There isn’t a show that gets the Wonderful Machine office buzzing more than AMC’s The Walking Dead. So when I came across some recent Dead images on Harold Daniels’s website, I was beyond excited. I immediately contacted Harold to get the scoop on this zombie-filled shoot.

It turns out, the job wasn’t for an entertainment magazine spread or promotional items for the show. Instead, Harold was assigned this shoot by the Georgia Department of Economic Development, for their Georgia Travel Guide. This may seem odd, but the show is actually filmed on location in Georgia, and the Travel Guide is distributed nationwide as a way to promote the state as a destination for travel and film production.

“It was all about the cover,” Harold says of the shoot, adding, “There really wasn’t a lot of advance direction.” But he was excited for the shoot, mostly due to the “cool factor of being on the working set of such a popular show.”

As a veteran celebrity photographer, shooting someone like Walking Dead star Andrew Lincoln isn’t atypical for Harold—but capturing zombies? That was completely different—and fun. Harold met up with Andrew and the zombies shortly after arriving on set and says, “it was very cool to meet the zombies before they went into hair and makeup, and then seeing the transformation in progress.”

After the actors had been zombie-fied, the shoot officially began. Luckily, everyone, from the crew to the star of the show turned out to be easy to work with. Harold elaborates,

Andrew was everything you hope a celebrity subject would be. He was a total professional—patient and gracious.  He told me that he is an “amateur” photographer himself and was really curious about what I was doing, and about my camera, etc.  Just a down to earth, friendly guy who loves living in the Highlands in Atlanta with his family.

The zombies were also pretty amazing at how they would transform their entire character when the camera was on. One minute they are chatting with you about the beautiful day and they next they want to eat your face off.

One of the only challenges on the shoot was portraying face-eating zombies in a way that wasn’t too grotesque for the cover of a state travel guide. But Harold pulled it off and the clients loved the images. “There was some trepidation about the cover of a travel guide being a tough looking guy with a big gun and a group of zombies saying, ‘Hey ya’ll come visit Georgia.’ But they got over it and the cover got a lot of press and online discussion.” And thus, Harold can now add “zombie shooter” to his resume.

View more at harolddaniels.com.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Kazakhstan-based photographer Ikuru Kuwajima is known for his sprawling landscape images and vintagesque photos of Eastern Europe and Asia. His “Cossacks” series documents, in this same style, the resurgence of the Crimean Cossack community. What’s most interesting about the photos is that they’re captured in a manner that intimately draws the viewer in, while simultaneously leaving an air of mystery around the subjects.

Since the Soviet Union’s collapse, Cossacks have been reviving their traditions mainly in Ukraine and Russia. In Crimea, a number of active Cossack communities have sprung up in the decade. Some of them are also tied to pro-Russian movements, as ethnic Russians still dominate the demography in Crimea. Before the Soviet Union, Cossacks formed independent military communities, with a large degree of autonomy. They were known as brave soldiers with skillful horsemanship, having fought many wars for hundreds of years.  However, Cossacks’ activities and tradition were suppressed during the Soviet era. After the Soviet collapse, Cossacks have been active in restoring their traditions, often working as security guards in each community and organizing events to commemorate Cossacks’ historic events to reaffirm their identity.

I was inspired to photograph this project because, to me, it seems that the rise of the Cossack movement is a search for lost identity. Also, they were quite friendly and open—and their close ties with horses, military training, orthodox Christianity and their complex historical background interested me greatly.

View more at ikurukuwajima.com.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Running through western Indonesia, The Citarum River plays an important roll in the lives of those who live along its banks. Almost five million reside in the river’s basin, and its waters support locals through agriculture, fishing, cooking and bathing. It’s also one of the most polluted rivers in the world.

Polluted purple water in the Citarum

Recently, Greenpeace decided to bring attention to toxic state of the Citarum. To do so, they enlisted the help of Jakarta-based documentary photographer, Andri Tambunan. Greenpeace’s director of photography had become familiar with Andri’s work after judging and awarding Andri the Reminders Project Asian Photographers Grant.  Andri is drawn to documenting social issues and layered stories; he prides himself on investing a great deal of time and effort into his photo essays, which allows him to capture “rare moments of intimacy, vulnerability and sincerity.” It was this passion and talent that made Andri the perfect photographer to take on the Citarum.

A local resident of Cilawengke village washes dishes with water contaminated by toxic wastes.

Andri received the assignment just 48 hours before he needed to ship out. With so little time to prepare, he threw himself into research and planning. Greenpeace asked for photographs that would connect the audience to those impacted by the river’s pollution. He would be spending time with families who live along the river, as well as the illegal dumping of toxic waste and the culprits behind it.  Andri adds, “They wanted me to convey the importance of the Citarum River to the families and communities that depend on it for their daily needs and livelihoods.”

