Feb 24th
With several hundred emails to catch up on now that I’m back in the Studio, it has been delightful to hear some tremendous praise from the hundreds of people that have already started using our new Lightroom and Photoshop products. I’m glad that so many have found them as useful as we do.
I wanted to share one email that I received. Rachelle sent us through a beautiful image and some great comments that she has readily allowed us to share. I was pretty wowed with how this image has turned out.
“Thank you SOOOOO much for being at the tradeshow- I am 100% in love
with your full set I bought of text/actions/presets! They are
amazing yet subtle and not too over the top, EXACTLY what i was
looking for-your partner spent a huge ammount of time with me at the
booth and i really appreciated it!!”
Thank you Rachelle for sharing your beautiful image with us.
Feb 24th
As a photographer one of the most rewarding aspects of what we do is capturing memories for our clients. But sometimes (though not as frequently as we would like) we get the chance to record those memories for ourselves.
Add a few great friends that also double as some of the finest photographers in the world today , together with a road trip down America’s iconic Route 66, and you have a recipe for three of the most memorable days I have ever spent in the USA.
This all initially started as an unfortunate situation as I discovered when booking my flights to WPPI that the earliest flight home would encounter a three day delay. The thought of spending any additional time in Vegas was a bit daunting. So, I enlisted the help of a few good friends to fill the time and some very loose plans for a road trip took shape. To be honest the only plans we had were that we where going somewhere.
For me this was the first time I had the chance to “photograph for the soul” (that is – just purely for my own pleasure and own viewing) since last July, when I was lucky enough to travel with another Icon of the industry Jeff Ascough . This time some of my greatest friends in the industry joined me on this trip:
The one and only amazing – Parker J Pfister,
Two time Pulitzer-Prize winning photographer, legendary – Greg Gibson,
Fellow STUDIO IMPRESSION’IST & the always charismatic – Adam Finch,
&
Fellow Aussie, THE STARRMAN – Jason Starr. Who just had a great write-up in Rangefinder Magazine.
With no plans, no car booked and no clue of what we where going to photograph let alone where we where going to drive, the trip started pretty slowly. The first road block came up when hiring a car. Five fully loaded photographers required the biggest car possible and that became the first hurdle. Thanks to Adam & Greg we got a car, but as Greg would describe it the car company didn’t do too bad off us either.
Greg Gibson is a photographer with an incredible depth of experience and some completely amazing stories. From photographing the Clinton years in the oval office and campaign trails, to working in the jungles of Brazil – this man tells stories that have me enthralled. Now turning his attention to wedding photography he brings a new dimension to truly catpuring the decisive moment at these events. It has been great to get to know Greg more and more.
With a 1/2 day now lost we headed north to UTAH. Due to the delay we resorted to “drive-by shootings” that consisted of using lightning reflexes and shooting images whilst traveling at 65mph (or perhaps 80mph when we were accidentally taking our eye of the speedometer).
“My first image of the trip, clocked at 65mph”
Jason resorted to STARRMAN like tactics to capture his images. This was also the point we began wishing we’d hired a car with a sunroof, though in hindsight we might have been lucky we didn’t.
Night came way too early and plans were revised. We first decided we would head to Bryce Canyon then changed our plans and agreed ZION would suffice. Suffice it did. What an incredible place in the world. Though, for Queenslanders not equipped with winter gear - incredibly cold.
“Roadside shooting, just outside ZION”
The first evening was both fantastic fun and also a very humbling experience. Having the chance to see the full extent of Parker J Pfister’s work it was obvious that in the past few years he has developed so incredibly that I have no doubt in my mind that he is one of the most remarkable photographers of his generation. I know that this is a big statement but when you experience his images and the incredible depth of his talents, you can’t help but be impressed. A small taste can be found at his website www.ParkerJPhoto.com. I met Parker a little over five years ago and the friendship I have forged with him (and others) has been one of those amazing gifts this industry has given me. He is a great guy and an inspiration to my photography, not to mention the funniest bloke.
The morning after our first night in Zion, presented our first group photo opportunity. I hope this shot marks an annual post -WPPI expedition.
from left to right: Marcus, Greg, Parker (sitting), Adam and Jason.
“Jason Starr, experiencing sub-zero temperatures in ZION”
Above – “Parker, before his first cup of coffee”.
Above – “Parker, after his first cup ( with a little perk-up help from Jason)
Above – “American Sunrise in ZION”
Above ” Shadows in Zion national park”
Above – “The first of many stops during the day for photo ops”
Above “Just after that shot, we where no longer alone. At least it felt like we where not the only ones just waking up to this incredible place”
It became quickly appraent that the aussie contigent of this trip was ill prepared for the conditions.
Above – “Just moments after shooting this image, a car came to a screeching halt. A fellow photographer from the WPPI convention recognized Parker, jumped out, and joined us in this incredible landscape for 5 minutes or so.”
The day continued to be a dream shoot, from magnificent location to magnificent location. The day’s shoot ended up at Antelope Canyon, where we had this magnificent wonder of the world to all our own for two hours.
