CNOTE – Day 2

(iTunes: Sitting on the Dock of the Bay, Otis Redding)

I LOVE THIS SONG! It makes me want to bask in the warmth of the sun, sip lemonade, reminisce, enjoy the breeze and just relax…

Day 2 started at my studio. I had breakfast catered by Einstein Bagels. While the guys were getting styled, Ben my assistant ran a couple errands since everything was set-up and ready to go.

While they guys took turn getting done up they enjoyed themselves thoroughly thanks to my XBOX360. Game of choice – Fight Night.

In the meantime, I made 2 cappuccinos, 3 iced mochas and 2 iced lattés for my peeps. It’s taken me a while to start trusting my assistants with my gear, but my mack daddy espresso machine – hands off!

Something that I had the privilege to witness was just how well these guys can sing. Before we did the purple set-up they were practicing some acapella songs. HOLY CRAP their good! And this is before the vocals get recorded, mixed and mastered.

For lunch we walked over to Crispers (again, health conscious). I neglected to mention this in the Day 1 post, but our lunch conversations for both days were at a PG-13 level but with NC-17 subject matter. What’s said at the lunch table stays at the lunch table!

Our last shot of the day was on location. One problem – weather. All day long it appeared like it would start pouring down rain. How did I keep my cool, not stress and prepare for this. Despite what you may think, you can shoot in rain and get stunning results. Just get lots of tarps, light stands, weight bags, umbrellas, etc… The boy scout motto comes to mind. And you know what, we didn’t even get one drop of rain. I’m certain that had I not been prepared for the worst it would have rained on my parade. This is why I need an SUV. I always bring more than I need, back-ups of everything, extras of everything. Being prepared makes me a better artist. I don’t have doubt in my mind and know with absolute certainty I can get the shot.

FYI – in the purple shot from left to right are the very talented and hard working guys of CNOTE: Dlo, JPez, O.T., RaRa, JKid

And that’s a wrap!

CNOTE – Day 1

(iTunes: Get it Together, Beastie Boys)

3 is a magic number. 3rd times the charm. This was my 3rd shoot with CNOTE. Why you ask. Well they got a new member, J-Pez (aka J, Jon, John, Jonathan). And yes, he is a cutie (just like the rest of this motley crew).

The last time I shot with them they showed me their secret handshake. I still remember it too!

The day started with my assistant Ben meeting at my studio to load up. Then we head downtown to pick up the stylist for the shoot. And the next thing I know my instincts kick in and we end up in the drive through at Starbucks. Apparently the 4 shots of espresso I had just wasn’t cuttin’ it.

After a successful outing at Starbucks we head over to Dragon Room for our first set-up. Everything went smooth as silk. My team and I were functioning at peak efficiency and made it out of Dragon Room a full hour ahead of schedule. However, I nearly had a heart attack when we were packing up to leave. On my way to the restroom Orlando (aka O.T.) came up behind me and scared the bejesus out of me. I didn’t know I even had bejesus!

From there we head out to California Pizza Kitchen for lunch. Despite eating at a pizza joint, salads dominated the table (a few of the guys are on strict diets). I recommend trying the Waldorf Chicken Salad – very tasty. O.T. was still hungry after his lunch (probably because he picked the tomatoes out of his salad) so he helped me clean my plate. After all, a clean plate earns you a cookie. And a cookie defeats the reason for getting a salad in the first place. Oh well…

After lunch we headed to the beach for the rest of the day. I know, how cool is my career! I get to photograph attractive men and hang out at the beach. Yes, being a photographer is that awesome.

www.cnoteonline.com

Comin' Back Again

(iTunes: In the Morning of the Magicians, The Flaming Lips)

When I shoot a musician I prefer to immerse myself in their music before the shoot, heck even before location scouting, before shoot ideas are determined, before wardrobe, yadda, yadda, yadda. I first photographed Adele the day before Christmas Eve 2005. At that point I had only heard the “studio recordings” for her album – and I thought those sounded great. Well color me surprised when she hooked me up with the “rough mixes” after the dudes at ARS got a hold of them. Completely blew me away! Her tunes are not available yet. But I promise, as soon as this chick gets her website done I’ll let you know.

Good golly miss molly – I LOVE making photographs!

CD Release Reason to Burn

Area 51 vs Channel 13

(iTunes: The Absence of God, Rilo Kiley)

I used to love the X-Files, despite the fact that it would scare the pee out of me. Now it seems I found a replacement…LOST. Yes the show is really as good as the hype machine. Thanks to Netflix and iTunes I was able to “catch up” commercial free. From a cinematic standpoint the two-part premier and finale of season one are brilliant pieces of television. So much so that they feel more like a film rather than prime time tv.

Recently I found a few other things on tv that caught my creative eye. Check out these videos if your near MTV or VH1.

The All-American Rejects "Move Along"

Black Eyed Peas "Pump It"

James Blunt "You're Beautiful"

Kanye West "Touch The Sky"

Madonna "Sorry"

Emily Stine Punched Your Girlfriend

(iTunes: Decemberists, On The Bus Mall)

How about I give you the Top 10 moments of the day (I love David Letterman).

1) The seasoned stylist saying “Remember, I was doing hair back in the 80s!”

2) Emily’s Mum made my day with some chocolate cake from PF Changs. You know how when hunger starts to seep in conversations start to revolve around food. I gave such a good review of the cake that she went out and got 2 slices (one for her and Emily and one for me and the stylist) Chocolate = HAPPY BROOK!

3) Emily is a HUGE fan of the Flashdance Soundtrack (and I am too)…what a feeling!

4) One of the tea party set-ups involved Emily playing music for her friends (aka dolls and stuffed animals). I got such a great laugh from seeing her friends chillin’ in the client lounge on my Italian red leather sofa. All of them just lined up sitting on it, like they owned the joint. They were so polite too!

5) The other tea party set-up involved humans who are real fans and friends of Emily. It was pretty cool to see the diverse range of fans/friends she has supporting her career. Showing up, wearing special clothes for the shoot and having a complete stranger photograph them.

6) The Betsy Johnson Tea Party dress.

7) Emily arriving early in the morning wearing Bed Head PJs.

8) One of Emily’s silver bracelets had intricate metal leaves as a part of the design. When the shoot wrapped she noticed one of the leaves was missing. A quick scour of the studio and it was nowhere to be found. BUT as luck would have it, I spotted it while I was saying ciao to them at the door. If I hadn’t found it, I’m certain the Buffy would have digested it. Like I need more vet visits!

9) Observing that her Mum calls her “Em” sometimes. I look at nicknames as a way of establishing you have a close connection with someone. And that connection entitles you to the privilege of calling them by that nickname.

10) Emily genuinely having a fun time, opening up and allowing me the privilege of capturing her.

And on that note, she is playing at The Peacock Room tomorrow @ 10pm (the show is free). Go check her out, it will not be a waste of time. Emily Stine ROCKS MY SOCKS OFF! Look, there they go now…I better go catch ‘em.

http://myspace.com/emilystine