Haunting Photo Increases Awareness About Illegal Ivory Poaching

Famous basketball player Yao Ming teamed up with photographer Kristian Schmidt to raise awareness of the threats facing rhinos and elephants as a result of demand for ivory and rhino horn, particularly in China. With this haunting and breathtaking image, they are hoping to reduce the demand on illegal poaching and ivory sales.

Yao Ming stands over the body of a poached elephant in Namunyak, Northern Kenya

And indeed it may be working, this image has already gone viral and been seen hundreds of thousands of people.

Photoshopping armpit

I got hired to retouch a photo of a model today.  The client wanted me to clean up the weird folds of the armpit so I played around with the liquify tool for a bit and this is what I got.  How did I do?

Quickie photo shoot with Six Side Die

Today, I found an old photo I took of Bryan Crouch on my harddrive when he was still the frontman for Hail The Villain.  Bryan left the band after having a vocal haemorrhage.  After a year off, he is now heading up his newest band Six Side Die that had their debut gig at Lee's Palace in Toronto on June 8, 2012.  Needless to say, they are definitely getting a lot of positive support from fans with adrenaline inducing songs like Boom! and My Enemy.

Before their gig at Lee's, I did a quickie photo shoot with Six Side Die during an interview for FridaeTV.  We didn't have much time to get the photo so I quickly set my camera on a tripod and threw my Canon 580X II speedlight onto a stand bouncing it into an umbrella.  Triggered to fire with radio slaves,  it gave me a nice light coming from over my left shoulder.  I popped off about ten shots of the guys and then took some long exposure photos when they were not in my framing to capture the lights and background that weren't exposed in my flash shots.  In post, I Photoshopped the plain background and the band into one image.  Then I added a stock photo of a UFO, painted highlights onto the shoulders of the band so it looked like the UFO was flashing a beam from behind them and added a little mist and shadow around their feet.   I also added some stock photos of clouds to the sky to give it more of an ominous feeling.  This wasn't an easy editing job but it was fun fooling around in CS4 and the final image looks pretty cool for an unplanned shoot.  It just goes to show, you don't always need to have it all planned out ahead.  Sometimes you can grab the basics of what you need and then let creativity do the rest.

Cupcakes!!!!

Hey y'all!  Here's a sneak peek from my recent shoot with an amazing new company called Lil Chick Cupcakes.  Owned by Danijela Pulcini, she adds a lot of love to her edible creations.  She has made cupcakes with my photos of bands printed right into the frosting, created delicate lingerie inspired decorations for a boudoir shoot and hand crafted exotic flowers to adorn her baked goodies.  Since launching her company one year ago, she has sponsored charity events, cd release parties, and other events helping her business grow incredibly with amazing reviews.  I absolutely love this girl and her passion for baking.

For our shoot we came up with a tea party theme.  We brought in a wide variety of tea cups, books, flowers, pearls and three different kinds of tea pots.  Our model is the very lovely, Elizabeth "Eve" Horodnyk whom I have worked with on a few other photo shoots.  She never ceases to amaze me with her animated facial expressions and body language.  A stickler for perfection, she will even correct her posing suggesting better ways to engage with the product.  Since she has been studying makeup artistry, Elizabeth did her own hair and makeup for the shoot and even styled the wardrobe.  I recommend her to all my photographer friends looking for a fun, easy going model that can double as a creative director, stylist, photo assistant and retoucher.   She's a budding photographer and super cool girl that I am honoured to call my friend.  Check out more of her work here.

Madeleine Twyman

Madeleine Twyman dropped by the studio when she was back in Toronto.  Now living in New York, Madelaine’s unconventional outlook and experiences deliver her captivating blend of singing, rapping and dancing with a rebellious and empowering in your face live show which came through in our recent photo shoot.  I absolutely love this girl.  We had such an amazing time filled with lots of laughs, hugs and a few tears of happiness.  Normally I would worry if my subject started crying in the middle of a shoot but I was put at ease when Madeleine followed the tears by saying "you captured my very essence, my soul, I love it...".  There's nothing more rewarding than making my subject comfortable, confident and happy with their images.  I can't wait to work with Madeleine again sometime.  She was incredible.


Check out her new single “Body Parts”, where Madelaine expresses her view on the influx of plastic surgery in today’s society through a message that accredits and encourages women to cultivate their beauty from the inside out.

