10 out of 10 or 20/20 Vision??? You decide!

January 2023 saw the commencement of the 10 out of 10 project.  The premise was simple.  Myself and 10 different photographers shot 10 different subjects in my studio with a two hour limit and two outfits.   Some photographers I had worked with before, others not.  Some subjects I had worked with before.... others not. The ultimate aim was to create a body of work of exhibition quality that illustrates how two creatives and one subject can create vastly different works in the same space and time.  A juxtaposition of our skills and vision.

All went along well, shooting one subject a month until number 9.   Whilst in negotiations with my chosen number 9, he suddenly died. Unexpectedly.  Yes, he was an older man, but this was totally unexpected and a tragic loss.  He was known to me as a friend and photographer. The project stalled.  I wasn't ready to find a new number 9, but didn't want to let down the 8 fellow photographers and  subjects already committed to the project.  After some months I realised my replacement number 9 lived very close by. A rough and tumble fellow with a great look and being local should not have been too hard to organise.  

I was wrong.  He was always keen to shoot, but timing was an issue.  He couldn't do this day, or that.  He needed a haircut, but couldn't get happening and some weeks down the track it became obvious that he was terminally ill and ..... he too died before the shoot could take place.  

Mortified I felt the universe had spoken and this was not to be.  More months elapsed, but I approached no-one to participate.  Then one night I was out to dinner with my mate Joshy when I spied a fellow at the Yacht club.  Ballsy as ever, I forced my business card into his hand and asked him to look at my website and consider being part of the 10 out of 10 project.   Well wasn't I surprised when just 2 days later he rang me!! I was elated!  

With number 9 now "in the can" my aim was to finish off the project. Number 10 came to fruition after a luncheon at a different club (yes, I know, it sounds like all I do is eat and shoot). Number 10 was sat beside me at lunch and number 10 photographer was at the other end of the same table.  It just seemed so natural and I asked if she would be number 10.  As they say, the rest is history!

The project is finished. 

Or is it?

Should I continue?  

Here are some of my images of the original 10. 

What do you think? Should it become 20/20 Vision?

I've gone Elinchrom!

HAHAHAHAHA... just found this had been sitting in "Drafts" for ohhhh about 11 months!  I'm a silly billy!!!

For those of you who have read along before, welcome back.  For those who are new allow me get you up to speed, pronto.

I love photography, it is my only real creative outlet.   I also have a home studio and a love of controlled light photography, Off Camera Flash or OCF to the newly initiated.  This all started with a photo of some dead flowers against a black backdrop taken with a single Canon Speedlight..... off camera.   I've always been a canon user and on this occasions I triggered the single Canon 580exii flash with a Canon St-E2 trigger on a coffee table in my loungeroom.  The backdrop was a roll of black gift wrap paper.  I was gobsmacked at the result.   Loved it,  and an addiction had began!

Fast forward 12 months and I had garnered together a vast array of Canon gear.   4 x 580exii flash heads and 2 x 430exii's as well.  I'd moved from the St-e2 to Pocket Wizards, so I have 6 x tt5's with a tt1unit and an Ac3 controller.   The madness of gear acquisition continued.  A Sekonic light meter with the pocket wizard module replaced the Sekonic light meter without the pocket wizard module!    Backdrop stands, light stands, cold shoes, bungees, clamps and.... the Modifiers!   I bought some Godox softboxes. Big gridded umbrella octos and some rectangles with grids.  I couldn't get a strip soft box for my system, but I made up 4 strips that I clamped on the sides of the rectangle soft boxes to make a strip light that I could adjust simply by moving two bull clips.   I even bought a cheap shitty boom arm and it was ..........really cheap and shitty!

