The Photo Studio

Introducing your photographers - Rosie Joyce

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 03:47:00 +0000

Rosie Joyce (above, with a family of quadruplets) is one of the Photo Studio's newest photographers. She's been in Sydney for less than a year, and at the studio for around five months, but has quickly made her presence felt with her fun, vibrant portraits.
Rosie joined the Photo Studio to specialise in family and baby photography, which she cites as "much more fun and relaxing than fashion photography".

Rosie likes shooting family and kids photos because she wants to get away from the traditional view of family photography as having everyone in a formal stilted pose in front of the camera. Rosie's style is influenced by advertising photography, and is "all about fun and letting the subject express their personality". This really comes out in her baby and children photos, which are brimming with energy and personality.

Rosie says that she likes to let the subjects be the art directors of their own photo shoots. That counts for the kids as well as their parents - Rosie captures beautiful spontaneous images with kids and babies that would be impossible to craft with professional models. She likes to capture the relationship between families in a relaxed and fun way, and her number one rule is to "not be afraid to get down on the floor and act like a big kid!"

Family and children photos make great Christmas gifts, especially for grandparents and family members from overseas. If you have little ones, make sure you take advantage of our special Christmas family photo shoot offers. Just contact the Photo Studio for a shoot and quote 'Christmas Blog Readers offer' to receive a FREE photoshoot and a $100 voucher to go towards any portrait package. This great offer is valid for any booking made before the end of December, so contact the Photo Studio today!

The Perfect Christmas Gift

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:54:00 +0000

If you are looking for the perfect gift for Christmas, why not come down to the Photo Studio for a family portrait?
As well as being award winning fashion and commercial photographers, the Photo Studio specialises in getting great pictures of families and kids. North loves working with kids and babies to get those special shots that you will treasure forever.

The Photo Studio offers a range of great packages, and don't forget that beautiful family portraits can make great gifts for grandparents and family members that live overseas. You can come into the studio to get fantastic pictures that will be with your family for years, and at the same time pick up a range of smaller pictures that are just perfect as gifts and mementos.

If you have young children, make sure that you book in for gorgeous family portraits so that you can have amazing pictures of your children at that age that you can look back on for years to come. Kids grow up so fast, and with a family portrait session at the Photo Studio, you will have a lasting image to treasure.

Not only will a family portrait session give you beautiful images of your family, but they are also great fun! North and the Photo Studio crew truly believe in capturing the moment, and they like to make family photo shoots fun and lively affairs. Everyone, from the youngest tyke to the grandparents invariably end up getting involved, not only in the family photo shoot itself, but also looking through the pictures from the day, picking their favourites and deciding what kind of look they would like applied by our Photoshop experts. So don't delay, book yourself a fun family portrait session at the Photo Studio today!

Glebe's 150th birthday celebrations are finishing up in just a couple of days, so if you haven't yet, make sure you check out the outdoor photography exhibits. The large outdoor portraits, taken by Tom Psomotragos and our own North Sullivan, have been printed out on 1600mm x 1000mm canvas sheets and displayed throughout Glebe for the month. Hurry though, you only have a couple more days to tour the 'Glebe outdoor gallery' before the pictures come down on the 28th of November.

Fashion Weekend Summer with the Photo Studio

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:35:00 +0000

The Photo Studio, armed with our mobile studio and contingent of photographers and photo editors, returned to Fashion Weekend, determined to make it as big a success as last time.

North and the crew are old hands at Fashion Weekend now, and it's always great to check out the excitement and buzz of the event. We took a lot of great portraits over the weekend, and it was really rewarding to see the joy and amazement on some people's faces when they saw what we could do in just ten minutes.

We partnered up once more with Fashion Weekend and Vivien's Model Management for the Face of Fashion Weekend Summer competition. Everyone who entered went into the draw to win a professional magazine style model portfolio worth $2000, plus the chance to be represented by Vivien's, internationally recognised as Australia's leading modeling agency.

The Photo Studio booth was the place to be over the weekend, buzzing with models, mums and many more. We had interviewers for Channel V and Unseen TV come down to check out the action, and even they couldn't resist getting involved, jumping in front of the camera for photoshoots of their own.

We are giving away thousands of dollars worth of prizes from the weekend, and the chances to win don't stop with the weekend! Not only are we giving away a $2000 professional modeling portfolio which includes a 2 hour studio photo shoot with Make-up & Hair, Wardrobe Styling and prints, but all of the pictures we took over the weekend will go up online on our website. You can log on to register and vote for your favourite, and the person who receives the most votes will win the People's Choice Award, a professional magazine style photo shoot valued at $1000. If that's not enough, one lucky voter will receive a 2 hour Magazine Style Photo Session valued at $450. The session also includes makeup, hair styling and wardrobe direction, and a voucher for $100 to go towards any portrait package.
We are also giving away a huge amount of runner up prizes, including photo sessions, hair, makeup and styling, and vouchers for prints and portrait packages, so make sure that you go online to vote for your chance to win!

It was also exciting this week to see one of North's photographs spread across the top of a highway. Qantas have decided to reuse one of North's most enduring and iconic photographs, that of the Children's Choir performing on top of the Great Wall of China. The image was shot back in 1998 and has since become one of the most well known symbols for Qantas. It has been seen all around the world in Qantas advertising campaigns, and can now be seen adorning a bridge along Military Road in Neutral Bay. And remember, if you would like to have your portrait taken by perhaps Australia's most respected advertising photographer, all you have to do is get in touch with the Photo Studio!

