A dingy Dinghy

It's been a long time since I've posted anything and I feel remorse for that. However, instead of typing a clever post on reasons why or making vast promises in hopes of a more robust blogging future, I'm just going to jump write back into the blogosphere with this photo.

Last week I was on a boat (not flippin' copies) photographing a dolphin tour for Jekyll Island. I love boats, grew up on them and have many stories associated with them, as every boater does. My dad always says, if you want something to go wrong, go boating. Not a fantastic photo by any means, I just liked the word play associated with it.

As you can see, if you've been a reader of Island Profilin' before, there's a new look. I thought it was time to spice it up a little. It coincides with my new web site, www.benjamingalland.com, to which you can access directly from the menu above. I certainly welcome your comments. Cheers folks!

big news from h2o!

I just finished this short video announcing the move of my company, h2o creative group. I love creating short little films like this. I used this film as a means to teach myself more about Final Cut... I feel pretty proficient now!

I shot this in one day with my GoPro HD camera. It's such a fun thing to play with. And the (future) movie star you see there is the one and only Anson Galland.

GA-FLA Weekend At Gnat's Landing 2010; 3 days in 3 minutes

First video with GoPro HD

Shot with my waterproof GoPro video camera on location at my family cabin in Epworth, GA, just north of Blue Ridge, on Fighting Town Creek.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxyDzIKMuHM&feature=youtube_gdata


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Anson's smash cake

Talk to the hand

Yesterday marked 11 months with Anson. I'll spare you all the "time flies", "they grow up so fast" mash-ups, and just say it's been a blur. Plans are underway for the big one-year party, which aside from his very own miniature chocolate cake, is really an excuse to throw a big party for us. Poolside grilling and smoking, loud music, kegs and friends and family. I'm trying to give him something to be proud of, you know? (whatever i have to tell myself).

My Southern Soul BBQ tribute video was more of a success than I ever imagined. With over 3,100 views I now wish I had done a little better job on it. I had the idea driving back to the office after shooting there the Sunday morning after the fire. I worked on the video while working on other stuff throughout the day. Thank you to all the folks that have commented on it. I really appreciate it and glad that I could help in bringing the community together to support one of our favorite local establishments. The guys are already underway with rebuild plans (in the same place!).... be sure to check here for update photos!

I've been getting more and more into video. The capabilities of HD video from my Canon 5d M2 are AMAZING. Coupled with various accessories like stabilizers, fluid video heads and fast lenses, I'm getting some beautiful stuff. I've really only been dabbling in B-roll type stuff, but been having a blast. I plan on continuing down this creative outlet for a bit, seeing where it leads me. I'm editing some of my latest footage and will post it here when done.

My latest installment of my time lapse video project video is up. Check it out!

And lastly, pertaining to Jekyll Island, we have launched their new web site finally... it's been a massive project, my biggest site to date by far, and we are very proud of it... Almost all the footage I shot, the entire back end of the site is a 100% complete content management system that is incredible. So, I welcome your comments! See it here: www.jekyllisland.com

That's all folks, have a great weekend.

Southern Soul Brew and Cue Benefit

Southern Soul BBQ: Down, But Not Out

Southern Soul BBQ burns down!

Down, but not out!

The old Gisco building, which is home to the best BBQ in the world, Southern Soul BBQ, burned down today.

Truly is a sad day for St. Simons... Not only did we loose an AMAZING place to hang, eat, drink and laugh, we lost a landmark building for on the island.

Im not too worried about Southern Soul at all though... if I know those guys, they'll be peddling sammichs from the trunk of their car faster than you can say fried green bean.

New h2o sign!

After almost one year, we finally
have a sign about our place of business. But it's not just any sign. What else would you expect from a creative group!?

You need the back story first. Before we were h2o creative group, we were Hambright and Associates Design. We had a sign made, and then got in trouble from our landlord for not having "raised letters" on the sign, per the sign codes in our lease. Well, it took us a long time to finally have our sign remade and it was a pretty big pain in the neck... Considering the effect wasn't even noticeable.

So fast fwd three years...

We create h2o creative group and need a sign. We're just too dang busy to get something going. Then an epiphany. One of our employees has a father that is retired and has nothing better to do than play around in his work shop. So we draw him fullscale plans and let him go to town! The end result is nothing BUT raised letters! At roughly 30" tall, each letter is made from several pieces of 2" thick insulation foam, that has been glued together, cut to shape, epoxied for resilance and painted to match! It looks amazing. George also made a custom mount for it so stands up just right!

Now, taking it a step further is what we're all about. I researched online and found two LED bulbs that change colors! I had them mounted on the roof in watertight floodlight housings since the bulbs are interiour only. The effect is AWESOME!


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Drive-Ins, Diners and Dives

A little late I know, but better than never.

