All posts in “inspiration”

We’re all shocked. Of course there are those that say they knew this was coming but at the very core of things, we’re shocked. I got the news as I was driving home as my great friend David (@tricon) texted me over our super secret, hush-hush, can’t talk about it, beta software. I literally did a double take and then the feeling of dread hit. Almost that feeling you get when someone tells you someone just died. I got home, read his letter and got a little teary eyed.

I know Steve has been a massive inspiration in my life and I know he’s inspired David as well. His attitude, his swagger, the way he got stuff done, his writing style, it all inspired me to keep on trucking with my passions and one day I’ll be the success I’ve always wanted to be. He was the epitome of a passionate person. I feel like a little bit of Steve Jobs’ is in every single Apple product that’s made. Sure call me a fanboy or some obsessed Apple junkie but it’s so much more than that. It’s an appreciation for a company that has never led me astray, it’s a love for a company and a man who created insanely functional products that not only looked amazing but worked with ease and little to no effort.

One of the most inspiring things about Steve was how good he was at forward thinking. It’s my goal to be at least 1/10th as good of a forward thinker as he is someday. The fact that this all seems like it’s already been planned internally and the dance is just now coming to the end but it was orchestrated perfectly. My hat goes off to you Steve.

Tim Cook? I’m excited to see what he’ll be bringing to the table. I for one think he’ll do an amazing job steering the U.S.S. Apple and keeping it on the pace and road that it’s on. Tim, though not the visionary that Steve is will and should do a great job at the wheel. Only time will tell.

Steve, you’ll be missed. I’m hoping that your as healthy as you can possibly be and I wish you all the luck for the future. We’ll all be missing you a ton at the keynotes and other events. We take from this your inspiring passion, forward thinking and dedication. We can all learn a lot from you and I know I have and will continue to do so.

I leave you with this quote from Steve:

Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful… that’s what matters to me.

[The Wall Street Journal, May 25, 1993]

I’m doing best to blog or share something on my blog every single day. I want you to do the same. Not forever but maybe for a week or two? I hear so many people talk about how they wish they could blog more. My response is always “well why don’t you?”. It always starts out with making a little time for yourself. I keep a notebook that I’m always jotting ideas down in. That way if I sit down to write and I run into a brain freeze I can open my notebook and choose from a few topics.

Sure there are some posts of mine that are 100% geared towards the audience. Take this one for example. It’s for you. It’s to encourage you. But most of my posts serve as a place mark for something that was going on in my life at the time. So who is my audience? First and foremost, me. If I just so happen to gain a few readers that appreciate what I’m writing about then that is the cherry on top of this blog sundae.

Back to it though. My good friend David Fendley(@tricon) gets a daily reminder from myself to blog. I simply ask “hey have you blogged today?”. Sure I could check his blog and see if he has or not but I find the question often times elicits a response from him that’s much better than any I could get by checking his feed in Google Reader. Often we have a conversation about sharing information and blogging and hopefully one of us takes that and writes something.

So I’m here. Calling you out. Write something everyday or at least share something with friends. It’ll develop a great habit and you’ll be a better person for it.

I’m cruising Vimeo the other day and decided to do a search for barista’s and see what comes up. The first video I come across is one done by The D4D and it’s a three part series on coffee filmed at Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea in Venice, California. After watching all three videos I’ve got to say that these guys have some real passion towards their chosen craft: the perfect cup of coffee or tea. You can hear it in the way they talk, in the way they work, their equipment, the website for the shop, etc. Everything down to the smallest bit is carefully crafted and thought through before the trigger is ever pulled. I myself can’t do their passion justice by talking about it so I’m just going to end it here and let you watch the videos and see for yourself.

Espresso @ Intelligentsia 1 of 3

Syphon @ Intelligentsia 2 of 3

Cappuccino @ Intelligentsia 3 of 3

photo courtesy of: Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea (link)

Who? Char Stone

Where? Bristol, UK
What? Photographer
Age: 20
Experience: 2 years FdA in Professional Photography, various freelance clients such as Zara, Cabot Circus, AMG Records, Frontline Style.
Accolades: Published twice in Digital Photographer April & August
Equipment: I use a Nikon D300 with primes lenses – 30mm 1.4 and a 50mm 1.8 along with Bowens 400′s lighting kit for studio & location.
Musical Tastes: My all time favourite band is finnish band HIM which is from my teenage “goth” years. Florence + the machine, Ladyhawke, Vampire Weekend – I like most things.

JL: Who or what inspires you?
CS: In photographic terms, the photographers that inspire me would be Richard Avedon & Tim Walker, because they have this fantastic simplistic beauty in every single image.

In terms of what inspires me, it can honestly be anything and everything. It can be a colour, shape in the street to something just popping into my imagination or my dreams, but usually it’s magazine spreads, blogs, adverts, music videos.

JL: What is your process? From initial thoughts to final production?
CS: I have a sketchbook where I have drawings of ideas, scribbles of light diagrams & stick people so any inspiration or ideas always gets jotted down in there, I carry it with me most of the time. From there, I keep re-drawing it and altering it until I have a ‘final’ vision of what I want the end result to be like.

With model shoots, I’m always in contact with the team involved with a concept so that we all have an idea of what the shoot concept is.

On the shoot, I’ll bring the sketches in with added details to show and explain to everyone – explain being a huge part as my drawings clearly show why I’m a photographer, and not an artist!

JL: How would you like to inspire others?
CS: I’d like to be able inspire people by just persisting with what they enjoy. I never thought I’d be able to establish myself in photography with a career but hard work really does pay off, and perhaps inspire people by just having a simplistic style of work, that isn’t boring but doesn’t overwhelm you.

JL: What is it about your chosen field that you love so much?
CS: I would say portrait is my chosen field, because I love the diversity & endless creativity in them. Each person I photograph is different, in terms of personality to physical appearance to how they respond behind the camera. With every shoot it’s always sure to be different & that’s so refreshing.

JL: Where do you see yourself 7 years from now?
CS: In 7 years time, I’ll be 27 so ideally I’d love to either have my own business or be working within the photographic industry – I’d love to do fashion spreads in a dream world, but marketing & advertising would be fantastic too. My dream is to live & work in New York City, so thats a huge aim!

JL: Would you rather be the subject or have someone or something else be the subject? Why?
CS: I only really like being behind the camera when it’s a self portrait, because I’m in control of everything and I can just jump back and re-shoot if I don’t like something. I don’t think I’d fair too well as a model for another photographer because I’d be too nosy and picky!

JL: How important are the little things to you in life and in your photography?
CS: The little things do mean a lot to me and my photography – My family & friends are so supportive and encouraging, thats one of the main reasons I’m so self motivated, the criticism they give me helps me improve and it’s invaluable to me.

I think being happy in who you are really plays a huge part – it gives you that kick to make you inspired and the drive to do well, which is priceless.

Links: flickr & website & @charloustone

Note: 7 Questions is an ongoing series of interviews I’m doing with people I find inspiring. Hopefully you’ll be able to gain some insight into some of the web’s most inspiring people.