I've totally impressed myself with the quality of light I have been able to capture with this set up...... but then one Saturday afternoon a text from Josh changed everything.  For YEARS I had wanted, no coveted, even lusted after Elinchroms.   Josh, to his credit, consistently reminded me to not spend any more money until my gear couldn't do what I wanted it to do, but my gear had never left me wanting.  Still I had a crushing desire to own an Elinchrom kit.   I'd only ever used them a few times.... mostly I had been Joshy's VAL (voice activated light stand) on a number of his shoots.   He used a ranger system,  battery operated heads as bright as the sun!!!    In fact he had left his gear in my studio some months before when his work took too much of his time and shooting became something he no longer had time for.   But I digress.  Josh texted me with a link to a bloke selling off some older elinchroms SUPER cheap.  SO cheap I had suspicions about its provenance.  I made contact and my fears were instantly allayed.  This dude knew his stuff.  He spoke confidently about the gear and what he believed was a fault, but for the price I was IN!   I contemplated a late night drive to the Central Coast to meet up, but decided a Sunday morning leisurely cruise would be a better bet and in the morning I was glad of that decision. The windy road to his place was bad enough in daylight.  It would have been horrendous at night!

So I scored a three head system with two softboxes and a reflector, a skyport controller, lightstands,  spare bulbs and a manual for bugger all dollars.  Josh was concerned that I had bought a lemon, but all heads work and the modifiers were in perfect condition.   The huge octos from his ranger system all fitted the system I purchased, which is the beauty of the Elinchrom system and... the big win...was that Josh HAD a strip softbox!  Albeit, without grid.

So the fun continues with 240V lights instead of battery powered speed lights.   I'm not savvy enough to see the difference, if in fact there is any!   I do enjoy the set up. It is super speedy and the variety of softboxes, brolly and reflections I have is stunning.

Its one and only downside is that it is not portable, as in outdoors.   But I retained some speed lights and Pocketwizards in case I ever needed to take it outside.  

Sooooo wanna see some Elinchrom lit images?  I was hoping you would say yes!

The Kayell Selfie Comp

In April I saw an instagram post from Kayell about a competition they were running.  Kayell is a photographic supply business with an outlet in Artarmon, Sydney.  I've been there a few times to both purchase goodies and for a workshop on lighting.   So when I saw Kayell had a comp running I had to join in.  The rules were simple... take a fun selfie whilst in Covid 19 Isolation with some of my imaging gear.  Upload one shot a day....  until 31 May!   So... why not I thought.   I have plenty of gear, a fully operational studio space and plenty of Iso time!

I made a few notes in my shot book and prepped for a couple of shots.  I use a shot book because my memory is ..... shot after some fancy cancery treatment stuff in 2013.  In my shot book I write up a props list and draw very poor stick figures and lighting diagrams.   But it works for me and that is all that counts!    I listed the props, wigs, gloves, glasses, hats and camera gear! It was surprisingly easy to list the ideas. They just kept flowing onto the page!

I have sufficient gear for my needs,  in fact I sometimes tag my instagram shots  #allthegearandnoidea !  Not strictly true, I don't have all the gear and sometimes I have a bit of an idea!!   Notwithstanding I thought taking some selfies would fill some of my free isolation time.

I'm still working my 9 to 5 grind with my long term employer in emergency services/justice, but weekends were lockdown. So free time was plentiful and I had canned all my studio bookings.  I'm not mad keen on a selfie and am far from model material, but, what the hell!  I thought I'd give it a go!  The 15 or so entries before my first one went up seemed to be outside the rules of the comp!  Lots of selfies, just no imaging equipment in the shots.

So into the studio I went.  Set up my camera on a tripod and started clicking!   If you know me then you know I have no photoshop skills. So these are simply cropped square in Lightroom and then uploaded.

Fast forward to this morning and an email from Peter Munro, head honcho at Kayell, informs me I have won a prize!  A Xlite Multifunction Metal Boom Stand which is PERFECT for the studio!  I was elated to receive this news!  I don't have a good sturdy boom! I have a cheap shitty eBay version that I can't risk hanging a D-lite off!  NOW I have a good one!

So which pic won?

The last one. The 4 shot fighting with the reflector got the prize.


What do you think?  Is it your favourite? Did Kayell get it right?
I have to admit it wasn't my favourite..... but it sure is now!

Studio Spam

Well I've been tinkering in the studio a bit of late, primarily doing some still life stuff.

Had a couple of girlfriends come over to give it a go and the Nikon Chick struggled, but managed a few decent images.  This is because my lighting gear is all Canon.   I seriously am a Canon girl!  The other visitor is also a Canon Chick and she leapt in,  cracked on and just shot, shot and shot!

