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London blurred lines

Last week I went to London for a few days to see my good friend David Headley who owns Goldsboro Books in Cecil Court. I had four of my photographs with me which are now on exhibition there.

During one of our evening outings, walking Davids' dog Mia, I took my camera along and decided to take some long exposure with deliberate movement. This is one of the nice photographs that came out of this.

Wash away

The question is: is this tree being washed away or washed ashore?

On the island of Gili Meno, Indonesia, there is a short stretch of beach where a dozen or so trees seem to be clinging on to life not being able to choose between land or sea. Taking a long exposure results in milky sea and blurred movement of the leaves and branches.

Johan - test shot

This is one of the results of testshots during the photoshoot with Johan a week ago. (See my post of October 10th.) Looking for the best light for the smoke-collar-project.

I wanted to take a photograph in old classic style and I wanted the model to 'wear' a medieval collar. But not a regular collar made of fabric, but one made of smoke. I found a way to more or less control rings of smoke. The difficult part was to take a photograph at the exact right moment when the ring of smoke is around the neck of the model.

Thanks to model Johan Bos. Thanks also to my friend Wim Blom as assistent (billowing the smoke around the room.) And thanks to my friends Geert-Jan and Jaap for letting me use their living room for the photoshoot, as I needed a room high enough to let the smoke come down from above the model.

Sundowner

I am not usually one for posting my pictures of sunsets. Cliché, cliché. Exceptions confirm the rule, so here is a sunset over the Gili islands, Indonesia. The Gili islands are a group of tiny islands (you can walk around them over the beach in about 1,5 hours.) just off the west coast of the island of Lombok, Indonesia. Two of the Gili islands have developed into a regular Ibiza party-island counterpart. The island stuck in the middle, Gili Meno, from which I took this picture, is still relatively quiet and peaceful.

Smoke-collar

This week I set myself a challenge: I wanted to take a photograph in old classic style and I wanted the model to 'wear' a medieval collar. But not a regular collar made of fabric, but one made of smoke. I found a way to more or less control rings of smoke. The difficult part was to take a photograph at the exact right moment when the ring of smoke is around the neck of the model. And it worked!

Thanks to model Johan Bos. Thanks also to my friend Wim Blom as assistent (billowing the smoke around the room.) And thanks to my friends Geert-Jan and Jaap for letting me use their living room for the photoshoot, as I needed a room high enough to let the smoke come down from above the model.

 

This picture is basically straight out of camera. The only retouching of importance is some camouflaging of the smoke trails above and behind the model and putting some more contrast in the models' face.

 

I hope you like it.

I am open for photoshoot assignments of any kind. You can contact me for information via jos@jkimages.nl

Rinjani

From here It is another good hour walking up to the peak of the Rinjani volcano on Lombok, Indonesia. These hikers didn't make it to the top in time for the sunrise. Neither did I. But at a respectable height of almost 3.700m, I think I got a cool sunrise from quite where I was.

The Rinjani volcano is a touristic highlight on the Indonesian island of Lombok. At least 200 people in many small guided groups were climbing to the top when we were there. Only a small percentage make it to the top in time for sunrise. You leave basecamp at 2.600m at 2.30am to go to the summit at 3.726m. Sunrise is at about 6 am. It is a very strenuous and frustrating climb because of the steepness of the last 1.100m and the amount of loose gravel on the path.

But the views are breathtaking. Check out the photo below looking the other direction and notice the massive shadow the volcano makes on the clouds behind it....

In the distance on this second photo you can clearly see Bali and, if you look closer, the three small Gili islands.

The vestige (II)

Imagine yourself a solitary mangrove tree a few feet from the shore line, a slowly incoming tide, a clear nightsky with thousands of stars and a building site behind you with a security light aimed straight at your tree. This was the setting for this picture I took somewhere on the northern coast of Bali.

The tree for me symbolizes the struggle that nature has against the encroaching species called humans. Even here on Bali. The fact that only half of the tree has leaves is quite ominous... I imagine that this part of the coast was previously an extensive mangrove forest. Now all is cleared, the beaches and the coral reefs a little further away are used by tourists and the land directly next to the beach is being steadily filled by extensive hotels.

The building site behind me, admittedly convenient for this picture, is a next slice of the cake that is being cut off from the original cake called nature.

 

A long exposure.

The vestige (I)

This tree is perhaps one of the 'highlights' of my travels over Bali last month. It is a sad remnant of a mangrove-forest on the northern shores of the island. The beach seemed to be cleared for tourism, as just next to this spot holiday bungalows were being built. I spent a few hours here to take some long exposure pictures of it. This is one from a series I shot in broad daylight. Tomorrow I will post a picture I took at midnight when the tide was out.

 

Miriam

From a cool photoshoot with fashionmodel Michiel van Ieperen and Miriam Czakon.  The photoshoot was intended as a cross-over between fashion and 'arty'-storytelling. Some pictures will be available soon. At the end of the photoshoot I suggested to do a couple of portraits with Rembrandt-style lighting. This is one of the nice ones of Miriam.

I am open to all kinds of photography assignments and opportunities. Interested in a photoshoot or know someone who is and you like my work: you can contact me through jos@jkimages.nl

Michiel

I am just back from holiday and already a lot of work and exciting projects going on. So hardly any time to focus on some of the cool pictures I took on Bali, Indonesia. But, don't worry, I will be posting some of the best shots of Bali very soon.

Yesterday I did a cool photoshoot with fashionmodel Michiel van Ieperen and Miriam Czakon.  it was a cross-over photoshoot between fashion and 'arty'-storytelling. Some pictures will be available soon. At the end of the photoshoot I suggested to do a couple of portraits with Rembrandt-style lighting. This is one of the nice ones of Michiel.

 

I am open to all kinds of photography assignments and opportunities. Interested in a photoshoot or know someone who is and you like my work: you can contact me through jos@jkimages.nl