I had the chance to hang out with the host and crew of DDD while they filmed on location at one of my favorite local restaurants, Southern Soul BBQ! It was a pretty awesome expierence.

Griffin, one of the co-owners, invited me to come and be an extra while they filmed. I've known him for a good while and his BBQ biz is one of our favorite and most loyal clients.

He told me they didn't want any photographers on set... like I listened! Below is the link to the photos I took (we did the web site too!). I don't know if I'll be in final video, but my Jeep definitely made the shot!!! And really, that's all that matters. I'll update y'all on when it airs.

http://southernsoulbbq.com/ddd/



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Haiti Relief Benefit

Art Can Help, a local organization that uses the arts to raise awareness about particular subjects, is planning a benefit for Haiti. I've gotten involved on both sides, with Art Can Help and with this actually event. It's a great idea and I'm happy to be donating my time and graphics to this cause.

It's an all-day event held in Redfern Village on St. Simons Island, on March 20. It'll be a progressive party of sorts... starting at one location with a band and specials, and heading to another one, than another, etc... each location will have special events, live music and proceeds made going to the benefit.

Check out the Facebook page for more info, or just email me and I'll get you an answer. Cheers and hope to see you there!

SNOW!

I know, I know... another damn post about snow. If you live anywhere in the southeast, that's all you're reading about on blogs, tweets and facebooks... so here, one more...

We just came back from our annual President's Day Weekend trip up to our family cabin in Blueridge, GA. Man what an awesome time we had! We made it OK up there, the roads were pretty icy past Elijay, GA... so it was pretty slow going from there. It snowed a total of about 4-5 inches, and it all stuck. Luckily the Jeep has 4wd and we had no problem getting around. There's gravel roads all around the cabin, and they were all frozen and when the ice melted on Monday, it got really muddy. But with 4-lo kicked in, we creeped up and around just fine!

We didn't do much, just hung around the cabin. Ate a ton. Cooked a beef tenderloin Sunday night... dry-rubbed with salt, red and black pepper, garlic and brown sugar, wrapped in bacon... pan-seared and finished with indirect heat, my all-time favorite way to cook my favorite piece of meat.

This week has just been a blur with work piled high. But it's all good, busy is good. I'm just trying to focus on knocking stuff off the list.

I'm going fishing tomorrow. Really excited. We're putting the boat in at Coozie's in the morning and are looking for whatever we can find... trout, reds, etc.

Here's two pics from the past weekend. The cabin, covered in snow, taken from the bank of the creek (right behind me) and Anson, with his girlfriend Leighton. I guess it's pretty apparent that Anson is quite used to the camera by now. HA!

lots of animation

One thing I've always really liked but never totally got into was video. I took the required video courses in college for my Visual Communications degree, but opted for all the photography course over the video ones... hell, Kelly actually took more video courses then me. With that being said, I think the same art applies to both. It's just a different technical hurdle to overcome. One that is very different than photography, and photo processing in MANY ways.

I've been doing a lot of video lately. From 3 minute audition clips, to HD b-roll for Jekyll Island. My newest project, while only partially video, has me real excited. Jekyll's requested a time-lapse video of a four month construction project. They are going to remodel the old indoor tennis court and turn it into a state of the art conference center. So, after doing a lot of research I've figured out my angle of approach. I looked into wildlife trail cameras, thinking they would be best... already set up to do that right out of the box, waterproof and can last for months on a single set of batteries. Problem there is the lens isn't wide enough. It's pretty much telephoto. After much research I stumbled on the Canon Hack Development Kit (CDHK). It's an open source firmware that you install on a canon digital camera that really unleashes the potential of it. You have to hack into the camera basically, but once it's all installed, there isn't much you can't do. You can use the camera's microphone to trigger a photo... say, when someone walks by and the sound is picked up.... snap! In my case, I'm using it to take a photo every 15 minutes for four months. Then, I'll string all the photos together and it will be an animated short film of the whole construction process... much akin to those flower-growing videos we all watched in BIO 101.

So I bought a Canon SD1000, a little point and shoot the smaller than a pack of cigarettes (used for a $100!), a wide-angle conversion lens (because I need a WIDE shot) and an AC power adapter. I'm going to work on the CDHK this weekend and will test the video out in a day-in-our-office setting the early part of next week. I'll be sure to post it.

So for now, stay tuned!

The Resurrection

...and I'm back. After nearly eight months of running behind the blogging wagon, the symptoms of withdrawal have cut too deep. I've pined for the cathartic relief of sharing my thoughts, stories and photographs here, of which I'm sure, no one really cares about anyway. Has eight months been too long I wonder? How many readers are still out there? I would have left myself for the younger, more beautiful blogess, so I don't blame you all.

So, instead of a giant post going through everything that's happened since June 09 - which would be like me, but who wants to read that? - I'll supply you with some bullet points and a promise; A promise to write more often. There. I've said it. An official public promise. Hold me to it.

