www.mvphotography.com.au now fully functional

Just a reminder that my new website and blog is 100% up and running at www.mvphotography.com.au. There will be no more post from Google Blogger.

New Website Up and Running

Happy new year to everyone. A new year, a new website. After a little bit of time in research and planning, my new website is up and running. No longer my website and blog will be located in two different places making it easier to see all the latest news, photos and my services all in the one place. Just go to my main web address http://www.mvphotography.com.au/ to go see the new website. There are still a few things unfinished, but the majority of it is there.

So this is my final post on Google Blogger. Enjoy the new website that I'm very proud of to have.

Yours sincerely Marcel Van der Horst

New Image Upload to Flickr

Click on the image to enlarge

On my usual trip down to Inverloch for Christmas I went to see one of the most photographed icons in the area, the Eagle's Nest on Cape Paterson - Inverloch Rd. It's only a short walk from the car to view it from the look out and about a couple of hundred meters on foot to the beach. You do have to have good shoes to access the point as it is very rocky. Check the tidal patterns before attempting to get to the point as there is always a risk of being stranded. I made sure we wouldn't get trapped by the tide there by checking tide and sunset times for the area.

I only took a few frames that evening as the sunset went very quickly and of course the best light was 10-15 minutes after the sun went down. The slow shutter speed captured the dusk glow on the rocks.

Shot with 2Stop Neutral Density (ND) graduated and UV filter. My Polarizer filter was all scuffed from the Kata filter pouch and I couldn't clean it in time for the light show.

Tash & Andrew - November 14th 2009

A few more images from Natasha and Andrew's wedding last month. Click on image to view larger.

Important Dates for December and 2010

Monday 14th December: Order cut off for Craftwood mounted prints
Thursday 19th December: Order cut off for Metallic prints and Photo Folios
Monday 21st December: Final post day for mailing orders from MV Photography
Tuesday 22nd December: Order Cut off for Lustre prints (personal delivery orders only)
Thursday 24th December to 1st January: Limited email access, so I might not be able to return emails promptly or see any clients for wedding bookings
Wednesday 6th of January: Orders resume for printed products
Thursday 7th of January: Not available due to turning 30!

Printing products ordered after the cut off dates will be delivered after the 6th of January.

Limited weekends left for wedding bookings in 2010.

December Catch Up

Hi all, a busy November/December for MV Photography, so I haven't even had time to blog. Sorry about that, I'll get more into it during the Christmas Holidays with more tips and tricks and personal photographic projects.

• The wedding photos for Tash and Andrew are now finished and they are now awaiting their delivery on Sunday. In all I edited the selection down to just under 500 images, which was needed as I covered most of the reception as well. Look out for a post after the weekend with more images to see from their fantastic garden wedding on a sunny spring day.
• New matted photo folios are on the way in 6x4" and 8x12" holding 10 or 20 photos. Samples will be available for viewing by clients after the weekend. The pricing has not been decided yet, but I'll post some information and photos next week. Each come in a classy gift box and really look the goods. A great product to display your favorite photos of your special day without having to do the time consuming process of creating a photo book or the expense of ordering a flush mount album.
• A new wedding price list is in the works with more packages to choose from with easy to understand options. Some print products will be scaled back in order to make way for other new and exciting products as print technology is advancing to levels never seen before. Some extensive research and sales history was analysed to offer products that are suitable for most clients, to keep it simple and keep my prices competitive.
• Coming this summer to the MV Photography blog is more useful information for both clients and fellow photographers including; book reviews, product reviews, new MV Photography products and projects.
• Still more photos from the wedding and travel archives to come. As I get time I look through my image collections and edit a photo for posting on Flickr. This keeps both my Flickr photo stream and my blog moving along.
• As I had promised many times before the new website is being developed very soon. My webmaster Belinda has finally got some time for me this summer! This time around we will see a new direction for MV Photography with the new branding, a simple navigation interface and possibly an integrated blog.
• All the best and come back soon. Stay safe these holidays.

Tash & Andrew 14th November 2009

Click on a photo to view it larger. These are only very quick edits and some a straight out of camera. Fully edited versions will be posted when the clients receive their finished images.

New Wedding Photos Coming Soon.

Hi all, it's been a full on later half to November with a big 200 person wedding last week and me being sick as a dog with the flu in the week just past.

The wedding of Tash and Andrew went without a hitch, the rain stayed away but it was well into the 30's temperature wise causing me to sweat like nothing else lugging two cameras and flashes the whole day, and I mean the whole day. Luckily I brought a change of clothes, which is highly recommended with such a long coverage. Belinda and I did a full day's coverage that went into the night, starting out at a Bread and Breakfast in Upwey, Victoria for the getting ready photos and then onto a wonderful private property in the heart of Upwey for the ceremony and reception owned by the lovely couple Cole and Janine.

I was well prepared with 3 camera bodies, 6 lenses and four flashes and nearly 30GB of memory cards. Thanks to Croydon Camera House for the loan of a Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 zoom and a 30mm f1.4 prime lens for the day.

I can't stress the importance of backup equipment at a wedding especially for the low budget weekend warriors starting out, as I experienced first hand that a camera can play up at a crucial moment. I once had my main camera seize up on me and flash error-88 on the display. I had no idea what it meant and how to fix it, so I kept shooting with my back up. When I had a few seconds, I had to investigate what the problem was. The camera wouldn't even turn off, it just locked up on me. So I just removed the batteries and that reset the camera, and it performed flawlessly for the rest of the day.

I made sure I had all the focal lengths covered with my assistant using the 24-70mm which is a great versatile focal length for weddings and I had loaded my 70-200mm F4L IS and a Tokina 11-16mm f2.8 which performed beautifully. I'd have to say the Sigma was OK, but not brilliant, though it was a suitable alternative to the Canon version which is three times the price.The 30mm f1.4 Prime lens on the other hand worked really well, but I found I didn't use it all that much except for a few ambient light shots at the reception. I'd sooner invest in a Canon 50mm f1.4 or a Canon 85mm f1.8 for the low light stuff.

This was the first event I got to try out (in a real circumstance, not practiced on my cat) wireless ETTL flash with Canon 580ex IIs and boy they really worked. I was super happy on how easy they are to set up, how flexible they are, how easy they are to change settings on the fly and how robust they are in terms of recycle speed and output. I also mixed my wireless Nikon slaves as well in the mix with a transmitter Velcroed to the top of my master flash and it all mixed perfectly. The only problem is that they fire at different times, but I kept my shutter speeds fast enough to avoid any ghosting problems. In all I was happy with the results.

Next is the mammoth task of editing the photos and getting them back to Tash and Andrew as soon as possible. I'd like to thank the happy couple, all the people that I co-ordinated with on the day and my trusty assistant Belinda who put up with my bossing around all day.