Posts Tagged Mark Wallace

#SXSW wrap & rawk: part 1 of 2 … the THANK YOUs

Twelve days ago, I returned from South by Southwest. Twelve days ago, “SXSW wrap up post” has topped my to do list. I’m overdue, but before I talk about my experience, I need to say thank you.

Having been underemployed for the better part of six months, there is no way I would have made it to SXSW on my own. I needed help.

I started my #getmetosxsw hustle four weeks out. I carried a piggy bank around the third Ignite Phoenix. I secured a second part-time job (not officially hustle, but it helped). And I offered business services in exchange for contribution. This last led to some really cool opportunities. Notably:

  1. SnapFactory Twitter Interactive photo shoot – Mark Wallace of SnapFactory was given the opportunity to test Profoto lighting equipment in a fashion shoot. He opened the shoot to live behind-the-scenes interaction via Twitter and Flickr, bringing me on as his online journalist. (See video here.)
  2. Guerrilla Dance Attack press release and web presence – Aileen Mapes is a Dance MFA candidate at ASU’s Herberger College of the Arts. Her thesis explores the dynamic merging of choreography and site-specific improvisation that occurs once dance is taken outside of traditional performance venues and into the streets. Aileen engaged me to create press materials and Tumblr logs for leveraging both Guerrilla Dance Attack and future work.
  3. Texder product testing and alpha launch – Texder is a personal SMS sales tool that has been in bootstrap development for several months. As an integral part of the development team, I have led internal product testing, social outreach, community previews, and most recently, SXSW promotions.

The icing on all this cake was the outpouring of support of my community. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Diane Wallace, James Archer and Forty Agency, Jason BaerTom Chapin, Mark Dudlik, Aaron Post, Todd Huffman, Biray Alsac, and more.

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#snapshoot Twitter-Interactive wrap up

It’s been only five days, but it still feels like yesterday that I was on set with Mark Wallace for the Twitter-Interactive photo shoot at Loft 19 Studios. It was a crazy amazing day!

On set with Mark Wallace. (photo credit: Danno)

Mark Wallace of SnapFactory was given the opportunity to test out the new equipment by Profoto, makers of high-end photography lighting equipment. Mark is an avid Twitterer, and conceived a live-tweeted photo shoot that allowing readers to not only follow the behind-the-scenes action, but ask questions about any aspect of the shoot, from concept to technical details. The interactive approach is such a natural fit as Mark already produces the Digital Photography 1 on 1 video series where he answers viewer-submitted questions.

Call time was 8:00am, and with only 9 hours scheduled for the shoot, all time was prime time. We had our share of challenges, from the hair, makeup, and wardrobe team getting stuck in morning traffic, to memory card failure, to the constant evaporation of time. Consider that we had four models, each with several wardrobe changes, and three sets. Add in the live uploads of behind-the-scenes photos to Flickr and the steady conversation with those following on Twitter, and you’ve got a whirlwind day.

Loft 19 was a truly amazing space to work in. The first thing that strikes you is scale. It’s a large studio offering incredible freedom for designing sets. The cyclorama is beautiful. The amenities are icing on the cake, with two lounges, ample wardrobe/hair/makeup space, and even an espresso machine which definitely got a workout while we where there.

There were so many cool parts to this project, but star of the equipment show was the Profoto Pro-8a Air which enables super fast flash cycling. The Pro-8s can generate up to 20 flashes per second. Mark shot at 10 frames per second, still incredible given typical recycle times on a flash can be up to 1 second. This clip (opens new window) only hints at the Pro-8s capability, and be sure to listen for shutter sounds as the video couldn’t capture each flash cycle.

Profoto Pro-8 Air Sneak Peek

Profoto Pro-8 Air Sneak Peek from Mark Wallace on Vimeo.

Be sure to check out the Flickr photostream, and watch the SnapFactory blog as Mark will be posting a series of recaps about various aspects of the shoot. If you have any questions, ask. Mark is great about sharing his knowledge with others.

Many thanks to the team of people who contributed time and resources that made this event possible: Mark Wallace, Diane Wallace, and SnapFactory, Loft 19 Studios and Floyd Bannister, the models of The Agency Arizona, Erin Markis, Heather Blaine, Danno, and Jeff Caroli.

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yours truly, on the job as reporter for a Twitter-Interactive photo shoot

I’ve been buzzin’ with excitement since Tuesday when I landed an awesome gig assisting Mark Wallace for an all-day Twitter-Interactive photo shoot Thursday … that’s tomorrow … where he tests out the Profoto Pro-8 Air packs.

Let me rewind and start from the beginning. I’m gonna go fast, so hold on…

I met Mark and Diane Wallace at Twestival Phoenix one week ago. I’d had a little conversation with Diane previously on Twitter, but Twestival was the first in-person meeting and the first conversation not limited to 140 characters. Over the weekend, we rectified any follows and follow-backs that were not already in effect over our many multiple accounts. Mark inquired about the #getmetosxsw project I’d just launched, and I checked out Mark’s portfolio, Diane’s portfolio, and the SnapFactory site. Mark generously offered to reach out through his connections to help me get to SXSW, and I stumbled across a blog post about a photo shoot where Mark would be live-tweeting the behind-the-scenes story of trying out some new equipment. I got a little click happy with the links, discovering Mark tried live-tweeting another photo shoot and mused it might work better if he had a reporter to tweet on his behalf. I asked to be that reporter. Mark talked it over with the team. And if haven’t figured it out by now, they brought me on board!

<insert emphatic YESSSSS!!! here>

Tomorrow morning, we’ll meet at Loft 19 Studios at 7:00am (Arizona time) for setup, model call-time, etc. The shoot will run from 9:00am-5:00pm. Mark will shoot fashion, Diane will do makeup, Erin will style wardrobe, and Danno and Jeff will shoot behind-the-scenes footage. And me? I’ll be tweeting the whole thing: the setup, the technical details, the styling, the models, the drama. I’ll be taking your questions for Mark and the team, then posting their answers.

Check out the SnapFactory blog to meet the team and meet the models. Mark tells a great story and has a wealth of prep coverage, including the model fittings.

To catch tomorrow’s live action, follow @jmarkwallace on Twitter (I’ll be tweeting as him), watch for the #snapshoot updates on Twitter Search, and most definitely tweet in with your questions and thoughts.

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