Inspirations: Matthew Everingham – Automotive Photographer
Inspirational Photographer: Matthew Everingham
Website:www.mattheweveringham.com/
Location: Sydney, Australia
Genre: Automotive
(Photograph by Matthew Everingham for Street Machine Magazine)
Matthew Everingham is an up-and-coming photographer in Sydney, who has personally mentored me over the years with important photography tips and tricks. It has been invaluable information to receive and is fantastic to see his suggested skills be implemented in his photographs.
Outside of his day job, Everingham spends his time running his business and passion of automotive photography, whether its a private shoot, social event, or motorsport event he will usually be there in his Mitsubishi Evo shooting as many cars as he can see.
(Matthew’s self portrait of his Mitsubishi Evolution)
He has recently reached some important goals for his success from being published in Street Machine and 9TRO (automotive magazine in Malaysia and Singapore). He states about the Australian auto-culture:
“It’s a great compliment not just to my work but to the whole Australian Automotive Scene! Sure a lot of our recipes for success are based on imported platforms like Nissans, Toyotas and even Mercs and BMW’s but one thing that’s noticeable across the scene when you step back and compare internationally is that Australians have a unique style and our own brand of ingenuity that gets applied to Aussie modded vehicles.”
It is a great achievement to being published internationally and is something I personally dream of achieving one day myself. To know that your work is appealing to an audience around the world is something that must give a sense of satisfaction.
Everingham uses a range of lighting techniques for his automotive photographs. These include studio lights, reflectors and also light-painting (my favourite). His images can incorporate a wide-variety of these lighting techniques in one shot which is followed by some Photoshop manipulation to create some stunning photographs.
I have personally gained some big tips from Everingham about my own work and in-particular helping me learn much better light-painting skills, which took from to a completely different level or lighting skill-something I am very thankful for.
(Photo Matthew Everingham took for 9TRO magazine of a R34 Skyline)
Everingham has extensive experience with shooting motorsport events, something I have never done personally (but hope to) his work captures some amazing images that surprise me how good they are. His images are astounding, especially considering these are event photographs, yet somehow the lighting and quality of these images seem near-studio quality. Personally, Everingham has set the bar for motorsport photography.
(Motorsport Photo by Matthew Everingham)
Matthew Everingham is an amazing photographer and growing bigger by the day. Social media is spreading his work around the world at an incredibly fast rate gaining him ever-growing renown. His work to me is very inspiring and and it much appreciated the tips and advice he has given me over the years.
References:
Matthew Everingham’s website:
www.mattheweveringham.com/
Matthew Everingham’s Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/mattheweveringhamphotography
Inspirations: Easton Chang – Automotive Photographer
Inspirational Photographer: Easton Chang
Website: http://www.eastonchang.com/
Location: Australia
Genre: Automotive / Commercial
Photographs by Easton Chang 2012
Easton Chang is in my opinion the definitive commercial automotive photographer. Chang is in such demand now that he no longer shoots ‘private cars’ and works strictly on a commercial level shooting for automotive magazines internationally and has access to shooting the dream cars such as Lamborghini’s and other super-car vehicles. This is a dream I hope to achieve myself one day.
Chang doesn’t just create a pretty picture that the specific driver would appreciate; he actually creates a photo that has universal appeal and appreciation. Each image captures a mood and creates a real sense of spirit of what each specific car was built for.
Chang uses digital format cameras and performs the majority of his photos inside a studio or using an on-location studio set-up. This gives Chang many creative possibilities; he also uses a ‘rig’ (an extension arm that attaches to a car and captures vehicles with motion blur but keeps vehicle perfectly sharp). This creates the feeling of speed, and gives these images extra excitement.
Easton Chang is a self taught photographer, who in an interview with speedhunters.com said, “I started out on online photography communities and forums where I could anonymously post my work and receive real world feedback.” This idea is a very smart one, being able to take criticism is tough and by posting work up anonymously will lead to more raw and harsh comments; which are vital tools for learning.
Criticism of automotive photography is hard as each client has a vision of their ‘dream photo’ of their car. Each client may have a radically different style-request than what you are used to doing or were planning to do prior to arriving at the shoot. Some may want light streaks on their car, some don’t and some want a totally different location.
