A Portrait From New Zealand

Here's a portrait I did recently in New Zealand.  

A Portrait From New Zealand

Here's a rural portrait.

Award Winning Brewer

Also while in New Zealand, I had a portrait session with award winning craft beer brewer Tom Jones, aka 'Tom the Pom,' of Crafty Beers and The Herne Brewing Company. Here's two from that session. Everyone seems to know about the health benefits of activated manuka honey, but you haven't really experienced anything until you have drunk a pale ale flavoured with smoked manuka wood!

Some work from New Zealand.

Just back from New Zealand. Here's a set of rodeo photos from the trip.

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Referral System - The Faux Points Card

It's now up and running - the 'Faux Points Card,' which is the new discount system for client  referrals.

Basically, if an existing client introduces four new customers over a 12 month period, they get a free basic, personal photo session, which they can use for themselves or even give to someone else!

Click here to see the details: Referral System - The Faux Points Card

Exiting Japan for a while...

I'll be out of Japan for several weeks soon, so while that's happening and for the prep period and while sorting stuff out after returning, I won't be available for bookings from January 26th until March 12th.* Still feel free to contact me during that period though. 

Thanks

* I still have a couple of free days before the 26th though

E-mail Troubles

I've recently had some e-mail troubles. It only came to my attention after certain things happened, and although I don't think I have missed anyone who tried to contact me, I can't be entirely sure.

It's working fine now though, so if you have emailed me or used the contact form on this site in the last two weeks, and I haven't responded, you will need to contact me again. Sorry for the inconvenience. 

Thanks.

Flare

Last Thursday I went location scouting along the Arakawa Tram Line near Otsuka in the middle of Tokyo. I couldn't find anything I liked, at all. But on the Monday before, on the way to a job out in Saitama, just outside western Tokyo, I noticed a cool area, which I think has potential. I took this there, of a shop sign, outside an unagi (eel) restaurant. I like the flare. 

Still More Food I Ate

Yet another from the growing proto-series Food I Ate.

More Food I Ate

Here's another recent 'Food I Ate' photo.

Food I Ate

Without meaning to, I seem to have started a new personal project. Recently I've been tongue in cheek copying the Japanese 'hobby' of photographing things that I eat / drink. Young Japanese people, especially teenage girls & young women, do this all the time. By themselves or with others, they go to cafes & order deserts or other treats and then photograph them before tucking in. 

Calories All Over The Place...

Went a bit silly today, with the calorie intake.

Loyalty cards

Loyalty cards (aka. points cards) are very popular in Japan and I am thinking seriously of introducing a variation on this theme. I've almost worked out the details, and will add them to the site when ready. I'm feeling quite excited about this. 

Phase One / Capture One Support

In the modern internet world, it is really easy to complain and moan. People, I feel, often forget to praise.

And praise is all I have for the Phase One / Capture One support team. I had to contact them today about using Capture One Pro 7 and, just like every single other time in the past, their response was blazingly fast, to the point of almost being immediate. I am truly impressed. Even without comparing them to some of the shocking service I have had from other vendors, they would impress. They exceed what I think of as good service.

I should add too, that every single time I've had to contact them, it has been about me and my silliness and ways to get around problems I have introduced, never actually about a problem with their product.

Landscape Photograph

I'm not much of a landscape-ist, but at times I swing back into it. Here's my current favourite most recent landscape. I think it will print well, once I work on it. Grahame Sydney clearly on my mind.

View fullsize

More Pithy Photography Quotes

Adding to the previous “A photograph is of someone but a portrait is about someone” pithy quote post, here’s one I got two days ago from reading a Rankin interview.*

“…be 51% the biggest believer in your work and 49% the biggest critic.”

Typed with a little whelp from Free’s song Woman.**

* in some now unremembered magazine while in the waiting room at the doctor’s (see previous post for the graphic outcome)

** I think I’ll leave that typo in

What is Portrait Photography? – A Pithy Quote

The other day I was watching a Bowens educational video online, hosted by Joe Brady and Tony Corbell. The video,The Basics of Portrait Lighting,* was kinda interesting, but the thing that stuck with me was something that Tony Corbell said near the beginning. Quoting someone (I think) called Arthur Rainville,** he said;

“A photograph is of someone but a portrait is about someone.”

I’m usually turned right off by pithy quotes, but this one seems to make some sense. Not so much as some kind of touchy-feely notion, but rather as a concrete goal to aim for.

* the link goes to the main video page

** probably this guy (http://www.studiorainville.com/), but I’m not sure as, after entering the site, I didn’t get past the very slow to load flash page that said something like “Not a site for the impatient traveller, rather, a destination to explore and perhaps connect…” or some such. There’s three composited images on the page, no links I can find anywhere and intensely irritating music. It’s still running on another tab and there seems no way past it. Making me reconsider the ‘wisdom’ of the above quote…

VSCO - Save, Save, Save

Visual Supply Company (VSCO) is currently having a sale and you can save up to 40% on VSCO Film. Sale ends midnight PDT on the 26th of August (2014 that is).

http://vsco.co / http://vsco.co/film

VSCO Keys also seems to be on sale.

Also, VSCO Aperture Film pack owners have a $30 coupon per Aperture Film pack since Apple discontinued Aperture.

All this means I just bought VSCO Film 5 for a paltry US$11.40. Nice, nice.

Tommy Oshima

Tommy Oshima - one of my favourite photographers. Often brilliant. 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tommyoshima

Beating Midday Sun with Flash And Umbrella - One Way

I was taking some 'new entrant' photos yesterday and the child's mother really wanted the background to be a certain particular red brick wall. Continuity with a previous set with the older daughter was the reason. Fair enough too.

But, the sun was really bright, as in, too bright. So I took everyone around the other side of the building and wouldn't you know it, not a clean surface anywhere. Downpipes and a raised concrete base conspired to leave the only clean area the overly sunlit area on the other side.

Enter sudden flash of genius* - put up the large 60 inch Impact Convertible Umbrella, with the reflective cover on & use it as a sun shade.** Perfect size for putting a 5 year old in a large hunk of shade.

But as soon as that problem was solved another raised its head. A sudden change in the weather meant a wind sprang up, making it impossible to keep the umbrella up. No one is too concerned though. Rescheduled for Friday.

* no humble brag for me, just plain brag

** I'm sure others have done this before, and it's probably a fairly obvious solution, but I've never thought of it