benhider.com/blog

I can’t explain why I want this cardigan…. but I do.

Go HERE to buy a shirt and help my friend Mattie No Times pay for his new liver. I got mine about 3 days after I paid for it. (Or just make a donation!)

I always carry my camera outside of my bag, around my neck, as I don’t have a case that will fit 2 bodies, 2 lenses and all the additional doo-dads. This sometimes means that when I come out onto the street I get called a Papparazzo and asked to take peoples pictures. It just happened in the lift of the New York Pulic Library (where there’s fast and free public wifi but also a good handful of loonies… this gentleman not included).

Since ’tis the season I thought I’d post some drink driving commercials from across the pond. It’s been a while since I even had a drink and even longer since I thought I could get away with driving after a couple. It amazes me when I drive late at night how obvious it is who’s been drinking on the roads. A few months ago we were driving on the BQE and this guy did a 720 spin right in front of us, missing all vehicles and barriers, and just pulled away like nothing had happened.

And Kids… DON’T DO CRACK!

I might start believing if he dropped off some of these on December 24th. Every year I try and ‘cancel’ Christmas, which may seem like a Scrooge move but really it’s because of all the stress that comes with the holiday. I’m not religious and don’t celebrate Eid ul-Fitr, Kwanzaa or Hanukkah but every year feel the need to celebrate the birth of Jesus by going out and buying junk for people when I don’t even know what that they want. Wouldn’t it be better if we put as much effort into the ‘family’ as we do into christmas. If there were children around, like my nephews, I would be much more excited about December 25th. I also like Christmas cards and the impetus to reach out to old friends so I happily partake in that ritual. Bahhh-humbug.

I went through my pile of business cards and decided which ones are worth filing and which ones are not. I came across a few that amused me when I was first handed them. I don’t claim to have the best business card, but think I’ve narrowed it down to the essentials and they don’t cost me a fortune to print. If I could spend $200 on 500 business cards I would order my cards from BrooklynSocialCards.com. They do some first-class looking letterpress cards. Does a fantastic business card help your business, or is it more the case that a bad business card is detrimental? As long as the card stock isn’t too thin and there is enough information to get hold of the person immediately then that’s all is REALLY needed!

This first card gave me the impression that she was either desperate for any kind of employment, really full of herself or incredibly talented and had to be employed NOW! I met her assisting some photographers as a card runner during fashion week.

These small business cards seem to be in fashion right now. They include a variety of images on the back so each card you give out can be unique. I’ve found that they are the kind of card that’s lost really easily and hard to file. Do people really hold onto business cards or do they take them home and enter the information into their address books and throw them away? (Moo Cards)

This fashion designer had bedazzled his card which kind of makes sense if you knew his tie-dye pop clothing but doesn’t help with storing his card.

This last card is for a PR person who should probably buy a real domain name and write these inspirational messages on their fridge so when they eat their breakfast they can get the boost they so badly need.

If only they had Indiana Jones Lego! Or even just add on turbans, whips or hats for my generic lego!!

In photojournalist terms I am very new to this industry but have been amazed over the past 6 months how nice people have been to me. I’ve secretly put in some years behind the scenes at the desk of wireimage, but nothing to compared to most. I hardly knew A.J., but had certainly met him, worked alongside him many times over the summer and exchange jokes about the job.

By Daryl Lang, Photo District News

Nov 3, 2009, 02:44 PM ET

Celebrity shooter A.J. Sokalner, admired by his colleagues for his quiet, passionate commitment to photography, collapsed Monday night outside an event in New York and died a short time later, according to his agency.

Sokalner was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital, said Philip Vaughan, owner of ACE Pictures. Vaughan said an emergency worker told him Sokalner had suffered a heart attack.

Sokalner collapsed minutes after entertainer Lady Gaga arrived at the ACE Awards, an event hosted by the Accessories Council at Cipriani on 42nd Street. He was part of a group of about 25 photographers working a rope line outside the venue, according to friend and fellow photographer Dennis Van Tine.

Gaga was the big star of the night, and photographers waited inside and outside the venue for her arrival at about 9 p.m. Van Tine was inside when he heard from another photographer that Sokalner had fallen outside. Van Tine says he went out and saw paramedics attempt to revive Sokalner for several minutes, then load him into an ambulance. Another photographer notified Sokalner’s girlfriend. She and several photographers gathered at the hospital, where they learned Sokalner had died.

Sokalner was in his late 50s and lived in Manhattan. Vaughan says Sokalner was a hard worker who shot for ACE Pictures on a daily basis. “He was very well liked, he was very well respected,” Vaughan says. “He was a real photographer and he did it because he loved it.”

Van Tine says Sokalner studied the works of great photographers and tried to inject “pizazz” into his images, and was “one of those silent guys who goes out and shoots every day.”

“He was a cynic in the great New York tradition,” Van Tine says. “He knew what was right, he knew what was wrong, he knew who the crooks were.”

Whenever I google my name to try and see what images of mine exist in the world I get this Intelius website. It’s pretty scary to think that for $40 anyone can find anything out about me. (…and yes, I google my name fairly often and I’m not ashamed to admit this!)

I own far too many jackets from my years working in outdoor retail. It also means I can’t spend full price on items like these awesome arc’teryx jackets, especially when they cost $800!!! That doesn’t mean I can’t window shop.

I have always wanted to spend time in Japan, for many reasons, especially because of gadgets like the Bowlingual Dog Translator. Realistically I just want a zany soundtrack (from the video) to start playing when crazy things happen.

Sometimes I wonder if people have too much time on their hands. Or question the need for another sport to be invented. I even try to imagine what it would be like if they crossed badminton with Formula 1.

I was warned away from petting him as the owner told me that he’s prone to biting people. She then continued to tuck him into her purse and hold him back as she mingled with the crowd at the Hudson Terrace. At least he’s dressed for the occasion even if he doesn’t have sufficient manners!