Richard Schmon Photography

Aiken Hounds Christmas

2011-12-30T09:48:00.000-08:00

On the 24th I stopped by the Green Boundary Club to capture the Aiken Hounds heading off on their annual Christmas hunt here in Aiken, South Carolina. Clad in festive attire, both horses and hunters rode to the hounds in the Hitchcock Woods.

Joint Masters Larry Byers & Linda Knox McLean flank Huntsman Katherine Gunter as they prepare to head off.

Gene Kneece

Katherine Gunter

The field heads down Berrie Road .

Randy Wolcott & his daughter Caroline.

My daughter Isabel becomes one with the leaves.

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The Purple Fairy

2011-11-01T15:21:00.000-07:00

Went into Pacific Spirit Park yesterday with my daughter and her Halloween costume, custom tailored just for her by my wonderful wife....

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The Sheepdogs

2011-09-29T13:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday evening I had the opportunity to photograph The Sheepdogs at Rogers Arena as part of my ongoing collaboration with Patrick Stark on his documentary One Life No Regrets. The band has had a whirlwind summer after winning Rolling Stone magazine's "Choose the Cover" competition, and are now touring as the opening act on the Canadian leg of the Kings of Leon tour.

For the interview, we sat down with lead singer Ewan Currie and bass player Ryan Gullen who were fantastic, and gave us insight into their meteoric rise from humble beginnings in Saskatoon. As a huge fan of '70s classic rock, I must say, their sound is right up my alley.

After the interview, I had less than five minutes to shoot a couple of portraits before the band went on stage. According to my metadata, I made my first test exposure at 6:56:27 and my last portrait at 6:58:12 officially making it my shortest portrait session ever at 1 minute 45 seconds. Needless to say, I thought I wouldn't have anything usable, but under the circumstances I was pleasantly surprised.

Ryan, Patrick, & Ewan before the show.

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Julie & Dan

2011-09-14T00:22:00.000-07:00

Last month, I spent a wonderful sunny Saturday capturing the beautiful wedding of Julie and Dan. It was a gorgeous afternoon, and I had a great time photographing the day with them. Here are some of my favorite images...

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Bif Naked

2011-08-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

Last week I had the privilege of photographing the talented and inspirational multi-platinum recording artist Bif Naked. The session was accompanied by an interview for the documentary One Life: No Regrets, directed by my good friend Patrick Stark.

I was truly impressed with Bif. She is a charismatic and absolutely hilarious person who has triumphed in the face of adversity. A breast cancer survivor and activist, she spoke to us from the heart and delivered what I'm sure will be one of the more pivotal interviews in the film.

Bif looks skyward. East Pender & Clarke. August 10th 2011.

Patrick interviews Bif in the control room at Clarke Drive Studios.

Guitarist Doug Fury shared the stage with Bif on The Tonight Show in 1998. He is currently lead guitarist for Vancouver glam-rockers Scatterheart.

Patrick, Bif & Nicholas.

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Celebration of Light

2011-08-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

Here are a few images from the final evening of the Celebration of Light on August 6th. This annual international fireworks competition takes place in English Bay here in Vancouver.

We stayed on the bridge for a few minutes after the show to photograph the boats gliding back into False Creek.

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Campbell River

2011-08-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

Had a wonderful time fishing with old friends in Campbell River last week...

The view across Discovery Passage to April Point at sunrise.

The Straight of Georgia as seen from Curtis Smith's Grady White near Mitlenatch Island.

My brother in law, Drew Ross with his 25lb chinook salmon.

A commercial fishing vessel nets it's catch of Sockeye near Chatham Point.

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Yellowpoint

2011-08-10T23:54:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my images from our fantastic August long weekend with family and friends at Yellowpoint...

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RBC Canadian Open - Day 3

2011-07-20T23:38:00.001-07:00

Had another fun day at the RBC Canadian Open at Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club today, this time shooting the CN Future Links Pro-Am...

Masters Champion Mike Weir

Hunter Mahan

US Open Champion Jim Furyk

Jim Furyk

Chad Campbell

Rickie Fowler

Ryan Moore

Paul Casey

Probably my favorite pro golfer, The Big Easy smiles humbly as his approach on #7 flies from the right rough into the left green side bunker.

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RBC Canadian Open - Day 1

2011-07-19T07:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the first day of practice rounds for the RBC Canadian Open at Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club here in Vancouver. I spent the late morning and early afternoon shooting the BC Children's Hospital Pro-Am, mostly following the two stars of the day: John Daly and David Duval.

If the weather holds, I'll be back out tomorrow to shoot the CN Future Links Pro-Am.. stay tuned.