We understand that sometimes it can be difficult or intimidating deciding how to prepare when coming in for a portrait session here at the Photo Studio. We encourage everyone to come with a few different outfits, and various looks and styles, so we can try a few different things and come up with a whole range of great photographs for you.
If you're interested in learning how to dress for success, not only for your portrait session but for the rest of your life, the Photo Studio recommends that you have a look at Izziana Image Consultants.
Izziana was started by two sisters who believe that image plays an important part in our overall happiness and confidence. They are keen to share their knowledge and experiences on how to look good and feel good without undergoing radical body surgery. They are passionate about assisting individuals to enhance their personal image and confidence through their fashion style.
If you are after a fabulous outfit for your photo shoot but you are not sure what to wear, don’t despair. There are many different clothing styles and colours to choose from so it can be difficult to know how to select the most flattering ones for you. The advice given to you by Izziana Image is designed to last your lifetime and will benefit you not only for your photo shoot but in every aspect of your life. Izziana Image Consultants provide Image and Style consultations that are tailored specifically to each individual to help you look your best and be confident with who you are. They give you the tools to define your style, increase your confidence and shop with authority.
We recommend that you start with their Colour Analysis and Style Workshops to instantly gain an understanding on the clothing colours and styles that best suit you. This is information that you can use immediately to update your image and wardrobe. Check out their website to find out more information on how they can help you.

150 Locals for Glebe

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:44:00 +0000

The end of October saw the start of an exciting new exhibition - a collaboration between our own North Sullivan and portrait photographer Tom Psomotragos. North and Tom, as respected artists as well as proud Glebe residents, were approached by the Glebe Chamber of Commerce to commemorate the suburb's 150th birthday. They hit on the idea to do this through 150 portraits of locals, displayed throughout Glebe both inside and out.

The range of photographs reflect the vibrancy and diversity of the suburb, with the portrait subjects ranging from artist and musician Reg Mombassa (top) to Sister Xavier from Saint Scholastica's College (above) and local personality Mitch the Bike Man (below). The portraits were printed on large canvasses and displayed at nearly sixty locations throughout Glebe, including public parks and spaces, cafes, and building facades. Over one hundred of the portraits will be displayed outside throughout Glebe, transforming the suburb into an outdoor art gallery for the month.

150 Locals will run from October 24 to November 28, so if you haven't seen it yet, make sure you head to Glebe to check it out. You can download the official map from the Glebe website. This exhibition was created not only to celebrate the suburb's 150th birthday, but also to kick off the Glebe Chamber of Commerce's new initiative - the Grand Tour Gallery. The idea is to take art out of the galleries and onto the streets, providing a forum for Australian photographers to showcase their work and allowing people to view great photography outside of a conventional setting.

North and Tom began shooting for the project last December, and although it has taken almost a year to come to fruition, North is very happy with the results. 150 Locals was launched here at the Photo Studio on October 22. The studio was packed out with an eclectic mix of Glebe locals and photography fans, here to view portraits, including those of artist John Ogburn (below) and pianist Bridie King (above), who performed on the evening.

The evening was a great success, and we look forward to seeing what the Glebe Chamber of Commerce cooks up for the Grand Tour Gallery in the future. In the meantime, 150 Locals will continue exhibiting throughout Glebe until the 28th of November, so if you have a chance you should definitely check it out for yourself.

2009 Sydney Women's Expo

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:59:00 +0000

Well as usual, the Photo Studio has had an action packed week, with portraits, the Women's Expo, and the grand launch of North Sullivan and Tom Psomotragos' exciting 150 Locals series for Glebe. But more on that next time.
We were excited to spend the weekend at the Women's Expo at Sydney Olympic Park, which ran from the 23rd to the 25th of October. The Women's Expo is dedicated to the needs of women and their families, and offered a range of exhibitors from various businesses and professions, including, of course, Sydney's foremost destination for portrait photography, the Photo Studio!

North and the Photo Studio crew were there with our famous white background, shooting portraits of women from all walks of life. We have a great range of images coming soon to our website, so make sure you check it out to vote for your favourite image for your chance to win! You could win a two hour magazine style photo session valued at $450.  The session also includes makeup, hair styling and wardrobe direction, and a voucher for $100 to go towards any portrait package.
The winner of the People's Choice Award will receive a full model portfolio valued at over $1,200!

Along with the Women's Expo, The Photo Studio is hosting the Sydney Woman competition, to find the woman who best represents the beauty and sophistication of the city of Sydney. The winner will receive:

A professional magazine style model portfolio, worth $2,000
A 12 month modelling membership with a leading model agency
A luxury stayover at one of Sydney's top hotels
Limousine transfers to the hotel from Wedcorp Limousines
A skin care pamper pack

We're going to keep running competitions and giveaways on our website, so keep checking in with this blog and the website for your chance to win a model style photo shoot in our Broadway studios!

Introducing your photographers - Adele Thomas

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 03:22:00 +0000

Adele Thomas (pictured above) is one of the Photo Studio's young producers and aspirant photographers. She has worked in her producer role for the studio since November of 2008, making her way to Sydney from London via Thailand and China. Adele has had a passion for photography since her childhood, and her portfolio includes many beautiful Cornish landscapes as a memento of those days.

