PhotoSven.blog

Freedom

2011-07-04T10:44:00.000-07:00

May I scare you?

Isn't that the beauty of life? I was takeing pictures with Manfred and Peter yesterday at the CSD-parade in Cologne. I saw freedom and tolerance to a degree I haven't witnessed before. Awesome!

Cheers!

Enjoy, and live your life with passion, whatever yours may be.

Sven

Picking up pace

2011-06-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

Anna lend me a hand for developing and (index-) scanning my backlog of about 1000 negatives. Big big thank you, Anna! We hit quite some gems and I've seen some incredible color-results on Kodak Porta VC, a film Janusz Kawa warmly recommended to me last year in August. It'll take a while for me to do the high-res scans and the post-processing, but I'm very happy with how far we got.

I've spent the evening packing gear, as tomorrow and the day after, I'll be shooting the cover, artwork and some press-material for the upcomming CD of my old friends of REV22:21 (http://www.rev22-21.nl/boekingen.php). Some of the frames on their website where shot by me at an open-air gig last year. I'm looking forward shooting these fabulous musicians again. I'm also happy that this is one of the few paid shootings where I have the opportunity of fully expressing my own creativety. I'll keep you posted.

In the mean time, here's a frame of Anna - titled liquid Anna - I've shot two weeks ago. Hope you like it, I certainly do.

On the tunes: Brian Culbertson - You've got to Funkifize

Enjoy, and live your Life with passion!

Sven

180

2011-05-06T14:02:00.000-07:00

Lewis Floyd Henry again. I made a montage of the frames I posted previously. They come out very beautifull on print.

I made some 180 degree turns over the last couple of weeks and I'm still not sure I'm done. Anyway, I have a little bit more spare time now to do the things I like. By the way, this is post 180 and counting. I'm still going strong.

Cheers

Sven

In mid air

2011-04-16T03:55:00.000-07:00

Some things went pretty Fubar this week business wise and so I slammed the emergency break in mid air. As those of you who visit here on a regular basis know, this had to trigger a bout of unbridled creativety. May I present to you Lewis Floyd Henry live at La Favela Chic in London as shot on February the 4th of this year.

I'm still having a love-affair with beautiful Kodak 400-TX film. I'm on holiday 'till the end of the month, so don't expect too much.

On the Tunes: Kid Rock - I got one for ya

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Lo and behold

2011-01-28T01:04:00.000-08:00

I'm starting to materialize my new year's resolutions for 2011. Kind of picked up an old theme here.

I'm interested in your opinions, so let me know. Big thank you to my PHOS-Buddy Manfred who was kind enough to provide these mervelous gloves!

I'll be shooting in London next week at a place called Favela chic if all goes according to plan. I'm pretty excited and have high expectations for the forthcoming frames.

on The Tunes: Nickelback - Next Contestant

Hang on, hang tough

Sven

Resolutions

2011-01-09T09:54:00.000-08:00

Resolute resolutions for 2011:

Organize life better to get more things done
Starting a project on Marble & Grain
Shoot only on film
Make a book

Everything else is written in the stars.

Enjoy, hang tough and stay on top!

Sven

and a happy new year!

2010-12-28T11:15:00.000-08:00

To all of you. Thanx for all your christmas wishes. All the best to you and a happy new year!

Here is a Frame of Victoria I shot some weeks ago for a portfolio for five beautiful students of the "Modeschule Mönchengladbach"

Got to go, I'm on the roll.

Enjoy your christmas days!

Sven

on the roll

2010-12-20T13:31:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post with some reults from last Stunday...

Both quite different, both - in my oppinion - beautiful on their own.

On the Tunes: Break On Trough - The Who

Enjoy, and live your life with passion

Sven

Autumn once again

2010-12-17T13:42:00.001-08:00

I was working on one of the Frames I shot in NYC this January and thought I'd share it with you.

I posted an earlier version in February this year, just as I got the Flextight Scanner. I'm interested in your opinion.

On the Tunes: My Head's in Missisippi - ZZ Top

Enjoy, and live your life with passion

Sven

Holy Cow!

2010-12-17T10:47:00.000-08:00

The printer arrived today. It was delivered on a forklift palette weighing in at a whopping 75 Kg, packaging included. I have currently some problems with loading my beloved Hahnemühle fine art baryta paper. It seems like the printer-driver on OS X does not yet support manual sheet loading and the baryta is too thick to go through the main paper tray. I made some test-prints on crappy HP paper and I'm stunned to see that the printer output looks better than what I see on my calibrated Apple cinema display. That had not happend before...

Cheers, enjoy your weekend

Sven

Hello.....

2010-12-13T19:15:00.000-08:00

slowly, very very slowly I'm starting to get some time to shoot and write again. The IT-business has been eating away all of my time since summer. It (pun intended) is big fun and I'm not complaining, but something startet to itch a couple of weeks ago.

So.... Here is a shot of Anna and David I took at Olga's portrait classes. I hope you like it, I certainly do.

I think it really starts off where I left in Paris. I've become quite confident with my lighting skills and found that I can get the light I want from basic "household" gear. Soft-Boxes and fancy studio-flash have become somewhat obsolete. The frame was shot with the 85mm f/1.2 hand held and wide open. Hmmm... gorgeous 85 :-)

My crappy HP B9180 printer broke down for the second time in two years some time ago. As much as I like it's black and white output, from a build-quality point of view It's a worthless piece of garbage and the most disappointing HP product I ever owned. Since the IT-business is in need of a large format printer for printing software-diagrams, I decided to go mainstream and ordered a Epson Stylus Pro 4900 printer to replace it. It's sceduled to arrive tomorrow...

Keep up the good times and live your life with pasion!

Cheers, it's good to be back.

Sven

Still alive...

2010-09-20T10:18:00.000-07:00

I'm awfully busy with my business (pun intended :-). Still every now and then I find the time to shoot a few frames.

This was shot with Anna and Ben two weeks ago. Suny, a very talented photographer whom I got to know at the ICP in New York was helping me on the set. Thanx everyone, I like it!

Cheers!

Sven

Short

2010-09-08T06:30:00.000-07:00

Short on time, most of the time...

Here's a frame I shot at peter o. mahler yesterday.

Enjoy, I'm in a hurry...

Sven

Quick Hello

2010-08-11T09:29:00.000-07:00

I'm currently hiking in Austria with my girlfriend. I'm having a really good time here! I'll be back on Monday and I've got a huge cache of film to develop.

Cheers!

Sven

Insomniac

2010-07-30T21:25:00.000-07:00

I woke up early and have been editing for the last two and a half hours. We were shooting on a bridge near the Bir Hakaim subway station yesterday.

I'm very much into the cinema look right now. The 70's color and the whole atmosphere. I also think that for the first time I shot a fashion photo that I'm rally happy with.

Today we have the final critique and the farewell party. I think that the 8 days in Paris brought my photograpy again one step further. Janusz Kawa is a great photographer and a very talented teacher. I've learned a great deal about exposure, found out some things about color and had lots of chances to get really carried away by my own creativety. Thanx Janusz, I had a great time!

Cheers from Paris!

Sven

My Kitchen

2010-07-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

Day 5

... well, not exactly my kitchen, but it's my frame. I gained access to a french restaurant kitchen for a few shots. So we put the model behind some pots and pans and started shooting. The kitchen was tiny and got crowded fast with a fellow student holding the reflector, me shooting, the model, the kitchen staff around and all the waiters looking over our shoulders.

Everything worked out fine until someone shouted "basta" and we had to go. I got a few frames and I'm happy with the result. I think Audrey Hepburn would be jealous :-)

Cheers!

Sven

Edit in response to Mattie's comment:
The Picture was intended surrealistic. The intent is to show a "sophisticated" houswife wearing Chanel and clearly not being up to everyday's tasks in the kitchen. So you made the right observation!
Cheers from Paris

Palais Royal

2010-07-27T10:39:00.000-07:00

Day 3

We have been shooting all morning in the courtyard and the garden of the Palais Royal. After that I spent the afternoon selecting frames and had an hour of Photoshop coaching in the early evening. It's much shooting, much walking, much editing and tons of fun. It's also a lot of hard work and I'm pretty much worn out :-)

Until now we focussed on Portraits. We used speedlights, scrims and (mainly) reflectors. Starting tomorrow we will focus on fashion and shoot with portable studio flash on location.

A big "thank you" to both of the Models. You both where great today!

Please leave a comment, I'm interested in your opinions!

I'll keep in touch.

Cheers!

Sven

Paris

2010-07-26T19:57:00.000-07:00

I'm a bit of an Insomniac somehow today. Probably ate too much couscous yesterday evening. Anyway, I think I'm making progress in Paris. We had this assignment to shoot portraits with a speedlite. I have to admit I did only the absolutely necessary frames and got rid of the flash as soon as possible...

These two frames I shot of Adam, one of my fellow students on this workshop. I must say I'm quite happy with the result! Here's a link to Adam's blog.

We used the California Sunbounce Sun-Mover reflector for these shots. I think it's a very usefull tool.

I'm very happy for haveing Janusz Kawa as a teacher. He is a tremendously experienced photographer and I learned quite a few things.

