I need to think about what to write?….. I’ll post the words shortly….

Wow!… What a great wedding to start the new year!  I’ve never seen so much achieved in such a short time, and with so many ideas for decorations and table settings (Sarah is an event planner!) it was hard not to spend all my time just shooting still life! An amazing if short (the weather turned against us in the end) wedding and I’m really happy with the shots. This was the second time I’d shot Nathan & Sarah (see GBWT “Summer” post) and again had great fun. Very easy and natural. I’ve posted more images than normal as Sarah’s family have returned to London and I wanted them to see the whole story.  Thanks again… and The “Underwater Love” idea still makes me smile (see pic number 4)…Cheers

Heres the last wedding of 2011, thank-you Nicole & Will hope you enjoyed your first christmas together as a married couple.  Happy new year to everyone!

I managed to take a few hours off last week to take the family to watch some live music at one of the local wineries. Blues @ Bungawarra was hampered a bit by the weather (i.e it was p*ssing down 30 mins prior to the bands performance – taking to the shed – it was supposed to be  an outdoor stage!)  Both the audience and bands made the best of the circumstances and had a great time – or was that just me getting out from in front of the screen!

Rumblefish were  first on and were most impressive with their mix of blues & funk, while Jimi Beavis was also very good and up  there with  some of the best harmonica players around.  These bands were true pro’s, both delivering a top performance to a small crowd.  I’d go and see them again….

Some of the finished images from a recent shoot I did for a local tourist company, the GBWT. Had a great time photographing everyone (although it was pretty full on – Go..Go..Go sort of thing because of the light). Love the feel of  the shots, very different from my normal commercial work (or the approach I would’ve taken with this kind of shoot). Its much brighter and natural, less to do with off camera flash to balance everything out and more to do with the people.  Feels like “summer”…to me!

What an epic! I cant believe that someone pays me to do this – I feel guilty cos this was so much fun It couldn’t be considered work! The location was amazing, I only scratched the surface really – I need a week to do it justice. Kyla & Mark were a pleasure to photograph-very easy going and up for anything I threw at them (the naughty corner being one of my faves). Considering when I left Brisbane 6 yrs ago I was pretty burnt out and my creativity was at an all time low. I must admit to being slightly worried that I would fall back into the old habits – but I didn’t need to worry – I was completely inspired by the place and cant wait to have another crack at it. Also very excited about the light painting at the end – can see lots of potential their. Cheers!

“Nick”

“Sam”

“Fr Valente”

“Vito”

“Veronica”

“David & Sarah”

“Tony”

“Bill”

“Jean”

“Clay”

“Denise”

“Tom”

“Andrew”

“Gail”

“Vince”

“Max”

“Paola”

“Jim”

“Angelo”

“AndrewK”

“ChrisW”

“Milli”

“Heaton”

“Mark”

“Chris”

“Kev”

“Jack”

“Tom”

“Dan”

“Lawrence”

So here it is, the culmination of a two year project. My first major exhibition – I’m exhausted but relived its all happened and finally hung.I’ve thanked everyone I can think of that has helped make this happen, but I’d just like to thank Justin Bishop who originally commissioned the project. Mostly though I’d like to thank my wife Renee without who’s help and support this never would of got off the ground!. I’ll leave it to Chris, my father-in-law and who also sat for me to have the last words. He opened the exhibition for me and said everything far better than I ever could -Thanks Chris for making me cry in public!…

