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Compass North had the opportunity to interview Cody Miller. The kind of pictures that Cody effortlessly captures are some of the most beautiful and astounding images that I have ever seen. I’ve been great friends with Cody and he deserves and immense amount of recognition and praise.

1. Tell me about yourself.

My name is Cody James Miller. I reside in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, which is about 45 minutes from Pittsburgh. I am currently enrolled as a liberal arts major at a local community college, but I plan on transferring in a year to seek a business/marketing degree. Some things I enjoy are playing music, traveling, and taking photographs.

2. How did you get started in photography?

I first picked up a camera about 2 years ago when my dad bought me a Minolta x700 film camera. I shot with that over the spring and summer. I basically just took pictures of random things, friends, and shows. When fall came, I purchased my first dSLR. Around January of 2011 is when I started taking photography a little more seriously. At that point I started putting more thought and effort into it. From there, I focused more on portraiture, which became my favorite genre of photography. I loved every part of this journey and I cannot wait to see where it leads.

3. What gear do you primarily use?

Digital

Canon 5D2

50mm 1.4

24-105L

Canon 430exii

Analog

Minolta x700

Pentax 645

Instax 210

4. Advice for other photographers?

Try new things. Not just with photography, but with life in general. A wise man once told me, “Don’t get stuck in the box.” Be open-minded to suggestions and always keep learning. Find other photographers and network with them. You will be amazed what you can learn from each other.

Cody’s work can be found on Facebook and Flickr.

Compass North caught up with the young and talented Sam Leathers! Sam is well-spoken and offers some great advice for aspiring photographers!

1. Tell me about yourself.

Hey everyone! My name’s Samuel Judge Leathers, and I’m a 17 year old Junior in high school. I exist in the suburban part of Memphis, Tennessee, near a mega-church and more than one frozen-yogurt shop. My weekend life revolves around the local music scene, playing drums in said music scene in a band called Narrator, and taking pictures. I’ve only been taking pictures for a year and 7 months, but it’s done more for me than anything else I’ve attempted since I got out of bed the first day of freshman year. I like to write, and my hair is going to recede before I’m old enough to accept it. Get to know me!

2. How did you get started in photography?

I got started taking pictures when, out of straight curiosity, I asked for a camera for my 16th birthday. I fell in love and I improved really quickly. Networking with a ton of talented, helpful photographers over the internet has actually been one of the best things. It’s helped me improve my work ten-fold. Meeting photographers like Zach Breaux, Noah Sahady, and Jordan Voth has inspired me as well.

3. What gear do you primarily use?

Canon 5D Mark II

50mm f/1.8 lens

35-80mm f/4-5.6 I found in the attic

Nikon SB600 Speedlight

Canon AE-1 film camera

28mm f/2.8 for the AE-1

4. Advice for other photographers?

I don’t feel as if I’m in the position to be giving others a ton of advice, but if I had to say something, make connections. Be kind to everyone, because they might end up being a potential client, or recommend you to someone else. Always try to improve too, never stay satisfied. You can always do better. Shoot what you want, and be confident!

Check out Sam on Flickr and Facebook!

We’re please to announce that Compass North is back and running!

This time around, we hope to bring you an even great amount of news pertaining to music, art and culture.

To meet our aspirations, we need YOUR help! Are YOU interested in contributing to Compass North? We need writers and contributors to work under Compass North! 

Listen to music? Doing something cool that you’d like everyone to know about? Contact us and become be apart of Compass North.

Email us @ Compnorth@gmail.com

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Eckhaus Art Gallery located in Kutztown Pennsylvania aims to emphasize and showcase culture within the community. Their mission is to “bring enrichment to the community, experience and knowledge to their students and volunteers, and commercial exposure to their artists”. This past Friday, September 16th, Eckhaus launched its’ debut exhibition for the 2011/12 year. The exhibition, entitled “We’re Still Fine”, curated by Eckhaus’ own and Kutztown University graduate Meghan Fridirici, features art done by Kutztown University alumni. Compass North had the opportunity to interview Meghan prior to the exhibitions premiere.

1. Briefly explain the exhibition. What can guests expect to see? The exhibition shows work from 34 Kutztown University Fine Arts Alumni that they have completed within the past year. Guests can expect to see a variety of mediums from photography and video to paintings and installations.

2. What was your motivation behind creating this exhibition? I wanted to inspire fine arts alumni to create new work to show and to give them a chance to show their most current work to fellow alumni and professors.