Anson: Wow... where to begin? Well, I'll start with a link: Kelly's blog about Anson. Some good stuff there, and her english teacher status really comes out... not misspelling words but rather showing me up with words larger than three syllables.

But, it's been amazing. The single best thing is easily the look I get each day I come home... like more and more he's understanding who I am. I'm just waiting for the day he wants to ride in the Jeep... Here's my favorite picture of us. Bet you can't guess why? (hint: it ain't Bailey Boy's!)

Jeep: Oh the Scrambler, she's running great. I installed a choke about three months ago. I had originally taken it off when swapping out the stock Carter carb for a much better Ford MC2100. Wow what a difference a choke makes! It's amazing what a 125 year old invention does! Whodathunk?

Back in October I believe it was we added another Jeep to the family. Kelly got tired of turning the baby carrier sideways, watching Anson's head go parallel with the floor, as she tried to stuff is ever-growing belly into the back of her two-door Acura. We sold it locally and bought a 2004 Grand Cherokee. V8, 4wd of course... it's awesome. It was totally my choice in car, and that's no secret... although she does like it. I'll take that car over here soon, when we can afford something for her... at least that's the plan. I love that thing.

Work: Wow, another where-to-begin topic. I'm working more than I ever have in my life, and loving every minute of it. h2o creative group has morphed into a very respectable and capable full-service marketing firm, offering our clients everything from custom photography, fresh design, media placement, web sites in all flavors and so much more. We've taken on some very demanding clients and are loving the challenges presented every day. Our team has grown to eight people, which in my opinion, is the perfect number. We are big enough to handle our clients and growth and lean enough to keep it profitable and manageable. I've been knocking on wood since February and I will continue to do so for many days to come.

Friday Foto: Alas... the fabled Friday Foto. Here you are guys. I took this yesterday morning. I know, I know... eye porn as I like to call it.... a sunrise. I had a shoot scheduled all day at the new Hampton Inn on Jekyll Island (which might I add, is amazing!!) and I went over early to shoot some video for the Jekyll Island Authority, and passed by this shot and couldn't refuse. I shot this at f.11 to ensure sharpness in the trees, and spot-metered for the water to force the silhouette effect. The first shot was from eye-level, which was bland because you didn't see the bench. I lowered the tripod to about three feet off the ground to get the bench in the shot, and I think that makes all the difference.

So that's it. Hope you're glad to have me back. I'm sure glad to be back. I feel like a weight has been lifted... now time for more coffee.

Another wedding done, several in the works

Good morning folks! Just thought I'd share some pictures from one of the most recent weddings I shot. I just finished post process on all the images and the bride loves them! I'm very happy with the results from this shoot and thought I'd share the bride's comments as well. It's worth all the running around and tedious hours behind the computer when you get an email like this:

"BEN!...They are wonderful, fabulous, perfect, and beautiful. Absolutely terrific! I just sobbed through all the slideshows. Happy tears!! THANK YOU for being a fantastic photographer, I could not have asked for more"

I have a lot of new work coming out in some local magazines as well. As soon as they hit the shelves (or websites) I'll let you guys know. I'm REALLY excited about one of them particularly, it will be here by July.

Not much is new here. We have one of our best friends from college coming in town this weekend, along with some other friends for Anson's christening this Sunday. It should be a fun time. I can't believe he's 6 weeks old today!! Crazy!

I know, I know...

It's been over a month since my last post. Close to two months I guess really. I have one big excuse though, as I'm sure most of y'all ready know, I have a son. Behold, Anson Bradford Galland:

He was actually due yesterday, on the 11th. He came 4 weeks early, but everything is perfectly fine. He's a healthy little boy and he's wonderful. You'll notice (much to his mother's dismay) that he's sporting a nice new pea green Patagonia onsie. The first day he wore it was also the first day he went the whole day without peeing on his clothes. So, go ahead and complain if you want, but my boy knows not to pee on Patagonia! Today he is one month old. I can't believe it. 

So what's new other than that? A ton. I'm extremly busy at work, which is a great thing. H2O Creative Group is busting at the seems, we're getting more and more clients and have a lot of awesome things in the works. I'v been shooting a ton too. I just finished a three-day shoot for Elegant Island Living magazine, and I can't wait for you all to see the photos. I'm really proud of them. I got the cover shot too, which is my first cover for that magazine.... and the subjects of the shoot were awesome.... you'll see. Look for it in July. 

I also have shot two weddings since my last post, I have another one tomorrow, and then another next week. Tomorrow's will probably be one of the biggest of the season for me. I'm really excited, I know both bride and groom and a lot of the guests, which will always make for great pictures. 

