Powerful Pictures - By Eric Neitzel

Powerful Pictures - By Eric Neitzel Powerful Pictures represents finding the beauty in the world through my camera. Landscapes, people, events, places...the subject can be anything.

Over the years I have been fortunate enough to have a camera in my hand from the time I was a child. I have had the pleasure of taking pictures of some of the most beautiful places on earth, and even better some of the most interesting people on earth. My challenge has always been that I had so many different project and types of pictures I was doing all at once to focus it all in one place. I sta

rted off on the personal website side for my images with TiggerLovesYou.Com for my rave photography just over 10 years ago, but that was limited to just pictures of friends at events. Powerful Pictures is meant is meant to be a singular place that brings every aspect of my photography together. Older pictures, newer pictures, landscape photography, event photography, portrait photography, photojournalism, engagement photography, wedding photography...if you can think it, I can probably do it with a camera. One of my ideals is that there is beauty in the world in everything if you know where to look to find it. Over the years I have made it my mission to try to create powerful, moving images that not only capture a moment in time, but also images that tell a story...especially about people. The kind of images that video just could not ever showcase the special nature of my vision for what I see though my camera. I spend all of my free time chasing light. We always joke that if you ever are with me and can't find me, you know that you will always find me chasing sunset with my camera where ever we are. I hope to be able to interact with all of you and help in your own photo journey if you ever need it. Please don't ever be shy about wondering how I got a picture, what my settings were or anything of the technical nature. No two pictures will ever be exactly the same, and I would be more than happy to help others expand their photography just like others did for me all along the way. To me, Powerful Pictures is about putting a name and organizing what I love the most, my photography, helping people, and making a difference in the world. So after reading all of that, you know what people's main question to me still is all the time? They want to know if I am available to do pictures for them. The answer is YES! I do have a full time amazing job that I need to work around, but I love travel and I can work in almost any environment. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you are in need of a photographer, I can work with any budget and make sure you have amazing images that will last a lifetime. I would rather work with you on an individual basis to try and make things work for you financially and have you go home with amazing pictures than to hope it works out with someone you don't know. And if it doesn't work for you? If you are not a fan of my photography? I have no problem with that either...what one person might like, someone else might not. In the end, you should be COMPLETELY happy with images that you pay for from a photographer. A little about my photography background for those interested:

My first camera I ever used was a Canon AE-1. I took it without my dad's permission to elementary school and took pictures without knowing what I was doing. It was a film camera and I had it on manual all day, just hoping pictures came out. Honestly to this day I still love some of those pictures the most. I took photography classes throughout regular school, and even some junior college. I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Journalism from Brooks Institute of Photography. I was awarded the first year student journalism award, Top 20 Year in Pictures as chosen by an editor from the New York Times, and I graduated with Departmental Honors. I have had my work published in almost every major publication you can imagine. I was a staff pool shooter during the Michael Jackson trial, so you could find my work on anything from the front page of USA Today or a two page spread in Time Magazine. I have worked with hundreds of very well known celebrities at red carpet events, along with assignments including the opportunity to be the official photographer for the Grammy Foundation. Besides news, I also specialized in shooting sports during and after graduating school. I shot for UCSB and CollegeSports.Com for almost 4 years with almost every sport you could imagine, indoors and out. I also worked with the Tracy Press, covering everything from weekly bingo nights to being the first on scene for a levee break that flooded the San Joaquin Delta for 3 days. I used to joke that I have walked through floods and fires and I have the pictures to prove it. Since the days of the downfall of print media like newspapers, I turned my love of photography into my hobby and also my passion. If you have ever met me you know that whatever project or goal I accomplished just yesterday last may have been AMAZING, but to me that just means that next time should be even better. I spent over half a decade running my own rave photography website, TiggerLovesYou.Com which I formed in 2004. At first its purpose was only so that my friends had a place to find the pictures I took of them on the weekends. TiggerLovesYou soon blossomed into a website that at it's height in 2008 was bringing in 4 million page views a month, and had a staff of almost 10 photographers along the West Coast, and all of us did it for free, just for the love of what we were doing. We were there to capture the amazing nature of what the underground rave scene was like back then was a small, nothing like today's mainstream Electronic Dance Festivals. The website supported itself from the small amounts of outside advertising that was a part of the site itself. So to recap: Wire service photographer, sports photographer, event photographer, red carpet photographer, portrait photographer, landscape photographer, some would even say a Disneyland and Yosemite photographer. Where does this all lead? To be completely honest, I feel like all of these experiences have led up to this very point in my photography. You're having a wedding? Lets talk about location and beautiful natural lighting. Want someone to take engagement pictures at Disneyland with 50,000 people in the park? I can make it look like you have the park all to yourself. Do you just want beautiful landscape pictures for your living room? I can totally take care of that. Are you or someone you love into sports and need someone who has covered San Francisco Giants games to tell a little league story? THAT is what I am here for. To tell everyone' story. Not just the rich, not just the famous. Not to be famous myself, but to bring a voice to every person I meet. I won't be around forever, and I would like to leave this world a better place when I am gone, and I can do that perfectly through my photography. Remember, life is to short to be normal. I truly look forward to being able to share my vision of just how beautiful our fragile little world and all the people I meet with all of you. Thanks for taking the time to check out my page and work...please don't hesitate to start discussions or ask questions.

A little better perspective on what it was like during flood conditions yesterday in Yosemite. This in front is Northsid...
02/09/2017

A little better perspective on what it was like during flood conditions yesterday in Yosemite.

