photographNic.blog

Extending the Family Tree.

2012-01-02T17:03:00.000-08:00

Vincent Chang.

This past holiday was a bit different, mostly due to the fact that it was the first Christmas with my sister's nine-week-old son, Vincent.

She and my brother-in-law Mike came up to Monterey for a days and it was really fun hanging out with three generations of family.

It is also fun being an uncle. That kid and I are going to have some good times when he gets older. And matching sneakers and I'm going to tell him a bunch of dumb jokes.

On a serious note though, being an uncle is more exciting that I thought it was going to be. Mike and my sister are stoked and my parents are enjoying being grandparents, but it is nice to be able to be a positive influence on the next generation, because, well, you have to and it is going to be nice to see that positive influence show itself in the next few years, and 18 years...

Oh yeah, and happy 2012.

My favorite family "portrait". Not surprisingly, it's a candid...

My sister and Vincent.

Mike and Vincent.

Uncle Nic and Vincent.

Grandpa and Vincent, courtesy of the Polaroid app on my iPhone.

Grandma and Vincent.

My "creative" angle of the above photo.

Kristen and Vincent.

My Favorite Photos of 2011.

2011-12-28T21:31:00.000-08:00

Espresso. I love the stuff.

This year has been wild. I shot a lot of fun, interesting photos and a lot of photos that bothered me.

View my Best Of 2011 photos at the Monterey County Weekly.

Here are a few of my personal favorite photos away from work.

Casey Stoner leads his Honda teammate down the start/finish straight at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in August during the 2011 Indianapolis Moto Grand Prix.

I traveled to Indiana (above) to shoot the other U.S. moto race and it was a great chance to get out of the state and shoot racing. Cycle World magazine ran one of my photos from that race as well and I got stay with my good friend Andrew Wheeler who is a killer photographer on his own right.

"Serial" artist Ed Leeper.

Per usual, I did a lot of portraits, including my friend and artist Ed Leeper.

Below was a sampling of a few shots I did for Figge Cellars, a winery I have been working with for a few years. Peter and his crew make great, local wine and they're super nice folks.

The campaign this year was "Share It" and I think we accomplished that.

Below is a photo I did for Ferrari. Yes, the shiny, red car people. I did a video project for them in August, which was fun, but challenging.

A Ferrari 250 GTO heads down turn 8, the "corkscrew", during the Monterey Motorsports Reunion in August.

More portraits:

Mandalyn in her element.

Mandalyn is a good friend and this wild, artsy type and I have many photographs of her, but this is one of my favorites. She has this wonderful smile and it shows off here.

Germaine.

Curator Marcelle Polednik at the Monterey Museum of Art.

This last photo was taken in Santa Cruz only last weekend. Shot on my point-and-shoot of surfers at Pleasure Point. I saw this frame with the fading, cloudy mountains in the background and went out to compose a photo that showed all these great elements.

Happy Holidays from the Coury Family.

2011-12-25T19:46:00.001-08:00

Dad, Nic, Mom, Vincent, Kristen and Mike.

A View of the Water.

2011-12-23T14:30:00.000-08:00

Canon G12. ISO 80, f/8.

Surfers at Pleasure Point in Capitola this morning.

It just shows that you can make good photos with any camera if you "see" the picture you want to make and work within any constraints you may have.

This is the End: Thoughts from Visiting the Monterey County Coroner's Office

2011-12-11T20:23:00.000-08:00

Monterey County Sheriff's Detective Randall Dyck wheels a cadaver out of the morgue refrigerator.

On Wednesday morning before Thanksgiving, I had a photo assignment for a feature story we did on the Monterey County Coroner's Office. It was an interesting and intriguing experience.

I got to see an full autopsy on a young man, which was also an interesting experience. I stood next to the body and other bodies in the morgue and while I'm not easily spooked, the main thing that struck me was how little life, if any, was still in them. It was a bit surreal.

Forensic pathologist Dr. John Hain cleans up following an autopsy.

The county's forensic pathologist Dr. John Hain is an interesting guy to talk to. As he put it, he wants the county to get better at how and why residents in Monterey County die. Hain says he can tell how someone died, but not necessarily why they died and was very intriguing.

In an area with the highest murder rate per capita and with occasional suicides, the reason of why a person chooses to send themselves or another to the afterlife baffles me as well. I have covered a handful of hard situations and murders in my career and I've never understood the motives of people in those situations.

As I photographed the four death investigators who work in the coroner's office, we chatted about the hard moments on both of our jobs. It was interesting to hear how to deal with death on a daily basis. I can't imagine being surrounded with the post-final moments all the time, but you would really start to appreciate life quite a bit more and start to care less about the frivolous nonsense that many people live daily.

One of the quotes in the story has Hain saying that, "(The coroner's office) is trying to give the dead a voice. They have something important to tell us."

My presumption would be that it is better to live well that hold pain and fear as the important things in life.

The morgue refrigerator is kept at 38 degrees.

Tudor Wines Wild Mushroom Dinner

2011-12-07T23:53:00.000-08:00

I had the distinct pleasure to eat dinner this evening at the Tudor Wines wild mushroom dinner at Andre's Bouchee in Carmel. It was hosted by one of my clients Dan Tudor who makes killer local pinot noirs from Santa Lucia Highlands and he invited me to the dinner.

Dan paired five of his wines with the four dishes served and all were very good.

The menu is in order in the photos below.

Winter black truffles from Perigord baked in puff pastry, with butter lettuce in a truffle coulis.

Alaskan Artic Char salmon filet with sauteed local, wild chanterelles.

Fresh, local farm-raised saddle of rabbit stuffed with wild, local porcinis and foie gras.

Beef tenderloin in a wild, fresh morel mushroom sauce.

Chef's special creme brulee. (I think it had minced mushrooms in the creme...)

Dessert wine next to all the pinots.

It was all really good stuff.

A Quick Espresso.

2011-12-02T21:47:00.000-08:00

Espresso. Canon G12.

Oh yeah, in case anyone forgot, I LOVE espresso.

It's been a long week with lots of breaking news, which I may get to later, but here's a $1.77 (tax included) espresso shot from Caffe Trieste in Monterey. It's good stuff really.

