Blog
Good news, thanks to a much needed code update from the designers of the theme we crunch to make this site, and a new code rollout from the wonderfully smart crew at WordPress, the scroll bars have made a return, however the front page slideshow is now absent without leave so that is the next task for our tame coding monkey… damn, that’s me too.
If you have access to a copy of Studio Brides (vol24) check out our photos being used full page for Cyan Reign (featuring Violet Vex) on pg95 and also for Cyan again on pg92 this time with Holly modelling a black wedding gown.
Don’t forget about our Christmas day photography special that’s on, where you can get over 50% off a family portrait on Christmas day while all your family are together. Call me on 0410504757 or use the contact page on this site to email me.
Dec 13, 2011 | Categories: Christmas Specials, Violet Vex, wedding photography, weddings | Comments Off
We know that for many families the special events like Christmas day are the only times of the year you actually get all of the family in the one place. So why not consider this great surprise Christmas gift – a family portrait while all the family are together – at your home, the local park or picnic space!
$200 for a 1/2 hr shoot 3high res files provided and an 6x9in print – North-side Brisbane & Redcliffe
$250 for a 1/2 hr shoot 3high res files provided and an 6x9in print – South-side Brisbane (limits apply)
Very limited bookings available so get in quickly to secure your time with us now.
Dec 10, 2011 | Categories: Christmas Specials, Event Photography, photography schedules, Portraits | Comments Off
So many of our friends are starting to get used to using Google+ to share content they find while doing searches so here at Mark Greenmantle Photography we’re taking the focus off the cameras for the night to get some of that work done too.
It’s not something I have quite got my head around just yet, as I really think in a much more visual way and while I try to get into the social networking mind space I usually find interesting stuff about photography online and totally lose track of my networking while I learn about something I can use in shoots. There’s good reason my wife Violet is creative director at Greenmantle Studios!! hehe
That said, I’ve installed plug ins on this site that SHOULD allow you to log in here and comment using either your facebook credentials OR now using your G+ account. It’s all run using APIs on both the Facebook servers and Google servers and other than entering my name email date of birth and blood sample of my first born, it seems pretty safe to use. There’s no freaky stuff going on I swear! Our business page is here: https://plus.google.com/u/0/107808593874684013817/ It’s not the prettiest URL and we hope that Google will soon update the business pages management but that is us – so go and add us there and say hello. I will be posting more images there again soon. The soon to come rollout of G+ logos on this site means you can recommend any page you see it on to Google Plus with one click. Plug ins to make that happen have been installed but nothing is showing as yet. If you want to do me a huge favor, please feel free to post a link to http://www.greenmantle.biz/ from your Google+ accounts and from Twitter.
Now then, for the budding shooters who watch this space, some TECH PRON for you (yes that was a deliberate typo – it is a PG rated site mkay) – I harp on all the time about monitor calibration and how damn important it is that your screen is showing you the right colours. This is especially important when doing photographic retouching! Well, Dell have currently at under $700, for a 27inch monitor with an ultra wide gamut showing 99% AdobeRGB / IPS / 2560×1440 pixel resolution! Now I use an older 24in Dell ultrasharp as my main monitor and it’s been VERY stable for colour – only a slight shift over four months between calibrations (it DOES have power filtered through a UPS), but the new monitors are bigger, better and cheaper. At that rate you could buy six of these for the price of one Eizo of almost the same size…. makes you think doesn’t it! Do yourself a favour, ditch the gamer screen that makes your images far too bright to match to prints, get one of these and a Color Spyder Pro and use the savings on high quality glass for your camera. The monitors are available here: http://accessories.ap.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=au&cs=aubsd1&l=en&s=bsd&sku=210-31399&redirect=1
add it to your xmas wish list kids!
Dec 08, 2011 | Categories: retouching, Uncategorized | Tags: calibration, google plus, monitors, photography blog, tech | 4 Comments »
Greetings from a very warm spring in Brisbane.
Keep your eyes peeled for copies of the current Queensland Brides Magazine, you’ll see our shot of Violet in blue for Cyan Reign on page 173. More images to be published soon in Studio Brides and we’ll let you know other publications as they go to press.
