I usually don't shoot pro-bono but when I do, I do it for non-profits that I am either passionate about such as shooting Farmer's Markets or for a cause which I feel is worth the contribution. Such was the Cota for Kayla event in Ballard at the Elks Lodge, last night, 9 July 2011. Cota stands for the Children's Organ Transplant Association.
I was initially approached to shoot this event by a friend I had met last season at the Des Moines (Washington)Farmer's Market, Liesl Ayers-Southwell who with her husband run two booths at the market, Happy Mountain Farm premium bovine cuts (that's my phrase not theirs) and Liesl's "The Little Road Said Go" antiques and collectibles.Here is Curtis and Liesl, Curtis by the way did the PR for the event.
I took a look at the Cota for Kayla website and I think I probably read the first page. I knew that the cause was good, that Kayla was no slouch and I've always been against the medical profession sentencing people to death by their outrageous fees, not to mention their underhanded dealings with Big Pharma.
Being a visual creature (go figure right?), I next browsed the photos section. As a photographer since I was 13 years old (a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away) when I first started shooting it's been my specialty to look at a photo and to empathize and to get fairly accurate feelings about a person or a situation. Bear in mind, as a photographer it is sometimes my job to create photos which present an image which is otherwise from reality. It is definitely an art where you can make or break your subject by how you capture them. You can make the nicest person seem angry. You can make the meanest person seem nice. Part of my ability is to be able to see through the facade that could possibly exist which another photographer could create about the person they were shooting. In other words, I usually get true and accurate "gut feelings" and I've learned not to doubt my first instincts about people or situations.
I knew by looking at th
e photos that Kayla is indeed a genuinely enthusiastic being who cherishes life but was unfortunate enough to inherit a body with a problem. When I later met her my earlier perception was confirmed. Inside that small body of hers is a life spark that burns brightly. It all made sense, her outlook and optimism and enthusiasm for life has probably kept her going this far where many would have fallen already.
That was my sort of spiritual level realization for the evening. I don't know how other photographer's do it but I can't be mechanical about shooting. I have to feel something. And with that aside, now onto the details about shooting the event!
I brought my trusty Olympus E5 camera and accompanying that were two lenses, the 35-100mm and the 12-60mm topped off with the FL50R flash and two new attachments, the Lumiquest Pocketbounce and 80/20 which I purchased from Glazers Camera in Seattle just the day prior. I didn't really know what I was walking into, but the Pocketbounce served as the final companion as the ceiling height was around 12-13' and ceiling bouncing wasn't working as well as one would hope for.
In the beginning of the event I used the 35-100 hitting ISO 400-800 and 1600 at f2. The results with the 35-100 are always spectacular. As the event progressed I switched to the 12-60 and added flash.
As a side note, I'd like to confess that I never, ever, ever shoot with a flash on camera. My first exposure to flash photography was in the portrait niche and I was introduced to it by David Hobby.
Next confession, until I attended the Flash Bus tour in Seattle earlier this year I didn't even know what or how TTL worked. Joe McNally helped me figure out the possibilities of it. Probably without that educational event I wouldn't have really considered TTL and I probably would have shivered in my boots a little at the pressure of shooting an event with a technology I know little about.
Technical note: When I use my 12-60 with a flash in the hotshoe, I ALWAYS put it in Manual mode adjusting my shutter speed to around 125th-160th of a second, depending on the ambient light and my aperture somewhere around f4-f8 depending on what I am shooting, etc. I had my flash set to TTL and compensated the plus or minus on it, fairly well for my first time.
Back to the event, in the beginning was the silent auction with several tables of items precariously laid out for all to bid on. My wife ended up with a vase by the way. It was a trade-off I guess, I had asked her to come along to just sort of help me where needed (getting me food, water, etc.) but her instincts took over and between the vase and chocolate cake ... well much fun was had by all.
After the silent auction came the buffet s
tyle food. Boy by 7:30 I was starving (note to self: always eat SOMETHING before showing up to an event, any event, whether you are working or not). The food was excellent and the lady who was in charge of the catering was very nice to talk to. I kind of quizzed her backstage about what it was like in her line of work.
After the meal came a dance. I didn't catch the back story to the ensemble but it was very nice that they were there entertaining people for this cause.
After that began the live auction for desserts. Cake, cake, cupcakes and more cake! As you can see this is when people REALLY came alive!
After the dessert auction, a nice video presentation about Kayla and then Kayla's mother spoke, a little about Cystic Fibrosis and the story behind why they needed to raise the money for her operation. It seems that while the insurance would cover Kayla's operation, the insurance would not pay to have lungs removed from an organ donor for Kayla. Typical insurance people. I already know that people die every minute for lack of insurance and that insurance companies are heartless businesses with a bottom line who will always opt to NOT pay out if they can. But I wonder how many people die because of a situation like this? How many other Kayla's are out there dying because the insurance will only cover their operation and NOT the full meal deal, start to finish? Crooks! But this ISN'T turning into a rant against the low ethics of insurance companies.
Next began the live auction for the more higher priced items, a beautiful (for a girl) Electra bicycle, dinner and spa packages, golf trips, and a bottle of the 1987 Marilyn Merlot reportedly va
lued at $2700!
By the time the second auction started we were already about an hour behind schedule. The next band had arrived and I had remarked to the drummer Steve Smith (of the Seattle Drum School) to hit the bar next store and just chill. This is what he looked like when he got back from the bar, primed and ready to play (just kidding).
After the last auction Steve and his two bandmates finally took stage and threw down some great bluesy stuff which definitely had an early to mid 1970's feel.
Teri, Kayla's aunt (right) and Stefanie family friend (left), two hard working volunteers pause for a quick photo!
So why did I shoot this event? Well, my sense of wanting to help give someone a chance, to help in the forward push to save her life. My want to further my experience in such shooting situations. My suggestion to other photographers: Do shoot for the experience and for the sake of giving back to the community from time to time. It's enlightening and satisfying.
All in all it was a great evening. Yes, I worked hard. Yes, my feet were sore by the 4th hour. But in the end, my heart was satisfied by a good deed well done. I really wish Kayla the best. She is a bright star in a universe of dim light and I hope she lives a good life and that those who meet her get to experience her "abundance of energy" like I did.
The only thing I didn't get to do which I would have loved was to have a 1 on 1 photo session with Kayla. Maybe in the future.
To see or purchase photos in color or B&W from this event please visit my site at:
http://suyamaimages.zenfolio.com/cotakayla
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