Also, here's my espresso photo blog: espressonic.tumblr.com

Conviction and Photojournalism

2011-11-11T20:48:00.001-08:00

Photographs of the five, young Marina residents that perished on November 5.

This week was a bad one for local, breaking news.

I got a message from my editor on Monday morning asking me to go photograph the home of a fire two days before where five, mentally-retarded residents died. There was a press conference later that day and I took a picture of the mother of one of the victims. The Associated Press was there and the story was national news.

Last night, there was a memorial at a local church where a few hundred family, friends and the local firefighters and police officers attended. It was a really hard scene to take pictures. There were four television cameras and three of us news photographers there.

I shot the below photo of Connie Cruz whose daughter Monica was one of the five. After the service was over, Ms. Cruz walked to the altar, grabbed the photo of her late-daughter and started sobbing loudly. It was really had to take this picture, but as my good friend and colleague Conner Jay from the Salinas Californian said this morning as we were discussing shooting the similar photos we took, "You have to have conviction when snapping the shutter or it's in vain. You have to believe that your photos are important."

It is really hard being a news photographer sometimes. Being asked to photograph a grieving parent who tragically lost their child is very hard, but you have to put your emotions to the side and just shoot. It is necessary to make hard news photos, but it never gets easier.

It feels very predatory sometimes and I can't imagine what it feels like, but it's part of the job to document the bad as well as the good. As Marina mayor Bruce Delgado mentioned during the memorial, "These five, young people brought hundreds of people together locally and people all over the country paused for a moment when they heard the news. Who else can do that? They brought a community together."

As I was photographing people near the altar after the service, one gentleman who was a family member of one of the victims turns to me and says, "You would have wanted to know him (nodding at his photo). He was always smiling and enjoyed everyone."

A reporter and I at the Weekly was discussing it after work tonight. It's just part of the gig.

Marina mayor Bruce Delgado tears up while sitting with local pastors during the memorial.

The house on Monday morning.

A memorial to the five victims across from the house.

Occupy?

2011-11-09T21:30:00.000-08:00

Occupy Monterey protesters gather in front of city hall on November 5 before marching through downtown.

As many journalists in the United States, I have been covering the Occupy movement. The local chapters sprung up from original Occupy Wall Street movement nearly two months ago and has been quite an event to watch unfold.

It is interesting seeing different factions of the community gather together for change, but as one article mentioned that other than exchanging information and stories, the movement has been in person and not online, which is even harder to ignore.

As a journalist, the Occupy movement is a very, very fascinating event to cover, because no one knows what directions it will take. As Joao Silva, a photojournalist for the Associated Press, wrote, he is loves being a photojournalist, because he is literally on the edge of history as it is happening and that is a really interesting place to be.

Last weekend, I ventured with my cameras up to Oakland, Calif. where the Occupiers have been stationed in front of city hall for many weeks. Oakland has gained some infamous notoriety due to violence erupting during a few of the recent protests and as there are many sides to a giant event like this, there are many views and insight to what was going on and I wanted to see it for myself and tell my own stories of the people I met.

Two occupiers wearing Guy Fawkes masks bare the heavy rain in Oakland on November 5.

It was fascinating. I drove up after covering an Occupy Monterey gathering and was drenched after walking only a block to get to Frank H. Ogawa Plaza at Broadway and 14th avenues where the Occupiers were.

Other than my camera, I was completely wet, but I was really enjoying listening to people on the street talk about what drove them out to make change. One unnamed guy told me that it was inspiring to see so many people do something about their political angst rather than just complain about it.

VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM OCCUPY GATHERINGS IN MONTEREY AND OAKLAND.

Protesters' tents in Frank H. Ogawa Plaza are dwarfed by surrounding buildings in Oakland.

I produced the video below from last Saturday's Occupy Monterey gathering.

What hit me a few into covering Oakland was that all of these people, all over the country and the world, are gathering for better change and are wanting more happiness in their lives. They want to live as best they can, doing whatever is it that makes them happy.

That same thought struck me later as I was watching this old punk band, Swinging Utters, play a show in downtown Oakland.

The Uptown in downtown Oakland.

The though that struck me at the punk show, watching people thoroughly enjoy the show, was that they were having a great time. They really didn't want to be anywhere else and that was neat to see.

It comes down to letting people be and letting people do what makes them live life to their own fullest inclinations.

Old school punk rockers Swinging Utters rock out in Oakland on November 5.

Subrosa Cafe in Oakland.

And of course, I stopped at a few different cafes to get really good coffees during my trip...

Monterey peace activist Ed Leeper's truck parked across from city hall on Pacific street.

RIP Marco...

2011-10-24T21:27:00.001-07:00

Sunday was a terrible day for motorcycle racing.

Italian superstar Marco Simoncelli died after injured he sustained in a freak accident following a hard crash on the second lap of the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang. I was watching it live at 1am California time and the red flag went out right away. It was a bad scene. The race was cancelled about an hour later. Marco was 24.

I didn't personally know Marco as well as some of my colleagues who spend the entire year shooting moto racing, but he was one of my favorite riders. He was aggressive and just plain passionate about racing. More importantly, he was a super nice guy and was always smiling. I met him in 2010 at Laguna Seca while he was signing autographs for fans. He nodded at my colorful shoes, thinking they were cool.

Marco, a 250cc World Champion, was known as SuperSic to fans all over was super fast. He had taken second the weekend before Malaysia and was touted to chase the World Championship next year on the Honda, but he went out doing what he really enjoyed. Moto racing is a very dangerous sport, but he rode with a pure enjoyment of the sport.

Read a really touching blog post from by good friend Andrew Wheeler who was shooting the race where Marco died.

Here's another good read from former 500cc World Champion Kevin Schwantz who was good friends with Marco.

Marco went out doing what he loved to do and that's all one can ask for really.

Speed on Marco.

Jessica and Patrick Wedding in Soquel.

2011-10-06T00:36:00.000-07:00

Jessica and Patrick.

It's always nice when you just nail a photoshoot, especially when it's something like a friend's wedding that you're shooting for them. This was that.

