Cool Stuffs

The pyramid of the Louvre museum in France is an iconic glass and steel structure that juts up from the streets of Paris in defiance of the cobbled square, just daring movie chase scenes to launch cars and motorcycles off of its gleaming slopes. Mime fights, glass cutting super agents, and video games where you can drive up the sides to shoot waiting pedestrians with bumper mounted machine guns have all given the pyramid a badass reputation. Unfortunately, you may want to rent yourself one of the many holiday villas in France and settle in for the long haul, because waiting to get in is the lamest thing around.

Don’t despair! The Louvre-Lens is a brand new offshoot of the iconic museum, tucked away in an industrial area. And it’s even more insanely awesome.

© Iwan Baan

On December 11 2012, the Louvre-Lens officially opened. It sits nestled alongside industrial complexes, mining sites, and suburban homes in a gleaming scatter of glass bricks. From above, you really have no idea how incredible the interiors are. The reason for the unrivaled awesome? The entire building is glass. Curved carefully along the landscape, the wall distorts light just enough to make sure the outside world won’t detract from your art viewing pleasure.

© Hisao Suzuki

© Iwan Baan

© Iwan Baan

All I can picture when I look through these photos is every sterile, technological, harshly lit superhero’s lair or villain’s evil invention laboratory. In fact, when I first flipped through these striking images I immediately pictured tearing the Batmobile in a slalom through the precious artifacts, and screeching to a halt as Tom Cruise dropped from the ceiling. (I wanted to hit him, but smearing crap all over Leonardo DaVinci’s works seems the worst type of defilement.) I also imagined listening to awful ambient techno while reclining my robot vagina in a chair suspended under giant screens for my video games. (You may need to watch Grandma’s Boy to appreciate the reference. This is a direct order, not a suggestion.) Then I checked over my shoulder in a panic because I could practically feel Hugo Weaving and his agent buddies breathing down my neck.

© Hisao Suzuki

© Hisao Suzuki

© Iwan Baan

© Iwan Baan

© Iwan Baan

© Iwan Baan

© Iwan Baan

I love the idea of a more rural offshoot of the Louvre- getting people out of Paris central and moving around more of the country, while giving them more places to experience culture, is a win all around. The Louvre-Lens hasn’t yet been tarnished improved by the aura that only popular culture and entertainment can imbue; I obviously appreciate it as a bastion for beauty, but my inner nerd screams out for a movie or a game to take this location and run wild with it.

Here are some unbelievably cool facts about the Louvre-Lens:

a 3,000 square meter gallery called the ‘grande galerie’ will exhibit artifacts from the Louvre’s collection without partitions along its entire 120 meter length
it’s built over an old minethere is an extensive underground bunker section to support the museum’s needsthe roof, walls, and corridor accents are made of brushed aluminum, bringing the shiny factor up to warp 10for the rest of 2013, most of the museum and grounds is FREE to attend. Free! More info at their website © Iwan Baan

So in summary: if you’re by France, in France, or planning to travel to France, head out to the countryside for a day and pretend you’re a super villain. Take in the gorgeous architecture, stop to appreciate the timeless pieces of art, and sit and lose yourself in daydreams… of screeching tires, sexy secret agents, and the spiderwebbed cracks of bullet riddled glass as you make your getaway.

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Despite my being a well read 21st century man who has no need for television, I do find myself missing it from time to time. Now it’s not the cliched stories, or the overblown acting of your nightly drama tale. I’m also not interested in the myriad reality shows, or talent searches. No, what I miss is the game show. It’s that quintessential American past time of watching people being put on the proverbial spot. Ticking clocks, rapid fire answers, and the pressure of the crowd. It all makes for a glorious show.

Now of course it isn’t all that excitement for the contestant that gets me riled up for a good game show. It’s the unscripted aspect of the responses from the contestants of the show which makes it a great. Just look at this video, there must be at least 30 years of comedy shown in this one bit and that doesn’t even scratch the surface.

Betty White, you patient… patient woman you. How did you manage to put up with this for all those years? She’s a stronger woman than I am…

That’s is ladies and gentleman is pure comedy in it’s most base form. A couple of people caught off their guard and letting what they really think to the surface. It has to be some of the best programming on television (at least today.) No script, no cliched plot twists, no cliffhangers or fades to black. This is the truest form of T.V.

I suppose the reason I loved these so much was because of the nature of live television. In between all the moments life could happen. You couldn’t polish a scene, or take something back with video editing. People worked with what they had, and what they had was brilliant! So here’s a toast to a bygone era, of new cars, spinning oversized wheels, and most importantly the unexpected.

If you’ve got an urge for some of that game show feeling, you can play the deal or no deal game at Ladbrokes.com. We guarantee you’ll do better than the contestants you just watched in the video!

Tagged as: game shows, reality tv, the price is right, wheel of fortune

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Numerous guys over the years have told me that if it didn’t mean girls would be instantly terrified, they would make all their own furniture out of whatever they had at hand. Were it not for the eternal quest for sex, many man caves would still be sporting the cinderblock-milk-crate-wire-spool-chic of the guy who just can’t be arsed to care. While shabby and handmade decor is enjoying a Renaissance thanks to hipsters and the “I can totally make the cutest pencil holder out of this juice box a hobo peed in” Pintrest crowd, what happens when you don’t have any materials at hand?

Take a cue from artist Scott A. Carter and make drywall furniture. Out of your walls. You don’t really, need those, do you?

If you’re handy with power tools, you can create furniture out of your drywall. Now, outside of being aesthetically pleasing and quite ingenious, this is perfect for the man that truly doesn’t care about how his man cave looks. You’ve still got an outer wall and studs and insulation, and you’d much rather have a chair to crash in while you shoot noobs than a smooth, unbroken expanse of useless wall.  And as Carter proves, if you think your design out beforehand, the negative space you leave while cannibalizing your domicile is actually stunning art in every way.

