On Location – Cowgirl Cotton
An early morning shoot with Cotton Williams building her model portfolio before she moves back to the States next month. A big thanks to Rocky the horse and Eve the trainer from Mihara Horse Club for all their help.
All posts filed under: Japan
June 16th 2011 Lunar Eclipse – Okinawa, Japan
Got up at 3.30AM and drove over to Cape Maeda to watch the Lunar Eclipse. My plan was to photograph the moon reflected in the ocean as it neared the horizon, but this wasn’t possible due to clouds on the horizon. The image above is not a particularly interesting shot, (nothing to put the moon in context) but is a decent enough snapshot to remember the event. I was pleased that most of the sky was clear so I could at least witness the lunar eclipse. This is in contrast to the solar eclipse a few years ago when, having travelled all the way to Yakushima to be in the zone of totality, we spent the entire day under a thick layer of rain clouds.
The best camera is the one you have with you
Took the camera with me on the dog’s walk. Nice evening light. It was dark by the time I’d managed to get Bear back on the lead. Labrador’s should be classed as marine mammals, and chocolate labs do not seem to develop obedience or common sense with age.
Love & Hope Exhibition Begins
Pentax just sent me a few pics of the exhibition. I’m going to head up to Tokyo for the July 16-18 long weekend so I’ll get to see my image in Love & Hope part III. Really like the look of the new gallery, hopefully I’ll have a solo exhibition there in the not too distant future.
Workshop Updates
Six Eight of the twelve spots on the July 8 & 9 (& 10) light painting workshop are now filled. Two of the four spots on the July 2&3 Photography 101 courses are now filled. If you’d like to reserve one of the remaining places on either of the courses please get in touch.
Love & Hope – Pentax Forum Gallery II, Shinjuku, Tokyo
A set of postcards just arrived at my house promoting the new exhibition at the Pentax Gallery. Nice to see my name on there in the bottom right, and just as impressive is that they have spelt Willson correctly with two ls. It may be difficult to see, but the small camera icon in the center reads “Camera GP Japan 2011 – Camera of The Year” which is fantastic news for Pentax. Last month the 645D won the Best Professional DSLR award from the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA). Not bad for a camera that most people thought would never get beyond the prototype stage. I hope to get to the exhibition, but most likely it will be for part III when the part I prints are put on display again along with some other images. I’m aiming for the long weekend of July 16/17/18 but will see what happens.
Americana Singer / Songwriter Kluso
Kluso is a singer / songwriter based in Okinawa. I’ve seen him play live several times, and it’s a pleasure to have someone with such talent and love of music living just down the road. Kluso’s style of music is best described as Americana, a blend of folk, country, blues and rock. Inluences include Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams, David Gray and even Oasis. Please check out Kluso’s music on his website, or on iTunes. His new album Determination will be available soon.
Super Typhoon Songda coming towards Okinawa
Batten down the hatches… It’s turned orange…. must be getting angry
“Love & Hope” exhibition at Pentax Forum Gallery, Tokyo
“Love & Hope” is a new exhibition to be held at the Pentax Forum Gallery in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The exhibition is currently scheduled to take place from June 8 to June 20, and July 6 to July 18. Images will printed B0 size (1030mm by 1,370mm) which should be amazing. The first part of the exhibition will have 10 images each shot by a different photographer. Pentax asked if I’d take part, and they chose this image of Jessica as one of 10 to be exhibited.
Return of the 25mm
All good things must come to an end. I packed up the 25mm lens and sent it with Kuro-Neko (Black Cat Couriers) back to its home in Shinjuku. It’s a pity that the rainy season came early this year, as I’d hoped to have got a wider selection of images with the lens. It’s a huge piece of glass. It’s a giant in terms of size, weight and cost, but also quality. If you have the cash, and want to get as wide as possible, then this lens could be just what you’re looking for.
