Classy, Sassy Fish People by Curtis Johnson

Curtis Johnson brought these fish to life for Fuji Ya.  Aron Shand and Paul Swiatek from Kruskopf Coontz were the Creatives for the Ads and really reeled in fantastic concepts!

Here's what Paul Swiatek (Copy Writer) had to say about the shoot:

"Curtis is great.  He's so adept at picking up on the vision of the idea.  But the coolest thing is that he throws in ideas of his own, little 'maybe we should try this' kinds of things - and that's what makes your idea that much better."

"The Fuji Ya shoot was definitely an experience.  The fish were very demanding.  They freaked out when we didn't have the bottled salt water they wanted.  But Curtis took charge, calmed them down and talked them out of the trailer.  The shoot went great until lunch, when we served tuna fish sandwiches.  AWKWARD!"

Aron Shand  (Art Director) added:

"I really enjoy working with Curtis. He helps make our wildest dreams come true (everything from robots on trains to fish people on cell phones).  He's great at taking a highly conceptual idea, finding the elements to pull out, shoot, and piece it back together beautifully."

 The metamorphosis from human to fish:

 struttin' his stuff

 Ann  (AB) proving her "anything for the job" attitude.

 Rawr - where's my bottled salt water?!

Click any image to view it bigger or go to

www.CurtisJohnsonPhoto.com 

for more of Curtis Johnson's humorous and conceptual work.

Caterina Bernardi's Imagery is Graceful and Relevant.

Caterina Bernardi has a unique ability to capture the moment with mature adults.
Her images are vibrant and real.

Click any image to view it bigger, or go to www.CaterinaBernardi.com to view more of her photography.

A few shots of Caterina working her magic.

Rick Chou Shooting Moody Lifestyle

Not many know that previous to becoming the extraordinary Product and Auto Photographer he is today, Rick Chou shot fashion in Europe and people...back to his beginnings, sort of.   Milwaukee Tools came to us recently asking Rick to shoot "a different look" of construction workers on site using their tools.

Rick and his Digi-Tech

Milwaukee Tools secured a real construction site at UCLA where a building was being demolished to be replaced by dorms.  It was floors of dripping water, dark empty cavernous spaces with beams and exposed metal.  Milwaukee Tools got permission from UCLA to work with the construction company and destroy sections of the building. 

 The Crew

Before Rick and his entire crew were allowed to even step on site, they had to attend an intensive two hour safety training session.  Then, with the  Construction Supervisor close by at all times, for 3 days they maneuvered their way through the building, between floors, walkways and narrow shafts.   As Rick said, "It was like creeping through a dungeon."  It was loud, it was wet, it was dark, and extremely dangerous, but exciting. 

Rick and his crew pre-lit the scenarios.  With his crew acting as stand-ins, they emulated the construction workers jobs and movements.  Finally the real construction workers, who were "on the clock", came in for less then 10 minutes.  Rick made them feel comfortable and relaxed in front the camera, lights and crew.  Action!  The tools were fired up, noise bounced off the walls, floors vibrated, dust flew, as Rick shot fast and furiously to get the most out of his 10 minutes!

And, of course, a few of the final shots:

Click on any image to see it bigger, or view Rick's other work @ www.RickChou.com

Salvation Mountain - Steve Bonini's personal work

"Salvation Mountain" in the Slab City area of Salton Sea. 

 This guy, Leonard, (above) has been painting the hillside and preaching the gospel out there in meth country for decades.

Curtis Johnson and the Creatives

Recently Curtis Johnson and Nadine Kalmes were in Chicago meeting with Creatives and Art Buyers.

Here's a couple shots of Curtis showing his portfolio:

 

Curtis Johnson at AbelsonTaylor discussing his imagery. 

 

Curtis chatting at Energy BBDO (above and below)

Showcasing new video work on the iPad

You can view Curtis Johnson's newest video series too!  Just click play below and go to "motion". 

Steve Bonini shoots Major League Baseball

Steve just finished a really cool job shooting Major League Baseball players in Las Vegas for Nike.

Matt Holiday of the Saint Louis Cardinals. (above and below)

"I thought it would be a really good idea to bring in a coach to assist me in getting the players fired up, so I hired a great guy who played in the majors for 13 years.  We had each player for about 45 minutes to an hour, so it was important to get right to business."

"We had a quick pow wow with the players where I told them what I wanted to achieve, then after that, I'd have a quick talk with the coach.  Pretty much, he spoke to them in 'baseball talk' and then they started pretend playing.  You really know you're shooting a pro when they get right into character.  Doesn't matter if it's bottom of the ninth with bases loaded, or against a seamless in studio.  Impressive, and the shots show it!"

Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays. (above)

Brian Wilson of the San Francisco Giants, 2010 World Series winners. (above and below)

And a few production stills:

You can't even tell these were shot on white seamless in the final images.

(left to right) Steve Bonini, Troy Tulowitzki of the Colorado Rockies, and Creative Director, Jeff Dooley, looking over the images of Troy on a tethered iPad.

CGI Nissan Murano by ALTER

Some of the newest CGI work by ALTER.

David Mitchell from ALTER was the CGI artist on this project.
We asked him a few questions about the creation of the image.

What were the challenges with this project, and how were they overcome?
David: The lighting style needed to fit a specific look to match the campaign. It is always easier to create a lighting scheme than to match one.

What elements went into making the Nissan Murano?
David: Lighting the car in 3D allowed us to get closer to the look than with photography. Retouching was also required to take the render to final quality.

How do you get it to look so real? I’m ready to drive off in this baby.
David: We use render engines that correctly bounce light for excellent realism. We use real world lighting methods and elbow grease.

Anything else you’d like to share about it?
David: The 3D models that were provided needed a lot of cleanup work to be usable, so I guess it involved a bit if grinding, welding and polishing.
This was a quick turnaround job and required long hours to meet the deadline but it was still a fun project. I'm looking forward to doing more.....perhaps with a little more time.