Imagery and Annotation

Backyard Fun

2009-07-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

So, a while ago we were just hangin out and I figured why not torture the nieces & nephews by making them pose for hours on end...well as it turns out they outlasted the photographers. Here is a bit of what they had in store for us.

http://www.studiodwlp.com/

New Blog Home

2009-06-19T10:19:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone, I won't be using this blog anymore, check the new one for updates at http://www.studiodwlp.blogspot.com/ or the website at http://www.studiodwlp.com/

Thanks for stopping by:)

Ah, PrairieView

2009-05-26T07:32:00.001-07:00

two and a half more weeks to go!!!

james & mareshah - wedding formals

2009-04-30T12:37:00.000-07:00

spring is here

2009-04-17T13:57:00.000-07:00

three cheers for outside photo ops!!

HUGE thank you to my wonderful friends Jody & Carla (who have been married for almost three years!!) and to Angelina who not only babysat their baby boy 10 feet away, but gave expert technical advice as well (while showing off with her cell phone camera!!)

Ode to the Colour Green

2009-04-08T14:00:00.000-07:00

Ahem...

Colour Green, Colour Green

Where on Earth have you been?

Lost son of the warm beam

Winter's victim, it would seem

After howling wind

After storm and sleet

After melt and thaw

After muddy streets

Colour Green, Colour Green

Return and be Spring's theme!

*Pretentious bow*

and a photo for visual annotation

Finished Product

2009-03-19T19:58:00.000-07:00

now that bootscootin' baby by steps has been in my head for a few days, i figured it was time to post some of the finished product from this past week's antics...

Homework

2009-03-18T21:12:00.000-07:00

Here are a few images from the last few shoots some of us have been working on lately...
a bridal shoot, a rocker shoot and a western shoot, all in three VERY cold afternoons;
hey there's AO! Hi AO!

Katryna's very own paparazzi - she's got the look!

a VERY happy Cara,

and finally....a fleeting glimpse of a cold, confused horse at the sight of 5 strange ladies taking over his barn, at 5000 ISO, before i could change any settings on my camera. here is the remnant.

Engagement Session

2009-03-14T04:58:00.001-07:00

I LOVE MY JOB!!! I get to hang out with great people that WANT me to take their photographs - does it get any better? Here are some shots from my shoot with Greg & Shawna who are getting married in July.

March is a busy month

2009-03-14T04:45:00.000-07:00

and a cold month!!! i keep asking myself - why do i still live here? oh yeah - family...(muttering, "stupid family")

here are some shots taken from some shoots i have done so far this month

stay tuned for some eighties DELIGHTS! coming soon

Movie Reviews

2009-02-26T11:29:00.000-08:00

Another shoot week has come and gone, and I am now the proud owner of a 5D Mark II!!!! YAY!!!!!!! Here are some of my first shots playing with the marvelous ISO capability...(all shots between 3000 and 6400 ISO - yes those zeros are all supposed to be there!!!)

Now, for my reviews:

Because I was out of town for a lot of week (visiting my sister and her family and picking up my camera - PST free!!), I only made it to two of the movies, and watched one on my own. The movie I watched at home was Funny Face, starring Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn. The movie was released in 1957 and was nominated for ten different awards (including 4 Oscars) and won one of them. Set in New York and Paris, the film is about fashion photographer Dick Avery, (played by Astaire) who is in search of an interesting and intellectual location for a less-than-intelligent model. He and his crew expropriate a small, dusty bookstore, but when the photo session is over, the store is left in a mess and books are heaped everywhere, much to the salesgirl, dowdy and unfashionable, Jo Stockton's dismay (played by Hepburn). Avery stays behind to help her clean up. Later, he examines the photos taken there and sees Jo in the background of one shot. He is pulled in by her unique appearance, as is Maggie Prescott, the editor of a leading fashion magazine. They offer Jo a modeling contract, which she reluctantly accepts only because it includes a trip to Paris, where she can meet her hero, a philosopher. Eventually, her snobbish attitude toward the job softens, and Jo begins to enjoy the work and the company of her handsome photographer. Of course, romance ensues and the movie ends with a happily-ever-after ending. Overall, I enjoyed this film, although, the predictable plot and typical boy-meets-girl, boy-offends-girl, boy-makes-up-for-it-and-wins-girl storyline is a little less than exciting. It is a sweet story, though, and nicely filmed, and Audrey Hepburn is always charming. I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5

Born Into Brothels was an excellent documentary on children living in a red light district in Calcutta. Zana Briski is a photographer who travels to their neighbourhood and actually lives with them, teaching photography to the children who are interested. This film is moving, inspiring, heart-breaking and beautifully hopeful at the same time. The content is really hard to watch at times, when you see how these children were living and the kind of family life they had, but watching how someone showing a bit of interest in them, and empowering them with being able to express themselves through art made me excited to see how their lives were changing and how far they've come now. It is a really lovely film that everyone should see. Definitely 5 out of 5 for this one.

O Brother Where Art Thou was great too. The way the movie was actually filmed and then edited was very interesting and it is definitely more powerful, having had the editing done the way it was. The movie itself was very funny and I laughed out loud (literally) several times. Very entertaining and well filmed, I'd give it a 4.5 out of 5. And with that, it's time for me to R-U-N-N-O-F-T...

...it's still headshot season...

2009-02-17T14:52:00.000-08:00

Meet Georgie, a young Manitoban actress, who very kindly volunteered to sit for me.

more babies!

2009-02-17T14:44:00.000-08:00

it's been a VERY busy month at prairieview, but the snapping doesn't stop! in november i photographed some friends of mine's baby who was just a couple of weeks old. last week i went back to photograph the same little sweetheart again at 3 1/2 months. Look how much he's grown!!!