Violet Vex models for Cyan Reign in Queensland Brides Photo by Mark Greenmantle
Violet was published in four magazines this last month, including the aforementioned two publications, but also in Tattoo Downunder and we’re told also in a hot rod magazine we have yet to see. If you get to see either of the first two magazines and then look at the tattoo and hot rod mags, you can be sure to notice that we took quite some time seamlessly retouching out her gorgeous ink for the bridal work. It’s just another service we can offer to clients here.
For the photographers out there watching our work, take a look at image files you may have passed over through 2005 – 2008 for reasons of low light image noise rejection and if shot in RAW format at the time, push them through the current version of Adobe Lightroom again now. Here is an image that was one of about 30 shots taken with lightning from a storm in December 2005. At the time I was only using RAW Shooter Pro by Pixmantec which later became Adobe Lightroom. RAW Shooter Pro did not provide the best noise reduction algorithms and I had all but forgotten about the other files in this chase that had been rejected. Last week I pulled the folder open anew in the current Lightroom version and was very happy to see just how many more files yielded excellent print candidates.
- violent storm over Brisbane 2005
Nov 17, 2011 | Categories: Adobe Lightroom, Commercial Photography, commercial photography, fashion, greenmantle, HOW TO, retouching, storms, thunder storm, Uncategorized, Violet Vex, wedding photography, weddings | Tags: Adobe Lightroom, bridal fashion, extreme weather, fashion, Queensland Brides Magazine, storm chases, studio brides, weddings | Comments Off
Oct 26, 2011 | Categories: Commercial Photography, Elwood, Event Photography, fashion, greenmantle, lightning, Portraits, storms, thunder storm, wedding photography, weddings | Tags: cafes, events, photography, restaurants, Sandgate, weddings | Comments Off
Good grief, it appears I fail at GEEK, currently trying to merge my own site’s log in system with the OAUTH2.0 that Facebook uses so anyone logged into Facebook can comment on my site (up to date WordPress with WPBOOK plugin installed) without setting up an account….. but… the install docs do not match the Facebook install pages and if you think the face of Facebook changed a lot this year, it’s nothing compared to the developer pages. Anyone want to barter their coding genius for photography services? This is killing my brain!
In other news today, Violet Elwood and I headed to Kangaroo Point to watch the new RAAF Squadron of Super Hornets fly over the city which was fun but they took a very unexpected track behind our spot and we scored only a few seconds of clear view of all 24 fighter jets.
And, simply because cats that dance like captive bears look extremely cute, here’s an awesome dancing cat
Oct 21, 2011 | Categories: HOW TO, Uncategorized | Tags: Brisbane, dancing cat, Facebook, super hornets | Comments Off
Sep 21, 2011 | Categories: Commercial Photography | Tags: Brisbane commercial photographer, commercial photography, personal trainers | Comments Off
Be you just getting some long overdue happy snaps of your kids and partner, or commissioned to get some captures for clients and their families, taking a family to a comfortable parkland where kids and run and parents can relax and let their hair down is a great tool for photographers. Before you pack your camera bags for a midday lunch or picnic however, pause to consider the available light. Unless it’s very overcast and you are keen for rainy pics, hold off for closer to sunset to enjoy softer light, warmer golden hues to make skin glow and longer shadows for creative play.
model: Violet Vex - www.violetvex.com
Back lit subjects for soft contrasts, warm shadows and shallow depth of field (shot with lens settings to wide open apertures ie: f/2, f/1.8, f/1.4 or even lower) allow you fast shutter speeds if you pick your light, location and timing just right. For those with DSLR cameras, set to your lowest f/stop and switch to either manual metering, or spot aperture priority settings. Most Auto settings on modern cameras will meter for the blown out backgrounds leaving your subject little more than a shadowy silhouette, or force you to use flash which will be a cold light that doesn’t match the sunset colours, or try to get too much in focus, so if you are one to set to Auto – now is the time to try something new.
When I have loads of time to prep each shot I prefer to meter with my Sekonic light meter (mine is the Sekonic L-758DR Digital Master – usually available with free shipping from this ebay store) which allows me to get spot readings through the light meter lens rather than just an ambient light reading. Usually however if you are trying to keep up with the games of playful children just on sunset, you want to put your camera into aperture priority mode, with metering set to the smallest spot metering option your camera will allow (most have multiple spot metering settings available) and then ensure you lock your light reading with your spot meter over faces rather than near the bright sun in the background. As the meter cursor is over the face, locate and depress the AF/AE-LOCK button until you have finished recomposing the frame and have taken the shot.