I'm still no lighting guru, but I do enjoy OCF (off camera flash) for those of you who wonder what OCF means.

If you enjoy looking at the pics as much as I enjoyed making them, then we will both be very very happy!

I've also been seeing a few live bands of late... so I'll post some pics from them on the next blog post.

#Studiolife

It took me some time to get it happening, but finally the studio is up and running.   There are three shooting areas.  One for natural light, one for table top and still life work and a full length section.  No cyclorama.... the space isn't big enough for that, but there is a full kitchen for food prep, a models change room with one whole wall of props and another of clothing and a small but functional bathroom.  There are a few more things I would like to do to make it perfect..... but it is pretty damn good as is.    I would consider swapping out the tripod backdrop stands for ceiling mounted and rehoming a couple of large pieces of furniture to allow for more diverse lighting placement.   

I currently shoot with 4 Canon Speedlights and have all manner of modifiers from Honl gels to big arse soft boxes.   I use Pocketwizards (TT1 and TT5) to trigger and they all perform seamlessly and wirelessly... but still I would like a nice pair of Elinchrom BRX 500's.  Well a pair isn't enough, I'd need 3.  The downside to that purchase, and the only thing holding me back, is cords.  Power cables. They will be nothing but trouble for me in the studio.  There is a terrible story from way back in 2009. About getting tangled at an outdoor shoot and only the swift response of a naked model capturing my brand new 5D2 from certain death as the cable twisted around my leg dragged it off a plinth onto rocks below.  But lets not go there.  It still sends shivers!!  Hence my aversion to cables.  Many years have passed, but I'm still scarred by that near tragedy!

I know Godox AD400's or the new 600's are an alternative to the BRX500's, but I really have an Elinchrom mindset.  I have only used them twice, but the build quality impressed me to the somewhat obsessional stage.   The one thing they have over what already exists for me is.... a modelling light.  Shooting tethered is a reasonable alternative, but.... it's still not Elinchrom.  I tether to a MacBook Pro and I do use a Tether tool I picked up from Kayell in Sydney recently.  The Tether tool gives me some security when I feel clumsy around cords (hence my one and only Elinchrom issue). 

So far the Speedlights have not left me wanting.   I have to say output control via the PW's and portability are totally winning points.  I can't fault the gear I have..... but the desire for the big E is strong.  Maybe it's just the choice noise they make when the fire and recharge!

So below are few pics I took last Sunday.

Paper backdrop,  mostly softboxes and one attempt at Clamshell..... we did venture outdoors at the very death, but it was still too early in the afternoon to really achieve my desired outcomes.

The subject, Miss A, was a real trooper.  She gave me "sinister" when I need it!  She sat well, followed instructions and looked dead set stunning in the vintage gown...that I 'nearly' didn't buy!! She was recommended to me by a friend as a potential sitter and was accompanied by family. I'm so lucky to have met her and hope to shoot her again one day.

I was ably assisted with lighting by the aforementioned naked model as she is an accomplished photographer in her own right and for some reason volunteered to be my VAL for the day.  I very much enjoy her friendship. Shooting with her is a real joy.

So below are just five of the images of the day.  There were quite a few more and all required minimal editing, primarily cropping out a tiny sliver of softbox!  

The studio in the making was knows as Duna Studios.  Duna - Doona "well keep you covered", but we do need a new name.   So far StudioNao is atop the list.  If anything grabs you, send a message and I'll add it to the short list!

Home decorating 101.... by a NON expert!

Well much has transpired since my last post.  I'm now in full blown home reno mode.  I blame too much American daytime television for that!!     Fixer Upper, Good Bones, Flip or Flop.   I am amazed at the seemingly lack of governance in their reno regimes..... but perhaps those boring legal bits have been edited out for effect.   I'm not undertaking that level of work at this stage, but I am doing some decorating!   One of my jobs has been to create a functional office space. Having achieved that with a huge L shaped gloss white desk big enough for my editing computer and my smaller Family History and general laptops and some gloss white Ikea storage units, time has come to decorate the blank wall behind the desk.

