Thailand and Laos Food and Foto Tour

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This is a studio lighting workshop conducted by Tim Bauer and Mick Connolly.During the five  hour  hands on workshop you will be using only tungsten movie lights on two photographic models.Our theme is to create that magical light that George Hurrell used to illuminate all the silver screen goddesses. Sandy Bizy , our stylist from www.hatsandhair.com.au , will be supplying period gowns and accessories from the 1940,s.

Areas covered include pre shoot styling selection and briefing session , photo shoot of live models- direction, posing, use of  specialist lighting and industry tips and tricks. Please bring along  your digital  SLR,s  as we will be having a special invitation only session in the future with 4 x 5 “ and   8 x 10” large format sheet film cameras!

Date Sunday 17th May

Location – 104   Albion lane Annandale on the north west side of Parramatta road. Plenty of parking in Albion street.
Tuition – $285.00 includes fully catered lunch by Aaron McNulty. Morning and afternoon tea supplied. Early bird registration by 17th April is $261.00

Level – intermediate

Enrollment – 9 Payment 

details- Interested students need to deposit their payment into St. George cheque account M. Connolly account # 025628144  BSB # 112879. Receipts will be issued on the day.

Contact
Tim Bauer       0409 518366   timbauerphoto@mac.com
Mick Connolly   0406 662602   ledmick@yahoo.com.au

I have a feeling that our next workshop will be the ever popular  Beginners Guide to Lighting the Nude. If you have an interest in joining drop me a line at ledmick@yahoo.com.au
Places are limited and the Hollywood Glamour Lighting workshop booked out in eight days

Ever since Zen and I ran the series of “ Photoshop Crash Courses “ at W.E.A. we have been inundated with enquiries regarding personal tuition. If a regular workshop doesn’t fit your schedule or you wish to have a more focused learning experience tailored to your individual needs , we are available for one on one training . Topics range from all aspects of Lightroom and Photoshop through to field tests with your brand new equipment.

Aaron McNulty is a student I met while teaching at the International College of Professional Photography in North Sydney. He is the current winner of the “Shoot The Chef “ contest and is available for private cooking tuition . He can be contacted on 0405 471598. If you have a culinary or food photography question email it to ledmick@yahoo.com.au and I will pass it on.

Here is the part of the menu for his workshop

* Antipasto menu including salads, cold meats, olives etc,

* marinated bocconcini etc

* freshly baked focaccia, pizza style. flavors to be announced
fresh bread

* cheese and fruit platter

* some cakes and sweets

Reading

Ive got at least six books on the go at present. Zen and the Art of Making  a Living, How to Think like Leonardo da Vinci and Lonely Planets latest Thailand guide book. Rereading The Artists Way by Julia Cameron and re looking  at Angkor by Michael Freeman and Roger Warner.

Fictionally I,m having some cosy nights in bed dozing off to a period mystery in the vein of Sherlock Holmes by  Eleanor Updale entitled Montmorency and the Assasins.

Music

Listening to a trio of new age contemporary jazz CD,s on shuffle. The Best of Narada New Age compilation, Peter White,s Glow and Paul Hardcastle,s Jazzmasters Volume 2. 

Art

I,ve commenced a drawing class at the Workshop Arts centre with  the lovely and talented  Roz Devaux. My official status is visitor but I think that will change when I turn up with my laptop full of digital collages and  I hook it up to Canon,s portable Lide 20 scanner  so I can commence my Photoshop experiments ala Sandrine Pagnoux ( French graphic designer, former photographer and Photoshop alchemist).

In This Issue

Ive finally got my pics back from the Olympus marketing team . WOW ! I know they loaned me the E-3 but I still cant get over the assured , pin point focusing accuracy in very little light. Isobel ( Viviens Models) was a real trouper for working in such cold conditions but Im sure a pro like her will just treat it as good practice for her year long stint in London.

My nights continue to be busy despite the frosty weather . Ive finished a large documentation job for the Print Circle and Wednesday evening saw me judge a print salon for the Creative Camera group of Lindfield.

Thailand and Angkor Food and Foto tour.
Bookings have now closed for this tour.

Workshop News
Artistic Nudes.

We had another great session at the Workshop Arts centre on last Sunday. From my point of view I thought John Westens lighting and set building were just out of this world. If you would like to have a look for yourself Bill Fonseca has some superb images posted at www.redbubble.com . His ID is mrbillf .

Food Photography with guest stylist Aaron McNulty.

“Thunderbirds are go!"as I like to say. The restaurant management is very excited to be working with us and at the time of writing there are only two places left for students. Foto Riesel are proudly supporting this hands on workshop and bookings are also available through their website.

Private Tuition.

