Benefactor Expedition
"No player ever rises to prominence solely on talent. They're molded by forces
other than themselves. They should remember this." – Gary Cooper
"No player ever rises to prominence solely on talent. They're molded by forces
other than themselves. They should remember this." – Gary Cooper
The final element, so to speak, in my Artist's Statement of earlier, would be the successful acquisition of an enlightened benefactor. One who would enable the greater true potential of MotionPictures LLC — an artist anxiously waiting for his life's commission. I have to believe this is what my life has been leading to …
It has been noted by the incomparable author of inspirational 'works,' Joyce Meyer, " …
sometimes God chooses ordinary people to do extraordinary things." As a matter of personal belief, we all have a 'something special — a true purpose that has been a part of our being since even before our birth. an opportunity and the possibility to achieve extraordinary things! Some of us are absolutely driven by this pursuit, but also realize that we are in need of others to fully realize our true potential.
I certainly had no idea what changes my life would take the day I ordered my first camcorder: an 8mm model, purchased 20 years ago now, in the spring of 1987. I was just finishing up my associate's degree in robotics (electromechanical technology) at the age of 29. I ended up qualifying for an automated-systems technician for a great company here in Racine, Wisconsin: the In-Sink-Erator division of the Emerson Electric Company. I have gratefully acknowledged In-Sink-Erator as the honorary sponsor of "Inspirational Wisconsin," for what they have enabled in my own life.
It was with the merging, however, of some of my favorite pleasures: photography, travel & exploration, mountain hiking and, most definitely, ‘filmmaking’ that my life’s focus began to change. Over the next 10 years, my career interests began to shift from the left-brain mechanics of my technical position, to the more stimulating (for myself, anyways) creative right side. This creative shift was made possible through my disciplined interest and dedication to the emerging field of independent desktop video production.
I suppose I can summarize my prized ambition in this field of video production as a determination for acquiring the ever-elusive perfect scenic shot: an attempt to bring to the viewers’ experience the palette of cinematic topographies that I have so passionately come to explore on the trails, as well as trials, of some pretty demanding stock-footage expeditions here in Wisconsin, and certainly in the mountains of the western United States.
The most interesting and ambitious technique, in my opinion, to accomplish this so-called perfect shot is to incorporate a ‘film-style’ technique involving the use of a moveable camera — an attempt to capture a more experiential cinematic experience of the varied landscapes that I have attempted to document, in what I believe to be the absolute most interesting way possible.
This attempt at filming these beautiful landscapes, and especially the hiking-trails throughout, seem to have become so much of who I am today. These wilderness experiences of mine may best be summed up by the words of the late Aldo Leopold, one of the most influential figures in the American Conservation movement and Wisconsin’s premier environmentalist, who once wrote: “There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot. These essays are the delights and dilemmas of one who cannot.” Include me also as “one who cannot.”
By 1990, after many less-than-fruitful attempts at establishing my own technique for walking these trails — while recording with camera in hand — I became quite interested in the development of a new acquisition tool by an amazing inventor named Garrett Brown. The “Father of the Steadicam™,” as he is known, had just patented a hand-held production tool for the “prosumer” video market to approximate the amazingly smooth shots possible courtesy of his now-legendary Academy Award–winning, and quite pricey, body apparatus: the original Steadicam™.
I was probably one of the first to purchase this scaled-down Steadicam™, the Steadicam™ JR, in the spring of ‘91. A defining time in my personal and professional life had now occurred! This production tool single-handedly changed my career path and my life’s focus. I became determined to perfect an image-stabilization technique with the JR’s amazing ability as I would hike the terrain of the varied and oftentimes-demanding scenic trails. Shortly thereafter, I decided I would attempt to self-produce a completely new style (genre, if you will) of scenic video production. I would have never imagined, however, how long it would take for my first scenic release to come to fruition!
A sidebar of information is in order here. Almost all scenic cinematographers acquire their specialized, and usually quite beautiful, stock footage using the versatile (yet static) 3-legged tripod. This tried-and-true production tool offers the ultimate in stability (and usually, immobility) of the attached camera. Quite the contrary, MotionPictures employs the use of the Steadicam™SK or the Steadicam™JR device. I have found that this filming technique engages the viewer far more effectively, to a sense of participation in the beautiful landscapes that encompass a MotionPictures expedition. To free the camera from the tripod’s normally static third dimension, and to enter the perspective of the filmed post-card like scenics, for a more visually dramatic. . .‘illusion of depth.’
When the very best of the best of this cinematography is artistically choreographed (there goes that right-brain stuff again!) to a compelling soundtrack, such as the soundtrack provided in “Inspirational Wisconsin,” the experience may even be described as “mesmerizing.”