One of Adele's major interests is travel photography, and in her journeys she has captured many stunning images, from the vistas of the Great Wall of China to Johnny Depp at the Pirates of the Caribbean London premiere. In addition to travel photography, Adele is interested in shooting portraits as well as photojournalism. She left London after breaking her leg on her 21st birthday. After recuperating in a Cornish hospital, she decided to travel and pursue her interest in photography.

Like many others, Adele only intended on staying in Sydney for a short time, but fell in love with the city and has established herself here indefinitely. She decided to obtain formal photography qualifications and has spent a year studying Photo Imaging at Ultimo while working at the Photo Studio as a shoot producer.

Adele says she loves working at the Photo Studio because of the variety - one day she's organising a portrait session for a Sydney family, the next day she's helping out on a commercial shoot in the middle of the wilderness.
She cites the commercial shoot for Emirates' new resort in the Blue Mountains as her favourite experience with the Photo Studio - we're sure that the chance to stay in a $2000 per night 6-star resort didn't hurt!
If you want to see some more of Adele's work, check out her website here.

Emanuel School Formal Paparazzi

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 05:06:00 +0000

The Photo Studio, as a part of the School Formal Expo launched our exciting new event photography package - the Paparazzi Pack! The Emanuel School in Randwick was the lucky winner of the Expo prize pack, which included having eight photographers and producers of the Photo Studio rock up to the expo to shoot a paparazzi style red carpet event.

This new paparazzi style event photography is unique to the Photo Studio - if you want a great new exciting and innovative form of photography at your formal or event, give the Photo Studio a call. It was great to see the shock and surprise on all the young faces as they clambered from their limousines and stretch-Hummers to fin themselves confronted by the whole Photo Studio crew, jostling each other back and forth to get the best images. Everyone loved it and got really involved, even those who at first, in true celebrity fashion, stuck a hand out to shield their face as they had to wad through the sea of frantic photographers. As a result, with so many of the Photo Studio there, we got a huge number of stunning photographs.

The formal took place at the Dockside Group's gorgeous Waters Edge venue, perched on the end of Pier 1. The amazing views of the Harbour Bridge and North Sydney were the perfect backdrop for the Photo Studio crew to work their magic.
There are a number of great photos from the event up on the Photo Studio website, so simply click here to register on our website if you would like to see more.
If you want event photography with a difference that only the Photo Studio can provide, contact us through our website.

A week in Wolgan Valley

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:40:00 +0000

North and the Photo Studio crew just got back from eight days doing a commercial photo shoot for Emirates' new resort in the Blue Mountains. The $2000 per night 6-star resort and spa has every luxury imginable, but is unique in being Australia's first conservation led resort.
Is it any wonder that with such an exciting project, Emirates wanted the very best that Australia has to offer? The Photo Studio, voted Sydney's best, was the only option. North's philosophy of using the camera to reflect 'the Art of You' extends to multimillion dollar developments as well as individuals. Over the eight days the Photo Studio spent in Wolgan Valley, the crew took an astounding array of photos that show the breath taking scenery of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.

Despite the high profile of this campaign, the Photo Studio kept the shoot a family affair. Tim and Lisa Ditchfield are a young couple that we took some family portraits with around 18 months ago. The images of Tim, Lisa and their young children were some of our favourite family photographs. We've had one great family photo of the four of them, plus the family dog, hanging in the front office of The Photo Studio for a while.
Here at The Photo Studio, we like to form great relationships with our clients. We believe that to get really great photos that reflect 'the Art of You' we need to work together with our clients and form a relationship that we can base great family and individual portraits on. So when we needed a couple to come and stay at a luxury resort for a week, we gave our old friends the Ditchfields a call. Tim and Lisa loved the chance to stay in the resort before it officially opens later this month, and also loved the chance to be professional models again - something they had been missing since The Photo Studio last took their family portraits eighteen months earlier!

The whole weeks worth of photography was a Photo Studio family affair, with the shoot's stylist and several other models all being a part of the extended Photo Studio family. North refelcted that he could think of worse ways to spend a week than shooting gorgeous photos amidst incredible scenery while surrounded with good friends.

Introducing your photographers - North Sullivan

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 04:10:00 +0000

We like to think here at the Photo Studio that what makes us different from a lot of other commercial photography studios is the relationship that we form with our clients. As North has told us time and time again, the Photo Studio is about 'the Art of You'. That means that our job, as photographers, producers and editors is to work together with the client to create something that they are truly happy with, something that really represents them.
Well, we think that can go both ways, so over the coming few months you'll see some mini biographies of the Photo Studio staff popping up on this blog. Seeing as North (above, with Erin Collett outside the studio in Glebe) is in the Blue Mountains at the moment photographing a campaign for Emirates, we thought we would take the opportunity to do a piece on him that he can't influence!

North has been a professional photographer for over thirty years. As one of Australia's most esteemed advertising photographers, he has been involved in some iconic campaigns, including the first Qantas Children's Choir photographs (see the blog entry on the subject below), the AMP Olympic Torch relay, launching the new GMC Envoy and many others.
Despite his famed commercial work, North also has a passion for photographing people, from the well known, such as Sydney intellectual, writer and radio personality, Phillip Adams, to the average person on the street, seen in his portraits of the Glebe Girls and Glebe Boys near the Photo Studio. His 2004 exhibition 'Local Heroes' celebrated the known and lesser known champions of the local Balmain community. He is currently executing a new series of portraits based around Glebe.

