Roho Ya Chui
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Andy Warhol: The Visual Arts and Photo Apps
30/11/12 06:58 Filed in: Photography & Art
When Andy Warhol created these images nobody even thought that there would be a thing like Instagram one day. He brought the visual arts to new heights by playing with “filters” and color distortion and created the most appealing pop art paintings millions still love today.
Nowadays we all can be Warhols by using apps like Instagram and Hipstamatic to give our images the on the snap arty touch. Would he have liked it? Most likely he would have wielded the apps like nobody else, creating visual art at its best. So what can we learn from him? Probably the use of yellow, a color that screams at you and yet you keep looking. It’s that unrestricted use of color that strikes and that might also be the secret behind the success of photo apps like Instagram and Hipstamatic. You can go wild!
Keep enjoying it and add some Warhol to your photography!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
How Photography can Accelerate Innovation
29/11/12 16:30 Filed in: B2B
Many things were said about Steve Jobs and probably the most significant was that “he saw things”. He had the ability to see what can be done and what people would love to have and use. He saw innovation.
Not many people are as gifted as Steve Jobs, yet there are many people working on innovation and developing fascinating new things without probably having the ability to “see” like Steve Jobs did. It might be a disadvantage not to see the innovation, because we understand much easier where we are going and for what we are going when we see the goal, visualize the goal.
That’s the moment when photography comes in. Now you might think how can one photograph something that doesn’t exist yet, an innovation, an idea. Well it is possible to visualize ideas through photography and even the way to achieve the goal can be photographed. One simply got to learn how to read the images.
It’s probably the way Steve Jobs saw “it”. He saw devises, software, nature, people, actually all around us and he had the ability to see beyond it and visualize the innovation. We see also all what is surrounding us, yet we might need a little help from photography to see beyond it and to learn how to use the information we gather that way.
No worries, it is easier done than to talk about it. Like with anything else, pictures are saying more than words and training is available to learn how to utilize photography for innovation. Ask for them, if you are interested.
Keep your vision inspiring your everyday doing and innovation will come.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Creative and Experimental Ways of Exhibiting Your Photographs
28/11/12 17:49 Filed in: Photography & Art
With billions of photographers out there one needs to be inventive in finding a way to stand out in presenting one’s photographs to the public. The classic album and photo book are always good, if it is the touchable paper version or the viral digital version, they are all beautiful. Besides that it is an exciting thing when a photographers can do an exhibition. Not only the stress in choosing the images for the show, also the presentation of the images itself and the theme of the exhibition can cause some headache. How can you make people come to see your art?
This is the moment when an inventive spirit is needed and there is no harm in looking what others do and get some inspiration.
Why not do a “Garage Sale” like exhibition and of course sell your photographs? The MoMA is doing it and so you can. At the moment the Martha Rosler’s “Meta-Monumental Garage Sale” is on at the MoMA until November 30 and it seems like a very clever idea. It feels more informal to the people and who does not like to sniff around a bit in the casual atmosphere of a flea market to unearth treasures.
Another genius idea is the “Steal My Photography” exhibition of Denmark-based photographer Lukas Renlund. He hung up 40 framed photographs outdoors and invited passersby to “steal”-take any single photograph they wanted. There was only one condition. They had to hang the photo up, wherever they wanted, take a photo of it and email the photo to Renlund. This is such a fantastic interactive and viral idea with benefits for all, photographer and photography lovers.
These are just a few ideas of experimenting with art exhibitions and maybe they are an inspiration to create your own creative and experimental art show.
Think different and let your art spark!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
What to Think Of When Photographing from a Plane or Helicopter
27/11/12 17:15 Filed in: Photo Tips
Besides photographing from a hot air balloon, photographing from a plane or helicopter is probably the most exciting way of capturing the beauty of Africa. To make your photographic bird view adventure a success, think of the following simple tips when going air born.
Make sure that you are not shooting through a window! There are helicopters without doors and for the rest with lots of glass for the perfect view. They are the perfect match for your bird view photography. If you are choosing for example a Cesna, make sure you can get the door on your side removed for the flight. Usually sky diving planes have the door already removed and otherwise ask the pilot, if he/she can arrange that the door gets removed for the flight.
If you can, choose a helicopter. Helicopters are steadier in the air for photography. A plane can be bumpier depending on the weather. Helicopters are also more flexible and can stand still for you, if needed.
Take off or secure everything you could loose easily during the flight like earrings, shawls and other loose or possibly getting loose things. Try not to wear glasses/sunglasses while photographing. It is disturbing your photography and you might loose them. Secure your camera, but do NOT hang the strap around your neck. The gravity will pull your neck down, you will get tired very quickly and it might slide over your head and then the camera is gone. Have the strap diagonal over your shoulder like you would do with a shoulder bag (the way it doesn’t slide from the shoulder).
