less words

When I was 21 I could not convey my idealism or dreams in one 5 minute sitting. I was told I did not know what I want. In response I told everything I wanted but not in a Christmas list manner but in an idealistic matter. Everything could happen and my words could be the push factor for the happening.

At 23 I could not convey to a New York Times editor what I wanted to do as a photographer in less that 5 minutes. It was 2 am in a barn in New York. Words upon words and many dreamed filled metaphors brought out not a single tangilbe dream of mine. Explanations that never ended only compounded to find some other realm to talk about.

Now 6 years later, I find that my idealism exits stronger than before yet I use less words because my search is more refined. More faith meets the greater questions that exist. The stakes are higher with larger budgets and bills. I have become patient knowing in a confident sense that I am young and have much to learn.

Wait and be patient, everyone who is younger, Your purpose will come. It is ok not to know but waist not in the reality that you are young but with ambition and contentment, await eagerly the dreams you have in your heart only to be brought by God and your mind will be blown.

My 6th trip to Asia, 2nd time to China, 19 days from now.

I was exploring an abandoned building last night and came across this group of people from the suburbs who were tipping had spent 3 months trying to push this truck off the 4th story of the packard plant for the fun of it. Not sure what the photos are worth, but wanted to send them along in case. I have more, just wanted to send you two for now. I have been doing a story the scrappers and urban spelunkers for the past 2 years. Crazy city.

Correction

Not going to mongolia, going to inner mongolia, a province of China.

Start Again

A weekend over and a week now to prepare. China and Mongolia are on my mind after spending most of today helping my friend Joel Grothaus with his creation of art. It is raining now. I have a lot to prepare for. In all of this I believe I am becoming more of a professional. This week…Geting paid, buying gear, praising God, and making a movie for my church’s 5th anniversary. I am posting my third video I have created in a new program I am learning. It is way above anything I would use for my docs but I at the same time I want to push my storytelling to a new level. done

Be Content

Why complain? If it is your Lord you pray to, then the Lord it is that guides you and as a guide knows the terrain ahead so your Lord will deliver you. To where? To him.

Why complain? Better yet, why not be grateful? You are sick, you could be sicker, you have no money, you could be poorer. These are simple arguments for the complex thoughts that bring our complaints to the level playing field of the world. God has no favorites so chose humility and chose it in joy.  Is saying, “Well, you’re right, I could be sicker” more of an un-complaint or more of a situation you default to in your attempt analyze your world with wisdom that was gained in the same second.

Lord I pray that you will guide me to the frontline or to peace and in either, with any teaching you chose, may my lips never let pass the ungrateful attitude my thoughts yield.

In my sickness I will praise the Lord. In my travels I will praise the Lord. If I don’t know what that means, I pray for the Lord to reveal to me what he wants to. The reasons we are to be slow to anger and slow to speak are that those pauses are where God interjects like a gentleman. Most ladies I know don’t think gentlemen exist anymore with the way most men talk.  Ladies, I will tell you that gentlemen still exist.  God, or whatever you want to call the higher power who had a son named Jesus, will give you the wisdom.

Be intentional this week. Tell those you are ministering to your heart. But don’t tell it to them like you are talking to the “unsaved” but tell it to them like you are talking to Gods’ creation. Are you the one to hold the sin between you and your “unsaved” friends? In joy be intentional, maybe then the authority you have been owning will step down to make room for God to work. That sentence is a bit misguided, “making room for God to work” is like a child clearing  place amongst their toys for the adult to sit, to watch them play with their toys.

Oh, thank you Vivaldi. Soundtrack my ψαλμοί without the harp. Back to editing.

done

a movie of my second after effects try. Sloppy edit, can’t get rid of the x, but in all, a big step in eventual production.

frame below..light en up steve. it’s just a light test on you.

Who is Critique

Praise the Lord. I wonder often who I look for for appreciation and self worth and compare that to whom I should actually be looking to for appreciation. My momma like my work, I know that. I know I am a child of God and because of that I don’t have to create “Great” work. That sounds too bold, but I believe it. So without the need for creating great work, why do i feel like there is a need? What is the value of Excellence.

God’s ownership in my life should set me in a joyful mood. But I think he displays his love to us through others and their words sometimes. I prayed this morning that my images would bring glory to God. And for a critique my editor today from the Wall Street Journal said to me, “It is hard to find photographers we can trust on deadline, thank you for letting us put our trust in your hands.” That blew me away. That, the four days shooting for the Times last week and a few other things, have made me become a bigger believer in the fact that the work that I do is actually, to put it humbly, good. But then the artist’s doubt sets in, like it always does, which makes the work more labor intensive, and creation happens again with refined skills learned from the previous shoot. Hmm. Then another critique.

done

Notes

Less than 4 weeks remains till my trip to China which includes Mongolia, with a possible India trip right after. A conversation tonight has led that trip further east to Europe for a tour d’cappriccio. I might literally fly around the world. Kind of a big thought with all that is in front of me; bills 4 times more than I actually have in my account, the list could go on but in my mind it stops with bills. How will I capture audio?