Cheers, talk to you soon!

Sven

Detroit Baby!

2010-07-24T09:18:00.000-07:00

Hotel Jaques de Molay, Room 103, 94 Rue des Archives, Paris

Tourists seem to be willing to queue forever to visit an attraction. One of the reasons I've never been in the Tower of London nor have I visited Notre Dame in Paris. The city is crowded. Not exactly what I like, but then again it is saturday, maybe things will improve during the week.

At least you get free hugs in Paris, but I don't remember ever paying for one before ;-)

on the Tunes: The iPod is still in my Suitcase...

Enjoy and live your life with passion!

Sven

Yeah yeah

2010-07-23T08:06:00.000-07:00

It's friday. The gear is packed and tomorrow I'm off to Paris for the ICP classes with Janusz Kawa. I'm telling you man, I'm stuck. If there is something like a writer's block, I've got the photographers block. Well, sort of. I haven't been posting a lot recently. Buisiness is booming with most interesting projects. My girlfriend is in Kroatia. I don't know, I'm just not in the mood to shoot frames. I think Paris will cure it.

I shot these three frames with radically different exposures on two weddings earlier this year. The last two where post-processed by Michaela. Hope you like 'em.

I'm off to Paris now.

Cheers!

Sven

2010-07-14T11:50:00.000-07:00

Back in Mai last year Olga Kaloussi shot my portrait. I am a big admirer of Olga and learned most of what I know about photography from her. I'm not talking about tedious technical details, I'm talking about what really matters: crop, composition, black and white photography and what makes a frame "work". A couple of weeks ago I was able to shoot Olga's portrait.

Olga Kaloussi. Published with her kind permission.

I'm currently preparing for the Paris trip. It's my second turn to the city of lights this year and I'm really looking forward to eight days of photo classes with New York fashion photographer Janusz Kawa.

Life is good, I'm happy, I'm in love. I hope to post more when I'm in Paris.

on the Tunes: José Feliciano - Light My Fire

Enjoy, let your life be bombastic!

Sven

PS: I'm currently drowning in work and I've got a huge backlog on emails. Sorry for that!

Manic Moday

2010-06-28T01:08:00.000-07:00

It's Monday morning and I'm in an awfully foul mood. Bad Karma all around. The big picture is OK, but somehow a lot of details turn fubar at the moment...

Anyway, love to all of you

Sven

Droplets

2010-06-26T13:13:00.000-07:00

Peter published a whole bunch of pictures from this event already here.

I've got only one to add. Hope you like it.

Got to catch some sleep now...

Cheers!

Sven

Still alive...

2010-06-18T13:01:00.000-07:00

Ping... The software-project is taking it's toll. No time to spare at all. I did manage to shoot some pictures in recent days, but I haven't even found the time to download them from the camera.

My old car had seen more of the repair shop than of me in the last couple of weeks. All the repairs consumed a small fortune and so it had to go. I traded her in for one of those german sports cars. It's black, it's beautiful, it's addictive and it's awfully fast.

I'll be shooting with Manfred and Peter tomorrow at the german wakeboard championship.

Talk to you soon

Sven

We're up!

2010-06-04T13:46:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have to admit, I'm somewhat proud of it... I've got my own page on the Hasselblad-Site.

I'm a big fan of their analog equipment and two of the frames where actually shot and or processed using Hasselblad gear (bottom row 2nd and 3rd image). The page is not yet finished entirely, because one of the frames is not quite on par and needs to be replaced by another frame from the same shooting.

on the Tunes: Guns 'n Roses - Nighttrain

Enjoy, now go and shoot some great pictures

Sven

Oh yeah...

2010-05-29T16:00:00.000-07:00

... and loose that tripod if you start doing fireworks. It's boring. It's been done ten million times before...

I hope you like 'em and I hope that you agree. Anyway, got to take a nap now...

on the Tunes: Prince - F.U.N.K

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Baby, here I am

2010-05-29T01:01:00.000-07:00

...in the morning and backed by popular demand! It's Saturday morning, the sun is shining, I had some nice breakfast, the Black Crowes are screaming from the speakers and I'm in a splendid mood. Life... is good!

The software-project is running extremely well and me and the guys are crunching code in overdrive. I'm one happy camper! On the downside, I didn't have much time to shoot and post. But guess what? Here is a frame that will probably knock you straight off your feet!

Now stop drooling and start breathing again! This beauty is Christina and we did a shooting some time ago and had a wonderful time. The fabulous dress Christina is wearing is by stre' low, one of Düsseldorf's leading fashion designers. It somehow wound up in my studio very unexpected... Big thank you to both Marion and Christina!

on The Tunes: The Black Crowes - Hard to Handle

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Hot tub

2010-05-10T11:11:00.000-07:00

This is a short one, I'm tired, and a hot tub is waiting for me :-)

Summary: I'm one very lucky guy and I'm truly happy, I've shot some amazing pictures with Olga yesterday (she's fantastic, her classes are too!), Michaela got married this week and I shot her wedding, I ordered a tonne of lab-equipment today to speed up the processing of all undeveloped film, I haven't got the time to read all of your blogs, I have a huge huge backlog, my sister and I are working on a relaunch of the site, I'm enroled for eight days of classes with New York fashion photographer Janusz Kawa in Paris in July (ICP) etc. etc. etc.

Here's some output, more to come:

About the Model: Tina, 22, becoming an architect. I haven't shot with someone so versatile since shooting with Tomo in New York. Thanx Tina, you did a great job!

Cheers, enjoy and live your life with passion!

on the Tunes: whatever... go play your own music :-)

Sven

The real deal baby

2010-04-24T12:58:00.000-07:00

Imagine - unlimited access to a 60 foot stage at an open-air gig and full access to shoot whatever you want on stage... Oh yeah, and some 20 kilowatts of PA power to the left and to the right of you... and not to mention some of the very finest artists I know. It's good to have some old friends in the industry! This is the real deal baby!

All these frames where shot using a second hand camera nobody wants to shoot with today (EOS 30V, 70 Euros). I used Kodak 400-TX which also nobody wants to use today but I have to admit to using two of the very finest Canon lenses in existence (50 f/1.2 and 120 f/2).

Digital is...well ok, but nothing brings the atmosphere this fine black and white film brings across :-) I stopped being a cleanup-junkey and didn't bother to clean up these negatives (sorry for the goo that ended up on one of your frames Ralph). I think it ads to the atmosphere and the authenticity of these frames.

Like it? If you've got the time baby, I've got the ride!

on the Tunes: Prince - The Ride

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Every 3 seconds

2010-04-17T05:36:00.000-07:00

Turn over the developing tank every 3 seconds. It's film processing day today and Anna and her Sister Sofia are lendig a hand.

We're mainly working on films from Christina's session from back in February, but are also processing films from Allard and Louise's wedding and the REV22:21 concert. Michaela was gonna come in to scan some negs and discuss her wedding photos. She just called to tell me that since her bachelor-party yesterday evening was too much fun she was in no condition to drop by. Way to go girl:-)

on the Tunes: Luniz - I got five on it

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Rough cuts

2010-04-12T14:47:00.000-07:00

It's been quiet for a while. No worries, life is good. I keep shooting, it's just that... well, I tell you about that another time :-). So here is something from the dark room and two digital ones:

I had the extraordinary opportunity to shoot on a huge open-air live stage in Saturday night. Big hug to everyone at REV21:22 for making this possible. Hope you like the frames,I certainly do!

on the Tunes: Autograph - Turn up the Radio

Living on cloud nine...

Sven

Yeah!

2010-04-05T10:27:00.000-07:00

I'm back. 151 Posts and counting.
I took no camera to Kitzbühel. I would have been way to distracted to shoot anyway and the decision to go was - you know - spontaneous. So, this Iphone shot will have to do. I'm happy :-)

Love, to all of you and... just do it!

Sven

Podfather

2010-03-29T03:21:00.000-07:00

the podfather is back, the Mac daddy of all sys admins, cofounder of MTV - Adam Curry. The daily sourcecode is back. So jam in them plugs, let it reverberate your membranes, it'll make you feel good. Podcasting is Adam Curry!

Wishing I was in Kitzbühel...

Sven

Back in DüDo

2010-03-26T15:45:00.000-07:00

hey, something's different in my world today - they changed the black traffic signs to a bright yellow :-)

on the Tunes: Jason Mraz - Curbside Prophet

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Allard and Louise

2010-03-19T15:01:00.000-07:00

My homie Allard is marrying his Loise here in Kaprun and he asked me to shoot their wedding. I'ts a two day happening and today was the first day. I've been doing some location-scouting yesterday and the day before. I have to admit that generally speaking I'm no big fan of weddings, but this one I do enjoy tremendously.

I shot a few Leica frames outside, but used the Canon and the Hasselblad gear for most of the pictures. Next to digital I shot three polaroids and quite some film. I was planning to shoot more digital to be on the safe side, but found on location that I preferred analog even for the critical work.

Congratulations to the happy couple and their family and friends.

Enjoy!