Not that we like to encourage you to start drilling holes and using a dremel to abuse your rental apartment, but these drywall furniture pieces are the envy of the man who likes his decor spartan and everything else stacked and orderly.  I highly encourage you to head over to Carter’s site, where he’s also got beautiful inspirational installations that will give you all sorts of great, destructively creative ideas. Why not slice stacks of your carpet and layer them into plush topographical maps? It’s a guaranteed way to hide the plethora of dubious stains. Or perhaps tear the pictures off your walls so you can turn the frames into seating. Then you can stare at the dingy outline of where art used to hang, in order to ponder and eventually understand the meaning of space and the transitory nature of our human souls. Or just to have a bench to sit on, I guess.

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Earlier today, I showed you guys the Hario TCA-5 Vacuum Coffee Maker and now it’s the Kyocera Ceramic Coffee Grinder which should also be a nice addition to the kitchen. Since I’m the only coffee drinker in the house, owning a coffee grinder doesn’t make much sense especially when most coffee tastes the same to me. But being exposed to coffee and coffee drinkers at the office all day long has got me a bit more interested. I’m still at that stage where all coffee is created equal but I’m slowly starting to take mental notes about coffee and what it takes to make a nice cup of joe. Things such as how long coffee beans should be roasted for and even the size of the coffee grinds. I never gave these things much thought and how they can have an impact on the taste of the coffee.

The Kyocera Ceramic Coffee Grinder is a manual ceramic burr that will evenly grind your coffee, tea, and spices. You could probably grind certain “herbs” as well. Apparently a burr grinder is better than a blade grinder but it tends to be a bit more pricey. In blade grinders, you can give your coffee beans a burnt taste if you grind for too long due to the heat transfer. See, even you’re learning something about the coffee grinding process.

The Kyocera Ceramic Coffee Grinder comes with a dishwasher-safe glass container and the burr grinder is adjustable so you can grind the coffee as fine as flour or leave it more coarse. The base of the coffee grinder is made of silicone and can be removed. The glass container can hold 100 grams of coffee grounds. The ceramic used “almost” has the same hardness as diamonds so it will last for many years and you also don’t have to worry about it rusting on you.

The Kyocera Ceramic Coffee Grinder can be picked up for $44.95 on Amazon. I don’t know about you guys but I think this should look pretty nice sitting next to that vacuum coffee maker I mentioned earlier.

Tagged as: burr grinder, kyocera ceramic coffee grinder

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I’m no coffee expert and all coffee brands pretty much tastes the same to me. I can tell you if it tastes good or not but when it comes to the blends and how long it’s been roasted for, I’m pretty clueless. Our writer, Gina, loves her coffee and she will soon be reviewing the world’s strongest coffee. To be honest, I probably enjoy the smell of coffee more than the actual taste. While we wait for the world’s strongest coffee to arrive in the mail, let me show you guys this pretty sweet looking coffee machine.

The Hario Bonimac Siphon Coffee Machine or also known as a vacuum coffee maker is a great looking device that is sure to be a conversation piece at your home. The vacuum coffee maker was invented in 1830 and they were quite popular until the 1950's or so. It generally takes a bit more effort to brew a pot of coffee using a vacuum coffee maker but it results in a more clear brew and better tasting cup of coffee.

The Hario TC-5 Vacuum coffee maker comes with a soot free alcohol burner, a lower glass bulb, and an upper container for the coffee grounds. To use the device, you basically fill the lower bulb with the right amount of water while the upper compartment holds the coffee grounds. Once you have the water and coffee grounds in, place the alcohol burner under the water to boil the water. Once water begins to boil, the steam will rise to the upper container, mixing with the coffee grounds. Once all water has risen, mix the water and coffee grounds in the upper container. Once mixed, remove the heat source from underneath the bulb and the brewed coffee will makes its way back into the lower bulb for you to enjoy.

The Hario TCA-5 Vacuum Coffee Maker is only $110 which is a pretty good price. Not only that but the coffee maker actually looks pretty cool too. You can feel like a chemist while brewing your morning coffee.

Tagged as: Hario TCA-5 Coffee Maker, Siphon, Syphon, Vacuum Coffee Maker

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Next Interview

PHOTOGRILL: What was your brief for this assignment?

PHOTOGRAPHER: The story was about the kids at Kinglake Primary School who were going to race a fuel-free vehicle that they had designed and built. Kinglake had sent a team to the annual event previously, but the Black Saturday bush-fires made an entry unlikely this year, as parents were too cash-strapped to attend. It’s been a very difficult year and the kids have been under a lot of stress, but they really wanted to do it. So it was a relief, when a commercial sponsor provided funds and the opportunity for some much needed team-building.

PHOTOGRILL: What was your process for designing and making this photo?

PHOTOGRAPHER: On the way to Kinglake , I thought about the best case scenario, a futuristic solar panelled fuel-free vehicle is speeding through burnt out forest. I think I might have expected a bit much from the primary school kids because I was shocked when they wheeled a billy cart around the corner. The picture editor had high expectation for a photo of the students with the fuel-free vehicle. After the Black Saturday fires recovery stories where of great interest to our readers and our editorial team. They would want a page 3 or 5 out of this. We wheeled the billy cart up a slight hill amongst some scrub. The bush around the school hadn’t been effected by the fire. I asked one of the drivers to jump in and one of the other students pushed as fast as they could, I had the other 3 team members cheer as the cart went past. I used a wide angle lens with a slow shutter speed and panned as they zoomed passed to create movement in the image but I wasn’t happy with the result. I needed to changed my approach, instead of photographing from side on I decided to photograph head on, changing the shape of the picture and reducing the amount of the cart that would be seen. It made the picture more about the students, which is the real story, and less about the cart.

