ORANGEphotography's Blog

Mehndi Designs by Hina Nasreen

Jay — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 18:08:29 +0000

Mehndi is the application of henna as a temporary form of skin decoration in the Indian Subcontinent, as well as by expatriate communities from these areas. Mehndi decorations became fashionable in the West in the late 1990s, where they are sometimes called henna tattoos. Henna is typically applied during special occasions like weddings and festivals like Diwali, Bhaidooj, Teej and Eid. In some Hindu festivals, every woman tries to have Henna done on her hands and feet. Henna was originally used as a form of decoration mainly for brides.

Hina Nasreen is an exceptional artists who creates and applies henna designs. Through years of honing her craft, she embodies the spirit of the original purpose of mehndi and although the original tradition differs slightly from region to region, the spirit is the same – to celebrate! Intricate designs are applied mostly to women but in some places, bridegrooms have designs applied as well. She brings this tradition to us and makes it accessible to others who would not ordinarily be able to enjoy it. Everytime I hear that Hina is applying a design, I try to be there to capture it.

Visit her facebook fan page here

Thanks for reading!

Jay

Nawa Nicole Simon

Jay — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 14:57:37 +0000

Hmmmm….Interesting…..

The best part of shooting headshots is hearing the great stories and coming across people that are way more interesting than me….which is not that hard. Nawa Nicole Simon is one of those interesting people. In shooting headshots, I know that engaging people with humour and witty bantor often brings out their best. People are relaxed and comfortable and the results are excellent. Nawa had ME laughing and ME relaxed. She is comfortable in front of the camera and the final shots were great! I had so many frames to choose from that it was hard to decide. Nawa has appeared on film and television, in plays and commercials and is an accomplished actress. We met through a friend and have now become friends. Nawa is currently working on several projects and you’ll see her soon!

Thanks for reading!

Jay

Tanya Asaki

Jay — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 09:35:00 +0000

I had occaision to shoot talented singer/actress Tanya Asaki whom I have known since high school. We lost touch for a bit but as fate would have it, we are again friends. She has appeared on albums and cut some tracks of her own and is enjoying an awesome career in the field she loves. Tanya is in demand all over the world and as of this writing, she is on a repeat Asian tour with engagements in China, Malaysia and Singapore. She is living the life!! Before she left, she made some time out of her busy schedule to catch up with me and appear in front of my lens. I heard some great stories about places all over the world and where she plans to go next.

You can sample one of her tracks here.

Happy travels Tanya! Can’t wait to hear the stories when you get back!

Thanks for reading!

Jay

whosampled.com

Jay — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 01:44:43 +0000

A lot of people ask me where I find the music for my site. I grew up listening to my dad listen to jazz. While he would work or relax around the house, he would listen to his cassettes or his records and I would hear. Being a child, I absorbed it and the tunes rattled around in my head for years. As I got older, I began to listen to hip hop and began to notice similarities. The hip hop tunes were new…yet familiar. Where had I heard them before? Years went by and I grew up with this nagging feeling that I had to connect the 2 genres. I had to know how they were related. In 2009, thanks to the beauty of the internet, I found a site called whosampled.com. It dissects the DNA of all genres of music.

You can look up an artist and see who used their music or who’s music they used. The site allows you to play the songs side by side (original and sampled songs) and tells you exactly which part of the song was sampled and for how long. You can contribute to the site too. I personally have added about 75 songs and their origins to the site. I have gained a new respect for my dad’s generation of music and pay respects to the artists that I was unknowingly listening to. The two album covers above are an example. I now know who Weldon Irvine is and appreciate his music.

Have a look at the site and be careful…you can spend hours there!

Thanks for reading!

Jay

The Distillery District

Jay — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 12:53:24 +0000

I am 34 years old. I have lived in Toronto for damn near 65 years and it still never ceases to amaze me. (yes I said 65 years….a random high number used to get my point across). Karen, Terehz, DeAndre and Karen’s sister Kelly (visiting from Montreal) and I all went to explore the Distillery District. The area is located at the foot of Parliament St in downtown Toronto and was the site for the Gooderham and Worts distillery. The distillery was founded in 1832 and was at one point the largest distillery in the world. In the 90′s, the remaining distllery operations were shut down and the area – already surrounded by empty lots from demololished buildings – was left in a derelict state. In 2001, a project got underway to revitalise the area. What stands there now is a 13 acre area with shops, restaurants and entertainmment venues all in the shell of the old distillery. What does this mean to me? Great historic value in the heart of the city and great photo opportunities. There are literally hundreds of nooks and crannies that are so perfect for photographs. We had a great time. Visit when you get the chance.

Thanks for reading

Jay

Elite Events Magazine

Jay — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 14:21:02 +0000

Elite Events Magazine. Event coverage for Toronto and surrounding areas. I have been busy shooting for this publication for the past few months. It’s great to see Toronto’s people get dressed up and celebrate life to the fullest. There seems to be a subculture that surges through the city’s veins of people who know how to dress up. The people that stand in front of my camera range from egdy to classy and from formal to casual – all are at the same event and all have a verve for life. I am happy to capture it. Stacy Johnson, Editor/owner of the magazine works hard to constantly improve the outlook of the magazine and evenly cover the diverse events that go on every week throughout the city. I have never seen someone work so hard to serve her clients and keep the pace with the pulse of the city. Look out for Stacy in the future as she becomes a rising star inthe mdeia landscape of Toronto. You can pick up Elite Events Magazine at better establishments anywhere. See Elite’s website for details.

http://www.elitemag.ca/

Thanks for Reading!!