Don’t be afraid. Although there is no door, you won’t fall out, unless you want it. But don’t do it when you are afraid of height, you will not be able to control the fear in that situation and you might fall. It is all more a question of psychology, imagination and having seen to many Hollywood movies. Secure yourself on your seat and relax.
Now shoot away!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Send Love for Christmas
26/11/12 20:41 Filed in: Photography & Art
With Black Friday just behind us and Cyber Monday still in full swing it might be a good idea to think of the essence of giving. Isn’t it all about love?
Well, if we can make somebody very happy with a new set of coasters or the newest electronic gadgets, just do it. Yet there is a way to send love in a more intimate and lasting way. Send your images as a loving Christmas card.
Use for example the marketing tool Mailchimp for your very private Christmas cards to family and friends. Mailchimp is usually used by companies for their email marketing, but of course it can be used for anything else. It is for free, offers plenty of customizable templates and you can import your email address list and send it out at once to all. You can create your own Christmas card with your own photographs, sending the message you want your friends and family to receive in a stunning design. It is a great tool to express your creativity and love at this magical time of the year.
If you wish to employ somebody else’s design abilities, a very good place to go are the Jacquie Lawson e-cards. It is not possible to integrate your own images, but the design and animations of the cards are truly lovely and touching. It costs only a bit to join this website, but its worth it. They offer for all sorts of occasions really loveable cards.
And of course there are still the probably most desirable real hand made cards with hand cut pictures, ribbons and hand written words. Nothing can beat that. They are treasures, kept forever in lovely boxes to be unearthed years later to remember the moment of received love.
Send your love too!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Travel Memories: On Safari in Africa - Day 13
25/11/12 20:03 Filed in: Travel & Inspiration
Amboseli was very dusty, windy, flat and breathtaking beautiful. It looked like a moon landscape with craters of swamp where the animals meet and enjoy a day at the pool while it’s hot, dusty and windy around. The wind and the dust were challenging. The dust was everywhere. When I was lying on my mattress in the tent I had to close my eyes because of the dust coming in. It felt very much like Lawrence of Arabia. Alex and Paul took it like the Masai did and the animals, they accepted. I watched and learned.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Safari Story: Desperate
25/11/12 20:01 Filed in: Safari Story
It was in the Sabi Sand in South Africa that we followed a young male leopard. He was not from the area and he had to be very cautious, because he was on the territory of an older strong male leopard. One could see that in his behavior. He was nervous, moving constantly and he was hungry. We followed him during a couple of game drives and he became more and more desperate. He probably hadn’t had a kill for a few days now and that didn’t help him with his concentration on the hunt. At one stage he just ran right into a herd of impala, not even trying to stalk, just hoping to snatch one, which of course didn’t happen. On the same morning he was in a tree when an antelope walked passed underneath the tree. The antelope saw him and was gone in a flash, he still on the branch, just looking frustrated. We started feeling desperate as well. He must have food now. The leopard continued moving through the area and he came pretty close to a house where a guy was working outside. We gave the guy a warning that a hungry leopard was around, but he seemed not impressed. Well, we took a break and went for lunch back to the lodge. When we went out again after lunch we heard that “our” leopard had finally made a kill! Our thought was immediately, did he get the guy from the house? Well, he did not. The leopard was happily sitting in a tree with his kill, a nyala, and enjoying his meal. We were happy too. He made it. Once again a leopard’s perseverance had won from bad luck, hunger and difficult circumstances on enemy territory. They are survivors, the leopards.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Wantful Christmas Presents
23/11/12 07:40 Filed in: Photography & Art
Wantful, isn’t this a wonderful word? It doesn’t exist officially, but it should.
The word reflects our desire to want something in a gentle way. Its not that rough “I want it and I’ll get it no matter what”, it’s the gentle desire of something very beautiful and precious, like for example great design, amazing art, fabulous quality or impressive craftsmanship.
When you look at your photographs do they feel wantful? Try it and make a Wantful Catalog your loved ones can choose from for their Christmas presents. Of course you can include also all the other things you make and that are wnatful to others. Just make it as an online catalog and send it around to your friends and family and see how their wantfulness emerges.
Happy wantful gift giving!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Living Pictures with Light Field Camera Lytro
22/11/12 11:12 Filed in: Photography & Art
Photos we take with our “normal” cameras are 2D images and nothing is wrong with it, yet there is more what one can do with a camera and this is when Lytro comes in.
