My Exposed! photo newsletter went out late last night.
If you like motion and Superman read the photo newsletter! We cover basic motion principles (in pictures) and some more advanced ideas:
Blog contest is coming up in the next couple of days. Prize is from ChelseaGallery.ca.
Stay tuned,
Harry
This week:
On the weekend I went to an awards and end of season banquet for XCOttawa. I provide the elite XC ski team with photos every year: 
The team is a small powerhouse of skiers lead by coach, John Suuronen, who, by chance, coached me many, many winters ago! Their site, XCOttawa, is full of ski info!
Some highlights:
Karl Saidla, team president, handing out awards:
Megan McTavish thanking coach John Suuronen for his hard work:
Coach John Suuronen showing off his smile:
The snow will return!
H
Last week I facilitated the Working Creatives Network Group for people working primarily in a creative field. I started the group as many of us work without much interaction with others in the field. The group encompasses over 100 photographers, illustrators, designers, writers, film & video producers with an eclectic mix of talents coming to sessions. Meetings usually bring 10-25 creatives to share ideas.
The last session featured Claudia Salguero - photographer and digital painter. Claudia uses Corel Painter to produce fine art and portraits. She is a Master Painter and is holding a Corel Painter Workshop at the end of May.
H
I like going fast.
I like making other people look like they’re going fast, too.
The picture above was shot on trails in Gatineau Park using techniques of motion I will be discussing in next week’s Exposed! newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter at the top, right of this page.
I will be covering these motion techniques in my upcoming bike race photo workshop.
Yeah, it’s fun!
Ok, rumour first.
Nikon is rumoured to be getting ready to release the new D3x - a full frame 24.4 megapixel camera. This would knock the socks off almost any other DSLR on the market and should have Canon a little nervous. For quite some time Canon has been top of the DSLR pile.
So what?
At 24.4 rumoured full frame megapixels this sensor will give you a reasonably big file. If you need a BIG (as opposed to plain big) film is still a very good option. I have been approached by clients with BIG needs knowing I still shoot a lot of film. The fabled D3x may make BIG a closer reality with DSLR cameras.
The potential D3x is starting to get my attention.
I keep a digital camera in my stable for editorial and speedy needs but film still does well for my stock and gallery needs. Claims that digital is cheaper than film are fewer now as people recognize the high cost and quick depreciation of digital cameras and necessary equipment compared to film bodies. The D3x may depreciate over a longer (for the industry) useful timeline because of the relatively big file size. My scanner still wins for quality at the BIG sizes. So the D3x rumours have my attention.
The gossip:
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Truth
Want to try some pro or semi pro gear? Headshots Rentals is offering students on my Bike Race Photo Workshop a chance to borrow some pro or semi pro available rental equipment as part of this course! This is an amazing chance to try some high end gear for free within this practical photo session!
Much less exciting… I have a D100 for sale. I have just upgraded to a bigger digital camera for my editorial and speed needing clients. It’ll be a cheap entry to digital for someone. Interested? Let me know.
Truth and Rumours. Very fun.
H
As a thanks to my blog readers I will be posting a quiz question on this blog once a month - The first correct answer will receive a prize from ChelseaGallery.ca Stay tuned - the first quiz will be within the next two weeks.
Lake Superior at ChelseaGallery.ca:
The story - Years ago I drove across Canada many, many times.
One of the most magical areas for me was the north shore of Lake Superior. It has been immortalized by ancient native pictographs, Gordon Lightfoot’s eerie ballad “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”,
Bill Mason’s canoe films and art - and not to be missed - Group of Seven’s stunning portrayal of Lake Sueprior.
The north shore of Lake Superior has tugged at me to pay a proper visit. And that meant in a canoe with supplies for 10 days. I made my chance one summer. We drove to the small town of Wawa and set off on our adventure. It is stunning, beautiful, merciless… and tugging at me to make another trip soon.
This ChelseaGallery.ca photo glorifies the expansive beauty of this, the largest freshwater lake in the world. It is magnificent!
Researching some new ideas for stock was on the agenda recently. My girlfriend bought a scooter last summer and loves it!
We went on an exploratory creative ride with her scooter and my teeny Nikon P50 ‘point and shoot’ to test a few scooter ideas for my stock photo work - likely for my main agency, AGEFotostock. The scooter concept went well.
I was a little frustrated with a couple of limitations of the point and shoot - ie a short & frustrating delay. It IS a consumer based P&S that I do not know well… I was asking a lot - like asking a SMART car to perform like a Porsche 911.
The session gave me enough info to shoot the work properly with an appropriate camera and more attention to the set - clothes, etc.
This is a great part of my work - very fun for Harry!
Scott was my assistant for two weeks as he completed his work placement portion of his Algonquin College photo program. He posted many of my blog entries while he worked with me.
Scott is now in Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, a windsurfing mecca. He is combining his love of windsurfing with his photo skills to launch his photo career. A good idea, as people have a better chance at success pursuing those things they love! Of course, good business sense and good timing are needed to achieve your goals, too!
While Scott was here he most wanted to learn about the business side of photography and he helped prepare my Creative Business Seminar. He already has good photo and post processing skills!
Read Scott’s blog to learn about his new business adventure and windsurfing tales. He has an amazing summer scheduled following the wind around the world.
Good luck Scott! I’ll be following your travels to success.
Creative Fundamentals photo student, Christine Melenhorst of Love Bunny Photography took some fun pictures on the course, posted below!
There are also two student blogs from that course that show comments about their course experiences and some great pictures!:
Amy’s Insight Photo Blog - orchids and course review.
Love Bunny Blog - babies, and photography views.
Harry reviewing speeding mountain bike motion exercise:
Explaining the idea of full frame pictures before speeding mountain bike focus exercise:
Thanks Amy, Christine and all my students. You make my teaching worthwhile!
Harry
I had one of my Creative Fundamentals groups on the practical part of their course this weekend. In the spring I choose a spot where there are often whitewater paddlers to photograph. Sometimes this course coincides with the Level Six Capital Cup. It’s a fun whitewater kayak and canoe rodeo event put on by Stig and Tyler at Level Six.
The course went well and the festival atmosphere added to the fun for my students! Thanks Level Six!
Stig and Tyler paddled on the Canadian National Team as they started their business. Here is Stig at Ottawa’s downtown Pumphouse slalom paddling site - the site has just undergone major renovations:
Have fun,
H