The whole room was gutted and two coats of Taubmans was liberally applied.   My mate Moo was the paint buddy on that gig.   I did the patching, sanding and cleaning prep then she did all the cutting in while I rolled along behind here.     We did that on a stinking hot day so there was not a lot of time needed between coats!  And here we are 3 months later ready to create a gallery wall of images.   I purchased 11 black frames with white mattes.  Different sizes and formats, but the black and white theme was what I was after.   I then had 11 of my fave black and white images printed (oh there could be a whole blog post on that debarcle alone).   I finally framed them all.

As the frames were all different styles using old style wire and hanging hooks was just going to be a drama.   Moo suggested I try the 3M "Command" system of wall hooks.  Essentially they are sticky backed velcro.  Surprisingly they hold considerable weight.

I made paper templates the size of the prints and blu-tacked them to the wall.   This made it very easy to move images about and get the look I wanted.  I didn't want all the people pics on one side and the architectural images clumped together on the other side, so the templates worked a treat.

The process for hanging the system is to affix the velcro to the frame,  wash down the wall area where the sticky velcro will end up with rubbing alcohol.  Then remove the protective paper from the velcro and place the image where you want it.....and then..... instantly remove the image!!  That leaves one half of the velcro on the wall,  allowing it to cure for an hour before reattaching the print. 

Each stage of that process is fraught with problems.  Firstly all the frames had different widths on the reverse.  Fortunately the "Command" hooks come in varying sizes, so be cautious if you are embarking on this journey to match your frames with your hooks or, like me, you will be racing to Bunnings for more appropriate supplies!    The next problem was... hanging the images straight.  For this I used a Ryobi Air Grip Laser level.   Air grip, such a cute term for suction!    A mate at work loaned me two laser levels, but for them to be used "single handedly"  they needed to be affixed to the wall...with a nail!   Errr NO!  Not after all the cleaning and patching I had done!!   There are a number of different Laser levels out there and not knowing my arse from my elbow in this selection process I consulted he who shall be known as the "Oracle of Home Renovation".   Without hesitation he recommended the Ryobi.  He was right.  Suction was the answer.

So with all the good gear, good info and good intentions I began removing the templates and hanging the pics.    I started in the middle and worked out to the edges.   The "Command" hooks do leave a little wiggle room so fine tuning is an option.  And if you totally stuff up they can easily be removed and repositioned with a new wall mount piece (which can be bought separately).

The one negative I found was that one of the larger format frames I bought had perspex not glass and was scratched before I even got the print into it.  Lesson learnt,  Microfibre cleaning cloths and perspex don't go mix.   Its an easy fix though.  I'll have a sheet of 3mm glass cut for the frame and replace the perspex at some stage. 

Naturally I took progress images so you can follow the bouncing ball below if you need to.
I am chuffed at the look achieved for a minimal outlay.

Thanks must go to Moo, Joshy, The Oracle and Ash.  Job done! 

BLANK CANVAS

COMMANDER HOOKS, TEMPLATES AND OTHER ESSENTIALS

TEMPLATES IN PLACE

WIZZ BANG RYOBI LASER LEVELLER

ON ITS WAY WITH LASER IN PLACE

THE FINISHED PRODUCT!

When Violet went viral !!!

The internet is an amazing thing.  The popularity of this blog surprises me.  The amount to views is beyond belief for what is essentially a blog about my dance with cancer and my veggie patch.  Knowing this I thought a picture I put in a comment about the awesome Hunter Valley Santa Claus might garner about 50 views.  I was very very VERY wrong!  It went viral.  And the flow on effect was even more amazing.

As you may be aware my mum, Violet, has been diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer.  The bevy of oncologists can't offer her any hope and she is deemed terminal.  The oncologists have offered themselves available for advice and information, but have passed mum's care over to the Westlakes Palliative Care team.  Knowing this mum is not happy with her lot and as a result is doing it tough.   

Unrelated my sister Nola sent me a link to a photo of a Santa with an amazing set up.  That got me thinking that it might jolly Violet up to have a photo with Santa.  She has always loved Christmas.  So I found The Hunter Valley Santa on Facebook and I made contact with them asking if they were able to accommodate an 86 year old in a wheelchair.  They replied to my enquiry saying they would love to.  A few days later I went to the venue, "Sinclairs" on Hillsborough Road, Warners Bay, here in Lake Macquarie.   I needed to check wheelchair access.  Mrs Claus was brilliant.  Santa was busy with kids, but Mrs Claus showed me side access easy for a wheelchair and we confirmed a time and date.    A few days later Violet frocked up and off we went to meet Santa.   