The Lytro camera is a light-field camera. That means the camera captures the 4D light field information of a scene and by doing that, the images can be refocused and even the perspectives can be shifted afterwards. Ever had that moment that you wished you had taken the photo with a different angle, different point of view? You can change your point of view now with the new Lytro feature from December 4th just at your computer after the image was taken, well when the image was taken with a Lytro camera.
Comes pretty close to our human eye, doesn’t it?
Happy snapping and playing!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Image above by Greg Tokarski
David Hockney: Seeing the World through a Wide Angle Lens
21/11/12 15:08 Filed in: Photography & Art
What struck me every time I looked at a David Hockney painting is the depth in them. This great perspective seeing and view line conscious eye of him, only matched by excellent wide-angle lenses we use in photography.
He paints like a wide-angle lens does when we photograph a sky with clouds or a landscape with a road. Well, that also means that we are little Hockneys as well, because one needs to see it first, the lens is only as good as the photographer that wields it. Yet Hockney’s paintings are wonderful to train your eye for perspectives and view lines. Look at them and your eye will learn. That’s enough, just look at them.
Happy seeing and shooting!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Sales Season is on: Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Green Monday ...
20/11/12 16:48 Filed in: Technology & Gadgets
Are you ready for “sales season”?
This week Friday is Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and focusing on people going to real shops, the busiest day for retailers of the whole year (at least in the US). Then comes Cyber Monday, the Monday following on Thanksgiving. Cyber Monday is the day of online shopping, catching up with Black Friday regarding the numbers pretty well during the last years. And finally we’ll get Green Monday, the second Monday in December, called like that initially by eBay.
What should we do with it? If you are interested in purchasing higher priced photo equipment or a phone, computer or other electronics, its worth to check the specials circulating on and around these days, even if you are not staying in the U.S.. Amazon is doing already its Pre Black Friday specials and B&H New York has some very interesting offers as well. Just be careful when you are not in the U.S.. On top of the price comes the shipping, taxes and VAT of your country, but often the price is still lower, just check first.
Ready to go? Happy checking and buying!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
A Photograph is what Your Subconscious Sees
19/11/12 17:53 Filed in: Photography & Art
While reading an article by Roger Cicala on The Camera versus the Human Eye I realized that we humans seem to tend to see the products we once created as superior above nature’s creation. At least I got the idea when reading the article, like the eye gets compared with the camera and has to make up to the expectations in matching the camera specs.
Its rather interesting that we approach it like that and not the opposite way, that the camera is an attempt to copy the human eye. Nonetheless the article points out that the human eye has an incredible number of megapixel, 130 million, from which 6 million can see color, yet the article goes further into every comparable detail with a camera, weighing the pros and cons of “technical” specs.
I think comparing the two like that is like comparing apples with peers. The human eye evolved over millions of years with a functionality to serve survival. A camera was created with a different purpose. It is supposed to capture what we see and not so much in order to survive, but to show and share what we see with our subconscious.
And here it comes.
“Unlike the intermittent shutter clicks of a camera, the eye is sending the brain a constant feed video which is being processed into what we see. A subconscious part of the brain (the lateral geniculate nucleus if you must know) compares the signals from both eyes, assembles the most important parts into 3-D images, and sends them on to the conscious part of the brain for image recognition and further processing.” Roger Cicala
The subconscious makes the choice what we see consciously and because the human eye is made to help us survive it will provide our conscious with images like face recognition and alike. But our subconscious receives all we see, also what is not essential to survival and the information sits there with the subconscious and it does not even create the 3-D images for us, it just keeps the information and although it’s subconscious, we know that there is more.
Roger Cicala was wondering why he often likes more what he captures with the camera, although it’s not what he saw with his eye.
“But I guess my only real conclusion is this: a photograph is NOT exactly what my eye and brain saw at the scene. When I get a good shot, it’s something different and something better,…” Roger Cicala
No, a photograph is what your eye saw. The photograph captures the information that was sitting unprocessed to the brain with the subconscious. It creates the images of this unprocessed seeing or in other words, a photograph is what your subconscious sees and when taking it a step further, your subconscious was seeing for you all along. And that makes you connect with your photographs so deeply and liking them dearly.
Keep seeing, keep snapping!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Travel Memories 2008: On Safari in Africa - Day 12
18/11/12 13:51 Filed in: Travel & Inspiration | Safari Story
I was awake and just about to get up when I heard a scream and another one and another one. What was it? A bird? When I got to the main house I heard that somebody saw a leopard next to my tent killing a duiker. I was excited. This was spectacular and I would have loved to see the leopard. We were all standing on the veranda with binoculars trying to find the leopard. Nothing. Suddenly while sitting at the table chatting, Richard (the manager) said, I can see him. We all jumped up. I got my camera and only with the big lens I could see “him”. The leopard turned out to be a cheetah and a female, just up the hill behind my tent, feeding on the kill. What a start of the day.
