Archive for January, 2010
By Katie [Shadowplay]
If I am to be honest, before the workshop I didn’t really know too much about Jasmine Star.
At the time, I knew that she was a ‘rockstar’ photographer from America, had a cute dog named Polo … and that’s about it. So when Matt surprised me by booking me into the workshop I wasn’t nearly as excited as my friend Lacey.
Lacey LOVES Jasmine Star, you could even say that she is a blog stalker :) So when Cathy Crawley put out a model call for the workshop I suggested to Lacey that she put her name forward. A few days later I got a phone call from Lacey who was over the moon!
Jasmine and Cathy had picked Lacey, and her husband Evan, to be one of the ‘real couples’ for the workshop!
It was so much fun having Evan and Lacey join us in Sydney on Monday and they did such a great job being models! Having been in front of my camera a total of 2 times (once for their engagement shoot, and again for their wedding) I think Evan did particularly well :) It takes a special guy to agree to fly his wife down to Sydney and be subjected to being the ’subject’ for 20+ photographers.
Lacey is such a sweetie and I’m so lucky to be able to call her one of my best friends. She is one of those people who is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside! The week I went to hospital, Lacey cooked me dinner and brought over sliced mango … yes, all cut up into little pieces ready for me to eat.
When one of the other photographers attending the workshop asked me if I ‘felt weird’ about one of my brides being picked to be photographed by the one-and-only Jasmine Star, I was a bit taken back. It hadn’t even crossed my mind that it would be at all weird.
I honestly was (and still am) 100% totally stoked for Lacey! Gosh! Who wouldn’t want to see one of their favourite people all dressed up getting photographed by one of the best photographers in the world! If anything, I’d say that I’m a little worried that she won’t want to hang around me any more … you know, now that she is a famous model and all!
Here are some of my photos of the wonderful (and now famous) Evan and Lacey from the workshop! Plus, there’s a sneak peek of their actual wedding photos at the end.
Katie.
P.S. Lacey – I think you are covered for good photos of yourself for a while…. :)
Evan and Lacey working it for the cameras -
Now, that’s not daunting is it?
Evan working it for Jasmine -
Jasmine showing Lacey how it’s done -
How stunning is Lacey?!
Details -
They are such a gorgeous couple aren’t they?
This is my favourite photo from the workshop -
Here are a few photos from Evan and Lacey’s real wedding!
Yes – it has been about 6 months, but we have been holding off on posting them until our new branding is sorted. Unfortunately that’s taking a little longer than planned… so here’s a sneak peek for you!
Random fact – Evan and Lacey were married in the same church that Matt and I got married in… :)
I loved her flowers! -
One of my favourite photos that Matt took on the day (though there are so many good ones …
I also love this shot –
You’ll have to come back to see more once we’ve got our new branding finished… hopefully not long now! :)
By Katie [Shadowplay]
Well, as Matt has mentioned in previous posts – the end of the last year wasn’t super great for me. A few days before Christmas I collapsed from exhaustion and ended up in hospital :( I am currently still on forced sick leave for another two weeks but luckily I was still able to attend the Jasmine Star Workshop in Sydney on Monday and Tuesday this week!
This was the first workshop I’ve ever attended – so I really didn’t know what to expect… but I sure wasn’t disappointed! Photographer friend, Cathy Crawley, did an amazing job organising the whole workshop and making sure every detail was just perfect.
The workshop was held at the beautiful Cruise Bar Sydney. What an amazing location! It had amazing views over Sydney Harbour and of the Sydney Opera House. I highly doubt there could have been a better location to hold the workshop in the whole of Australia!
Matt and I were lucky enough to attend both days of the workshop. The first day I attended the workshop as an attendee. I sat in the back row (with the naughty kids) taking lots of notes. On the second day I helped out more behind the scenes by dressing models, doing hair, fixing flower arrangements and making sure the beautiful couture gowns by Catherine Colubriale didn’t get dirty.
All the models including Lacey & Evan, Kristie, Allana & Karim, and Kara were extremely gorgeous and they did so well handling the pressure of having 30 cameras pointed in their face.
I know that each and every person that attended the workshop would have taken away something different. For me the workshop couldn’t have come at a more perfect time in my life. Listening to Jasmine speak I came to realise that I have been working SOOOO SO HARD but putting all my effort and emphasis into the WRONG areas of our business. Attending the workshop has refreshed me, inspired me and I have come away from the workshop with a clearer goal and idea of which direction we should head with our business. I couldn’t have asked for a better start to 2010!
Meeting other photographers at the workshop was a real plus, and I know I’ve come away with some new friends.
As for Jasmine and JD … They are the sweetest, most down to earth people you could ever meet. Over the two days Matt and I came to appreciate them for who they are as people, not because of what they do. I really feel blessed to have met them both.
Here are some photos from the workshop. I will be posting some more later!
Katie [shadowplay]
Jasmine showing us all how it is done -
Matt being an annoying video guy! -
Beautiful Kristie -
“Real Couple” Allana & Karim -
… More photos coming soon …
By Matt [Shadowplay]
Today I embarked on what I hope is a long and fruitful journey. A journey that combines two of my great loves, Music and Technology, with something I tend to avoid at all costs, Exercise.
It’s an idea I’ve been toying with for about a month or so and today I finally pulled the pin and purchased an iPod Nano along with a Nike+ kit.
For the uninitiated, an iPod is a little device the size of a deck of cards and you can fit your entire CD collection inside it. How all those CDs fit into there is beyond me, let’s just call it magic.
Oh … you’re familiar with the iPod. Oops, silly me.
The Nike+ kit consists of a receiver which connects to your iPod Nano, and a sensor which goes in your shoe. Or if you’re like me and don’t have Nike+ running shoes, the sensor goes inside a little pouch that attaches to your shoelaces. The sensor tracks your run, then sends the data to your iPod Nano (or iPod Touch or iPhone 3GS).
Once your run is finished you just connect your iPod to your computer and the data is uploaded to nikeplus.com – pretty cool! This way you can record the data for every run and track your progress over time.
Music+Technology+Exercise – here we go!
So, with the iPod loaded with fresh motivational Green Day tunes I set off to run a circuit in our neighbourhood that I would have sworn was only 500m but in the end turned out to be 50km! Or that’s what it felt like. According to the readout on the iPod display it was closer to 2km but we all know how buggy this new technology can be.
Now, before the congratulatory backslapping begins and you ask me to tackle the running leg of the triathlon you’re doing next weekend, I have a confession to make. I may or may not have only run 30%-ish of the way. And I may or may not have been able feel my limbs by the end. And my vision was blurry. Fortunately there was a St Bernard at the halfway point.
Anyway, I’d be lying to myself and to you if I even suggested that the walking to running ratio was any better than 3 to 1. But, it’s a start.
As I sprinted the final 100 metres (ok, 50 metres) to my doorstep with the breakdown of Green Day’s “Homecoming” pounding in my ears, visions of Rocky reaching the top step of the Philadelphia Museum of Art admittedly filled my head. And yes, before you ask, I did raise my arms above my head in a victory celebration. And yes, I did spin spin around in a circle, but only once. Ok, maybe twice, but then I felt dizzy and had to stop.
I’m not sure whether the feeling of euphoria I’m experiencing is the heady mix of solitude, music and technology, or of it is the lack of blood reaching my brain as my heart seeks to fuel long under-utilised limbs. Either way, I think I’m hooked.
That is, if I can still walk tomorrow.
~Matt.
Stats from my first ‘run’
This will fill up over time …
… and so will this.
Some iPhone photos of the gear