Shooting head on meant I needed to change the location to a spot with bush on both sides. Instead of going as fast as they could I asked the students to slow down so I could pan running backward, from in front of the cart using an even slower shutter speed. After trying a various shutter speeds I chose the one that resulted in the most movement, without blurring the driver’s face. Using the motor-drive at 9 frames per second I was getting 1 or 2 useable frames. But with only a few students in  the picture it still lacked atmosphere. The photo needed more excitement.

Kinglake Primary is a very small school, so I asked the principal if we could bring all the students out of their classes to cheer on their school mates. Soon the whole school was surrounding the cart as it was pushed along, and I ran backwards shooting pictures. After 3 or 4 more runs with high fives I finally got a couple of photographs that I could happily file for the editor’s conference.

PHOTOGRILL: Have you used this visual technique on other assignments?

PHOTOGRAPHER: On a more recent occasion I was ask to get the first snow picture of the year. I was off to Mt Buller armed with the name and phone number of the public relations girl. Once again, on the way I thought about what would be the best possible outcome. I had an idea to mount a camera to the front of a toboggan with a wide angle lens. I’d use a slow shutter speed to show the moment and a remote control to activate the camera. I arranged it with the PR by phone. The shoot was off to a good start. When I arrived and met with the my contact, she informed me that there was not really anyone on the mountain. No kids, no students, no tourists. No one comes here until the snow season starts later in the year. But there was a girl in the office who might be in a photo.

PHOTOGRILL: How did you make the photo this time?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I rigged up the toboggan with a clamp, Nikon D3, 14mm lens and remote release. We set out to a nice snow covered slope with trees on both sides. It was a very over cast day, the sky was as white as the snow. So the trees blurring on both sides would be needed to show movement, and to minimise the amount of flat looking sky in the shot. But the mounted remote camera was a disaster, it was too heavy and it dug into the snow preventing the toboggan from going anywhere. I whipped the camera off the toboggan and tried panning but that wasn’t working either. I thought that if I was going down the hill in front of the toboggan looking back, the girl would be in the centre of the frame with movement all around her, and that could look good. So I grabbed a second toboggan and slowly went down the slop backwards, the PR girl guided my toboggan while I photographed my subject on another one.

I was starting to get the result I wanted, except there was too much movement in the girls face because we were going down at slightly different speeds. So at that point I decided to ride the toboggan backward down the snow slope with a camera in one hand while holding on to my subjects right foot with the other, so that we were traveling at the same speed. When I was ready to make the shot I quickly let go of her foot and started a motor-drive sequence as soon my hand was out of the frame. It was just good enough to stop the movement in her face. We did the run 6 or 7 times, shooting about 20 pics each time. I was happy with 3 or 4 frames. I filed the shots from my laptop with a wireless connection in time for 3pm conference.

PHOTOGRILL: What attracts you personally to newspaper photography?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I love meeting people and hearing their stories. Not famous people so much but everyday people, and I love the challenge of making a picture from any situation. I generally do not leave a job until I’m happy with the picture I’ve taken.

I enjoy covering sporting events purely for the photography. People have said to me “it must be great going to the football, sitting on the boundary line taking photos”, and it is great. Though I don’t really like football, I don’t care who wins or losses. All I care about is the getting the best picture possible. Whether it’s the best player on the ground, or a great mark, as long at it happens in front of me and I get the shot, I’m happy.

a a This entry was posted on Sunday, July 3rd, 2011 at 6:44 am. It is filed under Fairfax Photographers, The Grill and tagged with Action Photo, Creative Photography, People, Photographic Techniques, Photojournalism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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Next Interview

PHOTOGRILL: You photograph in old buildings & structures; what’s behind your interest in these places?

PHOTOGRAPHER: It’s often somewhat difficult to put into words what I find intriguing about these kinds locations; sometimes it’s the history, sometimes just the architecture…and sometimes, it’s simply the opportunity the location presents for a compelling or unusual shot. A common idea among Urbex enthusiasts is what’s referred to as “beauty in decay”…the idea that the effects of entropy on a place can render it aesthetically appealing. I see that, and I think many others do too.

PHOTOGRILL: In broad terms, what does your photographic style say about these places? What is it that compels people to your imagery?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I think one of the common threads that underlies most of my work is a sense of tension; an uneasy feeling created by a somewhat familiar subject such as an abandoned gas station or roadhouse rendered surreal as its filled with light. These objects are juxtaposed with other, unnatural visages such as car headlights that look like laser beams, clouds streaking across a moonlit sky, or turbulent water rendered eerily calm via a minutes-long exposure. Things we see and take for granted every day that take on a different appearance when time is elongated. Though none of these images in this photo-set are a prime example, a big part of the feedback I get from fans is based around simply being creeped out by the location and the lighting treatment. “Undisclosed Location” & “Pollard House” are prime examples of this. Something about a red glow inside an old house tends to make people uncomfortable.

PHOTOGRILL: Can you tell us about the gear you use to create these images?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I shoot with a Nikon D300, and for 99.9% of my images, I use a 12-24 zoom lens. There are several technical reasons why a lens in this focal range works well for this type of photography, not the least of which is the ease of focusing in darkness due to the large depth of field that a lens like this provides. Also, the perspective of a wide lens mirrors the way I tend to envision and compose these shots.

