The Talented Masters

While food stylist Ben Masters and myself have been shoulder to shoulder in the trenches for some time now, conquering burgers and apple pies, I recently challenged him and his talented wife Louise to shoot some new personal work with me.

Louise has recently shown off her affinity for styling random objects via her Instagram feed and I was really keen to shoot some fresh, somewhat experimental food work with the talented couple.

I believe I got what I was after. Look forward to the next one.

HumanSuits

I'm not going to go into detail on how I managed to catch a glimpse of myself whilst being upside down (some things should just stay mysterious) but I noticed it wasn't a good look. It gave me the idea of shooting a portrait series in which the subjects were in this not so comfortable predicament, which is kinda opposite to the whole "relax and look natural" conventional portrait execution. I wanted the images to look like regular portraits though, but somehow wrong.

Mark, one of the Contacts producers, rained on my parade win he told me it had been done by some guy in the US. I chose to ignore that and went ahead anyway.

Casting was a slow process as people I approached were surprisingly reluctant to be photographed in a stress-position. Its not exactly going to flatter, but I finally recruited some candidates, keeping in mind that their fitness level would need to accommodate some basic trapeze moves.

 The shoot was done with the supervision of Matt at House of Yoga, Redfern. Their anti-gravity yoga studio ensured the safety of the subjects through proper instruction and equipment, so my public liability was in no danger of straining a muscle.

The producers were a huge help in pulling the shoot together, and I'm grateful for the efforts of the crew, Sandra (asst), Hilary Ho (MUA) and stylist Susannah Best, the guys at House of Yoga and the subjects who tried their best to look composed.

Cycling Trivialities

Most of the time I accept the fact that I am a commercial whore. Of course I spend a lot of time doing my own work in the pursuit of the beautiful, timeless and enduring image that I hope will define my presence in this medium, but I use the "artistic"moniker sparingly as it can come across pompous/pretentitious and and insult to real artists however occasionally I produce something that I dare say is as close to photographic art as I get.

This was a project I had been meaning to do for awhile, and my Fuji X100S made it possible. It was of course highly experimental which is another way of saying I had no idea what I was doing or hoped to achieve, but I am pleased with the results.

Viewed as tiny jpegs, you may not see the amazing thing that happens when light, movement and slow shutter speeds collude, but a print on matte stock reveals a cross-hatching of textures reminiscent of charcoal sketching. The glint of stainless steel spokes adds sparkle, reminding me what I love about the classic racing bicycle.

Mastercard PayPass v2

Barely a week after the previous shoot for Mastercard Payass, we were commissioned to shoot for the same client via another agency handling another aspect of the business.

Cute idea and the child talent was outstanding. At just four years old he took direction well, stayed focussed and did not complain once.

Apparently he was just as good during the filming of the TVC.

Retouching via Steve York @ Cream

Wayside Chapel

We all like to do our bit for charity, but its beneficial to all when an Ad Agency puts their energy into creating an ad for a charity and enters it into the odd award.

Worked with UrsaClemenger on this idea for Wayside Chapel, with Ed Mulyadi and Scott Turner under CD Denis Mamo. Scott was kind enough to allow the use of his legs. Yes, its shot in stride. No comping.

Styling was by Jan Edwards, who nailed it. Assistance was kindly provided by the enthusiastic Tim Hazzard. http://timhazzardphotography.com. I reckon with a name like that he should be a comic book hero.

Digital finesse'ing by Electric Art

Mothers Day OMV MTB

An added benefit of having no offspring is that Mothers Day is moot and just another Sunday. As those encumbered labour over burning toast and preparing brekky trays, we are out, as we are most mornings, on our bikes, enjoying quieter roads and trails.

As this sight of the bridge greeted me as I made my way to the North, I knew there would be some nice  shots to be had as the predawn light struggled to penetrate the morning fog which enveloped the city.

Needles to say, I didn't do much riding, and when on lap 3 my saddle snapped off (must invest in a dropper post) I was only to happy to grab the camera and harass my mates.

Now I'm no sports shooter and like my work to be deliberate and considered, and I have something to learn about AF-C on the D800, but I like the moody atmosphere and the beauty of the morning and the trail captured.

Ricky Ponting for In The Black

Unfortunately I'm not a huge cricket fan, not even a small one come to think of it. This does not mean I'm totally ignorant, and I know that Mr Ponting is a big deal in Australian and World cricket history.

That said he was very decent and personable to shoot, and took my jibes about cricket not being a real sport in good nature, although probably thinking "what an idiot".

Yes I will often and willingly make an idiot of myself to entice a response from my subject.

Mastercard PayPass aka GTFO-Quick

I was really jacked up to get a brief in from McCann Sydney for their client Mastercard.
I had not yet managed to get an appointment to show my book at the agency, so it was particularly good to hear I was being considered for the job.

AD Celine Faledam called to discuss the job and any thoughts I had, and I mentioned that a child's perspective (POV) would bring a little extra tension to the composition. Celine had been on the same page, although the initial scamps (which the client had bought into) were from the adults perspective.

It took a little convincing but the client came round to our thinking.

The concept played on the scenario known to all parents who take their toddlers or young children shopping, and relays the convenience of a swift and easy check out using the PayPass facility before the Little Treasure does some damage in the store.

I recommended a set build to be able to have control of the environment and got in Stylist Cherith Crozier to prop style the job and build the sets.

Meanwhile producer Penni nailed the casting and found a little Lola, a 5  year old with a big personality who took direction well, and whose hands had the right age "look" for what was required.

Everything came together in a relaxed shoot at Hatch studio, with the help of Jeremy Graham who assisted me on the day.

Ode to the Producers

The amazing, super organised, diligent and microdetail oriented people at +Contacts Photography who make shoots happen and run without a hiccup.

The endless quoting, back and forth emails, catering whims, photogs rants etc etc that the Producer deals with on a daly basis, they deserve a frikkin' medal.

Thanks to them, I can concentrate on the shoot, and know the details are taken care of.

Thanks guys. I'm grateful.

Sara Lee Packaging Overhaul

I while ago I mentioned I was in the running for an epic project for an Aussie favourite brand.

Well, I got the gig, and it was epic! Over a month of shooting.

After Ben Masters and I took the brief, we were still in competition with another Photog/stylist team (photog also with Contacts-awkward), and we had to submit a test shoot. We then presented the print and our chosen approach.

I was stoked when I heard we got the job! Ben and I worked with designer AD Samantha Young at Barker Gray to interpret the brief.

The client and agency had an editorial look in mind, but weren't sure how that would translate into to the regimented stye of packaging photography. I suggested a sort of hybrid, in that although highly styled food was required, it need to look loose and informal.

There were two more interesting challenges

a. the client wanted very little retouching, having being previously burdened with massive retouching costs

b. They would not be attending the shoot, at all, for a month of shooting.

I'm going to keep it short and polite and summarise that it all worked out beautifully and they got both wishes.

I just needed a glass of Cab Sav at the end of each day.

Breakfast of Champions

I really enjoy building sets and creating atmospheres to bring beauty and romance to meaty treats..

What more can I say.