We were happy to discover Communication Arts put the spotlight on a recent campaign we shot for Purina via Colle+McVoy up on the Home Page of their website. It's always great to work with a top notch team and see the results of our collaboration receive a little attention. More imagery from the project can be seen in the previous blog post All Paws and Tails in Palm Springs - Purina

"Surfing soothes me, it's always been a kind of Zen experience for me. The ocean is so magnificent, peaceful, and awesome. The rest of the world disappears for me when I'm on a wave." - Paul Walker

Following up on our last post "The Caribbean Pipeline - Rincón, PR -> Part I," we are excited to share the final motion edit profiling surfer Ramse Morales, his life both on land and in the water near the town of Rincón, Puerto Rico.

The landscape and surf couldn't have been richer in terms of a backdrop to shoot amid. This was the first motion project that I really spent a great deal of time shooting "hand held." I also brought on a couple of new pieces of equipment. While in the ocean shooting stills and capturing motion, I relied on the Ewa Marine water housing, recommended and rented from Chris Sheehan of Shelter Studios. This couldn't have worked better for getting close to the action both under and above water. What really brings the piece to life is the P.O.V. shots taken from the tip of the surf board. I was able to capture all of this using the Go Pro Hero Camera which was mounted on the tip of the board and recorded Ramse as he paddled out, popped up and surfed a nice variety of waves.

Enjoy this motion profile of a new found friend in a new found place...

The Western coastal town of Rincón, Puerto Rico is considered one of the top surfing spots in the world. As a winter time destination, swells have been known to reach 25' high rivaling the famed North Shore in Oahu. Although similar to the Pacific surfing hot spot, the Atlantic version was relatively unheard of until the 1968 World Surfing Championship was held at Domes beach where the above images were shot. The quality of the surf became apparent outside of the local population and gave rise to several great destinations along the Western coast including Rincón. With its laid back vibe, consistently good waves, and a surf culture permeating all walks of life, it's the perfect destination on the Atlantic Ocean.

Travel to Puerto Rico earlier this year took me to Rincón where I spent some time profiling Ramse Morales, a local surf legend who is highly regarded as one of the best. Everyone I asked pointed me in his direction as the local to connect with for all things surfing. Ramse quickly became a great friend and was more than gracious with his time in front of the camera, whether on the board or in his beach dwelling apartment (home of a wide selection of his many custom boards). At one point I even took a lesson myself with the local legend. Check out his site, see if you can find the five shot series of yours truly riding waves for the first time ever!

Enjoy a little slice of Rincón through the point of view of a true local. If you find yourself heading to Puerto Rico, a trip to the west coast as well as a lesson from Ramse would no doubt be highly recommended. The Surf's great nearly 24x7, 365 days a year...

Remember to check out the accompanying motion piece in our next post to get an even more in depth view of surf life on the Caribbean Pipeline. It was a really interesting shoot including some underwater filming which I look forward to sharing.

Just over a month back we completed a 3 day project for imation shooting a mix of lifestyle and product based imagery for the brand Memorex. From "portable music players to iPod® accessories and Blu-ray players to flash drives, CDs and DVDs, Memorex products fit your life."

The first two days took place on location in a private home north of Minneapolis, and the last day was staged in a home in the Deephaven area. Both locations were sourced by Anne Healy. The architecture of the first location really set it apart from the other houses in the area and would have blended seamlessly into a cityscape in Holland. The interior was no less spectacular than the exterior and provided a perfect backdrop of lines, shapes and textures for the shoot.

The featured products included an array of portable electronics and gaming accessories that were utilized by the talent in a home environment. We had a wide variety of scenes to create and capture ranging from a mother and her children spending time together, to sisters grooving to music, to a family preparing a meal in the kitchen. Over the course of three days we were able to cover these scenarios in addition to several others.

As always a big thank you to everyone on our crew. Our intrepid producer Bobbi Peacock and her assistant Luke Olson did a fantastic job making sure everything ran smoothly. Ann Marshik and her stylist assistant Heather Hall provided us with a great selection of wardrobe and props to create the proper mood for our scenes. Hair and make-up was handled by Ashlee Ellert who always keeps our subjects looking their best. All of the assets were managed by Karl Herber our digital tech, and last but not least, our photo assistants Josh, Bryce, and John kept us fluid and ready to move when the time came to set up the next scenario.

The last shot pictured shows the crew after three days of hustling. As always, smiles from start to finish. A big thanks to everyone at imation / Memorex for bringing us on for a great production and fine collection of images. Keep an eye on the Memorex site as well as in stores for the full roll out of this new library of imagery.

Took a quick a.m. drive to Venice Beach before tech-scouting and kicking off our latest production in Los Angeles.  Venice Beach never ceases to present visuals and it's always near top of the list for places to take in when we're back in the city.

