The 2011 POY - Pictures of the Year. *(full version).

"The 50..." OK, so another year in the business is in the books. Fondly looking back at 2011, it wasn't such a bad year for making images, both for work and on my own self-generated & self-financed assignments. *(see: working vacations...) Bermuda. Kenya. My fifth Army graduation where the low-angle remote camera finally delivered the image I'd been chasing in my head for five years and three previous attempts, way too many games and / or general news events with multiple cameras & a super telephoto on a stick, as well as hauling around more full strobe sets to light HS & college gyms and medium sized arenas than I care to remember, installing a remote camera in the ceiling of an arena in White Plains in less than 15 minutes for a HS playoff basketball game, numerous video clips with the Canon 5D-MKII (which you won't see here yet, unfortunately), a few decent feature images and portraits. And the news; major snowstorm and Hurricane Irene followup coverage, the new governor doing his thing at Marist College, an FBI led pre-dawn raid (with temperatures in single digits) of suspected gang-bangers wanted for unsolved murders, a 23-year old shooter and his partner sentenced to life in prison w/o parole and the funeral for a Poughkeepsie police officer who was gunned down on the job. Here's how the best of my take on 2011 kind of shakes out. Again thanks for looking. "See you in the paper..." ~cg.

3 - Alarm Fire. Newburgh, NY 6•Jan•12

There really isn't any additional commentary I need to add in helping to explain these images from a stubborn fire early this morning that destroyed multiple business in a small shopping plaza not far from home... ~cg.

Ron Palmer reacts at the scene of a three-alarm fire at Algonquin Plaza, 190 South Plank Road in the Town of Newburgh, NY on Friday morning, January 6, 2012. His business, Monell's Camera Shop was severely damaged by the fire. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record

Ron Palmer (right) is comforted by his father Ray Tadry (left) at the scene of a three-alarm fire at Algonquin Plaza, 190 South Plank Road in the Town of Newburgh, NY on Friday, January 6, 2012. Palmer's business, Monell's Camera Shop was severely damaged by the fire. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record

Kodak Teeters on the Brink of Bankruptcy. 5•Jan.•12

I made this image of the rice farmer near Pohang, South Korea back in the mid-1980's on Kodachrome Professional 64 with an old Nikon FM2 or similar body with a fast Nikon telephoto zoom. (I was an active duty US Marine, training in the field at the time. You know, "Back in the day...") The image was previously posted HERE on the blog when Eastman Kodak discontinued Kodachrome film in 2009. I have re-posted that original piece below after the WSJ article and link. "Wow, Just Wow..." ~cg.

Copy image of a rice farmer in Pohang, South Korea, photographed in 1985 by photographer Chet Gordon of New York on 35mm Kodachrome transparency film. The Eastman Kodak Company announced on Monday June 22, 2009 that it will discontinue production of it's popular slide film favored by professional still photographers and the motion picture industry. The company said declining customer demand and the proliferation of digital photography brought an end to its oldest and most iconic film which was available for the last 74 years. © Chet Gordon / THE IMAGE WORKS

This from today's Wall Street Journal:

Eastman Kodak Co. is preparing to seek bankruptcy protection in the coming weeks, people familiar with the matter said, a move that would cap a stunning comedown for a company that once ranked among America's corporate titans.The 131-year-old company is still making last-ditch efforts to sell off some of its patent portfolio and could avoid Chapter 11 if it succeeds, one of the people said. But the company has started making preparations for a filing in case those efforts fail, including talking to banks about some $1 billion in financing to keep it afloat during bankruptcy proceedings, the people said.

A Kodak spokesman said the company "does not comment on market rumor or speculation." A filing could come as soon as this month or early February, one of the people familiar with the matter said. Kodak would continue to pay its bills and operate normally while under bankruptcy protection, the people said. But the company's focus would then be the sale of some 1,100 patents through a court-supervised auction, the people said.

That Kodak is even contemplating a bankruptcy filing represents a final reversal of fortune for a company that once dominated its industry, drawing engineering talent from around the country to its Rochester, N.Y., headquarters and plowing money into research that produced thousands of breakthroughs in imaging and other technologies.

The company, for instance, invented the digital camera—in 1975—but never managed to capitalize on the new technology. Should it seek bankruptcy protection, Kodak would follow other well-known companies that have failed to adapt to rapidly changing business models. They included Polaroid Corp., which filed for bankruptcy protection a second time in December 2008; Borders Group Inc., which liquidated itself last year; and Blockbuster Inc., which filed for bankruptcy protection in 2010 and was later bought by Dish Network Corp. A bankruptcy filing would kick off what is expected to be a busier year in restructuring circles, as economic growth continues to drag and fears about European sovereign debt woes threaten to make credit markets less inviting for companies that need to refinance their debts.