North has been a finalist two years running in the AGNSW Australian Photographic Portrait Prize and was a runner-up in SMH’s Shoot the Chef. North was responsible for founding The Australian Photographers’ Collection, is the past President of The Association of Australian Commercial and Media Photographers and was the inaugural Director of The Australian Photographers’ Gallery. He is currently Australia’s representative with the newly formed Imagery Alliance based in the USA.

North was just over a mile from Ground Zero on September 11, and took many powerful images in the days following. He founded one of Australia's most respected photography collections, the Fuji ACMP Australian Photographers' Collection and is also a guest lecturer on photography at The Art Gallery of NSW. Last but not least, North has the most modern tribute to his importance as a photographer and Sydney personality in the form of his own Wikipedia entry!

Lastly, the 'Face of the Baby Show' competition is up and running and we're starting to see the results come in. Everyone here at the Photo Studio has their favourite image, what's yours? Make sure you vote for your chance to win!
We would like to thanks all the families that came in to our mobile studio and took pictures with us over the Baby Show weekend. It was a huge success and we really enjoyed the energy and enthuasism which we got from the parents and babies. The fantastic expression and adorable smiles we got on the day made the whole experience very enjoyable for us here at the studio. With such a large number of entries it really is going to be a tough competition
Each entrant has the opportunity to take away the fabulous prize of an hour long fun-filled Magazine Style Studio Photo Shoot for the whole family. Plus 4 x A5 hand crafted fine art prints of your choice valued at over $1,200.
All you have to do is get your friends and family voting for you by the corresponding number on our image gallery.
The winner will be chosen by a panel of judges from our studio along with the organisers of The Baby Show. Also you are entered into the ‘Peoples Choice Award’ where you can get your friends and family to vote on line where you could both also win one of the additional free family Photo-Shoot Prize Packages.

The Photo Studio's weekend of baby and family photography

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 05:58:00 +0000

The Photo Studio spent the weekend at the Baby Show, which ran from the 18th to the 20th of September at the Royal Hall of Industry, Moore Park. North and the crew were there to set up their famous white mobile studio to capture all the fun and excitement of the weekend. Families were lining up around the block for a chance to get a high quality print of themselves with their baby, and the Photo Studio didn't disappoint, delivering classic pictures for the families to treasure.

The Baby Show was also a 'baptism of fire' for one of the Photo Studio's newest photographers, Rosie Joyce. Rosie jumped right into it, delivering more than 170 stunning images over the course of the weekend, and had a lot of practice at making her subjects smile. She puts her success down to "tickles and squeaky toys". Rosie is joining the team to specialise in family and kids photo sessions, although she'll keep her hand in with everything that the Photo Studio can throw at her.

Every picture that we took entered the family into the draw to be declared 'the Face of the Baby Show'. The winner will receive an hour long fun-filled magazine style photo shoot for the whole family, plus four fine art prints of their choice from the session, valued at over $1,200. Stay tuned, the winner will be announced soon!
Keep checking our website as well, as the photos from the weekend will soon be up. Vote for your favourite shot, and the winner of the 'People's Choice Award' will win one of the additional free family photo-shoot prize packages. Make sure you register and vote, as that puts you in the draw to win your choice of a family photo shoot or a fashion portrait session!

Check the Photo Studio website soon to check out the images from the weekend and vote for your chance to win your own family photo shoot here at our studios.
As well as giving you beautiful pictures to remember forever, the photo shoots themselves are great experiences as our photographers and staff make everybody look and feel fantastic.
"We all loved the photo shoot, the girls had so much fun. We are really enjoying our family portrait, my husband said it was the best ever gift." - Sharmini Poynder
"Our family had a fantastic morning - I didn't expect it to be so much fun. The photos are really great and have captured the family beautifully." - Lorna Clark
"Thank you for a great shoot with the girls. They loved it." - Louise Kalmus

But it's not all babies and family portraits here at the Photo Studio. Later this week, North and the crew are heading up to photograph the promotional pictures for Emirates' new luxury resort in the Blue Mountains. Located in Wolgan Valley, adjacent to the greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, the resort is opening in October of 2009. Check back in the coming weeks to see some of the stunning images that we are sure to capture!

Qantas relicenses North's famous campaign

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 06:58:00 +0000

Children are notoriously difficult to work with as subjects in photography portraits. So when Qantas needed someone to shoot not one, but an entire choir of kids for their famous 'I Still Call Australia Home' commercial, the first person they turned to was North Sullivan.
These images were shot during the filming of the first commercial in 1998. This campaign was voted Australia's favourite advertising campaign in 2006. The images are recurring favourites, with the picture above being viewed on Flickr over 80,000 times and favourited by 1,500 people.

North is known as one of the world's greatest photographer of kids and families, and he now uses his passion to deliver unforgettable family portraits at the Photo Studio in Glebe.
Qantas have, in their latest advertising campaign, decided to relicense some of the most famous and iconic images from the previous campaigns. Foremost amongst these of course, is North's unforgettable picture of the members of the children's choir lining the Great Wall of China. Eleven years after it was originally shot, this stunning portrait is once again being used to deliver Qantas' brand to the world.