As for the other critical equipment, I use a Pixel Wireless Remote system to open/close the shutter from up to 100 yards away, and I use a Manfrotto tripod, equipped with their excellent Pistol-Grip ball head to provide a stable base for the camera.

For lighting gear, as mentioned above I use a combination of strobes and flashlights, often with colored theatrical gels, to provide the lighting effects in the images. Here’s a list of the rest of the gear that carry with me, usually in my photo vest:

Vivitar 285 Strobe, early 80’s model, running on NiMh rechargeable batteriesYong Nuo YN460-II (As a backup)X2000 Zoom Flashlight (Available through Deal Extreme) (bright & powerful)C30 Zoom Flashlight (Available through Deal Extreme) (mid-level brightness)AA Maglite (Excellent for close detail work)Streamlight Twin-Task Flashlight (LED & xenon sources; a ‘swiss-army knife’ for interior work)Custom-cut theatrical gels (12-15 different colors) (Rosco and “American DJ” Brand)Lens Pen (Gotta keep the glass clean)Buck Knife & Pepper Spray (You never know who or what you’ll encounter out in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night)Whistle (Last Resort…for when you fall through a floor into a basement in a ghost town at 2 AM, break your leg, and there’s no cell phone service!)

PHOTOGRILL: OK, so tell us about the featured image in this set, “RGB 5.0”. How did you find this scene, and how did you decide to construct and compose it?

PHOTOGRAPHER: RGB 5.0 is one of my most popular and best-selling images. It was shot on March 3rd, 2008 in an abandoned two-story industrial office building that had been converted for use as a music-rehearsal-rooms-for-rent facility. Demolished in 2010, the building was located in a sketchy neighborhood of downtown Dallas. It was replete with eccentric artifacts of small-time rock bands (such as this ½ mannequin) as well as homeless person belongings, from people who had passed through here and moved on, leaving some of their stuff behind. The building was basically two stories with dozens of small offices…vacant, trashed, and wreaking of decay.

Back in 2008, I typically shot these kinds on places alone, but on this unusually cold March night, I had with me a young urban explorer who had seen my work and was interested in learning my techniques. As we explored the building, we happened upon the mannequin legs, and a few rooms later, a collection of women’s shoes, lined up neatly against the wall as if they were in a closet. I immediately got the idea for the setup in RGB 5.0, so my protégé and I rounded up the legs & shoes, and took them back to 2nd floor landing.

The placement of the mannequin, as well as the angle and composition of the shot fell together quite naturally. It was now just a matter of deciding on the lighting scheme and executing it.

PHOTOGRILL: So tell us about the exposure and effects…how exactly did you create the lighting in RGB 5.0?

PHOTOGRAPHER: Well, first off, there is absolutely no ambient light in the room of any sort; it was pitch black in there. So truly, as a photographer, you are literally “painting with light”; if you want something to appear in the image, you have to put light on it.

Another thing to consider is the fact that, to pull off these handheld lighting effects while the shutter is open, one has to navigate the area of the scene in the blackness. That can sometimes be a bit unnerving, especially if the structural integrity of the building is in question. Fortunately, this building was quite sound structurally; all I had to do was design the shot, count the steps on the stairwell, open the shutter and feel my way around in the dark.

So, having pre-visioned specifically what I wanted the image to look like, it’s time to pull the trigger. I opened the shutter and made my way in darkness to the poster wall, and hurried down the steps (I already knew how many there were) to the mid-landing I and fired off two pops of blue-gelled strobe (medium setting); one to the left corner, one to the right. I then turned to face the side wall, and fired one pop of a green-gelled strobe, climbed the steps a bit and fired off one more pop to the area where the posters are.

Now, to create the red wall. I climbed the steps and made my way into the hallway at frame right. In a doorway across the hall, I fired off one pop of a red-gelled strobe aimed at the wall in the scene.

Now all that’s left is the detail lighting on the legs and fill lighting for the foreground. To do this, I made my way across the frame, out the left side of the image. I used a tightly focused mini-Maglite to paint the legs, then moved to just left of the camera position and used a Streamlight Twin-Task to paint the floor from a low-angle to pull out the texture detail in the debris on the floor.

All of this took 2 minutes and 53 seconds to accomplish (exposure times typically range from one to three minutes, with some as long as 10-12 minutes). The exposure was made on f/5.6, at ISO 200, with a focal length of 12mm. I should also note that this image was in fact taken with my old Nikon D80, as I had not yet upgraded to the D300 in March of 2008. The final image was the second exposure of two takes.

As a side note, while we spent nearly three hours exploring this building, this was one of only two exposures I made on the evening. We were surprised when we stepped out of the building that night to discover that while were inside exploring, Dallas had been blanketed with a layer of freshly fallen snow, which we couldn’t see from inside this old, boarded up abandonment.

PHOTOGRILL: What is your post-processing workflow for an image like this?

PHOTOGRAPHER: My general philosophy is to do as little as possible in the way of manipulating the source image; the idea here is to let the light-painting make the statement, and not turn a photograph into a piece of graphic art by over-processing it, as with HDR, Photoshop filters, etc.

Typically, most of the adjustments I will make to an image are done during the import into Photoshop, in Adobe Camera Raw. I may adjust the white balance, tweak saturation & vibrance slightly, and depending upon the values in the raw file, tweak the shadow & highlight values a bit if needed. After that, in Photoshop itself, I will address any perspective/distortion issues and crop the image to taste. My objective is to delicately tune the final image into an optimal version of what I had envisioned, while still remaining faithful to what the camera saw while the shutter was open. I try to maintain the integrity of a traditional photographic process, as much as possible.