Close to the first time I saw Cory take some photographs was in my tinny heading toward a place called Humpy Island off the Central Queensland coast. He wanted to send some photos to his mates in England that would make them keen to come over and stay with him and Renee. In those days he was using a Hasselblad. For the uninitiated the Hasselblad is considered by many to be the ultimate camera and at the top of the range today you can pay an obscene amount of money. You will understand, then, my amazement as I watched him casually leaned over the side, camera in one hand only inches from the water and the spray from the bow, and, without appearing to look, snapped off a few frames. As the trip continued Cory took more photographs with a nonchalance that appeared careless. I know now the camera was not only in very safe hands but very clever hands.
The photographs were stunning. Humpy Island from the perspective of a dolphin riding the bow-wave, a beach vista as a seagull would see it. I had fished, camped, swum and walked that island many, many times and had never seen it like that before. That’s the point I want to make. I had never seen it like that before. I believe that one of the facets, one of the results, of good art is to facilitate a paradigm shift within the beholder. Sometimes what we are shown affirms something we have always known deep down, unarticulated, and we will see people nodding at a sculpture or painting as if saying. “Yes, yes, I knew that!” Other times the artist will challenge, even change, a world view.
Many people have tried to give a definition of art but perhaps Leo Tolstoy’s is the most succinct: “Art is the use of indirect means to communicate from one person to another.” Art is probably one of the most subjective of human engagements and what one dismisses as twaddle another will offer high praise. Photography, unfortunately, has not always been seen as art – particularly by the nineteenth century illustrators whose livelihood was jeopardized by the camera, which they often viewed as a mechanical device or passing fancy rather than as an artist’s tool.
It’s a view that led Pablo Picasso to remark: “Two of the most frustrated trades are dentists and photographers – dentists because they want to be doctors and photographers because they want to be painters.”
It was a discussion I have had several times with Cory over a beer or two. Does the hand or hammer shape the art? Did my computer write these words? Proponents of photography suggest that where a photographer is closely involved in the process of actually creating a physical image, leaving their mark at each stage – from selecting speed, apertures, and filters to adjusting tones and colours – they can be more readily called an artist. The assumption being the more visible the photographer’s hand, the less an image’s value is attributable to the mechanical device.
With the advent of digital imagery and powerful Photoshop programs, the tension between the mechanical, scientific tool of the camera and the natural desire to use it for the creation of beautiful images remains unresolved but I believe that in the hands of an artist, the camera is only another tool; albeit a very powerful one, that forced the rest of the art world to move over, and move on … to their benefit in the long run.
I also believe that the debate should have finished in 1937 when New York’s Museum of Modern Art mounted an exhibition of photography or when artists like Andy Warhol began to appropriate photos into their art. For those who believe that money settles all disputes the question was answered in 1993 when Sotheby’s auctioned off a Man Ray photograph for $194,000 and Christie’s sold an Alfred Steiglitz for $398,000.
I really don’t think it’s worth getting too exercised over the whole issue. The artist is impelled, compelled, to express and while we can view (and even judge) the result, our engagement is beyond the genesis, beyond the space and time of creation. We can be affected by it but we can no longer affect it. Any judgement we make is about our response to the art, our relationship with the piece and it can never be that of the artist’s.
Have a chat to Cory as the evening continues. You will not hear him talk about speeds and apertures, lens and filters. You might hear about light and shade, the juxtaposition of textures, the combinations of colour and hue, but what you will hear of are the subjects, for this is why we have an exhibition of portraits. You all know Cory’s ability as a photographer especially those who have engaged him for their wedding, used his skills in the commercial field, or sat for a family portrait. He has a way of turning the ordinary into the extra-ordinary – it is the point I began with – he can take a subject with which we are all familiar and allow us to see it differently.
Many will have seen some of the panoramas he has taken around the Granite Belt, some of his detail work with, perhaps, a small piece of bark, but Cory will tell you that while the still-life’s and landscapes engage him and that every aspect of his work has its rewards and challenges it is the portraits which he finds at once the most challenging and most rewarding.
You have had a chance to look at some of the pieces and will know why the exhibition is called “Up close and very personal.” You will have recognised some of the subjects and seen some of the sitters gazing at their own image. (Most of who have not seen the image until tonight.) The exhibition may be focused in a small time frame but within the breadth of photos lies birth and death – there is one who is a recent arrival and one who is no longer physically with us.
I would say that most artists desire an exhibition and I know tonight is the fulfilment of one of Cory’s dreams. He should be rightfully proud of what he has set before us. I am proud to bask in his reflected light, and prouder still to declare this exhibition open.

Felt like posting something a bit different to what I’ve done recently. These were taken on the way back from a wedding I did out at Texas (Queensland) see “Jaime & Jade”. Great light out there!.

Unusual to post the maternity photo’s after the newborn ones – see “Clay” but I very rarely do anything normal or in order!. Love the expression on the little girls face when I told her that a fairy lives in my camera -”priceless”. Thanks to Kelli & Rhani

Update* – I had some feedback from a friend of mine that I completely agree with (cheers Matt!).The Gallery feature doesn’t show my work at its best so I will go back to the original way. I still think it was worth the experiment though just to see what it would look like! – “ah well, you live & learn!”

I’m absolutely consumed by all things exhibition at the minute but realised that I’d not posted anything for Jaime & Jade’s wedding out at Texas!. Sorry Guy’s I really could not decide which ones to post so I chose quite a few of my faves. Both Renee and I had a ball out at Texas (As we always do!) Just good genuine people, and great times to be had out there. If anyone wants to visit a great Queensland outback town you cant go past Texas!.