North has done many other famous advertising campaigns - the AMP Olympic Torch relay and his series for Land Rover spring to mind - but children and family portraits remain his passion. This passion has continued with the Photo Studio, where North likes to step in to deliver unforgettable family pictures for a range of clients. Some of North's work will be on display at the the Baby Show this weekend from Friday the 18th to Sunday the 20th of September. Make sure to drop by and see our mobile photo studio at Stand C2. North and the Photo Studio crew will be taking photos of babies with their parents and carers, so make sure you get some shots done for the chance to be voted the Face of the Baby Show 2009! All photos will be able to be viewed after the event, so check online at our website after the event to see all the great shots we're sure to see on the day!

Tayla Made Photo Shoots

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:57:00 +0000

Here at the Photo Studio, we've seen many aspiring young models, and helped them add to their portfolio with fun and stylish fashion and beauty shoots. But we have seldom been so impressed with a young model as when we photographed Tayla Monkhouse's fashion portraits last month.
Tayla and her family headed down to the Photo Studio from their hometown of Grafton, impressed with the Studio's reputation for professional magazine style photography shoots and proven track record of promoting the best in exciting new talent that Australia has to offer.

Tayla enjoyed the fun and informal fashion portrait experience that the Photo Studio offers, taking advantage of the extended shoot times and huge amount of photos that our photographers like to take as opposed to other commercial studios. She had multiple clothing, hair and makeup changes throughout the session, resulting in a great range of looks in the finished product.

Tayla's photographer commended her on her shoot. "Other people come in here and I make them look like a professional model," he said, "with Tayla, I didn't need to try." To book your own professional style model portrait photo shoot, you can get in touch with the Photo Studio by clicking the links at the top of this blog.

Fun Christmas family portraits here at the Photo Studio!

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 02:06:00 +0000

Once again, Christmas is creeping up on us! As well as being an acclaimed fashion and beauty photography studio, the Photo Studio is also renowned for its family portaits and kids and baby photography. If you're after the perfect Christmas gift this year, book yourself in for a family portrait shoot at our photo studios here in Glebe.

For a fun christmas gift that will be treasured for generations, book your family photo session now! Our range of photo print offers ensure that you can get the ideal gift, no matter who it's for. You can look at getting a large print of the whole family to hang up in your own family or dining room, a durable and stylish perspex print for the grandparents, or a selection of smaller prints that make great gifts to send around with Christmas cards or letters.

On top of that, a family portrait shoot here at the Photo Studio can be a fun experience with the whole family! Our photographers are skilled at getting the best pictures out of even the youngest kids, and the result of the day is a series of great pictures that you can look back on and cherish forever. Stay tuned to this blog for details of the upcoming Christmas specials that the Photo Studio is doing just for families!

Upcoming events!

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 05:23:00 +0000

Wow, we certainly are busy over the next couple of months! There are a couple of upcoming events where you'll be able to see The Photo Studio, with its mobile studio in tow, taking a variety of glamour, fashion and beauty photography, as well as kids and family photography and portraits.
We'll be all over Sydney for the next couple of months, and you can visit us at any of these locations to get involved in our mobile portrait studio. There are a variety of competitions and prize draws at each event, so come and enter for the chance to win a full photography session at our studios in Glebe!

First cab off the rank is the Baby Show, running from the 18th to the 20th of September at the Royal Hall of Industry, Moore Park. If you have little ones, are expecting, or just want to check it out, come and see our mobile photo studio in action, snapping pictures of bubs and their mums. Not everyone knows that as well as being an acclaimed fashion and beauty photography studio, The Photo Studio also offers a great range of kids and family photography.

We'll also be setting up the mobile studio at the Athena School in Newtown on September 26. More information as it becomes available!

Along with the 2009 Women's Expo, The Photo Studio is hosting the Sydney Woman competition, to find the woman who best represents the beauty and sophistication of the city of Sydney. The Women's Expo runs from October 23 - 25, and the winner of the Sydney Woman competition will receive:

A professional magazine style model portfolio, worth $2,000
A 12 month modelling membership with a leading model agency
A luxury stayover at one of Sydney's top hotels
Limousine transfers to the hotel from Wedcorp Limousines
A skin care pamper pack

Stay tuned to this blog for more details closer to the date!

Then over the weekend of November 7 - 8, The Photo Studio will be at the 2009 Balmain Art and Craft Show. Last year's show was a great success, and we look forward to setting up our mobile photo studio and taking some great portraits over the weekend this year.

Then of course, coming up over November 12 - 15 is Fashion Weekend Summer.
We'll be there, running the Face of Fashion Weekend Summer competition, so make sure that you check it out for your chance to win a professional fashion portrait session in our Glebe studios.
Plenty more information is on its way regarding these and other exciting events that The Photo Studio is getting involved with in the coming months. So whether it's setting up our mobile portrait studio, or getting out at events to take great freestyle pictures, fashion photos, beauty shots, kids and family portraits and everything else you can point a camera at, we'll be out and about photographing Sydney. Keep checking out this blog and our website for more info as it becomes available.