3. What are your hopes for exhibition? I hope to inspire and motivate current fine arts students to continue making work after graduation.  I have found with many of the participants that it doesn’t matter if they have a full time job in a non-art related field, they still have found time to pursue their art.
 

Kutztown University students are encouraged to visit the art space and check out this amazing, captivating artwork done by Kutztown University graduates.

Eckhaus can be found on Facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/eckhausgallery

Since Compass North’s establishment last August, Tyler Hill has been immensely interested in being a featured photographer on the site. It would be completely absurd to NOT feature this talented, young photographer, though. Tyler does much in the world of photography and cinematography, and succeeds in both realms.

1. Tell me about yourself.

My names Tyler Hill. I’m a predominantly a commercial and portraiture photographer. My hometown is a little suburb of Cleveland called Brecksville. I now reside in Kent, Ohio attending Kent State University for Photo-Illustration. I recently just started in videography and cinematography, and I’ve been working with a few local directors and producers just learning as much as I can. Music is another one of my passions, although I never could do anything with it. So I would shoot a lot of photography based around artists. I love what I’ve been doing lately with my life and it feels great.

2. How did you get started in photography.

I started shooting photos when I was 15. I had my mom’s point-and-shoot Kodak 5MP camera. I didn’t know anything about it, I just shot pictures of flowers around the house. I liked making the background “blurry” haha. At that time I didn’t understand the concept of depth of field. I then picked up a Pentax K1000 film camera and experimented with that. I talked to a few people that were in the high school photography classes just to get the basics of how to operate the camera basically, and to shoot a well exposed photo. So I just kept shooting off that info, experimenting and self-teaching. I realized that I was starting to fall in love with it. I wanted to shoot more and more, but with film it was a little more expensive, and being a teenager, I didn’t have the money to shoot film all the time. So I saved up some money, and bought a Canon Rebel XSi, great starting camera. I shot a lot of bands, portraits, and anything in between,  just trying to get as much as experience as I could. After a couple years, I started working as a second shooter wedding photographer, for a local company. The owner turned into my mentor, and he taught me everything he knew. I learned so much, from advanced camera build to how digital sensors operated. From there, I couldn’t stop haha. Now, I basically I am where I am now, except for a few other things, not worth mentioning.

 3. What gear do you primarily use?

Canon 5D MKII

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8

Canon EF 75-300 f/4-5.6

Canon EF 35 f/2

Sunpak Speedlight

Impact EX100A Strobes

Bowens 800w/s

Bowens 400w/s

 3. Advice for other photographers?

Learn as much as you can. You can never stop learning. Always ask questions, and try and do as much as possible. Strive to be the best you can be. You may not agree with other photographers, but they are your best friends.

Fallow Tyler on Flickr and Facebook @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/xxtmphoto/ & http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tyler-Hill-Photography/159344554087175

Compass North had the opportunity to interview two incredibly talented photographers. Jordan Voth and Noah Sahady recently completed a nationwide summer photo-road trip. The duo traveled coast to coast and captured stunning, remarkable, and beautiful images. Here, Jordan and Noah recapture their 2011 summer photo-trek.

1. Breifly tell us about your trip. What brought about the idea to travel around the country?

Jordan: We just completed a 2-month, 12,000+ mile road trip around the United States. The idea behind the trip was to meet and shoot with as many photographers as we could that we knew from Flickr, Facebook, etc. Along the way we met some photographers that we had never heard of as well, that was really cool. Setting a schedule and sticking to it is a lot harder than it sounds, especially a schedule around the U.S. This led to us not having as much time as we would like in some states which resulted in not meeting some photographer we had planned on meeting. I’ll let Noah elaborate on this more.

I was trying to plan a trip out to Pittsburgh to visit Noah but scheduling conflicts kept arising so that little trip kept getting pushed back to a later date. Noah had already planned on going on a road trip and when he brought that up one night I thought that would be way better than spending $400-500 on a plane ticket to PA for just 3-4 days. So we planned a solid chunk of the trip that night which was 7 months or so before the trip was said to start.

Noah: Jordan explained it pretty well, but I’ll elaborate in a bit more detail. During the trip, we were teaching workshops/mentor sessions and shooting to cover some of the costs that both our gas tank and stomachs brought about. We were so very fortunate to be able to network online with many, many photographers and friends prior to the trip, so there was only one night spent cuddling next to each other in the Grand Prix.