What is tough is gaining your confidence and professionalism, Chang states in the same interview that, “I literally had to be pushed by a photographer I had met on a forum and coached me into being confident enough to send my work to magazines.”
At university a photography student must endure a lot of ‘wanky nonsense’ related to their work in their photographic series. Therefore it is such a relief to shoot something simple such as cars, or anything commercial that does not need to have a story or message. However, Chang states, “I learnt that you can’t conceive images on an individual basis, but as an entire set or story layout,” which I found fascinating to hear. A professional photographer of his calibre, Easton is still imagining the story behind the series he is shooting. He does this amazingly with the mood he captures in his images, which follow through in each particular series.
Magazine briefs is something Chang discusses in his interview informing readers of the editorial briefs that detail the clients requirements for the photo shoot. He suggests that the conflict between following the brief and on-location decisions is an issue. And how even small things such as a magazines colour scheme may change decisions of photo shoot.
In a Youtube video on Easton Chang’s account he shows some behind the scenes videos. Showing the size of his assistant crew, some of the methods of how the feature cars are transported and covered between shots, and the incredible size of his rig shot stretching meters into the air. This is all very impressive and serves as a great source to find inspiration and motivation.
Easton Chang is in my opinion the greatest automotive photographer of our time. It would be an amazing feat to personally achieve work to his standard, and is something I personally dream of reaching as I continue the endless path of learning new photography skills with each click of the shutter.
Easton has a great online identity as he started promoting himself through online forums that spread his name across the different auto-culture groups. His website launched in 2006 and now has a booming Facebook page. Chang even likes to entertain his followers by creating his own photography related memes that he regularly posts. With use of online forums and social media Easton’s name is regularly popping up all over peoples networks.
Go check it out his amazing work on his website:
http://www.eastonchang.com/
References:
Links to mentioned articles and websites:
Easton Chang’s Images:
http://www.eastonchang.com/random/rotate.php
Easton Chang’s Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/eastonchangphotography
Speedhunters interview:
http://www.speedhunters.com/2012/01/photographer_blog_gt_gt_easton_changb/
Easton Chang’s behind the scenes video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ927f0h0S0
UNIVERSITY: Assignment 3: About Face
12/09/2012
Don’t fret! the image below is not real.
This is the result of an assignment given by university to test some Photoshop skills.
Using a self-portrait of ourselves we were to manipulate our image into something post-human. Such as, magazine model, cyborg, zombie, doll or anything else creative. The result was quite successful, and was enjoyable (well the practical side was) and challenging assignment, which was great to use some practical skills gained in class and put them to use.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
We were given a quote to respond to. Frankly one that the majority of students (including me) found to be ridiculous, confusing and not in the spirit of what we were hoping would be more of a technical skills class. If you have never experienced university, this is something students must endure:
It took many stressful hours to come up with the follow statement in response to it. And I personally think its the best I could do with the time I’ve had to write it:
STATEMENT:
The boom of the digital world has clouded the definition of what is real as the continual growth of the internet and cloud based mediums flourish each year. As creativity and truth merge closer and closer together, the once easy lines between honesty and creativity have since gone. Self-identity is progressively becoming more important as society continues to explore and expand the digital landscape in the efforts to create a desired online-self. As the digital population grows the overall veracity continues to raise the question at the core of any digital thread of: ‘is this really true’? This can lead to the erosion of self-identity in the real world. The visual work represents a personal interpretation of the living self, and the post-human digital self.
Well before the digital era, truth was (and still is) being bent by corporate and government control over the media. News media stations are censored to protect their corporate investors. Where authors Chomsky and Herman (1994, p. 8)state “the media have lost some of their limited autonomy to bankers, institutional investors, and large individual investors whom they have had to solicit as potential ‘white knights.’” It is this that lead to the censoring of news media and this perhaps has influenced society that this practice is allowed.
As the digital age approached and brought the world blogs, avatars and social media, this control demonstrated by the newsmedia was seemingly handed to each person. People can censor and control online content themselves; a study in Britain (Dailymail, 2012) discovered that “a third of Britain admitted to lying online to look ‘cool and interesting’.” This is the world of peer-appeal and personal security where people spend more and more time living inside. Psychologist Dr. Rutledge states (KJZZ, 2012) social media” makes people feel engaged with issues and like they can have an impact.” It is this feeling of being ‘big’ that draws the ever growing crowd to enter the digital world and stay there for longer periods of time, to leave their reality behind and step into the post-human world, where truths can be bent and you choose to believe whatever you want to believe.
