The One Light Workshop guy gets One Light

Zack Arias and Joe McNally just had a one light vs. many lights showdown at Creative Asia on the 22nd of July, next stop is Malaysia from 24-29 July. If it was anything like their workshops here in Dubai at the GPP earlier this year, then I'm sure the participants walked away a lot richer with knowledge, and also with sides that had almost split due laughter!

Anyway, Zack met up with Kai from the DigitalRev team in HK while he was there. So Kai set him a challenge - one light with a cheap camera.....have a look to see what happened......

How to get 268186 photography page views in one day

Ask Knate Myers, Photographer and Timelapse Cinematographer at Knate Myers Photography, based in Albuquerque, NM.
A photographer who says he that he focuses on astro and timelapse photography, Knate discovered hundreds of thousands of photos from the ISS online, which he then put together into video. So every frame you see is or was an individual photograph, some of which he removed noise and touched up in Photoshop.
I don't even want to know how long that took him......
The rest of Knate's work is also impressive, some fantastic landscapes, some of which he has made available on his FB page for download. That can be found here

Some more links to his work: www.vimeo.com/knatephoto

So here is the video. Take the time out, watch it. Really!!

Click here to see his video "View from the ISS at night"

Uplifting

For those of you who have been following the recent story of the these labourers in my previous blog posts (scroll down if you haven't read them), here's an update to their story, and hopefully marks the closing chapter in their saga.

As you know, there is a group of committed people here in the community who have been helping these guys out, feeding them, seeing to their basic needs, helping them through their court cases, trying to find them employment, etc.

It appears as if their endeavours have paid off handsomely!

The last few weeks have been a waiting game, waiting for things to fall into place, but yesterday I ran into the lady Abi, the one who introduced me to these labourers, and she had some extremely uplifting news...
All of these labourers have secured employment at an Australian construction company a few kilometers away from here, and are presently moving into staff accommodation. If you read earlier about the court saga they were involved in (trying to get back up to two years wages from their previous company owed to them), that's also apparently at an end, they should be receiving what's theirs by the end of this week or early next week.

It's a life-changer for them. From down in the dirt, to a future they have all been praying for. For them and their families.

Proof that God Almighty answers prayers.

And thanks to the kindness of a group of dedicated people who refused to look the other way. Who saw people in need and did something about it.

So if you're one of those people who were involved with them, well done. Give yourself a pat on the back. You deserve it.

(for those interested, the shot above taken with Nikon D700 with 24-70mm f.28 at 28mm, f8, 1/200sec at ISO100. Light is a single flashhead, the Profoto Pro7B 1200W/s, mounted in the Profoto 3x4 RF softbox at 3/4 power. Light was mounted on an Avenger C-stand about 4m from the front of the group, this to minimize light falloff)

The Abandoned Project....Part 2

DISCLAIMER: The following does not have any political agenda. This is not a rant or tirade against any organization or individual. At no time is any harm intended against any organization or individual, or to bring any organization or individual into disrepute.For those who are visiting this blog for the first time, and haven't read part 1 of this post, read here first.

If you want to see hi-resolution versions of these pictures, click here

Chef Dulal

It's late Friday morning, going into the afternoon. Most people here would have had a late start to the day, it being the first day of the weekend in this part of the world....planning to go to the beach while they still can before the summer temperatures really hit, or have planned to go to one of the many brunches that this city has on offer with their friends and families, to pay a ridiculous amount of money to be able to gorge themselves on all the delightful offerings, then to go home to their air-conditioned homes and sleep off their indulgences. Sound familiar? I've been guilty of that a few times.

Do we spare a thought for those who don't have what we have? Who we could have fed for a week, for the price of a single meal for one of us us? Whose monthly salary is equivalent to the price of one of these buffet brunches for two people?
Do we spare a thought for those people when we walk to the water cooler to pour a glass of water, open a faucet to have an instant supply of water, open the fridge to have access to food?

Yes? No?

The reason I write this is such. When I arrived at camp a couple of nights ago to take pictures, I had discussed beforehand with the guys that I wanted to photograph them cooking dinner. Especially of Dulal, who is their chef and is a character of note!!
I had a picture in my mind of the images I wanted to take, the light placement, lighting ratios.
The incredible colors of their food being cooked in their pots...

But that night there was no food being cooked. Because there was no water to cook it in. No water to drink, no water to clean and wash up in.
Yep, they don't have the privilege of being able to open a faucet and have running water on tap.
Them, and so many others like them. People right under our noses. People we see and walk past every day, without sparing a thought for them.

For the benefit of the camera only

But amazingly enough, this was the least of their worries. They were more concerned about the well-being of a sick cat they had found. The well-being of an animal was more important to them than the fact they had no water, no food to eat that night. Lesson learned? Putting the needs of others (never mind animals) before your own.

And did they let the fact that they were possibly going to go hungry that night get them down? No way! It just provided them with an excuse to be able to play a game of cricket!
(Note - I've taken my son along with me on the occasions I've been here to photograph, initially to help me lug around equipment, but that ended on the first visit....every time we pitch up, it's a game of cricket! Most of these guys have children back home they haven't seen for years, so for them to interact with a child just makes their day. And for Josh I think it's been a valuable life lesson as well - he's often left the camp with a lump in his throat, and very silent.....I can only hope and pray that he doesn't ever forget this experience or them)

Cricket!