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UBC Grand Prix

2011-07-13T13:54:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my images from yesterday's inaugural UBC Grand Prix! Unfortunately, I was only able to shoot the last bit of the pro ladies and the first half of the pro men's races as I had my two year old with me.

Both races were hard fought and exciting to watch. Can't wait for next year! I should have a much larger gallery up on Flickr shortly...

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Windsport

2011-05-31T12:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some tearsheets from the latest issue of Windsport Magazine in which my work from Bonaire last year is featured. The Children of the Wind documentary is nearly completed with film crews heading back to Bonaire this week to cover the Prokids Freestyle Championships and complete the film for projected release in the fall.

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Portraits Over Central Park

2011-05-25T18:22:00.000-07:00

During my trip to New York two weeks ago, I managed to squeak in a quick portrait session on the balcony of one of the epic apartments on 5th Avenue overlooking Central Park. We waited until the setting sun was just peeking over the buildings near Columbus Circle in the background. What a gorgeous view!

Here are a few of my images from the session...

Actor Jason Kolotouros.

My sister, actor Lisa McCormick.

My cousin Ashley Schmon and her beau Jobbi Romero.

Fashion designer Pelagia Kolotouros.

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My Little Angel

2011-03-21T17:24:00.001-07:00

A Century of November

2011-02-18T12:00:00.000-08:00

Over the course of the last seven months I have been shooting stills and time-lapse video for a feature film called A Century of November. This will be the film adaptation of the novel of the same name written by W. D. Wetherell and adapted for the screen by noted screenwriter Jay Wolpert. For producers Nicolas Awde and Patrick Stark, this has been a labor of love for almost five years.

On Saturday, February 12th, almost 100 cast and crew gathered in Mission, BC to shoot the promotional trailer for the film. With Co-producer Patrick Stark at the helm and cinematographer Joel Ransom behind the cameras, we forged through a blustery wet day in the mud.

Other key crew members include First Assistant Director Jack Hardy, Production Designer Peter Lando, Costume Designer Monique Prudhomme, Visual Effects Supervisor John Gajdecki, Key Grip Tony Whiteside, Stunt Coordinator JJ Makaro, and Props Master Jimmy Chow.

The promo was captured with a combination of Panavision Genesis cameras as well as Arriflex 435 film cameras and Kodak's 5219 Vision 3 film stock, all with Panavision's gorgeous glass. The camera crew also had the epic 50 foot Super Technocrane with the Mega 3 three axis remote head at their disposal.

The set at Project Serenity X was divided into two halves, the first being the elaborate trench set and the second being "No Man's Land", the lethal bombed out space separating enemy and friendly lines on the western front. These were constructed one piece at a time over the course of the last five months. As the local coniferous trees and foliage do not accurately match those found in France and Belgium, both blue and green screens were employed to enable the Visual Effects team to composite the war torn backgrounds of the era.

Below are some of my images and time lapse from the set. Over the course of 12 hours I captured over 600 raw files and my three time-lapse cameras shot more than 35,000 jpegs!

Watch in HD on Vimeo

Co-Producer & Promo Director Patrick Stark.

Co-Producer Nicolas Awde.

Cinematographer Joel Ransom & Patrick Stark watch the monitors at video village.

The 11:1 Primo Zoom. An optical marvel. 24-275mm at a fixed T2.8.

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Lowcountry with Lisa & Jason

2011-02-09T07:42:00.000-08:00

Willtown fireplace at 12,800 ISO.

Jason

2011-02-08T00:55:00.000-08:00

Here is a portrait I did a couple of weeks ago for New York based actor Jason Kolotouros.

Aiken Hounds

2011-01-31T19:08:00.000-08:00

On January 29th I rose early to photograph the Aiken Hounds, a drag hunt here in South Carolina fast approaching it's 1ooth birthday.

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Panthers Win!

2011-01-29T14:37:00.000-08:00

On January 24th, I had the opportunity to photograph the Mead Hall Lady Panthers basketball team take on Augusta's Curtis Baptist school here in Aiken, South Carolina. It was a nail biter of a game finishing with a Panthers point streak that left the final score at 20-13.

The win was an emotional one, as 23 year old Panthers coach Meredith Legg was diagnosed with uveal melanoma in the spring of 2009. The resulting surgery left her with the use of only one eye. Last May, doctors discovered new lesions on the right side of her liver. She has been receiving radiation along with some experimental treatments and all but one lesion have been shrinking. My thoughts and prayers are with Meredith, her family, an her amazing team.

Yesterday she lead the them to victory at the Independent School Championships. Here are a few of my photos from Monday's game:

Panthers coach Meredith Legg speaks to the crowd.

Point guard Emily Koger carries the ball down the court.