Gabrielle Dover, runner up in our Face of Fashion Weekend competition

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 03:56:00 +0000

As promised, here are the fashion portraits of the runner up to our Face of Fashion Weekend competition, which we ran along with Fashion Weekend Sydney. The stunning young Gabrielle Dover was a pleasure to work with and a personal favourite of The Photo Studio photographer Carlo. The Photo Studio's mobile stall at Fashion Weekend was a popular destination for the attendees, who saw a small sample of what they could expect from a full studio shoot in our portrait studio in Glebe.

The mobile studio that The Photo Studio sets up is great for providing a glimpse of the full fashion shoot experience that we can offer in our Glebe studios. Of course, it can be difficult to get out to the events that we are taking the mobile studio out to, but stayed tuned to this blog and we'll let you know about all the upcoming events that we'll be at. Otherwise, you can always get the full studio experience anytime just by booking in for a personal or family portrait shoot through The Photo Studio!

For more great portrait shoots from The Photo Studio, make sure you check out our Flickr Photostream, and don't forget that Fashion Weekend Summer is starting 12 November 09 at the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park. We'll be there with the mobile photo studio again, so make sure that you drop in if you get a chance to see a sample of the full fashion or family photo shoot experience that we can provide at The Photo Studio!

Roxy Tesanovic, winner of the Face of Fashion Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 06:33:00 +0000

Watch this face! The Photo Studio is famous for its fashion and beauty photography. So when Fashion Weekend wanted to launch a photography campaign with a new model, they turned to us. The result was the Face of Fashion Weekend.
North and the gang turned up to Fashion Weekend Sydney, which ran from the 14 – 17 May at the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park. We set up the mobile photography studio and were soon snapping away at prospective models, mums, those there to see the sights, and everyone who just turned up for the shopping!

At the end of the weekend, we had a tonne of great pictures and portfolios, and North and the fashion weekend people had the agonising task of going through all the aspirational fashion models that we photographed on the day in order to pick out the Face of Fashion Weekend.
Unfortunately, there could only be one winner, and ultimately young up and comer Roxy Tesanovic was chosen as the Face of Fashion Weekend. These portrait shots are from a session that Roxy did with one of our photographers in the studio.
There were many great entries on the day, but Roxy was a standout. She was a vivacious and professional model, and we're watching with great interest as we are sure she will go on to do great things in this industry.

Make sure you check out Fashion Weekend Summer starting 12 November 09 at the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park. We'll be there again, drop by to get some shots done in our mobile photo studio. You can have a chance to see on a small scale what a full photography session in our Glebe studios could be like - and get some pictures taken be in the running to be the Face of Fashion Weekend Summer!
More entries and runners up from the Face of Fashion Weekend coming soon, so be sure to check back in.

The Photo Studio at Mardi Gras Fair Day Victoria Park.

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 07:43:00 +0000

North Sullivan and the crew from The Photo Studio took their mobile portrait and event studio to the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras launch Fair Day at Victoria Park last Sunday.

In a day of patchy weather the photographers and re-touchers created a mini version of the full experience of the excitement of having your portrait taken by the professional photographers at The Photo Studio. The portable studio allows for the cool white background portrait photography the studio is known for on location. With the re-touchers Carlo and Kent adding the finishing touches for the custom postcard prints that were then made on the spot, the day provided a fine example (on a smaller scale) of what you can expect from a full studio portrait shoot.

And there where quite a few takers for The Photo Studio Portrait experience who walked away as very happy campers with their finished mini print. In fact we had some of our early customers returning with their friends to have their portraits taken too. Pets were welcome subjects as well; two dog lovers made excellent portraits with their pooches who had been readied for the Best Dog show on the day. (More about pet portraits soon).

Now you won’t always be lucky enough to catch our team out on one of our promotional exercises but you can have the full studio portrait experience anytime you choose by simply booking your family or personal portrait photography shoot through The Photo Studio.

www.thephotostudio.com.au
The Photo Studio
5 Franklyn St
Broadway (Glebe)
Sydney, Australia
(02)9571 9955
studio@thephotostudio.com.au

Family Portraits in Balmain, back with a vengeance.

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 06:32:00 +0000

It’s a new year all of a sudden and time to take this blog to new heights. I’ve been so busy over the past year that I failed miserably in my attempts to keep it a happening thing. But that’s all about to change, or so he says.

The Photo Studio was frantic in the weeks before Christmas photographing children and families. Rule #1 is “You gotta have fun”. Everyone certainly did that. We even managed to photograph the family pet with a few photos of dogs doing their utmost to confuse the photographer.

In November we took our portable studio along to the Balmain Art and Craft Show at Father John Therry Primary School in Balmain for the second year. We had a lot of fun photographing the kids in the outdoor studio set up on the front lawn. And as usual we had a couple of our best retouchers on hand to help with the selection and then add a bit of magic before printing the chosen image then and there. It proved very popular over the two day event and helped raise some much appreciated money for the event’s charities.

Thoughts on the Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize 2008

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 02:52:00 +0000

The Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize has been announced and the pictures are on the wall. As a consequence, my personal embargo on discussing the matter has passed and I am free to grant those interested in my mindset a glimpse into the rationale behind my final decisions.

I was very honoured to be asked to judge the nearly 3,000 entries submitted for the prize this year. The Moran is currently the richest photographic prize in Australia and this is only the second year it has been run. To be solely responsible for the selection of finalists and ultimately the winners in all categories was an immense responsibility. It has been a fantastic experience and I hope my selection of photographs meets with the approval of the majority of those who will visit the show or view it online.

