I love shooting portraits, especially non-intrusive ones. Whether looking straight into the camera or otherwise, these portraits all connect with the viewer in a way.
Are my clients getting photos like these? Not yet. With the idea at the back of my mind, these photos can be made available if I compose them beforehand.

Make sure you shoot exactly what your brain tells you. This goes for editing as well. Use inspiration as a stepping stone to create something beyond its means. Be safe, but explore outside the box to  innovate and explore new ideas.

Set a goal: it can be as crazy as portraiture only using candle light. How creative can I be with just one fading light source at my side?
One great place to start this explorative journey is at You Thought you Knew You, a blog cooperative to inspire, renew, discover and stimulate creativity.

Can two photos compliment, oppose, or change meaning – together?

You tell me…

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork

I created a few cinemagraphs from that particular shoot. The sunset and scenery were great and I couldn’t choose which one I liked the most so I’ve attached another of my favourites to this post:

I set a lot of goals for myself and my brand this year. I would like to thank my team, because without their help I would not have been able to produce much of what you can see showcased here. We try our hardest to provided something unique, fun and most importantly to deliver consistently on all of our work. Being based in Vancouver gives us a lot to work with, but with any luck I hope to expand into new and distant horizons.

As the year winds down, I have been looking for ways to provide a more comprehensive service. Always looking to improve, we’ve got many plans for the new year and even have a videography team in the works. I think photography is great medium for creative expression, but one can always learn from another and grow.

On a bit more of a personal note, I will be packing up my photography gear and heading on another backpacking adventure very soon! I am up to my eyeballs in planning at the moment, but if there is anyone out there who wants to join me, then drop me a line! The trip will be from Jan5th 2012 through to Feb13th 2012. I will be gallivanting around the west coast of South America at some of the most beautiful places on the planet.

If you would like more details you can contact me via email: contact@mananetwork.net. I will also be live tweeting my progress and any interesting things I come across and everyone is invited to follow my adventure via the hashtag #whereistomasz.

Please enjoy my highlights from this year.

We recently started tagging people who were interested with the hashtag #604photowalk on Twitter. With great success, we had a turn out of  9 inspired individuals (myself included) looking to frame up the city and it’s inhabitants in their own way.

And for me, there was no better time to take out the film camera. At this point I wouldn’t be caught dead having it on me during a wedding, but perhaps one day I will add it to my repertoire.

I enjoy taking out the Contax’s RTS rangefinder but this time around I stuck with using the Canon EOS3. It’s compatible with all my lenses, has a solid weight and feels good in the hands. I also Love the manual shutter compared to the electronic DSLR’s and it comes with 45 focus points to boot!

Shot on expired slide film. Developed & scanned at the lowest quality at The Lab. I was very disappointed with the service they provided and none of the images came back processed! I had to do all the post work myself. I wouldn’t recommend using them if you’re not a big time client made of money!

A few people you will see in the photos below;
Donna Chen, AJ Kwong, Vince Chow, Irving Lau, Tianna Kwong, Amy Tran, Brian Shaler, Tony Dang, Cicy Chan

Unfortunately, their Sikh venue plans fell through.

Talk of changing the wedding date was thrown around and my response was: “I’ll let it slide without penalty. Hopefully you don’t pick a new date I’m already busy on.” I honestly liked the couple and you know… I thought I’d do the right thing.

Not long after that exchange I got a call from Pam:

“Mexico was available to take our wedding, you down?”
My response: “Ya, no big deal. I guess I can accommodate that small request…”

Jokes aside, when the wedding day finally came and, as instructed, I worked on my tan, I was welcomed as a part of the family.

I spent seven wonderful days with folks I had never met before and from it made some new friends and created stories to cherish for a long time.
Getting acceptance takes some time, but even with just a few short days, there’s something tangible about the whole experience.

When everyone relaxes and accepts your presence, they open up their hearts and their minds to each waking moment.

A moment I wanted to capture. And did.

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork

I had the great privilege of photographing the Go Popcorn team this past Sunday. The crew consists of  Amy Elderkin, Dennis Pang, Nick Routley and their official Public Relations Manager Dee. You need to follow these social media superstars.

Instead of sticking to a rigid location itinerary, we opted to wander around scenic Gastown where the Go Popcorn offices are located.

I took this opportunity to try something new and gave shooting a multiple exposure photograph with off camera flash a try (check out the “Alley Super Heroes” [unofficial name] photograph below). I think it was pretty successful and will try to incorporate this technique into future wedding photography.

I’d like to thank Chill Winston for being such an accomodating location and allowing us to use one of their larger tables for the shot above. For a social media boutique catering to the restaurant industry I thought this photograph suited the crew very well.