Sven

stitched up

2010-03-18T00:54:00.001-07:00

Well not exactly, but... I'm in Kaprun in Austria, the hot water in the hotel doesn't work and it's either waiting for things to get fixed or having a shower and getting a shave in luke-warm water.

Anyway, this is one of my favorite John Mayer songs. I hope to shoot some frames today.

I'll keep in touch...

Sven

Tell a story

2010-03-10T13:26:00.000-08:00

It's small, it's unobstrusive and whenever you push the shutter-release button it tells a story.

Meter every now and then, prefocus at somewhere between 5-10 feet, shutter speed fixed at 1/125th. Loosly dangling around the neck, lens at waist-level. Whenever something interesting comes your way just push the button. Very intuitive. Very quiet. Nobody will notice. Never mind the viewfinder. The meter is excellent, the best I've seen sofar. There are no fixed aperture stops. The lens is tack-sharp.

I'm starting to understand why Leica M was Henri Cartier-Bresson's prefered camera. I'm starting to understand why Harvey Stein preferes a 21mm lens. Leica M6, Elmarit-M 1:2.8/21mm, Ilford Delta 100. Frames unprocessed and straight from the flextight scanner. Have to test this with HP5+ and Tri-X...

on the Tunes: Linkin Park - Faint

Enjoy, and live your life with passion.

Sven

Ici Paris

2010-03-08T13:55:00.000-08:00

Fighting the backlogs on all fronts...

From the Boston-Club in Düsseldorf. I liked the frames best where the flash didn't fire. I love the 400-TX film for this kind of picture.

Some Anna from three weeks ago.

Sandra's idea and my 6 foot 2 :-)

Paris Subway. Not my idea either :-)

The Parisiens are very friendly. Le cien...

Le grand Louvre and great design go hand in hand.

Got to catch some sleep now.

To Sandra and Michaela: we had a ball in Paris. I had a marvelous time with you. Thanx and a big hug.

On the Tunes: Maroon 5 - Tangled

liberté, égalité, fraternité mes amis!

Sven

legs and tummys

2010-02-27T15:18:00.000-08:00

The delicate balance between available light and flash, between focus and off focus, between dragging the shutter and exposure time, between image stabilisation and camera shake. A kiss and a hug to Bobby Lane, my marvellous teacher at the ICP in New York. We've practiced all these things in class in the studio with her.

Today I gave it a go with mobile flash (speedlight). It's more difficult than doing it with studio strobes, beause you never know up front if that little plastic box in your hotshoe has the same idea as you have. Here are the results (I think you really have to click and enlarge them to appreciate these):

I hope these images convey a bit of the sheer energy these dancers put on the dancefloor. I found them marvelous and I never saw girls with such beautiful tummys before. Never talk about them legs...

I'm tired as a dog, so it might be that the colors are a little off. Still playing with the idea of converting them to black and white, but not today anymore. Two shootings comming up tomorrow. Exciting.

on the Tunes (still): Toto - King of the World

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Anna again...

2010-02-27T07:10:00.000-08:00

I've got quite some backlog (as usual:-). Here is what I stumbled across yesterday evening:
I like the flextight better and better every day. My good dimensionned mac has a hard time, since the scans are somewhat above 55 megapixels. Here is a 100% crop (click image to enlarge to 100%):

The crop is not sharpened and shot with the Sonnar 180mm f/4 wide open on Ilford Delta 100 pro. My lens was produced somewhere in the 90s. Personally I think that the whole myth which surrounds Hasselblad and the legendary Zeiss lenses is... totally justified! What's more, analog Hasselblad equipment from the mid 90's can easily beat the crap out of every 35mm digital SLR produced today in terms of resolution. Sure, you can't see the frame in the back of your camera the moment you've shot it, but there are polaroids, which are just as good. I admit that for learning to shoot I would recommend digital gear, because it's cheaper and you've got an instant learning-experience. But for me, I haven't seen anything yet that beats film for the real deal.

on the Tunes: Toto - King of the World

Enjoy - I'm gonna test some 400TX tonight:-)

Sven

Closing curtain

2010-02-22T14:13:00.001-08:00

An important Düsseldorf institution closed it's doors today. Nipon Kan was the oldest Japanese restaurant in Europe. I consider it one of the best japanese restaurants I've been. Quality wasn't always consistens over the last seven years. It's a tragic loss.

On the positive side, My X1 Scanner arrived today. One happy camper!
I've got a humongous backlog on blog-posts I've got to read and emails I've got to reply to, so I'm gonna keep it short for today.

on the Tunes: Kid Rock - Bawitdaba

Cheers!

Sven

Tight...

2010-02-19T13:09:00.000-08:00

... as in flextight. Tight certainly goes for my wallet after ordering the felxtight scanner this morning. The friendly guys from Hasselblad called me this afternoon to tell me that it was shipped from the factory in Denmark and that it is straight on it's way to the studio. It will probably arrive on Monday or possibly Tuesday. Exciting!

This brings me to the question of analog versus digital. The answer is quite simple: it depends, or as Bobby uses to say: everything depends on everything. To be a bit more elaborate, I prefer analog for black and white. The jury is still out on color. BUT: I am a big fan of shallow depth of field. My favorite 35mm Lens is the 85 f/1.2 and the 50 f/1.2 is also frequently in my camera bag. As you have maybe observed in my pictures, I use these lenses wide open or almost completely open most of the time. Under these circumstances, I can only focus these lenses accurately using both live-view and a tripod. Autofocus is not usable if the frame is going to be used for anything other then usage on the web. I have tried to do these shots with my analog EOS 30V, but to no avail. As for analog black and white, I love the depth these images have, I love what goes on in the background when things go out of focus, I love the smooth gradations, which are so very different from digital and I love the tack-sharp 7500*7500 pixel scans the flextight produces. On the downside, this is a time-consuming process. Developing a 12-frame film costs about half an hour. Scanning film costs about 5 minutes per frame. I think the latter may be the reason for the high quality. Whereas the digital sensors are designed to capture up to several frames per second, the scanner takes five minutes for a single frame. Also, the digital sensors of my canon bodies capture 14 bits per color, the flextight captures 16 bits per color. This doesn't sound like much, but a difference of 2 bits means that the scanner captures four times as much information per color as the sensor can. In the end I think that the influence of the film is the decisive factor. This is no final truth, this of course is only my opinion - and you are welcome to have your own. What works for me may not work for you and vice versa. To make my case, here are some yet unpublished gems I shot in New York in January, both analog and digital. Did I mention that I like squares?

I was at the Mapplethorpe exposition this week. It's awesome, I'm gobsmacked and I hope maybe to visit it again on Sunday.

on the Tunes: Heather Small and Tom Jones - You Need Love Like I Do (Don't You)

Enjoy, have a nice weekend and live your life with a dogged determination to complete fully whatever it is you're doing!

Cheers!

Sven

The Cure

2010-02-17T12:43:00.000-08:00

The cure for my 100 € scanner arrived this afternoon, at least for a test drive. It will be hard to let go of this beauty on friday...

My first impression is that a) it's quite easy and intuitive to get good scan results and b) this scanner deserves it's reputation. It's a heavy, solid and somewhat bulky design with a surprising small footprint. A fine piece of machinery which fits nicely on every desk. I'll post more results in the comming days.

on the Tunes: Sting - This Cowboy Song

Enjoy, and scan your negs with passion!

Sven

The good news is...

2010-02-11T14:22:00.000-08:00

I had some highly appreciated lessons in developing film last week! I'm now working on my celluloid back log :-)

Here's some output from my ~~crappy good for nothing~~ 100 € Scanner. The good news is... The guys at Hasselblad will send me an Flextight X1 Negative Scanner on Loan for a three days test drive next week. Sweeeet :-)

on the Tunes: Cameo - Word Up

Cheers!

Sven

Plugs

2010-02-07T13:52:00.000-08:00

Holiday Inn, Stuttgart Weilimdorf, Room 307

I have to do some plugs, because people, some of them close to me, have written some excellent stuff.

WAR. What I hate about the wars in Afghanistan and Irak is that we only see clean images. Robert Capa and the likes would probably be disgusted by the picture the media serve us about these wars and so am I. The video view from the guided bombs, the scenes after the suicide bombings with all body parts nicely and conveniently cleaned up. Worst thing you see every now and then is a coffin with a flag draped over it. That is not war, that is Hollywood. I was happy to see that Lucian Read shows us a tiny little bit more of the war in Afghanistan. See here and judge for yourself.

Martin, a highly regarded friend of mine and the person who convinced me to make the switch to Apple computers started a new blog. He wrote a in my opinion very interesting and well-written article about the war in Afghanistan.

Bachus wrote some interesting stuff about the Robert Mapplethorpe exposition currently in Düsseldorf. Mapplethorphe is one of my favorite photographers and I'm just dying to go to the exposition and see his prints.

On my way to Stuttgart I met up with Peter and Manfred from the PHOS-group to shoot some frames at an event at the airport.