On October 1, I had the pleasure of photographing my friend Jessica's wedding to Patrick at Bargetto Winery in Soquel. It was fun: the weather was great and it was a nice, small wedding of about 100 people.

Even though I brought too much stuff, I shot a majority of it on a 35mm f/1.4 and a 85 f/1.4, which are easily two fantastic lenses from Nikon and my 300 f/2.8 for the ceremony and tight shots. Good equipment makes life easy.

Here's a few of my favorites.

Making a Photo.

2011-09-25T23:51:00.000-07:00

The above photo illustrates something that I explain to people about being a professional photographer and that is that I have a lot of bad frames.

That shot is from turn 5 during a morning practice session at the 2011 Red Bull Indianapolis Moto Grand Prix a few months ago. I was positioned about 10 feet down from the photo window to shoot the bikes coming at me (see the below photo) and I kept missing the picture: it just wasn't working as a frame, so I moved on, but it took me a bunch of missed shots to see this.

The point being that pros make a lot, and I'm talking a much higher number, of bad frames that keepers, but we only show the good stuff...

View more photos from the 2011 Red Bull Indianapolis Moto Grand Prix at www.photographNic.com.

Monterey Jazz Festival and American Le Mans Series Monterey

2011-09-19T23:54:00.000-07:00

I shot two completely different events this past week, but both which I like quite a bit: auto racing and jazz music.

Below are my three favorite photos from each event and links to many more photos at the Monterey County Weekly's website.

View more photos from the 2011 American Le Mans Series at Laguna Seca.

The Aston Martin Racing LMP1 car leads a GT car out of turn 3.

The lead LMP1 class cars get involved in a pass at turn 8 "the Corkscrew."

Turn 10 at sunset.

View more photos from the 2011 Montere Jazz Festival.

Jazz legend Sonny Rollins.

Pianist Hiromi.

Pacific Grove native Erik Telford.

Weddings and Other Work.

2011-09-08T23:33:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was a busy one.

I helped my friend and really good wedding photographer Eyvnn LeValley shoot a wedding at Holman Ranch in Carmel Valley.

Around 300 people attended and there were 16 bridesmaids and groomsmen.

These photos illustrate something in the way I shoot as a photojournalist in order to tell a story. The first two photos were shot with my 300mm lens, which brings the subjects in really close from far away, bringing the view into the scene, while the last photo was shot with a wide-angle, probably around 24mm. It shows that I shoot either pretty tight to show details and wide to show the scene.

Below are my three favorite photos.

I also shot senior portraits of Zoe Thurman. She is daughter of my friends Larry and Jaki who own Acme Coffee Roasting Co. in Seaside. Good people.

We wandered around in downtown Salinas and a few of the older, nice neighborhoods to find backgrounds.

Lots happening. More to come...

5-Minute Portrait: Composer Philip Glass

2011-09-03T11:36:00.000-07:00

The other night I had the distinct pleasure of photographing avant-garde composer Philip Glass in Big Sur.

His ensemble had performed a live score to the 1931 horror classic "Dracula" with Bela Legosi.

Afterwards, I had a very quick photo shoot with Mr. Glass and basically was told he would step in, I would snap a few pictures and that was that. I made it happen.

With one light through an umbrella off to the left, I shot the above portrait with my favorite 85mm f/1.4 wide open to blow out the christmas lights in the tree behind him and desaturated the colors a bit in Photoshop to tone it up a bit.

I like it, because in a way, Mr. Glass sort of looks like Dracula a bit.

2011 Red Bull Indianapolis Moto Grand Prix

2011-08-28T16:37:00.000-07:00

Casey Stoner on his way to victory at Indianapolis.

Casey Stoner was fast all weekend. And that was an understatement.

The Australian Honda Repsol rider beat his teammate Dani Pedrosa by almost five seconds at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday after starting from first on the grid. All weekend, Stoner had been very vocal about the recently repaved track, but still managed to produce excellent times results, even setting a new best lap with a 1'38".

Stoner's teammate Dani Pedrosa took second place, while Ben Spies rode as the fastest American racer, finishing third.

Stoner leads his teammate Pedrosa down the main straightaway during the race.

Yamaha Factory teammates Jorge Lorenzo (front) and Ben Spies fought for third place. Spies took the podium finish ahead of Lorenzo.

MotoGP riders take off for the first lap at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The first lap of the Moto2 race on Sunday morning.

Ducati's Valentino Rossi speeds through the finish line during Sunday morning warm-up.

MotoGP riders roll down pit lane for morning warm-up on Sunday.

Casey Stoner's front wheel lifts up as he soars around turn 16 during Sunday's race.

MotoGP riders fly down the main straight.

American Ben Spies gets covered in champagne on Sunday following the race.

Spies speeds down the main straight during Sunday's warm-up session.

Saturday in Indianapolis for MotoGP

2011-08-27T18:44:00.000-07:00

Honda's Casey Stoner (27, above) was on fire this afternoon at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The Australian has always been good about voicing his distaste for the American track, led Saturday's morning practice and was half a second faster—taking pole position for Sunday's race—than American Ben Spies who took the second spot on the starting grid.

Ducati's Valentino Rossi rides out of the last turn at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

American Ben Spies during qualifying.

American Nicky Hayden turns through the s-curves on the first half of the track.

Riders cruise into turn 8.

Honda's Andrea Dovisioso careens around turn 1.

Valentino Rossi pops a wheelie for fans following Saturday morning practice.

Casey Stoner flows between turn 3 and 4.

American Colin Edwards lifts his front wheel going into the start/finish straight during qualifying.

Friday at Indianapolis for MotoGP

2011-08-26T14:48:00.001-07:00

Rossi coasts through turn 10.

The American MotoGP riders attacked the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday morning's first free practice for the race weekend. Ben Spies of the factory Yamaha team walked away with the top time with fellow statesmen Colin Edwards in third, while former World Champion Nicky Hayden was in fifth.

The Texan Spies was second in the afternoon only to World Championship lead Casey Stoner.

Ben Spies' front wheel becomes slightly airborne as he speeds into the start-finis straight.

Valentino Rossi leads Jorge Lorenzo through turn 11 during morning practice on Friday.

