Tuesday 31 May 2016

Amy Koughan - Distance Running

Amy Koughan is a professional photographer who lives and works in Los Angeles, California. She devotes a lot of time to her work, and says that as a freelancer she doesn’t always know when her next job is going to come along. Because of that, she says that she is always ready to drop everything for work, if something comes along unexpectedly.

Amy Koughan She is also a wife and the mother of a young boy, and says that her family takes up a lot of her time. But by budgeting her time carefully she is able to devote a lot of time to keeping in shape. Her favorite forms of exercising are riding a bike and running, both of them for long distances. She also enjoys swimming.

For many distance runners there comes a time where they cross an invisible line and transition from grudgingly taking those long runs, to loving them and even looking forward to them. “There was this point where my runs became enjoyable,” she recalls. “It wasn’t a matter of looking forward to the ‘alone time.’ It was a matter of actually looking forward to the run itself, as agonizing as they can be sometimes.”

A typical run for her is between ten and twelve miles. Some of her friends are mystified that she could enjoy those long runs as much as she does, but Amy Koughan says there is nothing mysterious about it. Running makes her feel healthy, and after she completes a long run she says that she feels exhilarated, in large part because she just did something that is improving her health.

Sources: http://www.running4thereason.com/2012/03/12/13-reasons-why-i-love-running/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/26/love-of-running-long-distance-_n_2190419.html

Wednesday 25 May 2016

Amy Koughan - Food Waste

Amy Koughan has been a freelance photographer for many years. She makes her home in Southern California, where she is also an active member in a nonprofit called Feed Los Angeles.

Amy Koughan She says that there is an estimated seventy billion pounds of food that goes to waste in the United States every year, and at the same time millions of Americans who deal with what is called food insecurity every day. And she says these are heartbreaking statistics she wants to influence for the better in whatever way she can.

“Up for forty percent of the food that is grown, processed and transported in this country is never consumed,” she said, citing government statistics. “Not only that, wasted food can actually become an environmental threat. Food that ends up in a landfill just rots, and in time becomes a significant source of methane. Methane is a greenhouse gas that has twenty-one times the global warming potential that carbon dioxide does.”

But it is far more important to get food that would otherwise be wasted to people who would otherwise go hungry, she says. “And I’d rather be a part of the solution than be a part of the problem.” Last year, Feed Los Angeles was able to divert some ten million pounds of safe and edible food that would otherwise have gone to waste, and get it to local food banks.

As a photographer, Amy Koughan said she felt it was her duty to document the Feed Los Angeles program in images.

Sources: http://www.feedingamerica.org/about-us/how-we-work/securing-meals/reducing-food-waste.html
http://endhunger.org/food-waste/

Tuesday 24 May 2016

Amy Koughan - Three Ways to Stay In Shape


Amy Koughan is a dedicated freelance photography who has been honing her skills since she was a child. Her parents introduced her to a camera when they recognized her abilities at a young age. She was able to later attend the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, California where she was born and raised. She now has her own family that both inspires her and works with her to create stunning images of various landscapes and the local city.


However, whenever she isn’t focused on the advancement of her career in photography, she can be found spending time on her physical fitness and health. She believes that staying in shape is one of the most important parts of her life because it ensures she will be able to be active with her family for many years. She has three helpful tips to stay in shape that can make a difference in peoples’ lives everywhere.

The first thing you need to do is eat a more nutritional diet. A diet can go a long way in helping you stay in shape because your food determines how much energy you have through out the day, how many calories you ingest, and how much protein you get.

The next thing you need to do is exercise. Make sure you spend a few times a week working on your strength, endurance, and flexibility in order to keep your muscles strong and injury free.
Lastly, focus on your mind. Physical health is only part of it; you have to be willing to relax your mind as well. Take up a yoga practice to work on your mind.

Tuesday 17 May 2016

Amy Koughan - Master Photographers

Amy Koughan is a freelance photographer based in Los Angeles. She attended the Otis College of Art and Design and studied her craft there. But she says she was already a well-rounded photographer by the time she enrolled there.

“I really believe I was born to be a photographer,” she says. “I’ve always been drawn to pictures – taking them, and looking at them; especially the work of the masters.” The master photographers she most admires, she says, include Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange, and Diane Arbus. A more recent photographer to seize her interest is the late Vivian Maier.

Amy Koughan Asked what it means that three of the four photographers she mentioned are women, Amy Koughan just laughed. “Nothing,” she said.

Before embarking on her freelance career, she got her degree from Otis, and also worked for a time in a department store taking pictures of children. After that she worked as a technician in a photo lab. Taking pictures of children all day got to be monotonous, she recalls, and the job in the photo lab was far more interesting. “Even as digital photography was taking hold, we used average about a hundred rolls of film a day. And that was with a staff of three. That used to feel pretty rushed.”

Now, as a freelance photographer with a growing reputation, Amy Koughan says that she is always ready to drop whatever she is doing and head out on a shoot, if the terms are right and she isn’t breaking any important commitments.

Sources: http://www.otis.edu/photography
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080227164629AALCjwC

Amy Koughan - Tips For Advertising Yourself

Amy Koughan is an individual who works on her own schedule and is her own boss. She is currently serving as a freelance photographer in the city of Los Angeles, California where she was born and raised. She even went to the Otis College of Art and Design within the community in order to better hone her skills as an artist. She now works around the world and locally in order to inspire others to make a difference in the world. She regularly travels to third world countries and dangerous areas in order to show the world harsh realities.

Amy Koughan However, if there is one thing that being a freelance photographer has truly taught her, it is how to advertise her own abilities. Although she gets to manage her own work and schedule, she doesn’t have a major company or publishing name to help her advertise her own abilities; she has to do it on her own time.

One tip she has for advertising yourself as a freelancer is to utilize social media. There are a number of both professional and personal social media websites that freelancers can use to upload their professional images, resumes, and any other professionally related works.

In addition to utilizing the opportunities that social media accounts provide, you can also continuously shop your talents around. As a freelancer, you have a choice in where your work goes or who you want to work with next. Make sure you send your resume and samples to every organization you wish to work with.

Amy Koughan is dedicated to her career in photography, and she has established herself as a successful freelancer.

Thursday 12 May 2016

Amy Koughan - Running With Proper Form

Amy Koughan is a dedicated freelance photographer who is committed to capturing the best images she can in the field. She was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, where she lives today with her husband and child. Her loved ones and her surroundings constantly inspire her, and it is evident through her work as a photographer. Amy attended the Otis College of Art and Design, and didn’t limit her studies to just photography; she is proficient in a number of art forms, including film, painting, and sculpting.

Amy Koughan However, when she isn’t working for any number of publications in the professional world of photography, she can be found running around the city, or some of the incredible landscape that Southern California has to offer.

Running to stay in shape can be a great exercise. Not only does it work your heart and lungs, but it also has tremendous benefits on the body as well, which includes physical strength. However, running with proper form is important because it can be the difference between getting faster, and getting injured.

The primary thing you want to remember when it comes to your running form is your strike. Make sure that with every step your take, your weight is forward into the ball of your foot, not the back towards your heel. When you strike the ground with the ball of your foot, the impact forces felt on the body radiate through your muscles rather than your bones or joints. This will increase the strength of your running muscles, and greatly decrease the chances of sustaining an injury due to overuse.