TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography

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In the Studio – Darryl Chiang

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Darryl – The Natural

A portfolio session with model Darryl Chiang. We worked fast and efficiently to get a good selection of images in a short amount of time. Makeup artist Summer Johnson was on hand as guys (or potential Presidents) can sometimes benefit from the use of makeup. Summer’s talents, however, would really come in to play on Darryl’s next shoot, “Fight Club”.

Darryl – The Tech Mogul

Darryl has been told he looks like a Korean pop star, but I thought I’d go for a Japanese otaku theme for this next shot.

Darryl – The Otaku

And finally a far cooler sports image of Darryl on a triathlon / time trial bicycle.

Darryl – The Speed Racer

Summer Photography Workshops

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PHOTOGRAPHY 101 with Chris Willson

July 14th & 15th 2012 US$250

Move beyond the fully automatic modes.

Learn the basics of equipment selection, exposure, composition and data management.

Take control of your photography so that you rather than your camera is making the decisions.

Pixels to Pigment Workshop with Martin Bailey

August 4th & 5th 2012 US$250

Improve the efficiency of your photographic workflow with a thorough understanding of color management all the way from capture to print.

For more details on the courses check out the workshops page.

To book either course send an email to chris@travel67.com

Super Typhoon Guchol

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Super Typhoon Guchol

Super Typhoon Guchol will be passing near Okinawa (or even hitting us directly) from mid Monday to early Tuesday.

This has the potential to be dangerous so if you’re new to Okinawa here are a few things that you need to do (and probably should have done already).

Tidy up the outside of your house or garden. If it can be picked up and carried by 150 mph winds, you don’t want it outside. A patio chair flying through the air is not a good idea.

Buy supplies. Charge batteries and buy new ones. Typhoons have the potential to take out the power supply for hours or days. Not too bad during the day, but a real pain if you’ve not got working flashlights at night. Buy food and bottled water for a few days.

Rent some DVDs but also have some books ready if the power goes out.

Fill the bath or containers with water. Water supply can go out. A bath full of water, will allow you to flush and refill the toilet.

Have towels ready for when the water manages to find it’s way around door and window seals. In a typhoon rain is often traveling horizontally and at high speed.

Once the typhoon hits be very careful about going outside. Sudden gusts can slam doors on feet or fingers. Pieces of debris fly through the air. Usually it’s leaves and twigs, but it could be a sheet of corrugated steel. Best not to drive a car, and definitely not a vehicle that is taller than it is wide (e.g. Mitsubishi Pajero Mini, Suzuki Every)

Going outside to take photographs or view the crashing waves along the coast is risky. Misjudge the situation or the waves and you’re in serious trouble.

Stay safe.

Any other good ideas? Please add them in the comments.

Nudibranch Nirvana

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Nudibranch – Fryeria picta

Nudibranchs are commonly known as sea slugs, and scientifically fit in the order of soft-bodied marine gastropod mollusks. There are several great things about nudibranchs. The first is that many are highly photogenic, the second is that they have interesting features such as feathery rhinophores, and the third is that they don’t move very quickly so you can document the first two attributes.

Nudibranch – Chromodoris coi

It’s a huge help having friends who have been photographing and identifying nudibranchs for years. They can spot them far more easily while diving, then after we’ve surfaced let you know what you’ve seen. Who knew ~~slugs~~ soft-bodied marine gastropod mollusks could be so much fun.

Nudibranch – Chromodoris kuniei

Karate Masters Portrait Project – F.A.Q.s

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I’ve been getting a few emails asking questions about the karate masters portrait project. So I thought I’d answer them here.

Do you have a specific list of karate masters you are going to photograph?

The goal is to photograph all the high ranking karate masters, of all styles, on Okinawa. If and when this happens will depend on the availability and willingness of the karate masters. Fortunately since the project has got underway, word of mouth within the Okinawan karate community has been very positive and we are finding masters happy to give up a little of their time to be photographed.

Will you photograph karate masters in other countries?

Sounds like a great idea, but first we’re concentrating on those masters based in Okinawa.

Can I submit some photographs of my sensei?

I decided at the start of the project that I wanted all the portraits to be shot in the exact same style. By not varying the type of camera, the lighting equipment, or the photographer, I can give the series of images a cohesive look.

What gear do you use?

The series is shot with a Pentax 645D 40 MP medium format digital camera with a 150mm lens. For lighting I use a single powerful Profoto strobe head in a beauty dish, powered by a Profoto 7a 1200w generator. The camera triggers the flash via PocketWizards. I also use a large black velvet background by Lastolite.

Are you going to produce a book of the photographs?

I’d love to do this, but it will be at least a couple of years away, when we have photographed many more of the karate masters.

Are you going to have an exhibition of the photographs?

Again, this would be fantastic, but realistically it is at least a couple of years away.

Karate Masters Portrait Project - Prints

Karate Masters Portrait Project – Dojo prints now available.

Can I buy prints of a particular karate master for my dojo?

Fine art prints of the karate masters are available in two sizes.

11×16″ (A3) US$125

16X22″ (A2) US$175

Prints are created using the same archival materials I have selected for my limited edition prints (Hahnemühle cotton rag photo paper and pigment inks). Prints are made by myself to ensure the highest standards of quality, materials and longevity. It is possible to make prints cheaper using generic papers and dye inks that quickly fade, but I only want to produce the best possible product, and have neither the time nor inclination to create a range of inferior prints. This may seem obsessive, but striving to achieve perfection is not just my goal, but is perhaps at the heart of every stance or kata.

