New Editorial Interiors

Some more interiors for the 2010 Alberta Ballet home and garden tour magazine.

This series was a home series photographed over 3 days and 6 homes. We needed to shoot 4-6 images for each home, and a cover option. Each photographs also needed to include a floral arrangement (in which collections were brought in by individual florists).

So on one level it made the project a bit challenging. However in the end it all worked out just fine.

Enjoy.

C

Pics that Never Made the Cut

This series was shot for Tomato Magazine for a piece on a new commercial kitchen renovation for Northlands.

The call from my editor was to shoot the interior but obviously while I was there I ended up shooting some of the Chef and his team doing their thing.

(After I took this I seriously considered becoming a vegetarian)

I quite enjoy shooting food related editorial images for Tomato. Mary provides some very unique stories which means I shoot in very unique places, so I am always excited to see what she throws my way.

Because of editorial considerations these images I am posting never made the cut.

Not because they were not strong enough, but because the story was about the kitchen and not the people who occupy it.  

I completely understand, and this is quite common when shooting editorial assignments,  but I really wanted to share them anyways because I quite like them, and if I don't post them here they will never see the light of day.

I just love the pig photo. Its so in your face. Its raw and real. But I can completely understand why a food magazine editor would cut this photo.

C

Period Dress

I have always been fascinated by period dresses and costumes. Not to the point of obsession, but I find them interesting to look at. So I set up a photo shoot with Larissa a few months ago and decided to post some of the images and process. I should have posted this a while back, but i have no idea why I didn't.

We shot this series on the Phase One. The out doors photo was taken with a couple Elinchrom ranger heads with a strip light and a can with a 45 degree grid.

In studio we shot against a wall with a trendy textured removable wall paper (not to easily removed). I lit Larissa with a pro photo ring flash I borrowed from my friend...

natalie leaving me with all the gear to pack into my car.

The ring flash was really cool and I am seriously thinking of picking one up. Especially because I heard that you can get one for the ultra compact Elinchrom Quadra.

   larissa having some fun during tests.

Medium Format KIT

As promised here is a breakdown of my medium format kit.

Digital Back

So what I have here is the Phase One P30+ digital back. Its a crop sensor digital back, which does slightly crop the focal length of my lenses, but it does allow me to shoot up to 1600 ISO. Although I rarely go above 800 ISO.

Body

I use the Mamiya AFD2 body. Its actually a not the greatest body to use, I am planning on getting the AFD3 body in due time. The problem is that the shutter sync on the AFD 2, gives me a slight delay which can be annoying, and the AF is a single point, which sucks. So at times I have to resort to manual focus. Not the end of the world but, annoying none the less.  

Lenses,

 I use the 35mm 2.8 which is like a 20mm in SLR terms. Then the 80mm 2.8, which is like the 50mm in SLR terms And I use the 210mm, which is like a 170 in SLR terms. For me this is a nice focal range that allows me to pretty much shoot anything I want.

Batteries

The Phase One backs really eat alot of Juice, so much so that I need to carry 3 batteries for a day shoot. So 3 batteries is a minimum. Alot of people dont realize this when getting into an MF system, and then are hit with an $90/batt price tag.

Light Meter

I rarely use a light meter when shooting SLR, but when shooting medium format its a must. I use the SEKONIC dual spot and ambient light meter.

Bag

I use a think tank bag, smaller but i find a little more durable then Lowepro bags. In it I always carry parking money, cards, a sharpie, AA batteries..

Memory Cards

For this kit I also use the 16gig sandisk 3.

Additional

When shooting MF I also use alot of things from my 35mm kit like "Pocket Wizards", Sunglasses, Lanyard, Color Checker, Polarizer etc...

architectural work

Schools for BIRD/GRAHAM.

This past week I landed a real nice contract for the joint venture of BIRD/GRAHAM construction. Its an architectural contract that has me shooting 18 newly constructed schools in both Alberta's cities Edmonton and Calgary. Im quite into the project right now trying to work it in when shooting Steven Mandels campaign images and trying to juggle a couple agency shoots in Vancouver.