With RGB 5.0, the RAW file out of the camera and the final image are almost identical, save for sharpening and a slight crop to the left edge of the image. Upon close examination of the edited file, I can see where I had done a mask of some sort in one area, but I no longer recall what it was for; I can’t find any substantial differences between the final product and the source RAW file.

PHOTOGRILL: Where can people who are compelled by your photography see more of your work?

PHOTOGRAPHER: My website is at Noel Kerns Photography, though a more complete collection of my work, including my latest images, can be found on my Flickr Stream.

I’d also like to mention my relationship with an outstanding new online gallery called artstar.com. ArtStar is a fantastic resource for budget-minded collectors of fine art, and I’m proud for them to be representing several of my images, including “Curiosity” and Prada Marfa”, both featured in this collection.

PHOTOGRILL: Do you offer classes or workshops for people interested in learning your photographic & lighting techniques?

PHOTOGRAPHER: Yes, occasionally. Drop me an e-mail at and I’ll keep you posted on workshop opportunities as they come available.

a a This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 30th, 2011 at 10:36 pm. It is filed under The Grill and tagged with Creative Photography, Lighting, Photographic Techniques. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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Next Interview

PHOTOGRILL: Why did you make the photo of the exorcist?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I photographed Bob Larsen for Metro a section in the Age in 2005, he was the Exorcist that had a run in with John Saffran on his popular ABC TV series ’John Saffran Vs. God’. The footage Saffron shot with Larsen was pretty disturbing. I asked Saffran (we did a photo shoot for A2 a few weeks before) about the ‘possession’ he had apparently experienced on the show and he assured me he hadn’t been hamming it up and that he had no idea what had happened that night.

PHOTOGRILL: How were you planning to photograph him?

PHOTOGRAPHER: With some trepidation I set off to meet the Exorcist at The Westin Hotel in Melbourne. Hotel rooms are probably the worst place you can do a photo shoot in. So I took him to the City Square to could use St Paul’s Cathedral as a suitable ‘gothic’ backdrop. I asked him to bring his bible and I set up a Norman flash unit with a soft box. Norman flash units are portable studio type flash heads with large battery packs for use on location when power isn’t available. Soft boxes or grids etc can be attached to the heads. These days I use a set of Elinchrom Quadra Rangers which are highly portable and come with wireless remotes so you don’t have to mess with synch cables. I use small Manfrotto light stands that attach together for easy carrying.

It was the middle of the day and I wanted to do the ‘day for night’ effect where you light up the subject and underexpose the background by several f stops. Exorcists don’t look very spooky in the middle of the day and I wanted him outside, so I controlled the light by turning the flash unit to high power, used a low ISO and closed my aperture right down for a more atmospheric result.

PHOTOGRILL: How How did the photo shoot go?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I started shooting and then all of a sudden three Ravens flew out from the bell tower and my flash unit failed and refused to work again for the rest of the shoot. I was really annoyed as I reviewed the shots on the back of my Canon 1Ds as I’d missed THE shot. In one frame Bob was beautifully lit and in the next the ravens were perfectly positioned but Bob was a silhouette. The exorcist assured me that I was not the first photographer or cameraman to have ‘technical’ difficulties while attempting to photograph him. (oooh spooooky)

Anyway I wasn’t about to let the ‘dark forces’ beat me so I used some modern day magic, Adobe Photoshop, to make a composite of the the adjoining frames and voila.

PHOTOGRILL: So are you an artist or story telling press photographer?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I think most press photographers these days are a combination of artist and story teller. If I’d just shot the Exorcist sitting on a seat in his hotel room it would have been rather dull so you try to get a little creative by choosing locations and lighting techniques and hopefully a bit of luck to make the shot more dynamic and tell the story you want to tell. Sometimes you can get pretty abstract with what you shoot but you still have to tell a story. Perhaps an example of this is a shot of mine that was published recently with a story on bad weather. I photographed a kids’ sandpit filled up with water. It’s kind of abstract but it tells a story in a different way rather than just photographing people running with umbrellas, like you’ve seen a hundred times.

a a This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011 at 3:46 pm. It is filed under Fairfax Photographers, The Grill and tagged with Creative Photography, Lighting, People, Photographic Techniques, Portraiture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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I think it’s safe to say that just about everyone owned LEGO as a child, and perhaps that even continued into adulthood. That’s certainly the case for Justin R. Stebbins, the mastermind behind this incredible LEGO fallout street diorama. If you’re a fan of the Fallout franchise, then you’re going to love this, whether you like LEGO or not. I mean honestly, who doesn’t like LEGO?

So before you start browsing through the collection, let me point out a few things. For starters, I don’t know *exactly* which Fallout this is based on, but I’m leaning towards Fallout 2. Given the viewpoint of that game, and the California flag we see atop the building here, well… it’s a nice little homage to the game. Also, keep an eye out for some other notable Fallout mainstays. A certain blue boy in particular.

Though the LEGOs used to create this world are non-toxic, the world they represent are anything but that. The mutants beneath the streets will attest to that.

Dogmeat, is that you boy? This doesn’t look like the friendliest neighborhood… good thing everyone and their dog are well armed.

Notice the TV screen up top there? Fallout fans are quite familiar with it, but did you know that the Indian Head test card was actually used on real, actual television?

I think I’ve been playing too many video games. The reflections on the street actually look pretty damn cool… like it’s just rained. Quite unlikely given the Fallout universe, but… you know.

That is… quite the bikini. I don’t where our helmeted friend there shops, but I have a feeling it’s an amazing place.

Clearly there isn’t a whole lot of trust in this interaction.

And here we end the serious on a good note, well… kind of. The ever lovable Pip Boy is looking as cheery as ever. Just ignore the horrible mutant living beneath the streets.