Casey Stoner during morning practice.

MotoGP riders speed out of turn 16.

Rossi signs fans behind the Ducati team garage.

Colin Edwards rides off at the end of the day.

MotoGP at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

2011-08-25T17:43:00.001-07:00

Elena Myers does a test ride on the Suzuki MotoGP bike on Thursday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

I am on vacation this week(end), but I am on a dream assignment. I convinced my editor to let me shoot MotoGP racing at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana.

It's a great place to shoot racing with its rich history of car racing over the last hundred years.

I am rooming with my friend and one of the top MotoGP photographers Andrew Wheeler of AutoMotoPhoto.

Today was a bit slow, but AMA SuperSport star Elena Meyers tested a MotoGP bike made by the Suzuki factory team, so I got to photograph some track action.

Indianapolis is a nice, classic Americana town. We drive through these fantastic, green neighborhoods that are spreadout and green with nice, full trees everywhere. It's definitely a different culture than California, but enjoyable.

Good people in a good place.

I'll update throughout the weekend.

Elena Meyers in the Suzuki garage.

Meyers down the start-finish straightaway.

Indianapolis MotoGP paddock.

The Brickyard.

My Favorite Images From the 2011 Red Bull U.S. Moto Grand Prix

2011-07-25T23:58:00.000-07:00

Here are my favorite shots from this year's U.S. Moto Grand Prix at Laguna Seca.

Here is a link to the MC Weekly's photo blog where I posted more racing photos.

And a link to the MC Weekly's photo blog explaining the Jorge Lorenzo crash photo.

Carmel Mission Wedding

2011-07-17T17:21:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, my friend and fellow (really freakin' good) photographer Evynn LeValley asked me to help her photograph the ceremony for a wedding at the Carmel Mission.

Here are a few shots.

Nacarubi Music Fest 2011

2011-06-27T21:53:00.000-07:00

The sun setting over the campsite on Friday evening.

I spent the weekend covering the second Nacarubi Music Fest in South Coast Big Sur.

It was way off the beaten path, about 5 miles south on a dirt road from the summit of Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. It was a great, long weekend with lots of dust, little sleep and really good music.

View more photos of the music on the Monterey County Weekly's photo blog.

My buddy Matt Baldwin on Saturday.

Matt Baldwin's psychedelic set on Friday night.

Jessica from Big SuRCus performs with fire on Saturday night.

Campers warm up on Friday evening.

My good friend Jake Luce who I hang out with a quite a bit when I go to Big Sur.

The stage.

Rushad Eggleston performing with his band Tornado Rider on Friday night.

Rushad in the campground.

Ivy from Big SuRCuS performs on Saturday night.

Electronica artist Iasos in the campground.

Singer/songwriter Mariee Sioux performing on Saturday afternoon.

The camp far off the beaten path.

Breakfast at Deetjen's on Sunday morning.

Portraits: Dad

2011-06-19T12:58:00.001-07:00

Christmas 2010.

It's funny that there is a lot of things I am into now that I got from my dad.

- I love jazz music and older rock when he would listening to Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's So Far record and Elton John, both of which I listen to still.

- I love horror films and I remember watching "creature features" with him on television when I was a kid.

- Cooking and eating good good food. Both of my parents are good cooks and my sister and I both picked that up.

- Even photography to an extent. I remember being a kid and thinking that this giant, worn purple camera bag he had with a Minolta XG-M and lots of cool, twisty lenses was the neatest thing ever, even if I have no idea how it worked... Too bad it got stolen from my car. Maybe I'll get him a replacement some day...

- Even stuff like my original major in college—construction management—was semi-inspired by always working on stuff with him, helping to remodel parts of the house and such, and growing up watching This Old House and New Yankee Workshop.

Thanks dad.

Portraits: Grandmother

2011-06-14T23:12:00.000-07:00

These are two photos I shot last week of my grandmother while she was in town. She is good people.

Shot on Ilford Delta 400 on a Nikon F100, 85mm f/1.4

Medium-Format Film: Mamiya M645 1000s

2011-06-11T21:15:00.000-07:00

Mamiya M645 100s with a 150mm f/3.5

These two photos were shot with my medium format film camera (above). Both photos were shot with the 150 f/3.5 (as it's the only lens I have for it right now) and shot on Kodak 160 VC 120 film.

It has a great twack to the shutter when you take a picture and makes nice, big negatives.

VIDEO: Vinyl in the Woods

2011-05-30T20:40:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I ventured down to Henry Miller Library in Big Sur to shoot a video (see below) on the second annual Vinyl in the Woods record fair.

Also, visit their website (linked above), because Magnus posted a few of the photos I shot at the recent Big Sur Fashion Show.

Pizza.

2011-05-23T23:49:00.000-07:00

Nikon D700, 24mm f/3.5 Tilt-Shift.

Amgen Tour of California - Stage 5

2011-05-20T16:15:00.000-07:00

Amgen tour riders pass through vineyards on Elm street entering into Greenfield from Carmel Valley on Thursday.

Oh yeah, the Amgen tour of California kicked off stage 5 about a block away from our newsroom on Thursday morning.

Here is a photo gallery on the Weekly's website of stage 5 of the Amgen Tour of California.

Skateboarding, Tilt-Shifted

2011-05-18T22:33:00.000-07:00

Nikon D700, 16-35 f/4 VR, SB-800 flash fired remotely.

The photos below were all shot on a Nikon 24mm f/3.5 Tilt-Shift, which gives the ability to tilt the focus plane, giving some pretty cool focus effects.

Video Article and More New Video

2011-05-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

Lucy pouring a soy Africano at Cafe Lumiere.

A few weeks ago, Robert Hanishiro (staff photographer at USA Today) asked me to write up an article on shooting video for newspapers.

Here is a link to that article: www.sportsshooter.com/news/2521

Here is my SportsShooter member page.

Teaser for Kim Boekbinder's show a few week's ago at The Alternative Cafe.

AMA Salinas TT

2011-05-12T00:08:00.000-07:00

Forgot to post this a few weeks ago..., but I shot the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) Salinas TT and Short Track—the top level pro dirt track racing in America—during its inaugural race weekend at the Salinas Sports Complex.