Once again I come to the conclusion that I am not very good at photojournalism :-). Peter's frames are much better. I had to leave early and missed out on those hot cheer leaders... damn!

on the Tunes: Cameo - Candy

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Crap

2010-02-06T14:43:00.000-08:00

I shot some Polaroids with Anna and Michaela today in the studio. The polaroids look great, 'tough still not tack sharp. I came to the conclusion that my 100 € scanner is ~~an entirely~~ ~~useless~~ ~~piece of worthless crap~~ exactly what you might expect of a 100 € scanner.

I've got my mind set on a negative scanner and I think I'm gonna testdrive the Hasselblad Flextight X1 in the next few weeks. There is a rule in photography that says that in order to see a "discernable" improvement in quality the price of a piece of equipment will rise threefold. I think I'm gonna need a heck of a lot more than "discernable" improvement here. My wallet will be in serious need for CPR after this....

on the Tunes: Don Henley - The Boys of Summer

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

PolaColor II

2010-02-02T15:16:00.000-08:00

I've got me some Fuji instant film today and I'm starting to get the hang of it. It doesn't seem to be tack sharp 'tough... way different from the viewfinder. I hope the Blad doesn't have to go through the same procedure as the 1DS this summer... On the other hand, there are reports on the web about blurry pictures with Polabacks. We'll see.

Anyway, here's a worthy (since analog) introduction of the Leica M6 on Fuji instant film. Isn't she beautiful? I cited Paola as one of the persons "responsible" for me buying the M6. She is a gifted painter and an unbelievable photographer. Here's a link to her paintings. Her photographs are not yet online, but as soon as her site is up I'll post a link.

Want a really really good laugh? Manfred send me a link to this incredible video on YouTube. Thanx Manfred!

on the Tunes: Al Jarreau - Pleasure

Enjoy, and live your life with passion

Sven

PolaColor

2010-01-28T13:50:00.000-08:00

The polaroid back that came with my Hasselblad camera had still some very old (10 years plus?) instant film in it. It took me some time to figure out what exposure and what developing time to use, since it is way out of (guesed) spec. I was startled to get a somewhat recognizable picture after 6 tries.

My own hasselblad got back from repairs today... and I brought her home a way smaller and also analog sister. If anyone wants to do research on black holes - you can find one in my wallet. What causes black holes? Holding Harvey's M4 and Paola's M6 causes black holes, that's what it is... Beware!

Happy shootings

Sven

Back

2010-01-27T15:46:00.000-08:00

Back from the Big Apple and trying to get rid of my jet-lag.

This one is from the archives. It's probably the first pictures that ever made me think I could be a photographer. It radiates some tranquility which - you know - is a nice contrast after being drowsed in 17 days of New York turmoil. Really brings some peace of mind.

on the Tunes: ZZ-Top - Decision or Collision

Enjoy

Sven

Bedjump

2010-01-25T12:22:00.000-08:00

Sitting idle at the terminal at Newark....

Some days ago in Washington DC. Just testing furniture for the common good :-)

Nice parking garage outside...

Cheers

Sven

Bags

2010-01-24T19:40:00.000-08:00

I'm packing my bags, but there is one final frame I want to share before I catch my flight tomorrow.

Love & Joy

Sven

Say hello

2010-01-23T20:38:00.000-08:00

I haven't done a self-portrait for several weeks. I thought I do one before I leave NYC.

Do you like the bathrobe hanging from the door?

Cheers

Sven

Frames

2010-01-23T14:37:00.000-08:00

Some of you guys out there probably are somewhat disappointed that I didn't post that much in recent days. I was busy. To make it up I'll post some frames of Tomo, whom I shot with yesterday in class at the ICP.

The color frame was shot with Canon digital, the b/w frames where shot on film using the new 180mm f/4 lens on the Hasselblad. I'm very comfortable with the 6x6 format and it's needless to say I'm very happy with the 180mm lens. Stunning!

Harvey Stein is a really nice person and his classes are awesome. He also gave me some great feedback on my portfolio prints I brought to New York. Here's a link to his site: www.harveysteinphoto.com

Cheers from the big apple for now

Sven

DC

2010-01-19T17:28:00.000-08:00

Westin hotel room 234 Washington DC.

Liberty Island yesterday

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

NYC rules!

2010-01-18T19:45:00.000-08:00

We where at this place called Benjamin's tonight. It absolutely rules! Best steak in NYC. Don't forget about the nice wines and the excelent cognac.

Cheers!

Sven

Coney Island

2010-01-17T13:13:00.001-08:00

Slowly learning B/W while having a love afair with my Hasselblad.

I was at adorama, a second candy store today and ended up with a Hasselblad 180mm f/4 lens, a new arca swiss z1 ballhead, a MacBeth colorswatch and a huge gaping hole in my wallet.

Cheers from the big apple!

Sven

Ping

2010-01-16T21:31:00.000-08:00

...as in just a short lifesign in the middle of the night. I'm doing fine, no worries, life is great. I got to know some awesome people in NYC this week and I'm enjoying every bit of it.

I was in central park this morning and in coney island this afternoon. Spent the evening in the B/W lab at the ICP and in the Belgian pub afterwards :-)

Got to catch some sleep now.

on The Tunes: U2 & BB King - When love comes to town

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

ICP

2010-01-11T16:03:00.000-08:00

Today was the first day at the ICP. Bobbi Lane is a very inspiring teacher and her classes are lots of fun! Here is a link to her site: www.bobbilane.com.

Other participants are for a large part professional photographers. There's even a photographer from the new york post in the course. Participants are from all parts of the globe, truly international. We've got people living in Venezuela, France, Italy, Mexico and Italy in the class. All very exciting!

I've got some homework todo and I can hardly keep my eyes open.

I'll keep in touch.

Sven

Glas

2010-01-10T17:14:00.000-08:00

I've left a small fortune at the candy shop (B&H) this afternoon. In return I got two Hasselblad lenses (50mm f/4 and 150mm f/4), a prism viewfinder with integrated center weighted exposure meter and a universal lens shade.

I think I'm all set now with the medium format analog equipment. Mark - the guy who sold me the stuff - had a big tatoo of a lens on his left and a tatoo of an iris on his right arm. Now that is what I call dedication and so I had to ask if he has a website. He does: site www.marksperryphoto.com and blog 320txp.blogspot.com. Some really impressive frames.

on the Tunes: Tower of Power - Keep your Monster on a leash

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Muse

2010-01-10T07:01:00.000-08:00

The Muse, room 1103, 130th west 46th street NYC. Now stop drooling and close your mouth - I know she's hot.

[Update January 24th 2010: This frame has been removed. It was agreed with the model up front that this frame would only be up for display until January 25th 2010. I'm very gratefull to have had this frame on display. Thanks and a big hug to the model :-)]

I shot this frame some weeks ago. It was very much near the end of the session and I was ready to stow away the gear when she insisted on taking the frame with the scarf. So I pulled out the 12" fresnel, mounted it on the boom stand and we shot his frame. Awesome, a shooting ain't over 'till it's finished. Big thank you to Anna, who clung to the boom stand as if her life depended on it. She had to, the stand is rated for 12 Kilos and we loaded it with close to 40 Kilos... I'm still somewhat amazed that nothing came crashing down on us. Let me mention that this was a Manfrotto stand. Excelent gear. Don't try this at home ;-)

The flight to NYC was somewhat annoying. We spent four hours waiting on the tarmac in Düsseldorf before we finally took off. The Hotel is excellent, one of the best I've been in so far. Nice Art-Deco interior, comfortable room and very friendly staff. It's freezing -10 Celcius outside. I'm off to the candy store.

Enjoy and live your life with passion!

Sven

Pomegranate

2010-01-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

I'm booked on flight LH408 to New York on Saturday. A sensible person would be packing his bags by now. Not me. I just got the test-shots back from the lab. Viewing these frames on the mac really saved my day. The guys at the lab processed the film overnight for me. I've shot the film with a 50mm f/4 wide-angle lens mounted on a Hasselblad 500 c/m. The blad is on loan from the guys at Hassi Foto. I've brought them my camera (500 c/x) for repair some time ago, and since it takes a little longer than expected to get it fixed, they gave me replacement gear for the New York trip. Thanks guys, I appreciate it!

The wide-angle lens is awesome. I love the depth of field and the bookeh. 50mm f/4 on a 6x6 has a very narrow depth of field and is equivalent to 28mm on a 35mm full frame SLR.

Enough tech-talk. I'll hope to do some street photography in NY with the blad. As for the test-frame, the fruit to the right is a pomegranate. Does anyone know what the fruit to the left is? Please leave a comment. Both fruits were given to me by a friend. She told me to hang the pomegranate on the ceiling. She also told me of a german tradition which says that the owner of the fruit has to kiss any girl that walks beneath it. Hmmm.... I'll have to be very careful where to hang the darn thing ;-)

on the Tunes: Guns N' Roses - Chinese Democracy

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Hoek van Holland

2010-01-06T09:51:00.001-08:00

North Sea shore - first day of a new decade.

(click on image to enlarge)

Beauty and melancholy were close allies in this morning's January sky.

Enjoy!

Sven

Get going

2010-01-03T11:13:00.000-08:00

I love strolls on the beach in cold and stormy weather. Frees your mind like nothing else can.

