I took this shot of Brittany on the balcony of our room at the Chelsea Hotel during a recent trip to NYC. It was a great place to go to get creatively inspired. After spending a day at the MoMA and the International Center for Photography, I couldn't help but take a few shots of her at the end of a day. I actually lit her with a bunch of hotel room lamps stacked on a table inside the window with their shades removed. (I didn't bring any lighting equipment with me and it was too impatient to wait another day to rent any) The Hotel staff where so accommodating by turning on the hotel sign an hour early for us. We only had a window of about 15 minutes where the sky was perfect and this shot was one of my favorites out of the bunch.

This portrait I took of my grandmother when she came out to Nova Scotia for a visit. I really wanted to capture more than just an image of her, also portray her calm beautiful presence and strength that is her. Of all of the portraits I've taken, these are among my favorite.

This unexpected portrait came out of an editorial assignment I shot for Lifestyle magazine with fellow photographer, and good friend Andrew Chow. The two of us where originally sent up to document a small family run fish smokehouse in rural Nova Scotia that had recently gained international notoriety. The client was more interested in photographs that documented the process. However, at the end of the day when we where getting ready to pull away, I had to make Chow stop the car so I could run in and grab one last shot. Just lit it with ambient and a diffused a Canon hand held flash through a small soft box. This portrait was the outcome.

When I was approached to shoot the main image for the 30th Atlantic Film Festival I was excited at the opportunity to work on a campaign that not only highlighted uniquely maritime environments, but also inserted them into a clever concept and delivery that juxtaposed them with stereotypes of the "glam" film industry.

Although the copy and design is still being applied, here is the photography with the first draft copy in place. These shots where taken at 3 different beaches in Nova Scotia. The "Red Carpet" Shot is actually a composite shot, with the boardwalk photographed at Conrad's Beach and the limousine and some of the beach grass photographed a few days later at Martinique beach. The "Walk of Fame" Shot was taken just outside of Lawrencetown and the "Star Spotting" shot was taken at dusk at Martinique. (They are probably going to run a version I shot from the back of the chairs. I just happen to like this one better.)

I owe a lot of thanks to assistant John McKenzie for dragging so much heavy gear across beaches that I'm sure seemed a lot longer with that much heavy stuff, the models Tracey Crabtree and Adam Reid who did the next to impossible by holding poses while under attack by clouds of mosquitoes, Jim Rogers for arranging vehicles and transportation, David Muir for supplying the star fish, Ann Douglass for providing vintage beach chairs and Signature Limousine for giving us a stretch and providing us with an amazing driver who went far above and beyond the call of duty by doubling as an assistant when we where short a pair of hands.

This week I got the opportunity to photograph Graphic Designer and Guitarist Andy Wood. I really enjoyed creating a portrait that juxtaposed a relaxed and casual Andy against the very regal and formal setting of the Georgian Lounge at the Lord Nelson Hotel. We did a total of four different set ups in just under three hours and of those four, these two were the shots I thought were the strongest. I was grateful to have the very capable hands of my assistant Kelci to help set up, tear down and move equipment four times in under three hours to get the shots I wanted in the tight time frame I was working with.

I love film noir. Detective stories and murder mysteries. The idea for this shoot had been brewing in my head for a while. When I was finally able to make it a reality I wanted it to be a little different. I wanted to tell story that really engages the viewer and makes them draw their own conclusions as to wheat was going on. One assumes something sinister has taken place but not once do you see a body, a weapon or even any reference to violence. Who knows what happened? I leave that up to you, the viewer.

As I mentioned, I’m a big fan of vintage film noir and I really wanted to capture that look. But I also really wanted to challenge myself and avoid using highly customized props and wardrobe. One of my specific goals in project was to use current, new, easily available and common things but just use the right combination of them to achieve uniquely and recognizably different look. It took a lot of attention to detail and looking at regular things differently but it was a challenge I am confident to say I met!

The actual shoot was a blast. I was really fortunate enough to have put together a great team for the shoot. Everyone worked together really well to produce a stunning final product. One that I am very proud of. I have every intention of continuing the story with another photoshoot. Stay tuned for part 2!

PS: If you want to see some video footage of the shoot check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSXTIOPaBZ0

Editorial Portrait

This week photographed Lawrence Pickrem, one of the co-founders of the Halifax Youth Co-alition and Youthscapes. It was a relatively short shoot. It only lasted about an hour. The goal was for a simple portrait of just him. Something not cluttered with complexities but zeroing in on the individual himself. These shots are a great example of how wardrobe can be quite crucial to a photos completion. We wanted to communicate a degree of formality and seriousness but at the same time, Lawrence is a young fairly relaxed and easy going guy and we really wanted to communicate that as well. We took a look at a couple of different wardrobe scenarios; a couple of suits and some brighter coloured ties and such. But Suits almost gave the impression of a young guy trying too hard to look sophisticated. I suggested how about a formal dark suit and black tie but getting rid of the blazer and loosening the tie. This allowed us the chance to keep an element of seriousness and formality in a relaxed youthful looking portrait.