A reworked version of an old pic…
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It’s been a while since I managed to get a post up, mostly due to a hectic schedule, but here’s a few snaps from a recent trip to Thailand, shot using the Fuji X100. I’m writing a post on the X100, so that’ll be along shortly… hope you like!
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Finally got around to getting a shoot from months ago up on my website, you can check the images out here…
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This is a film we shot a few months back for stylist Katarina Dahlstrom. We shot the piece over one day using two Canon 7D’s and a steadicam merlin, which was used for a few of the shots.
The film was edited using Final Cut Pro and was graded using Magic Bullet Looks.
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Here’s a few previews from a recent shoot we did with Isabella and Sebastien from Cosmic Models in London. And Fred, a gold coloured Mannequin borrowed from a prop store at a friendly television studios. All of the image were capture using available light with the Nikon D3s and the 85mm f/1.4. Take a look…
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Been working away recently, on the wonderfully sunny island of Fuerteventura, which is part of the Canary Islands. I can’t really reveal what I was shooting there, but I’ve put a few images I shot during my downtime… hope you like! All images were shot using the Nikon D3s.
We have videos, images and lots of behind the scenes technical stuff coming soon, so keep watching…
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A quick look behind the scenes of a recent studio shoot!
Check us out on facebook… http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mark-Taylor-Visuals/194681753882088?v=wall
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I’ve recently been trying out aphotofolio’s answer to client proofing and file delivery, specifically aimed at commercial photographers. You need a website by aphotofolio in order to use this service, but if you have such a thing, it’s well worth the extra $250.
The basic premise is that you can add a shoot to the system, upload the images, change the settings, even upload additional files such as releases or contracts and allow or disable the clients ability to download JPEGs or even the deliverable files. You then add clients, and any number of clients can be given access to a particular shoot. The clients can make selections and comment on particular photographs and they can also see which photographs are photographer selects.
It’s a very straight forward system that puts and end to a number of different methods I used to use, including my mobile me account, FTP servers, exporting client galleries out of capture one etc etc etc… It also makes everything look more professional to the client. They are automatically emailed with login details when you set them up on the system and can access the login area either directly or via your website.
The other great advantage is that your client area doesn’t store any of the files you upload or your deliverables on the aphotofolio server. In order to use the system you have to first create an Amazon S3 account and that is used to store your images at a very low cost. The advantage of this, is that if you should ever want to get rid of your aphotofolio website, you don’t have to worry about moving your images… they will always be stored safely on the Amazon S3 servers.
This system won’t be for everyone… for example, I wouldn’t recommend it to wedding photographers. I shoot the occasional wedding and I wouldn’t want to use this system to upload hundreds of images for client proofing… I think a simple contact sheet is more efficient for this purpose. For fashion and commercial work, where you will already have edited down a a lot of your work before you show the client, then it’s perfect.
You can get more info on all of the above here… http://aphotofolio.com/
More soon! M x
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Had a great day shooting yesterday our “Dark Terri” editorial test yesterday… many thank you’s to Hetti, Asal, Sessy, Ryan, Isabell, Nigel and Lux Studios… Images, BTS Video and other stuff on it’s way… watch this here blog…
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I’m shooting a test in a studio tomorrow and I’ve spent most of the day prepping and organising. I thought I’d do a quick post outlining what needs to be done before I go off shooting and methods I use to make sure nothing goes wrong on the day. Something always does anyway.. but you can make life easier with good prep.
Studio shooting isn’t something I do very often.. I prefer to work on location and use available light, but tomorrows test needs a studio to make it work, so we’re off to a studio. Whatever gets the job done…
Several things needed doing today, here’s a bit more detail:
Charge Batts and Clean Gear:
I shoot with various cameras and have several batteries for each… so they all get put on charge and stowed in the relevant bags. The lighting batteries that supply my strobes (Bowens 750+ monoblocs) also need charging. Even though I’m shooting in a studio, they get a dose of power anyway… you never know what could happen.I’m also using some on camera flash for this particular shoot (getting all Terry Richardson), so the batteries for the SB900 needed changing and lots of extra’s packing in the bags. Next up I clean my cameras (use the rocket blower on the sensors and on the lenses)… it just gets rid of any dust and saves some time in post production. In addition to this, I also Calibrated my monitors and micro adjusted my cameras / lenes. This isn’t something I would do every time I shoot, but it was all over-due, so I use my prep day for this shoot to get that done too. The last thing on this list is to reset my cameras ISO, white balance and shutter speed to normal values. It would be a real shame to shoot my fashion images in the studio at ISO 12,800. That would be sad… Once everything is charged, cleaned and reset, the bags and peli cases get packed and stowed in a pile ready for leaving the next day… neat!
Clear Mobile Hard Disks / CF Cards:
I use two Lacie Rugged 250GB drives for getting data off the cameras when on location or in the studio… I should move the projects off these straight away after I get back to base, but often I work off them until the project is finished and then transfer to larger drives. So therefore, I often find myself with disks that need clearing before I shoot. It takes time and I should learn, but I don’t. Everything gets moved to two locations and then the data can be wiped from the Lacie Rugged drives ready for shooting tomorrow. I’ll be shooting tethered tomorrow and will write data to both drives simoulateously so that I have a backup. The drives will not travel back to base in the same vehicle in case of accidents / theft etc etc. I also format all of my CF cards using the camera. It;s teh best way to make them ready for use the next day.
Production Stuff:
Obviously the planning of any shoot, either stills or motion, takes a lot of time. For a fashion test like this I usually have initial meetings with the stylist 3 or 4 weeks before the shoot, but the fashion industry being what it is, most of the final details (models, makeup artists, locations) tend to come together at the last minute. It hasn’t helped this time round that we’re testing right in the middle of London Fashion Week, which means that most of the model agencies are up to their eyeballs in catwalk stuff and all of the makeup artists and hair stylists are crazy busy. Over the last few weeks I have been putting together a call sheet and pre-production book, which has details of all of the logistics and the creative ideas in it. The crew / agencies will have seen this in draft stages, but the day before the shoot, once the model agency have confirmed the call times etc, I email out the call sheet and pre-pro book to everyone involved and insist that they reply to the e mail. That way I know everyone is on board and ready for the next day. I also call the studio to confirm my booking.
Clear Emails:
This is a simple one… I won’t be at my desk tomorrow… the studio I’m working in has a wireless network, but I will be really busy, so emails that are awaiting a reply will get left yet another day if I don’t do them now… I feel better for clearing my inbox before shoot. It makes me feel more organised.
I hope some of this stuff helps jog your memory before you go off shooting… I’m sure there’s a ton of stuff that I’ve missed… lots of BTS stuf coming from tomorrows shoot…
Cheers
M x
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First time using Twixtor in After Effects. I’m pleased with the initial results, although there is still quite a bit of ghosting and warping in most of the clips. If there are any experts out there, some tips would be great.
The footage was all captured at 50fps and then conformed to 25fps using Cinema Tools. Some of the conformed clips were then taken into after effects / twixtor for the ultra slow motion sections. It’s clear that the plugin works much more effectively when the subject is against a clear background.
All footage shot using Canon 7D, using 1000/s shutter speed and Sigma 24-70 f/2.8
Graded using Magic Bullet Looks
Music by Niklas Aman
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Shot these pictures as I was passing through town last week… Chinese new Year in London… apparently the biggest celebration outside Asia. Certainly busy, certainly colourful. Hope you like.
All these mages were shot using the Nikon D3s and the Nikkor 24-70 f/2.8
More to come soon….
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