Ever since Zen and I ran the series of “ Photoshop Crash Courses “ at W.E.A. we have been inundated with enquiries regarding? personal tuition. If a regular workshop doesn’t fit your schedule or you wish to have a more focused learning experience tailored to your individual needs , we are available for one on one training . Topics range from all aspects of Lightroom and Photoshop through to field tests with your brand new equipment.

Swimwear and Lingerie photography workshop.
By popular demand, several of our fashion workshop participants have requested a lingerie themed workshop and John Westen has come up with a great concept combining both lingerie and swimwear in the one session. Keep Sunday 19th October free. The cost is $188.00 for a three hour session with some very hot models and the location remains the same (33 Laurel street Willoughby for those that haven’t visited the Workshop before).

Blog.

Diversions.
Surfing and painting. Ive recently bought myself a set of watercolour tubes and brushes due in part to my constant surfing of the website of the French graphic designer, Sandrine Pagnoux. Her use of Photoshop is quite innovative and her partner takes her work to another level. The URL is www.jullesetjulles.club.fr.

Reading.
I seem to be in a pulp fiction mood at the moment. Ive just finished reading John McFetridges wonderful debut novel. He is a Canadian author who has taken over the mantle from Elmore Leonard when it comes to realistic dialogue and authentic gangsters. Its called Dirty Sweet and its one of those reads that regretfully has to come to an end.

Music.
Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue.
The oldie is Everything But The Girl from 1987 titled Idlewild. The new stuff is very pared back flamenco from Jose Fernandez.
I borrowed Robert Plant and Alison Krauss album called Raising Sand
From a student a while back and it is slowly working its magic on me. The blue is the last track of Roy Buchanans Greatest Hits entitled “ The Messiah will come again”.

In This Issue

Greetings everyone! I hope you are fit and well. Here at the workshop we are experiencing a cold Sydney winter but it hasn’t dampened our enthusiasm. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce our latest tutor Johan Westen. John, as we call him, is a wedding and glamour specialist. In fact he had a lot to do with the initial setting up of the Photographers Creative and we are lucky to have his enthusiasm and knowledge to share with our students. Already his effect has been felt with access to his stable of models
(www.amazingmodelscom.au) and his innovative ideas such as a Nikon lens night where photographers can test the latest optics in a fun challenging studio environment instead of a lacklustre , cramped camera shop. More on that later

mick connolly and nancy at our recent fashion/lightroom workshop

Having a dyed in the wool Nikon user also brings a lot more balance to the workshop with Zen and his brace of crop sensor Canons and me completely sold on the Eos 5D full frames DSLR.
Speaking of product, Lucas Tan recently arranged a loan for me of the Olympus E-3 DSLR and some wireless flash equipment on the streets of Sydney. Yes it was freezing, bloody cold but his leggy fashion model sure warmed me up. I was quite amazed at the focusing accuracy and confidence of the Olympus optics but am it any wonder when their complete lens system has been built strictly for digital sensors and not some hangover from the film era.
For winter my nights do seem to be awfully busy but at least I was indoors when I gave a lecture to the Ryde Eastwood Leagues camera club on Monday night. I discovered something of interest for any budding sports photographers especially rugby league fanatics. There are a bunch of hardcore footy fans amongst this progressive camera club and they can get you on to the sideline at selected suburban grounds. If you would like to know more contact their president, Jeff Akon on 0418 550753.

Here is what Gary David had to say about our January Food and Foto tour –
“A photographic tour of Thailand like no other. An amazing trip！
Overall I can’t wait to do the trip again- a fantastic time. I’d even consider moving to Thailand…. A great place.” You can check out Garys wonderful gallery of images on the Flickr website at gd_167 under the Thailand photo on the right hand side. He was a wonderful traveling companion and I suspect we will see him on our upcoming Angkor tour in November.

Speaking of the November Food and Foto tour of Angkor and Thailand, the deadline for bookings is on August 25th so check your calendars as there are only six places available for this trip of a lifetime.

Fashion Photography and Lightroom
Thanks to Zen and John Westen our recent studio fashion workshop went off without a hitch. We had some very talented hair and makeup artists on hand to get the best out of our wonderful models. The light in studio 2 is exquisite this time of year and our students left with lots of wonderful images that were seen on the internet that evening. Check out the website www.redbubble.com and enter the member name mrbillf for a sample of the days shenanigans.

Its looks as though everyone’s favourite model Emma will return for our Artistic Nudes workshop on Sunday 31st August. She will be joined by Bianca and the class is filling fast so if you would like to book a place you can contact Zen ( 0412 121245) or myself on 0406 662602.

Food Photography with guest food stylist Aaron McNulty.

The proprietors of popular Thai restaurant U-thong in Cammeray have opened their doors for us on Sunday 21st September for an exciting food photography workshop followed by a sumptuous Siamese feast. As a bonus Janny and Nancy will also arrange some intricate fruit and vegetable carving for those of us that love our macro. Foto Riesel will have on hand everything from close up filters to state of the art macro lenses to play with. Places are limited so book fast for this one!