Be wary of the massive lens flare that can occur with this style of shooting. Sunlight can quite easily flood a full frame even though you may not have that effect visible in your viewfinder. Should you be somewhere here in Australia, you will also note that with spring starting, you need to also be wary of snakes coming out of hibernation, that mosquitoes are already showing their appetites and that magpie nests will soon need to be avoided as well. Before sending kids out to play in long grass, it’s best to check ahead for risks.
Here are some images from last weekend at a local park – I can post full EXIF data on files on request.
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model: Violet Vex – www.violetvex.com
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Sep 20, 2011 | Categories: HOW TO, Portraits | Tags: family photos, how to, outdoor photographic techniques, photography | Comments Off
Pricing and Quality
Even before the global financial crisis hit markets, commercial shooters have had to contend with an increasingly difficult time maintaining pricing structures to compete with the flood of new amateur shooters. These new shooters with DSLR cameras claiming to work as professionals with amateur pricing schedules drove down the mean pricing seen by clients and pushed higher the marketing hurdles in front of established and experienced working photographers. We now see a swathe of bottom end shooters competing for jobs with the least appropriate equipment, lack of insurance, lack of knowledge of work place safety and ethics, lack of technical skills to do the jobs to brief and of course, with a lack of experience and know how to trouble shoot photographic challenges of any kind. Clients have in the last few years been so flooded with low grade imagery in both mass media and through social networking, that barely average photography is now too often regarded as good enough.
An average image in your advertising can cost you far more in lost opportunities though lack of interest than you may lose in paying for quality photography and production showing a great image.
Too often quote requests come through demanding bottom end pricing suited to your average high school kid with their first digital camera. I have had to be blunt and say, “sorry, but you cannot afford me”, to several of these clients but I rarely get the chance to explain to them the costs of professional photographic equipment and commercial insurance with public liability, the value of commercial licence to imagery, the time spent not only shooting the images but for processing the files, editing and retouching files, the time spent arranging models and makeup artists and hair stylists and I don’t bother to calculate even half the time spent administering each commercial shoot. A commercial photographer has to factor in expenses for marketing, web hosting, paying for assistants and accountants and much more but most clients only get to see the few hours where the camera is to the eye.
So for the client who wants the punchy and eye catching imagery and has expectations of photography that will drive customers their way, think beyond the “who’s cheapest” mindset as it will only cost you more in the long run. Rarely will a cheap amateur reward you with a quality result so aim higher. Here is a link to a site that shows suitable pricing for commercial shooters of various types with mean pricing taken from a large pool of professional shooters: http://photographersindex.com/stockprice.htm
We strive to give the best value, real attention and quality possible to clients whilst being realistic about commercial costs so we quote each job on its merits and needs and image licencing requirements.
Aug 16, 2011 | Categories: commercial photography, photography schedules, print sales, wedding photography, weddings | Tags: Brisbane commercial photographer, freelance photography, media, photographic industry, pricing | 6 Comments »
Somehow we got to August and I haven’t had a chance to update in quite a while. So, where did we go? In the last few weeks, Violet and I have started shooting (ok, so she modeled and directed) a new catalog for a wonderful designer Vampressa Flora, I’ve shot stills for a lovely cafe in town and taken portraits there of key mover and shakers of Brisbane with the Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Recently I received notification of my first sale through my agent in France of publication in a rock mag I’d never even heard of previously, Les Inrockuptibles. I covered multiple sports team shoots for Northern Brisbane Rollers, and spent a bit of time chasing Violet and our son Elwood around just capturing our madcap lives. Australian Dance Awards was spectacular and I was commissioned to capture stills for AusDance. Coming from a family of dancers, this was a wonderful job to land. Also a shoot I captured for dark electronic act Revenant Cult appears now on their CD covers and website. For licencing reasons I will not load the shots of the PM but here’s a bit of a pictorial view of the last few weeks.