At 8 a.m. I met Paul and Alex at the gate. They managed to get us a new vehicle and new tents. Nonetheless we decided to go straight to Amboseli and to skip Mount Kenya and Aberdare. The first part of the drive would bring us back around Mount Kenya to Nairobi and from there down to the border with Tanzania. We drove back to Nairobi through Meru. It was very different from the other side of the mountain, lush and tropical with many plantations and colorful villages. Everything went well and we arrived in Nairobi at noon, had a stop at a supermarket, our packed lunch along the road and carried on towards the border, 251 km to Arusha and it was 2 p.m. at Ngong junction. One hour later we had a flat tyre, at 4.55 p.m. we arrived at Amboseli Gate and at 5.45 p.m. at the campsite. What a drive, but we were glad we did it. From now on we wouldn’t have to drive far anymore, except the way back to Nairobi, but that would be at the very end.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Safari Story: Serengeti Flooded
17/11/12 16:01 Filed in: Travel & Inspiration | Safari Story
It was November 2006 and the time of the short rains in Tanzania, normally not the time photographers want to visit the Serengeti, but I thought it would be great to see the savannah during rains and to shoot with the soft light.
At arrival in Arusha it was announced that our safari flight to Klein’s Camp in the Northern Serengeti would have a delay and would not be able to land at Klein’s. There had been too much rain and the airstrip’s soil was to soft for a plane to land. After a while a solution was found. We would fly to Seronera in the middle of the Serengeti and from there carry on by 4x4.
During our flight over the Serengeti we got a pretty good impression what was going on. The Grumeti River was full and the plains were flooded. The often-dry Great Plains were wetlands. From Seronera airstrip we carried on in our 4x4 Landcruiser, heading north towards the Kenyan border where Klein’s Camp is situated. The road we were driving on was still all right, although we had to be careful with the patches of black cotton soil, a tricky soil that looks dry and the moment you drive on it, its like driving on wet soap. After driving for a while we got a call via the radio that another vehicle from Klein’s got stuck and if we could help pulling them out. Their position was quite close and we headed to them to help. The vehicle had dug itself deeply into the black cotton soil and we had to be very carefully to not get stuck as well. The guests were standing next to the vehicle with a desperate look in their eyes, but it was soon clear that we couldn’t pull them out. We would get stuck too. So all the guests got in our vehicle and we carried on. The guys would find a solution for the vehicle later, at least the guests were off the road and on-route back to the camp.
In order to get to Klein’s Camp one has to cross the river. When we arrived at the river it was clear that we wouldn’t be able to drive through it, definitely not with all the people on it. We had to drive to a little pedestrian bridge, get out and walk with our luggage over the tiny bridge to reach the vehicle that was waiting for us on the other side. Masai people were awaiting us on the other side, dressed traditionally and with spear and with a big UMBRELLA! It was such a funny sight to see the brave Masai warriors with an umbrella to shelter from the rain.
Well, we finally arrived at the camp and our driver proved to be brave and a good driver as well. He drove through river with the empty vehicle and everything was fine.
We were the last guests arriving at Klein’s Camp for several months. They closed the camp after we had left. The short rains turned out to be very long rains and the camp was only reopened in August of the following year. Nature has always the last word, not matter what humans want.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
How to Photograph like Francis Bacon Painted
16/11/12 09:41 Filed in: Photography & Art
Bullfight by Francis Bacon
What do you see when looking at a Francis Bacon painting? Essence.
Yes, there is still recognizable shape, yet no disturbing details. The subject’s essence is captured in the painting and without seeing the bullfighter’s face we know it’s the bullfighter. The painting is condensed essence and when looking at it we can feel the energy between the man and the animal, the power of the moment the tension, the fear.
How can a photographer paint like Bacon? By daring to shoot away and simply following the energy of the moment.
Imagine a horse race. The horses are coming with such a speed that there is no time to think at all. You got to shoot away, just follow with your camera the energy of the racing horses and you will get the most amazing photographs. You will feel the energy and there is no choice, it lasts only for seconds, so just let go and shoot. The horses are faster than you and the camera, so probably most of the image will be blur, but the essence will be in focus and the blur rest of the image shows the dynamic of the moment. The viewer will feel it, just like in a painting from Bacon.