Santa and Mrs Claus asked the crowd in front of us if we could pop in straight away and from what I could see no-one there minded, even though they had already waited some time.  Santa is VERY popular out there!     So mum was wheeled in and Santa helped her out of her chair.  She sat on his knee, then on his throne and as he was about to help her back to her chair I asked if Santa could dance.  He could, so they danced just a few steps and we helped her back into her chair.    We weren't there long, but Violet was very very happy at what had just occurred.  We collected out images and USB and headed home.  She was very excited.    I used those images to create her Christmas Cards and had them printed by Redbubble.  One larger print was framed and took up residence on the china cabinet.  That's were I thought it would end.  

So a few weeks later a woman I do not know posted a pic of Santa and her son Levi, taken at "Sinclairs".   I commented on her photo that Santa and Mrs Claus bent over backwards to help Violet get her first ever photo with Santa.   I added a small copy of the image in my comment.   

Violet's photo and comment on this lovely photo of Santa and "Levi" was then picked up by the television show "Today" and they created a new thread or page or whatever you call it with Violet's photo and the story.   I didn't know anything about it until about 10 hours later when Josh rang me and  told me to go have a look and that 6000 people had "liked" it on Facebook.   While he was on the phone the "likes", "shares" and "comments" continued to grow.  He kept calling new figures thru the phone to me.  By morning about 12,000 people had "liked" her photo dancing with Santa.    

Now Violet doesn't really understand how the internet works and isn't on Facebook, but she understood what I said when I told her 12,000 people had clicked a button to say they liked the photo of her dancing with Santa.  By the following morning over 21,000 people had "liked" the photo, over 800 had "shared" it on their own page and over 400 people commented on the shot.    I showed her the Today story on the iPad and she sat and read every single comment.  She recognised just 3 names  and spent the remainder of the day smiling and joyous.  

The following day Santa contacted me on Facebook.  We had tried to organise a family photo with mum, myself, my sister and all three adult grandkids, but two of the kids were working and one was off in Sydney, so it couldn't happen.  It was a very kind offer though.   Just another indication of how awesome Santa and Mrs Claus were.   Sometime later Santa told me that the local television station, NBN, had contacted Mrs Claus hoping to interview Violet and do a story about her visit with Santa.   As Santa and Mrs Claus had been so wonderful to us I offered to get Violet back to "Sinclairs" so NBN could do their story.  And so it happened.   Violet was as excited as a kitten to be interviewed by the lovely Emma Murphy.  She was going to be on the news!!

NBN played to story on Christmas Eve and put it on their website too.  She tells everyone who comes to the house.  Shows them the clip on the computer and we watched it a couple of times on christmas day with all the grandkids here.

So one simple comment about how wonderful Santa and Mrs Claus are had made Violet go viral and she loves it!

Below is the link to the NBN news story.  I hope you enjoy when Violet went viral!

Click here to see Violets interview with Emma Murphy

Lights, lights and more lights

As you may have guessed I am a little bit obsessed with photography.  My interest was always macro, the world of tiny stuff, bits of things, not the whole, but then in got hooked on the 100 Strangers Project and I wanted to shoot people, people and more people.   While I was shooting strangers I was also shooting friends and I wanted to shoot more and more people .... with artificial light.

I have scads of equipment, lots, heaps and I even know how to use some of it!!!   My lenses are an even split between primes and zooms.  If I am shooting people I like primes, but for other stuff I usually have a zoom on.  As for lighting I have 4 flash heads, 2 soft boxes, 4 brollies and pocket wizards to trigger all this stuff, but after shooting a model earlier in the week I seriously want to move further up the food chain to strobes.  I know the gear I have can easily replicate the work I did with the strobes, but the one sole advantage the strobes have over my gear is a modelling light.  The modelling light provides me a better idea of what the final image will look like.  It shows where the shadows will fall and how two lights blend or don't blend as the case may be.

This sole advantage is the reason why I am seriously considering offloading all my lighting gear and donating a kidney to pay for some lights that give me shadows!!!  I know it is not really logical or valid or reasonable.... but it is not all about logic.  It's about wants, not needs!