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Alice Cooper live – now via Agency Dalle
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Elwood – decomissioned vintage train tracks
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letting loose her dark side…
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Electro Industrial band Revenant Cult
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TEAM ZEBRA! Northern Brisbane Rollers Roller Derby League
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Northern Brisbane Rollers Roller Derby League
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Northern Brisbane Rollers Roller Derby League
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Northern Brisbane Rollers Roller Derby League
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Northern Brisbane Rollers Roller Derby League
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Elwood again, high speed crawl
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Australian Dance Awards 2011 at QPAC, Hosted by Ausdance QLD
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Australian Dance Awards 2011 at QPAC, Hosted by Ausdance QLD
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Australian Dance Awards 2011 at QPAC, Hosted by Ausdance QLD
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Australian Dance Awards 2011 at QPAC, Hosted by Ausdance QLD
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Australian Dance Awards 2011 at QPAC, Hosted by Ausdance QLD
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Elwood helping his grandad build the new fence
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Vampressa Flora fashion
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Vampressa Flora fashion
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Elwood – bath time fun
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Tonka Tuff Elwood
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Violet Vex skates for Northern Brisbane Rollers Roller Derby League
Aug 06, 2011 | Categories: Commercial Photography, commercial photography, Elwood, Event Photography, fashion, photography schedules, Portraits, Roller Derby, Skating, sports photography, Violet Vex, wedding photography, weddings | Tags: Brisbane commercial photographer, children photography, fashion shoots, music photography, Roller Derby, wedding photography | Comments Off
Jul 09, 2011 | Categories: greenmantle, Roller Derby, Skating, Violet Vex | Tags: Northern Brisbane Rollers, Roller Derby, Violet Vex | Comments Off
Some weeks ago my wife Violet (<<her Roller Derby fan page – yeah click that page and like it!) and I were looking for locations for a post apocalyptic cyber war fashion shoot and we found ourselves driving laps of the industrial areas of Pinkenba and tucked on the mangroves side of the Brisbane Airport. Most places there now have a very strong security presence and doing photography near most of the petroleum refineries out there awards you with a few hours of interrogation with the Australian Federal Police. So, rather than spending hours going through memory cards and alternative showing fashion shoots to unfriendly law enforcement types, we did a quick shot or two in many locations and then spent some hours stitching them together in post production. Violet and I did the main shot at home with studio lights set to match late afternoon angles and we then merged the lot before adding an explosion to the background courtesy of last year’s History Alive festival at Fort Lytton (which is on this weekend again – and I just realised they’ve got my shots on their title page still – cool). As you can see, in the shot, getting the whole scene done in one shot would have caused some significant strife. We’re planning on continuing the series over the next few weeks so stay tuned.
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Viva la Vex Revolution
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Jun 11, 2011 | Categories: fashion, greenmantle, Military, Portraits, retouching, Roller Derby, Skating, Violet Vex | 1 Comment »
Digging through photographic archives regularly can give a fresh view of photos you’d passed by during previous edit sweeps, sometimes because you can think of different ways to push the colour of a shot, or because it’s just caught your eye for the first time. Tonight I posted a few shots across my facebook galleries because I hadn’t shown them there before and they had tonight caught my eye for the first time in ages. Reposting a couple here after requests for higher resolutions so, feel free to use the photos in this post as your backgrounds for your own personal phone or iPad/Droid tablets.
early morning misty view of Nudgee cemetery
Red Cadillac at Sandgate
In other news, the need to get all studio gear WELL out of crawling baby reach is now in full effect, as Elwood is now eight months old and really very interested in the contents of camera bags, flash kits and lighting stands supposedly make for great teething chew toys.
Elwood playing peek a boo at bath time
Wedding bookings are picking up late this year but better late than never, shooting weddings is one of my favorite things.
May 30, 2011 | Categories: Elwood | Comments Off
Violet, Elwood and I took a trip down the Gold Coast and into the Hinterland area just below the mountains to visit the Shady Brain Farm (seriously, that’s its name – for real!) where we set up camp in the citrus grove and shot some peculiar looking fashion with cut throat razors before having fun with the all too cuddly resident alpacas and talkative cow. Not your average way to shoot commercials for a citrus and alpaca farm but at the Shady Brain, that’s how they roll, and it was more fun than I’ve had in a long, long time. As soon as their web site is set up, expect links posted to their delicious citrus and their alpaca fleece.
