#976 Student Success – Scott in the Photo Studio

Years ago I got a message from Scott Martin who was looking to advance his photo skills and get into some photo work.

His photos at the time were mere snapshots.
After a couple of years on the ProProgram his work blossomed.

© Scott Martin – Liam Lloyd

What happened?
He worked hard.
And he took many of our photography courses lead by accomplished working  photographers like David Trattles (award-winning, veteran social documentary photographer) and Blair Gable (leading Reuters photojournalist.)

There are a lot of photo workshops offered nowadays. Learning from experienced veterans goes a long way, just saying!

Scott now runs ScottMartinVisuals.com and SpotlightOttawa.com. He recently shot Liam Lloyd at our photo studio for a feature.

We’re proud of what he’s accomplished!!
Well done Scott.

Student Success

© Scott Martin – Liam Lloyd

#932 Elmwood School Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa photo studio

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

Last year we hosted the 2012 Elmwood School’s art student’s annual show highlighting their hard work throughout the year. Looking at the work I would not have expected it to be from high school art students!! They consumed all that their art teacher, Heawon Chun, had to offer.

And they are back for another year! Budding artists from Elmwood School invite you to see their work in May at our photo studio – Ottawa Studio Works!

Details:
Vernissage – Friday, May 3rd; 7-9pm
May 3rd-12th, 2013.

Hours:
Wednesday-Friday: 12-6pm.
Saturday, Sunday: 10-4pm.
Monday, Tuesday: Closed.

Ottawa Studio Works
160 Preston St. Ottawa

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa photo studio

2012 Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

The Annual Elmwood Spring Art Show 2013 is a showcase of selected works from the Grade 9-12 programs, presented at Ottawa Studio Works to give the aspiring art students their first experience in the art world.

2012 Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

Heawon Chun at 2012's Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

The standards for the show are high, and the resulting caliber of the works is impressive.

 Among the variety of works, the show includes plaster orbs conveying natural and surreal elements all at once. 

Grade 9 students began with observational studies of nature to compose original designs, which were transposed into plaster using the ‘reductive process’.   In another project, they were challenged to reflect on their inner personal strengths and represent those in symbols, invented or researched, and rendered as a Watercolour Mandala composition.

The show’s works range from diminutive to very large, and include:
• Sculpture
• Painting
• Drawing
• Mixed Media
• Installation  

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa photo studio

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

Using the Mix Media, Installation, grade 10 – 12 students were led through various mark making exercises, and found-object sculpting to free them from conventional and potentially restrictive modes of drawing and sculpture.

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

Elmwood Art Exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works

Older students were opened to an understanding of the relevance and acceptance of mark making as a drawing in the contemporary framework of art.  Student’s experiments fashioned breathtaking drawings and found-object sculptures with their personal artistic signatures.

 The show is open to the public.

Elmwood School Art Exhibition

Elmwood School Art Exhibition

#893 – Ottawa Celebrity and Media Photo Contest to support the Ottawa Food Bank!

We’re very excited!

This winter Ottawa media and celebrities hone their photo skills to participate in a photo contest and exhibition at Ottawa Studio Works with an auction of the artworks to support the Ottawa Food Bank.

There’s a chance for member(s) of the public to participate with the media and celebrities. Keep reading!

Ottawa Food Bank

Ottawa Food Bank photo

How it works:

• Event Launch
Sunday, January 20th, 2013; 10-11:30am
Patrick Gordon Framing
160 Elm Street, Ottawa, Ontario – enter off City Centre Ave.

Everybody is welcome to the launch at Patrick Gordon Framing to:
1. Hear their photo challenge and logistics.
2. Pick up their top photo tips sheet.
3. Learn some photo tips in an on-the-spot photo tutorial to help participants produce the best shots possible.
4. Learn how anybody can enter an online version of the contest

“Why I love Ottawa/Gatineau!”
The 15 celebrity and media participants then have until Monday, January 28th to email us up to three photo entries depicting “Why I love Ottawa/Gatineau!” Their photos will be printed, displayed by our sponsors and auctioned at the final exhibition February 23rd at Ottawa Studio Works.