Though I would love to offer you a handy place to pick up a set of Fallout LEGO, sadly… none seem to exist. It’s my understanding that Mr. Stebbins modified many of the pieces here to fit the diorama, and that they aren’t from some magical Fallout set. Having said that, LEGO is dirt cheap, and perhaps you can make your own? A massive tub of LEGO sells for just $24.59 USD on Amazon, and this isn’t even the biggest one they carry.

Now, if you’re looking for a bit of inspiration, head over to Saber Scorpion’s Lair and browse around. Justin has done a wide range of different game inspired LEGO scenes, ranging from Mass Effect to Assassin’s Creed. They’re all awesome, guaranteed.

Tagged as: california, diorama, justin stebbins, lego fallout, mutants

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Next Interview

PHOTOGRILL: This photo was made following the Black Saturday bushfires which left 173 people dead. Tell us some of your experience of the fires.

PHOTOGRAPHER: Two days previously I was assigned to shoot a small bushfire in the Bunyip forrest in Gippsland as a preview to the Perfect storm of fire conditions that were predicted for that next day.  Department of Sustainability and Environment rangers managed the fire as best they could in very difficult terrain. I asked one of the firefighters, if the conditions were as bad as predicted would they be able to contain this fire? Once I assured him that I didn’t write the story and he wasn’t going to be quoted he said to me  ”Not a shit show in hell. Not even with ten helicopters.” That was enough for me to call my boss and say that I would work on my day off, the next day, and head back to Gippsland to watch this fire. What a day. One I will never forget.

Police road blocks make it very hard to cover bush-fires in Victoria , even for trained and accredited photographers. The default setting is not to let you in, so you need to be in early. Which is exactly what I did, I got in before the police blocked the roads and found a great farmhouse to sit and wait. It was on a high point with no fuel around it and lots of water.  A journalist joined me on the hill with the farmers defending the property.

We sat on that hill for most of the day watching the fire in the forest , it got hotter and hotter with a massive wind. It really was a perfect storm.  Helicopters-water bombed the fire all day but the wind finally got the flames in its grip and fire just leapt from the forest onto flat farmland . Suddenly it was on the run and really moving too.  Helicopters tried to get ahead of the spot fires and the sky went dark with smoke. We were safe on the hill. The awesome fire rolled past scouring all in its path. It threw  a 30 foot fire ball rolling like a bowling ball across the field. Later in the day the wind turned and sent fire back towards us. With it came a strong southerly wind and a change in conditions. It had so much energy that it created a storm, with lightning and massive thunder which i am told is a pyrocumulous.

PHOTOGRILL: Did you make photos of the fires on Black Saturday?

PHOTOGRAPHER: We were asked to stay at the farm by the Country Fire Authority until after the the fire had passed which caused great anxiety at the time but in hindsight I am very pleased. We chased the tail of the fire and shot the destruction it had left. it was getting quite late and nearing dark . Considering the immense day the pictures I had did not do it justice.  As I drove back to Melbourne listening to the radio it became more evident that it had been a horrific day all over the state and many people had died. The rest is well documented and burned into the psyche of most Australians now.

That was the start of a month on the road travelling to the burnt towns of Victoria and finding the stories of the survivors and the dead. The Age arranged to send several teams to the different fire affected areas. I was paired with reporter Selma Milovnovic for several weeks. Each team tried to focus on a particular area to avoid crossover and duplication. Teams often ended up in the same town overnight which was a great way to debrief over a few beers with people who knew what you were going through. It was really not easy listening to so many of the horrific stories of how people coped on that day. The realisation of how their lives were changed forever was often heartbreaking.

PHOTOGRILL: Where was the photograph of Rob Greig and his motorbike made?

PHOTOGRAPHER: One of the towns which was in our patch was Flowerdale. A tiny little picturesque town that sits in a valley with a river running through it. Not much more than a shop and a pub. We had heard on the radio that the army were involved in property searching in the town and we organised to meet them to do a story which gave us access into the otherwise closed town. Flowerdale had done it really tough. Their own CFA had been called to another town not too far away so when the fire turned back towards Flowerdale there weren’t many firefighting resources left in town, so the locals quickly formed their own Firefighting group. “Flowerdale Freelance Firefighters” was my nickname for them.  Water tankers on the backs of several utes with three or four blokes on each. They worked all night racing from property to property that they thought they could save. I was blown away by these blokes and the spirit in this forgotten town.

PHOTOGRILL: How did you find Rob?

PHOTOGRAPHER: The picture came by pure chance. While driving to find a slim patch of mobile phone coverage I recognised one of the Flowerdale Freelance Firefighters coming out of a shed high on a hill above town and stopped for a chat. He told me he was checking on “Robs” bike. I asked if I could have a look . As soon as I saw the bike I asked if he could get Rob back so I could do a portrait with him. “No sweat ” was the reply and five minutes and a cold beer later Rob turns up. Tattoos, bandanna and a little lap dog to boot. He walked straight up and sat on what was his pride and joy. His burnt out Harley Davidson was the realisation of a life long dream which had only been bought a few months earlier.

It was beautiful light and a great character. This big burly bloke with his little dog and a beer.  I banged a few frames off as we stood there talking about the day. It was great to have a laugh finally after so much misery. I have kept in touch every now and again with Rob . He has a new Harley and a new shed and a huge print of the photo that I gave him for his pool room.

a a This entry was posted on Sunday, July 10th, 2011 at 9:30 am. It is filed under Fairfax Photographers, The Grill and tagged with People, Photojournalism, Portraiture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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Next Interview

PHOTOGRILL: Why did you go to Bobbio?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I wanted to photograph Bobbio’s Bridge for a long time, to include this magical location in my portfolio. So one Sunday I got my gear and headed toward Bobbio with my wife Clare for a photographic adventure. I’d never been to Bobbio before that day, the trip took about 3 hours. It was a relaxing journey through Colli Piacentini, an Italian wine region located at the western end of Emilia-Romagna.