Kodak's founder, Mr. Eastman, took his life at the age of 77 in what is now a museum celebrating the founder and Kodak's impact on photography. His suicide note read: "To my friends, my work is done. Why wait?"

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203471004577140841495542810.html?mod=WSJ_article_comments#articleTabs%3Darticle

"Goodbye, Old friend..." (June 2009)

Ever since I can remember, I've wanted to take pictures. Like the pros. Used to cut out images from the major magazines, and literally tape them to my bedroom wall as a teenager growing up on the NJ Shore. I'd also collect these clippings in binders and committed to memory the name photographers of the day. When I began seriously shooting slide film back in the early 80's, Kodachrome was an automatic requirement, just like the big boys. I've run a lot of transparency films through my Nikons and Leica through the years, and nothing matched the consistency, tonal range, contrast and of course flesh tones that Kodachrome film stock provided. For me, Kodachrome Professional 64 (PKR-64) was the standard when I traveled internationally. With Kodak's announcement yesterday that they're discontinuing the film, it surely marks the end of an era for those of us that know.
Yea, like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, "I've always wanted to "take" pictures. Kodachrome "made" me a photographer... -cg.

Read about it here and here.


10:45PM: More on my Kodachrome images:


After quickly producing the images of my mounted & unmounted archived Kodachrome slides earlier this morning, I was quite pleased to see that my editorial stock agency, THE IMAGE WORKS posted the files within the hour on their main search page. Nice work, guys. Now let's hope for a few "bites" from their clients on any of these images. -cg.

"Run - Bags, Location Lighting, & Making the Portraits I Really Like..." Late December 2011

Sometimes the pictures are already in your head. You just have to show up. With the appropriate amount of gear and occasionally your "A-Game..." These few images made in the last week or so were just simply fun to create with really pleasant subjects in front of the camera.

(3) - Newly elected Newburgh mayor Judy Kennedy photographed during an interview in her Newburgh, NY home on Thursday, December 29, 2011. Kennedy will take office on January 1, 2012. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record

(3) - Sort of an unconventional family portrait gig with my nephew, his wife & teenage son in the living room of their contemporary home on the NJ Shore last weekend. Available light at high ISO (1600) to hold the background exposure and then I added a just a kiss of strobe powered down to 1/16th. power, and bounced it off the ceiling with a remote sensor cord. A short telephoto is the ideal portrait lens at semi-wide apertures (f/3.2 ~ f/4.5), which then creates exactly the look I wanted. Soft background. Nice light. I remember thinking that I wanted these portraits to be about the subjects and not necessarily about the house, living room surroundings, etc. The trio image of them together (top) was an afterthought. A loft room upstairs overlooking their living room with slanted ceiling (for again bouncing the strobe) helped that image work out. The images of the new mayor (top 3) were shot a little tighter today with the 28mm ~ 70mm, and 70mm ~ 200mm zooms, also at wide apertures, but the lone strobe head was pointed into a shoot-thru umbrella, with longer exposures to hold the background, which allowed the window light in the kitchen behind her to sort of bleed through and fall out of focus... ~cg

"The Card..." 24•Dec.•11

This year's version is in the mail. You may already be a recipient. "Happy Holidays!" ~cg.

MOMBASA, KENYA. A sidewalk Santa spotted along Moi Avenue in Mombasa, Kenya on Thursday, December 8, 2011. © www.chetgordon.com/blog

A small tradition for me continues. Here are links to previous year's efforts:

(2010):

This year's card is en route to your doorstep, mailbox, desk, mail room or desktop. Special thanks to my very good friend and his family for having just "the right tree" on their property in Pottstown, PA two weeks ago. Wishing you all a very healthy, safe and prosperous 2011. HAPPY HOLIDAYS! ~cg.

(Inside message): "Fresh Cut." Sunday, December 12, 2010. 4:07PM

(Rear of card): Marc, Leonie, and Joel Brooks return to their house after cutting a Christmas tree for a customer on their family run tree farm in Pottstown, PA on Sunday, December 12, 2010.

(2009):

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR...!

It took a while this year. Yea, they're probably arriving late to your doorstep, mail slot, or post office box. But hey, can't break this longtime tradition of handmade, limited edition, 4"x5" holiday cards right...? Folks even called wondering where this year's version was.

What has become an annual rite of creative winter stresses coupled with maddening computer design & home printing time between two aging printers - has grown into a nice following of my personalized holiday cards. That all means a lot. I guess in some off-kilter way, it all serves as a brief therapeutic getaway from the sometimes ominous work schedule, to again try and refine this project into something meaningful for friends, family, clients and colleagues. I trust if you made the "short - list" you'll be happy with this year's effort... -cg.

