Circus Performers – Vintage Wet Plate Style

The collodion – or wet plate – process was developed in the 1850s and was a popular yet somewhat inconvenient way for photographers to produce portraits. This form of photography required the photographic material to be coated, sensitized, exposed and developed within the span of about fifteen minutes and this inconvenience was probably one of the reasons that the process was largely replaced by dry gelatine emulsion in the 1880’s.  Nowadays the look originally achieved by this process can be replicated  by skilled photographers using a digital darkroom.

At the end of August we shot a number of performers over the course of one afternoon.  The photos were lit to help create the wet plate ‘look’ that would be further enhanced in the digital darkroom.  Circus is an age old form of entertainment and the performers that we shot are some of the best in the world… they are the type that, in a different century, might’ve made their living travelling the world entertaining people young and old.

This is the way that we envisioned their ‘promo’ posters might’ve looked back then, developed using the collodion process.

 

 

 

An Outtake From the YWCA Toronto’s 2014 Annual Report – Sasha

 

Over the past few years we have been fortunate to work with the team at the YWCA Toronto in creating photography for a variety of their publications. The team that we work with are wonderful, compassionate people and the whenever we have worked with the YWCA program participants (often women who have each faced enormous challenges and have then become the subject of our photos) we’ve felt honoured that they allow themselves to feel and convey in front of us the true emotion that we hope comes across in the photos.

Recently we worked with the YWCA to create visuals for their 2014 Annual Report.  Again we worked with participants of the YWCA’s programs – programs to help women who had been abused, women who had faced poverty, and women who were experiencing homelessness. One of the participants was Sasha – above.  Sasha is an absolute success story.  A strong and ambitious woman who with the help of the YWCA has been able to rebuild her life and even start her own business.  She continues to thrive.

On the evening that we met Sasha she arrived composed, self confident, and her strength came through in every frame.  After the final shots had been delivered to the client we fooled around a bit with this outtake in post production and liked the way it came out.

Sasha makes a fine ambassador for the success stories that are written through the tireless work of those at the YWCA and the programs made possible by the donations they receive.

Canadian Olympic Bronze Medalist Claire Carver-Dias

Back in January we were fortunate enough to work with Claire Carver-Dias, a bronze medalist in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.  During our photo shoot we learned a little bit about synchronized swimming and the training one must go through to reach the level that Clair has reached. We also got a chance to feel for ourselves just how heavy an olympic medal really is – it is quite heavy!

Claire has moved on from the life of an athlete and through her company Clearday Communications now offers corporate communications services as well as coaching.  Claire is also an accomplished author who has just seen her first novel put into print – an all around accomplished individual and a real pleasure to work with.

The Aga Khan Museum and Ismaili Centre

We had the opportunity to photograph the Aga Khan Museum and the accompanying Ismaili Centre a few weeks ago.  The care that went into choosing the design and finishes was evident everywhere.  This is a place that you should definitely visit and see for yourself if you get the chance.

Emmanuel Belliveau: Founder and Creative Director of FLOROHome

In September we began working with Marketplace Events – the company responsible for bringing Toronto the very popular Toronto Fall Home Show each year.  This year one of the main features of the show was the Casalife Feature Home designed by FLOROHome Creative Director Emmanuel Belliveau and Project Manager Maria Perketa.

While shooting promotional material for media before the opening of the show we spent a couple of  hours in the design space and during that time shot a few editorial portraits of Emmanuel, above.  Note the custom built kitchen island in the first shot – just one example of Emmanuel’s design and build creativity.  You can see more of FLOROHome’s work on their website: check them out.

Inside the New Holt Renfrew Yorkdale

One early morning in July we spent a few hours photographing the interior of the newly renovated Holt Renfrew store at Yorkdale Mall. Our objective with this shoot was to capture the lighting and the way it illuminated and complimented the merchandise in various departments.