Again, Jordan said it well…I’ll elaborate again. I planned on taking a cross-country trip to spend time meeting awesome new faces, thinking about life, and most importantly, appreciating the simple beauty of the world around us. It was in a road trip that I wasn’t tied to any tedious school work or any other bland, wasteful “life experience” for that matter. During the same time my trip idea was brewing in my crazy mind, Jordan and I began talking online, mostly praising each others photo skills, but also getting to know one another. I can say one thing: I have never met someone more genuine and easy to get along with than Jordan. Our personalities clicked, and like Jordan mentioned before, we decided to ditch the small weekend trip and turn it into a 2 month long adventure. I’m confident in saying I’ve never made a better decision and am so thankful I was able to share that original trip idea with my new, soon-to-be best friend.

2. Coolest experience during the trip?

Jordan: I have to say that meeting each person/group of people that we planned on staying with was such a cool experience. You never really know someone until you meet them in person so it was awesome to finally put some personalities/voices/actions to the faces we knew from online. However, one of the most inspiring/humbling experiences was probably hanging out with Collin Hughes for a day. He’s been the photographer I look up to the most for quite some time so just getting to hang out with him for a day and share stories was awesome. It opened my eyes to a lot of new ideas and inspired me a way I have never been inspired before.

Noah: Oh, you mean that night we spent sleeping at a strippers house? …uhmmm…

That really happened, but we’ll digress. The coolest experience for me was definitely meeting each and every person and just seeing what the US has to offer. I love hearing people’s stories and ideals, as well as observing how they go about living…people watching is great! I couldn’t pick one particular experience that was the “coolest,” but like Jordan said, hanging out with Collin Hughes was definitely an inspiring/humbling event….probably one of the most inspiring/humbling events of my life.

3. What have you learned?

Jordan: I learned a lot related to photography but the most important lesson learned was to just try new things. I did a lot of things on this trip that I normally wouldn’t do when I’m home and looking back I’m really glad I did. I have Noah to thank for this most of all. I’ve always been an extremely shy individual (and I still am) but this trip has really brought me out my shell, so to speak.

Noah: I’ve learned that Florida people love to flake. JUST KIDDING…but not really. OH, and Jordan Voth does anything if you dare him enough.

In all seriousness, I learned a lot about photography and my own style, not necessarily from specific bits shared by other photographers, but more so from just experience and trial and error. I was able to try out a lot of things on this trip that I would not normally get to here in good ol’ Pittsburgh. I hope you sense my sarcasm of “good ol’ Pittsburgh”…

I also learned a lot about life and people in general. I won’t go into detail because I would talk for days. Instead, strike up a conversation with me.

4. Post an image captured during your trip that you are most happy with and explain why.

Jordan: This shot actually ended up being the 2nd to last shot I took on the entire trip before it officially ended. It’s really hard to say which I like most because I shot some of my best work on this trip but since I’m always in love with my most recent work, I would have to say that one. Doesn’t hurt that she was an amazing model as well! Freckles ftw!

Noah: This is really rough, being that I hate most of my work a week after posting it. If I had to pick one single image, it would probably be another one of Lindsay (she was a rad model and awesome person), so I’ll share another.

This shot was done with a manual Canon AE-1 and kodak portra. Nailing focus with that camera and movement is always a relief. Jenna was also an awesome model and super fun to work with. Being okay and still happy with this image also probably has to do with the fact that my heart truly resides in Cali, which is where this image was captured.

Please take the time to check out Jordan and Noah’s work!

http://jordanvoth.com & http://noahsahady.com

I had the opportunity to interview the young, talented and hilarious Jonathan Yacoub. If you know anything about photography, this dude doesn’t shoot with your average Kodak pocket-camera. If you know anything about great photographs, he’s constantly and effortless capturing stunning images with brilliance and creativity. 

1. Tell me about yourself.

My name is Jonathan Adel William Yacoub, but most people just call me Johnny. Some people call me Cobra in the Pants, but that’s a life to be left untold. I know, bad joke. Im 18 years of age, and I reside in the small town of Chino Hills in SoCal. I attend the University of California Riverside as a biology major but im hoping to transfer to UCLA after this year. One day I hope to be a dentist and wedding photographer. These things are all sort of an ultimate career goal, check me out in 6 years and see if I’ve made it? I like to think of myself as unique, but nowadays everybody thinks their unique. So, I guess I’m just Johnny. I’ll tell you what a Johnny consists of: photography, automobiles (I drive a STI), playing French horn, adventures, fine dining (taco bell), my homies, girlfriend, film production, race track days, watching movies, and just going to places and meeting new people. In high school, I was in band and ASB. I’m pretty damn friendly, or at least I like to think I am. I’ve just scratched the surface.