Enter the Public Contest!
To enter the contest. Visit and like this page:
https://www.facebook.com/OttGatLove
… And click on the camera to submit your photo or vote.

So, GET CLICKING!
Enter often.
Vote.
And tell your friends.

You have until February 16th to enter!!

Also, follow the fun on twitter using the contest’s hashtag – #OttGatLove

Ottawa Media and Celebrity Photo Contest

"Why I love Ottawa/Gatineau" Ottawa Media and Celebrity Photo Contest

• Final Exhibition and Silent Auction
Saturday, February 23rd, 2013; noon to 8:30pm
Ottawa Studio Works
160 Preston St. Ottawa.

Auction
Thanks to our sponsors, participant photos will exhibited at Ottawa Studio Works where they will be auctioned to the highest bidder with proceeds to aid the Ottawa Food Bank. Donations will also be gladly accepted.

People’s Choice Award
The public will have their chance to vote on their favourite photos.

Visit the studio for your chance to meet the media and celebrities throughout the day on Saturday, February 23rd.

Media and Celebrity Participants:
Sandy Sharkey (co-host, Cub and Company, 839 BOB FM)
Stuntman Stu (Majic 100 Radio Host)
Jim Watson   (Ottawa Mayor)
David Chernushenko (Ottawa City Councillor)
Peter Simpson (Arts-editor-at-large for The Ottawa Citizen)
Graham Richardson (CTV News Anchor)
Alan Neal (Host of All In A Day, CBC Radio One)
Ian Black (Climatologist, CBC News Ottawa)
Sarah Brown (Ottawa Magazine Editor)
Jane Corbett (Ottawa Magazine Art Director)
Trevor Greenway (reporter – Low Down to Hull and Back News)
Andrea Tomkins (Blogger)
Peter Tilley (Executive Director – Ottawa Food Bank)

Ottawa Magazine

Ottawa Magazine

About our Sponsors:
Artopix Digital Printer and long time print service provider in Gatineau (Hull).

Artopix

Artopix.ca

Patrick Gordon Framing – Custom framing, repair and installation serving fine artists and art dealers.

Patrick Gordon Framing

PatrickGordonFraming.ca

Dave Andrews – Fine Art Printer. David is humble but provides printing service to high end artists and clients. His prints hang in prestigious galleries across North America.

Dave Andrews

DaveAndrews.ca

Ottawa Studio Works – Ottawa Photo Studio on Preston St. and the home of HarryNowell.com for photo exhibitions, portraits and photo classes.

Ottawa Photo Studio

Ottawa Photo Studio

About the Beneficiary of the Event – Ottawa Food Bank

“The Ottawa Food Bank was founded in the basement of the former police station on Waller Street in 1984. Originally intended to be temporary in nature, the Ottawa Food Bank has grown to become a staple food relief organization in the Region. Today, we support 140 emergency food programs that feed approximately 48,000 people per month – 37 per cent of whom are children.

Our mission: To collect and distribute food to Member Agencies serving people in need in the Ottawa area.

Our vision: That no one goes hungry in the Ottawa area.”

Ottawa Food Bank

Ottawa Food Bank

Come and join the fun! Thanks to all that help to make this work!

#883 Friday Loose Ends on the Photo Blog

There are some loose ends to address on the blog today. 

1. OPEN HOUSE EXTENSION!
We are open on December 9th from 1-4pm

We had a great turnout at the Open House last weekend but some people were disappointed to miss it. It’s not too late – we are opening the studio over the next few weeks to:
• present our work – editorial, commercial and artwork
• show off our photo students work – They have worked hard on our photo classes. It’s time to show off some of their work!
• offer cards, artwork and posters for sale.
We are open on December 9th from 1-4pm 

Open House at the Photo Studio - Ottawa art, gifts

Open House at the Photo Studio - Ottawa art, gifts

2. Pet Photos with Santa!
We are photographing YOUR pets with Santa at the West Quebec SPCA to support their work to help dogs and cats. The SPCA is selling our photos of your pets for a crazy price of $15 (many people pay more – it’s a good cause!)

