Boston ...

Traveling this week ... during the day in training and in charge of content management for a sizable web site overhaul ... all other hours are dedicated to editing and retouching images for my second photo book

A couple of teaser images are included in this post ... the whole concept was photo-journalistic with the models having the option to "pause" at any time ...

I shot this a little over a year ago, mulled the retouch/edit process over for a while and finally got the impetus to get this going ... all lighting is natural ... no make-up for a very natural look ... yes, I did change my mind about the all B&W approach ... ;-) .. the retouching process runs from B&W to a variety of color processes ...

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I was cleaning out my wallet of receipts today and came across two forgotten fortune cookie notes I picked up in early September ... I keep those religiously as I'm constantly working on improving my Chinese vocabulary ... ;-)

Your career will soon be enhanced by a new friend ...

A beautiful person is with you, confide your problems ...

Variations on a theme ?

Time for real coffee ... continued ...

I had a great shoot ...

... with Jessa, Kristin and Kay ... make up artist Gina Novotchin joined us for the fun ...

Images later ... much later ... still having hard drive issues to resolve ... enjoy one of the images from Betcee and Tiana in the meantime ... shot in my studio one moon ago ...

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Added new music to my car CD changer ... Paris by Night ...  a compilation of classic French songs and singers from 1929 to 1964 ... 

Edith Piaf, Charles Trenet, Maurice Alexander, Leo Mariant, Lucienne Delyle, Tino Rossy, Charles Aznavour, Line Renaud, Django Reinhardt, Jean Sablon, Mireille, Les Compagnons de la Chanson, Lys Gauty, Frehel, Eva Busch, Damia

Milord (Edit Piaf) makes me cry ... that good ... Eva Busch is a close second and who does not like Django Reinhardt in "Nuages"

French classic street song entertainment at its best ... I grew up listening to this music ... my parents were fond of it ... 

EMI CDP 7 94478 2

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I dreamt about my Red Barn again ... pleasant ... it was full of people and art ... you were there too ... 

Studio double fun 1

Couple of weeks ago I had all the photography gods working for me when I got the opportunity to work with Betcee May and Tiana Hunter in my studio ... this was the second duo shoot with Betcee and Tiana, the first one being in Los Angeles, September 5, 2008 ...

We captured spontaneous silliness and goofiness ... the serious and even more serious ... but also a lot of tenderness, friendship and love ... 

It was truly a privilege to be have them in front of my lens(es) again ... these models know to sway the camera and how to emote ...

Betcee and Tiana connect well together and have a very similar posing style, yet different enough to make each image a keeper ... yes ..

. you read that right ... 

I'm a lucky man to have the opportunity to work with all this talent ... 

This series is once more about interaction ... I create the environment ... instill the plan and the rest is up to what develops with some gentle guidance ...

Lighting this set was simple, one overhead gridded softbox and one gridded snoot for accent ... side window light fill with a fluorescent wall of light ... no flash was used at all ...

Continued ...

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

I'm traveling to Europe to visit my mom.  Writing this from London during my layover for my next flight to Brussels.

My mom is in the hospital, ill.  We've know for a while that there's no holding back on the cancer anymore but she's gotten worse in a short amount of time because of a bout with pneumonia and a collapsed lung.  This could be very well our last visit.  Prognosis is very grim, we were all hoping she would make Christmas but this may not be the case anymore.

She sounded good on the phone the last couple of days but we're both looking forward to connect.

My BlackBerry doesn't work in  London and I'm sure the same happens in Brussels, just like last time.  I was on AT&T for the longest time until the company switched me over to Sprint.  That is a nightmare.  Not only does Sprint not cover my home location, I also have to deal with poor reception at the office where I have to switch to a landline on most days when a cell phone call comes in.  Sprint is so not worth it.

Luckily there are airport lounges with *paying* wireless connections ... no more freebies I guess ... T-mobile hotspots.

On my way here I was able to do some editing in camera of my last shoots with Betcee May, Tiana Hunter and Nicole Vitelli.  We did get a wonderful collection of editorial work to support my evolving  photography stories.  

The image on the left is from my "Two friends" story ... Betcee and Tiana being spontaneously goofy.

This shoot was a lot of editorial photojournalistic fun.  Watch out for more images from this series.

Nicole did a great job showcasing a lingerie and sexy dress collection.  No images yet but I'm happy with what I've seen in camera from this mostly available light shoot.

We worked in the new studio 405 from Lucinda Wedge in downtown LA.  Lovely location with a myriad of possibilities.  The roof access is nice, plenty of cool corners there also.  Looking forward shooting there again.

I'm living a roller-coaster.

Continued ...

Friday, September 5, 2008

It has been a couple of days since my last update ... very busy time for me, business travel and not too much time to sign up online.

Managed to do a shoot today with Betcee May and Tiana Hunter.  I always wanted to shoot these professional models in a natural "real" home environment and I finally got the opportunity.

Great timing as Tiana was in LA till the 4th and graciously extended her stay till the 5th ... Betcee is getting ready for an extended modeling stay in Europe and this is one of her last shoots in the USA till next year.

Both Betcee and Tiana were great at playing and feeding my concept.  Norton, Betcee's cat, became at times a very willing participant during the shoot.  

Norton is funny, likes to be petted and cries incessantly for attention.

Adorable ... he became my friend in no time and as one can see, Norton is not afraid of the camera !  Well trained kitty ... lol ...

Pictures of this shoot will be edited and retouched later this year.  

I'm currently shooting a small editorial portfolio together and I'm focussed more on the creation process than the finishing process.

Continued ...

Friday, August 29, 2008

Busy day at work ... not surprisingly, the last day before the long weekend ... solved some sticky customer issues to everyone's satisfaction ... life is good.

Went shopping for some new toys ... I'm a guy after all ... lol

Posted the Newbie Model of the Week composite on Newbie Model of the Week 

... I'm the OP since a couple of months for this forum thread, all a part of giving back to the community at large.

Working on more edits, planning on doing a couple of retouches tonight ... April, Nicole, Betcee, Sarah, Tiana ... plenty of it to go around.

Wednesday, August 27, 08

Isabelle Reneaux graced my studio.  Tiana Hunter sent her my way.  Thank Tiana.  Lauren Warner for make-up and hair.

Isabelle got directed on the wrong BART train ... slow start, rocky start ... but that changed quickly after the first ice was broken and connection was established between the three of us.  The Dior make-up chair from Lauren does miracles ... lol

A crocodile and banana SMS cracked me up.  Don't be jealous.  Prop for the day: artichoke.

No pictures to share yet, that will take some time.  Happy though with what I've seen through the view finder.  Isabelle was on fire in the outdoor shoot on Mission Boulevard.  A 15 minute concept.  

We just stopped shooting and I had removed my memory cards out of the camera just in case ... yep ... a red and blue light cruiser rolled up and the officer walked up to us.  Totally ignored me when I tried to intercept him.  Walked right up to Isabelle and Lauren with a grin and a smile on his face.  I knew we were OK.

Isabelle and Lauren handled it perfectly.  Couldn't have done it any better.  The officer was totally professional and understood the boundaries and the law.  Expressed his concerns for the situation.  Promised to be more discrete in the future.  Be polite, be courteous, don't argue.  Thank God for understanding officers.

Back in the studio at 7:00pm ... dealt with a minor disturbance ... concisely ... don't sweat the small stuff ... peace of mind is so much more important ... good night ... I'm exhausted.

Continued ...