High School Grads

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We had a blast downtown Portland. Spent the morning at various locations with a break for some lunch at Pizzacato on 23rd Street. We got some great shots. Next we will do the portrait session in the studio to make the package complete!


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Pet Photography - Product Photography

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I am well aware of the old adage, never work with children or pets but I find the challenge they present, half the fun! What's a little Hedgehog poop among friends... Puppies are like children in that they grow up so fast. Their features and expressions alter as they mature. As with children, I recommend that you take as many images as possible to record this evolution. The pet can be a little nervous on set at first so a little coercion helps. After the pet has a little sniff around, I give them a tasty treat. Once I get a few photo's on the card, I give them another treat and a break. They end up quite enjoying the experience. In fact sometimes, they do not want to leave! Combining pets with product photography provides an extra challenge. The brain child of my friend, Alina, we approached this shoot with juxtaposition in mind - Mary K's "Satin Hands" against the grainy skin of the Bearded Dragon and the wiry spines of a Hedgehog against Re...
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Swim Portraits - Speedo Fun!

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We spend so much time at the pool, it was finally good to be in the studio again, even if it was for a swim portrait! These photos are for Brandon's athlete Facebook page which will one day soon be used to help gain swim sponsorship's. For me, it's good practice for when the big guys, Speedo or Engine come knocking on my door...wish me luck!
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NSW State Championship Swimming Photo Highlights

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Short course season changes the game for me quite a bit. With only 25 metres to catch a front on Fly shot, I'm lucky if I get one attempt. The older kids (and I mean over 12yrs) get most of the way down the first 25 without a breath. Breaststroke is still ok so long as the swimmer does the slow glide and not the quick bob up and down. Some swimmers do not come out of the water much at all, then they are just a head on top of the water but at these State Champs, we had some pretty stylish swimmers.  The great thing about short course is that we can get pretty close up shots at some points where is would have been almost impossible in long course. If I had to be at the end of the pool ready for the fly, there is no way I would have time to get the dive shot first before running 50m to the end of the pool. Also, even with the 300mm lens, the 50m pool is too long for the backstroke start shot. Poolside shots are one of my favourite to shoot so I was glad that I h...
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Beautiful Teen Girl Portrait- Funny Faces-Too Much Fun!

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After a few hours of shooting, set changes, outfit and hairstyle changes, we decided to blow off some steam. Just in the casual shirt she came in, Shelly sat for some fun natural shots. We were trying to get the fan going to blow back her hair but it was a mess and we just ended up laughing. The real fun started when Shelly began pulling some amazing expressions. It strikes me how beautiful she remained even when she contorted her face so!
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The Love Story Part 7 - Our Adventure Begins

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NO, NO, NO!!! How can this be happening? How can I be rejected with such casual abandon? For the very first time in my entire life, I have allowed myself to be open and vulnerable, and now I have been shunned. At breakfast, I ask him what is going on for him and all he offers me is... "I didn't think you'd come away with me otherwise."  Right here. Right now. This is my chance to change the trajectory of my life. Should I ask him to leave and head off to New Zealand alone or should I carry on with the trip together in the hope that things will change? I decide to cling to the belief that this is only a fleeting setback. A momentary panic. I just don't want to let go. I refuse to believe that after over a year of messaging and calls and what I thought was our deep connection, our beautiful friendship, this could be it. We have our little love escape coming up. Maybe things will change for him. I should have paid heed to the weather as a prediction of how things wer...
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Zombie Meets Indulgent Sufferers - My recent stay in hospital.

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I arrived at the Emergency Room, wrapped in my toasty blanket. Despite it being 28° outside of my furry throw rug, it was closer to 40°C inside my body, so it felt freezing to me. I slowly moved through the doors like the walking dead emerging from a post-apocalyptic horror scene. The admin nurse took one look at me and bade me sit in the red priority chairs, whilst I waited for my triage nurse to finish her tea. I lowered myself tentatively and, unable to remain upright, lay shivering across all three chairs. The nurse arrived abruptly and suggested emphatically, before she had examined me, that I had Rhinovirus.  I explained to her that, as Rhino = nose and my nasal passages were decidedly clear and my brain decidedly lucid that I begged to differ. She replied, “What do you mean by lucid?”  I pretended that the roll of my eyes was due to the fever and briefly explained lucidity as the opposite of brain fog, then went on to relay my actual symptoms. Above-normal temperature, ...
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The Love Story - The Final Word

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THE FINAL WORD Present: As I prepare for my return trip to London, I flick through upcoming walks on Meetup hoping I might join one during my stay, when I come across a picture of him from a recent event. A woman, his latest girlfriend I suspect, leans into him smiling contentedly. She seems happy. He looks mildly distressed and lost in contemplation. I suspect he needs to tell her something but he is too afraid. He’s done it again. The Parisian Doctor and I didn’t work out. We did go for lunch and it was all very exciting but I don’t think I was quite ready and there was that niggling feeling that I was being catfished. After Paris, we met up a few more times for walks and drinks where he persistently asked me about “the Doctor”.  I wondered whether it was jealousy or zealousness to have me attached so that I might make a trajectory out of his orbit. I think the latter. Sipping Pinot Grigio at Gordon’s wine bar near Charing Cross station one afternoon, he confessed that ...
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High School Formal Dance Photography - Killara High School

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Professional portraits for your high school dance or dinner? I wish they had thought of this when I went to high school! Although I remember it vividly, I do not have one image of my year 10 formal. What a fabulous idea! 20 years from now, these kids will love showing these happy snaps to their kids. They will reminisce about what they wore, how great they looked, who their friends were and how much fun they had! I had a wonderful time and all the kids were amazing! They just fell into their poses for the formal shots, each guy and girl looking as though they had stepped out of a magazine! Sometimes the formal consists of a dinner but tonight we are dancing away at Home Nightclub at Darling Harbour, downtown Sydney.
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Cambodian kids bring tears of joy! - Our visit to a remote school in Thailand

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Steps With Hope Desperately in need of funds to continue their support of this little school in Thailand, Founder of  Steps With Hope , Jen Spoor, hosted a Mother's Day High Tea. After her presentation, I said to Jen, "if you want to make a bigger impact, you need better photos".   So that was that and I committed to visiting the school on their next trip.   Meet The Kids If you're like us, you will want to meet the kids right away. There are about 70 children currently attending the school with three classes starting at Kindergarten age.  These children come from poor Khmer families, remnants of a recovering population that has endured one of the darkest times times in its history.  Around 3 million people slaughtered and many more terrorized by the Khmer Rouge has left a devastated people still clawing its way back to normality.  Families reside in makeshift huts just over the border in Cambodia. The children walk across...
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How To Setup a Remote Triggered Photo Booth

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These are the most fun shoots! Even better than an actual booth because you get to use awesome equipment and hang out with fun people! To setup my Photo Booth, I used the following gear: Canon 1D X ProFoto B1 Octabox with grid 3 x Pocket Wizard Plus II's 1  x Flash Sync Cable 1 x Remote cable Lightstand Tripod 32GB Memory Card 1. LIGHTS - I setup my light or lights, depending on the scope of the backdrop and the look I am going for. I have previously used my Alien Bee Strobes and more recently, Profoto B1's. You could probably use Speedlites too. I've just never found them reliable or battery efficient besides, the quality of light from the Profoto or even the Bees, is infinitely better. Besides which, you would need two to get the job done nicely. 2. TRIPOD - I setup my camera onto a Tripod. A good sturdy tripod is useful, especially if there is going to be alcohol at the venue! 3. POCKET WIZARDS - I hook up my remote flash/camera tri...
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