Dare!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Romance: Karen Blixen & Peter Beard
15/11/12 11:02 Filed in: Photography & Art
Do not jump to conclusions, romance is not an intimate relationship, romance is a strong connection sometimes people have, like mothers with children, siblings, soul mates or like we sometimes call them “like minded people” or rather “like hearted people”.
Peter Beard visited Karen Blixen at her home in Denmark. This was in the early 60ies and Beard was at that time a young man who had just started exploring East Africa and had been very much drawn into Blixen’s book “Out of Africa”. Well, a lady from Blixen’s household said that he seems to remember Karen Blixen of her big love Denys Finch Hatton, yet the connection the two was most likely the love and fascination for Africa.
Beard took some great photographs of Karen Blixen and probably even the last one ever taken of her, she died in 1962. Quotes from Out of Africa are on many of Beard’s photographs and it seems that they saw Africa the same way, had the same connection with the continent and its people and wildlife, shared the same fascination and loved it deeply. What Blixen was saying with words, Beard was saying with photographs and Blixen’s words on Beard’s photographs are an overwhelming combination.
Find a selection of Peter Beard’s work on his website or in the book Peter Beard Trade Edition or get in the car and drive to Arles in the Camargue in Southern France. Hotel Nord Pinus in Arles has an impressing small collection of original Peter Beard photographs, including a Karen Blixen portrait.
What fascinations are you sharing? Even thought to capture them in photographs?
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
photo above: Peter Beard photo of Karen Blixen, shown at Hotel Nord Pinus in Arles
Refreshed Nikon DSLR Range
14/11/12 11:16 Filed in: Photography & Art
This year Nikon did quite a revolutionary refresh of its DSLR line with the release of the flagship camera D4 and the high-megapixel cameras D800 and D800E, leaving some professionals with the dilemma to choose between the two of them.
But it seems that they are not done yet. Nikon Rumors reports that within a few weeks the new D5200 will be announced. This camera will replace the D5100 as a mid-range DSLR for consumers and enthusiasts.
In case its getting a bit confusing with all the different cameras, here a chart with the Nikon DSLRs for a better orientation. (via PetaPixel).
Will this be the last announcement of a new camera for a while? Sometimes big companies breath in for a few years and then breath out also for a few years, meaning it takes a while to develop new products and then release them in a big wave.
Lets see what comes next, maybe a few new lenses?
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Striking Photo Stacking Technique
13/11/12 13:27 Filed in: Photography & Art
There are many ways of painting with your camera and there are probably even more ways of painting with Photoshop, but this one is really a nice one.
Matt Molloy’s photo stacking technique cloud images look just amazing, like big rough brush strokes have set the clouds on the pictures.
Here is how Molloy does it:
“To make these ‘photo stacks’, I first shoot a timelapse, taking a photo every 5 seconds or so. (Settings differ depending on the subject and lighting conditions). I then merge several photos into one image using Photoshop. I start with the first image from the timelapse as a normal photo and then blend the rest of them with the ‘lighten’ blending mode. This only adds things that are brighter than what was in the first photo, and so you can see things like the paths of stars as they move across the sky. (The movement of the stars is actually from the earth’s rotation).”
It sounds like a lot of work, but it looks like being worth trying.
Find more of his work can be found on Flickr and 500px and good luck with playing with light.
Happy brush stroke setting!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
The New Yorker's Wild Dogs
12/11/12 15:39 Filed in: Photography & Art
There seems to be no place in the world without dogs. Even in the bush everything is dropped when wild dogs are spotted and the game vehicles race to the sighting. They are so rarely seen and they are endangered in many areas, that seeing them is a very exciting experience.
Spotting dogs in big cities is not quite a rare sighting and dogs in general are an essential part of our lives. They seem to help us with all sorts of things, even with writing. The New Yorker just released the The Big New Yorker Book of Dogs by Maria Popova with dog themed pieces of literature. Interested? Be careful, its about dogs and only about dogs, as Malcolm Gladwell says in the foreword:
“A few words about you. You bought this book: several hundred pages on dogs. You are, in other words, as unhealthily involved in the emotional life of dogs as the rest of us. Have you wondered why you bought it? One possible answer is that you see the subject of man’s affection for dogs as a way of examining all sorts of broader issues. Is it the case of a simple thing revealing a great many complex truths? We do a lot of this at The New Yorker. To be honest: I do a lot of this at The New Yorker — always going on and on about how A is just a metaphor for B, and blah, blah, blah. But let’s be clear. You didn’t really buy this boo because of some grand metaphor. Dogs are not about something else. Dogs are about dogs.”
