Need new fall traditions?
Ginger-Turmeric Tea. Its got cold remedies mixed into the sweet and spicy liquid that goes oh so nicely next to a warm fire or in a to-go thermos on your morning walk. It only calls for four ingredients – powdered ginger, powdered turmeric, lemon, and water. A lot of Studio 3’s work is of food and drink photography. You can check some of it out here and here. Feelin’ hungry? Call us.
Did you know that the origin of the pomegranate is from modern-day Iran? You can use pomegranate seeds and juice for lots of things – sauces, garnishes, smoothies, baking, cooking, and … pomegranate cosmos?!?
You can also use mushrooms in practically anything – mushroom soup, mushroom pasta, mushroom risotto, (an all time favorite), the list goes on and on. When people think of mushrooms they think of cooking, and when they think of cooking they’ll usually go to a grocery store to pick up their shrooms. But, there’s a more adventurous way to get your shroom on … there’s a new hobby on the books – mushrooming hunting. Here is the 2015 Mushroom Guide for Oregon and Washington. And if you want to get your shroom hunting on, you’ll need these essentials.
If you’re like some of us and you just don’t have the time for cooking, (or maybe you just don’t know HOW to cook), bread, pears, and cheeses are perfect appetizers to start your fall-themed night off right.
Oh! Is that the dinner bell?
Category: Uncategorized
Apparel Photography – Levi's Signature Jeans
A Levi’s® Guarantee
Cut from the best cloth. Crafted with expert care. Designed for the long haul.
At Levi Strauss & Co., quality always comes first.
At Studio 3, Inc. we do the same: WE Guarantee It for life. We stand behind our photography 100% and guarantee that it’ll be the best you’ve ever seen, expertly tailored to your company and product. Because apparel photography isn’t just about shooting clothes…it’s about creating a mood, a feel, and encapsulating the brand message for the client.
Studio 3 captured Levi Strauss & Co’s brand message by focusing on the iconic waistband label of their Signature jeans. The styling, the lighting, and the framing of this photo exemplify Levi’s rugged, durable, and relatable traits, which convey quality and longevity to the potential buyer. With the lineup of other Levi’s jeans and a denim jacket in the background, the customer knows that Levi’s offers other products to choose form as well – all shot in a warm, early morning light to create a “hard-working” “everyman” feel.
When you’re in the market for durable jeans with an enduring history, you’ll chose Levi’s. When you’re in the market for unique commercial photography that makes viewers “get” your brand to the core, you’ll choose Studio 3. Email us to experience our guarantee in person.
#TBT Stanley Man
Can we fix it? YES WE CAN! Ahh… nothing says “Made in America” more than a room filled with sweaty, hard-working Macho Men (and Women). With that said, the Stanley Hydraulics advertisement shown above was brought to life by the diligent work of Studio 3’s Henry Ngan and our very creative friends at Bronson Leigh Weeks. With the innovative concept mapping of Loren Weeks, this lively production resulted from the need of an in-store display showing the extensive line of Stanley’s hydraulic power tools for industrial applications. Henry noted that this concept took a little more brain power than normal. The oversized nature of the elements included in the shoot (power poles, manhole covers, I-beams, forklift, load of lumber, etc.) made it so that Weeks’ vision could only be brought to full fruition in a controlled environment. Photographer Henry Ngan states:
“This was a particularly challenging assignment that unfolded over the course of several weeks from concept meetings to getting all the elements together to painting the cyc with an airless sprayer and building the scene. We had to scout for talent to fit the right characters envisioned by Loren Weeks. When the day finally came to shoot, it was like conducting an orchestra in order to create a harmonious image with all the elements including lighting, talent, products, various props and the whims of the art director, and product managers.”
Henry recalls that the most complicated part of the process was the fake I-beam which was strapped to a fork on a fork lift. Luckily, it was strong enough to support Craig Wagner (top right), one of our current Studio 3 photographers who back then was acting as an assistant and model. Isn’t he dreamy? In order to allow swings and tilt to enhance photo quality, Henry shot with a Sinar P camera with a 135 mm Nikkor lens on 4X5 Fuji Velvia film. Henry then lit the set with various light modifiers and Speedotron strobe lights which were hung on beams above the scene in order to add a little drama and create the look Weeks was after.
“There were lights everywhere,” he said. “Up in the air, on the ground, and hidden behind props. I had to get as much depth of field as I could, so I used Speedrotron Black Line 2400 w/s power packs, one per head. With the bigger cameras and longer lenses, f32 and f64 was not uncommon in order to achieve max depth.”
All in all, with so many hands at work, the project turned out to be top of the line just like Stanley Hydraulics. At Studio 3 we think work is good, but we also like play. SO come hang with us and you can have the best of both worlds. Do like our photographer (and model), Craig, and take a break to have a bite with us. Shoot us an email to schedule our lunch date. We’ll even throw in the libation of your choice! Until then, only one more day until Friday… Keep dreaming, friends. Keep dreaming.