Earlier this year Todd Lipscomb, front man and lead singer for the band The Kentucky Struts, contacted us about collaborating on a project regarding the band's new album, "The Year of the Horse." The idea behind the project is to have an original piece of art created for each of the twelve tracks that will debut once a month throughout 2011, until the album is released in its entirety.

Our contribution for the May release of the track "When" was shot on location at Sunnyside Stables in Rosemount, MN. We worked closely with riding instructor Maria Crane to coordinate the use of her two horses and a couple models to round out the shoot. The location and all participants in the project worked out really well, and even the weather did its part to provide a wide range of options within the rain, sleet, and sun of the early evening. In addition to the final selected image, you can see some additional outtakes above.

We are very excited to have a hand in this month's artwork and be a part of the album as a whole. Fans of the album can make a donation on the Kentucky Struts' website and in return receive a print of the current artwork of which all proceeds will be donated in the artist's name to Speak Up For Horses - a horse rescue foundation based in Falmouth, KY.

Enjoy the artwork and the fresh tune "When" from the Kentucky Struts. Stay tuned for the June installment of The Year of the Horse.

As promised in our "BSC via Olson, volume 1" post we have a time-lapse of our two-day studio portion of the shoot as well as examples of the stills we were capturing. The time went rather quickly as we were all focused on making sure every last detail was covered.

A big thanks to Bobbi Peacock for juggling this production, as well as Janna Chin and her assistant Lorraine Goddard for their constant smiles amid the massive task of prop and wardrobe wrangling. Thanks to Raoul at Flashlight for suggesting we try the Euro Mola light, which worked out great, and as always, thanks goes out to Sarah and Bob at Orbit for the studio space we always look forward to working in. Lastly, thanks to Mark Pakulski and Adam Hoganson at Olson along with everyone else who helped pull this together. Always great partnering with you guys!

The behind the scenes time-lapse is quickly becoming a part of our regular routine and we will certainly be doing more of this in the future.

We have just returned from a week long broadcast project in Cincinnati and are gearing up for another motion as well as still project next week. Keeping busy - the outlook for spring and summer has us on the move and having fun...

"We like to say we live on the edge of the middle of nowhere..." - Tim Easton

Described as a "contemporary troubadour," Tim Easton is a consummate traveling songwriter. From his Ohio roots through stretches in Paris and Prague, Tim grew his credentials with stints in NYC and LA, leading to his latest encampment in the high desert country outside of Joshua Tree, California. For Tim, traveling seems both the inspiration and the reward.

We caught up with Tim earlier this year via a connection made at a Joshua Tree's Ricochet - a social hub where travelers and locals alike stop in for coffee, homemade cuisine, and to catch up on the latest happenings. It was here that we first made contact with Tim Easton via Rosa who was instrumental in connecting us for this project.

After conversing over lunch at Ricochet, Tim took us to a location known by the locals as Area 54 - the backyard of the Joshua Tree National Park. We spent time in this area of the high desert capturing his story along with a few original songs inspired by the area. Outside of Joshua Tree, Tim has played stages around North America, Europe, and Japan with such artists/influences as: Lucinda Williams, John Hiatt and M. Ward to name a few.

The Tim Easton project is as close as it gets to an ideal creative endeavor for me. It had all the elements that continue to fuel my passion for what I do. Tim Easton was more than gracious with his time and knowledge of the area. He allowed me to do what I love to do: get close to interesting people in great locations where I can let my creativity flow in tandem with creating new visual content.

A special thank you goes out to: John Fontana who captured our on location interview and ambient audio, Eric Schleicher "Filmerkid" who was brought on for both editing and color grading, Pilotvibe handled our audio mastering, and Michael Lizama who was tapped for graphic design - both title and credits. Elemental Motion Media brought Michael's graphics to life with their amazing animation skills.

Enjoy a glimpse of our time in a place richly layered in - music, artists, and mystique that continues to pull people towards Joshua Tree year after year.

Some interesting days ahead to kick off spring and summer. We'll be traveling to a number of places both near and far, for a varied palette of clients and projects...

"When I woke up the next day, the air was cool and clear. The sun was bright, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. I packed my gear and got back on the road. My tires felt fast, and I felt alive in a way I hadn't for some time."
- Frank Bures

We are often unaware of how our past has a way of meeting with the present, bringing us full circle. The two wheeled journey of writer Frank Bures "Ebb and Flow," is one of these stories that takes him from Minneapolis to his hometown of Winona, MN - a 150 mile journey to attend his 20th high school class reunion.

Although we were not with Frank during his initial ride, we did have the privilege of documenting some of the likely visuals of his trip. The March issue of Bicycling Magazine features the personal account of Frank and his trip home after 20 years. Present meets past via bicycle along the Mississippi River.