MODTEC

Always nice to see the local guys going well. Modtec produce modular monitor arms and office equipment from their premises just down the road in Silverdale and have even managed to buck the international trend by exporting to China. Helps that their product is top notch. We recently photographed and produced a short video of one of their products. Photo below - here's the video.

BOATING NZ

Always nice to see your work in the news stands. This shoot was done a few weeks ago. We had two choppers in the air to do this. One to land on the boat, and the other to photograph from. We then landed on Waiheke Island, I swapped choppers, then landed on the boat to the onboard shots. What a way to travel!

CON THODE

Some jobs you drop everything to do. One such job recently was the opportunity to photograph Con Thode for Boating New Zealand Magazine. Con who recently celebrated his 100^th birthday was a WWII submarine captain.

It was an absolute privilege to hear his first hand accounts of adventures, trials, and tribulations from WWII. A privilege that in a few short years will be unavailable to anyone, anywhere in the world.  

I’m glad I had the opportunity to hear Con’s stories but also saddened that these great men who risked all for later generations are becoming an increasingly rare breed.

After listening to Con for two hours, I realised we are not the men we once were. 

MARILYN

Well not quite but a good show all the same at a corporate event shot for Mondo Travel last weekend.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT NZ

I was recently doing some work out on Rangitoto Island - what a neat place, heaps of history and so much more to it than a walk to the summit. What started out as a personal project had been picked up by an editorial client and I'd spent a day shooting the old historic baches. I'd got some really nice stuff of the baches but was struggling to get inside one for a couple of shots just to round out the piece. So on my way out there on the 7.30am ferry for my last bit of shooting I got talking to few guys who were also going to Rangi. It turned out Lynn and his mates were heading out to do a bit of roofing work on Lynn's bach. Lynn had been going to Rangi for over 60 years and was pretty passionate about the place. As soon as I told him I was out there doing some photography work he invited me into his bach to take some shots inside. Not only that he put the jug on and brewed a hot coffee, brought out the chocolate biscuits, and filled me in on some of the history of the island. Sometimes its easy to forget how friendly Kiwis can be to a random stranger.

THE LONG WAY HOME FROM KOREA

Last week I was in Korea covering an event for a Korean client. All went well until the trip home when the volcanic ash cloud from Chile threw a spanner in the works. What was supposed to be a three hour transfer in Sydney turned into a 14 hour sit-on-my-arse-athon. Thank god for Air New Zealand. I was fortunate enough to get one of the last remaining seats on that day with Air New Zealand. I was more than happy to ditch my Qantas ticket and fork out an extra $300 for the ticket and get home to see my family.
As for Korea, I am always amazed at the amount of haze in the atmosphere. Although it is not too spectacular to look at it does have the advantage of acting like a giant softbox in the sky diffusing light. The accommodation in Korea is at a place called Rolling Hills which is a very plush resort but it is not open to the general public. It is the resort built by Hyundai to cater to international staff and clients only. It is probably as big, if not bigger, than any commercial resort in NZ. Kind of makes you realise how small our economy is in NZ. At least we have clear skies though - even if it full of volcanic ash.

SOCIAL MEDIA PART II

Well I'm almost two weeks into my new found awareness of social media and I have to admit I don't think I'm much further ahead than when I started. Facebook - now if someone had to design a complex, complicated, system, this is it. Obviously whoever put this piece of work together hadn't heard of the KISS (keep it simple stupid) theory. More options aren't always a good thing! Maybe I'm stupid or even worse I'm slipping into the dreaded category of silly old fart out of touch with technology. I don't think it's the latter because most things I can work out eventually (and I'm not that old!). Maybe being a bloke doesn't help - you know us blokes never read instructions, we just play with stuff until we find out how it works. Or perhaps its my underlying resentment of being forced to follow the masses - to do and think like everyone else. I feel like a sheep! Whatever the reason I'm struggling with Facebook.
Now on to Twitter. This one seems a bit easier to master. Easier to follow and I like the way a post is only a few words long. Short and sweet, one sentence and its done. I like that! It seems much less time consuming. I also like the way I can find some really interesting and informative stuff by following another user. Much more than Facebook.
My only issue with Twitter is how the hell do you make people follow you. How do you put it out there.
Anyway that's all of my social-media challenged musings for now. I'll keep you posted. Or just follow my progress on twitter.

SOCIAL MEDIA

To be perfectly honest I am more Flinestone than Facebook. The whole social media thing hasn't really grabbed me mainly because I don't really need to know what people are doing every minute of the day. Call me old-school but I've resisted up until now. If I want to talk to a friend I'll pick up the phone. It's more personal than doing it on a keyboard. I fear the art of conversation could be on its way out! And who really has 1,500 mates - come on, none of us do. I know - I sound like a cranky old man!
So what changed? Well after taking a look at it I can see the merits of it from a business perspective. I think if a business ignores social media they are doing so at their peril. Although I wasn't a huge fan of social media many of my clients, acquaintances, and friends are and by ignoring social media I think you risk losing touch with that important business foundation. So here I am all Facebooked and Twittered up. Although I'm not yet prolific or even proficient I've taken the step to the Facebook generation. Here's my Facebook page and my Twitter page. Hope you enjoy the posts. If you do then sign up as a friend or follower. I wont explain how to do that because you are probably a hell of a lot more proficient at it then I am. Enjoy. Oh, and I'll get a photo up soon - promise.

NEW OFFICE

A while ago we built ourselves a new office complete with a view out to Kawau Island, a deck, and a custom layout. We love it!! Here's a couple of pics.

WINE NZ

Every couple of months I get to do a cover shot for Wine NZ Magazine. Myself, Martin Gillion, the publisher, and Anna Mooney, the designer, normally get together to take the shot at a location and the shoot is normally done over an hour or two and a glass or two. For this cover Martin wanted something that reflected the autumn season. Some leaves, lighting, wine, and a glass, and here's the result.

VIRBAC PAPREC 3 TIME LAPSE VIDEO

Last year, I was commissioned to document the construction of Virbac Paprec 3 - a 60 foot racing yacht for a French sailing team. The boat was built at Cookson Boats in Auckland and cameras were set up in the factory for almost the entire 10 month build time to capture a time-lapse of the construction.

As well as the video we also produced a book for the Virbac Paprec team which I will detail in another post.
Skipper Jean-Pierre Dick is currently leading the Barcelona World Race with crew member Loick Peyron. They've just rounded Cape Horn and heading back up to the Atlantic to the finish in Barcelona.

A NEW BLOG

Welcome to this, my new blog where I will keep visitors to the site updated with news and happenings. As well as this blog I will be sending a news update to clients every once and a while. The last year has been hectic with several overseas assignments, a book, and little bit of video too. On top of that we had a new addition to the family when Tiia Cooke was born 3 weeks early last April. Then there was new office we finished in July. Life certainly hasn't been boring!