Makin' Progress!

First off (it was finally announced, so I can talk about it now) one of my favorite bands of all time, Ben Folds Five, is releasing Ben Folds Five Live... their first-ever live album on June 4th. The coolest part (for me) is that they got a hold of me to license one of my photos from their tour this past January, so now my work is featured on the album cover:

Ben Folds Five Live. Photo by Clay Lancaster.

Secondly, filming has been extremely successful so far. Some long days in there... lots and lots of walking & train-hopping around Paris, lugging video & audio equipment everywhere we go, shooting in the rain, etc. But last night we managed to wrap all scenes that involve our lead actress, Ms. Barbara Probst (good luck trying to read her wiki if you don't speak French). We've lovingly renamed her to "Blahblah".

After filming all day yesterday, we celebrated with a large dinner for cast/crew/friends and a lot of wine. Like, a lot. Some of us are hurtin' a little this morning.

Enjoy some candids from filming so far!

Kevin discussing a character with one of our actors

Filming on the Metro with Barbara Probst and Kevin Clark

Heated discussion in the studio with Barbara Probst and Kevin Clark

Yours truly monitoring some dialogue audio

I look thrilled to be a part of this scene.

Left to Right: Keith (cameras), Barbara (lead actress),  me (sound), and Nadia (script supervisor)

Notre Dame evening.

Clay Lancaster, Kevin Clark, and Barbara Probst

Lancaster brothers on the train after a day of shooting

Changes for 2013

It's been nuts lately.

It's currently 3:30am and pouring rain... and I love it.

I just wrapped editing for 3 wonderful weddings. I was flown to Las Vegas to work with a country artist on a video project (the guitar player on his record is also the guitar player for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill), finishing the rest of the video shooting and edits this week, shooting a wedding next weekend, and then flying to Paris two days later to work on a film with my brother.

THEN, after 3 weeks of filming, I'm headed to Istanbul by myself... just because.

...oh, and somewhere in there I have to move from my apartment to the condo I just bought. Ugh.

So check it...

My good buddy Todd is a painter, and graciously took a day off work to help me paint my new place.

...11 hours of painting, sore/swollen hands, and 150lbs of paint. Here are some before/after photos:

Subtle, but lighter ceilings and darker walls

flare

bathroom flare

It's my first time as a homeowner, and as you can see I decided to spice it up a bit.

So what about the rest of my activity?

Well, I went to Las Vegas to work on a project with this guy. Was treated to too many drinks and a little VIP action in the process:

I also did some lovely wedding work, like this:

yours truly... scouting the location.

It's been fun. And stressful. But I think a new life starts soon!

Hope all of you are well :)

-Clay

Video Editing Now an Option!

Howdy folks.

In the last year, I've had to turn down a lot of video inquiries. Doing video for weddings or musicians is much more time consuming and costly than still-photography, from an overhead standpoint. Not to mention that many people asked about it as well as doing still photography for their wedding... kinda hard to do one when I'm already doing the other.

Since Lancaster Photography is a small operation (meaning: myself, and a few part-time affiliates), it's just not doable or profitable at this point.

The thing is, I've been doing video editing for years and am current with the latest software/methods/formats. It's been a strong hobby of mine this entire time, along with audio post-work (see the video page for examples).

So, what to do?

I had this thought. Even if you don't hire a professional camera man with the insanely expensive video rig, you probably have (or will have) a bunch of funny, sweet, silly, stupid, or downright offensive video footage from your wedding/event that you'd like to save, but don't know exactly what to do with. I'm talking video from iPhones, Flip cams, camcorders, etc. that you or your guests filmed throughout the night.

Now, for an hourly editing fee, you can give me all of that priceless footage (I don't judge, trust me) to splice together with music, titles, transitions, captions, video enhancements, and audio enhancements... and voila! ...you have a movie! Once it's finished, I can give you the final product in any format you like, including DVD.

Contact me for rates and ideas, and let's finally do something with all those random video clips that are currently eating up space on your computer's hard drive.

clay@lancasterphoto.net

Boundary Oak Wedding - Walnut Creek

Last weekend I packed my gear and headed with my assistant Isaac to Boundary Oak Golf Course in Walnut Creek, CA. This was the wedding of Chris and Brooke, for whom I had done engagement photos earlier in the year.

