shady investment firms, once this young man graduates and starts his career. Chow suggested we shoot at the Asian Studies library because it has "cool architecture." By the Japanese periodicals, I custom white-balanced the fluorescent light by his head, which pushed the huge skylight in the background into a deep blue. I love it when I can employ optical physics instead of a dolly full of lighting equipment to make a compelling portrait!
Photographed for The Wall Street Journal.

David Wallerstein, the “Chief Exploration Officer” for Tencent, works in a converted church in Palo Alto. We made a number of moody pictures by the stained glass windows, and thought we had it in the bag. As we were walking back to the front door, w… — David Wallerstein, the “Chief Exploration Officer” for Tencent, works in a converted church in Palo Alto. We made a number of moody pictures by the stained glass windows, and thought we had it in the bag. As we were walking back to the front door, we passed through the kitchen area where I saw the yellow-green wall with symmetrical clocks. At this point, we were warmed up and talking. David was using his phone to play some of his band’s heavy metal songs for me, and I commandeered his public relations assistant to hold a strobe. As you can see, David rocks!
Photographed for The Wall Street Journal.

On Commission: Non-profit photography for Plant It Forward Farms

Eric Kayne August 23, 2017

A recent commission to create fresh imagery for a Houston-based non-profit organization allowed me to see first-hand how refugees are being helped to establish themselves in their new country. Plant It Forward serves mainly Congolese refugees by allowing them to farm unused land in urban areas while letting participants keep all their profit. Farmers sell their fresh veggies at local farmers markets as well as farm-to-table based restaurants.

The images were used to build a new website, create print collateral and for social media publication.

From the archives: Bull Riding School Student Portraits

Eric Kayne June 26, 2017

I recently took time to reorganize some of my negative archives when I came across some portraits I took at a bull riding school in 2014. I remember my goal was to make a portrait of the students immediately following their first-ever ride on a bull. The students, to my surprise and initial disappointment, looked nonplussed. I wanted to see a modicum of vulnerability in their faces, but instead only saw pictures of teenagers in cowboy clothing. I scrapped the idea and moved on.

A second look this month, at least three years later, revealed there is an underlying tension in the images, for me at least. Whom of us as adolescents couldn't wait to grow up to be the archetype we most admired? In some of these images, I see some who easily slide into the role, and others have a long trail ahead of them.

In case you're interested, the images were shot with a Hasselblad 553ex and Tri-X film. Let me know what you think!

Cheers,

Eric

From the archive: Gothic Beauty Pageant

Eric Kayne October 28, 2016

In time for Halloween, a post from the archive:

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and for some people, that includes leather, studs and a whole bunch of creativity. I live nearby Numbers nightclub in Houston, which hosts an annual Gothic Beauty Pageant. I decided to set up a photo booth to photograph some of the contestants. Tom Phuckery, below, won first place in the men's competition.

Pilot Matt Standridge will compete in the Cybathlon using an exoskeleton from the University of Houston's Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems Laboratory designed to help people with paraplegia to walk.

On Assignment: Exoskeleton-Assisted Cybathlon Pilot for the journal Nature

Eric Kayne August 17, 2016

I had the opportunity to shoot stills and video last month for the science journal Nature at the University of Houston's Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Laboratory for Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems. There, researchers are working on a bionic exoskeleton that will allow pilot Matt Standridge, a paraplegic, to compete in the Cybathon. The technology they're developing will hopefully allow many others who have lost the ability to walk to do so again.

The assignment included portraiture, stills from the lab, as well as video interviews and collecting b-roll. The video was edited by Greg Kendall-Ball, the photo editor at the publication.

On Assignment: Cover shoot for The Chronicle of Philanthropy

Eric Kayne August 8, 2016

Amy Lampi, a development director at the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas, is using analytics to help boost fundraising for the organization. The Chronicle of Philanthropy asked if I could shoot the cover photo for the feature on Lampi, and had a great idea that I was excited to be a part of.

The publication wanted to see Lampi seated in the theatre, with individual, random theatre seats lit up around her to symbolize potential new donors. A great idea, but it was now up to me to carry it out. My initial solution was to use grids on strobe heads planted on stage and pointed toward individual seats. I got a wakeup call, however, when I noticed that the light spread, even though I was using 10 degree grids, became too wide once the light made it to the individual theatre seats. To solve this problem, I decided to turn the power down on all the lights and position them right in front of the seats I wanted to illuminate. This created a new problem, that I could now see the top half of the lights in the frame. A quick search backstage and I came back with black(!) towels to put over the tops of the reflectors. With three lights balanced on seats and camera cases, and a reflector with a three-degree grid on the subject (positioned from the stage), we were good to go.

In post-production, I photoshopped out the tops of the lights by copying the top of the seat next to which ever one was illuminated. The editor later also wanted an extra seat illuminated. Again, a layer here, a quick mask there, and voila! - an extra illuminated seat.

August 2016 cover of The Chronicle of Philanthropy

On Assignment: Link Ermis for AARP

Eric Kayne July 13, 2016

AARP, one of my newest clients, sent me to Huntsville a couple of months ago to photograph Link Ermis, a military veteran whose social security benefits have been turned upside down. Ermis is "one of 1.5 million public employees nationwide, including teachers, firefighters and police, who face a big reduction in benefits because they worked jobs in which they and their employers did not pay into Social Security."