(2008):

For the past 12 years or so, I've been producing my own "Holiday series" cards. What initially started out as a few late nights slumped over developing trays in the darkroom at The Journal News in White Plains, NY in the mid-90's. (Boy that all seems like eons ago...) has progressed into a full-blown work schedule, and in past years, a mailing list of nearly 100 recipients. One year I think I put 105 cards in the mail.

Production of the cards has progressed along with my PhotoShop and Microsoft Word skills, as well as the self-assigning the work to actually photograph an image(s) intended for the card production. A lot of those early images were intentionally made on the streets of New York City, particularly found while roaming around the East Village neighborhood in lower Manhattan. Seemed as though I was always able to find compelling imagery down there. I will have to put together some sort of collage of those earlier images, as they've become a collector's item for quite a few friends and colleagues. As a photojournalist, there probably isn't any greater honor than to have a viewer make the effort to keep my work. -cg.

"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night..."

(2007):
This year's card was no easy task. Kept looking for an image or moment I've had in mind for a few years and couldn't find it yet again, so ventured quickly into NYC last weekend by train to roam one of my favorite neighborhoods to shoot something and produce the card this past week. I've included the other two candidtes shot on the same evening in lower Manhattan that were seriously considered. Had printer problems with both of my Epson printers for a few nights, so only 50 or so cards went out this year. Check your mailbox, as you may already be a winner...

*(One plus from the week was that I bought a small rotary paper cutter, so will force myself to start producing "portfolio image" note cards sometime soon. this is a project I've always wanted to initiate, so we'll see.)

My 2011 POY. (Pictures of the Year.)

Yep. It's that time of the year again. The task of combing through one's archive for the year's best images and posting them somewhere out here in cyber-land for viewers to possibly notice, and hopefully appreciate. These are my six favorites that were made for work during the year. (We've been asked to submit only six for publication...) Remote cameras & arena strobes. Lenses ranging from a 10.5mm fisheye to a super telephoto ~ 300mm w/ a 1.4 extender for HS baseball and other sports. Going early and staying late. Some were fun. Some were difficult. A few were award winners. A couple made it into the updated portfolio slideshow in the right hand column here on the blog. All were challenging at different degrees for me, and are the culmination of the physical work, patience, attention to detail as well as the subject, and represent a mastery of the equipment that I try to employ in creating these types of images. *(Dripping sweat above the arena floor while hanging the ceiling remote camera for the overhead basketball image comes to mind...). The paper is going to highlight our staff photographer's best images on the website with each of us doing an audio voiceover, so I'll be sure to include those links here as well. I'll produce a more in depth slideshow of my personal and work favorites here on the blog in the next week or two. It was a good year for making images. Thanks again for looking. Stay tuned... ~cg.

Newly commissioned 2nd. Lieutenants toss their covers skyward in the traditional "hat toss" during Army's Graduation and Commissioning ceremony in Michie Stadium at the United States Military Academy in West Point, NY on Saturday, May 22, 2011. Navy Admiral Michael Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff delivered the commencement address as 1,031 cadets received their diplomas and were commissioned as 2nd. Lieutenants in the U.S. Army. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record *(Link to original post by clicking HERE).

A man shovels the sidewalk in front of his Liberty Street home in Newburgh, NY on Wednesday January 12, 2011. The third major snowstorm of the winter has blanketed the East Coast from Georgia to New England. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record

Newburgh Free Academy players (L-R, in blue) Parish Canty (#15), Antonio Harper (#2) and Dominique Jacobs (#11) reach for a rebound with Mount Vernon defenders Givvion Jones (#22) and Jabarie Hinds (#55) during their Class AA Regional Semi-Finals game at the Westchester County Center in White Plains, NY on Tuesday, March 8, 2011. Mount Vernon defeated NFA 72 - 49. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record *(Link to original post by clicking HERE).

Trevor "Little T" Mattis is led from Judge Don Willams' courtroom after an expletive laiden outburst in Ulster County Courthouse in Kingston, NY on Friday, May 6, 2011. Judge Williams sentenced both Mattis and co-defendent Gary Griffin to life sentences without parole in the shooting death of Charles "C.J." King Jr. in midtown Kingston last year. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record *(Link to original post by clicking HERE).

Livingston Manor shortstop Ken Fisk (#14) dives but can't make the play on a ball hit by Tim Steffens (#9) of Smithtown Christian during the fourth inning of their New York State Class D regional final at Pine Bush High School in Pine Bush, NY on Tuesday, June 7, 2011. Livingston Manor defeated Smithtown Christian 5 -3. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record *(Link to original post by clicking HERE).