Since the early days of digital cameras photography has been a key in the transformation of imaging to create a ‘virtual truth’ of what the photograph showed. With the ever growing popularity of photography applications such as Instagram, we are now turning even digital negatives into manipulated pieces of truth. Letting us question, has everything digital been tainted to some degree?
This then extends to the use of online gaming using digital avatars seen on Microsoft’s Xbox Live or Massively Multiplayer Games allowing users to spend the weekend on a digital adventure with their ‘close digital friends’ that may or may not be who they say they are. This is projection of technology and imagination that transcends humanism into a world of illusion, where the power of digital technology allows anyone to control their separate digital lives and associate themselves with whoever. ‘Over 20% (and growing) of Britain’s population have stated they prefer to communicate online rather than in person or by telephone’ (Dailymail, 2012). Is the home PC the becoming the new social playground?
This boom continues to grow, with the push of an ever-expanding use of social media, app stores, free-to-play games and much more–the digital life seems to be the place to be. As we all join this phenomenon, leave our real-word-lives and to invest in our digital networking capitals, are we forgetting our true selves as we sit in reality as zombies? Or is the digital world where zombies are real? Once humans leave the real world behind, we no longer leave simply a tombstone, but a network of digital threads, that will continue to live on theoretically forever, our voices heard, memories shared and our opinions forever exposed for the world to see.
—————————–
1) Chomsky. N, Herman. E, 1994, Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media, Pantheon Books, New York.
2) Goldstein, S, 2012, ‘The psychology behind social media’, KJZZ, 06 June, retrieved 11/09/2012, < http://kjzz.org/content/1206/psychology-behind-social-media>
3) Wrenn, E, 2012, ‘Insecure Britain: A Third of us spend more time on Facebook than talking to friends in real life – and we make lie to make ourselves sound ‘cool and interesting’, Daily Mail, 30 April, retrieved 11/09/12, < http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2137244/Insecure-Britain-A-spend-time-Facebook-talking-friends-real-life–lie-make-sound-cool-interesting.html>
4) Hassan, R, Julian, T, 2006, The New Media Theory Reader, Open University Press, USA.
UNIVERSITY: Assignment 2: Inside Out
14/08/2012
This assignment for university required to format a complete HDR Photograph. As such I chose to use an interesting interior space to photograph of a decommissioned train/carriage in Healsville, Victoria.
This image was assembled by compileing 5 different exposures and assembling them using Photomatix, then importing them file into Adobe Photoshop CS5 and then individually layering the different exposures manually using layer masks to fix up areas Photomatix did not succeed in doing. This was a very time consuming exercise.
IMAGE OF LAYERING:
The most particularly hard spot, was the two windows, and especially the glass shards surround the perimeter of them. Outside the window was also difficult because the bottom half of both windows is mostly full of black bricks and the top half is full of a sunlit environment. The result is that many, many layers were required in formatting the image to show a satisfying result through the windows.
The result is quite spectacular. In addition to this, I also completed some addition work which I called ‘Competency trials’ where I did two more HDR photographs to fill in the gaps of my processing which I may have hit in processing this train image.
STATEMENT:
This assignment required us write a 500 word statement about a quote we were supplied with, quite a confusing quote I thought so I did my best to respond to its artistic nature.
QUOTE:
RESPONSE:
The domestic environment is most often a safe place of comfort and tranquillity where one simply appreciates the area by their presence inside. With the exception of the snap-shot boom caused by social media, photographs of one’s personal interior tended to only exist in relation to some other event that may have taken place at the residence.
However, with the boom of ‘lifestyle’ interior magazines, design television programs and the use of social media, society is now flooded with interior design glamour of homes, cars, workplaces and more. Author Angela Duea (2008, p.288) states this “has turned interior design into a boom industry in recent years…to make interiors work and look amazing.” Society is flooded across every form of media with ‘the perfect interior’ to motivate and manipulate society into always wanting more. Businesses have also taken advantage of this boom and created modern-affordable goods that requires the efforts of the consumer to build themselves at home. Where an unexpected psychological result occurred where according to author Burman (2011) consumers are “Treating that cheap, self-assembled IKEA table like it’s a prized heirloom.” This is called ‘the IKEA effect’ which motivates consumers to keep purchasing new goods, to chase that perfect room that the catalogues feature each season. It seems that society forgets their past history as designs progressively change faster each year as society chases “a project of the modernisation of domestic life and leisure through consumerism.” According to professors, Sarvas and Frohlich (2011, p.48).
