My good friends at DASAL Industries have been very busy. They are a great client, and as far as I am concerned at the very top of their game right now. The lighting fixtures these guys are designing and producing are beautiful. What I really appreciate about a company like DASAL is they control the process from inception to delivery. And almost everything is handle and controlled here in Vancouver BC. It’s fun for me to be able to shoot these products for these guys, they shoot well and the marketing team encourages creativity….which is kinda what I do. The other thing I love about this company is that they are at the forefront of LED technology. This is obviously where the lighting industry is headed and DASAL not only knows more than most companies about this technology, they do their very best to pass on the knowledge so that clients can make educated decisions in a rapidly growing aspect to the lighting industry. Here is a small sample of some of the products and shop shots we’ve been producing. If you head to my site at johnleeimages.com you will see some application shots with the DASAL products in place. Look forward to some video very soon!
I am a lucky guy. For the last few years I have been chosen to work with the marketing and communications departments at Emily Carr University to build a photo library for their marketing and recruitment needs. These shoots are always fun. The cool thing is that I get to look into the world of the art student. I was an art student once. Nothing much has changed. Here is how I saw things:
For the second year in a row I was chosen to spend a day photographing student life at Columbia College for their advertising, marketing and recruiting materials. It’s a really fun place to shoot as the energy level of the students is incredible, and the range of nationalities is mind-boggling. Thanks again guys for the opportunity to shoot with you, and thanks to the students for letting me capture their day.
One of the advantages to living in the Sea to Sky corridor is my proximity to the world-class resort of Whistler and all it has to offer. We are all aware of the amazing skiing in Whistler as well as the extensive mountain-biking in the summertime. The Olympics in 201o left a legacy of facilities that will be enjoyed for generations. One of those new facilities is the Whistler Sliding Centre. I had my first dose of the centre when I went to be a spectator at a Skeleton World Cup Event. After that event I swore I would attend more events there. Once I learned that the Luge World Championships were coming I got my media accreditation and went to shoot the race. The Whistler Sliding Centre boasts the fastest track in the world and the top athletes were hitting 145 km/h. This sport is truly incredible to watch. It is also next impossible to photograph. While other photographers crammed into the camera positions I decided to focus more on the athletes and coaches. This is how I saw it:
I’ve come to realize it’s not often that the clouds lift here in Squamish. In fact this place is wet…really wet. I guess the four inch thick moss on the trees should have been an indication of what the winter was like here. Anyways, the other thing I’ve come to realize is that when the clouds do lift, or at least break, this place can be one of the most spectacular places I’ve ever been. This morning the clouds broke, but never left. They just changed shape, and exposed the various peaks around the valley. Here is how I saw it.
So I headed up to Whistler for the day last weekend which is such an easy thing to do from my new home. It’s such an great little resort. So the World Cup Mens’ Skelton competition was being held at the Whistler Sliding Centre. The Sliding Centre is really interesting. It is the fastest sliding track in the world, and it is a huge engineering feat. I have seen bobsleigh on TV before but I never really get a good sense of scale from watching the sport that way. The track is massive, beautiful, and has an amazing mountain backdrop. While enjoying the event I also enjoyed shooting some of the scenics available as the sun went down.
Now, the sport of Skeleton. It is similar to Luge, but it is head first. These guys are crazy! The top speed reached during the competition was 137 km/h (86 mph) and after runs of around 54 seconds, the differences in time were in the hundredths of a second. A truly compelling sport, and I will go watch it again as soon as I have another opportunity. As a spectator you can stand right beside the track with the athletes flying past only 6 feet away.
Here are some shots, enjoy! And while you are at it, stop by my website and see some of the other things I have been up to lately.
Too cool!
JLI and family have moved to Squamish BC. What a fantastic place to live. Great people, great activities, amazing visuals. Hey I won’t lie, it’s not easy moving a family of five to a new town, especially when the youngest of the five is there weeks old. BUT this was worth it as Squamish is so cool. I am just now finding time to get out and shoot, here are a couple photos I am proud of.
In July I moved my family from Vancouver to Squamish.
Well, let me rephrase that.
In June my third child arrived. Fisher Forrest Bird Lee was born healthy and happy into our little bevy of Lees. Three weeks later I moved my family to Squamish. Busy week! As luck would have it that very week I also got a call from Sea to Sky Community Services, a Squamish-based registered charity providing support to individuals and families in the Sea to Sky corridor. One week in my new town and I had already landed a very interesting job based right outside my front door. How cool is that?
SSCS has been given four lots in downtown Squamish and is hoping to build a new facility to house their many programs. They are looking for money and wanted me to shoot the stills and video for their capital campaign. This was a really fun project in many ways. I once again got to direct a video which I love, especially when I can shoot stills at the same time. The project was dealing with services in Squamish, Whistler and Pemberton so I had a good chance to explore my new area. And best of all I was able to meet the board members who are some of the most influential people in the Sea to Sky.
Well here is the resulting video. The client is very happy, and so am I! I wish SSCS the best of luck in meeting their fundraising goals.
As promised. The Kinetic Security video can be seen here. This was the first circumstance where I was hired to shoot stills as well as shoot and direct the video. It made for a very busy day but I think the results look great. The challenge we had was that unlike some other security companies I had shot for, these guys wanted it very dark and moody. They wanted their company to have an edgy feel to speak a broader audience. This palette is not something that I work in often so I had to rethink a lot of my aesthetic. I had the very talented Scot Proudfoot help out as camera op. His work here is outstanding! Thanks Scot!
