30 Ties and No Occasion

This is the third participant in The Occasion project that I started in Armidale, NSW. I only managed to get through 3 people in my week as artist in residence at NERAM. But I will continue on as I travel around Australia... starting conversations about why we hang on to objects and ideas and fantasies and helping people seize the day and USE their things for a photoshoot.

I loved working with Hadley. He's one of my fantastic new friends in Armidale. Hadley has 30 ties he's been imagining wearing when he becomes a 'professional'. Years later, those ties haven't seen the fluorescent light of a day in the office.

Donating his ties to the occasion project was certainly a PROCESS as much as an outcome, as Hadley explains in the video piece below.

The Occasion: with Hadley from Neram on Vimeo.

Hands up if you want to take part if you're in Perth, Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, Sydney, Armidale or Melbourne! I'll be in those parts over the next two months and I'd love for you to find an object that you are saving for a special occasion and use it in an everyday or unique way.

Got something? Email me.

[current mood] Old Funk & Cherries

An Instagram Love Story

I discovered Instagram a week ago, in a park, in Armidale NSW.

For those that are at least a week behind me, Instagram is a free smart phone ap that takes photos that you can apply a range of funky filters to including colour and focus effects AND geo-locate them and then share them with friends, following any number of people and their beautiful views of life!

As a sometimes-slack-photographer, I love using my phone and clicking to create effects. It's far more versatile than Hipstamatic which you know was my camera of choice in India and the USA!

Looking back through my week of Instagram photos, I realised that they tell the love story that occured concurrently...

I sat outside at the NERAM gallery cafe where I'd get my morning coffee and it was here that I took my first Instagram photo of a man reflecting.

My coffee was delivered by the owner, Rowan, and I showed him my photograph and put it on the cafe's Facebook page. We struck up a friendship consisting of shared nerdiness, beatles lyric quotes and an identical cutlery collection.

It was raining a bit and very chilly for December, so I wandered into the Museum of Print under the gallery.

I played with the letterpress to create a christmas card I imagined giving to friends. I could spend a week down here!

But the next day, Rowan asked me out.
We only have a week but 'why not', we both thought.

So we ate brilliant food together as much as we could.

We drank martinis and margaritas together when we could.
And sometimes apart - him working and me playing with Instagram.

We discovered a tiny rabbit at the cafe and I made a dozen new friends.

I followed him on errands as any time was good time

I picked flowers from his garden for glass jars we bought at the tip shop

I immersed myself in fresh produce and his housewarming party

We didn't get much sleep

I never made any more of those letterpress cards but nothing seemed more right than to rest the one print I did make against a vase of flowers on Rowan's porch.

It's almost Christmas and now my poem makes perfect sense.

So I'm contemplating Armidale and continuing a love story...

[current mood] Artichoke Hearts & The Beatles

The Occasion project: Lauren

Lauren Upjohn for The Occasion project.

I've been given the opportunity to be an artist in residence at NERAM in Armidale, NSW.

Heard of Neram? It's the absolutely under-rated New England Regional Art Museum which has the most impressive collection of Heidelberg era art in a regional area. It also runs education projects as well as touring and selling exhibitions. And not to mention the incredibly delicious and gourmet café I could LIVE IN! Neram Harvest.

As part of my residency I'm doing a project called The Occasion. And I'm setting up this blog for other artists to do residencies!

I've been thinking about this Occasion concept for a while. I think nearly everybody has some object they hang on to for a special occasion. We often buy these objects with a future fantasy story attached to them.

And it sits there, being un-lived. A tangible expression of not being present. Not seizing the day!

For example I bought this 60s swirly dress from an op shop for this fantasy party I might attend where I need to dress retro... 3 years on, no such party has occured. So if I were part of this project, I would pop on this dress and just head out for the day, do my shopping and enjoy the dress in the everyday occasion. I do the same thing with tea cups, stationery and shoes...

My first photographic subject is the horse riding country gal, Lauren Upjohn.

 

Here is the video I made of Lauren's Occasion.

The Occasion: with Lauren from Neram on Vimeo.

[current mood] Croissants & Camomile Tea with New Arty Friends on Squeeky Chairs

Mmmm weddings

I never would have thought I'd be so into being a wedding photographer.
I surprise myself! I just can't wait for more more more!

Can you FEEL this photo?

It's that feeling that feeds me.