I've started packing for New York and with a bit of regret decided to leave the 1Ds in Düsseldorf. Taking the 5D allows me to cram one more lens into the peli case. It's a bit of a hassel not to travel with my favorite camera, especially since I'm having some issues with live-view and flash-triggering on the 5D. I'll manage somehow, it will just have to do. I've not yet made up my mind on what project to pursue (if any) next to the classes at the ICP. Traces, street photography and the red light theme are on my mind. The red light business is illegal in NYC, so this is not gonna be as straight forward as in Amsterdam.

I've just returned from a short stay with my brother and his wife in Zwijndrecht, a suburb of Rotterdam. I had a great time guys, thanks for all the fun and your open minds. I loved it!

New year resolutions.

It's a bit of a hot patatoe. I'm not quite sure. I haven't got any material needs, so there is not much to expect in that department. I'm pondering a bit about the summer to come.

Roma, a highly appreciated colleague at work in Stuttgart told me about a small cabin in a fjord in Norway where she once stayed. The place is in the middle of nowhere and has no electricity except for a few solar cells for having some light at night. It has a small jetty and a dinghy with an outboard motor. It needs to have, because it cannot be reached over land. I'm considering to spent some time there and maybe do some nature frames.

Getting involved as a photographer in a humanitarian relief operation somewhere in the 3rd world would also be interesting, both from a personal view and also for the PHOS "People in their environment" project.

There's also an ICP course titled "Photographing the weird and the wonderful: lessons in fearlessness". It's about offbeat street photography in NYC. I'm not sure wether it will be on offer for this summer, but it surely sounds interesting.

I've left big Al my loft for the weekend and he left me this wonderful book by Matthew Rolston called Beautylight. I'm absolutely loving it. Thanx buddy, excellent choice, hope you and the missis had a nice weekend!

As for the new year, here is the last shot taken in the studio in 2009. It's mainly about testing a light-setup for location shootings, but I thought it made a nice selfportrait ;-)

on the Tunes: Ugly Kid Joe - Same Side

Enjoy, and live your life with passion

Sven

Fubar

2010-01-01T01:40:00.000-08:00

as in fucked up beyond all recognition.

It's funny to see how new year resolutions tend to start with a hangover.

on the Tunes: Herbie Hancock - Autodrive

Happy new year.

Sven

H1N1

2009-12-28T12:28:00.000-08:00

My sister and her kids have the flu, possibly swineflu, and so the family's new year's eve come together had to be canceled. Get well soon. Big hug. I love you.

I'm a bit sad our come together had to be canceled. I swapped lake Constance for lake Lucerne to take a few days off and relax. I think that will cheer me up. I'm still in the process of trying to get a reservation for the Palace hotel spa, by far the best spa I've ever been. I hope that al works out on such short notice.

I had dinner tonight with Sandra, a wonderful friend and gifted fellow photographer. She had a keen interest in my red light project and we talked a lot about it. I highly regard her opinions.

As for me, reading about the red light business was one thing, but actually going there, taking photos and talking to the people involved is an altogether different story. More than a confrontation with the environment, I find it to be a confrontation with myself, who I am, where I stand in society and where I encounter my personal limits. It is not by far an easy experience, nor was it easy to get going. I had (and still have) my fears, concerns and prejudices to cope with.

I'll leave you with that for tonight. To be continued...

on the Tunes: Deepest Blue - Deepest Blue

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop."
Lewis Carrol - Alice in Wonderland

Sven

Lies

2009-12-27T05:05:00.000-08:00

Did you ever feel joy in what you're doing? No, it's cold, just cold. I don't know how the other girls experience it - you know, everyone is different - but to me it's just cold.

For how long have you been doing this? Seven years, but soon I'm gonna quit. Very soon. You know, back then I had three kids and I needed money and this was an option. I gave it a try. It's easier for the younger girls. They have, how do you say, they are young, they have beauty. They make much money for as long as it lasts.

Let's do the picture then. Should I wear my wig? You know it's blonde, blondes look better. Nah, it's alright, I'm not interested in looks, I'm just interested in the person. Could you stand in front of the window for me and act like you are trying to attract a customer? A bit to the left maybe? That's it, thanks Lies.

Lies is pronounced like the english word lease. She works as a sex-worker in Amsterdam's red light district.

"People in their environment" is the working-title for the new PHOS-project. You could have guessed that, as "enfant terrible" of the group, I wasn't up to photographing no bankers, bakers and butchers. So this was my first preliminary field-trip for the project. Lies asked me why I didn't do this in Düsseldorf. Good question Lies. I have a total lack of red light experience and did like to make my first moves in a somewhat anonymous environment. Finding out how to make contact with the girls and how they would react to my request of being photographed was my main objective.

Lies by the way didn't even ask me what I was gonna do with the frames. She just asked me where she could find them on the internet. As always: photosven.blogspot.com. Thanks Lies!

on the Tunes: The pointer Systers - Automatic

Glad to be back on my home turf. Love to you all.

Sven

Amsterdam

2009-12-26T07:26:00.000-08:00

Room 628, Swissotel Amsterdam

Apart from doing some christmas shopping, I've started working on the new PHOS theme for next year's exposition. Here's a first shot titled "I would not like to feel..."

I've taken great care with the composition. Do you like it? I'm gonna take a nap now, since I didn't catch too much sleep last night.

Cheers from Amsterdam and love to you all

Sven

Field trip

2009-12-26T00:23:00.000-08:00

00:30 After having arranged internet acess and doing some online research I finnaly go to bed. The walls are paper thin and just as I turn off the light, four people enter the neighbouring room. Obviously two american guys and two girls who are, judging from their accents, neither american nor dutch. Great I think, the captain of the college football team and his buddy have picked up two tourist girls and now they are gonna bang the crap out of it all night long. I can hear every word of the conversation. Chit-chat and giggles, makes no deeper sense to me.

01:30 The smell of mariuana penetrates my room. I don't mind, altough I hate the smell of cigarettes, a good joint has a quite pleseant smell to me. "If you really like her as much as you say, you go with her", the older girl that does most of the talking says to the buddy of the college football team captain. From the tone of her voice it's obviously that she wants to be alone with captain America. I think it's kind of curious that the girl took the move. But then again, after an hour of senseless giberish there was probbably not much to be expected from captain and buddy. Buddy obviously doesn't want to leave with the other girl. Both girls leave. My room faces the elevator, and while the girls are waiting for the elevator, the quiet girl who was supposed to leave with buddy, says to the other girl "das sind solche Arschlöcher". This obviously answeres the question of their nationality, as this means "they are such assholes" in german.

02:00 The television has been screaming for half an hour. First dutch commercials, then an eppisode of "how it's made" about the inner workings of a lawnmower. I had expected captain America to severely kick buddy's ass for not leaving, but none of that happend. They didn't loose a word about the incident. It's 2 a.m. and I'm really not interested in lawnmowers right now. I knock on the door. There is some commotion in the room, but obviously they choose to ignore me. Since the program about the lawnmower is still engulfing this wing of the hotel with sound, I knock again. This time my knuckles hurt.

Captain America opens the door. I instantly comprehend why the girls left. At the same time I wonder why they did get together with these guys in the first place. The room is completely dark but for the television. The corridor is brightly lit and I must look like some kind of supernatural being to him. Captain, obviously high as a kite and completely intoxicated, winces. I try to raise my voice above the television "Don't want to spoil your party, but I'm not that interested in lawnmowers at this hour". An expression of utmost incomprehension appears on his face. This guy can hardly stand on his feet. Maybe my sentence was too long for him in his current condition, maybe the television is too loud for him to understand me, as I can hardly hear myself speak. I take a deep breath. "Can you turn down the tele?" I yell at him. As he turns to buddy and hollers "Turn down the tele" he stumbles and the door slips from his fingers.

03:30 I've been asleep for an hour and wake up from the sound of the girls returning. I really can't believe it. After another round of smalltalk it appears that they are going to share the room for the night. Conversation goes to improvised sleeping gowns. It is decided that, since there are too few T-shirts, the quiet girl has to sleep in a sweather. The not so quiet girl has taken her shirt off and makes some coments about her boobs being too small to fit her bra. No reaction from the boys. A few minutes later she opens the window and starts yelling at men that pass beneath her hotel room window. "Hello - Hello you, my friend an I are up here and we want you to come up".

10:45 Grumpy noises start comming from across the wall. Captain and buddy did manage not to get laid. I've requested another room for tonight at the reception. Welcome to Amsterdam.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T08:31:00.000-08:00

or to speak more in my denomination, happy seasons greatings ;-)

Life has been kind to me this year. I achieved some amazing personal goals. Far more than I expected. Still life wasn't always easy and at times I felt I was eating my heart out. I'm proud that I, in spite of things being not easy, pulled everything through. I've got the strong feeling that the best is still hiding up my sleeve :-)

I'll spend the days around new year's eve with my sis and her family. She's got that beautiful house on the shores of lake Constance. My brother and his wife are also comming. I'm looking forward to see all of you guys. Big hugs to all of you!