The camp

Through all of this, my hope is that you've become more aware. Aware of the plight of others.
Don't feel sorry for these guys or others like them. Feeling sorry for the under-priviledged doesn't feed them, quench their thirst or put clothes on their backs. Do something about it - please!

You must know someone who needs help. Reach out. Touch their lives. You'll be touching other's lives as well.....
Think about it. One of these gentlemen is a breadwinner, he sends money back home to his family in the country where they live. Perhaps that family is helping another family out who is less fortunate than them. And so it goes. And then the primary source of income dries up. How many lives have been affected?

How many lives can you afffect with an act of kindness?

On the night of taking these pictures, these gents were waiting to hear if jobs that others were trying to arrange for them had come through. I just drove past the camp a while ago, and they were all still there. So it seems nothing has happened yet on the job front yet. Life as they know it carries on...

I pray for that night when I arrive there to take more pictures, only to find the camp deserted. Everyone gone. Every one of them with a roof over their heads, jobs to go to, food to eat, water to drink.
And I know it will happen. I've met the people helping these guys. I know what they are trying to do for them, what sacrifices they make for them.

We were put on this earth to make a difference. Make yours.

The Abandoned Project...Part 1

DISCLAIMER: The following does not have any political agenda. This is not a rant or tirade against any organization or individual. At no time is any harm intended against any organization or individual, or to bring any organization or individual into disrepute.

This is an appeal. To raise awareness. To open your eyes. To see the lives of others. To help.


This is the story of some workers who were abandoned due to circumstances beyond their control. Some are owed over two years worth of wages. A pittance for some people, an absolute fortune to them. Some of them are embroiled in cases in an attempt to claim what is owed them, others just can't get home to their families. They are all legal status. They rely and live on the goodwill of others.
Mine? Yours.......?

Before this project started, I had no clue. No clue what was happening, literally on my doorstep.
That people who were once breadwinners for their families in far-flung countries were being abandoned. Whether due to their employers financial downfall, or being deemed "surplus" to the workforce, I do not know. What I have found out is that most of these guys were left without the means to get back to their home countries.
Left without accomodation. Without food or water. Sanitation. Things that you and I take for granted every day.

Most of them are out looking for jobs. Any job. But in this financial climate, it's near to impossible. In the evening they come back to their patch of sand they call home, share a communal meal, use their drinking water to wash, using jugs as a shower, plastic basins as baths. Go to the bathroom that's just a couple of pieces of plywood leaning against each other act as a screen, to provide a bit of dignity. Then they sleep where they can, perhaps in an empty shell of an old storeroom, if it hasn't been sealed off yet, perhaps in their makeshift larder/storeroom, mostly in the open.

Yet the spirits of these guys remain unbroken. I have never seen more laughing, smiling, bantering amongst a group of people. Ever.
Even though they're considered down, they're by no means out. A lot of us, and I consider myself amongst those, could learn an enormous amount from people like these. Life lessons.

So here is the gist of the matter. We don't know how long they're going to be here, under their current circumstances. We can only hope and pray that all their hopes and dreams will be realized - soon!
But while they are here, living right next to us, it's up to us to help them out. It's what God would expect of us, what we would expect others to do if we were in their position. Sympathy, help.

So the ladies, their husbands, all those who are involved in supporting these guys will continue to do what they are doing. Being Good Samaritans. Helping a brother in need.

The pictures you see here are the first session of pictures I have taken of these guys. I met them for the first time on Saturday, accompanied by some of the ladies who have been helping them out. We outlined the idea of taking a series of pictures of them, to raise awareness of their plight.
They all agreed, via their interpreter. So I arranged to come back last night and start taking pictures of them in their surroundings......

When I arrived, my suspicion of what they would probably do was confirmed. They had all dressed up in the best clothes they had, bless them all (the night before, they were mostly all in their old,worn lungi's and shirt-pants). So it was decided that the first shoot would basically be a general portrait shoot of all the guys in the camp.

Once I had posed my first subject, they decided that it was the way to go for all of them, with a few slight variations.....it was phenomenal, seeing the fun that they were having, shouting comments and making fun of each other.

It was decided that they wanted their pictures taken by their kitchen and in in front of their larder/storeroom. That's what you can see in the pictures above and below.
Their kitchen is just the gas plate on a few cinder bricks against a storeroom that has been boarded up, whilst the larder/storeroom is plywood and plastic.

So I don't know how it's going to go from here. My plan is to sell the images, or make prints to sell and give the proceeds to them (yes, they've given releases...), but I'm not sure if that will work or anything will come of it. They know that as well.
But I'll be going back over the course of the next few weeks to take more photos of them. I have to try at least. For their sake.
So you'll be seeing more of these guys in the time to come.

Perhaps you know someone who can help. Maybe not only specifically these guys, but others out there in a similar situation. If you think you can, send me a message via mail (all my links are on this page), and I'll forward it to the ladies here who are helping these guys.