Although we were surrounded by a plentiful selection of this season’s top fashions and timeless classics from a variety of designers we decided not to take the opportunity to browse – or look TOO closely – at the pieces on offer. That was probably a good choice, as the temptation to do a bit of shopping while we were there might have just been too much.

Scenes From Toronto’s Waterfront

Well summer is finally on its way.

After the winter that we all just endured the weather has finally warmed up and people are out and determined to enjoy it. One of the best places in Toronto to enjoy the summer weather – complete with cool lake breezes – is the waterfront.

During the Doors Open festival in May we shot some material for the Waterfront BIA, capturing images of people enjoying the first warm weekend we’d had in a long time. People were out running, biking, walking all shapes and sizes of dogs, and generally partaking in all the waterfront has to offer.

Some of those fun-loving people (and their dogs) even made it into our blog.

 

Pirates Invade Toronto’s Waterfront. Sort Of.

Last weekend all across the city, the doors to architecturally, historically, culturally, and socially significant buildings usually closed to the public were thrown open for the 15th annual Doors Open Toronto. Down on the waterfront Doors Open turned into Gangways Open as ships usually not accessible to curious by-passers welcomed crowds of happy locals and tourists alike onboard to discover these ships.

Over the course of the weekend plenty of pirates – presumably drawn to the area by the lovely new boardwalk, the numerous restaurants and retail outlets (including the amazing new Amsterdam Brewhouse), or by the sandy beach at H2O Park complete with cozy muskoka chairs – were found roaming the area. After all, what pirate wouldn’t want to take some time out from their busy plundering to relax in the cool breeze of the waterfront?

At the end of the day we had a few minutes to grab a few of these pirates, quickly set up lighting onboard the Empire Sandy tall ship, and in between the mild chaos of setting up the shot, corralling those happy locals and tourists into areas of the ship NOT in the shot, and managing the breeze that threatened the shooting umbrellas, were able to capture this photo above. It tells the story of the day: blue sky, puffy clouds, a tall ship… and some rogue pirates.

In the end, what else would you want from a weekend on the water?

Totally Waisted! by Katrina Mior: Photos by Light Monkey Photography

Once in a while – as a photographer – you are lucky enough to work on a shoot with a group of people who not only bring out the best in what you do, but are also a lot of fun to work with… such was the case with our shoot earlier this week during which we teamed up with Toronto fashion designer Katrina (Kate) Mior to shoot some promotional material showcasing her incredible corsetry.

Kate’s business – cleverly named ‘Totally Waisted! Corsetry’ – has been in existence for eight years and she is at the point in her career now of building a solid online presence for her designs. When construction on her website is complete you will be able to see samples of Kate’s corsets and contact her easily to place custom orders. Until then you can visit her Facebook Page, Pinterest, or Tumblr accounts to see the heirloom quality, hand finished, high end pieces this fabulous designer is capable of creating.

Kate herself is a fascinating person, she is a true artist and an established performer who tours the world for a good portion of each year.  She sources the best – and in many cases, antique – material for her one-of-a-kind corsets and painstakingly creates the perfect finished product for her high-end clients. Each piece is art in itself (witness the black and white swan corsets above, featuring real feathers!) and we – with the help of models Ari, Miss Fine Lines, Helen, and Stephany – did our best to showcase it in the very best light.

Clothing Design/Styling and Hair Styling: Katrina Mior

Make-up: Aisha Chacha – Chacha Cosmetics

Models: Miss Fine Lines, Helen Davis, Ariel Lunansky, Stephany Garcia

Location (Loft Space) Owner: Meghan Curtis

Home Fashion Office Shoot, Styled by Tara Wilkins

A few weeks ago we worked on an editorial type creative shoot that was pulled together to showcase a home office designed for someone in the fashion industry.  The stylist for this shoot was the talented prop and clothing stylist, Tara Wilkins.  Tara recently signed with Plutino Group – her website can be found here.

We really enjoyed this project and working with Tara was a great experience, we hope to have the opportunity to work with her again and again in the future.