Hmmm... I've got an appointment at the Spa tomorrow. Precious moments of absolute bliss...

on the Tunes: Camo - Candy
Sweeeeeet :-)

Love to all of you. May all your wishes come true.

Sven

Good Morning

2009-12-21T14:47:00.000-08:00

Let's Party! Rage against the Machine is on the number one spot of the British single charts.

Killing in the name of. It's a freakin long due protest against the mass media rape we get thrown at us on commercial TV and radio everyday. Rage against the jury cured so called superstars. Say no more...

Different topic: I got this lovely gift today from two beautiful friends. It's an Andy Warhol christmas bauble.

No christmas tree should do without it! I'm absolutely in love with the bauble. Could be some protest on it's own. Thanx girls!

on the Tube (you guessd it): Rage against the Machine - Killing in the name of

Caress your inner child and let your rebel out every now and then.

Peace!

Sven

Snow II

2009-12-20T09:21:00.000-08:00

The last post wasn't quite as obvious to some of you. Snow has this distinct quality of turning the ground into a giant white reflector. And then at night, the sky gets this distinct color of sodium orange, caused by all the light of the streetlights thrown back. At the same time, the light is so diffuse that all shadows are very much "filled" with light. I thought this light was great for some industrial shots and so came snow.

Traffic is ground to a near stand still in Düsseldorf. I was on a small errand to the airport and it took me nearly an hour to return.

on the Tube:
"This is the only place to eat in town. Luckily I called ahead and got a table near the mayonnaise"

Enjoy and live your life with passion!

Sven

Snow

2009-12-19T15:46:00.000-08:00

Cheers!

Sven

Red Alert!

2009-12-18T14:17:00.000-08:00

on the Tunes: Basement Jaxx - Red Alert

Cheers!

Sven

The Reverend M

2009-12-16T11:18:00.000-08:00

I'm back on my home turf from my monthly trip to Stuttgart and Heilbronn. To my surprise, I found "the evil photographer" on the bulletin board of the IT-Department while being at one of my customers in Stuttgart. I'm cultivating a fan-base :-)

Here's one more frame from the gig in The Hague from last thursday. This is my old times buddy and infinite master of sweeeeet gospel sound Michael, aka "The Reverend M".

Rumour has it the Reverend M. once did backing vocals with Earth, Wind and Fire. Back in the days when I worked as a sound engineer, I did quite a few gigs with Michael and man did we rock the house! I'm sure eartquakes where registered as we blew off the roof. Such a pleasure to see you again buddy. While at it, I did invite Michael and the Band to do a shooting in the Studio. No date is fixed yet, but we're working at it.

My hot tub is filled to the brink, so I'm off to the bathroom. I'm under strict orders ;-) to take hot tubs in order to relieve the strains in my back...

on the Tunes: Earth Wind and Fire - Got to get you into my Life!

on the Tube (awesome!)

Let's make the room a whole lot warmer!

Sven

Irving Penn

2009-12-13T13:21:00.000-08:00

Room 307, Holiday Inn, Stuttgart Weilimdorf

Wolfgang and Heti, my accountants and tax advisers, gave me Irving Penns photobook "a career in photography" for christmas. Thanks guys, what a wonderful gift!

I knew Penn only by name, but thumbing through the book I realized I should have taken a closer look at his photographs much earlier. Freaking awesome!

It's now less than four weeks till New York. I've planned no further shootings, except for maybe some try-outs with Anna in the studio. I've build up some backlog again so I'm gonna do some post-processing (and relax a bit) in the comming weeks.

on the Tube: Peter Gabriel - Shaking the Tree

Nice haircut:-)

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

I can't dance

2009-12-11T14:24:00.000-08:00

I used to play some drums quite some time ago. Still, I can't dance. Can't help it, though I'd like to...
I just returned from this awesome and very funny christmas-party organized by one of my customers. The atmosphere was very nice, people were dancing on the dancefloor and I stood there and envyed. I can't dance.

Yesterday, I did the gala-shoot in the Netherlands. Among others, I shot a group-photo for the christmas card of my client. Here's the result:

I was amazed at the amount of light neded to light a group-shot. I threw all 2000 Watt-Seconds of Profoto flash-power at it and managed to get f/8@ISO400. Barbara did assist me and she did a wonderful job. Thanks Barbara! A big thank you also to my clients "De Hypotheker" and "Q Makelaars" for making it such an enjoyable evening.

I'm gonna catch some sleep now. My back is somewhat tight and I have an appointment at the spa tomorrow morning.

on the Tunes: Jan Delay - Klar

All the best to all of you,

Sven

France

2009-12-08T13:17:00.000-08:00

Driving back from the spa. The cat (my humble car) is purring. Philip Baily and Phil Collins on the stereo. You know the song. I'm feeling good and even the young gods in France would envy me :-)

Speaking of France, I'm currently planning to visit Versailles with some friends in March. The New York preparation is kicking in high gear. Martijn (my brother in law) and I have tickets for the statue of liberty, a ice-hockey match in Madison square garden and two return tickets to Washington DC to visit the Smithsonian museum of flight.... One could almost forget that I'm going to NY to take classes at the ICP (International Center of Photography) school.

I've been commissioned to shoot a gala-event in the Netherlands on Thursday. Smokings, fancy dresses etc. Exciting!

The exposition is doing well. There's been a small article about the exposition in the local newspaper, the "Rheinische Post". I've got tonnes of positive feedback and some requests for prints, both big and small.

I've finally made it into the CPS-program (Canon Professional Service) and found my CPS-card in the mail last week.

Time is running short, and I've got a huge stack of e-mails to answer... I've also got another huge backlog in processing recent sessions. There's some good material comming up!

on the Tunes: Pink - Fun House

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Sizzling HOT!

2009-12-02T12:43:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I last posted and a lot has happened meanwhile....

I had a fatal hard disc crash on the company server on Saturday, I had to restore my iPhone to factory default on Sunday and yesterday, my iTunes told me my iPod contained corrupt data. The latter proved to be a false alarm, but it's too much computer #*$!?&%/#+* for one week. Still, my spirits are high because...

I had this totally awesome shooting last Sunday. I'm still on a natural high; tripping high on cloud seven. The studio was rocking, the air was burning, the model was so drop dead gorgeous and the frames are sizzling sizzling sizzling HOT! I'd like to say a big "thank you" to the support-crew.

Different subject: I met Anke - a gifted photographer and such a nice person - at the vernissage last week. We exchanged some mails and discovered our common taste for good jazz music. The subject switched to Al Jarreau, one of my all-time favorite musicians and she sent me this cool frame she shot at one of his gigs earlier this year. Thanx Anke! (Published with kind permission)

As you know, Big Al was in the house last weekend. We went on a shopping spree and Al bought that awesome EF 70-200 L IS lens. This is one of the first frames he shot which somehow ended up in my mailbox under the subject "Wham Bam here comes the man!".

Must have something to do with that K7 song (Come Baby Come) we played on the car stereo wherever we went this weekend. Thanx buddy!

There's a commercial shooting comming up in the Netherlands next week. I'll keep in touch.

on the Tunes: Earth Wind and Fire - Serpentine Fire

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

In the House

2009-11-27T16:35:00.000-08:00

Big Al, my long time favorite homie - I've known him since primary school - is in the house. We had some great Japanese food, drank great sake, talked about the "good old times" and watched some of my frames. Apart from the portraits, Al is quite fond of this aviation-frame I shot last year:

It's been getting late and I'm gonna catch some sleep now.

on the Tunes - Moloko - Indigo

Enjoy, and live your life with passion

Sven

Vernissage

2009-11-25T14:28:00.000-08:00

The vernissage was tonight and it was simply amazing. I got some very positive feedback on my frames. Such a nice evening.

on the Tunes: Sting - Bring on the Night/When the World Is Running Down You Make the Best of What's Still Around

I couldn't find the lyrics for this combination of songs on the net. The track can be found on Sting's 1986 album "bring on the night". This song has been on my mind for weeks and weeks. I love it. Imagine Bradford Marsalis on Saxophone, Darryl Jones on the base, Kenny Kirkland on piano and Omar Hakim on drums. Sound's like a who is who in Jazz-music doesn't it? The lyrics ,though dark, are pure poetry to me:

The future is but a question mark
Hangs above my head, there in the dark
Can't see for the brightness is staring me blind
God bid yesterday good-bye

Enjoy, and keep up the passion thingy

Sven

The evil photographer

2009-11-22T06:19:00.000-08:00

I catched some really bad vibes this week. People have been yanking my crank. Even though I hate it when that happens, I know that this will always results in a bout of unbridled creativity. This is what came out:

(The evil photographer)

I'm currently doing some test-shots with the new studio fresnel. The light is very hard and very Hollywood-like. I'm totally falling in love with it. There was still some creativity left, and so I shot a second self-portrait with just the fresnel yesterday evening.

The atmosphere would fit nicely into a Hitchcock movie, don't you think?

Tomorrow afternoon the hanging of the frames for the PHOS-exposition will start. I've got my frames back from the printer yesterday and I must say I'm utmost delighted about the results.

I'm off to take a hot tub now... Love to you all!

on the Tunes: Free - All Right Now

quote: The most valuable lesson man has learned from his dog is to kick a few blades of grass over it and move on - Robert Brault (american writer)

Enjoy!