A boy uses a smartphone to photograph exposed flames burning through the rear of a 3 - story house during a three-alarm fire at 488 Liberty Street in Newburgh, NY on Sunday, October 23, 2011. Nearly a dozen people were left homeless after the fire erupted in the multi-family home when a resident was cooking in a second-floor apartment in the rear of the building. All the occupants got out safely and there were no injuries. CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record

"Recapping the Kenya trip..." 18•Dec.•11

Well, I've been home a full week now and I honestly think it took that long to get over another case of serious jet lag. Flying back from East Africa is no joke, and adding another full day to the front end of last weekend's travel itinerary made it all even more difficult. The airline (Turkish Airlines) offers transiting passengers a hotel room if their layovers in Istanbul were more than 12 hours, so it was great to finally put my head down in a nice, comfortable room near Ataturk Airport on Sunday morning. You see flights originating in the East usually depart past midnight, and considering I'd left the coast Friday evening on an overnight bus (below left) back to the capital, Nairobi - which entailed another 8+ hour ride, I was totally beat. (Yea, those are mechanics fixing a flat on my bus at 3AM at the halfway point rest stop!) By the time we'd arrived back in Nairobi on Saturday morning, did some laundry by hand, had a decent lunch and started packing, it was nearly time to head to the airport, for the first of two long haul flights. Not to mention arriving back home into JFK on Monday evening and then right back to work the following evening. It must've taken 4 or 5 days for my body to adjust to the time differences and finally get into a regular sleep routine. Although I'd initially set out to try and get up into the Somali refugee camps in northeast Kenya, as well as search out a few other stories, logistics and scheduling just didn't allow for all I'd hope to accomplish. Tack onto those issues, the price of fuel, finding reliable drivers and secondary fixers, and before I knew it, I was into my second week of the trip. The only thing left to do for my few remaining days in country was to head down to the coast and explore familiar beach towns like Mombasa (above), Malindi, and a very peaceful beachfront area at Watamu Beach in Gede (right) on my last official day in Kenya last Friday. Swimming in the calming, warm waters of the Indian Ocean on that day really took a lot of the stresses away. It was all nearly perfect for those few moments on the white sands of East Africa...

ISTANBUL, TURKEY. Turkish Airlines aircraft are serviced by ground personnel at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Turkey on Monday, December 12, 2011. © me.

By the time I arrived in Istanbul and got over the intense travel schedule I'd imposed on myself for this personal shooting assignment (can this 50+ year old body continue to function like this I silently wondered?), I was completely exhausted and had to abandon any thoughts of touring the city for the afternoon. Fortunately the airline offered it's transiting passengers with extended layovers a hotel room near the airport, so that was a blessing in itself. I've spent more than my share of overnights in airports. The weather was grey and overcast, so any earlier ideas I'd had on making stock images in the Old Town neighborhood of the city faded really fast. In fact, my room was right in the glide path on final approach into Ataturk Airport, so I did manage to make a few generic aircraft images (left), and there were a few Bedouin women (right) roaming along a running stream within sight of my modest room as well. Pop on the 300mm and the 1.4X tele-extender and I was back in business for the afternoon, well at least until I collapsed for the night...

"Mombasa, Malindi and Gede..." Day #2. 9•Dec.•11

Got in a bit more beach time yesterday, including a lengthy drive with friends up the coast to Malindi, and also managed a wonderful swim at Watamu Beach, in Gede (bottom 3 images). Temperatures had to be pushing right near or above 100ºF as we ventured north. Just putting a few images up here quickly, as we just arrived back in Nairobi this morning via the dreaded all - night, 8+ hour bus ride from Mombasa. It wasn't at all as tiring as I thought it would be though. Packing up in a bit for early AM departure tonight, and on to Istanbul, Turkey for a day's layover. stay tuned... ~cg.

*"This is Africa..." Mombasa, Kenya. (Day #1) 8•Dec•11

As if my fixer / assistant Vincent Opondo needed to remind me of it at lunch this afternoon on the beach here in Mombasa. One of my favorite places on the planet to make images, get some sun, swim, and just really relax all of my senses. It must be pushing the mid - high 90º's here, with oppressive humidity, so I have to pinch myself in remembering the calendar date. (Sorry, fellow New Yorkers...!) I won't get into the 8+ hour bus ride yesterday to get here from Nairobi though. At least not now. Nor am looking forward at all to the return journey tomorrow night that will get us back to the capital city around sunrise on Saturday morning. Stay tuned. "Cheers!" ~cg.