Big Boots To Fill
Elwood in the Citrus Grove
Violet Vex and Milo the Alpaca
Apr 27, 2011 | Categories: Commercial Photography, Elwood, greenmantle, Portraits, Violet Vex | Comments Off
Roller Derby is a major part of our family life, with my wife and I both being league skaters and with my photographic coverage of many roller derby bouts. So after a few team-mates from Northern Brisbane Rollers enquired about photoshoot prices I am happy to announce a special discount for all NBR members, that’s skaters, Refs, NSO’s and other admin/officials/helpers. For NBR members only, family portrait packages are only $330, down from $450. Other discounts to members are also available, special rates on profile shots, modelling folios and other commercial work.
For more information, terms and availability please email me on mark@greenmantle.biz
Mar 11, 2011 | Categories: Uncategorized | Comments Off
The following Special Offers have been posted on my Google Places site, scroll down on that page to the Offers section or just contact me using the details on my contact page
Mark Greenmantle Photography
$100 off band studio pics
Book now, only till August 15th. Budget Band studio shoot, booking fee included, three hours of photography, all images delivered on hi-res DVD with fifteen images retouched and licence to use images for website / regular print advertising / CD cover art – only $560 until February 2nd.
Expires - Feb 2, 2011
Mark Greenmantle Photography
Referral Rewards
Free portrait sittings available. Refer a commercial shoot (min $800) to Mark Greenmantle Photography and receive a free portrait sitting as thanks.
Expires - May 10, 2011
Jan 03, 2011 | Categories: Commercial Photography, Portraits | Comments Off
well, almost done now – the total overhaul of the domain is about to go live. Over the holidays I shall cull some of the side domains and subdomains that have been dormant spare placeholders and unproductive now for years. Along with them into the ether trash will go a lot of the ancient galleries that have come to only slow down the server and attract spammers. So, if you are wanting to grab low res images from clubs, events, storm chases or any of the many other genres I have covered online since around 2004, now’s the time to dig through and find those old shots.
Dec 28, 2010 | Categories: Uncategorized | Comments Off
It has been a very busy festive season here at Mark Greenmantle Photography as it has been our son Elwood’s first Christmas and so much family have been so keen to get to spend time with him over the last week. Between that and having been so busy as production manager at the pro-lab, printing an average of 1500 photos daily for other professional photographers, there’s been precious little time to update this site and share more content with you.
In the coming year expect a lot more visual eye candy, tutorials, and advice on photography for up and coming photographers. Until then, enjoy your festive season holidays (should you be getting those), and drive safe!
Elwood’s first Christmas:
Dec 27, 2010 | Categories: Elwood | Tags: babies, Christmas photography, Christmas trees, Elwood, festive season photos, presents | Comments Off
Elwood at Sandgate foreshore
Allow me to introduce our family’s newest member Elwood. Born 24th September 2010 and the reason my site has not enjoyed the overhaul wrap up that was started in August. He’s been getting a lot of introductions via Facebook but had not yet graced my own site.
We had a photoshoot today at Sandgate on the foreshore as it was high tide and the sand at Brighton was drenched. Expect to see a great deal of young Elwood at Roller Derby events with his gorgeous mother Violet and I, and at some suitable shoots.
Oct 31, 2010 | Categories: Elwood | Tags: baby photography, Brighton, Brisbane, Sandgate | Comments Off
If you’re reading this, you’ve cottoned on to the fact our site is undertaking a major overhaul. At the risk of losing the wonderful google stats my old site has enjoyed, I am taking to it with a sledgehammer approach to put it more in line with how you, the customer would likely prefer to see the site. Far less clutter and tech jargon will be visible once everything is finished so I hope you like what you are seeing!
Sep 04, 2010 | Categories: Uncategorized | Comments Off
More fun INation shots from Saturday night – more at : http://www.greenmantle.biz/elffinarts/pic/thumbnails.php?album=95
Jul 02, 2008 | Categories: Uncategorized | Comments Off
Looking forward to a busy week ahead, but also still reviewing an enjoyable weekend behind me.
This included shots for Faith Nightclub, Club Cerberus (for which I am hosting a site but waiting on sys admin DNS changes to show it off….), Hellfire (not really work safe link for this one, google at your peril), iNation album debut (see pic above), a model folio for V Management and endless file management for myself.
Jun 30, 2008 | Categories: Uncategorized | Comments Off