Below are some images I have taken... the first three are in my lounge room with my current soft boxes,  flash heads and pocket wizards.  The second group are shot with strobes similar to those I want to go into huge debt for.  The difference.... I no longer know if I can tell!!

What is glaringly different is the backgrounds.  Lounge room verses studio.   That's my next big purchase I think!

100 Strangers... a work in progress

Well it seems like a bazillion years ago, but it was only around July 2011 I first saw a book by Neil Winch about his 100 strangers project.  I don't know where he found out about it or what got him started, but I was fascinated.   The object was to photograph 100 strangers.   So that's introduce yourself, explain the project, find out a bit about them, get the shot and say goodbye within minutes.  The aim is to get a well lit expressive portrait.  I thought it was way too hard for me to attempt, but I was hooked.   Roll on August and I still hadn't taken a shot, but I found myself at the Cessnock Regional Art Gallery for an exhibition.  I had my camera and there were people everywhere.... I spied Stephen James, one of the exhibiting artists.   I had to act. It was now or never!   To my absolute surprise he agreed and the shot was taken.  By September I had 14 in the bag and I met up with the adorable, talented, witty, charming and delightful Chris Belyea for a walk around Sydney.  He challenged me to a "first to 5",  portraits for the day and he won... but ever the gentleman said I had won, which was very much not the case!

By February 2012 I was up to Stranger 38 when I again went to Sydney to meet Neil Winch, who had flown up from Melbourne.  He, Peter Grifoni, Evan Robinson and another guy met up for a stranger shoot in Newtown.  The boys were prolific shooters, Peter even dragging cafe staff out into the street for his shots.  They produced some amazing work that day.  I bagged just 3.  On the trip down by train I began to feel very unwell.  In fact I had to leave early and got back to Central to wait for a train north when I was overwhelmed with sickness.  Upset, ill, crying I rang Chris Belyea.  I knew he would be a the voice of reason.  He offered to drive into Central,  pick me up and drive me home to Lake Macquarie.  I didn't accept. That journey would have taken him more than 5 hours,  but we talked. He offered options.  Travel as far as I could north and when I could travel no more he would come and get me.  Knowing I had an alternative to passing out on the train gave me the courage to go on and I made it initially to Hornsby, then Wyong and finally Morisset.  Chris ringing and reassuring me all the way.

Towards the end of March 2012 Chris and his wonderful wife Sally came up to Kurri Kurri for the Nostalgia Festival where Sally enjoyed the music and the mayhem and Chris and I shot Strangers.  I was struggling with no energy and feeling ill, but I bagged 3 great shots that day.   Less than a month later I was diagnosed with cancer.  My last shot was on ANZAC Day 2012, no. 50.  I knew I would be out of action for a time.  I began shooting sporadically after that.  For a long time I couldn't even carry my camera.  Shots came in slowly.  ANZAC Day 2013 I shot Chris. Just 10 Strangers over 12 months.  I began to think I wouldn't ever finish the project.   Chris is a member of the Galston Uniting Church Men's Choir and they travel to Rathmines to sing at every ANZAC Day.   I shot him and his wife that day.  Chris too suffered from cancer.  I was too ill to attend the 2014 service.  Roll on ANZAC Day 2015 and we met again at the Rathmines Service.  Chris had spent most of the last 12 months in hospital and I had only managed 5 Strangers in 2 years.   He encouraged me to keep going.

So now it is May 2015 and I picked up the camera again.  I bagged Stranger 66 yesterday at Maitland.  She looked so interesting and her story reflected her look.  Just 34 to go.  At my current rate that would take well over 5 years, so I need to lift my game and get it done!

Here are some of the players.  You can see them all here :

#1 Stephen James. Cessnock Regional Art Gallery.

#17 Kristen.  Shot in Sydney with Chris Belyea.

#41 Lee.  Shot in Newtown with Neil, Peter and Evan.

#46 Tony the Quiffer.  Shot at the Kurri Kurri Nostalgia Festival again with Chris Belyea.

#60 Chris of the Glaston Uniting Church Mens Choir.

#66 Kate.  Shot at Maitland yesterday.