Sven

Havoc in the command-center

2009-11-18T13:10:00.000-08:00

Yesterday evening... The waiter knew I am a photographer and he aparently wanted to do me some good. After one Prosecco during dinner, I asked for something to start up my digestive system and was served this way way way too big (double, tripple, quadrupple?) Vodka. Needles to say that went straight up and wreaked absolute havoc in the command-center... And all I was thinking was: what happens if I raise to my feet...

Today (and sober again) I did a test-shooting with Anna (the studio assistant) and Ben. We are currently working on the fire theme and we wanted to do some small scale experiments. Ben and Anna worked like pros and we shot a multitude of frames in very limited time. Thanks guys!

I normally do not publish test-shots, but this one - though rough and imperfect - has so much appeal that I simply cannot resist...

on The Tunes: Prince - Shockadelica
(I love them lyrics)

Enjoy, and live your life with a dogged determination to complete fully whatever it is you're doing.

Sven!

Jam-packed

2009-11-16T12:08:00.000-08:00

The PHOS exposition will start next Wednesday, November 25th at 6 p.m. with a vernissage. The exposition will end on December 17th. Opening hours are Monday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. At the vernissage (November 25th at 6 p.m.) we will throw a party and Alexander and his band will be playing that hot Cuban salsa music. We're gonna blow the roof! Snacks and drinks are on the house and you're all invited to come.

My frames are currently still at my printer, who is fusing them between aluminium dibond and acrylic glass. It's a very modern high-end borderless finish, which really brings out the colors.

These are my frames that will be on display:

(NYPD 88.9 x 47.4 cm)

(NYC 65.2 x 59.8 cm)

(Angel 62.3 x 62.3 cm)

(Traces 71.2 x 40.6 cm)

(Home 63.1 x 94.6 cm)

The frames on display are up for sale. Prices range from 350 to 500 Euros. Delivery can only take place after the exhibition has ended.

More information about the PHOS-Group can be found here.

I've got a jam-packed schedule for the next two weeks, so I'll probably not be posting that much. I would be delighted to meet some of you guys at the vernissage!

on the Tunes: Tower of Power - Diggin' on James Brown

Love, to all of you

Sven

When the going gets tough...

2009-11-14T15:42:00.000-08:00

...you stop whining, leave your sofa and get behind your mac.

Somehow, I always end up doing late-night editing when "way past 2 am" has been here...

Olga told me to get rid of the shadow on her chin. I didn't find the courage to try, because I thought I would not be able to do so. I was wrong.

on the tunes: Frank Sinatra - New York, New York

Cheers!

Sven

At times...

2009-11-14T12:15:00.000-08:00

I'm sitting on my sofa. A bowl of chocolate candy to my left and a bottle of Bionade to my right. Where is that "Cerveza Mas Finas" when I need one. The bucket list is running on my appleTV. It's an awesome movie which is very funny and deeply saddening at the same time. A real tearjerker and I have to admit, I'm a sucker for it. In the movie, Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson play two terminally ill cancer patients who both have left only six more months to live. They write a list of things they want to do before they die - or kick the bucket so to speak. On the bucket list are things like skydiving, driving a fast car, helping a complete stranger and kissing the most beautiful girl in the world. The film makes you wonder what to put on your own bucket list and makes me kind of curious what is on yours.

This is the 100th post on this blog. I was planning on having a little birthday cake and some nice photos for you. It wasn't meant to be. Do you know these days, these dreadful days where nothing works out as you've planned? This is one of these days. At times, no amount of preparation and effort will make the magic happen. At times, everything you try doesn't work out. At times, you're pretty sure you're standing in your light.

Now I'm not talking about sleeping late this morning. I'm also not talking about me being seemingly unable to drive my car either, taking a freaking hour to get from the railway station to the ATM and then to the studio. That's just fine with me. I've accepted that at times my brain is simply dead weight. Im talking about this close to perfect frame I've shot a while ago. "Way past two am", you know what I mean. I'm finding it pretty impossible to come up with something even remotely comparable to that frame. Today, and with the help of a lot of friends, I've tried to go the whole mile. Anna sewed this beautiful rough cotton backdrop, Michaela helped me to get an even better lighting scheme, the guys at tanala lent me an awesome and very expensive fresnel spot with an extra flash head (Mario, I owe you) and gorgeous "way past two am" travelled two hours by train to model for me. Not before have I put this much effort and resources into a single shooting. Now I should be in heaven but I am in hell. The results are not completely dreadful, I mean they're not that bad, but they are not special either and nowhere close to what I wanted them to be. At times... life sucks big time and at times, you can't force things to succeed.

There are not that many things I can put on my bucket list. I googled other people's bucket lists and found most lists have a very materialistic character i.e. can be achieved by burning some money. Having these things on my list seems futile to me. What I can come up with is this: To live my life with passion and learn to accept that at times I'm standing in my own light and learn to accept that at times no amount of effort can force things to succeed... OK, kissing the most beautiful girl in the world doesn't sound to bad either :-)

on the appleTV: Prince - Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance

Enjoy, and live your life with passion

Sven

Traces

2009-11-09T13:21:00.000-08:00

I've been working like a dog on all fronts. Business is busy and I'm currently moving mountains to get everything in place for the upcomming shootings, first one comming up next saturday. Anna and I have been working on new fabric backdrops. I'm bored to stiffness of sterile black and white backgrounds. I mean the solid color seamless backgrounds with no markings. Let me just note that I think sterile gradients are almost as boring. Anyway, we've bought wholesale loads of gorgeous red and black velvet and also some very coarse beige cotton fabric. Anna has been stitching like a champ. On the subject of backdrops, my seamless black is pretty much messed up and I start liking it more each and every day.

What's more, I need a large fur for a shooting in two weeks. If anyone has one, please let me know... A polar bear skin or a mink blanket would be nice, but I guess I will be checking Ebay for a cow-hide or something the like. I'm also looking for a makeup-artist / stylist. Let me know if you've got talent and like to do something in that direction.

Change of subject. The PHOS-Exposition is comming up and here's the poster:

Peter like always did an excellent job. Respect. Thanks Peter!

The vernissage will be on November 25th at 18 o'clock at the WBZ, Bertha-von-Suttner-Platz 1 in Düsseldorf. There is a good chance that Alexander (see this Post) and his Cuban salsa band are gonna play. We're gonna have a ball and you're all invited...

on the Tunes: En Vogue - Whatta Man

Cheers!

The Dutch guy with the Swedish name living in Germany

Buckle up

2009-11-07T00:04:00.000-08:00

There are a number of very exciting shootings in the pipeline and in order to prevent me from switching into overload, some help was needed. Please allow me to introduce Anna, the "official studio assistant".
You've seen Anna on regular bases before on these pages. Next to being a regular model, she will lend a hand on fashion, props and organizing. Please welcome Anna as part of the creative team.

In the pipeline (among others and in different stages of planning): the return of Geri and "way past 2 AM", a hot chocolate (yes, it says hot chocolate) shooting, a big fire shooting (really big flames) and of course tonnes and tonnes fun, joy and laughter.

Anna is going to organize a come-together with all models and support-crew involved in these shootings, so please expect her to contact you.

on the Tunes: Frank Sinatra - Mrs. Robinson
(Mine is fine as wine, and I should know)

You'd better buckle up. It's your ride of a lifetime. Enjoy!

Sven

Confession

2009-10-29T14:03:00.000-07:00

Finally catching up on my backlog

Here's more output I processed this evening. I don't know about you, but I like it.

Here's my Dream Team - Where would I be without you. Thanks guys!

(I can hear you photographers moaning about the white-balance)

Now for the confession part. Michaela pointed out today that the following frame was actually hers and not mine.

It's about 7500 frames ago since this was shot, so I'm not too certain. But since a) she's a great photographer, b) we share cameras a lot, c) I think she's probably right, d) she's about to buy that freaking awesome 27" iMac and e) she is one of the sweetest and warmest persons I know: Here's a big and honest apology from me for ~~hideously and maliciously nicking that frame behind your back~~ this innocent and unintentional mistake. Honour where honour belongs. This is her frame ~~and my freaking 3 hour photoshop post-processing~~. Ok, just wanted to let you know. We'll meet tomorrow, and if by any chance she won't rip my head off, I think I might invite her to post some of her frames on this blog...

I'm in the process of planning some awesome shootings for December. I'm currently assembling a small team to help me with the organisation. I'll keep you in touch.

I've got some nice feedback about the new site. Thanks!

on the Tunes: AC/DC - Whole Lotta Rosie

The future looks bright

Sven

Heidilicious

2009-10-28T14:00:00.000-07:00

Can someone slap me please, just to make sure that I'm awake? Better slap me twice, will you....

I just unwrapped Rankin's Heidilicious. I stand corrected, delicious Heidilicious.

I wish my frames where half as good as Rankin's. Man, I'm gonna work my ass off and hopefully one day, maybe just one day, maybe - and if I'm very very lucky - I will be half as good. Anyway, believe me, I'm working on it, I'm gonna try. Trust me. Right here. Right now. Full speed ahead. Giving my best shot.