2. How did you get started in photography?

My friends and I think photography came about by an awkward underlying influence from my mom. My mother used to have an old-school SLR when I was a kid and she would always take pictures on vacations, trips to Disneyland, soccer games, and whatever else I did as a kid. Sometimes I just look back on those pictures and nostalgia hits me hard man.  My buddies used to collect a poop-load of cameras and they would always go shooting in canyons and stuff with polaroids and old range finders (hipster I know). We’d go to old thrift stores and see what cool junk we could for for cheap; we’d often find old equipment for pennies. I didn’t want a twin reflex, Polaroid, or rangefinder. I really wanted an old SLR camera. One day, I stumbled upon a camera bag with a 1984 Canon A1 SLR with a 28mm 1.8, 50mm 1.4, telephoto lens, and a tit load of filters. The entire set cost me nine dollars. No, you didn’t misread that and it certainly wasn’t a typo. Nine dollars. This all gave birth to my photography career. From there, I bought an XSI and got a job taking pictures of kids at a local YMCA. I saved up and got enough money to upgrade my equipment a year later.

3. What gear do you primarily use?

Two Canon 5D’s
Canon 7D
50 1.4
135L F/2
24-70L F/2.8
45mm Tilt Shift f/2.8
10-22mm F3.5/5.6

I’ve got a 35L F/1.4 on my wishlist. Oh mannnnn, give me another wedding or
two to afford that bad boy!

4. Advice for other photographers?

I don’t think of myself as a professional, so I wont say much here. The one thing
that really bugs me is when a photographer gets full of himself, cocky,
haughty, vain, egotistic, conceited, arrogant etc. People will tear your work apart, but know that this will only help you improve. Somewhere out there, I
can guarantee, there are hundreds of people much more talented than you. Never stop researching and never stop learning. Don’t be comfortable with
where you are. I know I have more things to say, but I don’t want to turn
this into a book (really, I could only probably go another few sentences).

5. Attach a photo that best represents your style and explain it.

These images best represent my style. I guess my only style is “lifestyle”. I capture things the way they present themselves, an everyday situation sort of. No crazy posing or anything of the sort. I shoot “by the rules”; I work symmetrically. Personally, I believe that I’m pretty uncreative, hopefully others disagree haha. Sigmund Freud talked about how memories in the past can disappear and only reappear during favorable conditions. Photography is that condition for me.

Fallow Jonathan @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonathanyacoub/ and “like” his Facebook page.

Free The Empire, a band from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, offers nothing short of huge stage-dives and big jump-kicks.  “Coming from Lancaster, I think we have a different way of doing things than most places,” said Josh Nichols, vocalist for the group.  “Anyone who hasn’t lived under a rock for the past few years knows that this is primarily a metal town. However, I think everyone around here isn’t necessarily against pop-punk, change is just weird for people.”

Since their formation in 2009, despite metal’s seemingly overwhelming precedence in Lancaster, Free The Empire has never looked back.  Josh’s writing and vocals work together flawlessly and in true pop-punk fashion, advocate making the most of your time here and living the life you want to live.  Josh receives support from Alex Haus and Evan Moorehead, each on guitar.  The pair offers catchy, intricate and rhythmic work on the guitar. Antonia Adiletta provides a powerful sound on the bass and Luke Mohr rounds out the band on the drums.  Free The Empire released a EP in January of 2011 entitled, “Your Forever Is Only A Week”.  “We recorded this during the span of 6 months and really had no idea what we were doing,” admits Josh, “and it certainly won’t go down us one of our more successful endeavors, but it was a definite experience to say the least.”

Since their EP, Free The Empire has been busy playing shows, writing, and recording.  Most recently, on August 3, 2011, the group played alongside Carousel Kings, another Lancaster, pop-punk native.  Josh starts, “Carousel Kings have a lot to do with our successes.  They are the biggest name in pop-punk in our area and they’re all some of our greatest friends”.  Free The Empire is currently in the studio, writing and recording new material which is sure to leave its’ listeners barreling towards the nearest couch to perform a DIY stage-dive or jump-kick for Merica’.

Fallow Free The Empire @ http://freetheempire.com/