Well, I think dogs are more than dogs, even in the bush and the excitement of so many savvy bush people and guests can’t be wrong, they are something special. When you see a pack of wild dogs on the go, how they interact and how they hunt, it’s really something special.
Keep being inspired by dogs and photograph every now and then your own dog. They are great subjects for awesome photography.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Travel Memories 2008: On Safari in Africa - Day 11
11/11/12 15:42 Filed in: Travel & Inspiration
I obviously needed it so much, a relaxed day at Lewa Downs with a nice and dry room, a shower and everything just working. So, happily I went out on the game drive with my guide form Lewa and it was really fun. He made a Swahili lesson from the game drive and it was lovely.
Twende …Let’s go. My guide Joel was serious about teaching me Swahili. We started cruising on Lewa in the morning twilight when the rolling hills of Lewa are bluish and mysterious, an awesome light for magical shots. All together it was a very nice day and we saw twiga…giraffe, punda…zebra and pumba mingi … many warthogs and eventually simba … lion with ntoto ya simba … lion cubs.
Learned some Swahili now?
Lala Salama… Sleep well.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Safari Story: The Loving Brother
10/11/12 14:57 Filed in: Safari Story
Tsavo East is a huge National Park in Kenya with vast bush sections and a big elephant population. We were driving one morning to a waterhole, usually a place with a guarantee so see animals. When were already close to the waterhole we saw no animals at or around it and we looked at each other and had all the same thought, there must be a cat. When a cat is at a waterhole the other animals stay away and yes, there were two male lion drinking. What we didn’t see at first was that one lion looked very ill. He was incredibly skinny and could hardly walk. His brother was also skinny, but not injured and didn’t look ill.
We settled to watch them. It was a heartbreaking morning. The ill brother was obviously suffering a lot, he had difficulties with drinking and seemed very dehydrated. His brother stayed always with him, never left his side. When the sun got stronger they moved a bit away from the waterhole into the shade of a tiny tree. It took the ill lion for ages to walk the 50 meters to the tree. There they rested for a long time before they continued moving into thicker bush to hide from the sun and maybe to find some food. It was so sad to see the ill lion walking very slowly and weak with his brother on his side. It was very moving to see the healthy brother rather dying as well than leaving his brother behind. His ill brother slowed him down and with the weak brother as a “burden” he was obviously not successful with hunting, but he bared with him and stayed.
We watched them as long as we could see them moving into the bushes towards a little river that was running there and we hoped so much that they would bump into small and easy prey to fill their stomachs and to get some strength back.
I don’t know what happened to them, they could have died both or the ill lion could have died or with a miracle they could have survived both. Lets hope for the latter.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Make a Photo Book & Photo Magazine with Your iPhone
09/11/12 17:18 Filed in: Photo Tips
Not that long ago I was wondering when there would be online tools to make eBooks with easy templates and sharable immediately in social media. I haven’t found yet something to work from the computer, but there are two cute iPhone apps that get very close to the idea.
Mixbook has a new app called Mosaic that allows you to make a photo book with your iPhone. You choose 20 images from your photo library and the app creates a virtual photo book from the selection. Then you choose a background color and shuffle the cover images and that’s it. Mixbook gets your photo book printed and delivered to where you want it.
The other app is Beamr. It allows you to create a photo magazine from your iPhone. Just select images from your photo library, choose a cover, the app will add some text (you can change the cover text) and create your magazine.
Probably the nicest part is that you can share your magazine immediately and the recipients can save the images in full resolution. This app has still room for improvement, like the images cannot be arranged in any way and there is only one cover, but it’s already great to make this little cute magazine.
Check it out, its quick and easy done and its fun.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
People behind Photographers like Steven Meisel
08/11/12 15:32 Filed in: Photography & Art
Steven Meisel a press shy and amazing photographer from New York is famous for his fabulous fashion photography. He draws fantastic expressive compositions with his camera and his images have been many times on the covers of major fashion magazines.
Yet, behind a great photographer are also great people, like for example Pascal Dangin, the founder and chief of Box Studios in New York. Some people say he is the most sought after retoucher in the industry, others call him the Godfather of Photoshop. The world of a retouch studio is somehow mysterious, because we usually only see and know the photographer. Get an insight view of Box Studios with the video Mike Saunders shot and if you would like to learn more about Pascal Dangin read here:
How is your postproduction doing? Yes, most of us are doing it all ourselves and maybe we can learn something from the specialists.
Happy learning!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Bond, James Bond: Shaken not Stirred Technology
07/11/12 16:07 Filed in: Technology & Gadgets
Brace up for the new technology dazzling James Bond “Skyfall” movie, in the US theaters on November 9. What technology gadgets will fall out of the blue sky this time?