Come with your pet. Have your photo taken. Donate. Pick up your print as you leave. Easy!!

Pet Photo Details

3. Cube Gallery – Great Big Smalls 
Visit the Cube Gallery’s fun Great Big smalls show – there’s something for everyone and all art budgets! Many artist’s work (including mine!) grace the walls – waiting for you to take it home!

4. DIY Portraits 
Guaranteed Fun!
We have some spots left on Saturday, December 15, 2012. Bring your camera and plug it into our studio. You direct and photograph your family photos in a working Ottawa photo studio! Very fun and a good deal!!

DIY Portrait Details

DIY portraits - Ottawa

DIY portraits - Ottawa - © Lucy, Richard, Catherine!

5. Photo Classes, Safaris and Workshops
Better photos. Our workshops help people make sense of their complicated cameras. Students get better photos and smile more!!

Coming up:
Online Photo Program – Join us for a new photo challenge every month!
• Creative Fundamentals – the building blocks of photography
Natural Light Portraits – better people pictures!
Glass Blowing Photo Safari – a hot photo adventure
Photographing Pro Hockey –  Fast paced Ottawa 67s hockey on Senator’s home ice – realize a dream shooting at ScotiaBank Place!

6. Check Friday’s Photographer Round-up
Be nosy and get the scoop on who’s shooting what in the Ottawa area. Comes out each Friday in the afternoon (or morning!)

#879 Update!: Ottawa Photo Studio Open House – Do it For the Dogs!

Our photo studio is starting to shape-up for this weekend’s Open House.

Visit this Saturday, December 1st;
Noon-4pm
7pm-close
OttawaStudioWorks.com
160 Preston St. (between Somerset and Gladstone)

art exhibition Ottawa

art exhibition Ottawa

What to expect:
Student photos! We’ve been overwhelmed with student and instructor photos. All these photos have come from people either teaching or taking our photo classes. Come and see their successes!
Watershed. See one of the biggest collections we’ve shown from this decade long project.
Dogs. Sadly (or luckily?) there will be no dogs at the Open House but we encourage you to bring some food or $donations for ALL the furry friends at the WestQuebec SPCA.
Artwork. There will be artwork on the wall for viewing, discussing and buying. Something for all budgets.
Greeting cards. We have a growing collection with some new choices this season.
Photo Classes. Find out what’s coming up.
Extended Hours. Due to requests we will open the Open House in the afternoon. Bring the family.

Art Exhibition Ottawa

Art Exhibition Ottawa

Details:
Saturday, December 1st;
Noon-4pm
7pm-close
OttawaStudioWorks.com
160 Preston St. (between Somerset and Gladstone)
More info

Ottawa Art Exhibition

Ottawa Art Exhibition

#835 Thank-you!

A big thank-you to everyone who came to see and learn from the Watershed exhibit in Chelsea this weekend. We had visitors from the municipality of Chelsea, Hendrick Farm, Orleans photo club, Club Polarisé, photo students, neighbours and art buyers. People came from far away to see the largest showing of Watershed work to date.

Thanks to Becky and Reid and Susan for helping us take the show down at the end of the weekend before the rain came!

We will be showing the work by appointment at our photo studio within a week and will be announcing a show at a gallery soon for the fall. Interested in seeing the work? Let us know by email.

We will also be showing the work of Lou Truss at the studio in September – stay tuned for an announcement soon!