Polartec Punch
Talk about making a splash this summer! Studio 3 has been heating up on set- this time with one of our fun and creative clients, Frank’s Garage. The team at Frank’s called us to help them visually illustrate the many qualities and characteristics of Polartec High-Performance Fabrics. The goals for these images were to portray the waterproof protection and breathability of the NeoShell outwear fabric. After the production meeting, photographer, Craig Wagner couldn’t wait to get his hands dirty…or soaked. As always, he came up with a great solution for capturing this fist going through water:
“I knew Broncolor’s Scoro S power packs would provide control of the high flash duration needed to freeze the action without giving up the output needed to capture this image. Our initial approach was to shoot using a H4D-40 Hasselblad and our IR trigger setup, but found that the inconsistent speed of the punching fist didn’t give us the results we were looking for. We switched to our Canon 5D MKIII to take advantage of 6 FPS burst rate. We then made adjustments to the Scoro packs and after a few attempts, the model and I were in sync.”
Many different oils and lotions were tried on the model’s hand to reduce drag and create a smoother looking barrier between the fist and water. In the end, nothing worked better than some good-old fashioned baby oil.
So in the end, with a great concept, extraordinary photography, a fish tank and some baby oil, an image that packed tremendous punch was made. Add some punch to your photography, call us, we can deliver.
Dat ChromeCast, Tho.
You know how you have your closet full of countless DVDs? Doesn’t it suck whenever you move to a new home and you have to lug your timeless collection with you? Yup… It used to.
Last year Google launched the ChromeCast, a thumb-sized digital media player that claims it’s “the easiest way to enjoy online music and videos on TV.” Life just got a little bit easier without DVDs that skip or piles of movies that go weeks without being organized. To celebrate the cure to this chaos, Studio 3’s Chris Eltrich captured this ingenious innovation in all its glory.
The inspiration for this photograph, Chris states, is the juxtaposition of “old” vs. “new.” In order to accomplish this production, he covered the shoot with a multitude of lights and reflectors that created an iridescent look on the disks. After a few takes, what had originally started as an idea to shoot just a couple of DVDs developed into a brilliant plot to shoot an entire spread of them. This helped gain a greater color scheme which would become the perfect backdrop for our all-star, the Google ChromeCast. “I was really pleased with the way the CD’s turned out. They made for a perfectly unique background,” Chris says.
While some things never get old, like The Goonies, Otter Pops, and Johnny Cash… other things have expiration dates. CDs, DVDs, and VHS tapes are just a few examples of them. We’re not saying you should quit watching your favorite childhood movies… but maybe it’s finally time for those grainy recorded video tapes to go. Make a sleek transition to the ChromeCast life and lose a load off your back- or your movie shelf.
And now, FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY book a job with us and get a free movie night in the Studio with your favorite film and photography team. Pick up that damn phone and get dialing!
Break A Cool Sweat
Here we are in the HOT HOT HEAT of the summer and there’s no way we are hanging up our bathing suits just yet! While breakin’ a cool sweat and trying to stay cool, Studio 3 brought in the Marquis Spas ATV (Aquatic Training Vessel) for a much needed dip. The ATV was delivered on a trailer and was fork-lifted into Studio 3. From there, the team hauled that huge piece of heaven onto a custom-built stage. It took 2 days to fill it up and get it to a temperature that was juuuust right. Once the bubbles were flowing, the cameras started rolling.
Studio 3 has had the pleasure of working with Marquis Spas for many years now. The California based company founded in 1980 strives to provide top-of-the-line aquatic products that aid in rest and relaxation for the “ultimate soaking experience.”
For this particular shoot Studio 3 Film Director of Video Production, David King, filmed the features of the ATV while our Lead Photographer, Craig Wagner, caught some overhead and underwater shots. Craig gives a bit of insight on this splish-splash shoot:
“I was piggy-backing on the video shoot of Marquis’ new ATV. The client wanted to feature someone working out (water aerobics) from under the water’s surface. Since the tank was blue, we chose to give the image an overall blue hue by gelling the key lights.
I shot this using a Canon 5D MKIII in our underwater housing. I also mounted a Canon 5D MKIII above the tank for the overhead image. I remotely triggered the camera and viewed the images in Lightroom. Speedotron packs and heads were used along with our 8’x14′ lightbank with custom flash tubes.”
The end result was comprised of a five-star video and brilliant stills that capture the endless capabilities of a Marquis Spas ATV. If you think you don’t need one, just wait until you watch this.
There’s still a lot more sunshine comin our way for the rest of the summer. If you can’t take the heat, give us a call! Let Studio 3 take care of business while you enjoy the non-stop flow of ice cold drinks to keep you cool.