Ever since Zen and I ran the series of “ Photoshop Crash Courses “ at W.E.A. we have been inundated with enquiries regarding personal tuition. If a regular workshop doesn’t fit your schedule or you wish to have a more focused learning experience tailored to your individual needs , we are available for one on one training . Topics range from all aspects of Lightroom and Photoshop through to field tests with your brand new equipment.

Digital Collage featuring scanners and the Wacom tablet

Aaron McNulty is a student I met while teaching at the International College of Professional Photography in North Sydney. He is the current winner of the “Shoot The Chef “ contest and is available for private cooking tuition . He can be contacted on 0405 471598. If you have a culinary or food photography question email it to ledmick@yahoo.com.au and I will pass it on.

Just crumbs and some old mortadella cheese this month as he is overloaded with college assignments but never fear he will be a guest stylist at the upcoming food photography workshop at U-thong Thai restaurant.

I’m running too late with this issue to think of anything very startling or revelatory. I wish John Fick would give me that Photoshop tutorial has been promising so I could pass it on to you. His wedding work is something to behold.

Reading
Just finished the second book in a quartet by Cuba’s answer to James Ellroy. His name is Leonardo Padura and I have to own Havana Blue and Havana Red.

Music
Right now I’m listening to Zen Connection 2 and Eco-Zen and before you say it, No!
Zen Loy does not have a new career as a trip hop disc jockey. They are chill out compilations mixed by Leigh Wood and Ben Mynott that I buy through Adyar bookstore in Clarence Street. Very easy to write and Photoshop to as well as being local Aussie product NOT bought offshore!

DVDs
Recently saw Heath Ledgers Batman at Macquarie centre but the less said about that the better. Even editing an hour from it isn’t going to turn it into a great Batman flick.
Much more engrossing was a documentary out of Melbourne centering on the 1985 world title fight between Barry Michael and Lester Ellis. Full of surprises and thoroughly riveting.

In This Issue

Hello ! I am back from my recent trip to Thailand and Cambodia and thought now is a good a time as any to share some of my favourite pics and a few thoughts with you.

Left is a Polaroid Image transfer taken on a Leica M8 kindly loaned to our tour group by the Adeal company

Its more a mini magazine than a newsletter but then that wont come as a surprise to those who know about my penchant for writing. In fact keep an eye on the Lonely Planet website for my oversea’s blog in the My Trip Journal section.

My biggest piece of news is that Adam and I now have an office based in Chiang Mai. All of us, students included , fell in love with Chiang Mai on the January Food and Foto tour so when Adam and Nong found this modern two storey villa overlooking the Ping river I couldn’t have been happier. Nong, Adams wife also has a very supportive family living in C.M . so we envisage having our own cooking school at this tranquil location in the not too distant future. When you get to the Chinese Food and Foto tour section, you will realize why we selected northern Thailand for our headquarters.

Between the 16th through to the 30th of November Adam Oswell and myself will be leading a sixteen day photographic workshop taking in the natural and culinary delights of Thailand and Cambodia. For more information, bookings and tour details visit www.mickconnolly.com or contact myself on 0406 662602 . If I am unavailable Richard Cunningham at Active Travel can field your enquiries on 9264 1231 or 0410 417006

Join us as we explore some of China’s most photogenic sights with our bilingual guides. Our two week photography centered itinerary will include stopovers in Shanghai, Beijing, Xian, Pingyao and QiaoJia Dayuan.
Photography opportunities; studio fashion, food and macro photography on location, the Great Wall, the Terracotta Warriors, people , landscapes, antiquities, street scenes, cooking classes, temples, ancient towns, vibrant nightlife and art deco architecture. Expressions of interest are invited.

This is a class that I have taught at the Workshop Arts Centre for many years. In the early days I used to haul my own enlarger along and set up in a tiny , stifling garret that the etching class used. Im pleased to announce we now have exclusive access to a $30,000 fully equipped darkroom. Over the course of 8 weeks we concentrate on learning how to make the most of your film camera through classroom exercises as well as the odd field trip. For more about this class and booking information please visit www.workshoparts.com or phone 9958 6540 and the office will send you a term brochure.

Saturday 19th July and Saturday 2nd August.
Come and join Dr. Zen Loy and myself in this exciting two day hands on workshop. The first session is essentially a real world fashion test collaborating with a team of industry recognized hair and makeup artists . You will be shown how to direct , light and photograph agency represented fashion models. In the second session you will return with your best images and Zen and Mick will demonstrate their workflow technique and enhancement secrets utilizing Lightroom and Photoshop.
On completion of this workshop you will leave with a new body of work that could land you model tests anywhere in the fashion world. Suitable for beginners and advanced photographers.