All James Bond movies are traditionally innovative in technology. “Q” always comes up with new fantastic gadgets to free Bond in hopeless situations. Yet, I cannot recall something incredibly amazing new from the Bond movies for photography. They use the brands, yes, and the brands use the movie, but no fantastic new photographic devise emerged from them, at least I wouldn’t know.
Maybe that will change when photography becomes more and more a “tool” to us with applications we can’t even think of now. There are already the augmented glasses, face recognition and more, but where will this end? Copy and paste with our eyes through an implanted photo sensor? Some kind of a photographically steered wrist watch that that releases a poisoned arrow when the face recognition identifies the enemy even when he is hiding his face behind a mask, because the watch can take an image of the skull and run it through a database? Or is “Q”’s watch already doing that?
Well, lets see with what technology this movie is coming up with and if there is anything inspiring for photographers in it. And if not, the photography of the movies always showed great frames, inspiring composition and working with light.
Enjoy fantastic ideas!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Hone your instincts: Joel Meyerowitz, Photographer
06/11/12 20:09 Filed in: Photography & Art
A remarkable story to encourage all photographers and almost photographers: the life journey of the New York City–based photographer Joel Meyerowitz.
In 1962 Meyerowitz was working as an art director at an advertising agency when he watched photographer Robert Frank working on an advertising photo shoot. It proofed to be a cathartic moment for Meyerowitz. Back in the office he told his boss that he wanted to be a photographer.
“On the way back to the office, Meyerowitz walked the streets of New York for more than an hour. “I felt like I was reading the text of the street in a way that I never had before,” he says.
When he returned to the office, Meyerowitz told his boss, Harry Gordon, that he was quitting. He wanted to be a photographer. Gordon then asked him a crucial question: did he have a camera? The answer was no, so Gordon lent him a 35mm camera and Meyerowitz embarked on the great journey of his life.
That first day with Robert Frank served as more than just a catalytic inspiration; it laid the foundation for how Meyerowitz would record street life. He bobs and weaves through the throngs of people, searching for that serendipitous moment that becomes a great photograph.
When he is shooting on the street, there isn’t much time to contemplate each moment. “Photography takes place in a fraction of a second,” Meyerowitz says. “There isn’t a lot of time to think about things. You have to hone your instinct. You learn to hone that skill and timing so you’re in the right place at the right time.” Although he has made images that have moved audiences for decades, that has never been his true motivation. “I’m not out there to make another ‘great picture,’” he says. “I’m really out there to feel what it feels like to be alive and conscious in that moment. In a sense, the record of my photographs is a record of moments of consciousness and awareness that have come to me in my life.”” (via Time, by Nate Rawlings)
This life changing moment happened 50 years ago. For this anniversary Meyerowitz compiled hundreds of images into a two-volume book, Joel Meyerowitz: Taking My Time (Phaideon Press).
From November 2, his work is been displayed at the Howard Greenberg Gallery in New York.
Be inspired!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Fascinating Leopard: Who is she?
05/11/12 16:26 Filed in: Safari Story
I met her first in January 2007. At that time she was a sub adult leopard of about 16 months old, called Vomba young female. The people in the game reserve give the offspring first the name of their mother until they establish their own territory. Then they get a name related to their territory.
This young lady had a brother, Vomba young male. The two were very different. The young female was a very confident girl, not afraid of anything, chasing hyenas away at this young age. The hyenas were most likely only surprised that this young leopard went after them; at least they looked like that. She was just the same cool lady as her mother, very beautiful and determined. Her father was the territorial male, a very strong short built beautiful male leopard. At this time he was in his best years and controlling a big area. Her brother was completely different from the rest of the family. He was shy, almost a bit neurotic, he would do queer things, but somehow also a bit sad. Maybe all the strong characters surrounding him were too much for his fragile personality. He was also always very uncomfortable in the presence of game vehicles, while his mother and sister were not bothered at all. The young lady’s mother’s territory includes the lodge and she does not care if there is a bush dinner in the parking lot of the lodge, she just walks passed it and guests can watch her from their tables. Well, this young leopard lady has definitely inherited her personality.
Since they were old enough to live by themselves, her brother was very rarely seen. The young lady instead is now a grown up beautiful leopard and mother, still in the area, neighboring her mother’s territory. She is still the strong personality and as comfortable as always with vehicles. That doesn’t mean you can easily go and see her, she just does what she wants and if she wants to hide, she hides.
See some of her moments in life in pictures below.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
All above pictures from February 2007.
January 2009
Two images above from December 2011.
