There’s something about Spring . . . a certain enchantment that draws us outdoors into the balmy air and freshly dappled sunlight, in our case often with cameras in hand. Roses make a timeless subject, apart from being such an exquisite source of inspiration and tranquility. I’ve selected three simple shots of single blooms to share a few pointers for those of you who are interested in playing a bit. Continue reading “How to Photograph Flowers”
As headline sponsors of our Rock ’n Ride 4 Rhino project, Yamaha SA invited us to participate at the 2013 AMiD (Association of Motorcycle Importers and Distributors) Motorcycle Lifestyle Show. What a blast! It was great to see South Africa’s top racing talent (some of whom are pictured above, with other hot talent ;-)) and hear what they had to say about their careers on superbikes, motocross and enduro bikes. Yamaha set the bar with a stunning stand, which Dave had a ball filming, as you can see:
It’s worth making the effort to position yourself for the best shot, as well as adding in creative angles and techniques. Dave was also well prepared to tackle the challenging sound and lighting conditions, using manual settings on our Canon XF300 video camera to optimise these. He toured the expo spotlighting some of the action, including more, pretty promo girls of course:
While he worked on staying focussed, or so I choose to believe 🙂 I handled the event photography, using our Nikon D3 camera body and two lenses that covered the zoom requirements, namely a Nikkor 28-70mm F2.8 and Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8, along with Nikon’s Speedlight SB-910. Here are links to our Facebook albums, featuring more images from the show: AMiD Expo and AMID Expo.
There’s such pleasure in strong photography and videography teamwork, as well as tremendous added value for the client. It plays out in powerful alchemy that improves final results immeasurably. We’re well aware of how fortunate we are to share the passion for both disciplines. If you’re aspiring to either one, we definitely suggest developing a relationship with someone who’s pursuing the other – opening up the opportunity for you to learn and share ideas, along with mutual work referrals.
To end on a high note, here’s the vibrant video that Dave created for Yamaha. Enjoy!
We’re delighted to share news of our joint Rock ’n Ride 4 Rhino project, which is an epic conservation, community and communications project entailing a 15,000+ km motorcycle adventure around Southern Africa from April – Sep 2013. It has been conceived by Jason Hartman, 2009 SA Idol and founding director of Men of the Trees, and our own Dave Estment, ex-professional superbike racer and professional wildlife photographer and videographer – both passionate bikers and conservationists – in partnership with Damien Mander, former Australian Army Special Operations sniper and founding director of the International Anti-Poaching Foundation.
The purpose is to educate and inform, mobilize united action and raise funds for the extensive equipment, manpower and resources required to effectively combat the poaching scourge that is threatening our wildlife and our planet, to support community upliftment specifically in areas impacted by poaching and to provide a powerful communications mechanism via video, still images and internet platforms. We’re half way through the tour now and what a phenomenal experience it has been. Heartfelt thank you to each and every student, teacher, supporter, sponsor, biker and friend who has made this success possible!
Special mention to Yamaha SA for sponsoring Jason’s Road Warrior cruiser and Dave’s Super Tenere adventure bike, pictured above. You may recognise this photo of the guys at dawn from some of our billboards around Jo’burg – with sincere thanks to our sponsors at Primedia Outdoor. Huge thanks also to Unitrans VW and their exceptional Unite Against Poaching initiative for the two trusty Amarok double cabs that are carrying our team around the country. Here they are at the beautiful Olive Grove Guest Farm in Beaufort West, who generously hosted us on our first night:
In addition to all our other sponsors, our heartfelt gratitude goes out to Legacy Hotels & Resorts and City Lodge for their fantastic support. Here we are at the City Lodge hotel in Summerstrand PE:
Schools have formed the backbone of our tour, with the Philanthropy Challenge that we’re sharing with students (52 schools and about 22,000 students so far). It has been humbling and inspiring to experience the vibrant energy of so many young people, coupled with the power of unified purpose. On behalf of our whole team, we are so grateful for all of their invaluable support!