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Faith Kneece

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Caroline Wolcott

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South Carolina Lowcountry

2011-01-27T20:23:00.000-08:00

Photo by my fabulous wife.

2010-12-01T22:55:00.000-08:00

Pamela Masik's Awakening Performance

2010-09-29T10:40:00.000-07:00

Here is my film of Pamela Masik's "Awakening" performance from the Western Living Designer of the Year awards ceremony:

Erin & Andrew

2010-09-27T11:38:00.000-07:00

I had a fantastic shoot on Saturday with the lovely and expecting Erin and Andrew. I photographed their wedding almost exactly one year ago and it was great to see them so happy and excited.

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Pamela Masik's Awakening

2010-09-27T11:22:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, September 23rd I photographed Pamela Masik's "Awakening" performance at her Vancouver studio as part of the Western Living Designer of the Year awards ceremony. What a show! Definitely raised the bar. I was charged with shooting HDSLR video, but upon hearing she couldn't find a still photographer, I figured I would drag along a couple of extra camera bodies, magic arms, and Pocket Wizards and hopefully get some decent images. Needless to say, without really knowing the light levels or where Pamela would be on the stage, getting a good photo was a bit of a coin toss. Fortunately, there were a few keepers:

I should have the video of this project posted a little later in the week so stay tuned!

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Boseman Trail Cup Final: Sonny Hill vs Santa Clara

2010-08-15T13:05:00.000-07:00

Here is the last game I photographed in Big Horn last week. I really miss Wyoming and can't wait to do it all over again next year...

Brandon Phillips is chased downfield by Gonzalo Tevis and teammate Owen Rinehart.

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Brandon Phillips

Gonzalo Tevis & Owen Rinehart

Jake Stimmel & Gonzalo de la Fuenta

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Owen Rinehart

Francisco Bilbao

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Brandon Phillips

Referees Hector Galindo and Whistle Uyz.

Santa Clara defeated Sonny Hill 8-7.

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Boseman Trail Cup Consolation: BTA vs Graymar

2010-08-14T12:38:00.000-07:00

Gallatin Field

Hector Galindo and Whistle Uyz vie for the ball.

K.C. Beal

Craig Duke and Kelly Beal

Tiger Kneece

Kelly Beal rushes downfield chased by Robert Lipman.

BTA defeated Graymar 11-8.

Watch in HD on Vimeo

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Boseman Trail Cup: Bendabout vs BTA

2010-08-07T12:01:00.000-07:00

Headed home tomorrow. We've really had a fantastic time here in Big Horn. Wonderful people, stunning landscape, and good times with family and friends. I really hope we can make it back this time next year...

I'll be heading out this afternoon to shoot the Boseman Cup consolation and final matches. Hopefully, I'll be able to post these games before I depart. If not, they'll be up sometime next week. Stay tuned...

Gallatin Field

Julio Arellano

Gillian Johnston

Tiger Kneece

Hector Galindo

Kelly Beal & Tiger Kneece

Ford MacCarty & Chrys Beal

Tiger backs the ball.

Watch in HD on Vimeo.

Bendabout defeated BTA 9-8

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Coca Cola Cup Final

2010-08-01T21:02:00.000-07:00

Skeeter Field

Gillian Johnston

Chris Collins

Julio Arellano & Hector Galindo

Orrin Connell watching his daughter Katie.

Katie Connell

Steve Krueger & Chris Collins

Gillian Johnston

Bendabout defeated BTA 12-11

Jan Pamela vs Midland

2010-07-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

Flying H Polo Club - Skeeter Field

Steve Dalton

Kelly Beal

Francisco Bilbao & Chris Collins

Steve & Tiger

Weston Gracida

The game was tied 11-11 at the end of the 6th chukker. Jan Pamela won the coin toss to defeat Midland 12--11.

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Wyoming

2010-07-27T00:31:00.000-07:00

Isabel & Summer

Summer & Tiger Kneece

Evening storms roll in over Big Horn National Forest.

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Moonrise Over Montana

2010-07-26T08:20:00.000-07:00

As I was cresting a hill on I90 just after sunset yesterday, I caught a glimpse of this moonrise somewhere near Three Forks, Montana. I turned on my blinkers, pulled over, and stepped out with my camera, only to be absolutely assaulted by batteries of mosquitoes. I made five exposures in twenty seconds and was bitten at least ten times.

For the next half hour as I drove, the bugs hitting my windshield sounded like raindrops in a downpour. I eventually had to stop to clean the window as I could barely see the road...

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My Girls

2010-07-04T23:03:00.000-07:00

Isabel

2010-06-14T22:16:00.001-07:00

Kiri Thode

2010-06-09T15:49:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my images of Kiri Thode. A force to be reckoned with in the freestyle windsurfing world. Really missing covering all the action in Bonaire...