Travel Memories 2008: On Safari in Africa - Day 10
05/11/12 13:41 Filed in: Travel & Inspiration
After 9 days in a leaking tent and a long list of other unsolved basics we arrived around 10 a.m. at Lewa Downs Conservancy. Nairobi office was supposed to book me there for two nights, but didn’t. Anyway, they had a tent for me and I said good buy to Paul and Alex for two days. They went to Nairobi to get things sorted that we could reset the whole trip and have a fresh start.
Lewa Downs is beautiful. The landscape is made of rolling hills bordered by Samburu on one side and Mount Kenya on the other. It’s a Grevi’s zebra, rhino and cheetah paradise and it was a pleasure to drive there with only a few other vehicles. I stayed at the Safari Camp, a tented camp with lovely bathrooms attached to the tents, a real luxury of dry tent with shower. It was also a chance for me to reset, to rinse out the anger and exhaustion of the last 9 days and to get ready for the second part of the trip. It gave me the time and peace to reflect on the last days and what I had learned. There was one conversation we had one night at dinner, which had impressed me a lot.
Paul and Alex are Kikuyu. The Kikuyu tribe lives from agriculture and it’s a custom that there has to be always enough food in the house to feed the family and unexpected visitors. They don’t throw food away and it makes them happy and proud when they can feed others.
Paul said, in the village where he grew up was one family who had a TV and always when there was a football game, the whole village came to watch it at their place. He said this family was very lucky and I thought because they had a TV but he continued, because their food got eaten and not because of a TV. This was completely logical for him and I was quiet and touched by this approach. Thinking back to this conversation always helps me to put things in perspective and reminds me of the basic values of life.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Safari Story: The Comfort of the Herd
03/11/12 20:11 Filed in: Safari Story
We had just started our afternoon game drive in the Masai Mara when we spotted a herd of zebras. They were grazing on an open plain close to the river. Everything seemed completely normal until we got closer and had a better look. We noticed a young zebra lying on the ground and its mother anxiously watching it. It was soon clear that the young zebra was dead. Its neck had a bite mark, we thought maybe from a leopard, but it was strange that it was still lying there. Maybe the leopard got disturbed. The mother was looking at us as if she was asking for help. It was heartbreaking. She tried to make her youngster to get up and follow her and when the little zebra did not move she came back and tried again. It was terrible to watch her pain and not being able to do anything to comfort her.
After a while the herd started moving of the plain towards the river. It looked like they wanted to cross before it got dark. The zebra mother was still standing next to her youngster, still confused and anxious. Then something very beautiful happened. The herd had to pass her and the little one when moving towards the river and every group of the herd that passed stopped for a while and stood with her watching the little zebra. They shared a moment with her, probably also wondering why she was standing there and not coming. Nonetheless the herd comforted the zebra mother and with the final group she was eventually able to move on as well. And we did too, silent and impressed by the care of nature.
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
How Photography Accelerates Business
02/11/12 13:00 Filed in: B2B
Imagine a normal day at the office. Hundreds of emails, meetings, phone calls and deadlines. Studies showed that in the age before emails one could work undisturbed for about 23 minutes, and now? All happens fast, yet time consuming and decision delaying. It’s a miracle that any business is done despite all constant disturbances. Then take even a big organization. There are examples that Microsoft needed longer to put together the team for a certain project than to build the building where the project team was supposed to be located. This is just killing for productivity and growth.
Businesses need to be agile and innovative. That requires short chains of decision and instant access to information. The digital world allows instant access to information, yet an even faster and more efficient tool is still not used, photography. All information at hand any time and anywhere and not Internet needed. This is what photography can offer businesses. It is THE innovative tool of the future and companies who learn to use it will be ahead of anybody else. No matter what field of business and what internal department, photography is the instant insight information based decision tool for managers and industry leaders. With a click on the shutter it reveals all needed information and shows at the same time the solution. It can’t be easier than that. Use it!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com
Photography before Photoshop: How Image Manipulation was Always There
01/11/12 08:33 Filed in: Photography & Art
Photoshop is the tool that makes the sky bluer, the model slimmer, the skin flawless and that puts things in the picture that weren’t there before. But image manipulation is not new. It existed before Photoshop was invented.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is hosting an exhibition devoted to manipulated photography before the digital age. The exhibition is called Faking It: Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop and runs from 11th October 2012 – 27th January 2013. It shows fantastic examples of image manipulation from before digital tools and can make one laugh when seeing the beginnings of this nowadays-advanced tool.
The companion book is available on amazon and probably a nice Christmas gift for the photography lover.
Happy creative faking!
Ute Sonnenberg for www.rohoyachui.com