Sep 22nd
Early last month I photographed a fashion shoot at the new Cloudland in Brisbane. It also gave me the opportunity to use some new lighting techniques and equipment that I have been working on, using the new Gemini range of lighting gear from BOWENS. During the shoot I used a number of different light shapers, my favourite is the Bowens SuperSoft.
The shoot was captured using the Nikon D3x with a variety of lens including the new Nikon 50mm f1.4, 135mm f2 and the 24-70mm f2.8 which for clarity holds it own against the primes, the main reason for this is the special Nano crystal coating used with the lens. I can’t wait to see the results from the new Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 ED VRII with the same nano crystal coating.
The photography shoot was for a Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne wedding gown magazine feature.
The designer is Brad Webb from Darb Couture, that creates some of the world’s finest wedding gowns from his studio in Brisbane, Australia.
Sep 16th
Every photographer at Studio Impressions has a diverse portfolio. Nitai Whitehurst who is a great wedding photographer and also our post-production king, has probably a more diverse portfolio than most.
Outside of Studio Impressions Nitai is a brilliant sports photographer who specialises in BMX. He has been featured in many magazines, but we are especially excited because one of his shots has just made the cover of 2020 BMX Magazine - which is probably the biggest BMX mag in Australia!
Shot on Canon EOS 1d Mark III with Pocket Wizards and 2 Elinchrom Rangers. Nitai got it at iso 100 at 1/250th @ 5.6. Here’s the shot…….
To find out more about Nitai’s BMX work visit his website www.nitaiphoto.com To see his wedding portfolio – visit us at Studio Impressions!
Sep 14th
Last week I had the privilege to photograph Cecile and John’s wedding in Melbourne, Australia. Cecile, originally from Melbourne, met John in Boston whilst studying. They now reside in Minneapolis in the USA where John has just retired from Professional Ice Hockey.
The wedding started at The Westin Hotel on Collins Street before heading to one of Melbourne’s finest church’s, St Ignatius in Richmond. We then headed down to the St Kilda Pier which was directly in front of the wedding reception venue, The Harbour Room at the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron.
There were too many favorites to choose from so I have put together a short clip on the wedding.
I was able to catch up with Cecile and John during the week whilst they were on honeymoon in Noosa, which is about a two hour drive from my studio. Cecile wanted to capture some images with John in one of her favourite places in the world. It also happens to be one of my favs as well. It was great to catch up with them hear and it also gave us some time to go through the wedding images from a few days earlier.
Congratulations Cecile and John! Thank you for the privilege of photographing your wedding. May your life together be filled with love and laughter!
Sep 10th
I recently spent two weeks in Brazil. What an adventure! Probably the most amazing adventure of my life. Invited by one of the most amazing photographers on the planet who also happens to be a two time Pulitzer Prize winner, Greg Gibson from the USA. We were also accompanied by one of the great National Geographic photographers, Izan Petterle from Brazil to photograph the Pantanal region of Brazil.
During the experience I got the chance to push myself photographically and personally. Not one for photographing animals up close I found myself wading through alligator infested swamps, rounding up cattle and staring down wild brumbies, all in the name of a great shot. Of course my favourite subjects were still the characters of the cowboys on the ranch.
The San Antonio ranch is so remote that these guys haven’t had any visitors in over 20 years and the only way to access the ranch is by either an 8 hour horse ride from the closest neighbors or via a (scary) light aircraft flight. We took the latter option and are happy to be alive to relive the tale.
It was one of the most beautiful places on earth and also one of the most remote at the same time. Pretty much they had everything that could kill you from Alligators / crocodiles, scorpions, rattle snakes and not to mention Jaguars. So for the first time in a long time I was very much out of my comfort zone and as a result experienced a whole lot more than I had ever expected.
The hospitality was amazing and their way of life humbling. I have to say a huge thank you to Ricardo, a ranch owner that helped us to get to the San Antonio ranch, after the week he gave me an incredible gesture and handed me his personal lasso, something I will cherish for the rest of my life.
I also have to say a huge thank you to Greg & Izan for a trip to remember!
There will be many more stories to share, but first I wanted to share some of my favourite images. The majority of them where taken on the Nikon D3x, which I was very impressed with. I was also using mainly the 24-70mm f2.8 lens and the 70-200mm lens with a 2x tele-convertor on the Nikon D700.
I wouldn’t be surprised if we lead a photography workshop next year in Pantanal. It was a great place to learn the art of photography.
Click on the images to enlarge them and then use your back button to return to the post.
Sep 1st
My twin boys turned four recently. I can’t believe how quickly they have grown. It only seems like yesterday they were tiny little babies. Now they are little boys who play with transformers and totem tennis and leggo, and who talk back to their Dad!
It is on occasions like this that I always find myself reflecting on how lucky we really are. We came very close to losing these little guys when they were born premmie. Each year my wife helps organise the RBWH Research Foundation’s Butterfly Ball to raise money for perinatal research and in particular a project called the BRAIN Project. The Brain Research Advances in Newborns (BRAIN) project is specifically studying brain injuries in newborns and how to prevent them. It is run by an inspiring man, Professor Paul Colditz whose previous research contributed to such things as SIDS prevention. It is this kind of research that has meant we have happy, healthy boys today.
The Butterfly Ball is on again soon – 24th October 2009 at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. Tickets are on sale now! You can purchase them by visiting www.rbwhbutterflyball.com Why not join Penny & I at this fabulous event for an evening of glamour & entertainment & raise some much needed funds that will help give our kids the best start in life. If you are busy photographing weddings and can’t make it but would like to help, donations can be made by contacting the RBWH Research Foundation on 07 3636 2174 or at http://rbwhfoundation.com.au
Here is one of the images I took for the billboard promotion of the event. Brad from Darb Couture has donated a gown like this to be auctioned on the evening to raise funds for the Research Foundation, and the fantastic Marg from Hare’s Hair styled the model’s hair and is also supporting the event. The image was taken during a fashion shoot I was doing to show case his latest collection at the fabulous Cloudland. It was captured on the Nikon D3x and using Bowens new lighting system .
I will post more about this shoot in the coming weeks.
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