Could every model please have a look at all the frames in this book and memorize the poses? Could every woman in my life please watch all the frames in this book and go through life with just as much self-confidence, energy and pride? And this is not about the body, it's all about the state of mind. Life would be so awesome... Anyway, applies equally to men. So, if anyone is offended by these remarks - Slap me. Slap me, just to make sure that I'm awake.

On the Tunes AC/DC is screaming from the speakers (way too loud) - Rock And Roll Ain't Noise Pollution

Grab life by the horns and start living like you've never done before.

Sven

Taxi Mayhem

2009-10-28T09:41:00.001-07:00

I'm not quite sure what to think of it but I felt like putting it on the blog.

Cheers

Sven

Sad

2009-10-26T15:13:00.001-07:00

I just got word that a friend of mine and buddy from the PHOS-Group is currently in hospital and in a serious condition. I've learned a lot about photography from him and knowing him in hospital really makes me sad. Hope you get well soon.

I've got my own space on the PHOS-group website as of today. Click here to visit.

on the Tunes: Jimmy Hendrix Experience - Wind cries Mary

Hang tough

Sven

Lunch break

2009-10-26T04:29:00.000-07:00

Quick post during lunch break. Here are some thoughts I've penned down in London...

Mind the gap

London, 10 o'clock on Saturday morning. I've been sleeping late. The weather is better than expected. I had a really beautiful day at Kew Gardens yesterday with my travelling companion.

Some quotes from London I saw in advertising or heard in conversation:

• When life is hard… you learn to adapt
• Freedom lies in being bold
• Never fear madam, the deserts are here!

I subscribe!

Getting hungry, time to get some breakfast.

on the Tunes: Limp Bizkit - Rollin

Alma mater

I'm in a state of total enlightenment. We just had dinner at Nobu, a japanese restaurant right next to our hotel. I love japanese food. My long time favorite was the Nippon Kan in Düsseldorf. I'm sorry. I'm having this affair. This Nobu shop brought food to a unsurpassed level, I couldn't resist. I'm high on cloud seven and refusing to come down. This food is an almost religious experience. I'm a food Buddha, found my true faith, eternal enlightenment...

Yesterday evening we were at fifteen, Jamie Oliver's restaurant. Food was extraordinary - beyond excellent - and had I been a sucker for Italian/French cuisine I think I would have found my food enlightenment there. Anyway, such a nice evening.

I think I'm about done with my boy-scout duties. I've done enough good deeds for a while and it's time to go back to business and plan some serious shootings. Britain again has been good to me, I've found my inspiration. London, alma mater, I've lost count of the number of times I've been here in recent years.

on the Tunes: Twan the flat head - Wanny scared of biddiesters

Lunch break frames, the rough cuts, largely unprocessed...

on the Tunes: Spandau Ballet - Be Free with your Love
(things so dear should be free to let grow)

Enjoy - be free with your love!

Sven

Bags to pack

2009-10-21T12:50:00.000-07:00

Between packing the camera gear and the travel bags I just wanted to share this frame from one of today's shootings with you. Unedited, roughly cropped and stunningly beautiful...

Love to you all

Sven

Rule Britannia

2009-10-20T13:39:00.000-07:00

90 Posts and counting...

The new site is up, albeit still in beta. Big hug and "thank you" to my favorite (and only) sister Mattie for doing such a beautiful job! Please let me know what you think of it.

I've still got to write something for the "Bio" section. For my site as well as for the PHOS-site. It's a whole lot easier to write about what you're doing than writing about yourself...

As you may know, I'm a big Ruth Bernhard fan. My favorite Bernhard frame by far is called "in the box, horizontal". It's one of the most (if not the most) gorgeous nude photographs I know. I first saw this frame in the Victoria and Albert museum in London in July 2007. Since I'll be in London for the weekend, I thought I'd visit the V&A to have another look at this frame of all frames. I couldn't find it on the V&A website, so I wrote them a short email to ask wether it's still on display. Here is an extract from the reply I got from the V&A:

"The museum number of the photograph you are enquiring about is E.56-2008. It is no longer on display in the main museum but you can call it up from our stores when visiting the Prints and Drawings Study room."

They are gonna pull this thing from the archives just for me. This is freaking awesome. I love you guys! Rule Britannia! Off to the Prints and Drawings Study room...

By the way, there is a copy of this frame - I think only 35 prints where ever made - for sale on Ebay...

I love the little badge that says "Free shipping", altough the joker offering this print states "My Buy It Now price is $48,000.00 with free S&H with in the U.S.A". Mind you, free shipping and handling - for freaking 48'000 US$ he'd better ship this thing to the north pole for free... Oh yeah, let's not forget, there is a "3 day money back, buyer pays return shipping" policy on this item. I've got to stop now, or else I'll be rolling of my chair with laughter. I wonder if a gift wrap would be included...

on the Tunes: Al Jarreau Black and Blues
(Totally digging Al right now and just loving this song)

"To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved."
(George MacDonald - Scottish Poet 1824 - 1905)

Sven

Output

2009-10-17T13:05:00.000-07:00

Some of today's output...

She's a PYT, bombshell, you name it.

Geri, hot as usual!

Rebecca got even more beautiful.

Apart from being a good boyscout....

I'll send her in for a complete overhaul on Monday. More processing is comming up tomorrow. I'll not be able to process the entire backlog, but steady progress is being made.

on the Tunes (by accident :-) : Monty Pyton - Allways Look at the Bright Side of Life

Enjoy, and live your life with passion!

Sven

Boyscout

2009-10-17T02:38:00.000-07:00

Today is edit day... The blinds are down, the lights are low and I'm churning out files, trying hard to get rid of my backlog. I'm currently processing Gerie's frames. Here's a sample. I think you'll like it :-)
It's been quiet for a few days. I'm in the middle of preparing for future shootings, have been upgrading the studio software and tried hard to be a good boyscout and a better photographer. As part of the software upgrades I switched to Adobe Lightroom. It's a very impressive piece of software. Performance is blazing and so I'm not feeling the need anymore to upgrade the computer hardware.

on the Tunes: Al Jarreau - Boogie Down

You can be all you want to and all you need is to get your boogie down.

Sven

No doubt

2009-10-12T14:59:00.001-07:00

Sven

Use your Illusion

2009-10-10T12:33:00.000-07:00

Everything is set up for NYC. It looks like I'm gonna meet up with my brother in law Martijn for a couple of days. He is this cool dude bad ass rocket scientist (ok - satellite engineer).

Here is a Song from his band Onager. These dudes know how to rock!

Peter, Manfred and I were at a body-painting convention today. We had a great time. Everything was bright and very colorful. To be honest, I liked them better in black and white. The frames become much more graphic.

Here's one for your mind. Use your illusion!

Today was a good chance for putting the 1Ds and the 70-200 f/2.8 IS to the test. This combination used to be very problematic. I'm happy to say that, since being serviced by Canon, everything works just fine. One happy camper!

on the Tunes: Michael Franks - You were meant for me

"use no way as a way, use no limitations as a limitation"
(Bruce Lee - Actor 1940 - 1973)

Cheers!

Sven

doing a little dance

2009-10-09T12:50:00.000-07:00

doing a little dance behind the mac, shouting, screeaming, jumping, blowing the roof! More than once...

I got word from the IPC that I have been admitted to the classes I signed up for. They have reviewed my portfolio and decided I am good to go. I had put up a page on my website for them to review. It had to be 10 to 15 low resolution jpeg images. I haven't been this excited for a long time. Marvelous. Excellent. Swing.... Click here to view the IPC review page.

I'd like to say thank you to everyone supporting me and making these frames possible. Thanks!

on the Tunes: Prince - Tick, Tick, Bang

Enjoy, and live your life with a dogged determination to complete fully whatever it is you're doing.

Sven

Up my sleeve

2009-10-04T12:06:00.000-07:00

Things are slowly returning to normal as this day comes to an end. To put things into perspective, I think I shot a studio portrait yesterday that is among the best I produced so far. In retrospect, I'm talking about the "way past 2 AM" post, the frame from the "got to go post" simply can't keep up. Still, I'm fond of that frame too, but maybe 2:30 AM is a better time for selecting and editing.

I'm currently making travel plans and I'm thinking of taking two weeks of classes at the IPC in January. IPC is the International School of Photography and was founded by Cornell Capa in legacy of his brother Robert Cappa, world-renowned photographer and co-founder of the Magnum agency. I talked this over with my mentor and she endorses the idea and told me even Annie Leibovitz once studied at the IPC. Sounds like the right direction to put my photography at the next level.

This is gonna be a rare post without a picture. Although I shot some frames today, I've simply got nothing up my sleve that can even remotely keep up with "way past 2 AM"... It's gonna be hard to come up with something matching this frame... "way past 2 AM"...

I'll be in Stuttgart and Heilbronn 'till Wednesday night, so it's gonna be quiet for a few days.

on the Tunes: Bobby McFerrin - Thinkin' about your Body

It's the simple things that make it worth it. I'll keep in touch

Sven