I believe my inspirational work to be some of the very first scenic work, period, to incorporate this more difficult style of acquisition, which I have termed: scenic-motion-cinematography. I truly believe that my “Inspirational Wisconsin” DVD beholds some of the most uniquely beautiful scenic work ever of the beautiful State of Wisconsin. It is my upcoming Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park scenic works, however (also ten years in development), that to me will achieve near indescribability as artistic works!
In 2007, MotionPictures LLC, completed the initial stage of acquiring in the stunning visual clarity of the Hi-Definition (HD) video format. I plan to complete this transition to the HD format by the end of 2008. What a stunning visual experience that will be! I have an empowering faith, that the beautiful MotionPictures collection of finely composed, uniquely filmed, and elegantly produced landscapes may someday attain critical recognition as some of the most stunningly unique (and mesmerizing!) scenic footage in all of the North American Wilderness collection!
Consider this, then, to be my Declaration of Intent:
I, Joseph T. LaMartina, am ready to embark on perhaps the most important expedition of which I will ever partake: an expedition, of sorts, in search of a rightful benefactor. Whatever the form that special benefactor may take: individual benefactress (benefactor); a foundation; a business or corporate entity; or some other type of organizational entity. History is certainly replete with a myriad of incredibly diverse and creative partnerships. On the one hand, a visionary, who certainly lacked not of confidence nor ability … only in the resources at his available. In partnership created through the critical financial support of the equally important benefactor. Through this creative partnership, some of the most visually stunning, unique, and even mesmerizing scenic cinematography, may be just around the bend … on the trail ahead.
Through the empowering generosity of this benefactor, a vastly superior volume of scenic cinematography could certainly be achieved! Filmed from the unique perspective of one Joseph T. LaMartina, and the Steadicam™ stabilized technique of MotionPictures LLC. In the stunning clarity of Hi-Definition cinematography. The wild and sumptuous landscapes, unfolding step by step, as if the viewer were floating along… on the trail presented. In beautiful partnership with the finely choreographed and evocative soundtrack.
In partnership then, we may someday lay claim to that ever-elusive perfect shot!
TO WIN BIG, TOGETHER. . .on the trail ahead!! An opportunity for us to produce what may truly mesmerize and inspire… for generations to come. I have some seriously important, physically demanding, and extremely satisfying work ahead of me. Won’t you consider joining me on this truly spectacular journey!
It has been noted by the incomparable author of inspirational 'works,' Joyce Meyer, " …
sometimes God chooses ordinary people to do extraordinary things." As a matter of personal belief, we all have a 'something special — a true purpose that has been a part of our being since even before our birth. an opportunity and the possibility to achieve extraordinary things! Some of us are absolutely driven by this pursuit, but also realize that we are in need of others to fully realize our true potential.
I certainly had no idea what changes my life would take the day I ordered my first camcorder: an 8mm model, purchased 20 years ago now, in the spring of 1987. I was just finishing up my associate's degree in robotics (electromechanical technology) at the age of 29. I ended up qualifying for an automated-systems technician for a great company here in Racine, Wisconsin: the In-Sink-Erator division of the Emerson Electric Company. I have gratefully acknowledged In-Sink-Erator as the honorary sponsor of "Inspirational Wisconsin," for what they have enabled in my own life.
It was with the merging, however, of some of my favorite pleasures: photography, travel & exploration, mountain hiking and, most definitely, ‘filmmaking’ that my life’s focus began to change. Over the next 10 years, my career interests began to shift from the left-brain mechanics of my technical position, to the more stimulating (for myself, anyways) creative right side. This creative shift was made possible through my disciplined interest and dedication to the emerging field of independent desktop video production.
I suppose I can summarize my prized ambition in this field of video production as a determination for acquiring the ever-elusive perfect scenic shot: an attempt to bring to the viewers’ experience the palette of cinematic topographies that I have so passionately come to explore on the trails, as well as trials, of some pretty demanding stock-footage expeditions here in Wisconsin, and certainly in the mountains of the western United States.
The most interesting and ambitious technique, in my opinion, to accomplish this so-called perfect shot is to incorporate a ‘film-style’ technique involving the use of a moveable camera — an attempt to capture a more experiential cinematic experience of the varied landscapes that I have attempted to document, in what I believe to be the absolute most interesting way possible.
This attempt at filming these beautiful landscapes, and especially the hiking-trails throughout, seem to have become so much of who I am today. These wilderness experiences of mine may best be summed up by the words of the late Aldo Leopold, one of the most influential figures in the American Conservation movement and Wisconsin’s premier environmentalist, who once wrote: “There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot. These essays are the delights and dilemmas of one who cannot.” Include me also as “one who cannot.”
