A couple of my shots taken with the new Pentax K3 camera will be on display in an exhibit at the Ricoh Imaging Square in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The event takes place from March 26th to April 7th 2014, so if you’re in the area drop in and check out the photographs. If you’d like to see some images from previous exhibitions click on the Exhibitions tab above.
Narihiro Shinjo, Uechi Ryu karate master, and younger brother of Kiyohide Shinjo. He has won the kata section of karate championships so many times, James and I are having trouble working out the exact number. Just like his brother he is fast, conditioned beyond belief, and very very strong. He is also a lovely man, and has great control, which is a relief when a foot that could probably pass through concrete flies towards your camera.
Great fun was had by all at the first studio lighting intro workshop. After talking about the different types of equipment available we spent the rest of the weekend taking studio portraits. We began with a single light, added a reflector, and eventually got up to shooting with numerous strobes. Things got comical as we got dressed up for our hospital staff portraits. Individual images were composited together to get the group shot of all six people. Thank you Kathy, Molly, Lemont, Kevin and James! I’ll put dates of future workshop up on the Photography Workshops page. If you’re waiting for a specific workshop, or wanting 1 to 1 training, please send me an email.
I’ve just set up a 500px account, as another way for people to find and browse through my images. I had imagined that having a website, a blog, Flickr, Facebook and Google+ was more than enough exposure, but other professional photographers said that 500px would be a useful tool in reaching new markets. A more significant change is that on Flickr and 500px I will now start uploading images that are 900 pixels wide on the short edge. Posting larger images on the web is always a conundrum. Too large and you could have people stealing your photos and using them commercially without receiving payment, they also they take longer to load on webpages. Too small and the viewing experience for web surfers is diminished. As the resolution of screens has increased, and data transfer speeds have improved, some images on my website and blog were starting to look very small. The new larger images will still be watermarked and the copyright information is still embedded in the metadata, but hopefully people will enjoy …
Images (not verifiable) have now begun to appear on the internet of a new Pentax 645D II to be revealed at the CP+ Camera and Photo Imaging Show in Tokyo next week. No news of the exact sensor, but a tilt screen would suggest live view, which would mean CMOS not CCD. The Pentax K3 is arguably the best APS sensor DSLR on the market, and it looks like the new 645D will rewrite the rules for medium format digital. For Pentaxians we live in exciting times.
Another fun fundamentals workshop last weekend. Had a great time with Kathy, Michelle and Rich. For more information about workshops click on the tab above. Next weekend we’ll be discovering the joys of studio photography!
Goroka is a town in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. It has less than twenty thousand residents and is accessible from Port Moresby by plane. Coffee is the main cash-crop, and the town is most famous for the 3-day Goroka Show in mid-September. The Goroka Show is a gathering of tribes from all over Papua New Guinea. In 2013 there were around 120 different Sing-sing groups participating. I’d seen some photos online of the festival and so made the journey from Okinawa to Goroka specifically to take some portraits of the various tribes. I took the Pentax 645D camera, the 645 35mm wide-angle and the new 645D 90mm macro. I mainly used the 90mm for portraits. Because it’s a macro lens, I was able to get up close and personal.
Fellow photographer Pete Leong popped around to the studio with his daughter Jenna. Took a few quick pics of her playing with Mario and Elmo before she began making decorative changes to the studio backdrop. Jenna is super cute, and until a year ago looked like exactly like Boo from Monster’s Inc. She showed me how to draw a rainbow with a fistful of colored pencils.
Yesterday, August 25th, was the Unjami Festival on Kouri Island, Okinawa. It is a time to give thanks to the gods. Wearing wreaths of ryukyu botanzuru (Clematis taiwaniana var. ryukiuensis) village elders lead the prayers and offerings. At 96 years old, Kaneshi Fusae is the most senior of the village elders. Participants and spectators at the festival received some mochi (sticky gelatinous rice cake). After offerings of paper money and Awamori rice liquor at the shrine, 79 year old Toguchi Ayako lead the way down toward the sea. More prayers as we crossed the little road that rings the island. And then finally, on a bluff over looking the ocean, Toguchi-san gave the final blessings. Kaneshi-san was all smiles, another festival completed.
On a hot day in Okinawa, Michael was delighted to be made to stand for photos dressed in a wool sweater and heavyweight fishing gear.
TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography 