dc chavez – the BLOG

I am very happy to announce that I have created a new website for myself. It has been well over a year since I have updated my old site, and it was time to start 2010 off right. I used the Livebooks platform to develop a new site that showcases my photography and video work. Livebooks is essentially a plug and play system for photographers and creative professionals. This solution is currently used by some great photographers like Chase Jarvis and Joe McNally. I figured if they are using it, Livebooks is doing something right.

I am very happy with how easy it was to get up and running. I selected one of the pre-designed templates, signed up for a trial and was uploading content within minutes. The backend is easy enough for anyone to use, even without web design experience. The interface is very smart and makes it very easy to search engine optimize your site as you upload the content. The layout of the site is straight forward and is in a format that a lot of the art buyers are familiar with. There are some great features built in like slideshow options, PDF download and printing capabilities right from the gallery. The images are pre-formatted with all the appropriate contact info on the PDF.

I also like that even though the site is flash-based, Livebooks creates an HTML version of the site for search engine optimization. So if you go on my site with an iPhone, you will be directed to the HTML version so you can still see what it is that I do. The main template is very functional, and for a bit more money I can add modules that will further customize the site.

A big concern was being able to retain existing hosting, but redirect to my Livebooks portfolio. I have a lot of content on the internet that links back to certain directories, and if I had to move everything, it would have been awful. E-mail is the same, and still goes through my existing web host. Livebooks includes hosting with the $39 a month package, but in my case, I did not need it.

So far everything is great. Even their customer support has gotten back to me in a reasonable time to answer the many questions I had. Making a jump like this is not something to take lightly, and they were able to help me out. I will let you know how things go as the integrated Google Analytics start tallying up traffic statistics!

I have recently had the opportunity to create a video about the new RM460 – Mid-engine TAU V8 powered Hyundai Genesis Coupe. This video was created for an online focus group at Hyundai Motor America. The video is done and in Hyundai’s hand for the next week or so. As soon as I can share it with the world, I will.

Mr. John Pangilinan was around during the studio part of the shoot to take some behind the scenes photos. Here is a sneak peak until I can show the whole video…

Full blog post available at Johns Blog

Here is a quick POV video I did for Rhys Millen Racing at a Time Attack event at California Speedway. He wanted to show what it was like going around the track at 155MPH and give a season recap at the end of the video. Shot with a Sony HXR-MC1 and a Sony Webbie.

Here are some screenshots from a recent proposal (22 page bound presentation) I created for Rhys Millen Racing. This proposal was going to be presented to executives Hyundai Motor America regarding the 2010 season.

This was a fun project to work on because I had free reign to get as creative as I wanted. I felt that images of past performance would be a good backdrop for each section and help to set the theme. It was broken up into Past, Present and Future, showing where RMR has been, what they are currently doing and where they want to go. I also had the opportunity to write a large amount of the copy for the proposal.

Both myself and the client were very pleased with the way that it turned out. Even one of the HMA execs commented on how polished the presentation was. It is very rewarding to create something for a friend that will help them out with their endeavors.

So about a month and a half ago I created the second educational blog post for Profoto.  This one is about the Magnum and Giant Reflector 180.  I have been lagging on getting it on my own blog- as we left to Europe the day after the blog went live on the Profoto Blog.

This was another fun project with some collaboration from some great people like our models Chrystal and Genette.  For this blog I had Will Roegge bring a video camera on over to film a bit of the behind the scenes- showing a bit of what it takes to put one of these posts together.  He has an amazing eye so it was great to have him onboard for this post.

Here is a video of what we put together as well as a few snaps from the blog posting.

Profoto Blog- Magnum Reflector / Giant Reflector from DC CHAVEZ on Vimeo.

Click the link for the full version on the Profoto Blog.

Thanks again to the Profoto Team and Southbay Studios for helping out on this project.

So a couple of months ago my good friend Rhys Millen asked me to do a rendering of the new car that he was building for the 2009 SEMA Show. This car was going to be a mid-engine Genesis Coupe powered by the 4.6L Tau V8.  Rhys and Hyundai needed a rendering to service to the media to get the buzz going for the SEMA Show.  I have done a lot of work in the past for Hyundai Motor America and RMR, so they called me up to create an image that would do the car justice.

The main feature Rhys wanted to show was the new front bumper design.  It  was my task to take a cell phone image of the bumper he sent over and try and make it look like it was on the car.  Here is what I was sent:

Next, I used a Genesis Press photo from photographer Morgan Segal and built upon that to create the rendering. Here was the original image:

So from here, I had to clean up the lower valance so that I could recreate the entire front end of the car.  Here are the rest of the items I had to accomplish in the rendering:

• Lower the vehicle
• New HRE wheels/tires
• Create carbon fiber intake ducts behind the B-Pillar
• Add carbon a winglet
• Add carbon lip spoiler
• Fill in front radiator opening and smooth out
• Make paint look like new BASF 5 layer candy RMR custom color.