When I've just shot a wedding I can't wait to go through the images, edit them and look at them, over and over again.
I guess it's about the beauty, the joy - I love looking at what I've done.
It's not like I'm being egocentric, there is some little bit of magic between me and the final shot that takes a bit of 'me' out of it.

Here are some favourites from Kath & Dave's wedding last weekend.

There is much you can't control, such as the light and weather, the people's love, the natural expressions and the way flags get held, just right.

It makes the world of difference photographing people that are full of feeling.

I need to be the fly on the wall to allow the experience to occur.

As Kath's sister, Janine wrote to me "It's as though you were wearing some sort of cloak of invisibility - I'm looking at them and thinking I don't remember her taking that!"

I need to be aware of angles and a hundred things going on at once. It just occurs in my mind very quickly so I don't miss a thing!

Sometimes you see potential and you just give it a little encouragement.

And other times you choose everything to be perfect but still let the moment breath.

But it's also fun to entirely stage something with clear direction for ultimate effect.

This was the secret 'posh' shot for mum.

With every wedding I do, I carry the experience of all those that went before. When you keep doing something, you just have to get better right?

As Jappalin, the incredible florist for Kath & Dave's wedding said as she gushed down the phone last night, "The future's looking bright!"

[current mood] Whirring computers in Armidale, NSW & Ryvitas for breakfast, lunch and tea.

100 dolls, countless hearts!

 There's that little gap between pressing send on an email with an electronic PDF of a 200 page Indesign document and when it arrives in the mailbox to be unwrapped, revealing itself as a 3 dimensional glossy ex-tree smelling object!

I'm always impatient!

And it was a proud moment when I walked into the kitchen with my latest design in the pulp!

Here are some shots of the 100 Dolls, Countless Hearts book which I photographed and designed. You can see some of the 'making of' in my previous post Old chooks and dolls.

Buy it! It's inspirational, beautiful, just $30 and all proceeds go to orphans in South Africa.

As part of the design 'experience', I received many messages from the Uthando Project coordinator, Georgia Efford. She doesn't spare positive feedback when she's whipping me day and night with the most insane timeframe I've ever experienced! But I love Georgia's enthusiasm and relentlessly positive thinking.

Here are my favourites quotes of Georgia-inspiration that kept me going til the end.

"Jesus and all the apostles would be proud of you little miracle worker"

"I don't know truly how to thank you. Nat, it was way beyond the call of duty... and kept on being like that to the last gasp."

"Nat, you are a little humdinger, as my Dad would say."

"Nat, the book feels as if we are bringing some peace to the world."

"Absolutely thrilling Nat. I truly love your way of putting things together beautifully."

"You have accomplished marvels today Nat! xxx"

"You are most generous and are earning lots of Light Units"

"Hi Nat, the more i think about you juggling all these elements the more I love what you do and the can do attitude. In retrospect, the funniest thing was me confidently saying "Oh Nat we will have the text ready for you when you arrive!!!!!!!!!!" How did you cope with so much unknown all the time?"

That's my favourite. Real acknowledgement of the challenge. And that's what you want from clients. Awareness and appreciation.

And for such positive feedback, acknowledging my accumulating light units towards my ascension to heaven, I'd do it all again!

[current mood] detox high & the smell of yellow roses

Wreaths or Meat Cleavers for Weddings?

This is what my house can look like prior to a wedding shoot...
The mess of me creating accessories and props.

Last week I scoured op shops for fake-flowers so I could create wreaths to use in their wedding booth 'studio'. I asked the couple if they wanted a silly booth or a sophisticated one. They said "definitely sophisticated". So I went in search of things that would be classy... or at least pretty.

I made a backdrop with sheer curtain and some branches and blossoms.

It was just me and Oscar in the house so I had to use us both to test how it looks under the lights.
Oscar takes a good pic!

I just loved making these floral wreaths, so much that I started coming up with another creative-business-venture-concept. One of twenty circulating in my head right now...

Weddings are really occupying most of my brain capacity currently. When one is approaching I become immersed in it's details, ideas for locations and ways to uniquely shoot this couple.

The wedding was Valentina & Amnon. Here are a couple details.

I'll show you more next time, but here is another favourite:

mmm how tender is that!

And okay, just one more that shows some of my prop-work.

I went in early and set up the photo booth.

It looked lovely in the afternoon light as guests arrived.

I love creating spaces with decor that adds to the mood of the party.

Here are the two shots that used one of my three wreaths:

The groom had re-thought 'sophisticated' and picked up a few extra props which ended up being the most loved by the guests. Of course! Mixing virgins with devils... how can you resist?