Last week I had the shoot that i am most proud of in my life for the New York Times. It was a three day shoot on the pro life movement starting with a protest in front of a planned parenthood. Think what you may about those people who stand out on corners with graphic images of aborted babies, I now have an appreciation for what they do and the strong convictions they live by.

Every time I turn in photographic work (especially to the ny times even after 24 shoots) i feel like I am in a situation where I just said I love you for the first time to a pretty girl. I wait for her rejection and when it doesn’t come (in the form of an editors negative critiques) a huge step is taken in the direction of confidence. Not confidence in who I am as a photographer but in the natural feelings I have to photograph what I think I should when I am in photographic situations. “You did fantastic work” is what my editor said. I praise the Lord for this. The Wall Street Journal editor used “Superb” instead. So it is a great week.

I want most of you to know, that my life is amazing because of Jesus. That might go over your head or you might just want to discount it.  But everything I have is from him. I trust him and I believe he trusts me and loves me and is equipping me to do his work.

With all the great in my life, I trust God, with all the “bad” in my life, I trust God. Bad just means it isn’t going as I planned but is humbling me into a mentality of acknowledging a need for a savior. There is a lot in my life that is not going as planned. Most of it in fact. I am sad to say that a friend I have had a brother in similar circumstances who was going through a tough time in his life. Lost his house, his wife divorced him and he chose to end his life.  I am now praying more than ever for all who read this to understand that God gives you purpose because he has purpose for you. God has work for you. That is why you are still breathing.

I laid out all my gear to inventory it, I need to be purchasing a few pieces soon. Had a couple come check out my house midday today. They might rent my place. I have no plans to go anywhere. This all means something.. And my life goes on.

You can live in optimism with reality around the corner, and continue in your dream. If you dream in pessimism and reality and neither can pay rent, it is now that acknowledging that God was there they whole time will make you feel like a fool.

Damien, a writer for the New York Times, holds a white board while my photo subject holds a photograph she took of an aborted baby. Make Shift photo studio at it's best. Monica Miller is an advocate for pro life and has done amazing photography for the past 10 years. (Thank you bounce flash and Mr. Greg Cooper for light class for great portraits, the article runs sometime later this week)

Looking for room mate or renter

Roommate would share house with me, 500 a month, and I am gone a lot.

Renter would pay 950. thanks. please email me at stephenmcgee@mac.com

stephen

my friend kaufman and another emmy

So my friend Brian Kaufman won another emmy. Sounds easy as my newspaper now holds more emmys than any other newspaper in the world. 4 years running. i am so stoked for him. I am very proud of him. I pray for god in his life often.
Working with Kaufman during the last project we won an emmy for was the best part of it. In my opinion he is one of the best editors and video shooters in the USA. In early 2005, while I was still at Brooks, I had just come back from Vietnam after documenting the return of war photographer Nick Ut for the 30th Anniversary of the Fall of Saigon when the subject of Ut’s image, Kim Phuc, called me to ask me to document her going to Uganda. I knew the story of her going to an orphanage and burn center in Uganda was going to be a challenge to document thoroughly in two mediums. I talked to Kaufman after that call about possibly teaming up with me on this story. After one more call to secure this trip I yelled across the south lawn at Brooks, ” Hey Kaufman, we’re going to Uganda”. And he was in.
After I got a job straight out of Brooks at the Detroit Free Press, Kaufman graduated and got a job at Naples Daily News. A few months after documenting wealthy people, turtle races and storms he traded beaches for bums and moved to Detroit. I think he moved up to Detroit to work at the paper because he missed his good old friend Steve.
So after working next to Kaufman for 4 years, sitting next to him at the Emmys was an amazing mark on our professional careers and our friendship. I had my hand on his shoulder as they were opening up the envelop (ready to consul him in our loss sorry to say, ready to say, “Don’t worry, we will be back again”). When they announced, “Freep.com for RESPECT” I stated loudly, “Shut up bro, we won” at which many people turned around startled. Then we walked to the stage.

Simple

Persevere. Simple. Wait until the Lord works. Simple. I have had a lot taken away from me and I have not been angry at the Lord, in fact I have praised God for it. Not because of what I have done, but because of who God is I am now going to Mongolia and China. God provides. Just wait.

Americana

After traveling much of the world I had a hard time for awhile explaining positively what American culture was, explaining that every other culture has a rich tradition in some sense or cuisine or whatever. In America, I am a Scottish German, outside of America, I am an American, then I watched a Ken Burns doc. I realized that with Baseball, Jazz, Rock and Roll, the National Parks and Freedom not only being key elements to our culture but also our inventions, I thought, hey, that aint bad.