The submitted image opposes this and gives praise to the forgotten or often ignored domestic interiors from decades long forgotten before these were tampered with as a consequence of the mass-media boom. This high-dynamic range photograph highlights and exacerbates every minute detail of the aging interior, showcasing their historic memories into the decaying material. Everything from the design of the train interior echoes back to an era that enjoyed its peak moments during the heart of the cold war. This design of the steam-train would have stayed as the pinnacle of its design for much longer than today’s lengthy fashion time of a ‘season’, society back then appreciated functionality over the constant refreshment of design changes. “As long as it was practical and maintained was what we cared about.” Stated Gwyneth Cadwallader (interview 09 August 2012), who says that back then things were purchased to last decades not days. This statement applies when viewing this image of the decommissioned locomotive, even with suffering decades of decaying in the open weather, the carriage still stands with the majority of the interior remaining intact and functional today, even some glass windows remain standing strong. The result is that this train, will most likely outlive domestic products that will be created tomorrow, often these products don’t simply offer practicality but offer a thrill promoted by the media, and when emotions die down, so do these products that were to enrich our lives. The result is that personally, this decaying image is just as ‘perfect’ as one featured in the next season of IKEA’s catalogue and a testament to a long lasting interior space.
Bibliography:
1) Duea, A, 2008, How to Open & Create a Financially Sucessful Pet Sitting Business, Atlantic Publishing Group Inc, Florida.
2) Berman, J, 2011, ‘The IKEA Effect: Study Finds Consumers Over-Value Products They Build Themselves’, retrieved 09/08/12, >http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/26/ikea-effect-consumers-study_n_981918.html>
3) Sarvas, R, Frohlich, D, 2011, From Snapshots to Social Media – The Changing Picture of Domestic Photography, Springer, New York.
4) Cadwallader, G, Resident, Tullamore Retirement Centre, interview, 2012
University Subject: ACM204 – Digital Photography.
31/07/2012.
This is for an assignment where I was required to edit the same photo using different .RAW file processing programs.
ONE photo was supplied by University(cluttered desk) , ONE photo was supplied by myself (vehicle).
We were given the choice of four programs:
-Adobe Camera Raw
-Adobe Lightroom
-Capture NX2
-Aperture
Unfortuntely, as a PC user Aperture was automatically cut from the list as it is a Mac only program. Unless of course I wanted to drive hours to university, endure the mental struggle of finding a car park to spend a few minutes editing a simple image.
Surprisingly each program did alter the look at feel of each image to some degree, although I still felt most at home with Adobe Camera Raw. I’m sure I wont be the only PC user-student to hit the issue of trying to load a Canon .CR2 Raw file into Capture NX2. As a Nikon program, it did not want to touch Canon’s files without performing a work around where I converted the file to a less editable file-type and then import it back into the program.
By experimenting and trying to follow the guidelines of the information from the image compared to more of what I am satisfied with using my eyes, I feel the the images aren’t what they should be. When comparing all three images (in .jpeg) I appear to believe that Lightroom somehow has produced a very dark result which does not satisfy me. However what this does do is show a clear distinct difference between editing all three images and especially between the two adobe programs where I thought I was essentially still following the same editing steps I previously did in Camera Raw.
The requirements for this assignment state I need to include in this post a copy of a 300 word statement or summary that was written at completion of this assignment, as well as uploading some of the edited images in .jpeg form.
300 WORD STATEMENT:
Using these three programs was a curious and frustrating experience. It was interesting to see how varied images can be based on the same raw file exactly. It was especially interesting to note the differences between the two Adobe programs, Camera Raw and Lightroom. Each program had slight differences that will make me from now on choose one program over the other, depending on the image in front of me. I personally found the Recovery tool to be the most significant change between the two adobe programs where Lightroom appeared to be able to use more without the sacrifice in image quality and overall displayed a more detailed image than when viewed in Camera Raw.
