PixelatedImage Blog

This is my last post before heading out to Malawi and DRC. I will not be checking phone or email, nor will I be updating this site until I return.

I am in Malawi for 6 days, DRC for 6 days, and travelling to and fro for an additional 6 days.

See you then.

if you’re here you’ve got some kind of interest in photography. if that is the case, you’ve got to spend some time here: Mark Tucker. Mark’s images are stunning. Truly exceptional and beautiful. If my work one day achieves a similar luminosity and vision I would be very happy.

I’ve had Mark’s URL on the sidebar for a while but never mentionned it. I head back to his site once in a while for inspiration and wonder.

My itinerary has been updated after some hiccups; it is now ticketed and "the office" is processing visas and permits. Here’s the latest:

   Oct 23 - Vancouver to Frankfurt
   Oct 24 - Frankfurt to Johannesburg
   Oct 25 - Johannesburg to Harare (Zimbabwe), Harare to Lilongwe (Malawi)

  Shooting in Malawi - 6 days

   Nov.01 Lilongwe to Harare to Lubumbashi (DRC)

  Shooting in DRC - 6 days

   Nov.08 Lubumbashi to Johannesburg to Frankfurt
   Nov.09 Frankfurt to Vancouver
   Nov.10-17 Recover, renew relationship with chiropractor

This trip sees me on Lufthansa, Air Malawi, British Airways, South African Air, and Air Zimbabwe.

An update on my Epson P4000 unit that would not charge. Epson has been remarkably cooperative and Fedexed out a new (refurbished) unit to me. They insisted on placing a hold on my credit card, which always unnerves me, but I suppose that’s what you get if you want them to send you the unit first. Now I just have to put the old one in the box and fire it back to Epson. All in all a very pleasant experience - I usually assume this kind of thing will eat up hours of my life. I like this unit alot, I still wish it ran on AAs.

I am counting on this P4000 and a Hyperdrive HD80 to get me through this coming assignment to DRC and Malawi. The Hyperdrive’s big selling point to me, aside from the price, is it’s ability to download 80GB of files on 4 standard AA batteries. Will review both these units when I return. If, however, you are thinking about dropping the coins and buying an Epson, you might want to hold off. They’ve just announced a P3000 and P5000. Press Release and pictures here.

Every photographer I know struggles to carry their gear and to protect it in the lightest, simplest way possible. Travel, especially air travel in the age of terrorism, adds more variables. One product I’ve stumbled across is David Honl’s Pro Wraps. David Honl is a photojournalist based in Istanbul, his assignments take him to the hardcore places (he lists his helmet and body armour on his gear page, folks). David has created gear wraps for the real world.

Similar to the other gear wraps out there, these are soft fleece squares of fabric closed with velcro. But Honl’s wraps have a rugged cordura exterior, customizable (and switchable) tags to identify the gear, and they come in three sizes - small (12inX12in), medium (16×16) and large (20×20).

If you’re looking for a way to protect a second body, a portable harddrive, or a lens without the bulk of cases, wraps might be the solution for you. If you want the SUV version (and by that I mean the rugged Land Cruisers of Africa, not the soccer-mom status mobiles of suburbia) then look no further than David Honl’s Pro Wraps