#TBT: Digital What?
10 hours, 6 polaroids, and 3 sheets of film. Can you even imagine the torture that used to go into creating just one composited image?
Studio 3’s David Bell approached this project with Reilly Jensen of Reilly Jensen Design for the ghost we now know as Egghead Software. The idea for this production was to create a series of summer sale posters that would adorn all of the the windows to this software retail chain. But Senior Lead Photographer, David Bell can tell you this was no stroll through the park. He used nothing but a few polaroids, a studio strobe, and 3 sets of film all composited in camera to make this concept a reality. I don’t know if you’re understanding correctly… THAT MEANS NO DIGITAL WORK- AT ALL! That is a toilsome task that would now be unheard of and would only be attempted by the bravest of artists.
Well, we’ve changed things a little since then. Actually, Studio 3 was the first commercial photography studio to dive into the digital world and uncover the realm of Photoshop. Now-a-days a composite like the one shown above would be accomplished through a simple process in which one of our digital pros would take several images, digitally clip them, layer them and VOILA! We’ve just cut down on 3/4 of the time it would take to composite an image the old-school way. Ahh, technology. Isn’t it great? It sure is.
And I know what you’re thinking now… “Wait, what the hell happened to Egghead?” Ironically enough, in 2001 the company’s computer system got hacked and soon after, our local favorite went under. But enough negativity. There are plenty of things to be thankful for… like top-of-the-line photography and first-class digital art. Did I mention we’re fun too? Give us a call, we have a margarita waiting for you on our terrace. Cheers.
Studio 3 Rides Out On Ducati
Summertime is all about fast cars and even faster Ducati motorcycles. Studio 3 wanted to explore our dare devil side and kick up the dust to catch the sunset on a few of these bad boys of the road. While the rest of us had fun forming our very own Studio 3 Biker Gang, our talented Seattle Shooters David Bell and Chris Eltrich had the pleasure of capturing these beauties with a Hasselblad Medium Format camera system. Eltrich goes a little more in depth about this sexy shoot:
“The team was looking for a darker, dramatic look… I used Studio 3’s Speedotron lights for all the shots with various light modifiers, but generally each shot had a Beauty Dish as the key light with lights through diffusion panels for accents. A lot of the planning and conceptualizing for the shoot was done by our amazing Producer, Megan Nolan and our go to Digital Lead, Alex Gumina.”
Alex shares his inspiration behind his work here:
“There seems to be a trend in vehicle advertising lately of hyper-processed, super crisp images. I thought it would be fun to do something in this style but needed a subject. That’s where Ducati Seattle came in. I pitched the idea to Megan, our studio producer, and we made our way across Aurora to Ducati Seattle to look at some beautiful motorcycles. We met with the sales manager Mike MacConaghy and before we knew it we had a couple beautiful Italian made motorcycles in the studio.
The original plan was to do a couple composites using shots of the bikes in studio, and environmental shots for the backgrounds. We would blend the two together to make one perfect, seamless image. Since we had the bikes in studio though, we decided to take full advantage of our photographers capabilities and do some amazing detail shots as well. My only request was dark, moody, high contrast, and sexy. What you see here is the end result.”
We had a blast having the Ducati Motorcycles for a few days. We couldn’t load up on our leather gear fast enough! At least we know we’ll be prepared for next summer! If you want in on the fun, give Studio 3 a call and we’ll bring an extra helmet.
1 Second Everyday
“There are so many tiny, beautiful, funny, tragic moments in your life — how are you going to remember them all?”
Imagine a movie that includes everyday for the rest of your life… That’s the motto of the 1 Second Everyday app. As of this May, director, producer, video maker, animator, and app creator Cesar Kuriyama has been recording one second of his life everyday for three years. Kuriyama started creating this video diary on his 30th Birthday and claims that if he lives to see 80, family and friends will have a 5-hour-long accurate depiction of his life. The “1 Second Everyday” app does exactly what the name implies. It allows users to create a video diary of their lives by providing them with platform to record, edit, and store one unique moment a day for a year at a time in order to create an irreplaceable memoir. Kuriyama said that his driving force for this project was the fact that he would gain the ability to flashback through his memories and re-evaluate how he approached each day.
In spirit of this moving idea, David King, our director of video production compiled a 30 second video of what one month with the Studio 3 team looks like… and we’ve all come to realize how lucky we really are! Here’s a 30 second glance at our random, crazy, and beautiful lives:
So, if you’re feeling stressed, excited, discouraged, confused, wired, or tired, go ahead and start your very own video. You might be surprised with the outcome. And if you’re looking for a little extra sunshine in your day, give us a call or pop by the studio. We’ll do everything we can to ensure it’s an experience so grand you won’t need an app to remember it.