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In Swaziland

Day 3 in Bulembu – things are going very well. We’ve captured some great moments and beautiful images. This really is an amazing town. More when I can get better net access…

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Updates

23 Minutes

That’s how long it took to pack my bags & camera carry-on.

Incidentally, it took 23 minutes because that’s all I had before the taxi arrived.

A string of nights with 3 hours sleep then attempting an all nighter don’t lead to efficient work. Around 4AM I found myself nodding uncontrollably, so I settled in for a short “nap”.

But… I’ve done this a few times now. I only managed to forget a few Clif bars and my book to read. Everything else came out in a flurry, and habit landed most of what I need in my bags in a few minutes.

And with that we’re off to Bulembu. The equipment left yesterday with my DP, Jonny – 9 cases plus a carnet. So I’m travelling nice & light, just a carry-on and a backpack for clothes. It’s three days of transit to Bulembu… I hope to update with some pictures or video once we’re settled on the ground.

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Updates

… and on to Israel!

YVR-SEA-AMS-JNB; JNB-AMS-TLV; TLV-AMS-LHO; LHO-AMS-SEA-YVR.

That’s the itinerary I just booked, leaving August 22nd and returning September 29th. After Bulembu, I’ll be heading to Israel to shoot 2nd unit for a production there with Jim van Dijk. I’ll be (happily) using the Red camera again, and working with a bigger crew & budget.

And on my way home, a short stopover in Oxford.

Together with Rwanda: Hope Rises being complete before I go, and the trip to Bulembu before heading to Israel, all I have to say is:

Woot.

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Updates

In Cambridge

It’s 1:30am Ontario time… just got back from a great night of networking and awards hosted by a national non-profit foundation. Made several connections for screening Rwanda: Hope Rises here in the fall.

Now for a quick ‘nap’ and up in three hours to catch a plane…

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Sidenotes

I Saw What I Saw

Sara Groves… she’s not someone I’d heard of, but this video about Rwanda is quite beautiful. It describes well how I feel about Rwanda, and the emotion inside visiting a place like that for the first time, full of contradictions.

Higher quality version here.

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Video

RED Rwanda – cloud timelapse

While I’m getting my edit suite set up, and data moved around & backed up ready for a six-week edit session, Jesse‘s been playing a bit with some of the footage from Rwanda. This one’s just too cool not to post. Click the image to see a 1K cloud timelapse (down-res’ed from 2K, processed in RedCine and After Effects).

There’s also a few RED frame grabs from our shoot in Rwanda posted here if you’re interested.

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Photography

Photo Essay – The Bulembu Story

Bulembu Cableway

Bulembu went from a sleepy hollow of Swazi homesteads to a major mining operation – producing one-third of Swaziland’s GDP – to a near-ghost town in the space of several decades. Now it’s in the midst of another transformation. To tell the story, I’ve put together a photo essay from my recent assignment: “The Bulembu Story” (There are a few dozen photos, so it may take a minute or two to load).

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Photography

Gallery – Portraits of Bulembu

Maria Portrait

My recent assignment in Swaziland was a 2009 calendar on Bulembu. The concept was to photograph people involved in transformation, telling their story in a single frame. I approached this primarily through wide-angle portraits of the characters in context, attempting to include hints of past, present, and future as much as possible. I made extensive use of my new lighting rig to control tone and contrast.

Click the image to view a few selects from my portraits in Bulembu.

N.B. I’ll be posting a photo essay about the town after I get back from some R&R on the mountain this weekend.

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Updates

Back Home

63 hours in transit coming home is enough to make me never want to fly again… OK maybe not :) This trip set my new record: 14 flights, including two aerial photography helicopters and six long-haul legs.

I’m so very glad to be back on firm soil in the cold Vancouver air. (Just in time to travel a bit more up to Silverstar :)

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Photography

Wallpaper – Bulembu Moonrise

I took this photo a few nights ago, waiting for dinner out on the lodge porch. The clouds were billowing over a nearby hillside. When the crescent moon began to peek over the horizon, I grabbed my camera, tripod and telephoto and snapped this long exposure. I’ve created it as a wallpaper for you to enjoy (right-click to save): Bulembu Moonrise Wallpaper