I say majority because I know not everyone will agree with my choices. They are after all just that, my choices. To describe them as the best would be naive. In art there can never be such a thing as a definitive best. Photography is not like a running race or a cricket match. There is no finishing line or top score that ultimately determines better or worse. It is purely a subjective assessment that comes down to an individual’s preferences. And even then a person’s subjectivity can vary over time. It can even change over just a few weeks. Were I to judge the Moran again next week, it is highly conceivable my choices would be different.

I’ve been asked what my criteria was for my selection. Before I accepted the challenge I made it clear that I would only do so if the works remained anonymous. I did not want to be influenced either way by factors other than the work itself. As an example, I find very often that foreknowledge of a character, storyline or outcome will be a disincentive for me, rather than a motivation when choosing a film to see. Not knowing who the artists were in this instance made my task much easier as it removed the subtext that would otherwise have clouded or frustrated my desire for unbiased judgement. I also believe it is the only way to genuinely choose an exhibition of works on merit rather than on reputation. Either method is valid in my view, but to pretend one is the other is not.

Once I sat down in the room in front of the voluptuous 40” monitor I preceded the selection process by scanning quickly through the pages of thumbnails. I will say at this time that the eventual winner was an image that caught my attention at that very first moment. It was a curious image that was not fully evident at that small size. But as I went through each photograph one by one I came across it at full size and was further enlightened. I became enthralled by it. Throughout the judging process it held my interest and ultimately satisfied my own criteria for the outright winner that I had set down for myself before I started.

What then was it that governed my ultimate choices for the forty Open finalists and accompanying School section? First and foremost I chose images that I felt were visually powerful. Compositional dynamics played a big role. Even more so than subject. Composition was in my mind, not just a linear equation but one that encompassed colour as well as form. The form being primarily a consequence of light and texture. While colour played an equally powerful role as an energetic force. To me these factors were well beyond the fundamentals of the Golden Mean. They were and are the building blocks of the visual aesthetics that govern eloquent photography.

Of course subject was all important in that I believe photography is the art of visual storytelling. The ability to communicate a thought, or history, or state of being in a single frame. A momentary slice of time and place. What I sometime call “a sliver of the universe”. For me a photograph that has no story has no soul. That story may simply be the richness and delicacy of a red rose in the morning dew or it could be the tragedy of a starving child in the debris of disaster. By contrast it may simply be the innocence of a well adjusted child from a caring middleclass family. Whatever the story, it should be told with eloquence, sincerity and depth.

At this point I should clarify what I mean by this. I do not believe a photograph’s story must be in itself ‘deep and meaningful’. Nor must it contain the ingredients for an academic discourse on the meaning and substance of the subject matter. I find such opinions are often superficial hyperbole for the benefit of those incapable of producing works of merit themselves and who choose instead to feed off those who can. My problem with such approaches is that they avoid quiet categorically the discussion of aesthetics. This I understand is because aesthetics is a subjective realm and therefore cannot be quantified in any scientific manner. I reject such analysis as insubstantial. We cannot accept a critique of music that ignores the melody and engages itself purely in a dissection of the lyrics alone. Why then should we accept such an approach in assessing in photography? Aesthetics is the melody that transports the visual story we seek to communicate to our audiences. Had John Lennon put the words of his iconic song Imagine to a less rousing tune, would the world have sung along regardless? I think not. So without question, it is the style and form a photograph takes that sits in partnership with its verse to ultimately determine its place in history.

This brings me to my second assessment of the pictures I chose. I responded to images that employed a style that was to my eye new or different. Techniques that I considered less predictable or commonplace. All too often a photographer will seek to mimic another’s style that has been judged well in previous years or venues. For instance, I see a lot of portraits today that are derivatives of Richard Avedon’s famous large format full frontal and very static portraits that he initiated many years ago with images of his aged father. I experienced the manifestation of this style first hand some years ago when I visited an exhibition of his American West series at a gallery in Barcelona. Whilst portraits that mirror Avedon’s original style are powerful descriptions of the subject, they do not in my mind constitute contemporary ground breaking work.

In saying this, I am opening up a quandary far deeper than the judging of a prize. Quiet simply, what if anything is new? Have we already explored all corners of the aesthetic landscape and are we in fact simply redrawing a scenery that the pioneers trudged over decades before us. Surely this argument must be true in fashion, music and even painting. How, therefore, do we assess the merits of a photographer’s work in the context of defining what is contemporary. Or are we merely determining its fashion status within the confines of a repetitious trajectory of accepted novelty. I’ll leave that discussion for another day.

Thirdly, I felt it was important to select images that would form a worthy exhibition. A collection of photographs that would engage and entertain an audience. Images that would challenge, some that would amuse, others that would question. Very importantly, a selection not all leaning in one direction paying homage to the judge’s personal preference. In that I found it hard at times to determine the worthiness of artworks that were not in step with my own chosen speciality. In grappling with this I found myself returning to my original preface in that the exhibition was to be made up of my own choices of what I liked and valued without compromise to the opinions of others. The substance of the sole judge philosophy. If others more learned in a specific genre than I, challenge my assessment, then fair enough. I acknowledge that they may have a deeper understanding of the technical or subjective aspects of the work than me. In the end I can only do the best I can with the tools at hand and be prepared to let the audience determine the level of my success.