This in front is Northside Drive traveling East away from the Valley Store. Indian Creek and the Royal Arch Cascade which are usually only spring time waterfalls were running triple what I had ever seen off to the left. They had flooded the meadow and made a river over the road going down into the main Merced River. The road was passable but you really needed to be careful. Flows like this can take out the material beneath a roadway and undermine the road itself.

I wouldn't try this if you don't know what you're doing, I went to school for it and I have covered more than my share of floods. My Brooks friends will remember that our school even was under two feet of water once, so this kind of thing comes natural to me. I watch the gauges on the river hight and know when to take pictures and know when it's not safe and to get the heck out of there. 😇

By the way the 120 and 140 are still closed because the Merced River was above flood stage for a good portion of the night...while you can get into the park on Highway 41, I would highly suggest against it. 😉

See everyone at Horsetail Falls. (It was awesome yesterday, just no sunset.) 🌅

My apologies for the gap in posting...Yesterday I took a last minute trip to Yosemite, just so I could shoot for a hour ...
12/18/2016

My apologies for the gap in posting...

Yesterday I took a last minute trip to Yosemite, just so I could shoot for a hour or two. There were three conditions that usually don't all exist at the same time so I decided to see what I could do with the scene.

The three conditions were: There was an amazing amount of water in the river and going over the falls (more than spring runoff), it was the middle of December, and there was basically no snow in the Yosemite Valley or on the way. This all due to the storm that came through Thursday, and closed the park roads due to flooding till Friday morning.

Because I left at noon and only wanted to get a few shots I decided to drive a little farther and take the easier way into the park on the 140. (If I take the 120 I am 86 miles away but it's a harder drive, the 140 adds 20-30 miles but is a much easier drive and takes the same amount of time.)

Due to the fact that I was only going to have a hour or so of usable daylight and there were no clouds in the sky I needed to think of a different way to show the water flow in the park without just taking the standard shot of Yosemite Falls or Tunnel View. Because the conditions were just right I decided to quickly hike up to the Vernal Falls Footbridge, less than a mile and only 800 feet in elevation. During the spring the same hike is VERY difficult to even get to the footbridge because snow has accumulated over the winter and you are trying to get past patches of the trail that go upward and are iced over.

Being careful where I walked with the temperature being just below freezing I made it to the Vernal Falls Footbridge just before sunset...I wasn't interested in the sunset itself for once, but the water flow in the river and the falls. I walked a bit past the footbridge and finally got to see the trail closed sign where they close the Mist Trail for the season due to ice, so I turned around and was able to snap off three long exposure shots of the water flow before I felt it was getting too dark to get back down safely.

The first picture is what I ended up with after I was able to edit it when I got home. The rest of the pictures are just iPhone pictures of the trip itself. I just thought you might want a little insight into how I go about planning out my shots ahead of time to give myself multiple opportunities when I am actually there, creating images. Feel free to leave comments or questions and let me know if you want to see more posts like this with the story behind the picture and I will be more than happy to oblige. 😊

I knew it would be cold..

Every year Glacier Point Road closes for the winter after the first big snowfall, and does not reopen till late spring a...
04/21/2016

Every year Glacier Point Road closes for the winter after the first big snowfall, and does not reopen till late spring after they can clear the road. From the Yosemite Valley floor to Glacier Point its almost a 4000 foot difference. I saw they had opened the road on the 19th, and I was on my way a hour later...these pictures are just from my iPhone, so you get a peek at what it was like. Expect more to come from the real camera.

Any of my fellow Yosemite lovers, Glacier Point Road opened officially for the season yesterday, April 19th. I drove up ...
04/20/2016

Any of my fellow Yosemite lovers, Glacier Point Road opened officially for the season yesterday, April 19th. I drove up last minute and basically had the whole road to myself. Long enough to stop and grab this picture of my Jeep in the middle of the road. Expect to see some interesting pictures of Glacier Point with no one there in the next few days. (And now you know if that's me driving in front of you!)

Remember, just about anywhere can end up being a great portrait spot. It doesn't always have to be a beach or a backyard...
04/15/2016

Remember, just about anywhere can end up being a great portrait spot. It doesn't always have to be a beach or a backyard! What do you guys think makes an interesting background?

Erin and Ryan's engagement photo shoot at Disneyland.
04/13/2016

Erin and Ryan's engagement photo shoot at Disneyland.

A bit challenging with the weather and 50,000 people, but I love how they turned out.

I am lucky enough to live just over 2 hours away from one of the greatest spots on earth, Yosemite. More to come but a f...
04/13/2016

I am lucky enough to live just over 2 hours away from one of the greatest spots on earth, Yosemite. More to come but a few recent ones for now, mostly from the last few months.

And to think, I wasn't even the photographer, I just decided last minute to run home and grab my camera for the party af...
04/13/2016

And to think, I wasn't even the photographer, I just decided last minute to run home and grab my camera for the party afterwards. Here are a few selects from the amazing evening.

04/13/2016

Gotta start somewhere, right? I am currently working on my new website, Powerful.Pictures and at least on Facebook this will be the face of my new website. People know my photography for so many different things...nightlife/rave photography, photojournalism, landscape photography and even portraits. I plan to use Powerful Pictures to bring it all together in one single place from now on. Be it a quick trip for myself to Yosemite, or an engagement shoot like the ones from Disneyland for Erin everything can be in one place. Its just a start, so any suggestions or ideas would be much appreciated...many of you that will read this first know me and my photography very well, so I value your opinions very much.

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