John Frank and his Fast Car

Behind the Lens: JOHN FRANK from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

(itunes: missy elliot, son of a gun)

Shooting NYC, very busy, but low and behold time to blog. Check out the video for a little inside joke regarding a Coke Zero plug. View the youtube version here.


While I'm filming in New York you can keep up with all the shenanigans via a host of wholesome online goodness, take your pick:

Tumblr

Twitter

Youtube

SHO Foundation Promo, Save Art Save the World

Save Art Save the World - SHO Foundation #1 from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

Simply Helping Others otherwise known as the SHO Foundation will be holding an ART SHO / ART SUPPLY DRIVE on Friday 8/7/2009 7-11pm at my studio. Open bar, live music, amazing artists including Plinio Pinto, Mel Taylor, Melissa Smith, Nicky Botelho, Michelle Marconi, and Belinda Anderson. Want to know more, watch the video.

Sam Cook + Stevie Wonder = Jasper Sawyer

Behind the Lens: JASPER SAWYER from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

(itunes: Velvet Revolver, big machine)
This kid is so talented and such a sweetheart. Watch the video and enjoy a small sampling of his music. View the youtube version here.

And on a side note, how fast is this year going for you? I swear Christmas was a week ago. Pretty sure July will fly by too. 3 video shoots this month, one in NYC next week. I'm going to be updating my Tumblr on daily basis while working up there. Might even set up a video diary on Vimeo. We have access to some pretty sick locations so it might be fun to share. Have a great week everyone!

Yes the lightning is REAL.

Behind the Lens: BRIE from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

(itunes: tokyo police club, cheer it on)

How many photographers have the exact moment they captured lightning on video? I do. Check out the footage from our shoot for Brie and you will hear my exact reaction. Its quite embarrassing, loud and not very feminine, but its real, just like the lightning. Keep in mind I wasn't shooting with my shutter left open, I was shooting at 1/125th of a second. Skills, luck, maybe both but holy crap does it make the shot come alive. Everyone who was there for that moment knew what we created and the energy was electric (pun intended). View the youtube version here.

Half Ton of Props on Orange Avenue

Behind the Lens: ORANGE AVENUE from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

(itunes: nature boy, primus)

Vimeo giving you trouble, check out behind the scenes video on YouTube.

And yes, we really did have a HALF TON of props in the studio for our shoot with Orange Avenue. It looks so empty now I kinda miss all the dead tvs.

Lip Dub - Don't Stop Believing by Journey

Lip Dub - Don't Stop Believing by Journey from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.
(itunes: don't trust me, 3OH!3)
No real planning went into this other than the fact that we all wanted to test out the HD video recording of the Canon 5D Mark II. Thanks to the many music makers and rock-n-rollers that participated. And Michelle, don't you stop believing...

View the youtube version here.

FYI, if playback is too slow, turn off the HD viewing button (roll over video on upper right side). If standard definition is too slow then your internet just can't hack the awesomeness of Journey.

Faces of Florida Music Festival...FMF

Brook Pifer Behind the Lens: FMF 2009 from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

During FMF I had the privilege of meeting and shooting over 250 bands. Say that's an average of 4 people per band, 1000 faces. And here are the images. What a freaking amazing time we had. It felt a little like boot camp, pure adrenaline, outrageous and exhausting all at the same time.

Sometimes I had less than a minute with each person. I equate that to boot camp because it took massive amounts of energy, focus and mental stamina to make complete strangers comfortable in such a short time. They had to trust me fast enough for me to create amazing portraits. Holy crow it was a battalion of fun.

Adrenaline, well I had my very bodacious crew and A-list assistant Michelle with me keeping the traffic flowing. I can't tell you how many times I was neck deep in shooting but I knew she was taking care of all the musicians, making sure they weren't bored, carrying on stimulating conversations and supervising everything in general. Everything ran so smooth because of her and I was able to focus and connect with each person to produce the work you see here.

Outrageous, did I happen to mention that not only did I shoot people but I filmed them with the Canon 5D Mark II lip singing to Don't Stop Believing by Journey. The music video is in editing right now and I have one word, AWESOME.

Not only was I working during FMF but then I just had to go check out the bands at night. Four days with no sleep, you do the math. All in all it was so worth it. The photos, the new friends, reconnecting with old ones, good times to say the least. If you like what you see here check out my website for a larger collection of the faces from FMF.

Coming soon, the debut of the Journey video. Steve Perry, you rock!

BellaSol + Summertime

Behind the Lens: BELLASOL from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

(itunes: off, listening to NPR)

Summer arrived the day of the BellaSol shoot, very fitting if I do say so myself. BellaSol is a surf+skate apparel company. Our models were real troopers though and as for the crew, ah yeah, we are used to shooting in all climates. To all my Orlando friends, how are you liking the next 4 days of straight rain? Need an arc? I met a guy named Noah recently, maybe he can steer.

On an unrelated side note, Wolverine was good, Star Trek was better and I'm not even an aficionado of all things Enterprise. I'm going to see Terminator and Angels & Demons this week. Looking forward to Transformers, Up and Harry Potter. Summer movie season is in full effect!

Shut up and Dance

Behind the Lens: SHUT UP AND DANCE from Brook Pifer on Vimeo.

(itunes: jefferson airplane, third week in the chelsea)

Can you make complete strangers comfortable in front of the lens? You need to if you plan to shoot people. Case in point, my amazing shoot with Shut Up and Dance. Due to each of us having busy schedules we didn't have the luxury of meeting prior to the shoot. No problem, its my job to form a bond with clients so they can open up, have a fun time and in the process make some genuine moments.

As an added bonus, Joey from SUAD was so kind to do a mini tour of my studio a la MTV Cribs style. Check out the video for a hilarious look into the inner workings of Penthouse Studios.

Random Funny Email of the Month

(itunes: wild horses by rolling stones)