The club house wedding was a blast... beautiful weather, awesome sunset, and lots of dancing and wine. What a job I have...

Until I am finished editing, here are a few of my favorite photos from Sunday.

the ceremony site at Boundary Oak. Walnut Creek, CA.

newlyweds at Boundary Oak. Walnut Creek, CA.

We had some down time during dinner, so i stepped outside onto the balcony to see the sunset. I was explaining the process of HDR to my assistant, when I decided to go ahead and try one then and there. Not too bad, eh?

HDR photo of Boundary Oak Golf Course. Walnut Creek. Photo by Clay Lancaster

Happy Body Slow Brain - San Francisco Promo Photos

You'll notice a number of posts lately. It's been a crazy few weeks, and my camera is probably close to melting from all the shutter snaps.

Ending their tour supporting RX Bandits, the ex-Taking Back Sunday boys of Happy Body Slow Brain came home to San Francisco and played to a packed house at Bottom of the Hill.

Straight in from San Diego, I let them have enough time to upload their gear at the venue before we headed out to do some new promo photos. This time around the group includes Matt Fazzi (guitars/keys/vocals), Isaac Bolivar (guitars/keys/vocals), Jason Holthauser (bass), and Javier Torres (drums).

A little piece of trivia: Javier's brother, Eduardo, is the drummer on Happy Body Slow Brain's debut record, Dreams of Water.

Here's a couple of photos from our session:

Happy Body Slow Brain. Photo by Clay Lancaster (2011)

Happy Body Slow Brain. Photo by Clay Lancaster (2011)

Eric Clapton - San Jose, CA

Braving all the "rain" that my iPhone claimed was supposed to occur last night, I hopped in the car and trekked to the San Jose Arena (also known as HP Pavilion, also known as The Shark Tank) to shoot the legendary Eric Clapton.

This was an interesting shoot for a few reasons.

1. It's Eric Clapton.
2. It was one of the biggest venues I had taken photos at.
3. I had to shoot behind the soundboard.
4. The soundboard was the farthest away I've ever attempted to shoot from.
5. I left my killer 5D mkII camera at home, in favor of a little Rebel XTi so I could use the crop sensor to my advantage (with a 70-200L lens).
6. I had to wait in a conference room with the other photographers shooting that night in between Los Lobos and Clapton.
7. It's Eric Clapton.

Despite the hassles and not having the option to borrow a barrel of a lens, I got some killer shots.

Eric Clapton and his band. March 2nd, 2011. 03-02-2011.

Mark & Michelle - Auburn, CA Wedding

No, not the candy. Although that might be interesting.

I'm referring to the lovely Northern California couple Mark & Michelle, who recently wed in the quaint town of Auburn, CA.  It was a somewhat traditional ceremony in an ornate church that was constructed in 1858, followed by a not-so-traditional reception in a small restaurant which goes by the name Monkey Cat (not kidding). The owner closed the restaurant down for the afternoon so the bride and groom could sip on drinks and mingle with their guests in a room that seemed almost entirely made of dark wood.

This was the first time I had photographed a wedding without meeting the couple in person before the big day. With about a 2 hour drive between us, it seemed easier for both parties to rely on email and phone calls... but I'd never have guessed it, as within minutes it felt like we had already met numerous times.

Mandy & Alan - The Brazilian Room & Claremont Hotel

Last Sunday I ventured back up to the Berkeley Hills to shoot for Mandy & Alan as they got married at the Brazilian Room. This wedding featured my buddy George (lovingly nicknamed "The Lion" by the wedding party) as my assistant. You'll see why if you scroll down...

Sooo much fun! The couple is lovely, their families were warm and inviting, and everyone (including us) just danced and laughed all night.

In case you were wondering, my style of shooting weddings involves suits & ties, some wine, and a lot of dancing and making people laugh. I am not the type of photographer to wear all black and stay creepily in the background... and my couples prefer the way I do things. I sometimes wonder if it's not terribly "professional", but I honestly believe it adds a level of comfort and fun for the couples' special day.

Not to mention I've had wedding guests seek me out to tell me how comfortable they were in front of the lens. I've also had guests take pictures of me for their own entertainment, and I often stay friends with the couples I shoot.

Anyway! Enjoy a few samples!

Bride & Groom at the Brazilian Room

Bride & Groom at the Brazilian Room

Bride & Groom at the Brazilian Room

("The Lion")