As you can see, I had my work cut out for me on this project.  :)

The first step was to clone out the entire front bumper so that I had a  clean slate to work with:

From there I tinted the windows, designed the carbon inlet scoop and started painting in the inlet ducts on the front:

From here I focused on the shading of the inlets as it would react to the lighting in the original photo- direct sun from the rear 3/4, casting a shadow to the front  left of the image. I started by creating a carbon winglet followed by putting the new HRE wheels on and then via a group of 24 layers, painted in shadows and highlights to make the front end look realistic.

From there it was time to work on the carbon lip spoiler and fill in the area that was beneath the Hyundai Logo.  Lastly, I wanted to give the image a bit of a post-processing to add to the feel of the car.  Keep in mind, I skipped MANY MANY steps, but here is how it came out:

Overall, the rendering was received very well and the car has been a success.  It was unveiled at the 2009 SEMA Show and was listed as “Must See Debut” by SEMA.

Here are some of the first photos off the show floor from Autoguide.com

Another fun project that turned out to be a success.    I love my job…

So after some late nights of working, the first blog post for Profoto is done. This first post focused specifically on the the old vs new zoom reflector and the Softlight reflector.

This post is a very controlled side by side comparison of the lights and light shaping tools.

Here is the link: http://blog.profoto-usa.com/?p=290

Thanks to everyone at Profoto, Samys Camera, Southbay Studios and Stephanie Sawyer for making this possible.

I am proud to announce that I will soon be starting as a guest blogger for Profoto.

For those of you that do not know who/what Profoto is- they design and manufacture photographic flash equipment. Essentially, they are the Ferrari of lighting- top performing equipment. They are based in Sweden, and have been in business since 1968. I am VERY excited to get the opportunity to work with and be associated with such a great company.

A couple of months ago I went to an event where I got to demo the new Pro8 Air generator. I pitched the VP of the MAC Group on the idea of a new series of blogs. After a bit of dialogue, we worked out a schedule of shoots and educational blogs to demonstrate how some of their gear works.

Last week I went to Samys Camera and picked up some gear for this series of shoots. The guys over at Samys were a great help as usual in getting me the gear I need for this project. Some of the new goodies I have managed to get my hands on include:

Pocketwizard MiniTT1- the latest from Pocketwizard, a much smaller transmitter that when used with the new FlexTT5 can deliver ETT-L metering to a remote flash. I have also been told that this little guy can also bump the flash sync speed of the camera as well. Last but not least, it is MUCH smaller and lower profile than the original Plus II’s. I was shooting with it today and basically forgot it was even on the camera!

Pro-B2 1200R Generator- I have used this on many shoots before and this thing kills it… 1200ws of power with an 8 f-stop range, it recycles between .04-1.8s, asymmetrical or symmetrical distribution, up to 250w modeling light and ITS WIRELESS!!! Works flawlessly with the MiniTT1- have to test out the high-speed sync. When I used this kit I was able to get over 200 full power flashes before I needed to worry about changing the battery.

Pro Heads w/ new Zoom Reflectors- Solid lights with consistent color output. Pretty much the only lights I have ever and will ever use. These new reflectors are pretty cool- they are redesigned to provide a more even falloff, increased dynamic range and they also directly accept Profoto grids. This means no more grid holder or adapter. One less thing to carry and worry about.

Ok- my rant is over about how great all these products are. Pardon the jargon-filled rant, I am just excited about the new gear and the new project. This is going to be an amazing opportunity and I KNOW some incredible photos are going to come from all of this.

Thanks to Profoto for giving me the opportunity and for Samys for getting me the gear I need to make this happen. More to come…

I made this video for Rhys Millen Racing. They take a new Hyundai Genesis Coupe to a Redline Time Attack event at Willow Springs Raceway. This was a test to see how the new RMR parts help to lower lap times with each group of additions. They started off with a stock car, got a base time and then started modifying everything from wheels, tires, intake, exhaust, differential and suspension.

The day was sooooo hectic that we never really had a chance to sit down and record interviews between each session telling about the modifications. I shot the footage during the event, running back and forth from the pits to the track, trying to get a different angle each session. I had to head down to RMR the next day to get a voiceover of what happened and match footage to the audio. Not ideal, but it worked out well to tell the story of the RMR parts.

Here are some of the photos from the release party for the new Forza 3 on XBOX 360. The event was held on the roof of the parking structure at LA LIVE. Lots of amazing cars, good food and good people. Some of the hero cars on display were a tricked out R8 V10- the hero car of the game, a Ferrari California, a Porsche 997, Nissan Skyline R33, Acura NSX, Lamborghini LP640, Corvette ZR-1 and a bunch of other SICK cars.

They had a game simulator with Forza 3 spread out over three screens. The seat even moved around as if you were in the car- every time you hit something it violently shook around like if you crashed in real life. DJ Skee was on the 1’s and 2’s keeping the music bumping all night long. Open bars and free Wolfgang Puck catering does not suck either…

I even got to take home an XBOX 360 wireless steering wheel!

Thanks to SA Studios and Edelman PR for letting me photograph another fun event.

For all the images, Click Here