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This weekend I had the pleasure of working for AEG on their cycling event, L’Etape du California. The cycling event takes riders on the 7th stage route of the Amgen Tour of California from Ontario to Mt. Baldy.
The cyclists got to experience the switchbacks in the very scenic Angeles National Forest as well as the brutal climb up to the top of Mount Baldy. My client wanted publicity images that show off the beautiful scenery as well as the tough climb and excellent participant support.
Usually my goal is to capture an image of each athlete in an event; this event gave me the opportunity to flex my creativity and see a cycling event with fresh eyes. I especially loved creating wide-angle photographs of the scenery with cyclists cutting across.
[Click for full gallery]
[5D Mark II, 17-40 L]
This photograph was taken on the switchbacks of Glendora Mountain Road. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day!
Apr 30, 2012 | Categories: Blog, Sports | Tags: biking, california, cycling, mt baldy, Ontario, photography | Leave A Comment »
I’m coming to realize that I live in the wrong place for the photography I love to create. I have a real passion for creating long exposures in which the clouds (or whatever else is moving) are captured as a beautiful swirl of motion. Unfortunately, I live in Los Angeles, where we “suffer” from blue skies and sunshine about 360 days of the year.
I’m not really complaining, the weather here is truly amazing. Nonetheless, it is rare that there is a stormy day and that I’m able to shoot it. The stars lined up for me yesterday, as my portrait session was cancelled due to a sick baby and we had a much needed rainstorm.
It was raining pretty heavily when I set out with my camera. I decided that the hiking trails would be too muddy and unsafe, so I had to come up with somewhere else to shoot. I loved the view I had from my fourth story apartment, so a street-level view wouldn’t do.
I didn’t title this post “daredevil photography” because I was shooting in the rain, but because this was my solution:
Carrying my camera on a full-sized tripod, with lenses and filters in my pockets, I climbed out a window onto the metal fire escape grating. The metal was wet and there was an opening in the floor right behind me. I had about four square feet of space. Changing lenses and filters was nerve-wracking; anything dropped would fall four stories onto the sidewalk.
I think it was worthwhile:
I admit it really isn’t that dare devilish, so if you want other cool daring photography, check out Dennis Maitland‘s work:
Feb 16, 2012 | Categories: Blog, Personal Projects | Tags: daredevil, Dennis Maitland, heights, long exposures, photography, rebecca joyce, vertigo | Leave A Comment »
January 14, 2012
To celebrate the release of their fourth album, Louden Swain threw themselves one awesome party at Molly Malone’s in LA. They played their new record, Eskimo, from beginning to end, for a crowd that seemed to love the new material. If they’d asked me, I would’ve suggested keeping it uptempo; but then I would’ve missed “Carpool Lane,” a sweet acoustic track about parenting, the performance was dedicated to guitarist Billy Moran and his wife, whose first child turned one today.
The crowd was so dense I had to shoot most of these on my knees or standing in front of the large speakers (my ears were ringing for days!), it won’t be long before we need to put up a barricade to give the me and the videographer room to work!
You may recall this piece I wrote on Louden Swain recently. Read it then please enjoy these shots from the show.
Click here to see more images.
Jan 28, 2012 | Categories: Blog, Music | Tags: concert, live, los angeles, music, rock | Leave A Comment »
I have been contracted to write for a music website. It’s my first gig as a writer and I’m very excited to take on the challenge.
I worked in the music industry in the late 90s and early 2000s; most of that time was working for a music magazine. That was when I first had the opportunity to photograph bands and concerts. While I haven’t worked in the industry for close to 10 years now, I never felt far away from it, so jumping back into the scene felt very familiar.
The writing part was a bit daunting. I like to write for myself and for my blog and have even been complimented on my writing, but didn’t think I had the skill to write professionally. I chose to interview the rock band Louden Swain. With an upcoming album release and a recent European tour, I knew they’d have lots to talk about. It helps that I’ve known the band for many years and felt at ease interviewing them.
I wanted to include a photograph with the article, but I admit it wasn’t required of me to do so. I feel the most comfortable and communicative when I am creating photographs, so the short photo shoot we had was mainly for my own satisfaction.
The 101 cafe in Hollywood and the Hollywood hills hotel were great locations to shoot. We had a lot of fun with it. I’m very happy with these images and with the article I wrote.
Read the article here on 101 Distribution.
Dec 31, 2011 | Categories: Blog, Music | Tags: article, Interview, music, photography, writing | Leave A Comment »
[Blog post typed on a vintage Underwood noiseless portable 77 typewriter]
Dec 29, 2011 | Categories: Blog, Personal Projects | Tags: analog, photography, Typewriter, vintage, writing | Leave A Comment »
Rebecca and I went to college together and have been friends for years. She recently graduated with her Ph.D. in clinical psychology and is starting her career in private practice. She needed headshots that are mature and professional, yet warm and friendly. This wasn’t hard to achieve because Rebecca is all of those things, my job was to capture it. We shot in beautiful Old Town Pasadena, where we had brick walls, wood panel gates, and textured walls as backgrounds, and narrow alleys providing plenty of open shade even in the middle of the day.
Nov 13, 2011 | Categories: Blog, portraits | Tags: headshots, los angeles, pasadena, photography, portrait | Leave A Comment »
