2009, Its a Wrap

Merry Christmas everyone! It sounds cliché but man this year has gone by fast. On top of the catching up with family and friends, it’s made me think about where I am now compared to this time last year, and where I want to be this time next year.
Almost exactly to the day this time last year I made a decision to go for it and start trading as a professional photographer, up till then I had success within my own network doing fun little commercial gigs for friends, shooting my friends and family, pretty much the way everyone else starts out.
Looking back at the year now, I can attribute anything that I’ve accomplished in my first year to just a few basic principles:
· Hard work, lots of it. I live eat and sleep the projects I’m working on
· Passion for making great pictures and never being satisfied with where I am, I’m always looking to the next step forward.
· Good advice, no, GREAT advice from trusted sources and close friends with everything from business tips to encouragement. A big thank you to everyone who has been a part of this.
· A great relationship with my marketing rep in 2009 Luke Boman and his team

2010 is already shaping up to be a busy year, with some exciting projects coming up. As far as business direction one big change is that my business has shifted from marketing representation to in house marketing. To this end I’ve secured the services of web guru and marketing man Michael McMahon AKA Mike. Mike’s official title is Web Guru & Marketing Dude. He is gonna spearhead our online presence across social and formal networks and keep our work out there. There will also be a revamp to the website that will make it easier for current projects to be viewed as we roll them out, watch this space.

Personally, I also have a couple goals and resolutions for 2010, they are:
· Do everything perfectly ALL the time, hahaha just kidding, I know I’m gonna make a heap of mistakes.
Seriously this time:
· Creative work – on the top of my list is setting aside time for creative work, and this has been for a long time, what is gonna be different in 2010 is I’m setting aside a budget as well. A percentage of all gross revenue is going into a kitty for creative shoots, whether its used for paying the best talent, securing the craziest locations or hiring kick ass props, 2010 is gonna see me push the envelope creatively and back it up with the budget it deserves.
· Giving back – 2010 is gonna see a regular giveaway of images from my fine art collection. In between my commercial creating I take thousands of fine art images so as a way of saying thanks to everyone for the support I intend to get select ones out to you absolutely free.
Well I’ll leave it there; I’m off to Hawaii tomorrow so better get around to packing.

Cheers to a 2010 full of creativity in everything we do!

Shane and Cecilia

These are my friends Shane, Cecilia and Teal. They're off to Norway soon, we took some pics along the beach around where I live. Tech info: Canon 1Ds MkIII, 50mm 1.4, natural light

The Deep End - A Shoot for the Australian Dive Team

We new it was in the pipeline, the Australian Dive Team had wanted to get their star athletes photographed for a recruitment drive and we were gonna shoot it. My representitive Luke Boman had shown my book to the right people and everyone was excited. Great!
The problem was when. When were we gonna get the whole squad at one place from all over Australia? We got the call on Saturday while I was on a forklift shooting down from above in a hangar we had painted black to form a giant studio. "Can we do it Monday?" yelled Luke. I said no, then yes, then yes, then no. Not because it was too rushed, but because before he yelled out the date he told me that the whole squad was together because it was during a national competition. I hesitated because I wasn't sure if I was gonna be able to deliver what we said we would during a competition. I wasn't just gonna shoot from the sidelines, they could get anyone for that.
I knew there was gonna be one question that would tell me how much access I could have..."can I use flashes?" Luke relayed on the phone...the answer came back yes, huh, I thought, cool.
We turned up Monday morning, sure enough, everyone was there. I met with Mary Godden the CEO of Diving Australia and was briefed on the days format. My first question was "where CAN'T I go?" She said "you can do whatever you like, just dont stand in front of the judges"
We set up speedlights in one corner where we would line up the athletes, and during the events I roamed around. I chose to shoot from the diving platforms for the mens heat, and shoot the underwater shots for the womens. The shot of Matthew Mitcham was taken while we were both standing on the 8 meter platform, he stopped and asked if I could read the scoreboard. I couldn't, my eyes aren't too good. He dove off and scored 3 nines.
Everyone was very cool, relaxed, and we had a good time. Big props to Jarrod Casey who assisted during the shoot and to Mary Godden and her staff for having me.
Of course the biggest thanks goes to all the athletes: Ethan, Briony, Alexandra, Matthew, Melissa, Scott, Olivia, and Sharleen. It was great working with you guys.

You can view the rest of the days work and connect on Facebook here

Brief technical info for us nerds:

Equipment list: Canon 1DsMkIII, 17 – 40 F4L, 50 1.4, 20 2.8 and 70 – 200 2.8IS, 3 speedlights, shot all action at 1600 ISO, portraits at 100 ISO

Amanzi Swimwear 2010 Campaign Tearsheets

Thought I’d share some of the tearsheets I just received from the 2010 Amanzi campaign I shot a little while ago. I’ve just received clearance from the client and am now able to share them with everyone.

Amanzi is swimwear label with roots in the core sport and active lifestyles. In this campaign we worked with model Tara Barker who not only is a cool person and great model, but also an athlete in the Kellogg’s Nutrigrain series, so she walks the walk and talks the talk.

The final product you see is a result of a HUGE team effort involving a very hardworking team of individuals who are committed to excellence in their roles, and who go about it in a very fun way. Exactly the way I love to work.

I have to shout out to everyone at Amanzi for their support and collaboration both creatively and logistically from location scouting to styling to keeping us all supplied with cold drinks and who can forget the fresh fruit and Subway platters? Then of course my immediate team who I would not be able to do anything without: Angela Shepherd (Make up Artist) and 1^st and second photography assistants Hannah Khurda and Kyle Wilson.

And for those of you who have connected with us on Facebook, stay tuned for upcoming behind the scenes video footage and stills as well. I’m even gonna throw in some shots that didn’t make the initial campaign, plus a little technical write up for those who are that way inclined.

Watch this space

Train Spotting - (Nothing to see here)

Last week I made myself take time out for a photo walk. I was a little sapped keeping up with deadlines. I knew I had some big days in which coming up with "something" was the objective, so needed to charge my creative batteries.
I stopped at an old train yard in a town in country Queensland, and took some time taking photos of "nothing".
Nothing to see here........

Sundays

Took my son to the skatepark in the afternoon late Sunday. Snapped a couple pics as I watched him play.

What I'm Reading: You Might Like It

If you're like me, pricing is a pretty big challenge. Get it wrong and you're either underselling yourself and possibly setting a dangerous precedent, or overpricing yourself and risk losing the job.

A while back I made a decision to make a living as a photographer by doing what I love to do, creating pictures that I want to see and hopefully others are willing to pay for.
That love of photography even now bubbles up when I'm in a meeting pitching a creative concept, and it is literally all I can do from keeping myself saying across the boardroom table, "you know what? heck I'm so excited about my concept I'll shoot your print campaign for free". A feeling that I regard as healthy and I hope I never lose. It's my love for shooting that keeps me going to those meetings in the first place. Luckily I've been blessed with a bit of resolve and some really good people around me to keep my business smarts and realise I have mouths to feed, bills to pay and equipment to purchase and maintain.

To that end I've been reading Pricing Photography, the Complete Guide to Assignment & Stock Prices by Michal Heron and David MacTavish. I've found this book full of helpful information for anyone who is already or thinking about making a living as a creative individual. While the book is made for the US market, the useful information doesn't appear in the literal values, rather in the concepts and direction it gives. Everything from negotiating, writing out invoices, quoting for commissioned work or stock photography is in this book.
Anyway, I thought some other people might find this book helpful. I got mine on Amazon