The editor asked for live photos as well as some portraits. Things were going to be tight. Ermis drove a school bus to school and had less than 10 minutes to sit for a portrait before he had to begin his first period history class. I used a small Quantum strobe for some outdoor portraits, then we hustled inside so he could start his class. He used my presence as a quick lesson to his class about what he was contending with personally with his social security benefits. I also got a refresher on the start of the First World War as he explained it to his students while I made pictures.

On Assignment: Laura Jo Degan for Newsweek

Eric Kayne May 20, 2016

Tuija Kalpala for Ekonomi magazine

Eric Kayne May 17, 2016

Back in March, I got a message on my Blink app notifying me that a photo editor in Finland needed someone to shoot a cover photo for Ekonomi, a Finnish publication for economists. I had the pleasure of photographing Tuija Kalpala at Neste US, a company that produces bio-diesel. A pretty sweet gig, and all just for having an app on my phone.

On Assignment: Travis Arnold for MD Anderson Cancer Center's Conquest Magazine

Eric Kayne May 17, 2016

I'm proud to have another great-looking tear sheet from an assignment I completed for MD Anderson Cancer Center's Conquest Magazine. Travis Arnold, a 17-year old from Spring, Texas, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia - a fast-growing cancer of the white blood cells. With the help of the doctors at MD Anderson Childrens Cancer Hospital, a half-match bone marrow transplant was performed. Travis recovered and is now a top-rated golfer on Klein High School's Bearkat golf team.

Page 28 and 29, Spring 2016 issue of Conquest magazine

JLabs at the Texas Medical Center for Houstonia Magazine

Eric Kayne April 21, 2016

In a former Nabisco cookie factory near the Texas Medical Center stands a futuristically decorated science and technology incubator called JLabs. The project, "part of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC, is a network of incubators providing emerging companies with many of the advantages of being in a big company without the capital investment. Residents have access to turnkey, state-of-the-art infrastructure, including singular bench tops, modular wet lab units and office space on a short-term basis." - http://www.tmcinnovation.org/jlabs/

An assignment from Houstonia magazine that began as a request for interiors for a quarter page turned into a full-page portrait and multi-page display after ad pages were added to the magazine near the end of production. Working with the talented and versatile art director Tanyia Johnson, we turned out some tear sheets I'm quite proud of.

Mark Stefanik for The Wall Street Journal

Eric Kayne April 16, 2015

Shooting a portrait about cybersecurity for The Wall Street Journal, I had spontaneous inspiration to purchase a chain and pad lock 15 minutes before the shoot and to have the subject stand behind a chain-wrapped computer monitor. Of course I also shot the portrait without the chain, which is what eventually ran in today's Wall Street Journal. Nonetheless, my computer monitor in bondage lives on here, at my blog. Enjoy.

Mark Stefanik of Advantage Benefit Solutions was hit by ransomware when his computer files were locked by a cybercriminal. Stefanik paid $400 ransom to unencrypt his data.

Sister Anna Nguyen for the Houston Chronicle

Eric Kayne January 18, 2015

I was pretty happy with a photo I made of Dominican nun Sister Anna Nguyen for the Houston Chronicle. It ran on this morning's Sunday front page.

Arcade Fire for Metro

Eric Kayne January 12, 2015

For two weeks in October 2013, I was living the dream as a photographer for the band Arcade Fire as they played a series of warm-up shows for their Reflektor tour in New York City, Miami and Los Angeles. During our time in Miami, we produced a portrait shoot at a Haitian restaurant called Tap Tap, which has lovely paintings inside and great natural light. The images below made it into print in Metro, a British newspaper based in London. The shoot was produced on 800 ASA Porta 35mm film using natural light.

Tom Bastian for Fortune Magazine

Eric Kayne November 11, 2013

A couple of months ago, I was fortunate to complete my first assignment for Fortune Magazine. The assignment was to photograph Tom Bastian, who manages the Invesco Equity and Income Fund.

I had great backend support from a photo editor at Fortune, Michele Taylor. We discussed options and even location snaps I made before the shoot. It was great knowing that at least the background environments were approved before I even began. We shot in what is probably the biggest boardroom I've ever seen but in the end, went with a couch on the periphery that had a nice, mirrored grid as a background, courtesy of the building next door.

Tom Bastian in the Invesco Houston office.

Digital tear sheet from Fortune Magazine.

Francisco Sanchez for Emergency Management magazine

Eric Kayne November 5, 2013

In the United States' fourth largest city, emergency management is crucial. Emergency Management magazine recently published a profile on Francisco Sanchez, the liaison for Harris County Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Having shot at the TranStar facility before, I already knew what the interior looked like and what to expect. Wanting to do something different, I suggested we go to the roof of the building. I saw a nice bank of clouds from an approaching cold front I knew would make a good foreboding background, and my gut was telling me the roof was likely filled with antennas, which it was. Having been photographed many times before, Francisco told me this was the first time anyone had suggested photographing on the roof. Once I knew I had a decent shot, I showed him the back of the camera and he was as pleased as I was.