It dirty and loud and fantastic, even if it wasn't road racing at Laguna Seca...

Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys Live in Monterey

2011-04-22T22:11:00.000-07:00

Last night, I photographed ex-Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra, a punk rock lengend who is fueled by politics in his music.

My Six Favorite Photos from Sea Otter Classic 2011

2011-04-20T01:08:00.000-07:00

Big air tricks on Saturday afternoon.

This past weekend, I photographed one of my favorite events all year: bicycle racing and stunts at Sea Otter Classic.

I made some very nice pictures and was super happy with my work, as I tried new things and ideas while shooting. Like, as my buddy and great MotoGP photog Andrew Wheeler says, never spend more than 10 minutes in one spot and make the subject as small as possible...

I also hung out with the Specialized team and friends of mine that work for them and they are one badass, supercool company.

View more photos at the Monterey County Weekly photo blog.

View even more photos at my website for PhotographNic.

Pro Men's Downhill on Sunday morning at the 2011 Sea Otter Classic at Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

Lea Davison of Team Specialized beats Kelli Emmitt of the Giant Factory Team to fourth place during the Pro Women's Cross-Country on Saturday afternoon at the 2011 Sea Otter Classic at Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

Lea Davison of Team Specialized pedals up the hill during the Pro Women's Cross-Country on Saturday afternoon at the 2011 Sea Otter Classic at Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

Riders fly down the course during the Pro Men's Dual Slalom on Saturday afternoon during the 2011 Sea Otter Classic at Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

A rider soars down the downhill course on Sunday morning during the 2011 Sea Otter Classic at Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

My Espresso Photo Blog.

2011-04-04T01:24:00.001-07:00

So for a while, I have been wanting to start a photo blog purely for espresso and espresso-based things, so now I did.

Here is the link to my espresso photo blog: espressonic.tumblr.com

I'll still be posting here obviously, but there is for coffee stuff only.

Also, I've updated and changed around some stuff on my website: photographnic.com

Sunday in Santa Cruz.

2011-04-03T20:42:00.001-07:00

Headed to Santa Cruz this afternoon with my good friend (and really talented drawing artist of robots and such) Natalie McKean.

I brought my Nikon D300 and a handful of lenses, as well as a handful of film for my F100.

More to come...

~ nic

Film: Kodak Tri-X Pushed +1

2011-03-27T12:07:00.000-07:00

The Inspiration of Rachael Short

2011-03-24T16:45:00.000-07:00

Rachael Short in her Carmel cottage.

This week's cover story was a profile on Rachael Short recovering from a tragic car accident last October in Big Sur.

The story is really good and pretty heavy, but really shows off her amazing spirit amid this whole thing.

In the local photography scene, Rachael is top notch. Her work is amazing and she's the nicest person around and a friend of mine.

Here is a gallery of an afternoon spent with her that I shot for the paper.

The below two photos were shot on my trust Nikon F100 on a roll of Tri-X pushed a stop.

Today Stuff.

2011-03-13T00:56:00.000-08:00

Natalie.

Above is a quick portrait I did of my friend—and very talent artist—Natalie McKean.

Below is a quick video I shot after a cup of coffee I made. It was edited it Final Cut Express, which I finally played around with enough to learn most of it. Booya.

Five-Minute Portrait: The Silent Comedy

2011-03-11T01:04:00.000-08:00

Last night, my friends from San Diego, The Silent Comedy, played in Monterey.

We were chatting outside before their set and my buddy Josh told me the had a new sponsor and needed a photo of them with the product somewhere on the tour. I had all my lights and camera from having a photo assignment earlier that day and so we made a photo with the band and them showing off Virginia moonshine.

Nikon D300 with a 17-55 f/2.8. (ISO 800, f/4) triggering a Nikon SB-800 through a 32" Westcott white umbrella.

I converted one to black-and-white in Photoshop for a different-looking image.

~ nic

I got Featured on SportsShooter.com!

2011-03-08T00:36:00.000-08:00

I found out that I got featured on the front page of SportsShooter.com!

This is huge for me and my work as I've been a member there for a few years and it is one of my biggest resources for me as professional photographer. SS.com is home to some of my mentors in the business and has advice on the forums from photogs in the AP, USA Today and many of the large dailies and magazines whose work I follow constantly.

Here's the full gallery of images I posted: http://www.sportsshooter.com/members.html?id=7571

I still have a ways to go, but thanks for all the support.

~ nic

Portraits on Film.

2011-03-01T19:04:00.000-08:00

Ed Leeper.

A few recent shots photographed on Ilford Delta 100 on my Nikon F100 (great camera...).

Jaclyn.

Jessica and Patrick.

Jessica and Patrick.

2011-02-28T00:27:00.000-08:00

This afternoon the recent bad weather cleared and I headed up to Santa Cruz and shot

engagement portraits with my friends Jessica and Patrick.

I'm shooting their wedding in October at Bargetto Winery in Soquel, which has really good wine as we tasted a few today.

Stay tuned...

I Am Ed.

2011-02-27T00:47:00.001-08:00

Ed Leeper.

Ed Leeper is "serial" artist.

For a while, I've been wanting to a documentary on him and finally found some time today to do so and here's a teaser along with a few photos.

Ed holding a recent art piece of a coffee cup covered in tar.

Ed in his favorite chair.

The (Hard/Excruciating/Difficult/Demanding) Business of Wedding Photography

2011-02-20T23:34:00.000-08:00

(The above image is purely for illustrative purposes only. That couple are good friends and amazing people, so this post has nothing to do with them at all.)

"Oh you're a photographer. That must be the best job ever."

Yeah, it really is, but what a lot of people don't get the behind-the-scenes part of it. Being a professional photographer is not just all pointing a nice camera and going *click*.

I'm fairly young, but I have learned a few things of the business of professional photography and it's not easily whatsoever. It's a very difficult and demanding profession. Don't get me wrong, I love shooting photos and playing with cool cameras for a living, but there is quite a bit more to it than that.