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Fin

2010-06-01T12:51:00.000-07:00

After three weeks of blood, sweat, and tears, we have wrapped principle photography of "Children of the Wind". Here are some images from our last couple of days in Bonaire:

Leppi & Pete shooting aerials.

A cheerier image from my session with Elvis Martinus.

Amado Vrieswijk

Kiri Thode

Kiri & Alex

Tonky Frans

Sunset over a Norwegian sailing vessel.

Wrap party @ the beach bar.

Amber, Iris, Alex & Daphne.

A parting shot of yours truly...

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Almost There...

2010-05-27T06:28:00.000-07:00

Getting close to wrapping this thing up! Sorry for my lack of posts lately. We have been super busy. Here are a crapload of images taken over the last week:

Pete, Taty, Bjorn and Leppy on the tower at the Copa Julia.

Bob on the tower.

Kralendijk and the salt mines at 800mm.

Kiri Thode

Chanel

Amado

The sails of an old Bonairian fishing vessel named Etienne.

Etienne

Daphne, Alex and Peter after chasing flamingos and donkeys.

Patun Saragoza

Fire jumping at the Saragoza estancia.

Daphne and Elvis with the catch of the day.

Daphne, Alex and Pete shooting at the end of a long day.

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Elvis

2010-05-26T22:11:00.000-07:00

Elvis Martinus: The King of Lac Bay

Wednesday Portraits & Interviews

2010-05-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

We have really kicked things into high gear here, so my posts won't be quite as frequent.

I had a brief break from filming on Wednesday, which gave me the chance to do some portrait sessions with some of the extremely talented young windsurfers we are showcasing in the film. Here they are....

Little Stefford

Jurgen Saragoza

Taty Frans

Bjorn Saragoza

Amber Jasperse

The OC working the boom pole.

Shooting Stefford's interview on the beach (photo by Alex Campbell).

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Shooting Day One

2010-05-12T08:28:00.000-07:00

Principle photography commenced yesterday with the morning spent on the water shooting three of the top windsurfers in the world including Tonky and Tatty Frans, Kiri Thode, and olympian Patun Saragoza. I spent the morning in the water with the Aquatica housing playing chicken with these prolific sailors.

Although the wind was not spectacular (15 knots), we still managed to get some decent images...

The tower.

Tatty Frans

Patun Saragoza

Patun ripping it up.

Patun sailing against midday thunderheads.

Tonky under the surface.

Kiri Thode, Elvis Martinus and the team in Lac Bay.

The kids practicing at sunset.

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Tests at Lac Bay

2010-05-10T20:22:00.000-07:00

Here are some images and an amusing video from our afternoon of tests at Lac Bay today. We erected a scaffold in the middle of the bay to capture some dynamic angles from ten feet over the water. This structure will be used to cover the action for the rest of the week.

After some animated phone calls, our missing baggage finally arrived in one piece today. Needless to say, everyone is relieved, happy and excited to put it to good use.

All of these images were taken with my Canon 5D Mark II and 16-35mm f/2.8 L nestled inside the Aquatica underwater housing. That thing is way cool...

Our producer Robert McCormick surveying Lac Bay from the scaffold.

The team building the scaffold.

Our director, Daphne Schmon showing us why she is in charge.

Our cinematographer, Peter Robertson leaving a vapor trail.

Elvis Martinus, the king of Lac Bay.

Daphne tearing it up.

Peter and Daphne scouting locations on the beach at the end of the day.

Principle photography commences tomorrow with action coverage on the water all day.

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We made it!

2010-05-09T11:19:00.001-07:00

After a slow and laborious start at Newark, followed by three missing bags on our arrival at 4:20am no less, we've finally made it to Bonaire. Unfortunately, the missing bags contain our tripod, boom pole and Steadicam accessories. Items we won't be able to live without. Hopefully we can sort this out in short order, and get this film into the production phase.

Here is the view from our room at Harbour Village.....

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Prep

2010-05-08T13:48:00.000-07:00

It's our final day in New York and we are finalizing details before our departure this evening. We've spent the week testing our equipment and preparing for our three week shoot in the southern Caribbean.

Here are some photos from the last couple of days as we raced around the city getting ready...

The team!

Daphs & Pete prepping at Abel Cine Tech in the village.

Alex with Andrew Shipsides of Abel Cine discussing shadow detail, noise reduction, and in-camera settings.

Pete, Daphs, and Alex on foot in the Village.

Cask conditioned ales at The Spotted Pig, conveniently located in the West Village just five blocks from Abel Cine.

Shooting tests with the Varicam 2700 in Central Park (photo by Robert McCormick).

