South African Military Museum

I was driving around looking for the Apartheid Museum, and came across the South African Military History Museum. I figured they'd be able to give me directions, I stopped in to ask, and found that some history buffs were holding an Angolan War re-enactment. The South Africans fought a war there in the 70's and 80's against the local rebels, and their Cuban advisors. Several of my cousins and family friends fought in it, and if I'd been still in South Africa when I reached draft age, I would have fought there too, which is something I've been thinking about a lot lately.

The older guys in the photos are real veterans, and the younger guys are mostly their kids, there to get a taste of the old days.





The guns are de-activated, but still really scary looking.

Around Jo'burg

My first day in Johannesburg, or Jo'burg to the locals, my friends Philip and Sue took me for a tour of all the cool old haunts.  This is the Radium Beer Hall, which has been a operating as a local pub non-stop since 1926.  It was one of the first bars in the country to intergrate, long before the end of Apartheid.  We came that evening for some kicking live music


Me in front of the giant Nelson Mandela statue in Nelson Mandela Square, Sandton City in the Northern Suburbs.  Every tourist has to do this.  I covered Mandela when he was South African President, and he's personal hero of mine, as well every other South African from one side of the political and racial spectrum, to the other.


My hosts, Sue, Heather, and Philip.  Sue and I became close friends during our time working at the Durban area newspapers.


Jo'burg is far safer than most non-Jo'burg residents would think, but still, don't be a schmuck.  I took the precaution of clipping my camera belt pack to a chair during lunch.


We had the good luck to run in to a good friend of both Sue and I, Michael Schmidt.  Michael and I covered one of the worst atrocities of low intensity civil war that hit South Africa after the 1994 election.  Twenty villagers were slaughtered by their neighbours on Christmas Day 1995, and ours was the definitive coverage of the event.  It hit me so hard that I never really went back to covering conflicts after that.  Michael has been to the West Bank, Darfour, the Congo, and just about every African hot spot since.  Now he runs a foundation that trains journalists in developing countries.

I think Jo'burg is a little like Michael, Sue, and I.  We've grown more mature with the years, and the restless dangerous parts of us have mellowed.  Twelve years ago, Jo'burg was a tense place, where you watched yourself all the time.  Now, as long as you stay out of the scary parts of town (just like visiting any other city), it's pleasant and laid back with a friendly population, a thriving arts and culture scene, and great place to spend a few days.

I've collected my anti-mlarial pills, kissed Sue good bye, and now I'm off to Zimbabwe

Essenwood Flea Market

I spent Saturday at at the Essenwood flea Market in Durban.  Flea markets are a big South African tradition, where you can go to buy some authentic african crafts and beadwork, or hear someone play a township flute, or 'Penny Whistle'.

Around Durban

I've spent the last week getting my bearings in Durban.  I lost my wallet on the way in, and had to order a new VISA card from Montreal, which should be arriving soon.  I've also bought myself a little car, so I'm almost ready to hit the road.

Yesterday, my Dad and I went for a walk along the Durban beachfront.  Half of Zululand seemed to be down there enjoying the surf, and we were the only two white guys who didn't look like they were trying to score some methamphetamine.  Quite the experience.




Umhlanga Rocks is a popular resort area just north of Durban that has a famous lighthouse, a fantastic beach, and great fishing.

Back to South Africa

I finally made it back to South Africa.  Three back to back plane rides, 36 hours of travelling.  The first thing my family did was throw me a traditional South African barbecue, or "Braai".  It's a huge grill up of sausages, boerwors, ribs, and corn.  I haven't eaten this much meat since the last time I was in South Africa.  I have another one to go to on Saturday at my sister's house.

I haven't been back since 1996, and I've since acquired a sister-in-law and two nephews who I've never met.  I've spent the last few days getting to know everyone, looking to find a cheap car, and cancelling my credit cards, as I managed to lose my wallet on the trip here.  Once everything gets set, I'll be hitting the road.


This guy is the local fruit seller that my Dad buys his avocados from.  Durbanites are particular about the local avo's, which are massive (those raisin like things in the lower left corner are supermarket avocados that you would get in Canada), very tasty, and grow naturally throughout the area.  While there are many large, very modern shopping malls thoughout South Africa, little guys like this still do a thriving trade.

Pharmacist of the Year

These are part of a series of photos I did for Pharmacy Practices Canada magazine.  Carmen is getting an award for her pharmacy, located in Lillooet BC, about 150 km's northeast of Whistler, over a frightening 4200' mountain pass.  Whistler is the closest major centre, so I get dispatched there for all sorts of photo and video jobs.

The clients asked for a simple shot against a feature-less background, which is the first one.  Carmen was really busy because of the H1N1 outbreak, especially acute in Lillooet, the pharmacy itself was small and crammed with merchandise, and the only blank wall I could find was in the small hallway that led to the storeroom, so we were really rushed for both time and space.  Despite that, it turned out okay, but looking too much like a fancy passport photo for my taste.  Next I asked her to pose in front of the pharmacy display, which made it a more interesting photo, and gave us a lot more room to work in.  Being able to use a longer lens makes for a more flattering photo, and the background makes it a lot more interesting.




They also wanted some shots of Carmen working in her pharmacy for a slideshow that's going to be shown at the awards gala in Toronto.  I thought this was a little more interesting, and it's easier to get interesting photos when the subjects are actually doing something, as opposed to just standing there.


I wanted to finish with an exterior shot, just show how beautiful, and isolated Lillooet is.

Tech Stuff:
The first two shots were lit with with a Nikon SB-900 bounced into an umbrella as the key light, and a Nikon SB-800 with a flag on it as a background/kicker light.  With the SU-800 controller, I can set the levels of both flashes from the camera.

The last three shots were shot with the available light and slight fill fill from the camera mounted SB-900 flash.

Camera:  Nikon D700
Lens:  Nikon AF-S 28-70mm f/2.8 (1st), AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8 (2nd), AF-S 17-35mm f/2.8 (3rd, 4th, and 5th)

Alanna and Derek's Wedding at the Nita Lake Lodge

This is my last wedding for 2009, and I couldn't have gotten a more pleasant group of people than Alanna and Derek and their guests and family.  It's also the first time I've done a large sized wedding at the Nita Lake Lodge, and I'm really starting to like this spot as a wedding location.


Alanna's Dad, waiting for the girls at the chapel.






Rough weather for the whole day, but we did get a nice rain free hole just after the ceremony.  It was nearly dark by the time we finished the bridal portraits.






We finished all the posed bridal and family portraits early, so I asked if I could try some locations around the lodge.  Most of the venues I work in at Whistler tend to more 'Mountain Rustic' in their decor, while the Nita Lake is quite modern and cool looking, so it was a good opportunity for me to try something a little different.

Tech Stuff:
I used a wide range of techniques for this wedding.  The first two interior shots are lit with just the available available light.

The guys on the dock needed a touch of on-camera fill flash, because of the generally gloomy and miserable conditions were causing heavy shadows on their faces.

With the bride's maids, I asked one of the groomsmen to hold the flash off to camera left, and then under exposed the sky to get a dramatic look out of it.

The interior shots were all done with a flash bounced into a photo umbrella.  The shot at the bar also had another flash positioned behind the bar to act as a 'kicker'.

Camera:  Nikon D700 (all)
Lenses:  AF-S 17-35mm f/2.8 (first, fourth, fifth, sixth), AF-S 28-70mm f/2.8 (second, seventh, eighth), and the AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8 (third)