Next weekend's wedding is going to be an amazing blast. My cousin (dad's twin brother's daughter) is getting married here on the island. Any excuse for my family to gather is abused, slaughtered and dragged through the mud to the point of blissful, chaotic confusion. It's great. Friday before the wedding we will have over 150 people in my childhood home for a party. I'm shooting the wedding, but will be having a blast as well (read: camera in one hand, beer in the other). Many of the family is already starting to arrive this weekend. I'll be taking next Friday off as well, in order to join the chaos. 

Speaking of next Friday, it's iPhone time again!!!! Man I can't wait. I've already pre-ordered my iPhone 3GS. It's going to be amazing. I can't tell if I'm more excited about the new iPhone, or the software that they are releasing next week as well. Finally, the phone is getting faster, better camera, picture/video messaging, cut and paste, and so much more. I can't wait. I'll be there bright and early, 7 a.m. along with half my family that is also getting one. I told you, abused and chaotic!

So, that's about if for now. I promise to get back on a continual blogging stream. I'm also thinking of getting into Twitter, more for a professional basis, but if I do it, I'll let you all know. 

Have a great day!

Friday Foto: new pix 4 u

Good morning folks! It's been a whirlwind of a couple weeks. I shot another wedding last weekend which was great and the new Golden Isles Magazine is hitting the shelves today. I'm very excited about this issue particularly. I shot a lot for this issue; the cover, several spreads and as always, my photo essay. This issue's essay is a compilation of photographs from my travels to Italy, both in 2001 and in 2oo8. I've always wanted to publish these photos and am very excited about it. 

The first photo posted here is featured in the Magazine. I wanted to post it here because I really liked it. I was assigned to shoot some photos of the "First Friday" event in downtown Brunswick. It's on the first Friday of every month, and shops stay open late encouraging folks to come on out. I really wanted to capture the nightlife feel and still make it distinctly downtown Brunswick. I really like the shot. 

The second photo is from the past wedding I shot. After the ceremony the bride and groom and I walked out to the beach to get a couple of beach shots. It's always tricky to get good shots on the beach during the middle of the day, and this was about 11:30 which is typically a horrible time to shoot because of the light. The shots came out great, but I really like this one the best. What do yall think?

So, not much planned this weekend. Have some honey-dos that I'm putting off till Sunday so I can go boating tomorrow. I'm putting in at 8 am and will be out all day. I'm so excited. Bringing a grill and brats... there really isn't anything better.

Everything else is going well. Business is booming and that is wonderful, we are very fortunate.

Anyway, yall have a great weekend. I sure will.  

Firday Foto: All a blur

What a blur of a week! Man, I really don't know where Saturday ended and Thursday morning began. 

Today's foto comes from a wedding I shot last week on Friday night. I love shots like this. They are great photos to tell a story. Standing alone, it doesn't say much other than a cool shot. But as part of the bigger story, perhaps shown in sequence in an album, it shows the bride chasing the groom around with a piece of cake. This shot was taken at 1/8 of a second at f5.6 which would have been completely blurry had I not fired some flash and panned the image as well. 

Saturday night we had another baby party, it was fun. Kelly and I got lots of good stuff for the baby. That kid has easily more clothes than her and I combined. I really need to up his game on camo and jeep themed clothing. Too many damn sailboats and bunnys are going to make this kid crazy (or at least me!).

This weekend I plan on getting away. Don't know exactly what we're doing, but I need a break. I think we are going to spend a night over on Jekyll Island somewhere. This is our last free weekend before baby. 

So I have a ton of friends getting blackberries. What the heck is wrong with them? The iPhone is such a better product. All the promoting I do doesn't seem to work. Oh well. They'll soon find out when they are complaining that it won't work. HA!

I have tons of other things I could write about, but I need to get some work done. So, I'll save it for another posting. Hope y'all have a great weekend!

Friday Foto: Just a blur

It's been a crazy week. Saturday through today is one big blur and I'm sure the next two months will follow closely the same pattern. It's OK. I have a lot of fun things planned and many great things to look forward to, one of which is this weekend. I have a lot of family coming in town for another Baby "Party", as I like to call it, that will be held on Saturday. I'm excited. And Sunday is Easter, which means Peeps, Cadburry eggs and not one, but TWO huge meals. I'm excited. 

I've been shooting a ton lately, and I'm really excited about that. Today's photo comes from a serious of shoots that I did for the folks at The Vine. I had the opportunity to photograph some of their work for a nationally published book in which they will be featured. This is one of my favorites. They designed these containers and planted them.  This house is on Ocean Forrest, on Sea Island.

First wedding of the season is tonight. I'll be shooting an outdoor wedding and reception down at the Village. I'm looking forward to wedding season, I really enjoy shooting them. 

My Saturday plans consist of rolling out of bed at the break of dawn and dragging myself to the beach and passing out all day. I'm looking forward to it. Should be a very nice beach day.