Our illustrious digital tech and 2nd Assistant, Alex Campbell. The only brit I know of who is fanatical about the Clemson Tigers.

and now the adventure begins.

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NYC

2010-05-04T21:59:00.000-07:00

The team in Manhattan.

Yours truly...

Cask conditioned ales at The Ginger Man.

The Museum @ 6400 ISO unmanipulated.

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I'm Outta Here....

2010-05-03T14:11:00.000-07:00

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Children of the Wind Update

2010-04-30T22:49:00.000-07:00

Tonky Frans at Lac Bay by Daphne Schmon

Getting ready for our trip to Bonaire! This adventure promises to be one of epic proportions.

Director Daphne Schmon and Producer Robert McCormick are racing around New York making last minute arrangements. Our illustrious cinematographer Pete Robertson is finishing work on the feature film "Hanna" with Cate Blanchett and Eric Bana. Director Joe Wright, with whom Pete lensed the epic film "Atonement", called on his services for some more complex steadicam work on this film.

We will be flying to New York on Monday, to prep our gear and pack it all for the direct flight to Bonaire next Saturday. For the shoot, we will be using a smorgasbord of hi def camera systems. The main unit camera will be a Panasonic Varicam paired with Zeiss zooms rented from Abel Cine Tech. The second unit camera will be my 5D Mark II and all of my glass ranging from 16 to 800mm. For this camera we will also be using an Aquatica underwater housing rented from ABSea Photo in California. There is a possibilty we will carry a Canon 7D, and we will definitely be carrying Pete's GoPro Surf Hero camera which mounts on surfboards and helmets to get fantastic, dynamic camera angles out on the water. We will also be bringing the relatively new LED Lite Panels portable lights which will be vital for the interviews.

Meg and I are staying at Harbour Village for the first week, which promises to provide Meg with some much deserved rest and relaxation, not to mention massages, scuba diving and snorkeling. My schedule will be mostly spent working, but I am hoping for a few brief moments to relax with my wife...

If you haven't yet seen it, check out the Children of the Wind website and the promo trailer here. You can see my previous post about the film here.

Stay tuned to see my trip reports and photos from the Southern Caribbean.

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Vancouver Fashion Week: Day Two

2010-04-10T14:47:00.000-07:00

Lav & Kush

Red Jade

Niche

The True's

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Vancouver Fashion Week: Day One

2010-04-09T02:15:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my images from the first day in the press pit at Vancouver Fashion Week. Stay tuned, I'll be covering the show again tonight and I should have more images up tomorrow...

Fever London

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Image Quest 2010

2010-03-24T10:21:00.000-07:00

Just wrapped up three fantastic days at Image Quest here in Vancouver. This series of seminars has me reeling with a seemingly inexhaustible list of new ways to amp up my business. The seminar also included a small trade show including local and international vendors including Nikon, Technicare, and Beau Photo.

I have to say I was disappointed that Canon was not not represented at the trade show, and as a result, I spent some time playing with Nikon's D3s and D3x. After taking a CF card of images from these cameras home, I honestly felt like switching! The D3s' low light capability, coupled with build quality, intuitiveness, and little nuances like carbon fiber lens hoods on their big glass had me drooling...

The first speaker I saw was California wedding photographer Dane Sanders who's inspiring words had us looking at the fundamental reasons why we are creative. He had us all peering in a mirror at ourselves and at the realization that we are all capable of reaching our individual definitions of success. This was truly an energizing and motivating talk during which we were all compelled to take our careers to the next level.

Next was a full day of marketing and self promotion with Mitche Graf. His approach was completely different from any of the other speakers. I found him to be less of an artist and much more of a salesman. During his talk, he stressed the value of free time with our families and friends, that this time is fleeting and extremely valuable. He explained that we should be using as much of our our work time to effectively obtain new clients and photograph them, with the long-term goal being to work less and bring home more money. Although I found some of his sales techniques to be too aggressive, his broader points really hit home with me, and I am in a fervor to implement them in my business.

On Tuesday morning, we enjoyed listening to Miranda and Reilly Lievers of Blue Olive Photography based here in Vancouver. Their social media presentation offered a veritable gold mine of tips and tricks to strengthen and enhance our internet presence. No stone was left unturned, and although I was previously aware of much of what they had to say, for many it was a real heads-up.

Tuesday afternoon, we had the privelage of listening to California wedding photographer Jasmine Star. In only four years, this 29 year old phenom has become one of the most sought after wedding photogs on the planet. Not only did she inspire us all, she made it fun. Her talk was centered around branding. Not just logos and websites, but the whole package. Her biggest message: We aren't selling photographs. We are selling ourselves. Be different. Stand out from the crowd. Your brand should be a visual representation of you. This gives you major intangible value in the eyes of your clients.

