Friday, July 24, 2009

Giveaway ~ pixelens photography

This month I’m proud to feature an amazing photographer and friend that I had the pleasure of meeting through Flickr... Jason Bouwmeester of pixelens photography! I am constantly inspired and in awe of his work. In fact, he’s the one that helped get me into macro photography, as well as hdr, tilt shift, self portraits… I could go on! He’s always coming up with new projects and techniques that keep your mind in astonishment. His creativity and approach to photography is so unique, you can’t help but just want to learn from him… which is another insight about Jason… he is incredibly helpful by coming up with tutorials, and sharing his knowledge and finds. Also, he’s even been known to share his processes from taking a photo to post-processing.

.mad world So I invite you to learn a little more about Jason, and please remember to leave a comment under this post to be entered in his giveaway! Be sure to leave your email or other way to contact you if you win!

The Prize:

Any unframed print, 8x10 or 8x12 format from Jason’s site or his flickr stream

Giveaway Ends ~ 7/31/09 Winner will be announced 8/1/09

Short bio:
Photography. Where to start? I always remember having some sort of a camera or another. The first one I really remember was an old Kodak disc film based camera back in the day. Next up I remember making a pinhole camera out of cardboard in Jr. High School in shop class, was quite fun and I really enjoyed it. Had a Nikon film SLR for awhile, and then...

Then I moved on to digital point and shoots - Canon Powershot A20 and A70s. Being in computers, it made sense and the lure of digital photography was too much. Sometimes I think it was a mistake, I have some good shots composition wise, but through the ones I had, I never really used the cameras to the full capabilities - and I lost a lot of my knowledge I’d gained from using film.

Canada Place
Enter November 2007… my first digital SLR, the Canon Digital Rebel XTi (400D). I loved it. It opened up photography for me again in ways I couldn’t imagine and beyond…
.dendrobium speciosum textured
I don’t really have a specific style… I don’t know if that is a good thing or a bad thing, I just like to try different things and experiment with my camera and Photoshop - see what I can do with the camera and with post-processing. That being said, I give my best effort to getting the composition, framing and lighting right in camera and most of my photos are post-processed for clarity and perhaps minor color and curves adjustments. However, certain photos I will post-process to the max with techniques like HDR (high dynamic range) Imaging and simulating cross-processing. I also like to expand my horizons by using techniques such as TtV (through the viewfinder) which requires using a newer camera and shooting through the viewfinder of an old camera like a Kodak Duaflex.

In December 2008 I upgraded to the new Canon 5D Mark II with a 24-105 f/4L lens. I must say, it's a huge leap up from the XTi. My current gear consists of the 24-105 f/4L, 50mm f/1.8, 75-300 f/4-56 USM, and recently the famed 70-200 f/2.8L.
From my first wedding shoot on July 26, 2008.
I shoot weddings and engagement photos, and am branching out into sports photography with University/College sports and an MMA (mixed martial arts) fight booked for the fall. My dream? To be a concert photographer - I'd die to be able to shoot Trent Reznor as he performs live!

What inspires me?
I think what inspires me most is just my passion for photography. I love being able to capture the moment the way that I see it and share that moment in time with everyone else. That being said, I do enjoy the vast number of images and talent that can be found on Flickr and more often than not I find myself finding inspiration from some of the photography that I find there. As well, I always need to be learning new things and new techniques so I gather inspiration from branching out and experimenting with my photography.

Hotel Equipment & Supply Co. Ltd.
Favorite subject to photograph?
Man, that's a tough one... I go through my phases of what I like to shoot and the style I like to shoot in. I've shot buildings, landscapes, textures, animals, people, done street photography... I've used TtV, HDR, (simulated) tilt-shift and most recently rented a fisheye lens. If pressed on the matter I'd have to say some of my favorite shooting sessions have been of bands or musicians as they perform - there's something about the energy and passion in the music that extends to you while you shoot and just makes it that much more enjoyable.


Story behind one of my favorite images?