Then the day took a weird turn as we found ourselves booking a night in a motel straight out of a CSI episode or maybe a B grade horror flick. We are pretty sure we saw a few rooms with police tape – do not enter CRIME SCENE. Then on the advice of Jason’s wife back in Aus – we had to have Mexican for dinner. So it was that we found a place with ”The most authentic Mexican around“. Parker was also raving about Mexican in Arizona, so Mexican it was. A decision that Jason and I would regret for the following 72 hours as we ended up with food poising and spent pretty much the entire following day either asleep or wishing we were. Adam, Parker & Greg got some amazing shots though, and that does not include the images of Jason & I looking a little worse for wear.
In the end it was an incredible experience and one I look forward to doing again with my great friends.
Now that I’m back in the Studio working away again I look forward to sharing some more of my favourite images from the trip.
Feb 21st
As I make my way home after an inspiring weekat WPPI, at home it is a national day of mourning for the victims of the recent Victorian bushfires.
Australia is a big, beautiful country and my home in Brisbane sits between the tragic fires in Victoria and the seemingly never-ending floods in North Queensland. It seems that as Australians we all love the bush and the rugged landscape that is our home. It is something deep within us and maybe it is what makes a wedding photographer passionate about shooting landscapes. These last few weeks though have been a stark reminder of how random and unforgiving the force of nature can be, and of the respect our environment deserves.
I cannot fathom the loss experienced by the people of fire-ravaged Victoria. My thoughts are with them, and especially with all those who lost loved ones. I am uplifted though by watching people who made it through the firestorm having lost everything they own, express their joy at still having their family, simply alive. These people are showing the world what matters most.
In these times, we are reminded that the love of family and the shoulders of friends, and the strength of community is what life is all about. That busy week I had last week, and those couple of bad days when things didn’t go according to plan - well they weren’t so bad after all. I have a place to sleep tonight, and I have a family waiting for me at home.
Today stop and think about those who are so profoundly affected by things beyond their control. Give deep for those that really need it. Everyone at Studio Impressions has and we encourage everyone, especially all Australians, to give what they can. To donate go to : www.redcross.org.au.
Feb 19th
I am very excited to announce the launch of our brand new website – live today! www.studioimpressions.com.au This just about completes our new look – new studio, new packaging and finally our new website.
I have to say a big thank you to Mike & Luke & the team at Big Folio who have put together this awesome website for us. They really have outdone themselves! I can honestly say that the Big Folio team have been extremely easy to deal with and have been very patient with us during the whole design and build stages. After having dealt with a number of web designers, it was great to find a team that truly worked with us to see our vision come to fruition. This was no easy task given we were working on different time zones – and I’m a VERY fussy person (must be the creative side of me – although my wife just says its the annoying side). Big Folio are also responsible for helping us set up this Blog. If you are looking for a website or blog, I would definitely recommend Big Folio. I can’t speak highly enough of them.
Two more thank you’s. Firstly to Guy Hamilton the legend designer at Twofold Creative . Guy has worked closely with us on the development of all of our new marketing and packaging material, including our new logo, and consulted with us and Big Folio in the design of our website. This man is so extremely patient, highly creative and efficient. Nothing is too much trouble. Thanks Guy for all your hard work. If you need a graphic designer for anything I highly recommend Twofold Creative.
The last thank you goes to Triple Scoop music. Their music provides the background atmosphere for all the images on our site. We use Triple Scoop music for so much in our Studio - their songs are moving and just perfect for wedding and portrait slideshows.
Our new website brings together all of the different services our Studio offers under the banner that best describes what we are trying to do at Studio Impressions…..”Bringing Photography to Life.”
Click Here and have a look – I’d love to hear what you think!
Feb 19th
Some great images that I just had to share……
Adam Finch travelled with me to his second WPPI this year. Forever the photographer, Adam grabbed a few hours to take some images of Vegas. This guy really has a great eye – that’s why he is one of the photographers I most admire, and I’m very lucky to have him work with me.
Here are just a few of his snaps.
Feb 19th
Over 12,000 photographers from over 35 countries around the world converged on Las Vegas for the past 5 days, to live, breath and celebrate photography (and perhaps to party just a little bit, well it is Las Vegas).
This year was my fifth year as an attendee and as a speaker. I have to say that this was the most impressive line-up of speakers ever to gather in one place to discuss photography. There are too many highlights to include them all but standout presentations included those done by: Parker Pfister, Greg Gibson, Cliff Mautner, Jeff & Julia Woods and my fellow country man Jerry Ghionis.
The awards ceremony was the usual spectacular with the outstanding achievements by Jennifer Hudson who took out two Grand Awards with an amazing body of work. Well deserved. It was also great to see another Aussie win a Grand Award for the first time, David Oliver.
It was wonderful to catch up with so many friends over the past few days. I’m looking forward to getting home in a few days to see my wife Penny and my three little boys.
Thank you to all the wonderful people that attended my seminar and the standing ovation that you honored me with. I hope you found something you can apply to your own photography or studio, and maybe just a little something to fuel your dreams. See you all next year!
Bringing photography to life
Describes what we do. This blog is about exactly that - here we will share a little of our life and a lot of what we love - people, art and photography. Whether you are planning a wedding, a family portrait or building your own professional photography business, I hope you find something to inspire you here. Thank you for visiting.
- Marcus Bell | Brisbane, Australia