By 1990, after many less-than-fruitful attempts at establishing my own technique for walking these trails — while recording with camera in hand — I became quite interested in the development of a new acquisition tool by an amazing inventor named Garrett Brown. The “Father of the Steadicam™,” as he is known, had just patented a hand-held production tool for the “prosumer” video market to approximate the amazingly smooth shots possible courtesy of his now-legendary Academy Award–winning, and quite pricey, body apparatus: the original Steadicam™.
I was probably one of the first to purchase this scaled-down Steadicam™, the Steadicam™ JR, in the spring of ‘91. A defining time in my personal and professional life had now occurred! This production tool single-handedly changed my career path and my life’s focus. I became determined to perfect an image-stabilization technique with the JR’s amazing ability as I would hike the terrain of the varied and oftentimes-demanding scenic trails. Shortly thereafter, I decided I would attempt to self-produce a completely new style (genre, if you will) of scenic video production. I would have never imagined, however, how long it would take for my first scenic release to come to fruition!
A sidebar of information is in order here. Almost all scenic cinematographers acquire their specialized, and usually quite beautiful, stock footage using the versatile (yet static) 3-legged tripod. This tried-and-true production tool offers the ultimate in stability (and usually, immobility) of the attached camera. Quite the contrary, MotionPictures employs the use of the Steadicam™SK or the Steadicam™JR device. I have found that this filming technique engages the viewer far more effectively, to a sense of participation in the beautiful landscapes that encompass a MotionPictures expedition. To free the camera from the tripod’s normally static third dimension, and to enter the perspective of the filmed post-card like scenics, for a more visually dramatic. . .‘illusion of depth.’
When the very best of the best of this cinematography is artistically choreographed (there goes that right-brain stuff again!) to a compelling soundtrack, such as the soundtrack provided in “Inspirational Wisconsin,” the experience may even be described as “mesmerizing.”
I believe my inspirational work to be some of the very first scenic work, period, to incorporate this more difficult style of acquisition, which I have termed: scenic-motion-cinematography. I truly believe that my “Inspirational Wisconsin” DVD beholds some of the most uniquely beautiful scenic work ever of the beautiful State of Wisconsin. It is my upcoming Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park scenic works, however (also ten years in development), that to me will achieve near indescribability as artistic works!
In 2007, MotionPictures LLC, completed the initial stage of acquiring in the stunning visual clarity of the Hi-Definition (HD) video format. I plan to complete this transition to the HD format by the end of 2008. What a stunning visual experience that will be! I have an empowering faith, that the beautiful MotionPictures collection of finely composed, uniquely filmed, and elegantly produced landscapes may someday attain critical recognition as some of the most stunningly unique (and mesmerizing!) scenic footage in all of the North American Wilderness collection!
Consider this, then, to be my Declaration of Intent:
I, Joseph T. LaMartina, am ready to embark on perhaps the most important expedition of which I will ever partake: an expedition, of sorts, in search of a rightful benefactor. Whatever the form that special benefactor may take: individual benefactress (benefactor); a foundation; a business or corporate entity; or some other type of organizational entity. History is certainly replete with a myriad of incredibly diverse and creative partnerships. On the one hand, a visionary, who certainly lacked not of confidence nor ability … only in the resources at his available. In partnership created through the critical financial support of the equally important benefactor. Through this creative partnership, some of the most visually stunning, unique, and even mesmerizing scenic cinematography, may be just around the bend … on the trail ahead.
Through the empowering generosity of this benefactor, a vastly superior volume of scenic cinematography could certainly be achieved! Filmed from the unique perspective of one Joseph T. LaMartina, and the Steadicam™ stabilized technique of MotionPictures LLC. In the stunning clarity of Hi-Definition cinematography. The wild and sumptuous landscapes, unfolding step by step, as if the viewer were floating along… on the trail presented. In beautiful partnership with the finely choreographed and evocative soundtrack.
In partnership then, we may someday lay claim to that ever-elusive perfect shot!
TO WIN BIG, TOGETHER. . .on the trail ahead!! An opportunity for us to produce what may truly mesmerize and inspire… for generations to come. I have some seriously important, physically demanding, and extremely satisfying work ahead of me. Won’t you consider joining me on this truly spectacular journey!
MotionPictures LLC Presents:
A film by, Joseph T. LaMartina
in association with and funding provided by:____________________!
I HOPE YOU ARE ABLE TO COME ALONG WITH ME ON THIS
ARTISTIC, IMPORTANT & TRULY INSPIRING JOURNEY!
You know what they say about overnight success, sometimes it is ‘20' Years in the making!
(hint: I’ve been at it for almost 20 years now!!)
in association with and funding provided by:____________________!
I HOPE YOU ARE ABLE TO COME ALONG WITH ME ON THIS
ARTISTIC, IMPORTANT & TRULY INSPIRING JOURNEY!
You know what they say about overnight success, sometimes it is ‘20' Years in the making!
(hint: I’ve been at it for almost 20 years now!!)