.attitude

That's a tough one as well - I have a few images that I could class as favorites. I suppose the one with the best story is the one I titled .attitude. Mike Schlosser and Curtis Santiago were performing at The Works Street Stage last summer (2008) and I managed to catch them on my lunch hour. I started snapping some shots and really got into it so switched over to my 50mm and walked right up to the stage. Mike noticed this and "posed" while I snapped off a few shots. I sent him this picture afterwards and he used it as his MySpace profile picture for awhile. One of the best feelings as a photographer is hearing how much people like a certain image, and it's even more satisfying when someone absolutely loves a shot you've taken of them.

Self-promotion?
LOL, that's a good one! I currently run most of my stuff through my website

which is linked to a SmugMug gallery where prints can be purchased. I have to get in gear and put up some more print items, but almost any picture that is on my site or my Flickr account can be purchased for a reasonable price. If you're a local band or are getting married drop me a line, I'd love to hear from you!

Snowy owl .locked

.ethereal .winter

31 comments:

  1. Jason is such a great photographer!!! :)

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  2. A fascinating post… and wide ranging work too.

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  3. Great photographer! Amazing some of the photos! Your article is really good. Thanks for shareing!
    Best wishes,
    Eline

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  4. His work is beautiful, and the interview was good too!

    www.Hollyrocks.etsy.com

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  5. Beautiful photography. I love the DoF in the .cactus shot, and the amazing commotion of .mad world.

    heidig@gmail.com

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  6. jason's work is fabulous!! i love that .attitude shot! concert photography would be the best job!

    thanks for sharing guys! :)

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  7. Amazing work! I especially like the second photo you've featured here.

    onarollaccessories @ gmail.com

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  8. Wow, beautiful work Jason:) so talented!! Thanks for giving me a chance to win. I submitted your giveaways to hmgiveaways.blogspot.com as well

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  9. Stunning work- the picture '.winter' is really beautiful.

    '.dream' (from Flickr) was very touching- wonderfully captured.

    Thanks
    VintagePrincipessa.etsy.com

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  10. Beautiful pictures!!!

    ~ vabeachquilter~

    www.vabeachquilter.com or http://vabeachquilter.artfire.com

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  11. As a photographer myself, I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed looking at your work. It would be lovely to have one of your prints so I figured I'd enter the giveaway.

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  12. Beautiful photography I would love to have a print of the snowy owl. Keeping my fingers crossed.Marian

    mtzeenla@yahoo.com

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  13. i think i love the calmer photos the best, the simple shots or close-ups. nice images!

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  14. Wow what beautiful photography! I really like the Third picture in the Edmonton Series of the Town with dark clouds its awesome! Thanks for entering me into this giveaway
    unforgetable_dreamer_always@hotmail.com

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  15. What a wonderful and wide ranged photographer. Great work.

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  16. I cked out Jason's Flickr stream-some of my favorites are the flower photos,(Petal)and the Jasper National Park-does awesome work

    aunteegem@yahoo.com

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  17. Oh i like his stuff -please enter me

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  18. There are some really great photos!

    craziedee3@aol.com

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  19. He has one macro shot of a dendelion puff which I love. He's really, really good.

    callieivy(at)gmail.com

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  20. Great feature, and amazing photographer! I'm a newbie, starting out with my first digital SLR..I love to see examples of where this could take me down the road!

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  21. What an amazing photographer. The photos are so dynamic and beautiful, love them.

    sinfulsoapco.etsy.com

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  22. Love this photography! Very talented Jason.

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  23. Love that dandelion print on his website!

    http://www.oldbagvintage.etsy.com

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  24. Love the pictures!

    aikychien at yahoo dot com

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  25. Wow! What a great discovery - thanks for sharing him with us. I'll be sure to check out his work.

    And thanks for having this drawing!

    Barbara Gordon
    Barbara Gordon Photography

    barbaragordonphotography [at] gmail [dot] com
    barbaragordon [dot] etsy [dot] com

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  26. Wow! Simply stunning photography! Consider me entered. :)

    admin@balancedcrafts.com

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  27. Thanks to everyone who stopped by and checked out the feature, I was honored to have been asked by Kim! I enjoyed reading your comments - thanks for the compliments.

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  28. Nice Blog ! Thank you for your very nice articles. I look forward to visiting your site in the future! read more

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