I’ve been invited to shoot an Atom Hockey tournament this weekend, and will be doing so at Glacier Gardens in Comox from Thursday to Sunday.  My booth has grown, equipped now with 5 laptops (4 for viewing) and a printer to handle receipts for on-site orders.  I’ve got two ladies working the booth for this event while I focus my energies on capturing the images that people are looking for (I hope!).  While hockey is somewhat new to me, sport is not, and from what I’m told Atom is a good place to start as most of the young players are not anywhere near as quick as a well trained barrel horse.  Still, with the lighting in the arena, I’m sure I’ll challenge my equipment and my skills to keep the images sharp and capture the peak moment of the action when it happens. 

I’m quite looking forward to this weekend, as it will be a good endurance test for the systems as well as for the photographer, and will help me work all of the bugs and kinks out of after the long winter shutdown.  It’s also a great venue and offers a larger crowd than most of the events I’ve worked in the past, so a good chance to confirm that workflow and process will keep up with the demand.  I’m quite sure that things will work out though, and have to say that the staff of Glacier Gardens and organizers from the Comox Valley Minor Hockey Association have been fantastic to work with so far, so I’m expecting things to go smoothly.

If you’re in the area of Glacier Gardens this weekend, be sure to stop in even if just to say hi and see the system setup – just inside the main entrance.  We’d love to see some familiar and some new faces drop by the booth.  Keep in mind that I’ll be in the rink during most of the games, but I’ll be out at the booth during the between game and lunch breaks.

Hope to see you out there!

I don’t know how many of you practice the art of Feng Shui in business, or even know what Feng Shui really is.  An associate of mine through the Comox Valley Home Based Business Association, Terri Perrin of Fine Art of Intention lists the following definitions of Feng Shui on her website:

• Clearing Clutter,
• Arranging your Environment,
• Placing Symbolic Items, and
• Intention to Create Change.

Read on for more… Read the rest of this entry »

It’s rather amazing how much work is involved in changing the fundamental tone and look of an entire business.  Cards, website, email signatures, online profiles, car signs, and so many other elements all need to be remembered, updated or in some cases, completely rebuilt.  My main site is almost completely rebuilt, and while there are some things that look familiar, there are quite a few changes – more than just the colors – but the entire navigation and presentation system has been re-written in the past 3 days.  It’s a labour of Love for sure, but one that I feel very good about and one that I think will have a positive impact as I reach out to more professional markets.  The new modern look and quick response navigation should be a good base to work with for this year, and perhaps longer.  Feedback has been, for the most part, very positive and while I know that some quite liked the old look for its dark - almost moody – impression, the new light look is easy on the eyes and easier to read the content.  Now…  the hard part coming up is the re-wordings of some of the content to provide for a quick and easy way to ensure that the message is clearly delivered in as few words as possible.  No easy task itself – but worthy of some time next week.  This weekend is my first full Wedding of 2010 and I’m in preparation mode now charging, cleaning, testing and packing to be ready for whatever comes my way while I’m more than 120 KMs from home base.  But they are a fun and good looking couple so there should be some killer shots to show off when I get back and get through the first cut.  I’ve also heard from a couple of models from the past that have great looks – and great ideas – so stay tuned as we head into March with a wave of new activity on both the main site and here on the blog.

Cheers!

One of the hardest things to do with any business is to find the right look – that something different – that something that will stick in the minds of all who see it – and something that states clearly and easily who you are.  I’ve had a lot of feedback – mostly positive – about the image I’ve been using, but last night I had a sudden inspiration for a new look.  The colors are the same, but through inversion, the theme is brighter.  The image is direct and immediate.  Unlike the one I’ve been using that I’m sure you’ll be struggling to remember already.  And some didn’t even see what it was.  And… I need new business cards anyway, so I thought I’d give it a go.  Check the new branding here on the blog, as well as the main site of course at http://njw.ca.

And as always – let me know what you think!  Meanwhile, join my RSS feed and stay up to date with the latest changes.

My friend and Muse, Heather, has been hounding me at every glimpse of sunlight to get out of the office and out to ‘play’ to create some new images for both of our development.  Yesterday, we finally had the perfect combination of time, weather and location and Heather even brought a new young lady to join in on the fun at the graveyard.

With the perfect low February sun still sitting above the mountains, and a large gold reflector to throw some light back, this set is done entirely with natural light.  It’s really the first time that I’ve gone totally natural in a shot of this style, as I’ve used speed lights to fill back-lit scenes in the past, but I have to call the resulting images some of my personal best – and perhaps even close to personal favorites.  That’s a tough call after as many images as I’ve shot, but these are just simply that good.  At least in my mind.  You’re welcomed, of course, to comment to the contrary if you are so inclined.  I’d love to know what you think.

Meanwhile, I present my newest model-in-training – the delightful, bright, beautiful and easy to work with Alee and of course my dear friend and creative fountain Heather – in the graveyard – in the sun – and heading into my portfolios!

Enjoy!

Living where I do, I hear the jets all the time.  It’s great to be so close to the action when they’re around, but even better to get a nice day and get the chance to actually SEE them in action.  Today, for the first time in what seems like months, we had the combination of good weather, blue skies, reasonable warmth, location and timing to see these wonders of modern aviation doing some flying and get my camera down there to capture just a few shots of the action.  Here for your pleasure are 3 of my personal favorites from the outing…  CF-18s at CFB Comox.  Happy Valentine’s Day!