Or virgin's with (now) necklace-wreaths and he-brides.

Or meat cleavering vikings with sophisticated blondes...

I might have to re-think my beautiful flower wreath idea and work on more devilish and raunchy concepts!

[current mood] New Orleans jazz permeating every space & scallops

I'll take a photo of your teapot, for your teapot.

I love shooting things that I love. Such as this artwork 'Tea Brake' by Kim Schoenberger.

It seems I only shoot things I love... 

such as delicious food, photographed so well I want to eat it.

and old men, with their faces of wrinkles and hearts all melty. I just want to cuddle their quirky selves.

and then, of course, love ceremonies... where the beauty of the occasion inspires me with every shot.

and then, there is art!

Art that when I photograph it, I get so excited, I want it!

I had the privilege of taking photographs of Kim Schoenberger's assemblages. She makes them from discarded materials she finds in dumpsters and such places. The way they come together is some sort of magic. Unsuspecting pieces just fit into each other, Kim tells me. She seems to always find what she needs. And the pieces form, in many ways, themselves.

I set up my 'mobile studio' in her studio. Using a white table as a reflector. That's why they "pay me the big bucks". ah ha....

Keeping Afloat. You can see Kim uses clay with her metal pieces, to bring that earthy feel into form.

Domestic Duties - I saw this as a little robo-maid.

Be Love, Love Me.

I love this one too. Reminds me of an indigenous symbol - Wandjina. Or something of ancient, biblical symbolism. Those are clay-made bones, sticking out.

I met Kim through the ABC Open project Artist by Artist. You can watch this short film made on her, by children's book author Pat Flynn.

I did the cinematography and editing. Pat wrote the script and directed the piece.

Kim by Pat from ABC Open Sunshine Coast on Vimeo.

I HEART Kim and her work!

And what I find most excellent is the swapping of things for things - as opposed to money for things.

I chose the teapot as a little barter for a discount.

Now I need to find some fresh vegetables and some kind of shelter to photograph. That way I can really survive on this barter economy!

[current mood] home made muesli bars & kookaburras

I like to work with children and animals

at the same time.

I started off as a rock n roll photographer.
Then I moved onto arty stuff, nature and portraits of folk in the country.
Recently I took up the wedding photography with real heart.

Now, all too soon it seems, I'm working with babies and animals. It's only natural, since when they get married, they.... buy a puppy - and later have a baby...

Here are Sam and Stu my Brisbane buddies and their new creation, Toby.
(and Roxie the puppy too).

Honestly, you can't really make a bad photo of a cute little button like Toby!

Should I start another website called 'I heart babies'?

[current mood] Writing songs with a Chilean & Fresh Lemongrass Tea

I heart my wedding card

It took me some months, but I finally pressed 'PRINT' on my wedding photography cards.

They are on a Dalton boxboard stock with a grey brown pantone ink AND super spunky pink metallic foil.

It's near impossible to photograph a foil well because however it catches the light makes it look flat, so to show you I took a series of photos and animated it. So, you can see how pretty it is to play with in the light.

I'm now sending them out to folks who can pass them on to prospective couples.
Know anyone? Want some cards? Email me your postal address and how many you'd like.

I'm also making little concertina fold out samples. A lot of love is going into these so they're for venues and wedding suppliers and folk that can show future husbands and wives. If you would like one, please email me!

I've just featured one of my latest weddings on my website.
I make up names for the pages, so rather than "Alicia & Shane", I've called it Fall: In love.

[current mood] The best (and only) pumpkin soup I ever made & B B B Benny and The Jets

Photographing Strangers

Alain does Portrait of A Stranger project for ABC Open from ABC Open Sunshine Coast on Vimeo.

It's a strange thing with my job... I find myself helping others to discover their strengths and build their confidence in photography. I even find myself trying to get people jobs that they are so deserving of.

It feels very selfless and gracious because I am a photographer too, but instead of worrying about my own photography career, I'm just focusing on others acheiving their goals.

One of my participants in ABC Open is Alain Bouvier, a French man whose English is better than he realises. Alain took on the 'Portrait of A Stranger' project and I filmed one morning of him getting portraits of folk in Cooroy, Sunshine Coast.

I think it might just be a bit inspiring and that, ultimately, this makes me happy.

[current mood] Coconut Liqueur & Oscar's Wheezy Snore