"
Wedding Day - Images by Nic Coury

Recently, I had a potential wedding client drop out on me. We had talked off and on since last fall and the wedding is this June. A few weeks ago, I sent her a contract and a few days later she replied that her "good friend really wants to shoot my wedding." My thought: "She's doing it for stupid cheap or free, right?

Even though she loved my work and wanted me to shoot it, the bride gave me the standard "Well we're both students and paying for the wedding ourselves...", which is always nice a pretext to giving a couple a quote.

Unfortunately for my profession, there are a ton of "decent" photographers. By decent, I mean that a lot of people can take decent pictures. Also unfortunately that some of those "decent" photographers think that "decent" photos are all that are needed to become a professional. Don't believe me? Go ahead a google "bad wedding photo stories". There are way more than there should be.

I'm guessing not too many people are thinking "Oh, I'm pretty decent at making dinner, I'm going to be a wedding caterer in my free time" or "Oh, I'm pretty good at telling people how to plan a day, so I'm going to sell myself for way too cheap and be an event coordinator", but for some reason, couples also try to cut costs on wedding photographers and it can end up bad.

One of the free pieces of advice that I'll hand out is that when you are hired to shoot the most important day (or second if they have kids) for a couple, is that you don't want them to be worried whatsoever if you're doing the job they hired you for. Ever. The best thing a bride and groom can say is that they didn't notice where you were, but you turned out great photos that really showed off their day.

Another thing I tell people about my work is my professionalism. Trust me, pros make the same mistakes any amateur does, but we're just good at covering them up without anyone knowing. That is why I carry multiple cameras, lenses, batteries, memory cards and flash batteries. Redundancy and backing yourself up is key.

Please don't shoot weddings just because you can "take some nice pictures," and please don't hire anyone because you're trying to save a few bucks and you have a friend who can "take decent photos" and "really wants to shoot it." Another thing this does is completely undercut hard-working photographers who make their entire life with a camera.

These are photos you will hopefully cherish for a long, long time. Is it really worth it to ave a few hundred bucks on?

Rant done.

~ nic

My Favorite Photos from the 2011 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

2011-02-17T00:54:00.000-08:00

D.A. Points waves at the crowd after a 99-yard eagle shot onto the 14th green at Pebble Beach.

Sunday changed something for me. Going into this year's AT&T Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, I wasn't fully feeling it, but I have always liked Sunday because of the really good golf action and tight play.

As I talked shop with some of the fellow photogs I know, we all knew it was going to be a good afternoon: nice weather and really, really good golf.

The culmination was as I walked to the 14th green, missing the action shot, but hearing further down the golf course: D.A. Points—who had never won a PGA Tour title—made a 99-foot fairway shot for eagle on the already difficult 14th hole. It is the same hole many golfers got bogey on all weekend this year.

Watching Points from then on was one hell of a spectacle from behind a camera. His amateur partner was the always-funny and full-of-antics Bill Murray. Watching the two of them was fun and brought a whole new dynamic to the game. Murray and Points also won the team title on Sunday.

These are my top 5 favorite photos from Sunday.

Also see more photos from the Monterey County Weekly's photo blog.

~ nic

Pro Jimmy Walker tees off on the 5th hole at Pebble Beach on Sunday.

Golf fans follow D.A. Points' tee shot on the 15th hole at Pebble Beach.

D.A. Points chips a shot from a sand trap onto the 6th green at Pebble Beach.

Pro Aaron Baddelry tees off from the first hole at Pebble Beach.

VIDEO: Where I Am.

2011-02-12T01:12:00.000-08:00

Shot on my new Nikon D7000 using a 300 f/2.8 and an 85 f/1.4

Music: "Clatter and Rasp" by Rohner Segnitz.

Sometimes I Cook

2011-02-01T22:25:00.001-08:00

My dinner from the other night: whole clams in a white wine and butter sauce over sun-dried tomato and cheese ravioli.

Words I Use and Other Cool, Tech-y Stuff

2011-01-30T14:06:00.000-08:00

So yesterday I attended a web conference in San Francisco put on by AltWeeklies and I picked up all kinds of cool, web tools, including the above, which picks out the most-used keywords from an RSS feed or group of text.

It was one of the many cool things from Amy Webb's Top 10 Tech Tools talk.

Then I met up with some photo colleagues including my buddy and fellow photojournalist Scott Macdonald who shoots for the Salinas Californian.

I helped Scott light a photo a few weeks ago of a Redwood grove in Big Sur with some other friends. Photo below.

Very cool stuff.

~ n

Photos of the Year.

2011-01-02T19:21:00.001-08:00

So 2010 is over and I shot a lot of cool stuff for clients and myself this year.

I worked with Figge Cellars every month this year to shoot a campaign for the year in the life of a winemaker.

Our shot for December.

Peter Figge (above with his son Jackson) always keeps his family first and that is one of his main themes in his winery.

Another family involved in Figge Cellars is one of Peter's wine managers, shown here in the Carmel Valley vineyards with his son as they harvest grapes.

Another cool experience I had was shooting the world premiere of the Veyron Super Sport for Bugatti. They hired me to shoot their car all weekend in Carmel Valley and Laguna Seca. It is the car that broke the land-speed record recently at somewhere around 270 m.p.h. It also costs a cool $2 million.

The Bugatti at Quail Lodge.

PORTRAITS:

Sarah McCoy (bottom center) and the Zippidy Yeahs.

Zoe Boekbinder before a show in Monterey.

Masha, a really talented and beautiful belly dancer.

LANDSCAPES:

I made an effort to document more of my surroundings, which is also where I grew up in Monterey, Calif.

Boats near in the marina near Old Fisherman's Wharf.

Carmel Valley miles past the village.

Moss Landing at sunset.

~ nic

Figge Cellars: December

2010-12-16T22:16:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays.

This was my shot for Figge Cellars for our December collaboration.

Below is my setup:

One Nikon SB-800 through a white umbrella at probably 1/32 power.

Shot with my (favorite) 85mm f/1.4 at f/1.8 on my D700.

One more with cookies.

Metal Heads.

2010-12-13T09:42:00.000-08:00

Last week, a cool opportunity cropped up where I found myself shooting some stills and, more importantly for the sound factor, some video of three friends jamming in one of the guy's record store.