THREE AND A HALF MONTHS

TWO WEEKS

more headshots!

2009-02-12T12:52:00.001-08:00

here's a shout out to a few of some very helpful friends! thanks again ladies!

Another great thing about summer....

2009-02-02T12:48:00.000-08:00

only four more months to go!!

What do I do...?

2009-01-23T14:07:00.000-08:00

After narrowing down my headshots from 70 to 44, then to 12 then down to 3 then finally down to one, I still can't decide how to print!!! any thoughts??

Baby Time!

2009-01-13T13:05:00.000-08:00

I just had the huge pleasure of photographing some friends of mine that welcomed their new baby a couple months ago. here are some of my favourites...

visit my flickr site for more!

...and that's the REST of the story...

2009-01-09T12:37:00.001-08:00

ok, so before Christmas I had begun a tale of woe that became very verbose. to save my poor fingers the typing and your poor brains the reading, i've finished the story in photographs.

new year's resolution for 2009 - insulate the sunroom!

photographic reprieve

2008-12-12T14:11:00.000-08:00

i miss summer! scratch that, i'd take any weather warmer than +10!! here are a couple of photos that reminded me of how nice it is to be outside and not get icicles up your nose...

This One's For Amanda O

2008-12-05T13:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday something tremendously funny happened. A somewhat ridiculously tragic occurence that instantaneously changed my life, followed by a perplexing series of choices, evolving from the point where funny and logical meet, to disturbingly frantic phobic mania.

After eating lunch (approximately 12:42), I dove head first into analogue fun. Typically when I do this, I block out the world and become completely absorbed with my subject, which yesterday, was the door to my unheated sunroom on the second floor of my house. After taking three frames of my door (all magical, evocative masterpieces btw), I decided to try shooting my elusive subject from the other side...

This is where some contextual groundwork is important:
Age of House: 100 years
Average heating cost in winter (keeping house at 20 degrees C): $600
Degree Celsius we actually keep our house at in an attempt to save money: 15 (during the day, 12 at night)
Degree of Obsessiveness Craig and I maintain to conserve heat: very high
The nature of my temperament: excessively optimistic, albeit VERY impatient

Keeping the context I have given you in the forefront of your mind, let me move on through the events of the afternoon. Intending to scout my location before shooting, and attempting to conserve heat in the main part of the house, I entered the sunroom and shut the door behind me. Afer deciding that I could shoot the handle and the hallway very nicely from this vantage point, I turned the handle to reenter the "warm" part of the house...

This is where my day falls apart.

As I turned the handle, I made the horrific discovery that this particular 100 year old door handle only works from the INSIDE of the house. Great. I chuckled. I thought it was hilarious. Here I am stuck inside a room of my house that is about -10 degrees, I'm wearing regular clothing and a pair of slippers.

Choice No. 1: Attitude
At this point I decided I was not going to get impatient, as that could only make the situation worse. I was determined to stay positive and to maintain a very calm presence of mind.

To be continued...
(photos to follow in the new year)

IS3 - Internet Research

2008-10-01T04:27:00.000-07:00

One genre of photography that I'd like to explore more is candid photography of children. I'd like to be able to get a lot better at that, and maybe someday focus on that professionally.
Candid photography is really about spontaneity, and letting the camera be immersed in an event or situation, rather than staging and planning each shot. Most of the websites I found really emphasized the need for being patient, being quick and letting the kids just be kids. Most sites recommended letting kids explore the surroundings rather than making them sit still and pose. The most helpful site I found was http://staticphotography.com/node/100

This photo is great because the little girl is just being who she is. They've let her wear whatever she wants and the results are hilarious.
http://www.bellabambinophotography.com/index2.php?v=v2

I think this photo is fantastic. The espression on her face is lovely.
http://www.erinbellphotography.com/ (far right)

I chose this photo because it captures the interaction and the relationship between the kids.
http://www.gingersnapsdesign.com/

Interesting Photo-Related Site

2008-10-01T04:17:00.000-07:00

A good site I've found is www.studiolighting.net
A guy named Mark Wallace does these video tutorials for digital photography and some fo them are really helpful. There are also some good links and equipment suggestions.

Family Photo Shoot

2008-09-29T10:30:00.001-07:00

From Steve, Leanne & Tressey

Taken at Assiniboine Park

Best of...So far

2008-09-25T12:05:00.001-07:00

Lines Assignment

2008-09-23T06:48:00.000-07:00

I thought this assignment was really fun. It would have been great to have had more time and get really creative. It was pretty easy to find things to shoot since there are lines everywhere.

Slideshow

2008-09-18T08:37:00.003-07:00

Let me tell you a secret...

2008-09-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

...I find writing prescribed blogs REALLY difficult, which is why I have been sitting at my computer, without coming up with anything, for a span of time so ridiculously long that I am too embarassed to share with you.

I first became interested in photography, (as everyone has already heard me say MULTIPLE times) when my dad gave me his Minolta XD-11 (which I still shoot with) to play around with. I messed up settings and didn't balance the meter and shot roll after roll of film, with remarkably little turning out properly, or even being focused, for that matter. It fascinated me that I could manipulate the camera that way and actually be in control, even if the results weren't great. From there, everything snowballed and here I am :)

Over the next 10 months, I really want to learn the techniques to refine my images and get consistent results. I also want to concentrate on expression through photography and explore the creative side a lot more. Oh yeah, and all the business stuff. And blogging...I hope I get a LOT faster at blogging...

First Post

2008-09-11T09:08:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone! Classes have started and I'm excited to settle into life as a photography student! I love portrait photography and photojournalism and I hope to get a lot of experience in these areas over the next ten months, as well as get a lot of exposure in other areas of the field as well. It will be fun to explore new things and to get to know everyone better!

Photo by Duncan McNairnay