Houston Photobloggers

Skate Photography

 

In June Houston opened the brand new Lee and Joe Jamail skatepark in the shadow of downtown Houston.  It has been a huge hit ever since with skaters of all ages.  The park is 30,000 square feet and has areas for beginners all the way to pros to work on their skills.

The park and the skaters themselves are open to photographers visiting with their cameras.  It is definitely a subject like no other.  To get ready for your trip out to the park stop by Beyond Phototips and read 19 Radical Skateboard Photography Tips by Brian Auer.   The article includes some perspectives to think about when you are photographing skaters and examples to look at for each tip.  

You can also stop by the Skate Houston website for a ton more photos from the Houston skatepark.   

Photo of the Year

Congratulations to Eric Kayne, of the Houston Chronicle, who won top honors for Photo of the Year as awarded by the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association. There is a link to the photo here under the resources heading. At first glance it may not hit you strongly, but the longer you look at it, especially the reflection it definitely has an artistic appeal that is usually not found in straight forward photojournalism. Always happy to see Houston photographers in the news.

Ike Images

The return to regular posting took a little longer than I anticipated thanks to Hurricane Ike, but things should ramp up around here again soon. If you are interested in writing for Houston Photobloggers please feel free to send an email to houstonphotoblogs at gmail dot com.

Here is Ike through the eyes of some of the Houston Photobloggers.

Donald Harper: Ike-9
eyesaregood: Days After Ike
Is this Houston?: Hurricane Ike Cleans Up Houston
John Hark Photography: The Calm After the Storm
Mannedspace: Hurricane Ike II
Photine: We Dream Houston
Point: Your Spacetime or Mine?
That was my foot: windiest...birthday...ever
Uninhabited Images: Disease Vector
Wardy: My Back Yard

Skatepark

Houston is opening one of its newest attractions this weekend, the Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark.

The Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark is a state-of-the-art 30,000 square foot in-ground public facility, known to contain the largest cradle in the world. Houston’s new skateboarding facility will provide the first world-class, in-ground skatepark in our region..... The park will have areas for skaters of all levels, from the seasoned pro to the beginner – skaters can work on their kick flip, ollie, fakie big spin...or simply learn to stay balanced!

On Sunday the city will throw a grand opening party from 1-5 pm. There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony, artwork, live music and of course skating. The event is free to the public.

Once the festivities are over I am sure that this will be a fascinating place to photograph the personalities and sport of skateboarding. Leave a link for us in this post if you take some photos here!

Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark

Houston CityPass

Trying to think of something to entertain out of town guests or maybe trying to get out of the house yourself (maybe even with your camera!)? Something new is coming to Houston. CityPass.

CityPass is a ticket booklet containing an actual admission ticket to the top attractions in each city. With CityPass, you pay one substantially reduced price and avoid main entrance ticket lines at most attractions.

The Houston City Pass will include the Houston Museum of Natural Science, Space Center Houston, the Downtown Aquarium and the Houston Zoo as well as a choice between the Health Museum or George Ranch Historical Park AND a choice between The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston or the Children's Museum. That is a total of six admission tickets for the total price of $34 ($24 for children). Once you buy a pass you have 9 days to use all the tickets.

CityPass for Houston will go on sale starting May 13th.

http://www.citypass.com/city/houston.html

Market Square Walking Tour

On Sunday, Greater Houston Preservation Alliance will be conducting a walking tour of Market Square. The tour will focus on the architecture and history of this section of downtown Houston. I have found the tours to be a great way to learn more about the downtown area and I have used it to scout photo opportunities. These are highly recommended!

GHPA Walking Tour: Market Square
Sunday, June 10th
Tickets sold between 5:30 and 6:00 pm
$10 ($7 for members of GHPA)
http://ghpa.org/tours/

Photographer Volunteers Needed

Thanks to our friends at Houstonist for the heads up!

The Orange Show is looking for volunteers to photograph the festivities this weekend surrounding the Art Car Parade.

....photographers are needed throughout the weekend, from Shop Talk at the Art Car Museum on Friday night, the parade on Saturday and to the Awards Ceremony and Brunch at The Orange Show on Sunday Afternoon.

Volunteers get an Art Car t-shirt, food & drinks, and the chance to see their images in print. All that is asked in return is a copy of your photos on a disc. The Orange Show will take the best photos and send them to media around the world, with proper credit.

If you are interested you can contact The Orange Show at 713.926.6368 or email Stephen at orangeshow dot org.

Spotlight - Uebelhart.net

Untitled by Uebelhart.net

See more great photos in the Houston Photobloggers Flickr Pool and don't forget to add your pictures for a chance in the spotlight.

Also make sure to check out the other site that belongs to this week's spotlight member, Shoot Houston. Shoot Houston is a terrific resource for finding shooting locations in the Houston area.

Courthouse Tour

This Sunday the Greater Houston Preservation Alliance will be conducting a tour of the Courthouse District in downtown Houston.

As large as Houston is, it shares a feature with some of the smallest towns of Texas: a courthouse square. This tour visits one of our oldest neighborhoods, which grew up around Houston's Courthouse Square beginning with the city's founding in 1836.

You can find more information at the GHPA tour website. Tickets will be sold between 1:30 and 2:00 and are $7 for GHPA members and $10 for non-members.

-ist Birthday Party

Before I get to the party news, I'd like to welcome our newest member Mark and his photoblog PhotoJournalism. Mark is a photo journalist in Beaumont and sprinkled amongst his wonderful photos are articles and information about photojournalim. If that is an area of interest for you make sure to visit his site. Welcome Mark!

On with the party! Our friends over at Houstonist are celebrating their first birthday by throwing a party and you are all invited. Drinks are on Houstonist untiil their tab runs out.

The merriment will be this Wednesday, December 13th from 6 - 8 pm at Warren's. (Parking is free downtown after 6 pm ).

Warren's
307 Travis St.
Houston, TX 77002
(MAP)