Pak Ade catches fish at the Citarum River. The fish population has significantly declined over the years.

Once at the river, Andri spent a week with several local families, documenting their daily activities and taking portraits. He says, “Fortunately, Greenpeace had already established a great rapport with the families in those communities. Many were hospitable and showed us around. We didn’t encounter any hostility while shooting. But one of the challenges was photographing the dump sites undetected because the factories could send their enforces to rough us up, or even worse, threaten to hurt the families that helped us.” Luckily, Andri got away with his photographs undetected, his only issue coming from falling off a ladder and bruising his ribs while trying to get a higher vantage point.

Toxic industrial wastes illegally dumped into the Citarum River.

Along the way he met some interesting people, including a village elder whose part time job is fishing dead bodies out of the river—”he keeps a log of all the bodies he’s recovered.” Andri also learned that 80% of the water in Jakarta, where he lives, comes from the Citarum River. “I only drink bottle water now, because boiling the water will not get rid of the metal trapped inside.” But most importantly, he captured the culprits behind the polluting, including one of the biggest and most popular clothing companies in the world, GAP Inc.

Toxic wastes illegally dumped into the Cihaur River which feeds directly to Citarum River.

Andri’s pictures are now being used in a Greenpeace campaign to promote detoxing the river. It specifically calls out GAP Inc and has brought attention to the locals’ plight. Brands like Victoria’s Secret, Benneton Group, Zara, Mango, Esprit and Levi’s have all committed to “detoxing”, and Greenpeace hopes their campaign will convince current polluting offenders to do the same.

A Greenpeace ad featuring Andri’s photo.

View more of Andri’s work at andritambunan.com. The rest of his Citarum photos can be viewed here.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Rock and Ice
Christopher Beauchamp

Sportsnet
Steve Craft

enRoute
Grant Harder

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Sushi cats!

A feast fit for a king. Photo by Winnie Au

What can we build with all the LEGO bricks ever made?

Awesome photo series inspires awesome marriage proposal.

The ahhh effect.

GeoGuessr.

We’ll get you started with an easy one. Photo Tony Burns

Great photo bombs.

50 greatest movie villains of all time.

Abandoned Star Wars film sets.

Marooned Star wars villain. Photo by Jessyel Ty Gonzalez

Freaky Photoshopped tongues in ads.

The most important Kickstarter of our time.

Textastrophe.

Photographers Update:

• Scott M Lacey covers Boston Magazine.
• Barbara O’Brien‘s got a new website.
• Marcus Smith updates his website.
• Caryn B Davis‘s “On The Job” gallery show.
• An interview with Manuello Paganelli.
• David E Jackson photographs Escape The Fate.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Italy-based photographer Escapista recently traveled to Syria, a country in the midst of a gruesome Civil War. He made the risky trip to help out a humanitarian group and to document the situation. There, he braved explosions, aggressive guards and more in the hopes of bringing added attention to the plight of the Syrian people.

In April, I had the chance to travel to Syria with a humanitarian organization called “Syrian Children Relief”. From the Turkish city of Reyhanli, we crossed the border to Syria, looking for the best place where we could pass the barbed wire fences with our sack full of children’s games.

We passed through dozens of militia checkpoints, and had the chance to meet a lot of wonderful children and to bring them a few smiles. We saw a country in ruins, with a population that’s become accustomed to the daily bombings. We talked to militia and to teenagers who held AK47′s in their arms as they would hold the hands of their beloved.

We prayed, we ate, and we had our share of bombs go over our heads. We saw a country in pieces. We crossed the border again, but with smugglers; Lord knows what they where smuggling.

These photos are from a country prostrated by a horrific civil war, practically forgotten by western countries until the moment that someone brings their war to our homes.

View more at escapista.net.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

After knocking on the University of South Carolina’s door for almost three years (his knuckles must hurt!), James Quantz Jr finally got his first SC gig last year. Since then, he’s opened the university’s eyes to new and exciting styles of photography, by bringing the culture of commercial productions to their marketing. He adds that the school had “been making do with bare bones photo shoots and action photos cut from game files prior to working with me. With my style of capture and post-production, I’ve shown them that we can recreate big game moments and have complete control over the process.” James has now become their go-to shooter for SC’s more creative assignments.

Recently, SC asked James to shoot a campaign for their upcoming 2013 football season. He had shot last year’s campaign, and the images were so well liked that the university was hoping he could bring the magic again. James was more than happy to do so, especially since he’s a big fan of the team. He also remarked that it was a thrill to shoot for a team with such an enthusiastic fan base. “I normally put a lot of pressure on myself to deliver the best images possible,” he says, “but trying to impress a fan base takes it to a new level!”