D.I.Y. Lightspere for only $0.20

Some people have noticed when I'm taking snapshots at a dark event that I have a very different method of diffusing the light from my speedlight. I created my cheap diffuser after I found this DIY project on Instructables.com a couple years ago.  I have been happily taking well lit portraits ever since.  Although similar to the Gary Fong Lightsphere (looks like a clear yogurt container that will run you about $50CDN), this amazing alternative will only cost you $0.20 per diffuser.  The other bonus is how much more compact it is than the Fong.  Check out detailed instructions on how to make your own Lightspere here:  DIY Gary Fong Lightsphere

Breached Stickers!

Yes!!  I love stickers....what kid of the 80's doesn't love stickers?  Well, now my photo is on one and with how busy these guys have been, we're sure to see stickers plastered on bathroom walls from Toronto all the way to Sudbury.   

"Breached resemble the likes of Alexisonfire, Emery, and Incubus, with their tight harmonies and nail-hitting screams atop overdriven guitars and intricate tempos." Check out their EP here

My team and I didn't have much time to shoot this so everyone stepped up and did their part.  We didn't have access to a hospital so we staged a cafeteria.  The model is my good friend, Kailey McKellar simply laying on a table with a sheet over her thighs that hid her rolled up yoga pants.  The guys had all done their homework and brought props including Gatorade for the syringe.  I backlit the glass wall with some blue gels to give the background an cold hygienic hospital vibe and then I Photoshopped the surgical lights in.  Voila!  Hospital theme and a really memorable day with the coolest bunch of rockers ever!

We're Sponsoring Fashion As Art Exposed Fundraiser

I'm so excited to announce that we are sponsoring a fundraising event in support of the McMichael Art Collection.  My director, Shawn Haynes and our film crew will be capturing the entire night.  This is near and dear to my heart because I'm related to Frank Carmichael of the Group of Seven artists.  His work is displayed at the gallery.  Yup, that's right.  The artistic bug runs in the family.

On Saturday, June 16, 2012, Fashion as Art: Exposed! will celebrate the fusion of art and fashion with seven of Canada’s leading fashion designers, artists, and celebrities, including a private viewing of the cutting edge exhibition Fashionality: Dress and Identity in Contemporary Canadian Art with noted curator and fashion theorist, Julia Pine.

Hosted by well-known fashion personality Jeanne Beker, this exclusive event will be laced with thought-provoking art and the latest in haute couture. Fashionistas and art lovers alike will be treated to a glamorous evening filled with innovative design, gourmet cuisine and fabulous music.

 Check out all the details and grab your tickets here:  Fashion As Art Exposed

Head shots with Miguel

Miguel just got signed to the Casting Factory in Toronto and I had the pleasure of taking his first head shots.  Miguel and I snapped these photos around the neighbourhood while talking about the new Batman video game and his younger siblings.  I love working with young talent.

Duch Dillinger

I had a great shoot with Duch Dillinger aka The Duchess aka Dilly.  I remember when the first moment this aspiring hip-hop artist walked into the studio.  As soon as I saw her bright red hair with blond highlights, I knew this gal was going to be a blast to work with.  Eden B., from So You Think You Can Dance Canada, did all the hair and makeup.  Duch brought a big bag of fun swag for us to go through and select some looks.  This has got to be one of my favourite parts of a shoot....the wardrobe.  Dilly had this killer t-shirt she had cut up (pictured in black and white above) and so many fun accessories (some of which she made herself).  I love when my subjects can express their fun sense of fashion and are willing to try anything.  My shoot with Duch reminded me of when my girlfriends and I would give each other makeovers and snap photos.  Very easy going and Duch is not shy in front of the camera.  She knows how to have a great time and still take direction to get the shot.  Duch Dillinger is launching her new website very soon.  Check it out here.

Head shots with singer Liz Loughrey

I had the pleasure of shooting some head shots with the very lovely Miss Liz Loughrey.  If you don't know this incredible 17 year old singer from Oakville yet, rest assured you will soon.  She has performed with Mariana's Trench and her stellar cover of 'Boyfriend' recently placed her in the top 5 finalists of Ryan Seacrest's "Bieber-Off".  With a career on the rise, Liz Loughrey is gaining well-deserved recognition and establishing herself as a professional musician with true talent, primed to move into the spotlight. Check out her music at www.LizLoughrey.com