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork

POPCORN is a Vancouver-based boutique social media and promotions agency that works directly with restaurants to increase their exposure and visibility.
In Vancouver’s competitive market, diners have more quality options than ever before. Social media plays a pivotal role in influencing consumer behaviour. Whether it’s a conversation on Twitter, a picture on Facebook, a review on Yelp, or a check-in on Foursquare, a conversation is happening. Are you a part of it?

We only work with the best. If you pride yourself on great food and service, then people should know.

- Go Popcorn

Though 90% of my work is wedding related, I wouldn’t rule out photographing cars/automotive as it was the testing ground of my career in the first place!

Plus, it’s great to see published work.

A religious marriage ceremony among Sikhs. Traditionally conducted in Punjabi with strong reflections of Punjabi culture.

I love observing the customs and traditions of various cultures and few are as intimate the ones that surround marriage ceremonies. It is even better when the family is as closely knit as this Pam & Sanjiv’s, who all made the trip down to Mexico to celebrate the joyous occasion.

The wedding ceremony is held in a 7 step process. During this Maiya, it’s suppose to be taken at each others houses and the pre-married couples are not allowed not leave their home or change their clothes as the Vatna (a paste of powdered turmeric and mustard oil) is applied. The day of the wedding both couples then go through a bath.

To keep things simple it was decided that the family would keep them together and apply lotion instead!

By the way, never get your friends to do it. As you can see from the photos below, they took full advantage of the opportunity!

It is my deepest hope these photos convey even a fraction of the love and support shown that day.

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork

Sanjiv had so much fun, we ended up having so much fun that we shot another one in Playa del Carman.

Only helped that the first day was casual. I persuaded the couple into taking a few shots right on the beach.

Sanjiv: “Great, we’re in Mexico and our first picture is in front of a fence with barbed wire!”
My response: “Ya but no matter where you go, barbed wire makes you both look cool. Promise it won’t be the first thing people look at!”

As funny as the “Erotic Shop” car might be, I still think those first shots came out great!

Hope you enjoy the black and white portraits close to the end of the engagement. My favourites are the ones of Pam!

“She’s such a poser”. – Sanjiv

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork

The sun went down quicker than expected.

Great colours to work with, but there just wasn’t enough time. If only I could have this bit of light stretch all day!
I won’t be letting this pool slip out of my radar. Expect to see the bride and groom again on their wedding day under an expansive night sky full of stars.

Hope the wedding dress (and the bride) don’t mind getting wet!

It’s only the first day of this week long destination wedding. I was asked to just settle in, acquaint myself with family & friends and relax, but I’m so excited I decided to blog the experience thus far.

I wouldn’t have it any other way. Where else could you get this kind of intimacy with the couple and their family. It’s a story I want to cover from beginning to end.

I’m glad this wedding has been planned solely about the couple and their friends. I’m not here to just take in the sun, enjoy a few cocktails and work but also be brought into the experience as a member of the family.

But before I could fully blend in, they asked me to work on my tan. DONE!

I’ll keep this first blog post pretty light as an introduction. Though I’d say the first night was anything but light!

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork

Light isn’t always there when you need it, but it’s the first thing you see and allows us to interpret things in our own way. Your work is your own and you must know how it’s affecting your blank canvas.

Take a moment, strip the overall view down to just light and look once more.

No matter the subject, foreground, background, object or landscape, light is present and will affect how those aforementioned things are perceived. Without getting down too deeply into the science and math, is the light in your favour?

How is it light playing on your canvas?

@mananetwork @miss_mayc @GluttonwithaCam @michaelslee@mini604 @sailgeno @Phanyxx it will hold. In fact, it will be sunny.
Yup, I said it.

Talk about confidence!

That confidence was backed up as the official twitter handle of the wedding, which had many twitter lovers in attendance, was #weddingpangs. Not only did #weddingpangs trend in Canada the night before, but the phrase ended up trending globally by that very evening!

Fortunately the weather did in fact hold up as was foretold and and the groom was ready bright and early after an eagerly sleepless night. With starbucks in hand, the male half of the wedding party enjoyed a leisurely morning of preparation before heading to the bride-to-be’s home for the always hilarious door crashing games.

With May and her bridesmaids firmly won over, we all made our way through a bit of midday traffic to seal the deal at Trinity Baptist Church. Seats packed for the touching ceremony, the social crowd was once again boisterous whilst mingling post ceremony.

Whisking the wedding party away, we managed to snag a slew of candid and fun photos in and around the Olympic Village area of False Creek in Vancouver. Trying some new things and relying on a few old favourites, the group made for easy subjects to capture memories of the day.
The reception was held at Kirin Restaurant where social banter, teary eyed speeches and dancing went on well into the night.

Congratulations May & Dennis and best wishes on this new chapter in your life together!

Tomasz Wagner
Mananetwork