Her approach to photographing weddings makes me want to put my strobes away, buy some prime lenses, and shoot more with available light. Jasmine is a truly unique and engaging person, as is reflected on her site above, and in her fantastic work.

Before Jasmine's presentation, I went for lunch at Tramonto near the conference room. As I was getting ready to leave, in walks Jasmine herself, along with her husband JD and fellow photographers Mikaela Ruth, Philomena Hughes, and Rose of Simply Rose Photography. I quickly decided to be bold and introduce myself, and I'm so glad I did! They were all very welcoming and I thoroughly enjoyed our brief chat. Thanks so much guys!!

What a great couple of days!! Thanks go to Sandy Dunn and everyone at PPABC for putting this informative and fun seminar together. Can't wait for next year!

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An Old Acacia

2010-03-18T12:41:00.000-07:00

Lisa in a very old acacia tree, Northen Serengeti July 2007.

The Group Show at Masik Studios

2010-03-01T13:06:00.000-08:00

On February 19th I attended and photographed Pamela Masik's "Group Show" at her massive 14,000 square foot gallery next to Olympic Village. Sponsored by Red Bull Canada, and Sumac Ridge the evening was a visual smorgasbord, capped off with a performance art piece by Pamela herself.

Pamela's large resin works dominated the two larger show spaces, while ten other local artists showcased their work in an adjacent series of rooms.

This was photographed with a Canon 5D Mark II and the new 24mm f/3.5L TS-E II lens. Here is the film. I recommend going directly to Vimeo to watch it in fullscreen HD:

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Vancouver 2010

2010-03-01T13:04:00.000-08:00

Here are a few of my my photos of Vancouver during the Olympics....

As part of an upcoming project, these images were captured with a Canon 5D Mark II rented from Beau Photo. I have now fallen in love with this camera, and will be acquiring one shortly. As Ferris Bueller said: "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up."

This image of the West End was taken from Spanish Banks with my old 400mm f/2.8L USM paired with my 2x extender for a grand total of 800mm. I was again blown away by how sharp and detailed images from the 21 megapixel 5D Mark II are.

This image was taken with the new 24mm f/3.5 TS-E II tilt shift lens. This is definitely one of the sharpest lenses for the Canon system I have used to date.

This image of Science World which is hosting Russia's Sochi 2014 house was taken from the Cambie Bridge with my trusty 70-200mm f/2.8L.

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Children of the Wind

2010-02-08T00:09:00.000-08:00

I want to give a big shout out to my cousin Daphne Schmon, who is getting a ton of exposure for the teaser trailer for her upcoming documentary Children of the Wind. This film will tell the intriguing story of the young children from the island of Bonaire who have risen from virtual poverty to the pinnacle of professional windsurfing.

Photo of Tonky Frans airborne by Daphne Schmon

The goal of this trailer is to raise funding to shoot a full length, cinematic chronicle of the lives of these prodigal children and their rise to athletic stardom on the world stage. The fact that 3 of the top 6 windsurfing champions in the world came from such humble beginnings on this tiny Caribbean island with a population of only 13,000 is truly amazing.

For the full length documentary, Daphne has enlisted famed feature film camera operator and cinematographer Peter Robertson, whose list of "A" camera credits include 007: Die Another Day, Tomb Raider, Sahara, Bridget Jones Diary, and Brideshead Revisited among many others. He was also reponsible for this epic steadicam shot in the motion picture "Atonement". Peter is also an accomplished windsurfer himself and, needless to say, will take the viewer on a visual ride unlike anything we have yet experienced.

In a little more than one week, they have had more than 10,000 views on Youtube and have attracted the attention of top industry sponsors and publications including Hot Sails Maui.

I am yearning to travel to Bonaire in May for principle photography, to ply my trade, and possibly revisit my previous career as a focus puller (or just enjoy the Caribbean sunshine).

On another interesting note, this trailer was shot entirely with the Canon Rebel T1i. This is a testament to the superior image quality obtainable with the new generation of HD DSLRs and Canon glass.

Here is the teaser trailer:

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Rebecca

2010-01-28T13:42:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of images of my sister Rebecca. We ran down to the Iona Beach breakwater near the airport yesterday to get this foggy background. We didn't have a lot of time, as it was getting really dark. I used my AB1600 with the beauty dish and a diffusion sock, and yet again it proved indispensable....

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Emma

2010-01-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

Just finished a fun shoot at Spanish Banks here in Vancouver today. The light was fantastic! The forecast called for rain and boy do I love it when the weather man is wrong.

MLK

2010-01-18T10:09:00.001-08:00

Home Again & Some Amazing Moving Imagery...