After hours, Angelo (guitar), Keigan (bass) and Bob (drums) set up in Bob's store—The Vinyl Revolution—and played loud, heavy rock for a few hours.

Black and White Film

2010-11-30T20:23:00.000-08:00

Moss Landing, Fuji Acros 100

Santa Cruz, Ilford FP4 125 pushed two-stops.

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-26T00:28:00.000-08:00

Dinner.

I brought my camera over to my folks' for Thanksgiving today and took some pictures. I don't do that too often, but figured I should start to document more of us getting together.

My sister and her husband joined us, as did my cousin Michele and my uncle and his two girls.

As my dad says, "This is better than getting together."

We ate great food, laughed and were together.

My family is good people.

My sister and brother-in-law. They're weird sometimes...

Michele.

As my uncle Walter calls them, "good groceries."

Far Out Flavorful Food

2010-11-16T00:16:00.000-08:00

Duck.

Tonight I took my folks way out into the middle of nowhere, literally, for a really cool dining experience at the Cachagua General Store with the fantastic chef skills of Michael Jones.

Jones uses local goodness to create some amazing dishes and has some great, local wines to pair.

Cachagua Store chef Michael Jones.

Restaurant front door.

Really good bread.

Really good wine.

Beets.

The store is located out in Cachagua. About 30 minutes past Carmel Valley Village, which is a haul in itself. Dinner is only on Monday nights in two sittings and the menu consists of great appetizers, entrees and desserts.

The bar.

My pops.

Rabbit. Five ways.

People come from all over to dine there and there are locals of Cachagua who hang out as well, like Grant Risdon (below), who we profiled at the Monterey County Weekly last spring for his wild stories of growing up and lifetime of living in the area.

I did a photo blog about Grant with some cool audio as he told one of his many stories.

Grant Risdon: the last Cachagua cowboy.

People I Know.

2010-11-10T00:20:00.000-08:00

Liz. We have been friends since third grade.

Anyone who knows me on Facebook, knows that I put photos of my friends in albums called "People I Know", where I post random photos of friends that I have taken while we're hanging out.

I found a few in my archives while searching for something for a client and picked these, because all of them illustrate how I see the person.

Jake. Lives in Big Sur. Wild, good dude.

Carly. Chef schooler and bad-joke maker.

Zoe. Super talented musician.

Film: Al Jardine of the Beach Boys on Kodak Tri-X 400

2010-10-12T01:43:00.001-07:00

Al Jardine. (Nikon F100, 85mm f/1.4 AF @ f/11, Kodak Tri-X pushed to 1600.)

A few weeks ago, original Beach Boys member Al Jardine fell in front of my camera at a trip to Jardine's Big Sur property and Red Barn Studios for the Monterey County Weekly.

He was preparing for his first, upcoming Big Sur show at Henry Miller Library.

Aside from two digital cameras, I rattled off 1 roll of Fuji Pro 160s and 2 rolls of Kodak Tri-X which I had pushed two stop in order to shoot indoors, but then we went outside, so I had to stop my 1600 ASA film down to f/16 in bright sunlight... It made for some super sharp, high-contrast images, which I actually like very much.

I only shoot film for certain editorial projects and I felt this was a proper application for old black-and-white film.

The above shot was one of the few single shots I really liked of the nearly 100 film shots I got. It is a simple moment of reflection from a member of a music group that brought great, pop music to many decades of fans world-wide.

Ocean at Dusk

2010-09-29T22:07:00.000-07:00

Clear skies and recent warm weather collided this past evening as the sun lowered to create a few nice post-work photos.

2010 Monterey Jazz Festival

2010-09-20T00:28:00.000-07:00

These are my top 10 favorite shots from almost 2,000 photos taken over the last three days covering the 53rd Monterey Jazz Festival.

I picked them due to various reasons, but mostly because they are different in some way from what you might normally see. I tried different lighting, angles, etc. to make unique shots in a place where photographers are holed in like sardines and all getting similar photos.

Dianne Reeve on the main stage arena on Saturday.

Chris Potter with his progressive quartet on the Garden Stage on Saturday night.

Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews is nicknamed "Satchmo of the Ghetto" due to his similarities to Louis Armstrong.

Trombone Shorty waves to the crowd as he leaves the main stage.

Ahmad Jamal cues to his percussionist during the band's Sunday night main stage performance.

Vocalist Kim Nalley has a laugh with her saxophone player during their Sunday performance on the Garden Stage.

Nalley bringing some soul to the show.

Ukulele player Jake Shimabukuro makes his debut on the Garden stage during the 53rd Monterey Jazz Festival.

Kyle Eastwood plays with his band on Saturday evening.

One half of the French-sister duo Les Nubians open up the main stage on Friday evening.

Film: Kodak Ektar 100

2010-09-10T23:42:00.001-07:00

Moss Landing. (Nikon 80-200 f/2.8).

A few shots from a roll of Kodak Ektar 100. Nice (lack of) grain, though a bit too saturated in its rendition of reds...

Rain puddle. (Nikon 85mm f/1.4 at f/1.4)

Old Building. (Nikon 55mm f/3.5)

Video: Dinner

2010-09-07T01:23:00.000-07:00

Below is a video about making pizza.

Camera: Nikon D300s

Lenses: Nikkor 16-35 f/4, Nikkor 60 f/2.8 macro, Nikkor 85 f/1.4

~ nic

The Catcus Man.

2010-08-29T22:09:00.001-07:00

This is my good friend Jake "Cactus Man" Luce.

He lives in Big Sur and works at Nepenthe and makes for a good portrait.

Color and Texture

2010-08-27T23:48:00.000-07:00

All shot with a Nikon D300, 55mm f/3.5 micro-Nikkor manual-focus lens.

Bob Dylan Plays Monterey.

2010-08-27T23:38:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, the classic Bob Dylan performed at the Monterey Fairgrounds.

I got on shooting it for Relix magazine with my good buddy Stuart who was writing it for them, but since they were allowing absolutely zero press access and were not allowing professional cameras under any circumstances, I had to make do with Stuart's point-and-shoot, so I did.