Here is a brief list of other workshops I will be running during the year. Any expressions of interest can be directed to ledmick@yahoo.com.au or if you prefer snail mail just post them to Mick Connolly 8 Rugby Road Eastwood 2122 N.S.W. I know a lot of darkroom rats and film fanatics are resisting technology but I am happy to read either.

Ever since Zen and I ran the series of “ Photoshop Crash Courses “ at W.E.A. we have been inundated with enquiries regarding personal tuition. If a regular workshop doesn’t fit your schedule or you wish to have a more focused learning experience tailored to your individual needs , we are available for one on one training . Topics range from all aspects of Lightroom and Photoshop through to field tests with your brand new equipment.

Aaron McNulty is a student I met while teaching at the International College of Professional Photography in North Sydney. He is the current winner of the “Shoot The Chef “ contest and is available for private cooking tuition . He can be contacted on 0405 471598. If you have a culinary or food photography question email it to ledmick@yahoo.com.au and I will pass it on.

Question. I had some delectable , massive, char-grilled prawns at the Chedi Hotel in Chiang Mai recently. Why is it when I stir-fry Aussie tiger prawns they come out all soggy and rubbery ?

Aaron’s answer. As Bubba in Forrest Gump hammered home to us ,
“ there are many ways to cook shrimp (prawns)” . Firstly , the fresher the prawns the better. Buying frozen or day old prawns wont help your cause. With prawns you want to cook them quickly with a fair bit of heat , a few minutes at most. The residual heat will cook them through and if you are stir-frying it should only take a few seconds in the wok and let your sauce finish the job.
Another thing with stir-frying. You want all your meats sliced very thinly , so slicing your prawns in half will give a quicker cooking time and also the deceptive look of more prawns, thus giving you the finished result you are after and more time to enjoy the fun part- EATING THEM !!

Zen and I are in the throes of forming a support group specifically for newbies but experienced photographers and tutors are encouraged to join as its our expertise and knowledge that we want to share and disseminate . The likely name will be Australian Photographers Xchange. More on that to follow.

The Long Weekend

Early Saturday morning found me racing across town to trendy Paddington. The client was Bernard Thiesson , owner of Paris Mode , importers of French perfume and leather hand bags. He required private tuition in the areas of lighting and colour management .

Once his lighting problems were solved I had to meet up with my partner Wayne Maranda over at nearby Chippendale for a wedding portfolio appraisal and quote for a young ethnic couple.
I had a dinner appointment with one of my Thai chefs and her boyfriend at 6.00 pm so I decided to stay in town and hang out in Dymocks lovely old head office. Luckily for me their cookbooks were on sale so I wasnt out of pocket that much but the parking fees on the street are quite ridiculous.

Dinner was decadent . Every dish from the chicken to the fish was deep fried in Patricks favourite crunchy batter. Jenny opted for the fish fillets while I went for the whole fish drenched in sweet chili jam.

Next day , after two hours writing up my travel blog, saw me back at the coalface. John Mack, a former Photoshop crash course student , was requiring some Lightroom tuition. Afterwards we had a bite to eat up in Randwick junction ( Thai , of course) and then that was Sunday gone.

Monday found me over at Finnbarr Fetherstons place showing him through the basics of Lightroom so he could have a presentation of finished images ready for a client Tuesday morning. Whew! Now I know why they call it a long weekend.
The rest of the week I averaged about one hour per day on my Lonely Planet blog.

I was looking forward to Wednesday nights State of Origin football match but some of the refereeing mistakes were so glaring you have to wonder whether it was rigged for the third and final decider.
Thursday night was much more enjoyable with one of my students , Christine Nelson , giving an audio visual presentation to the St. George Leagues Camera club on our January Food and Foto Tour of Thailand. You would think I would know what to expect but some of her cropping and Photoshop enhancements were very bold.

Saturday was a much needed get together with all our past tour members held at Toni and Bills in east Sydney. I didn’t know Russell Crowe was invited but there he was in all his Rabbitoh clobber holding court on the footpath.

Reading
At the moment I have two books on the go. Late at night I read a chapter or so of Marlena de Blasi ,s travelogue entitled A Thousand Days In Venice. If youre into food , travel or both like myself it,s a must. The other one is a textbook by Scott Kelby entitled The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Book for Digital Photographers.

Music
As I write this I have three cd,s playing on rotation . Number one is Andreas Vollenweider , the second is Ottmar Lieberts The Hours Between Night And Day and the last one is Under Missouri Skies by Pat Metheny.

DVDs

I,m trying to watch Midsomer Murders starring John Nettles and the fifth series of Allo Allo but my laptop is not cooperating.

Until next time let me leave you with this thought
“ If at first you don’t succeed , fix it in Photoshop !”

In This Issue