All posts filed under: Photography

In the Studio – Alexis

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A few studio portraits of Alexis, always fun to move away from simple beauty shots and start creating characters. I’ve done several test shoots with the Pentax 645D and the 90mm macro alongside the K5 IIs and the 16-50 / 50-135mm lenses. It’s very easy to switch back and forth between the two systems. The 645D has a much clearer brighter viewfinder, and the images on the rear screen look  more natural, but the K5IIs proved to be easy to use and produced great results.

Toxic Banking

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David started innocently enough. He made a few small trades, always in reputable blue chip companies. As time passed his deals became more risky. He tried to protect himself from the dangers of the market, but each day he found himself a little deeper down the financial rabbit hole. Then came acceptance. He embraced the dark side. His future was in futures. Greed is good.

In the Studio – Sachi

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Model – Sachi Perry MUA – Summer Johnson Pentax 645D HD PENTAX-D FA645 MACRO 90mmF2.8ED AW S Lighting – Charcoal background. Gridded Beauty Dish powered by Profoto Pro-7a as the main light . Square softbox front and low as fill. 2 medium size strip softboxes behind that were adding rimlight (powered by Profoto compacts). Strobes triggered with PocketWizards.

In the Studio – Alexis

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An image from this week’s shoot. A chance to work with a great new model Alexis, and to test out both the 90mm lens for the 645D camera , along with its little brother the new K5IIs. Model – Alexis Jacoby MUA – Felicia Lee Pentax 645D HD PENTAX-D FA645 MACRO 90mmF2.8ED AW S Lighting – Charcoal grey background. Gridded Beauty Dish powered by Profoto Pro-7a as the main light . Square softbox front and low as fill. 2 medium size strip softboxes behind that were adding rimlight (powered by Profoto compacts). Strobes triggered with PocketWizards.

Off Camera Flash Workshop – January 19th & 20th 2013

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Off Camera Flash Workshop Move your flash away from your camera to create more natural images or to give your photographs a drop of magical light. January 19 & 20 2013 1PM to 6PM Class Size: Max 12  Location: Ishikawa, Uruma City, Okinawa (Maps and pins will be sent out) Instructors: Pete Leong & Chris Willson Price US$150   To book a place on the course please email me on chris(at)travel67.com I will send you a paypal request for the class fee. Payment secures your place on the course. Pete uses off camera flash everyday as an wedding photographer. He can use it to overpower the sun, and create flattering light for the bride and groom. He’s very good a what he does, and a great person to learn from. On the first day we will talk about the different types of strobes and how to get the most out of them on and off camera. The second day we will move from TTL to manual flash control, and from wired to wireless triggers. At the end …

On the bookshelf – Okinawa Karate Timeline & 100 Masters

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Hokama-sensei, one of the karate masters I shot a few months ago asked if he could use some of the portraits of him in the latest printing of his book on karate. The book is actually two books combined, the first part is a history of Okinawa karate, the second part is biographies of 100 karate masters. It has been translated into English and is available for 3,000 yen at either the Okinawa Prefecture Karate Museum in Nishihara or at the Dojo Bar in Naha. Unfortunately Hokama sensei wasn’t aware that the karate portraits I’d posted on the web, were not the full resolution images. This means that my photos in the book are a little pixelated and watermarked, but we’ll sort out things for the next print run. Hokama-sensei, however, was delighted with how it came out, and I now have my own signed copy for the bookshelf. Osu.

On the Bookshelf – Portraits

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I love shooting portraits. In the studio or on location. Friends or strangers. In exotic lands or in the backyard. I like the fact that  each portrait is unique, and if you can get  eye contact,  you’re staring into a person’s soul, capturing for eternity a brief moment of connection. When it comes to photography books, once again the eyes have it. I thought I’d show some recent additions to my bookshelf that are focused on portraits. It’s probably not a coincidence that the cover of each book has the subject staring directly into the camera. In Focus: National Geographic Greatest Portraits and Portraits are filled with immersive images taken all over the world. The National Geographic book spans more than a century with shots by a wide range of staff photographers. Portraits is solely by Steve McCurry (whose work also features in the Nat Geo book). The blurb about McCurry’s book sums up things nicely: Compelling, unforgettable and moving, McCurry’s images are unique street portraits: unstylized and unposed snapshots of people that reveal the universality of human emotion.  Although …

Photography Fundamentals Workshop

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Just spent a great weekend with Lian and Kevin teaching December’s Photography Fundamentals Workshop. On Saturday we covered theory, discussing equipment, exposure, composition and workflow. On Sunday we took what we’d learned out into the field and practiced photographing people at Ryukyu Mura and then landscapes at Cape Zanpa.   Coming Workshops Off Camera Flash Workshop Move your flash away from your camera to create more natural images or to give your photographs a drop of magical light. January 19 & 20 2013 1PM to 6PM Class Size: Max 12  Location: Ishikawa, Uruma City, Okinawa Instructors: Chris Willson & Pete Leong Price US$150 Photography Fundamentals Workshop Move beyond the auto modes by understanding your equipment, controlling exposure & depth of field, and composing images. February 2 & 3 2013 10AM to 6PM Class Size: Max 4   Location: Ishikawa, Uruma City, Okinawa Instructor: Chris Willson Price US$250