Working with Bugatti

2010-08-19T00:01:00.000-07:00

Car week was pretty exciting this year as my client for a few days was Bugatti.

Simply put, they make nice cars, and that is a bit of an understatement.

The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport was released as the fastest car in the world for a mere $2 million. I photographed the same car that set the land-speed record at 258 miles-per-hour and the driver who did it.

The super sport can be had in a few color, including a blue that really shows off the carbon fiber shell.

The Super Sport making a pace lap at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca during the Monterey Motorsports Reunion.

2010 Red Bull U.S. Moto Grand Prix

2010-08-06T15:55:00.000-07:00

American Colin Edwards soars down turn 9—Rainey Curve—during practice sessions at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

My favorite event all year has come and gone, but below are all my images from spending four days in the media "prison" at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

2010 Red Bull U.S. Moto Grand Prix - Images by Nic Coury

The pack of motorcycle riders races into the double apex turn 2 during the first lap of the 2010 Red Bull U.S. Moto GP.

Italian star Valentino Rossi signs autographs following a practice session.

2010 California Rodeo Salinas

2010-07-20T23:55:00.000-07:00

I shot the 100th annual California Rodeo Salinas this past weekend at the Salinas Sports Complex and donned my (uncomfortable) cowboy boots for a few nights to fit in...

I went to high school in Salinas and was surrounded by the cowboy culture and dislike country music, but I love shooting rodeo events.

Here's a video—shot my Nikon D300s—from Sunday afternoon at the rodeo.

Below are my five favorite images and why I like them.

Professional Bull Riding.

You are right in there with the cowboy and the bull is almost coming right at you, which is pretty frightening. Also, the height of the bull is quite unreal.

Bareback Bronc Riding.

The rider's expression after getting tossed off it great. I can feel his pain as the bucking horse trots off in the other direction.

Freestyle Bullfighting.

I got lucky with my shooting position here, but it just scares me as I scan through this series of photos and watch the entire thing unfold.

Steer Wrestling.

I love the shots where it shows both the animal and cowboy on the ground. They're on the same level and both exhausted.

Cowboys in the chutes.

His funny sneer is great and I love how you can not really see his eyes under the sea of cowboy hat.

~ nic

Hawk Mazzotta

2010-07-12T22:21:00.000-07:00

On Sunday afternoon I got together with my buddy Hawk Mazzotta who is an AMA motorcycle racer. I shot him last week at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as he was testing a bike.

He needed some shots to promote some of his sponsors, so I made up a makeshift studio and we went to work.

~ nic

Coming Soon.

2010-07-11T01:02:00.000-07:00

Coming soon...

~ nic

Yahama R1 Track Test at Laguna Seca.

2010-07-08T18:08:00.000-07:00

Hawk Mazzotta exits turn 2 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on his Honda CR 650 during morning warm ups.

Motorcycles are back on track. Finally.

My buddy Hawk Mazzotta who used to race in the AMA was track testing a Yamaha R1 at Laguna Seca today and as I was on a day off, I was of course at the track.

Hawk during an interview.

Hawk on the R1 checks the track as he exits turn 8 and 8a—the "corkscrew."

The R1 was set up for the same superbike specs that the AMA and World Superbike (WSBK) guys use, with changes to fit their own riding style.

Hawk was having some gearbox problems and was checking the tightness of shifter.

Track days have a 92 decibel sound limit, so many riders have to quiet their race engines.

The R1 coasts out of the "corkscrew."

One of the other things I got to do was test out a new long lens I bought: a 300mm f/2.8.

As expected, it was stupid sharp and super fast focusing.

A rider turns as they take on turn 8.

A slower pan shot shows a rider straightening the bike after turn 3.

~ nic

Quick Sips and Bites.

2010-06-21T01:05:00.000-07:00

I shot a few photos during a glass of red wine (from Figge Cellars) I had prior to dinner with some really great cheese.

More to come this week.

Video: Fading Light

2010-06-05T22:19:00.000-07:00

Another video shot on my Nikon D300s.

Lenses: Nikon 16-35 f/4 VR and 80-200 f/2.8D

Music: "Blueberry Red" by Ryan Bisio.

More to come...

~ nic

p.s. - Also, see a newly updated main site at www.photographNic.com.

Metamorphosis: Big Sur Fashion Show 2010

2010-05-19T20:33:00.001-07:00

I shot some video down at Henry Miller Library last week during the 2010 Big Sur Fashion Show.

Other than a few user-issue (i.e. me...), I'm very happy with the results.

Camera: Nikon D300s

Lenses: 50 f/1.8 and 85 f/1.4, wide-open or near it.

Viewfinder: Hoodman Hood-Loupe 3.0

Edited in iMovie and music by Moby.

View more photos at the Monterey County Weekly photo blog.

~ nic

Portrait: Sarah McCoy and the Zippidy Yeah's!

2010-05-19T00:23:00.000-07:00

Last week I did with a really cool photo shoot with some very good friends of mine: Sarah McCoy and the Zippidy Yeahs!

Super cool people and super cool music. Sarah is one of the most amazing singers I know and also loves whiskey... Great, real people.

We shot with under the weird lights at the Monterey Mirror Maze for their upcoming album.

~ nic

Video: Skateboarding

2010-05-07T00:19:00.001-07:00

I have now entered the world of film making.

Below is a very roughly-edited video I made this afternoon on skateboarders at Lake El Estero in Monterey.

I shot it on my Nikon D300s with a fisheye, 17-35mm f/2.8 and a 80-200 f/2.8.

More to come of course. Stay tuned.

~ nic

"Serial" Artist Ed Leeper.

2010-04-24T14:38:00.000-07:00

My good friend Ed Leeper is a "serial" artist and had a performance last night in Monterey.

He sat in his "Chair of Awesomeness" for an hour while 12-tone classical music played. Then answered questions from the audience from cue cards he gave to them prior to the performance.

~ nic

Maddie.

2010-04-20T01:02:00.001-07:00

I photographed my model friend Maddie over the weekend.

Been playing around with black-and-whites in Photoshop lately and liking the results.

The lighting is a mix between super bright sunlight through the glass door and a flash through an umbrella at 1/16th power.

~ nic