2010-01-15T14:10:00.000-08:00

Whew! It's been a crazy three weeks since Christmas. I've been super busy finishing a couple projects from 2009 and editing photos from the holidays. I had a great time in South Carolina visiting family and enjoying the cold, but clear weather there. Sadly, it has been raining here in Vancouver almost every day since we got back.

These images are from one gorgeous morning in the lowcountry, and looking at them takes me back...

Some very cool projects came to my attention today. The first, 3D projections on buildings blows my mind. It's hard to believe this isn't a digitally manipulated video:

Next, the process behind a very cool time-lapse shot that took two years for a BBC camera crew to produce for their "Life" series:

And finally this piece by Alex Roman truly took my breath away. 98% cgi and 100% breathtaking. One of the most amazing visual spectacles I have ever seen. Please watch in HD full screen:

Here is the compositing breakdown for any non-believers.

more tk...

NYC

2009-12-17T07:55:00.000-08:00

Just arrived in Aiken after a whirlwind trip to New York to visit my uncle and sister. I really missed the energy of the big city, and sharing it this time with my wife and daughter was very special.

During our stay, we ate at two outstanding restaurants. The first, La Esquina, an underground, dungeon-like brasserie at Lafayette and Kenmare in the West Village, was exceptional. Serving upscale latin cuisine, we indulged ourselves in Don Julio, cervezas, and lots of tasty grub.

The second was DBGB on the Bowery in the same neighborhood. Here we were treated to an amazing carnivorous feast, topped off with some decadent desserts. It was great fun relaxing and imbibing with old friends and family.

I tried to keep my camera with me as much as possible, but with my one year old, it was difficult to shoot as much as I wanted. The image above, of the Guggenheim, I grabbed very quickly with my backup Canon XTI and 16-35mm f/2.8 whilst strolling down 5th Avenue with my sister and daughter in tow.

Off to the lowcountry tomorrow....

more tk...

Pixels to the People!

2009-12-07T00:30:00.001-08:00

Just back from the Sunshine Coast, where my wife, daughter, and I were visiting family before we head east for the holidays. We had a fantastic time which, paired with great weather, was fun for all. At the bottom of this post are a couple of images from the weekend.

I was completely taken aback today scrolling through my RSS feed and finding this epic gallery from portrait photographer Platon on The New Yorker's web site. Platon's work absolutely blows my mind. Even with only 8 seconds (and three exposures) to photograph Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, he managed to capture an intriguing and revealing portrait of the leader. Over the course of five days in September at the United Nations General Assembly in New York , he captured 49 of the most powerful political figures in the world, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Muammar Qaddafi, and Benjamin Netanyahu. Beneath each portrait in the gallery, Platon gives a brief, insightful audio description of his experiences photographing these powerful and sometimes extremely intimidating people. I guess only Platon can shout "You look wicked!" at Jacob Zuma, president of South Africa, to invoke an exuberant, wincy smile for his camera. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's words to the photographer? "Platon, make me look good."

Working on my images from the Sunshine Coast, I have to say, I am starting to get tired of the limitations associated with my 1D Mark IIn. It has been a fantastic camera for me since purchasing it in February of 2007, but after almost three years with it, I am ready to move on. I feel this way for a number of reasons, but the primary two are resolution and sensor dust. The sensor dust issue is probably the biggest reason. In the image below of the pier, I was shooting almost directly into the sun at f/16, and the resulting raw file was peppered with dust spots. Sadly, I missed Canon's self cleaning sensor revolution by one generation, and I am left spending way too much of my workflow time cloning dust spots from my images.

My sights are currently set on the upcoming 1Ds Mark IV, rumored to be appearing in early 2010. With this kind of resolution and bit depth, I will be more able to reap the benefits of my L series glass, without the accumulation of dust over time. I eagerly await news of its arrival and when I get my hands on it, I plan to take better care of it than nature photographer Ole Jorgen Liodden does with his gear.

More tk...

Photo of the Day

2009-12-03T23:22:00.000-08:00

South Carolina Lowcountry...

Family, Annie, and our upcoming trip...

2009-11-28T09:16:00.000-08:00

Back from Victoria! We had a lovely couple of days working and relaxing with the family on the Island. I finally managed to get out for a couple of rides on my Madone during brief breaks in the rain. Here is a photo of Meg and Isabel at sunset on Friday evening...

We haven't seen much of that big yellow orb in the Pacific Northwest lately, so this was a welcome view. Isabel is growing so fast it boggles my mind.

One of my favorite photographers, Annie Leibovitz has a series of stunning photographs featured in the December issue of Vogue magazine. I always find her work inspiring although I lost some respect for her team after this lawsuit earlier this year. That aside, Vogue has posted an interesting video of her shoots for this month's issue. One of my favorite aspects of her photography has always been the quality of light. I know she does a lot of post work on her images, but they always begin with rich soft light from the Profoto umbrella/softbox on a stick, wielded by her assistant.