We arrived around 1 PM, which was not the ideal time to take the picture I had in my mind. So after a brief inspection of the bridge we decided to roam around town and see what Bobbio had to offer. Bobbio is a beautiful medieval town with a lot of photographic opportunities. We enjoyed getting lost in its narrow streets and taking photos here and there. Around 3pm we followed some music coming from the main “piazza” and found a lovely surprise. Bobbio’s carnival parade was taking place. This was a wonderful opportunity to document a typical Italian event, and the people of Bobbio were glad to have us making photos. My wife sent most of her pictures to Bobbio’s town hall so that anybody could have a souvenir of that beautiful afternoon.

PHOTOGRILL: So tell us about photographing the bridge?

PHOTOGRAPHER: It was now 5 pm, we were tired but it was time to head to Bobbio’s Bridge and try to take the shot I had in my mind. We crossed the bridge and went down the stairs to the side of the river where I placed my tripod. I tried to find the right angle and the right aperture to get the silky water effect I wanted to achieve, but it was just not happening. The sun was still too high and the picture would overexpose. I was getting tired, frustrated and cold but I was determined to get my shot. I waited a few more minutes, and added a polariser filter to the ND filter that I was already using, and then started shooting. In just a few minutes I noticed the light was getting better and better. But I had to be fast, the sun was going down rapidly, and when it got to the height of the bridge I decided I could also include it in the photo adding an extra touch to the subject.

I set my aperture to f/22 to extend the exposure to 1.6s which gets a nice effect on the river, and creates the “star” effect with the suns rays. After 2 shots I balanced the exposure to -0.33ev and suddenly all my efforts seemed to have paid me back. I knew I had the photo I wanted so I relaxed, but kept shooting for another 20 minutes until dusk came, and my poor frozen wife begged me to go. We still had a 3 hour journey in front of us, and a super-moon to photograph… but that’s another story.

PHOTOGRILL: What were the technical details?

PHOTOGRAPHER: Camera body Canon 7D, lens Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 at 12mm,
f/22, ev -0.33 , shutter speed 1.6s , ISO 100.

PHOTOGRILL: Do you use post processing?

PHOTOGRAPHER: I do use post-processing techniques but I always try not to overdo it. I prefer to use Photoshop and ACD-See pro to the minimum. I think post-processing plays a fairly important role in producing a good digital image but it is very important to keep your pictures as “pure” as you can. I normally adjust levels and curves when converting my raw files and then crop, sharp and add some saturation or contrast if needed to the jpeg file. I’m not a master in the use of post processing techniques and I would love to dedicate some time very soon to learn more about this. I always keep myself updated, reading blogs on the net but I often find it very time consuming, and prefer to go out shooting instead.

PHOTOGRILL: Tell us about your photography in general.

PHOTOGRAPHER: Through my photography I try to show people the world the way I see it, which is not necessarily the beauty of it, I guess it depends a lot on the mood I’m in when I’m photographing, and of course the place and the subjects. My favourite subject is definitely nature. I love landscapes and animal photography the most but if I have a camera in my hands anything can be an inspiration. Since I like to experiment a lot, I also shoot street, portrait, architecture and anything that I think can produce a good image of.

When I prepare for a photo shoot I normally have an idea in my mind, which is generally a location or a specific subject. I tend to carry most of my equipment with me because I’m well aware that even if I have a defined project in mind there is always something I didn’t think of. Situations change, especially when photographing outdoors and I like to be ready when new ideas come to my mind on the spot. If I have nothing specific in my mind then I just roam, maybe small hikes or city tours and find inspiration on the spot.

PHOTOGRILL: Are you amateur or professional?

PHOTOGRAPHER: If you define a professional photographer as somebody that makes a living out of photography then I’m not a professional yet (trying hard though). But I certainly do not consider myself an amateur, I take photography very seriously. I carefully choose my equipment and constantly improve my techniques. I study and read blogs, I look for locations and take my camera everywhere I go so that I never miss the opportunity of taking home a good shot.

PHOTOGRILL: Why did you become a photographer?

PHOTOGRAPHER: At first I started taking photos to document my adventures, the places I visited and the people I would meet around the world . My father has always been a great inspiration, he travelled a lot and he is a great photographer so I started asking him for advice about techniques and equipment and as soon as I improved I wanted more and more from my photographs and I still do. I am not an artistic person overall, I do not paint, I’m not good at drawing and I guess I found in photography my element, my way to express and share feelings I otherwise wouldn’t know how share.

a a This entry was posted on Sunday, July 3rd, 2011 at 8:29 am. It is filed under The Grill and tagged with Creative Photography, Landscape Photography, Photographic Techniques, Posts Tagged ‘Landmark Photo’. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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It’s a sunny day outside, and you’re out enjoying the day just cruising around; perhaps even headed to a local show and shine or other auto enthusiast event. First you hear it… then, as your head swivels towards the sound, you catch a glimpse of a boulevard brawler. You know your sixties muscle cars: you recognize the silhouette, and easily ID the make and model. But wait- your brain has just sent you an additional message… something doesn’t quite fit with that initial recognition. Now the realization sinks in. There were indeed some subtle  (maybe even some not so subtle) differences from the muscle car that first popped into your head and the car you actually saw. Muscle car customization and personalization means that there were a lot of sweet street lookalikes that had a little something extra.

