Timewaster 2000

Hey, you. Yes, you! The one staring at the oncoming Melbourne International Comedy Festival season and thinking, Man, this is all too much. I don’t even have a show concept; I only put a title on my Comedy Festival rego because they ask for it so early. Now I need photos as well for my poster/website/Twitter/Facebook/Google+/blog?! WHEN WILL THIS MADNESS END??

The good news is, you can relax. Well, about the photos part, that is. Because I’m here to make it all nice and easy by offering discounted studio photoshoots for all Comedy Festival acts.

Here’s the deal:
• For $250 you get one hour in front of the camera in my neat, little studio in Kensington.
• Included are all digital prints (high-res for print and low-res for web/email) we shoot on your very own CD.
• You also get tea or coffee and a biscuit.

There you go. Easy as apple pie. And if you don’t have a show concept and just want to come along with props and costumes and shoot a bunch of shots, I can put on some mood music and we’ll go nuts.

Where available, bookings can be made on short notice, but try and book as far in advance as you can to ensure you have time to prep for the shoot. Have a look at examples of my portraiture work here and check out my Portrait Hints N’ Tips for more info on getting psyched for your shoot. And if you have any queries just
email me here.

I’m also very experienced in working to creative briefs and developing concepts with a creative team/director as well. If you already have a concept, we can work together to achieve unique and striking imagery to ensure your message stays on-target.

Please note: prints will be delivered within 24hrs of your shoot, so please allow time for this with your deadlines.

Please also note: a lot of people have digital SLR cameras these days and most people can take a great shot. While friends have the best of intentions, nothing beats the crisp finish and quality of a professional photo. So do yourself and the material you’ve poured blood, sweat and tears into the justice of using visual imagery that packs a punch.

Hey there, blogosphere. How’s tricks? Long time no … anything.

So, (cue: abridged version of events) I’ve been hella busy recently (yay!), shooting all manner of events, people and places. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit a camera.

Seriously, I’ve been quite lucky. The folks at ACMI got me in the shoot Margaret and David: 25 Years Talking Movies, which was a hoot. Margaret is a laugh, and David, thought-provoking. The exhibition is also fascinating, so get your skates on if you haven’t already seen it.

I also had a few days in Sydney, shooting Saturday in Design for InterfaceFLOR. It was a busy two days, but very inspiring stuff. Their exhibition, Rebirth, featured works from five designers, all tasked with ‘upcycling’ waste products from the manufacturing process. The results ranged from interesting and unique, to bold and confronting.

And I’ve just wrapped up some shoots from the last two weeks, which I can’t post details on now, but believe me when I say they were VERY exciting!

A few treatments I’ve been playing with recently in Lightroom 3. I could waste days on this stuff.

Hellllllooooooooooo, Sydney!

Yes, that’s right, campers, I’m coming to Sydney for a portrait shoot, shooting LA-style headshots for actors/performers.

What is an LA-style headshot, I hear you ask? Once used predominantly by the film industry, LA-style headshots are taken outdoors, use natural light and show more of the body – one of your greatest acting assets – which is the reason why this style of photo is now being adopted by casting agents throughout the entertainment industry.

When: Saturday, 11 December
Time: I’ll be shooting from 10am to about 4pm.
Where: TBC – various locations around Sydney CBD.
Cost: $### for two looks/changes.

Spots are limited so book soon.

Some examples of recent LA-style shots I’ve taken:

When you think about it, there are many things you could be doing instead of going to see Circus Oz. Like spending a night at home, singing along to the Beaches soundtrack, for instance. Or watching every video on Crying While Eating. Yep, many things …

Hang about. Sorry, actually, no. There’s nothing you should be doing instead of seeing Circus Oz!

After catching a few acts from their latest show at the Big Top today, I was reminded why I love circus so much. And what do I love even more than circus? Shooting circus! This was probably the most fun I’ve had with my pants on in quite a while. So, pretty please, pants on or off, see this show if you get a chance. You won’t regret it.

Circus Oz!

Spent a glorious weekend in my home studio doing portraits for various folk. I’ll have more to show later, but here’s a shot of the Amor family. Enjoy!

