Recently, my "music video" caught Davor's attention and he contacted me regarding a project. Davor works with musicians all the time, and thought it would be cool to get some video done for Wren Kelly. She's a talented 15-year-old who was on YTV's The Next Star. Davor flew her in from Halifax to do some recording.

Wren Kelly. Photo by Steve Tan

Although we didn't have time to shoot a music video in the week she was here (she recorded at least a handful of songs!), we did shoot some behind-the-scenes to share with her fans. Stay tuned for that video!

Wren: have a safe flight back to Halifax. I'll looking forward to downloading your songs on iTunes!

Photo by Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

This is for those photography enthusiasts out there: stop obsessing over DSLR bodies; purchase the least expensive DSLR body that'll satisfy your photographic needs (unless money is not an issue). If you want to take your photography to the next level, look into getting some nice lenses instead. Here are a few reasons to convince you:

1. It's easier to get a great photo with a nice lens on an older body than on a new body with a crappy (ie. kit) lens.
2. Most people shoot under less-than-ideal lighting situations; a nice lens will usually help in that scenario much more than a newer DSLR body.
3. Camera bodies depreciate quickly over time, whereas lenses hold onto their value for much longer – it's a much better investment.

I tallied a victory recently when I convinced my dad to look into a lens upgrade instead of getting a new DSLR body. He has a older Canon Rebel body (maybe 300D or 350D, I can't remember) with the kit lens. Although he doesn't shoot for money, he loves photography but is getting frustrated with the results. Instead of blowing his modest budget on a newer DSLR body with a kit lens, I recommended a nicer lens instead. In the end, we went with a 50mm f/1.4 USM, and he's thrilled with the results. Bonus: the lens only cost about half of what he was planning to spend, so there's room for a flash in his near future.

The funny part is that although I listed all the above reasons to consider lenses instead of bodies, it was this line that did him in: "With a new DSLR and kit lens, you'll look like a newbie. With a fast 50mm prime, even on an older body, you'll look much more pro."

Unfortunately, the behind-the-scenes footage isn't ready yet, but I do want to share what it looked like before grading. This finished look was inspired by Eric Tuason, a close friend and photographer, who used a similar style in one of the photographs he captured of me and my wife.

Those of you following me on Twitter will note that although I told myself not to do any more filming before my wedding, I ended up producing a short video for my wedding. To the people I can't invite to my reception but are kind enough to read my posts, here's a little reward: you get to see it before everyone else!

This video was one of the "funnest" videos I've ever done. I hope you have as much fun watching it as I had producing it! Oh, and special thanks to the love of my life, Ting Lin for being a good sport, and to Eric Tuason again for filming the parts we can't.

Photo by @erictuason, assistant @sylvia_tan

I may have mentioned previously that I'm much more comfortable behind the camera than in front of it, but you wouldn't be able to tell with great photographers like @erictuason running the show. The next time I post, I could very well be married. See you guys on the other side.

This is Jenna and Nadeem during one of their pre-bridal photo shoots. I decided to experiment a bit with the motion portrait idea. I rotated my camera 90º and shot a few seconds at 60p so that I can slow it down later. The framerate choice was purely aesthetic. The only additional step was to rotate and crop the video in Motion. (I cropped to 3:2 so that it works nicely with the iPad.) Workflow-wise, everything else was the same. And there you have it: motion portraits.

Until now.

Cover photo by Tomasz Wagner of Mananetwork

I can't remember how, but when I stumbled upon Jewelboxing, I knew it was exactly what I needed. They don't actually produce the cases, rather resell them along with all the templates (physical and digital) so that I can fully customize them any way I want. The case alone will make you rethink what a jewel case could (and should) be. Combine that with the ability to design virtually every surface? Sold.

Photo taken by Tomasz Wagner of Mananetwork

The only issue is pricing. Don't get me wrong: Jewelboxing's pricing is not bad at all. However, getting them shipping to me virtually doubles the cost. On the other hand, taking everything into consideration, it's still worth it. Just think of it this way: I plan, film, and edit with all the best tools I have available to me. I put my heart and soul into each project, and I love sharing the final product, so why wouldn't I want the best possible packaging? I have no doubts I'll be reordering from them soon.

Here are a couple teaser pics Sylvia shot on her iPhone.

I can't wait to see the rest of the photos!

All in all, it looked like everyone (else) had a lot of fun. 

4ormat's website

4ormat is in beta testing at the moment. You can request an invite, or just contact me. They've given me 10 invitations to share.