Watershed art exhibit

Watershed art exhibit

#725 Open hours at the photo studio

Our studio has been open for business for 15 months. We operate Ottawa Studio Works as a multi use space – photo studio, gallery & exhibition space, client meeting space + classroom for photo workshops. We have never offered store hours. It’s always been by appointment.

But we’ve often seen people peering through the windows, received emails about the artwork and last week while in a meeting one woman came in to inspect the artwork. “I’ve always wanted to come in and see the artwork. May I loo around?!”

Ok…

We get the hint.

Studio Open Hours

We’re introducing some limited “open” hours. We’ll be open for browsing on occasion. This week we’ll be open to the public at the studio.

Hours:

Thursday, December 22nd, from approx 5-8pm.

Tuesday, December 27th, from approx 11:30-2pm.

Location:

160 Preston St. (between Somerset and Gladstone)

Ottawa

Map

  • Come visit.
  • Be nosy.
  • Ask questions.
  • Say ‘hi.’
  • Or, if you’re really leaving things to the last minute, pick up some last minute gifts, big or small.

See you Thursday.

Ottawa Studio Works - photo studio and exhibit space

Ottawa Studio Works - photo studio and exhibit space

#683 Do-It-Yourself Portraits in Ottawa

Shoot your own portraits in a well-equipped photography studio in central Ottawa – Just in time for the holiday season.

That’s right, direct your own shoot, photograph your own family, friends, colleagues, save money, control your photos.

Do-It-Yourself portraits - Ottawa

Do-It-Yourself portraits - Ottawa

All that’s involved is to show up with your people, spend five minutes with a technician plugging in your digital SLR camera. Lights are set up. We give you the correct settings for your camera. All you do is… start shooting.

At the end of the session you go home and download your photos. You own your copyright. You can print, email, copy, upload, edit as you wish.

Location

Ottawa Studio Works 160 Preston St., between Gladstone and Somerset bordering on Little Italy and China Town. The studio is surrounded by wonderful cafés, restaurants, bars and sandwich shops.

Ottawa Studio Works is a working photography studio offering an 11×24 main studio with a support room available for make-up and styling. Bathroom and kitchenette are also available to support your portrait session.

 

Introductory cost for 1 hour session

$125 + HST

Book your session for an hour. The second consecutive hour is $100 + HST.

 

Dates

Check what dates are possible in November and December.

By appointment only – Please contact us to see what is available.

Registration
Contact us by email or by phone at 819-827-9460 for more information and to book your Do-It-Yourself Portrait Session.

Do-it-Yourself Portraits - Ottawa Photo Studio

Do-it-Yourself Portraits - Ottawa Photo Studio

#576 Ottawa Studio Works – Open House: Thank-you!

A BIG, BIG thank-you for making our first open house so memorable!

We had two evenings of festivities and many generous supporters that helped us celebrate our new photography studio based in central Ottawa.

Ottawa Photo Studio open house - © Alain Simard

Ottawa Photo Studio open house - © Alain Simard

People grooved to the tunes of DJ Ron LaVoie and ate the scrumptious Ottawa Studio Works cupcakes baked by past student (and fine baker) Nancy on Friday.

Our designer, Roberta G, below, was very excited to see her design work made into food!

Ottawa Studio Works open house

Ottawa Studio Works open house

On Saturday night the celebration continued with some guests returning for their second night of fun!

By the end of the two night open house we were pretty pleased with the response to our new photo gallery, studio, artwork, photo classroom and community space on Ottawa’s Preston St.

We also raised hundreds of dollars and many pounds of food for the dogs (and all animals in need!) at the Aylmer SPCA and Ottawa Humane Society.

Big thanks to everyone else who helped make it such a success: Nancy and her cupcakes, Ron LaVoie’s DJ service, Bev Webster, Louis Helbig, Roberta, Alain, Caitlin and all the past and future clients, students, supporters, colleagues and friends at HarryNowell.com and OttawaStudioWorks.com.

Biscuit and Tigger say thanks to everyone who helped us help the dogs.