Horses from Jarkko on Vimeo.

Last saturday I got an assignment to make some shots of horse racing. I was touched by those steaming beasts in eerie cold darkness so I made this video as a by-product. I wanted to the final piece to be in HD but somehow I managed to screw up the settings in edit so it isn’t. Soundwise originally I was editing this piece to go along with Portishead’s “Machine Gun” but then thought that what the heck, I’ll do my own soundtrack. Headphones are recommended.

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For the kind request of Jussi and since people seem to be doing it anyway I shall present you what I added to the Finnish Press Photographer of the Year -competition. As I’m incapable to do anything with time and precision, I had to do a few hasty decisions today as it was the last day to take part.

Last year I didn’t win anything and I plan to put on a similar performance this year. However, this attitude has it’s perks: I didn’t make the most obvious choices with my pictures, but decided to push my limits a little. It’s easier to take risks when you don’t think it really matters anyhow. Therefore I’m actually quite happy about how my set turned out. It looks like.. me?

Elina helped me with this final set, big thanks to her. Also thank you Jarkko and Ossi Ahola, with whom we had a great brainstorm/photo-eyeing-session few weeks back. Anyway, here they are:

Posted by Konsta
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I don’t really like blue color, but the december evenings in Oulu are so blue they just ask to be photographed. I’ve been walking around quite a lot with a camera while living here, and now that I’m moving south again, I thought it would be nice to take some evening shots just less than one kilometer away from my home. Like a diary in the case I never come back again.

Posted by Tatu
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Couple of months ago I got the most exciting opportunity to hop on a trawling ship as an assignment for Suomen Luonto -magazine (thanks Samuli and Tatu for passing this assignment on). It was maybe the single most interesting assignment I’ve been on as a freelancer (and maybe ever). Most of the freelance-jobs I get are portraits. Nothing wrong with them, really, but this time around I actually felt I was part of some bigger cause, actually putting an effort towards greater goal.

You see, lake Puula is a bright-watered lake with a great vendace fish stock. However, the peat production at the bogs surrounding the area has over the years ruined the nearby lakes and now threats to blur Puula as well. It would be the end of vendace fish, since clean bright water is essential for it to survive.

Posted by Konsta
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It’s singer Suvi Teräsniska from Oulu. This was an easy assignment. It’s always nice photograph people who are already used to cameras but still let themselves go without using the same manners over and over again. I like this because it’s very different from the images I took when I met Suvi Teräsniska last spring.

Posted by Tatu
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I recently needed to take some time off and headed to Rovaniemi. One afternoon we drove to Ounasvaara and proceeded walking. It was cold and it was raining and foggy and we were feeling that Sunday Blues.

Posted by Konsta
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When working with photography starts to get on my nerves or I feel stuck with it I have few other things to do. Actually three: to play music, to do some sports or to draw something. Lately I’ve picked up the pencil more often than the drumsticks and I must say I’ve enjoyed it tremendously. It has been some years since I’ve done any illustrations. For the time being I’m working full-time with press photography (i.e. interacting and being social with people) so I feel that some kind of balancing is needed and drawing seems to do the trick for me. You know, letting some creative steam out and just getting tapped into the flow. This stuff is highly meditative as I can just focus on getting the lines right. And when I draw I never know what the outcome will be. And that is just damn refreshing! This sketch of a boxer took three episodes of Black Adder (one and a half hour) to finish.

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I spent a lot of money to buy an overpriced LED-lightpanel :-/ It’s powerful, compact and all, but now I feel I should have made an effort trying to find out what kind of solution works best for me. So, after downloading a flashlight app for the iPhone, I just HAD to try if it was powerful enough to act as the only light source for shooting video in a pitch black room. Canon 5D Mark 2, ISO 800, shutter at 1/60 and a 35mm f/1.4 lens wide open. I had a reflector to balance the light a little, but the iPhone LED lamp was the only source of light in the room. Thanks to Musti once again for being an actor. Well, at least I know I can make a night time video interview even if I only have my camera and my mobile phone (with maybe a microphone attachment for better sound) with me :-) That’s something I’ll try next.

Posted by Tatu
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For the past month I haven’t been too interested in photography. Actually, I haven’t been too interested in much anything besides skateboarding. Then two weeks ago I blew my knee and ankle (skateboarding) and since that I’ve spent most of my time watching skateboarding videos in the internet and standing on my board in our living room, listening to the trucks squeak.

I picked up skateboarding last summer for the first time since junior high. I, of course, suck at it too, but this time around it doesn’t matter. I don’t have to take pressure from not learning any tricks and so on. Skating is my happy place where I don’t have to think about school or work or… well, you know, photoshop and lenses.

That’s why I haven’t been too eager to mix the two and start taking photos of skating – not until now, I figure. Skateboarding is amazingly visual sport (and yea, it sure as hell is sport even if you can do it with your jeans on) but even so, I’m more interested in portraying the culture around it rather than the act itself.

These photos were taken three weeks ago at Syyssessarit, an event to close down the season here in Tampere. I only had my camera with me because maybe I was a bit shamed to skate before all the pros so I settled with the next best thing, hah. They’re not the best skateboarding photos but I guess they’re not meant to be either.

P.S.

Jarkko’s last post was our 100th post!! That’s gnarly, as skateboarders say (according to my Thrashers). I’m psyched, as they also say.

Posted by Konsta
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These photos of Sauli Niinistö were never used so I might as well post them here. I feel that taking photos of seasoned top politicians is kind of tricky since they know the game. They know what kind of image they want to project and they know how to deliver it. So it was with Sauli. We did the interview at his home (which actually was a surprise that he invited us there) but he was very precise where the photos should be taken. The interview and the shooting was to be done outside, there was no chance that we were going to go in. But when we started there was a moment of chaos and I did miss one potentially interesting photo. This happened: Sauli and his wife Jenni have a French bulldog named Lennu. Kind of comical looking fella, I think. At the very beginning of interview Lennu shoots out from nowhere and rushes the presidential candidate. He his trying to grab the dog while this drooling rocket of energy feverishly climbs on top of Niinistö who at the same moment is shouting “no photos!” This didn’t really matter because I had tele lens and I was standing maybe two meters from him so I missed the moment. Why I hated that I wasn’t able get the photo? Because something unexpected and uncontrolled happened.
Anyway, I don’t know if it transcends to the viewer as a great image but I was pleased with the shot where he is standing his arm stretched out. This is because it was the only moment when he seemed to be somewhat absent and not conscious about being photographed.

Posted by Jarkko
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