Want Amor Hilarity?!

I covered a hip hop gig at the Espy on Saturday night; DJ Premier, Beatnuts and a few other cats. It was the single weirdest crowd I’ve encountered. Here were some of the world’s most eminent rhymers, MCs and DJs, but the crowd was so white you’d think they’d been blanched by the strongest chemicals known to man on the way in the door.

It all started with some Skip Hop acts hitting the stage. While some of the beats were phat, there was something NQR about the whole event. One misperception of Australian hip hoppers is their posturing masks a violent mind buried beneath. Wrong. This ain’t the US. This is just a bunch of kids who lost their way, identified with the themes present in hip hop coming out of the States and decided to adopt the style. And so, from tales of growing up in a hood and dealing drugs to survive, we get the Australian equivalent; growing up middle class in a Delfin home in the burbs. Consequently, it was one of the nicest crowds I’ve had to shoot in a while (bar the occasional muscle head). Mind you, this is the exact same crowd that Nike and Adidas drool over. Make of that what you will.

One other thing that struck me was the repeated use of the phrase, “Do you wanna hear REAL hip hop?” from EVERY black artist on stage. To my ears, it was a multi-pronged attack; they were simultaneously saying, ‘You Ossie white boys can’t rhyme for shit’ and ‘We ARE hip hop, not an imitation’. The Espy might have been packed with dudes wearing over-sized hoodies, peaked caps and high-top kicks, but you could count the number of legit rollers in the room on one hand.

Anyway, that’s enough judgement for one day. Here’s some white folk getting down:

White Kids Lose Their Shit

So I covered the opening night of Exit Through The Gift Shop – the film supposedly by acclaimed/revered/reviled street artiste, Banksy. While I believe elements of it were an elaborate/hastily crafted hoax, it was interesting to see the collaborative nature of street art across the northern hemisphere.

Ironically, what I found more amusing was the crowd assembled at the opening night party, held at the iconic Misty bar. I dubbed them the Hipstergeddon. No, I’m not being a turd; there just seemed to be a glut of slack-jawed free-loafers, guzzling free beer and peering loathsomely at the rest of the crowd over their beards of discontent. Normally I wouldn’t care, but I had to actually speak to some of them to request their photo. An example of one of the many conversations I had went thus:

Me: Hi, sorry to bother you. Can I take your picture for Desktop magazine?
Hipster 1: What’s Desktop?
Me: It’s a design magazine.
Hipster 1: Oh …
Hipster 2: What’s a desk top got to do with design?
Me: Desktop, as in, desktop publishing. Desktop design.
Hipster 2: (clearly confused) Oh …
Me: … well, the movie was about street art, so we’re getting photos of the party.
Hipster 2: (furrowing brow) Why do you need photos?
Me: (bemused) For their website. You see, they have a website as well as a magazine. You can use photos on the internet now.
Hipster 2: (now drooling) Right, ok … (hipsters confer) umm, no.

I think I’m dumber for the experience.

Here’s another photo:

Wat up?!

Sorry, got a little ghetto there. So anyway, here’s a few recent examples of posters designed by good friend Lliam Amor with photography by yours truly. It’s quite exciting to shoot such animated people, especially Mr Ross Daniels. That was delightful! I’ll put more of these up in the future, but enjoy these examples and be sure check out Lliam’s enormous volume of work on his website.

Piece,
M

So last night was the opening of Art Melbourne 2010 at the Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton. From 5pm the place began to flood with art lovers, art snobs, art sellers and art loathers (they’re the ones whispering into their beard as they peer through slitted eyes at a contemporary’s work with hatred dripping from their hipster moustache, while they sup free champagne and eat free hummus). Apart from the band that no one could really hear (and whose DJ didn’t even seem to be plugged into the PA), the night went to plan. Oh, but it did get insanely humid. Melbourne is going through some schizophrenic weather at the moment, and the place was as hot and wet as Vietnam by 7.

More photos to come once published …

Art Melbourne 2010 - it was a grand, ol' time.