INTROSPECTIVE: Hong Kong 2008 on Kodachrome 64

(The city's red taxis are ever-present in the streets of Hong Kong. © 2008 Benjamin Luk.)

Four days ago, I returned from yet another three-week trip to China. The main purpose of my visit was to see family, but never being one to pass on a photo op, I brought along my Canon EOS 500N and a few rolls of my favourite film, Kodachrome 64. For those of you who know that Kodachrome is seeing its final days, you'd understand my hurry to shoot as much as humanly possible before they pull the plug for good at the end of 2010. The Kodachrome I shot just last month is currently on its way to Kansas for processing, but here's a look at the Kodachrome I shot when I was in China in 2008.

(Hong Kong has a unique urban geometry all its own. © 2008 Benjamin Luk.)

Hong Kong's known for many aspects of its urban environment, but what attracted me most about the city was its dense geometry and complex signage. Residential neighbourhoods overlap commercial hotspots, ads dominate the skyline and the city seems so cluttered, you find yourself wondering how 7,000,000 people could possibly call it home. And yet, there's a strange peace to how Hong Kong operates, as though being around so many people day after day demands a certain calmness or patience. This was what I tried to capture. Click the link or any image in this post to see a short slideshow of what I've uploaded so far from Hong Kong, 2008.

(The line between residential and commercial districts is blurred in Hong Kong. © 2008 Benjamin Luk.)

Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.

PERSPECTIVE: Natalie and Nathan's Engagement

(Natalie and Nathan, photographed last Monday on Westham Island. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

On-location shoots are the best shoots, and not just because they're my specialty. They're also the most fun. In fact, in the week prior when Jason Kazuta (a colleague of mine) and I went location scouting for this engagement shoot, we stumbled across many an abandoned barn, a dilapidated shack I now plan on shooting a fashion editorial in, and a full-blown kink dungeon hidden away in the middle of nowhere. (See what you're missing? Clearly, you should follow me on Twitter.)

The location scouting in itself was fun. The shoot was even better.

(One of our aforementioned abandoned barn locations. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

We spent two hours cruising around Westham Island with the happy couple and shot in three separate locations we'd prepped the week before. Working mainly with natural light and shooting in open shade as much as we could, we fired off nearly 250 proofs for Natalie and Nathan. When the light we had wasn't enough, our lightweight Profoto AcuteB 600 strobe pack came to the rescue and just looking at the shots I'm working on now, I can't wait to show our clients what we came back with.

Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.

PERSPECTIVE: Andrea & Daniel's Wedding

(Andrea and Daniel O'Connell, photographed at VanDusen Gardens in July 2009. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

Easily one of the most fun couples I've had the pleasure of shooting, Andrea and Daniel brought me to VanDusen Botanical Gardens in early July to photograph their wedding. With perfectly overcast weather overhead, we were able to create both extremely evocative images and also some really fun ones. For our half-day shoot, my assistant and I documented the ceremony and reception in 240 beautiful high-resolution images from three cameras. If you're interested in the wedding services we're able to provide, please don't hesitate to call us at (604) 649-5635 to set up a free private appointment. Sample images and slideshows will be made available for viewing.

(Daniel and his groomsmen, in typical Scottish civility. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

Special thanks to Twitter user @wacqueline for her referral. Benjamin Luk Photography strives to stay ahead of the social networking curve and it's nice to see it paying off. Please follow us at @benjaminluk for a more personalized photography experience and look for us online at BenjaminLuk.com.

We still have dates available in September and November, and we look forward to working with you real soon.

(Andrea and Daniel, cutting the cake. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.

PERSPECTIVE: Vans Warped Tour '09

(Mike Hranica of The Devil Wears Prada performing on the Main Stage at Vans Warped Tour '09. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

Well before I even considered a career in fashion photography, my first experiences with a proper camera all involved photographing live music. Starting by shooting local bands at a small karaoke bar called Hoko's, I created ThatRockBlog.com shortly thereafter, an indie music blog dedicated to documenting music performances in and around Vancouver. From there, the blog took off and it was through that we were able to acquire media passes to cover Vans Warped Tour '09.

(Dallas Green of Alexisonfire at Vans Warped Tour '09. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

To see more photos and a particularly foul-mouthed review, follow the link - LIVE WIRE: Warping the minds of today's youth. (ThatRockBlog.com)

Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.

PERSPECTIVE: 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer (w/ Jon Benjamin Photography)

(Dr. Everett E. Vokes lectures on bleeding edge treatment therapy for non-small cell lung cancer patients. © 2009 Benjamin Luk / IASLC.)

For those of you who follow me, many of you may have noticed my disappearance from Canada in the first week of August. Teaming up with Jon Benjamin Photography, I took off down to San Francisco to help photograph the 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer at The Moscone Center downtown. Working for a total of six days, I ended up delivering 2,025 images, or roughly 29 GB.

(Conference attendees at the 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer. © 2009 Benjamin Luk / IASLC.)

Many of the photographs Jon and I took ended up in the daily conference newsletter. These can be viewed at the following links:

1 Aug - WCLC Daily Newsletter Saturday (PDF)
2 Aug - WCLC Daily Newsletter Sunday (PDF)
3 Aug - WCLC Daily Newsletter Monday (PDF)
4 Aug - WCLC Daily Newsletter Tuesday (PDF)

With over 6,000 attendees at WCLC '09, this was the largest conference to date I'd had the privilege of photographing.

(Dr. Frances A. Shepherd presenting during Sunday morning's plenary session. © 2009 Benjamin Luk / IASLC.)

Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.

PERSPECTIVE: Lucia's Photoshoot

(Selected headshot of Lucia Lorenzi, photographed in the AQ Gardens at Simon Fraser University. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

On Canada Day, while most Canadians were still soundly sleeping off the effects of a wild party the night before, Benjamin Luk Photography was up and at 'em in the AQ Gardens at Simon Fraser University. Despite working on an event shoot the night before that went until 3 AM, we were ready to go to camera again by 10 to produce a series of headshots and portraits for Ms. Lucia Lorenzi. Click the image above to view a high-resolution version of her photo.

Special thanks to Ben Geldreich for coming out and lending a helping hand. (I hope you took away something worthwhile and I look forward to working with you again!)

Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.

PERSPECTIVE: Bisou Bridal Creative

(Model Karen, photographed in the Royal Suite of The Pan Pacific Vancouver. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

Last Thursday, Bisou Bridal was kind enough to lend our team four designer wedding dresses for our creative shoot. With some of the dresses valued as high as $6,000 CAD and utilizing such popular wedding venues as Hart House Restaurant and The Pan Pacific Vancouver, this was to be one of my most ambitious shoots yet. However, with expert styling by Heather Parson and a crack team of young models and assistants, the shoot went off without a hitch and I'm happy to present to you some of my most engaging bridal photography yet. Click any of the images you see here to view a short slideshow of our Bisou Bridal Creative.

(Model Karen, also photographed in the Royal Suite of The Pan Pacific Vancouver. © 2009 Benjamin Luk.)

Benjamin Luk Photography also offers destination wedding packages. We're currently in talks with a potential client about working with her in Mexico. Benjamin Luk Photography is available for assignment at BenjaminLuk.com.