BLOG GOES ON VACATION TO LAOS

This will be my last post until around February 6th or so. Julie and I are taking a much needed vacation to Cambodia and Laos. I'm very excited to get back to this area of the world. I suspect I'll have a few blogs about the trip to write when we get back. Thanks to everyone who reads this thing. I will be checking my email during the trip if you need to reach me: brianscannell@gmail.com.

MEET OMAR ZUMOT

Some days being a photographer is a really a nice way to earn a buck. A few weeks back I shot a feature on winemaker Omar Zumot. For all intensive purposes, Omar is the wine industry in Jordan. Shooting a winemaker has obvious perks. We walked around the barrel room shown above with a turkey baster device and tried many wines. Omar actually grows 22 different varieties of grapes here in Jordan. The Pinot Noir we tried was fantastic and reminded me of Oregon. Omar is also an extremely inventive farmer. His wines are certified organic and he uses nature to solve different problems on his vineyards: Too many rodents...he bought owls. More nitrates for the soil...he made a carp pond. His wine label is called Saint George. It's what Jesus used to drink.

MEET EMAD ALAEDDIN

This is a recent cover feature I shot for U-Men magazine. What, you didn't know these were my photos? Perhaps that's because the magazine didn't feel it necessary to credit me as the photographer. Just an honest oversight I'm told, like when I forget to pay rent. Anyways, Emad Alaeddin is a friend of mine and the brother of my college roommate. He is making a name for himself here in the region as a musician (not an easy task). He even has a video on MTV Arabia. Check him out on Facebook or by clicking here.

THE RAPID DESCENT INTO STUDIO MADNESS

On Saturday my photography class spent the better part of the day in a proper photography studio for the first time. The day started off wholesome enough with traditional portraits, but quickly spiraled into bizzaro land. I will say for the record that I had nothing to do with it. I tried over and over again to model appropriate studio behavior, but to no avail. In the end the class came up with shots that would scare small children, and some too indecent to be posted here. I'm so proud of them!

PHOTOGRAPHY CLASS FUN WITH FLASH

Today in class we played with lights in the green screen room at SAE. It reminded me how fun lighting can be when you aren't rushed and can experiment. I also love the new tether feature in Lightroom. Photography takes on a whole new dimension when everything can be controlled by the click of a mouse. Now I can get a job at the DMV if things get rough.