Thanks to all of your incredible support I have made it to Bahia!
Progress of the trip can be seen on www.dspdiary.com
Latest
Last day for orders!
Thank you to everyone who has supported me in getting to Bahia, Brazil. Tomorrow is the last day for ordering prints, so, if you havent already please choose your favorite photograph and let me know as soon as possible.
We had a very successful fundraiser on Friday night filled with entertainment and good peolpe. Thank you to all who attended, bought photographs, Root 3 for their outstanding marimba, Kate Liquorish and Krystal Best for their delicious food, Ross Hillier on the drums, and Didi and Toni for the fire danceing. You all made it a night to remember!
The Prizes: Winners will be announced later this week with who has won the UCT/GetSmarter digital photography course and the G-Mo R500 gift voucher.
You will be able to watch my developments in Brazil on my blog www.dspdiary.com. Expect posts from as early as next week.
I am going to get to Brazil thanks to all of your support. Thank you for making this a reality.
Damien
Open Studio Tonight!
www.heshotwhat.wordpress.com
The He Shot What?! Campaign is into its last phases now and we are on track to achieve our goal of R20 000! Id like to thank every for their support to up to this point. Its blown me away how many people have wanted to make this adventure possible. I promise to have many great stories to share with you on my return, and series of photographs that will be of an equal calibre.
Tonight is the big night!
Please join us after work today at DSP Studio to celebrate the end of the campaign and the beginning of an adventure.
From 18:00, at DSP Studio (18 Roeland St, CBD, Cape Town)
Kate Liquorish and Krystal Best have cooked up a storm to bring us some delicious eats
Root 3 is performing. I recommend seeing them now before they go huge
And of course DSP photographs will be on sale. Each sale will be your entrance ticket to stand a chance of winning a Digital Photography Course with UCT and GetSmarter valued at R6600, and a R500 voucher towards a pair of Grandt Mason Original shoes.
See the Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=105467889550376
Ive noticed a few names I don’t know… if you’re interested in keeping updated with whats going to happen in Bahia join our Facebook Fan page or sign up to for the DSP Newsletter.
Want photographs but cant get them now? The Fringe Arts in Kloof St is an official stockist of DSP prints, as well as other amazing creative artifacts only made in SA. I recommend popping in some time!
Dont let the rain scare you away, we are going to be having a great time, and probably moving onto the Andrew James Album launch from there.
Got 1 more free min? Order a photo now! I dare you 
Happy Friday!
Damien
The Big Event!
Friday, 5 August
at 18:00
at DSP Studio (map)
Please join us as work finishes on Friday to enjoy some incredible food, wine, music and art as we wrap up the He Shot What?! campaign in true fashion.
Kate Liquorish and Krystal Best are providing us with amazing Brazilian cuisine. Have a look at whats on the menu..
Root 3 is going to be setting the tone with their marimba beats
You can also stand in line to win a Digital Photography Course with UCT and GetSmarter valued at R6600, and a R500 voucher towards a pair of Grandt Mason Original Shoes. All you have to do to enter is buy a DSP photograph.
And yes, you will be able order pictures at the event! A R20 cover donation will get you in.
See you there!
Here come the international orders!
Orders have started flying in from Italy, Germany, USA and UK. We’re going international and I love that these works are crossing oceans with their stories and message. Postage is proving very easy and affordable to arrange. So if you have queries about getting photographs to your side of the world please enquire to damien@dspgallery.com
This has also pushed the gauge up to R14 418 of the required R20 000. We are 3/4 of the way to getting to Brazil and in the last week. So close, if you havent already please order your picture today!
Dont forget you also stand the chance of winning great prizes! UCT and GetSmarter have donated a Digital Photography Course valued at R6600, and Grandt Mason Original Shoes has donated a R500 gift voucher towards a pair of his designer shoes.
The Process
I absolutely love the processes of photography. Every stage is so unique, with such intricate requirements, and its vital to get everyone of these right in order to have the perfect finished product.
Preparation is the most important and often least recognised - assessing your subject matter and deciding what camera would be best for this kind of shot. Then its sourcing the location, then the science – shutterspeeds, apertures, ISOs, lens – what are their capabilities, strengths, weaknesses, which is best for what I want to do? It is then time to get creative with compositions and angles and of course the interaction with subject. Click… Click. clickclickclickclickclickclick……
Post production begins. Shifting though all the pictures, balancing up the pro’s and cons of each image. From not liking any of them, or sometimes liking them all, it finally becomes clear though a process of elimination that there is only one great shot. Its colours are adjusted to draw the eye, tease the eye, and amaze the mind. The trick here is knowing exactly what you want to achieve, so you know when something is not looking right. It is so easy to over edit, or think a print is ready only to get it back from the printers and notice that there is a tint in it. Patience is the key.
There is nothing more exciting than collecting a photo from the printers. Finally it is a tangible product. Its just looks better than on a screen. You can touch it (but rather dont, it leaves fingerprints!) The colours are richer, there is more depth, perspective is greater, and if you have printed it the right size, it lures you in and will keep you thinking about that image for days to come, if not more. I love it.
But the final element is taking it to the framers and selecting a frame that directs the eye, doesnt over power the image, compliments the colours and textures of the photograph, and transforms the image from an object into a boxed artifact. Once behind glass it is a treasure, and all of the effort that has come to this point pays off.
It sits on a wall for all to see. Afterall, thats what pictures are for.
WIN A PAIR OF GRANDT MASON ORIGINAL SHOES WITH DSP
Grandt Mason Originals have stepped up to the plate in support of getting DSP to Brazil!
This designer shoe brand has very generously donated a R500 gift voucher for a hand crafted, one of a kind pair of shoes. Would you like this? All you have to do is order you DSP Print and your name will go forward to the draw.
Also dont forget about the UCT and GetSmarter Digital Photography Course give away that will be happening at the same time. So many good reasons to buy photos for your walls!
Photos are only photos when they’re printed
What a pleasure it is seeing your photos printed. Something is definitely lost in a picture when it is only seen on a computer. Sarah George had this printed up to A1 size and I almost cancelled the order and kept it for myself when I picked it up. I think it has to do with a photograph being tangible, something real, not to mention the colours and textures that pounce on your senses when they arent trapped behind a screen.
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to see my work like this Sarah. This will also be your ticket to enter the UCT and GetSmarter Digital Photography Course give away
Note to self: Im definitely printing more work in the future
Breaking the Stillness
Jenny Roslee recently decided that an A3 copy of this print wasn’t worth R300… and so R400 to set its value. Thank you Jen! Your support is much appreciated and this will be your ticket towards potentially winning a digital photography course with UCT and GetSmarter valued at R6 600. On my side this sale has also pushed me very close to the halfway mark of my mission. Sitting just under R10 000 we are looking good but still have work to do. Lets keep the orders coming in!
This picture was taken at a crocodile farm while I was documenting a conference. Conferences aren’t the most exciting things to document. People talking against the same backdrop for 3 days can get a bit monotonous, and I need to find ways to distract myself from photographing all the people snoring away in the crowd – the clients don’t seem to find these as amusing – so I take little breaks to clear the mind. Outside of the sterile conference room we were actually in a beautiful estate on the outskirts of Stellenbosch. The balcony over looked a small dam, the rain had stopped and left everything fresh and perfectly still. A crocodile had escaped from the sanctuary a few days before and although no one knew where it was, I had a faint suspicion it was going to suddenly break the stillness of the water and give this conference something to talk about. It never happened, but when I look into this picture I still seem to fall into a daze waiting for something to break the stillness.