Prints are shipped flat rather than rolled, and are mailed using insured and traceable international express airmail shipping. Images are dispatched within one week of ordering and delivery usually takes around 4 to 7 days. Shipping is US$25 dollars per box. Prints may also be collected from The DOJO Bar in Naha, Okinawa. Please email chris@travel67.com to discuss which prints you would like to purchase.

Once you have selected an image, please send me a link to the image on the Facebook page so I know which print(s) you’d like. I will then send a Paypal request to you for payment.

Purchasing a print not only helps fund the Karate Masters Portriat Project, but a portion of the print fee will be given to the karate master in the purchased image to help maintain their dojo. Each of the karate masters photographed has also been given two of the prints for display in their own dojo.

Doggles

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Doggles

Doggles, they’re goggles for your dog. Unfortunately Bear is not a fan, she believes if Dog wanted her to wear googles she would have been born with them.

Doggles

9th dan Gojuryu Karate Master Shigetoshi Senaha

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9th dan Gojuryu Karate Master Shigetoshi Senaha

A couple of weeks ago James Pankiewicz and I headed down to Tomigusku to the dojo of 9th dan gojuryu karate master Shigetoshi Senaha. I had been hoping to photograph this particular master for a while as he is the sensei of a good friend of mine James East.

9th dan Gojuryu Karate Master Shigetoshi Senaha

Senaha sensei posed for the portraits and then showed us his old photo albums. Through a series of small black and white photographs, we were taken on a journey through Senaha’s life, and through his karate career.

9th dan Gojuryu Karate Master Shigetoshi Senaha

There were images of him training as a young man in Okinawa and later performing at the opening of the Budokan in Tokyo. Many of the recent photographs were of him touring other countries, spreading karate around the world. Before I left, I took a photograph of Senaha-sensei performing a kata in his dojo. Perhaps he’ll add it to his album, to be shown to other lucky visitors at his dojo.

9th dan Gojuryu Karate Master Shigetoshi Senaha at his dojo in Tomigusku City, Okinawa.

Every Underwater Photographer a Diver

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Lizardfish – Creatures with teeth are not the only danger underwater

Perhaps the most famous of the United States Marine Corps’ mantras is “every Marine a rifleman”. It doesn’t matter what specialization you go into, each marine must still undertake regular training and assessment in their ability to fire a rifle. I mention this as there should be a similar mantra with regards to scuba: every underwater photographer a diver. The key issue is that if you’re an experienced diver and an inexperienced photographer, you may get mediocre shots, but you’ll dive safely and within your limits. If you’re an experienced photographer and an inexperienced diver, you can quite easily, and very quickly, find yourself in serious trouble.

Make sure you’re checking your dive computer as well as your viewfinder.

An SLR camera in a housing is large, heavy, bulky, expensive and demands your concentration. Add strobes and you’ve just magnified all these factors. If you are having any issues with your diving – buoyancy, navigation, exhaustion, air management, decompression etc then the camera is only going to make things worse. Spend too much time looking through your viewfinder and not enough time checking your gauges and you could easily find yourself being rushed to a hyperbaric chamber or worse.

Pair of gobies at 35 meters.

If you’re a photographer and would like to expand your artistic horizons, taking the plunge into underwater photography could be a lot trickier than you might expect. The above shot of the gobies is a good example. As a nature lover you study the way the little fish excavate the hole, as a photographer you adjust the aperture and the angle of the strobes to correctly expose the image, but most importantly as a diver you know your depth is 35 meters so that no matter how interesting the subject, and no matter how good the photograph might be, you have only a couple of minutes before you need to ascend.

Every underwater photographer a diver. Picture editors may be tough, but Mother Nature is even less forgiving.

Martin Bailey Pixels 2 Pigment Workshop in Okinawa August 4th & 5th

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Martin Bailey Tokyo Based Photographer

The dates are now confirmed! I’ll be hosting Martin Bailey’s Pixels 2 Pigment 2-day Workshop in Okinawa on August 4th & 5th.

Martin has put together a few details about the workshop on a Pixels 2 Pigment website, but also check out his main website and his podcast.

This is a great opportunity for photographers to expand their knowledge base. Color management is such a fundamental part of a photographers workflow, but it is often misunderstood, or simply ignored. Martin will guide you through the various steps that will make your life easier. You can take control of color, so you spend less time trying to correct mistakes in Photoshop, or wasting valuable ink and paper. A course outline should be available in the next few weeks.

Martin Bailey Making the Print e-book

The 2-day workshop will take place from 10AM to 5PM on both days. The course fee is US$250.

The Okinawa workshop will take place at my home in Uruma City.

To book a place on the course please email me chris (at) travel67.com and put WORKSHOP in the subject line (so I’ll spot it if it lands in the junk folder). I’ll send you a Paypal request for the course fee. Once payment is received your place on the workshop is secure.

Your booking on the course is non-refundable, but if you suddenly can’t make it, you may transfer your place to another student.

The course will take place indoors, so bad weather won’t be a problem. However, if there is a major typhoon causing the bases to go into lockdown, the course will be rescheduled to another weekend.

There is no required equipment for the course, we’ll have numerous ColorCheckers and ColorMunkis for students to use. (If you’re a photographer and not sure what these are, then sign up now!)

La-kun the Newfoundland

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La-kun the Newfoundland

La-kun is a large dog. When Japanese people see my labrador, they often say things like 大きい!! (Big!!) and Bear is only 27 kilos. La-kun is over 60 kilos, and could be mistaken for a tuskless mammoth.

La-kun the Newfoundland

Fortunately La-kun is also the most docile creature I’ve ever met. He lumbers around slowly and then lies down for a rest. What I didn’t know was that Newfoundlands are water dogs and, like labradors, very good swimmers. La-kun has been trained as a water rescue dog so hopefully in the future I’ll use the underwater housing and take some shots of him in action.