The use of Nikons Capture NX2 proved troublesome for the part of providing my own image, as it does not accept Canon’s file type of .cr2. So I was only able to fully explore the program with the supplied image and only perform lesser alterations on my own image, however I was still able to achieve significant changes on both. Even though the program was frustrating to use, it displayed the images very differently to the Adobe programs, and supplied a range of editing tools that were new to me. After a while of experimenting with them I began to understand how they work, and personally felt these ‘control points’ were a significant step backwards from the adjustment brushes–which usually compliment my workflow needs.
By viewing the differences in programs it’s easy to see why photo editing has been growing larger for hundreds of years. Where even early artists such as Vermeer used “the picture-making invention with which one can paint by means of reflection,” (Steadman, 2002, p. 22) to help edit their artwork. Even as a non-digital form, imaging has been used to assist in the refinement of art for centuries. And these digital programs are a testament to the past and open up your mind for the future possibilities of digital editing.
Diane Arbus once said, “nothing is ever the same as they said it was.” (1973, p35) and this is very true considering how easy digital images can be altered, and how different they can look in their original form depending on the platform being used to view them, the power is in the editors hands.
Bibliography:
1) Steadman, Phillip, 2002, Vermeer’s Camera, Oxford University Press, 26/07/2012
2) Arbus, Diane, 1973, Photography Year 1973, Life Library of Photography, 26/07/2012.
The Film Experiment 2: ‘Historic Glory’
Following on from my previous film experiment I have continued to use the Mamimya 7 – medium format film
camera to photograph another series, this one titled: ‘Historic Glory’
Due to being closed down and refurbished as a functioning station once again Healsville and Yarra Glenn stations and its historic trains that have become quite the tourist attraction will be demolished in place of a functioning station after decades of barely any use.
This series photographs these trains, their carriages and their train yard in an attempt to memorise what these trains once were and to imagine what they would have looked like in their glory days. I would argue they now look even more glorified as a rustic feature in a town that always draws the tourists.
I also completed a digital photography series on this same idea for university which may be published at a later date.
This series was photographed on ISO 400 film, and developed and printed in a darkroom by myself. These photos have been scanned to be shown on my website, the quality has been lost in these scans.
Thank You for reading
‘Historic Glory’ – By Ben Cadwallader all images are copyrighted.
The Film Experiment: ‘The War You Don’t See’
So I have finally found some time to update the website with some new content. And I have decided to post up some
experiences I have had using various film cameras over the last year or so.
Today’s series involved taking a Mamiya 7- Medium Format film camera and walking around the Victorian suburb of Footscray.
After walking for a few hours, I discovered what I was going to show in my series of photos. And my first photo – showing the remnants of a poster for John Pilger’s documentary: ‘The War You Don’t See’ - gave me my title and goal.
As with all series’ I wont explain into detail, except this: The series explores the corners of Footscray and discovers what is hidden just off from the footpaths or major roads in the suburb, by looking a bit deeper reveals a darker history to the suburb.
Trip to 2011′s Avalon Air Show in Melbourne – Photographs
I made a trip with a few friends to visit the Avalon Air Show 2011, in Melbourne on Friday 4th of March. Sadly, upon waking up we all saw the dreaded grey clouds covering the entire sky. The forecast was terrible: rain, black clouds, general unpleasantness but we all manned up and soldiered on and drove the long drive to Western Melbourne to the Air Show…
Upon reflection, coming on the worst day of the week (weather wise) was a fantastic idea, as there was essentially no effort to get to the front of the run way to get a great view of the live air action. When we looked at other peoples photo’s from that weekend we were shocked to see how much more busy it was. If you’re going for the spectacle of the live air show and acrobatics then definitely go on the potentially wettest day of the week. Perhaps if you would have preferred spending your day browsing through the show tents and displays among the large show grounds, it might be more ideal for one of the nicer days. Either way, just remember to bring a jacket because it got so cold.
Journey to the Flooded Lands
As many of you are aware, there was immense flooding all over Victoria a few weeks ago shortly after the tragic Queensland floods.
The heavy rain in Victoria sadly caused half my house to get a very damp floor, so I was unable to launch out from my house with camera in hand. So sadly I missed out on photographing some potentially great scenes in the local area… (more…)