I decided to shoot this Alberta architectural contract on the PHASE one P30+. My reason for this was I wanted to be able to handle and manipulate the dynamic range of the highlights and shadows because I am shooting the images primarily during hard sun of the day. I wanted bright colors, and vibrant images, but not overly processed.

I think over processing is a mistake many shooters make nowadays, and I am trying to avoid it with proper planning, the right tools and well of course a bit of luck.   

In addition to shooting on the PHASE p30+ back I am using the prime 35mm 2.8 lens (which is like a 20mm on an SLR body)

Google maps is serving as my locater, and my ipod is my entertainment while shooting.

For fun, I have also dabbled in a few panoramics of the schools. I am really liking what results they are producing, but not sure if they are suited for such a project. Time will tell.

Enjoy!

C

#94 "Scotty"

94

Scott Stewart.
A great hockey teammate.
A great person.
One of the best one timers I have ever faced.
We will miss you man.
Life's too short.


C

My Standard 35mm Equipment Kit

Hey Gang,

EQUIPMENT BAG

Thought I would post something a little more fun on the blog. A lot of people email me about little questions regarding my photography gear, what lights I use and what I carry in my bag. So I am for this post I am going to share what's in my standard 35mm kit. Keep in mind depend ding on what I am shooting, I will add a few things and take out others, but for the most part this is what's on me at all times.

1. Focal Range. I like a wide focal range, so I use basically the Canon 16-35mm 2.8; Canon 24-70mm 2.8; Canon 85mm 1.2; Canon 70-200mm IS 2.8 (Which I am strongly considering going back to the 2.8 NON IS version, as the IS version is much heavier) Canon 15mm Fisheye 2.8 (which I rarely use, but I still carry it). I also have a 50mm 1.2, but almost never use it... so it stays at home.

2. BODY. I use the Canon 1DS MARK 3. I am very happy with this camera. Mine is quite literally beat to S*#T, but it still works just great.

3. Often Looked Over Gear. As photographers we are often talking to people really close to us so GUM is a must. You would be surprised how many art directors tell me about other shooters Coffee Breath. Next is sunglasses. I carry polarized RayBan aviators. Its not so much a fashion statement, but the lenses are great ; they are not cheap Chinese plastic that will inevitably burn your retinas, and I can shoot outdoors with them on, without poor visibility. Finally a Lanyard. When shooting places you need access, I always lose the little "badges" so a lanyard allows me to stuff it in and wear it around my neck.

4. Make Pics Look Pretty - Color Checker and Polarizer. If you don't carry these, get them, now. They really help.

5. Batteries; Ok I use rechargeable to "help the environment" but they really suck and a really unreliable, so I carry in the "RED CASE" a set of Full AA Energizers... But in this case crappy Duracell's... which suck, but I was in a pinch in Vancouver and that's all the 7-11 had... $10 for 4 crappy Duracell's.. Coppertops dont last!

6. Flash and Triggers. I always use pocket wizards. They are pretty reliable to trigger my Elinchrom Strobes. I also use Canon 580 EX and EX2 flash heads... Then I always... and always carry a long sync cord... I always carry an old school sync cord  because sometimes I leave my pocket wizards in my medium format bag... leaving me with no way to trigger strobes... If you ever see me shooting with a sync cord its because I forgot the pocket wizards..

7. Memory Cards. I shoot with 16 GB and 8GB SanDisk mem cards. You will notice a 1GB "Oh Shit" Card I carry buried deep into my bag...I hope to never see it unless I am cleaning my bag, This "OH SHIT" card is used only when the words " I forgot my memory cards at the studio" are uttered to my assistant.   

8. TAPE... oh my god this is one of the most important pieces of gear in my bag. Its been used for everything for placing a mark, repairing my 1ds3, placing flashes in hard to reach places, taping up scrims and gels pretty much everything.

So yeah that's pretty much my Tools of the trade.

In a bit I will post my Medium format kit, which is much less and a lot cleaner than my 35mm kit.

Enjoy!

C