(6x6) Blog » Assignment

On the Job pt. 2

tait — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:24:33 +0000

As the snow starts to fall at a shoot on the north fork of Long Island.

Castle Garden

Snaefells Yokel

tait — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:32:28 +0000

It figures that while I’m out on location in the middle of nowhere the web host would inexplicably go down at a time when there is nothing I can do about it. Anyway, I’m back online again here (obviously) so I thought I’d share a couple of behind the scenes photos and an update from the shoot on thursday. I was out in the wilderness, the Snaefellsnes peninsula in Iceland, which is a pretty spectacular place to be, shooting a still and video project that had been percolating in the back of my mind since I originally visited almost two years ago. Scheduling and production difficulties had put this project on hold a couple of times before, but not this time. The challenge this time around would be the weather.

It was a very tough day. Bitter cold, wind so strong you could hardly stand up straight, sandstorms and stinging rain made it one of the most difficult days on location I’ve yet encountered. Though, all in all the weather i got for free what would have cost $10,000 a day to replicate, so here’s looking at the bright side. The photos below don’t nearly do justice to the severity of the weather, so you’ll just have to take my word for it.

Behind the scenes / Snaefellsjokel #1

Behind the scenes / Snaefellsjokel #2

On the Job

tait — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:30:09 +0000

A few out-takes while on the job recently. Pompton Plains New Jersey:

Behind Best Western #1

Behind Best Western #2

Work for Google for Free?

tait — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 14:12:47 +0000

The NY Times published an article yesterday about the Google Chrome project where illustrators were asked to provide original artwork for free to be used as skins or a facade for the new browser. It is not surprising and quite disturbing first that Google, a company that reported $1.4 billion dollars in profits in the first quarter of this year alone, is asking artists, who rely on commissions of this type to survive, to submit their original work for free. Second, there was little resistance on the part of the artists themselves to these egregious terms. Some would say that we’ve brought this upon ourselves, that the community has set a dangerous precedent. But if that is true, it follows that the artistic community, both illustrators and photographers (because this happens all too often to us as well), must stand together against this type of devaluation of our hard work.

Either way, I encourage anyone who makes a living from creative work to send an email to Google expressing your disapproval. I know what you are thinking, it is naïve to think that any grassroots effort on our part will in any way effect the practices of a corporation the size of Google. However, if we sit idly by and watch it happen, we are tacitly expressing our approval of this type of treatment making it ever more difficult for creative people to make a living creating.

UPDATE 6/25/09

So it seems that all of a sudden there is a new browser competing for our searches: Microsoft’s Bing. I’m not entirely sure that Microsoft is any less of a megalomaniacal corporation than Google, but here’s to hoping that they’ll at least give Google a run for their money and possibly contest their dominance (which obviously has a great deal to do with the reasoning behind their unethical behavior as noted above: it is because they CAN). A little competition would be good for everyone involved, so I’ll be giving Bing a try and who knows maybe I’ll end up preferring it.

Totology Part 2

tait — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:24:22 +0000

While out shooting the latest Toto ad on THE two hottest days in New York this summer, I learned a very interesting new fact: All those automatic faucets, toilets and the like that we see in office buildings and airports run on standard disposable batteries! I couldn’t believe it, but its true. The recently completed Part 2 of the Totology campaign illustrates just how much waste this creates.

I set out to replicate the visual impact that our previous ad had achieved, and although the subject matter and location would be worlds apart, I wanted to maintain a continuity in composition and framing that would link the two images. Once again the guys over at House did a fantastic job bringing everything together. Check out the final ad below, and for more information on just how the geniuses over at Toto achieved such a feat of engineering, read about the new products HERE.

What does 25,000 gallons of water look like?

tait — Fri, 09 May 2008 21:49:14 +0000

In case you have been asking yourself this, and as a follow up to my original post about the new Toto eco-campaign, Totology below is the final Ad itself. The campaign, conceived by Bradley Skaggs and Sam Edwards of Skaggs NYC, has just launched in print editions of finer interior design magazines around the globe and has garnered a little bit of attention. First it appeared here and later here. And for a behind the scenes look at the production of the campaign click here.

Totology Campaign

tait — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 12:49:45 +0000

With the press date of the new TOTO eco-campaign looming, its apparent the word has already gotten out. The story appeared on notcot.org early on Tuesday. Also check out photoshelter’s coverage of the campaign with a very flattering photo of yours truly “on the job”. The lovely folks over at Skaggs have put up a photo diary/behind the scenes of the whole adventure on flicker, you can check that out here.

Reebok #2

tait — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 22:26:03 +0000

Issue #34 of Metro.Pop Magazine is on newstands now, featuring my second Reebok Ad, this one for their new Kool-Aid co-branded shoe. Never have i got so many strange looks in the market, as when my assistant and I purchased $200 worth of citrus. Check out the ad below…

In other news, having just returned from El Paso Texas shooting for Toto, post production is now in high swing with the guys over at House Tribeca. Five days in the desert, 5,000 gallons of water and a boatload of car batteries later we’ve got the makings of a powerful campaign.

Metro.Pop

tait — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 21:55:22 +0000

Issue #33 of Metro.Pop magazine is on news-stands now! Check my exclusive for Reebok on the second page spread as its a first on many fronts. First shoot for Reebok, first “product” shoot and first time shooting with animals. Patience is without question the single greatest virtue when dealing with rodents…

New Work

tait — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 16:31:20 +0000

In addition to all the new images from my recent trip through Iceland, I also had a busy holiday season. Only a few days after returning, I shot a new campaign for DBLA clothing and soon to be on newstands is an exclusive ad for Reebok, to appear exclusively in the January issue of Metro.Pop magazine. The shoe is a celebration of the upcoming Chinese New Year, the year of the rat. Look for it in the inside cover!