Jay

On Assignment – Scarborough Thunder Football

Jay — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:32:50 +0000

Go Thunder!

The Scarborough Thunder Football team plays in the Central Ontario Minor Football League – or COMFL. I shot their team photos over the weekend. These kids work hard. The day started at 7:30am before the game. They are typically there at that time to warm up before a 9am start and this weekend was no different. The weather was dull and rainy and cold and dreary and every instinct in my body commanded me to stay in bed – but I’m glad I didn’t. How do you take team photos and make them stand out? How do you take shots that are creative but consistent? How do you add an artful touch but keep it toned down enough for the client?

This – like any other photshoot – had its hurdles. This shoot would involve about 100 kids, coaches and parents. Has anyone tried to organize that many people – much less that many people under 17? To their credit, these kids were a team on the field and off the field and it showed. The coaches kept them in line and made the process quick and relatively painless. The main challenge was the light. A gloomy overcast day makes for just regular pictures – especially on a wide open football field. Not only that, the light was changing minute by minute as the ambient light level rose with the clouded over sun. So…out come the trusty speedlites!! The difference between the first shot and the last was almost literally night and day. As the shoot went on, I had to keep turning up the flash in 0.3 fstop increments and eventually, I had to add another flash to combat the now exposed sun. I wanted to flick some light on them from the side just to make them stand out. I experiemented with orange gels (discussed in previous posts) but decided to go with a flash reflected in an umbrella when the day began and ended up with 2 bare flashes at the end of the day. The flash made for some creative and interesting shots instead of boring regular shots. Once again, flash saves the day!!

Great bunch of guys and even greater coaches.

I will add graphics, their names and their numbers and then frame them for distribution to the team. Had a blast!

Thanks for reading!

Jay

www.ORANGEphotography.ca

Cuttin’ Style – A taste of Trinidad and Tobago In Fashion & Textiles

Jay — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:38:45 +0000

September 26th, 2009. Karen and I arrive at the On The Park hall at Leslie and Eglinton to attend this event. I am there as a media guest through our friend Nicole Donawa who was gracious enough to extend an invitation to this $100.00 per plate gala. We were approached by the media representative who guided us in. The gala was hosted by the consul general for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and proceeds were to benefit children with Aids in Trinidad & Tobago, though the Cyril Ross Nursery.

Cuttin’ Style is a term used in Trinidad to let you know that you look good or you are dressed well. “Yuh cuttin’ some real styles!” It was the perfect name to show off the talented designers of Trinidad and Tobago. Participants were such designers as Meiling, The Cloth, Claudia Pegus along with Zadd & Eastman.

You can see what I shot here.

Like any other shoot, there were some hurdles to overcome. Several other photogs were there so getting a premium spot involved some shuffling and this fashion show had a criss cross runway which meant there were very big flood lights to light the entire runway. This meant that the camera had to expose for the very bright background light which would potentially underexpose the rest of the photo. Solution? My trusty friend – the speedlite!! Below is a wide shot of the hall and if you look closely, you can see Karen holding the flash. Using the strobist technique, I got some shots that no one else had. Karen was my VAL (voice activated lightstand) who ducked and rolled into places to be inconspicuous enough not to bother the guests but up front enough to be close to the models. Thanks Karen!!

Thanks for reading!

Jay

www.ORANGEphotography.ca

Strobist Bootcamp

Jay — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 03:55:21 +0000

I describe myself as a strobist. A strobist uses small flashes off the camera to control light while shooting. I read a blog religiously called Strobist.

Amongst the many tips and tricks, they often issue assignments with varying themes. The latest assignment is titled “What moves you”. Basically, creatively lighting things that get us from place to place. I chose to shoot my bike between my house and the neighbour’s house. Just for fun, I shot my Suzuki SX4 as well. Check Flickr for information on how I lit the shots. I have great fun composing and lighting things like this and they make for very artisitc shots.

Thanks for reading!

www.ORANGEphotography.ca

On Assignment: Church Dress Fashion photoshoot

Jay — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:08:29 +0000

We Be Gellin’

Another photoshoot at Sheppard Village retirement residence. The client was Shimmerzine – Fashion and Faith magazine for the fashion line called Church Dress. This time, the sun had gone down and we used the inside to shoot. This place has soooo many nooks and crannies that make for great shoot locations. The shoot was directed by Rennee who kept the models thinking about poses and new looks. Towards the end, we shot near the elevators. The combination of the stainless steel elevator doors mixed with the dark wood panels gave me a great idea. Gels!! Gels are little pieces of transparent colour strips that go over the flash head. I placed the gelled flash behind the model to give her a glowing rims light and also to reflect off the stainless steel doors. The gelled flash also changed the mood and tone of the dark wood. The shots turned out really nicely.

Sheppard Village has so many other places that would make for great shots. I am sure I will shoot there again.

Church Dress is a line of clothing meant to be worn to church. Part of their mandate is to promote modest reverent fashion and a healthy Christian lifestyle. Visit them at their website – which is really nice by the way – www.churchdress.ca

Once again, to see the pictures, you will have to get the fall issue of Shimmerzine. Let me know if you need a copy!

Thanks for reading!

Jay