Whether you agree or disagree with my approach, I would be interested to hear your thoughts. I can be emailed at North@ThePhotoStudio.com.au

View the Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize on-line at or visit the exhibition at The State Library of NSW 10 March 2008 until 4 May 2008.

The Mini Supermodel Mini Photo-shoot

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 23:35:00 +0000

Balmain Art & Craft Show at Father John Therry.

The Photo Studio was delighted to be part of the Balmain Art & Craft Show activities last November. Now in its 13 th year, the show has become a popular fixture on the arts calendar in the inner west. For the first time, this year we set up an out-door portrait studio in the Kid’s Activity Area. For a small contribution, kids were invited to be photographed by leading advertising and people/portrait photographer North Sullivan. He and his crew treated the children to a fun and entertaining session that was every bit the real thing, only smaller. Parents looked on with amusement as North wove his magic and brought a smile and a giggle to the face of even the most reluctant star.

The images were then brought up on computer screens and the parents and subjects got to view the 20 to 30 shots then and there and to choose their favourite. The images were later given The Photo Studio magic with special enhancing and retouching tricks to make every portrait truly shine. Each session included a beautifully handcrafted archival fine-art mini-print.

The photographs made wonderful Christmas presents for Grandparents and friends, while others were destined to take pride of place on the family mantelpiece. Everyone had a fabulous time, especially the kids and best of all, the portrait project contributed nicely to the weekend’s charity fundraising.

Thanks to all the hard working volunteers from the parent community at Father John Therry School. A special thanks to Kendra and Cathy for their fabulous support.

We’re all looking forward eagerly to doing it again this year.

Portraits that tell a story.

noreply@blogger.com (The Photo Studio) — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 11:36:00 +0000

As the upcoming judge of a rather prestigious photographic portrait prize, a few people lately have been asking me what I think makes a great portrait. So as the first entry in my newly created portrait blog, I thought that was a good place to start.

Photographing people is something I happen to be passionate about. I love the chance to engage with someone new and to gain that privileged access to a small part of their personality. I’m fascinated by people. Everyone is different and inevitably everyone has their own story to tell. And that is the challenge for me, to tell their story in a single frame. Photography is like a window through which the audience can take a peek at what lies behind the public facade. My job is to open the blinds, just a little, so the rest of the world can take a glimpse inside.

Portrait photography however is not documentary or photojournalism or paparazzi. I don’t consider it some random image caught in a blaze of flash and motor-drive in a media scrum or an image captured by a sniper with a long lens from across the street. Those images have their place on the menu and are just as valid, but they aren’t in my view portraiture. A documentary image of a beggar on the street shot without their consent or knowledge is not a portrait, its documentary photography. People pictures of any persuasion are not by default portraits. Portraits are considered, constructed and conducted. Even when the photographer deliberately allows the subject to run free in front of their lens. That to me is a technique not a definition. Some I know will disagree, but that’s my view.

Whenever I take a portrait photograph of one of my subjects, the first thing I want to do is engage with them. I need to form a connection with them on some level. More than any other genre, portraits are collaboration between subject and photographer. Even when a subject for whatever reason is uncooperative, it is still collaboration because the way in which they respond to you and the manner in which they conduct themselves, ultimately defines the photograph and in turn the story the picture tells about them.

It is common for people being photographed to be nervous and uncomfortable. So unless that is a primary part of the story you want to tell, then the first task of the photographer is to help them relax and enjoy the experience. Subjects will invariably be looking to the photographer for direction and reassurance. I believe it is the responsibility of the photographer to guide and direct the sitter with confidence and not leave them stranded out in the open with no sense of where they are supposed to be going. I have always said that a good people photographer is like a ring master in a circus or a conductor in front of an orchestra. To be a good people photographer you need leadership and a good measure of showmanship.

If someone is new to portrait photography, my first suggestion is always to get your technical stuff down pat BEFORE you start your session. There is nothing more confusing for a subject than to have the photographer worrying more about the equipment than about them. Like driving a car, learn the gears and how to steer before you take a road trip through the country or you will never see landscape.

Lastly and most importantly, make your story interesting. No one likes a boring story. Be that words or music or a photograph. If John Lennon had written the words to Imagine and put it to a not so catchy tune, no one would have bothered to listen. It is the music that carries the inspiring lyrics that bears the message. Photographs should be the same. Photography is an art and art is built on aesthetics, not technical rendition. The technical side is the craft not the art. Craft is your vehicle. But without craft there is no art, just images. It’s awfully hard to play beautiful music if you can’t hit the notes. That doesn’t mean you have to master the most complicated Beethoven Sonata. Lennon and McCartney couldn’t read music when they started the Beatles and if you have ever looked at some of their early hits you will see the structure was very basic. But it worked and worked wonderfully. So clearly it’s important to learn the craft but not to play beyond your ability. Some of the greatest photographs in the world have been the simplest.

And the final tip is present your masterpiece well. There is no point in producing a wonderfully insightful and artful photograph if the print is flat and dull and horribly pixelated. It would be like listening to that famous song on some worn out transistor radio from the 1960s. Do your picture justice and present it well.

And remember, “Every picture tells its own story”.

© North Sullivan, 13th January 2008