After the creative direction for the shoot was determined, James found himself on set with a gaggle of SC football players. He enthusiastically explains that the shoot was “rockin’!” adding that “this being the second year doing the images for the football campaign the players were much more motivated. They now know I’m not there to just take the same boring photos they’ve seen for years.  It was a lot of fun to see them show up fully taped, pads on, eye black, etc.”

One of the more entertaining aspects of the shoot was seeing the players’ reactions to their photos on screen. “One of my favorites was Bruce Ellington,” James elaborates, “who’s featured jumping at the end of the video. After one of his jumps, we really had some cool images on the computer and I brought him over to view them. I pointed at the screen and said, ‘Bruce are you ready to see this on billboards all over town?’ And he replied with a big smile, ‘Let’s do it again!’”

Behind the scenes of the shoot:

The photos have now been released and James has heard a lot of great feedback, especially from fans. He concludes that “it’s really about the fan base—if they don’t like something you’ll definitely hear it! Thankfully, I’ve only had positive experiences with them so far.”

View more at quantzphoto.com.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

Santa Fe-based photographer Julien McRoberts‘s new photo series, TIME at Navajo Nation, documents the early phases of the creation of outdoor installation art in New Mexico.

She describes the project:

TIME stands for Temporary Installations Made for the Environment, and is unique to the Navajo Nation, in conjunction with New Mexico Arts. It’s been a project that I’ve been shooting for the last few summers, with each land-based art installation more interesting than the last. The newest installation of TIME is being held at Coyote Canyon, and is the brainchild of conceptual Navajo artist, Manny Wheeler. I was hired by curator Eileen Braziel and the State of NM to document the beginning stages of this very unique installation which will premier in 2014. The project is a collaboration between German audio/visual artist Robert Henke, Navajo sound/installation artists Raven Chacon and Bert Bennally, and conceptual artist Manuelito Wheeler.

The following images depict the very beginnings of their project, along with a special meal I shared with the artists and the crew. The Wheeler family was kind enough to share a feast with us, which everyone in the family had a role in preparing. This meal allowed for a rare glimpse into the very private and unique world of the Navajo.

See more at julienmcroberts.com.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com

At the end of 2012, John Burcham set a goal for himself: get his website in order! He was already using A Photo Folio, and was planning to upgrade to their Design X site. He just needed someone with the expertise to help him make the updates.

John’s old website

John got in touch with me to see what could be done. After talking for a bit, the plan somewhat changed. I believed his branding could benefit from a refresh, and John agreed. I would still be taking care of updating his website, but first, I  would tackle his branding. This is one of my favorite things to work on, so I was happy to assist John in the process.

I started off by asking who his clients were, what kinds of clients he wanted to attract, and what direction he’d like to move in as a photographer. Based out of Flagstaff, Arizona, John shoots for a lot of adventure and industrial clients. However, he didn’t want to be pigeon-holed into just one genre.

John also mentioned the red square used by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, with its simplicity and boldness, stood out to him. He wanted a logo that shared that same essence. With that in mind, I designed a few drafts for him:

John was excited to see the different options, and there was one mark in particular that stood out from the rest. After the selection, I went through a round of color refinements, finally landing on the following finished logo:

John’s new logo.

The bright green added a distinctive color that works great in his brand collateral, as well as his website design. After the logo was completed, I took care of his business cards, as well as updating his new Design X template.

John’s new business cards.

You can see the new website at www.johnburcham.com.

John’s brand new website!

John was pleased with the results, and was kind enough to provide some feedback on the project:

I had felt for a long time that I needed to update my look and website, but didn’t want anything drastic. My old logo wasn’t anything memorable. I always wanted something that would stick out, but didn’t take away from the real reason people were going to my site. I want people to see the photos not the logo.

Amanda was great. She asked me some key questions to get an idea of where I wanted to go. Having never gone through this process, I was a little unsure. But after Amanda sent me the first draft designs, I became really excited. Every draft could have been my logo—it was hard to pick just one design. When we finally narrowed it down, Amanda started incorporating the colors and fonts seamlessly, she knew exactly what would work and what wouldn’t.

Amanda and a Wonderful Machine made this whole experience stress free, and I am very happy with the results.

If you’re looking for help with your portfolio, design, copy, marketing or to just want to learn more about our services, please visit the consulting section of the Cog.

Wonderful Machine Photography Blog | Permalink | 610.260.0200 | Wonderfulmachine.com