Tired, but it was soooo much fun

Finally I’m done – exhausted, but the last couple of months have been amazing!  Not only have I moved ShutterClass into its new home at Lightdrop Studios, but I’ve also just finished working on 3 different short film projects!!  Even better, I filled very different roles on each one:

  • Tropfest project – Director of Photography, responsible for all primary camera work as well as solving some of the more interesting lighting challenges 
  • Tropfest project – Gaffer, with quite a bit of 1st/2nd AC and Grip assistant work.  This was a great project, we even got to work on location in Melbourne CBD, closing down half a laneway to get the outdoor shots we needed
  • Footage for SFX project – I worked closely with a good friend who’s turned into an amazing SFX editor, and together we pulled together some very cool footage that he’s turned into a simply amazing little 3 minute short.

I wish I could say more about all of these projects, but they are being entered into competitions (Tropfest Australia for two of them) and I’m not permitted to say much.  Don’t worry though, as soon as they are announced to the world, I’ll be updating here!

I had the best time on all 3 projects, and I would work with all of them again in future without hesitation!  But in the meantime, I need to prepare for the Intro DSLR Filmmaking workshop that I’m hosting on Saturday, it’s booked out and should be a fun crowd.

Amazing News!!

**UPDATE** – Cancelled/Indefinitely Delayed
Due to circumstances outside our control, we’ve had to cancel this round of the Drew Gardner Workshops. Apologies from both Drew and ShutterClass, we will try again sometime in the (hopefully near) future to get Drew out to our fair shores!!

If you are interested in a future edition of this workshop, please drop us a note via the contact page to register your interest, and we’ll let you know once the opportunity arises again!

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Welcome to 2012!!

Where did 2011 go?? Such a hectic year, full of amazing shoots, great new friends, exploration of some very cool ideas, a gallery exhibition, the list goes on… but this year I don’t think I’ll do a reflective post – I was happy with much of what I achieved in 2011, and things are lined up for a really big 2012!! Onwards and upwards as they say, and there are always exciting and new things to look forward to… but there’s never enough time to get it all done!! Quick warning, NSFW images ahead…

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Snappy Shutters Fraser Island Retreat – Awesome!!

What a month!! Everyone knows me to be hectic, but the last few weeks have been a standout for amazing experiences, great times spent with current and new friends, and some seriously amazing photography (usually captured by others more talented than me!!). The gallery exhibition was exciting enough (and I recently posted the Behind the Scenes setups that I did), but this little post is about an amazing 4 days I had being one of the workshop presenters (and sponsors) of the Snappy Shutters Fraser Island retreat! Read on for more…

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Light Painting Trial

It’s been ages since I’ve posted, and for that I apologise!! Things are always hectic, what can I say!! But I would like to point out that things are still moving with the studio, which is now sponsoring a great little group on meetup.com – Melbourne Photography Workshops! It’s simply a portal for people who host workshops and people who want to attend workshops to come together!! It seems to be going well so far, lots of fun workshops have been held already and there’s quite a few to come!

Speaking of workshops, a small group from Melbourne Light Painters and a couple of people from Melbourne Photography Workshops went out last Friday night for some lightpainting. Great night had by all, and we got some great shots. There’s another lightpainting night in the pipeworks (ha! a pun!), so keep your eye on the workshop announcements on the Melbourne Photography Workshops meetup group and get involved!!

I’d post some images, but that’s partly the reason why I’ve been so long between updates – I’ve broken this site!! I can’t seem to upload and post images, which is only slightly problematic for a PHOTOGRAPHY site!! *sigh* It’s always something… So, you get this post for now, and then perhaps the site will start behaving strangely for a bit while I tear it down and try and get it running again!

Please be patient, things will be back to normal in no time at all (did that sound convincing??). Hopefully, there’ll be new images shortly!

