Author Archive
Team Canada Wins Gold at Vancouver 2010 Olympics
Posted by Michael Lee in Personal on March 3rd, 2010
Shot this short video after the Canadian men’s hockey team won gold at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. This was down on Robson street between Seymour Street and Howe Street. I’ve never seen the streets so lively and so packed with enthusiastic fans. Everyone was out having a great time. Hockey is Canada’s game!
This was taken with my iPhone so the quality isn’t great, but you get the idea!
Make-up and hair preparation for the JCI shoot
Posted by Michael Lee in Portraits on March 3rd, 2010
Thought I would post up some of the behind the scenes photos from the JCI shoot I did in January. Here you can see the girls doing the make-up, hair, and wardrobe dressing. The make-up and hair took the longest but the job the girls did was fantastic! Parm Pandher did the make-up, Siobhan O’Brien the hair, and Sami Ward the wardrobe choices. Jenna Cunningham, the model, did a great job showcasing the students’ work. I also have to say Jenna did a great job modeling.
Evening shoot in Richmond
Posted by Michael Lee in Portraits on February 18th, 2010
Two weeks ago a friend of mine, Sam, asked if I could photograph a model for her and a friend who plan to get into make-up and nails. I said sure, no problem! And then she said it was the next evening! 
. Monday nights are for 24 and Heroes, lol. So after work I packed my gear together and headed down to her Richmond apartment with my buddy Wes. I was pretty tired already after work (as you’ll see in the video below once I get it uploaded) but that didn’t matter. They took a bit longer getting the model ready than we expected. It was suppose to be an in and out type thing but turned out to be a lot later. Thus I didn’t get as much time to shoot as I would’ve liked. I think we shot these off in 20 minutes all in one small room. The apartment complex had an clubhouse I really wanted to try but it was getting too late and we had work the next day and the model had class. We’ll have to try her clubhouse next time!
John Casablancas International BYOB
Posted by Michael Lee in Portraits on January 26th, 2010
Every couple of months John Casablancas International had a build your own book (BYOB) session where students from their make-up, hair, and fashion departments get together to put together four looks. They are pushed to achieve four looks (outfits) within a 7 hour time frame. The five best photos from each look are then picked and submitted to the school and String magazine for review. The set they like the most is then published in their monthly Vancouver fashion String magazine. It might seem easy but the make-up, hair, and clothing changes usually take anywhere from 1-1.5 hrs to complete leaving little time for photographing the subject.
The school invites local professional photographers in Vancouver to these sessions where they are placed with one of the groups for the day. We’re allowed to either photograph on location or inside their studio. For this shoot I brought with me a friend who I often photograph weddings with, Tom Wagner. Having shot many weddings with him and Three Sixty in the past made this session go smoothly as we’re use to thinking on the spot and using our natural environment to our advantage. Thanks to the Water Street Cafe for letting us use a table for 5 mins and Ray for letting us use his lights inside the studio.
So what happens when you combine the following:
- Vancouver portrait photographer (Michael Lee)
- Make-up artist (Parm Pandher)
- Hair stylist (Siobhan O’Brien)
- Fashion stylist (Sami Ward)
- Talented model (Jenna Cunningham)
You end up with (I would hope) a great set of photos that you’re proud of and that you can feel confident about showing to others. Check out the below 30 second clips of two looks we shot. Below that are some of the favorites from the day out of the four looks/outfits.
Alysha in Yaletown and Gastown Vancouver
Posted by Michael Lee in Portraits on January 5th, 2010
Alysha and her family has been good family friends for a long time. I remember when she and her brother were just lil tykes. She’ll be going out of province for her first university co-op experience and her mom wanted some portraits in Vancouver of the family. I gave her a call a week before she was about to leave and suggested that in addition to family portraits we do a set of photos in Yaletown and Gastown of just her. I had just about two hours to photograph Alysha including all the traveling. We spent about 30-40 mins just outside Urban Fare in Yaletown photographing the outdoor portraits. After freezing our butts off (ok it wasn’t that cold) I promised her we’d warm up inside and take a set indoors. We headed over to the new Woodwards apartment in Gastown where we spent the remainder of the time taking indoor shots. We produced a great set of photos given the time I had.
A word of advice for aspiring photographers, a good portrait photographer should be able to shoot in any location whether it be inside in a nice studio or out in the back alley.
Vancouver Wedding Photography
Posted by Michael Lee in Personal on December 8th, 2009
I was shooting for Three Sixty Photography two weeks ago and shot this quick portrait of Leena, the bride of the day.
Family Photography in West Vancouver
Posted by Michael Lee in Portraits on December 6th, 2009
I had the opportunity last week to photograph some outdoor family photos as well as indoor pictures of the Szeto family. We had originally planned to shoot during the morning but that didn’t pan out so we ended up shooting in the evening. It was pretty chilly outside (Vancouver in December = cold) so we decided to shoot the outdoor photos in the backyard. Their backyard is great for family and children photography. You can achieve different scenes with the different areas in the yard; outdoor forest look, vacation patio, beautiful brick staircase, separated lawn areas and a backyard bbq. For the indoor photos I had them sit on the family couch. In most cases the photos were shot with a two light setup and in some cases just one.
West Vancouver Interior Photography
Posted by Michael Lee in Architecture on December 2nd, 2009
I had the opportunity this past weekend to photograph an interior of a home in West Vancouver (thanks Peter). The color of the wall is how I remember it, it was a bit of an off white and the mouldings were more true to white.
Portrait session with Seungyon
Posted by Michael Lee in Portraits on December 1st, 2009
Continuing where I left off with that impromptu session with Seungyon. These were shot in the district of Wudaokou in Beijing, China in an apartment complex. In the middle of the apartment complex, four towers surrounding a small terrace, we found an inviting park where children and seniors play and pass time. The day was overcast so it was perfect for these naturally lit photos. These are some of my favorite individual pictures from my time in China.
Lezyne L Caddy seat bag – Review
Posted by Michael Lee in Reviews on November 22nd, 2009
Just wrote my own review of the Lezyne L Caddy seat bag. Check it out: Lezyne L Caddy seat bag review