In a little less than two weeks Meg, Isabel and I are off to the Big Apple for a few days and then on to South Carolina to visit my family for the holidays. Needless to say, we are very excited. I am going to do my best to carry a camera with me as often as possible and document the trip for this blog. It will be nice to escape the gloomy Vancouver weather.

more tk...

A Sundowner

2009-11-24T01:39:00.000-08:00

I really miss a good sundowner.....

more tk.....

Workflow Wednesday!

2009-11-18T00:04:00.001-08:00

Back again! I've been bogged down with archiving, editing, proofing and printing over the last two weeks and after an unfortunate data loss incident, I am focusing on improving my digital asset management system. What a daunting task! Oddly enough, my timing on this is actually fantastic, as the Library of Congress and the ASMP have just brewed up a gem for image makers called dpBestFlow.org.

dpBestFlow is the result of two years worth of research compiling a streamlined workflow that produces and maintains the quality and integrity of digital images for the long haul. Use of the DNG raw format, which can be used to validate data integrity across entire archives, sounds very reassuring. With this workflow, my Drobo, and a good off-site storage solution, I can rest assured that my images will look their best, and won't disappear unless I want them to.

Here are a few of my newly archived images from Tanzania:

more tk...

Top 10 Photography Sites

2009-11-08T11:21:00.000-08:00

Here is the current iteration of my ever evolving top ten list of favorite photography sites and blogs. These are my go to sites for learning and honing my craft:

10. Black Star Rising - is a collaborative blog offering wonderful insights into every facet of photography. From creative inspiration to business advice to search engine optimization, these guys cover it all. Definitely worth adding to your RSS feed.

9. Photoshop Disasters - Not really inspirational, but definitely educational. I look at this blog to learn what not to do with my Photoshop toolbox.

8. Photo.net - Created by Philip Greenspun in 1993 as his personal home page at MIT, this site has grown into a huge resource for photographers. Great articles, a massive forum, and a venue for having your work critiqued, this site one of the meccas for learning our craft.

7. Vincent Laforet's Blog - Of late, Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Vincent Laforet has become more of a digital cinematographer with the advent of high definition video DSLRs. Be that as it may, he is often one of the first pros to get his hands on prerelease Canon equipment and he blogs about his experiences at the forefront of this new technology.

6. The Global Photographer - Andy Biggs is one of my favorite wildlife/landscape photographers, and has built a business around his print sales and organizing photographic safari workshops on the dark continent. I follow his posts voraciously and live vicariously through his adventures on the African savanna.

5. The Luminous Landscape - Canadian author Michael Reichmann built this massive resource on the technology and process behind landscape photography. His most inspiring posts detail the techniques involved in obtaining the highest possible image quality in camera, and the post processing workflow to realize their full potential.

4. Rob Galbraith DPI - Another Canadian, Rob Galbraith cut his teeth with some of the earliest professional digital camera systems as a staff photographer for the Calgary Herald. His site is actually more of a blog, focusing on new product reviews and some fantastic image galleries from around the world.

3. Chase Jarvis' Blog - At the forefront of the photographic twitter/blogosphere is commercial and lifestyle photographer Chase Jarvis. With his Best Camera iphone app, he has single handedly created a camera phone revolution with the moniker: "The Best Camera is the One That's With You". He is a very talented photographer, and shares his wealth of knowledge through his blog posts.

2. Joe McNally's Blog - New York based photographer Joe McNally has to be one of the greatest working photographers today. He is also one of the funniest. His posts, riddled with humor, give us insight into his busy career travelling the world teaching and shooting.

1. Strobist - Coming from the film industry and continuous lighting, I knew nothing about strobes. This blog changed that forever and in doing so, made my portraits what they are today. In it, David Hobby teaches us how to get our flashes off the camera, and in the right place with the right modifiers, to get the most out of your photography. If you are new to the concept of off camera flash, check out his Lighting 101 section.

The 2009 Paperqueen Show

2009-11-05T12:50:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my new blog!

Just wrapped up the 2009 edition of the Paperqueen Show and it was a blast. Spent the whole show using my B1600 with a 22" beauty dish as my key light. I also used my new set of Radiopopper JrX's for the first time and honestly, I don't think they stand up to the Pocketwizards for solid reliability. More about that when I've had some more time with them...

Thanks go out to the Paperqueen herself - Annabel McKay, Kate Whyte, Christine Walger, Andrea Lockhart and everyone else who helped out.

Here are some of my favorite images from our portrait sessions....