Let’s start by classifying two main types of muscle cars; factory stock and owner customized. It’s no secret that the first thing a muscle car owner usually does is customize their ride in some way. Call it customizing, modifying, hot rodding – it’s a timeless concept. It’s about personalizing your ride, within your means, into something that may be different from the factory norm but more reflective of your style, your image, and your need for speed!

There are many companies in the business of building out their (pricey) versions of today’s factory muscle cars with performance and handling updates. Roush, Saleen, Shelby, Lingenfelter, and Callaway are a few examples. In the sixties there were also companies producing their customized versions of factory muscle cars albeit on a smaller scale than today’s giant industry. You may instantly recognize some of these muscle cars by their common factory name – but it may be a tougher challenge to ID the customized version. It’s likely that today’s young generation may never have seen some of these particular customizations, since few were made and even fewer have survived. Whether or not you have seen any of these muscle cars before, here’s your chance to appreciate some of what the hot rodding tradition turned out in the sixties.

Let’s go!

#1) Hey, that’s a 1967 Chevelle… right?

1967 Beaumont “Cheetah”

In 1966 a dealership named Conroy Pontiac Buick realized that there was a gap in the Canadian automotive market for dealer built supercars.

The Beaumont Sport Deluxe was the Canadian equivalent of the Chevelle Super Sport. You can see that the trim, grill, and badging are unique to the Beaumont, but the drive train was all Chevrolet. “Cheetah” was the right name to give to this high performance beast. The Cheetah’s high performance upgrades most commonly included a 396-cubic-inch engine, headers, and four speed manual transmission – but ten or so received the 427-cubic-inch top dog engine transplant
as part of the package.

#2) Hey, that’s a 1968 Barracuda… isn’t it?

1968 Barracuda “Savage GT”

The Auto Craft Company chose to name their heavily modified 1968 Barracuda the “Savage GT”. The company’s marketing materials list the following Savage GT packages upgrades: wire wheels, lake pipes, a fiberglass trunk lid with molded in spoiler, a modified grille, integrated roll bar and special badging. The Savage GT could be ordered with a modified 340, 383, or 440 Chrysler engine.

Only a small number of Savage GT’s were built in 1968 and 1969, and an even smaller number seemed to have survived. Searching for pictures of restored examples didn’t turn up much; probably because any restorer would have little luck in finding the many one-off customized components – they simply no longer exist! The first two Savage pictures shown are copies taken from the company’s original marketing brochures. The last picture shows a 1969 Savage that shows up to race at Nostalgic Drag Racing events. Unfortunately, only some of the unique Savage GT components have remained with the car.

#3) Hey, that’s a 1970 Nova… correct?

1970 Nova “Deuce”

Don Yenko recognized the track success and attention that Carol Shelby was receiving from racing enthusiasts in the sixties. However, because he was a GM guy, Yenko set up his own Yenko Sports Cars performance shop and began transplanting big cubic inch engines into popular Chevrolet models such as the Camaro, Chevelle, and Nova.

Eventually the shop just couldn’t complete enough engine swaps to keep up with the public’s demand. Yenko’s solution was to use GMs COPO “Central Office Production Order” program to order a factory installed 427 cubic inch engine as the starting platform for his super cars. Besides the obvious Yenko badging, the total package typically included all the other expected go fast goodies.

A combination of tougher emissions regulations and increasing insurance premiums for big cubic inch vehicles in 1970 influenced the direction Yenko would take with his next high performance offering. Yenko created his version of a “mini muscle car” that could supposedly fly under the radar of insurance companies; helping to avoid high insurance premiums. Using the COPO program again, 1970 Novas were ordered with the same high performance LT1 360 horse power small block engine used in the Z/28. After receiving an attractive appearance treatment, the upgraded Nova was released as the Yenko “Deuce”.

#4) Hey, that’s a 1965 GTO… could I be mistaken?

1965 GTO “Royal Bobcat”

In the sixties a dealership named Royal Pontiac in Michigan was making a name for itself at the drag strips with its modified GTOs. The “Royal Bobcat” was all about super tuning an engine built using all the best performance parts that Pontiac engineering had to offer. Since the package did not include obvious side stripes or decals, to make a positive ID you’d need to check the leading edge of the front fenders to locate the Bobcat emblems.

From a Car Life review written in 1965 - “Car Life magazine tested a 1965 Royal Bobcat GTO with Tri-Power and a four-speed. In stock trim, a GTO ran the quarter in 14.52 @ 96.89 mph. After the Royal Bobcat treatment, it blasted down the strip at 14.06 @ 102.14 mph; that’s nearly a full half-second e.t. reduction. Do the math, and you’ll find that the engine had gained something from 30 to 40hp.”

#5) Hey, now I get it… you’re going to tell me it’s not a 1969 Boss Mustang?

1969 “Super Boss” Mustang

I’m going to tell you that the “Super Boss” started out as a Boss 429 Mustang serial No. KK#1214.

Major mods carried out by well-known performance dealership Tasca Ford in order to create a milestone Mustang worthy of the “Super Boss” title included:

Purchased the seventh Boss 429 Mustang built at the Kar Kraft custom assembly plant in Brighton, Michigan.Replaced the 429 Cobra Jet with an all-aluminum 494 cubic inch Can-Am race engine.Finished in a killer multi-hued paint scheme from the mind of famous designer Larry Shinoda.

There are reports from the day that Tasca offered a $1,000 prize to anyone able to outrun the Super Boss at the drag strip. Good luck with that challenge!

Cautionary note – beware of cars with a loose nut behind the wheel!

See yah- Diamond Don

PHOTOS:
[HotRod.com]
[KimballStock.com]
[SuperChevy.com]
[Mecum.com]
[TheMustangSource.com]

Tagged as: Diamond Don, Muscle Cars

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