ShutterClass studio progress continues

It’s been almost 3 weeks since the last update, and quite a bit has happened (always busy, as you all know!!). We had quite a bit of rain in Melbourne recently, and combined with the heat it was a perfect recipe for really testing out the plaster and cyc curve stability! Guess what – cyc curves hate humidity! We had a little cracking and some lifting, we we’ve had to spend some time working on repairs already! On the plus side, repairs turned out to be pretty easy, and the end result is much more stable. Hopefully the heat and humidity predicted over the coming months will prove it’s a better result. And then we have winter cold to look forward to…

The studio has been quite busy lately, which has slowed down completion of the construction – today is the last day of a 3-day fashion/portfolio shoot. We’ve had around 20 people onsite every day, with lots of models coming and going as they attend their session. It’s been relatively smooth, although a small incident with a courier van driving into our front doors, and a modelling lamp exploding meant we had our fair share of excitement!

As we rapidly head towards Christmas, the studio will be closed from 23/12 to 4/1. In that time I’ll be getting organised and planning out the workshops I plan to run in January – at this stage there’ll be a couple of basic lighting workshops, along with some “play” workshops. I’m considering short sessions on using laser/sound triggers, paint/powder/water shoots, and maybe timelapse and lightpainting. I’ve also got a couple of shoots of my own I need to get organised, but more about those once I get the details sorted!!

Next update will probably be early in the new year – until then, I hope everyone has a safe and happy Christmas, and a memorable new year!

Some announcements!! New News!!

It’s been probably the most hectic 2 or so weeks I’ve had in a long time – for those who know me, “busy” is a word I throw around a lot, almost to the point of abuse!! And I’m sure my friends no longer believe me when I say I’m busier than ever before!! But I am!! Seriously!! No, really, please believe me…. please?

OK, here’s the reason I have actually been really busy, and the news is very exciting – I have some announcements to make!! Hopefully some of you out there will be as excited as I am!! So, without further ado:

  • First up, the workshop pilot website is official and operational now!! Go and check it out at http://www.shutterclass.com. It’s rough at the moment, but the intention is simple – if you are a photographer and you want to host a workshop to impart some of that amazing knowledge on an unsuspecting public, ShutterClass can help. The website is designed to sort out some of the annoying logistics, like managing attendees and getting payments in!! And the best part? It’s free during the pilot period while I try and iron out the bugs! Particularly useful for those of you that already run workshops, let ShutterClass sort out the registration hassles for you!
  • What would a new workshop website be without some content? So I’m going to hold some workshops of my own. The first one is the “Relaxed Studio Lighting” workshop, aimed at (mostly new) photographers who would like a chance to get into a studio and experiment with some lights without stress or pressure!! We’ll have a couple of models along, talk about basic lighting concepts, and maybe work through a couple of concepts. If you are interested in attending these workshops (first one November 20), just head over to http://www.shutterclass.com and register!! They’re not expensive either, so get along and give it a shot!!
  • Of course, with a new workshop website, and some workshops to run, I really needed somewhere to hold them! So what better way to launch the website and the workshops by also announcing that I’m opening a studio!! Yes, a studio, as in a full-on space for taking awesome images!!

    ShutterClass Studios will be 3 or 4 large cycloramas (including one corner cyc), portrait walls, and a construction/wet area, along with portable makeup tables, shower/change facilities and roller-door access that can accommodate cars/motorbikes as well!! It’s all located conveniently in Huntingdale Road Oakleigh (walking distance from Huntingdale Train Station). Studio hire rates are still to be determined but they are going to be quite reasonable so even you new shooters and students can get a look in!! Keep your eye on the http://www.ShutterClass.com website for more details over the next 4 or so weeks.

That’s about it for news at this stage (phew, more than enough I think!!). There’s also a Facebook page and other bits and bobs, but these will all be cleaned up and linked together over the coming weeks!!
For now, I’m keen to hear from people who would be interested in running up a workshop through http://www.shutterclass.com (and you don’t have to be in Victoria to use the site!!). I’d love to chat to anyone who wants to know more about the studios, or wants to book them even!! They’re not built yet, but you’ll see some progress updates over the coming weeks. They’ll officially open in the middle of November, but there’s a chance for some early viewing/bookings before then!!

Righto, onwards and upwards!! Like I said, I’m “busy” 😉

Actors Workshop

We didn’t need dialogue. We had faces! (Sunset Boulevard)

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Bushfire Workshops

The weekend came and went in a blur of new friends, lots of laughs, some amazing images, and a great result for bushfire relief fundraising!!

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