And if you are on Facebook, Twitter, G+ or the likes, please Tweet, Like, Share, etc, etc. Whatever you do best. Make others aware....

Business on the fly.....

 On our most recent holiday to South Africa, I was sitting at my in-laws house when I was asked by my father-in -law, John, if I wanted to go visit an aircraft factory. Very much intrigued, of course I said yes.......

So being the good little photographer, I was traveling with some gear that I had thrown into a bag just before we left....two bodies, lenses, three flashes, two mini stands, umbrellas, grids, gels and some other stuff. Yeh, I travel light. Whatever!
Luckily, my Think Tank Airport Takeoff swallows most of that up, the rest goes into the overnight bag.

So off we went to a little airfield outside of East London called Robertsham. It's a tiny GA airfield where a company called Savannah Africa are assembling light sport aircraft called the Savannah and the Oribi.

 So by the time we arrived there, there wasn't much time left, as it was a Friday afternoon and the guys who were there were basically finishing up before closing shop for the weekend.

 So I shot what I could within about twenty minutes.

The ambient lighting within the hangar/assembly shop was a mixture of natural, tungsten and florescent, with the florescent being the main source. Interesting, to say the least.

So my camera was set to ISO 200, Florescent WB, my flash units were gelled with a full cut of Plus Green. I knew this would give me some magenta and green colour shifts outside of the flash coverage, but I was OK with that as magenta and green on the aluminum fuselages and parts wouldn't look TOO bad.

Skin tones had to be right, at least.

I shot in Manual mode, and my flash was mounted on a Manfrotto Nano stand, fired with PW Mini and FlexTT5. I also used the AC3 zone controller to change flash settings/power.

 Most of the tight shots were done with a Honl speed grid attached to the front of the SB900.
You can see the effect in the next few shots, falloff is very pronounced. But I like the effect!!

 Here's a pullback of the interior of the hangar with aircraft under various stages of construction.

More images can be found on my website here

Storytellers

It's been quite some time since my last post...it's not that I didn't have anything to post, it's that I've been wrestling with what to post first. So bear with me...

Someone said to me recently that as a photographer in Dubai, you have to photograph anything, everything and everyone. To succeed you have to be a product photographer, a studio photographer, a lifestyle photographer (babies, families, etc), corporate, business, environmental, fashion, food, the list goes on and on. Take any and every job that comes your way. Get hit down on your pricing structure because here in Dubai negotiation is a way of life. Say yes to a shoot just to get a shoot, even if you're not even covering costs. Say yes to everything......

That was me until a little while back, but I wasn't particularly enjoying what I was doing. That's because I hadn't found the style of photography I was comfortable with. I was chopping and changing all the time to suit everyone else needs and wants. Saying yes to everything.....
It's like being made to drive different cars all the time. You know how to drive a car. You know what the steering wheel, clutch, accelerator, brake, gearshift are all used for. You know how the car works. What make it go and what makes it stop. How to balance clutch and accelerator. Like balancing aperture, shutter, ISO. You know how it all works. Like when using flash - shutter speed determines ambient exposure, aperture determines flash exposure. All of that.
But you're so busy getting out from one car into the next that you actually never get comfortable. Changing seat positions, height, steering wheel reach and rake. The same amount of travel on one accelerator makes a certain car go faster that the next.

What about getting out and walking....? Or actually saying, "No thanks, this is the one I want to drive for the rest of my life. This is the one I choose." Finding what you're comfortable with and sticking with it. Building on it and subtly evolving it. But it's yours. You own it, you know it, you are comfortable with it. Because it speaks of who you are. It tells your story. And because you know it, you can use it to become the storyteller for other people....

That's who we are as photographers, in my opinion. Storytellers. We use our style, our God-given gifts and talents to tell other people's stories. Their lives...their joyous moments, their disappointments, their wishes, hopes and dreams. Who they are. And we owe it to them to give them everything they deserve.

And that becomes difficult when we as photographers, their "moment in life recorders", their storytellers, don't know who we are. Because we're too busy jumping from one assignment to another, changing our styles, not being comfortable with what we're doing. Ringing true for some? Does for me.

Don't get me wrong, there are some photographers out their who have been blessed with so much talent by God that they can photograph ten different things at once while adjusting lighting setups and drinking coffee at the same time. While blogging.......

I aint one of them!

I've had to find the style I'm comfortable with. And yes, I know I've found it. I know who and what I want to photograph. How I want to do it. Why I want to do it. What I want to build on. And the evolution will occur.

So my thanks goes out to God for affording me the opportunity to meet some special people in the last few weeks who made me realize what I needed to do. Particularly one who lives in Mumbai at the moment (yes, you know who that is......). I don't believe in coincidence. It's what I needed.

I want to be a storyteller, not a jack-of-all-trades.

So I said "NO" this morning. I'm not comfortable photographing newborns.........
There are some phenomenal photographers here in Dubai who do just that.


And what's a photography blog without some pictures? Here are a couple, one BTS and one post.

Catherine and Ziqyab

Z!!! You rock!