Just finished this banner ad for an optician’s eyecare business. The photo is stock but the rest is original illustration. I can usually create these within a day or 2 of receiving the assignment. Costs vary but they usually run around $150-$200 for original artwork.
Photo Assignment: Gordy – Dual Purpose K9 Patrol
This was a cover photo assignment for the Village of Sussex. It’s a bi-annual publication called The Courier. I photographed K9 Gordy under the watchful eye of his handler from the Waukesha County Sheriff Department. I was laying on the ground to get below Gordy’s eye level and to bring in the squad car’s logo. Didn’t think much of the position I was in until after the shoot. Probably not the ideal pose in front of a well-trained K9 with his handler standing behind me. Gordy’s handler was in complete control of his alert model. I made a small noise with my mouth to get Gordy’s attention but after Gordy gave me a quick hard stare with alert eyes and pointed ears, I realized really fast that the handler should do all the attention getting. I had a large rocket dust blower in my pocket along with a long Canon strap on my camera. The handler pointed out that the items could draw some attention from Gordy. Luckily, Gordy just wanted to do some nice poses. It was pretty sunny out so I opted to shoot in the shade to bring down the contrast of the police vehicle’s color scheme. The lighting also worked well to hold the color in Gordy’s fur. This was definitely a really neat experience.
I just wrapped up this animated TV commercial for a financial client. All items except the audio and the 3 stock photos in the middle of the spot were created at my studio. Most of the ballons are the same ballon with the colors altered in After Effects. I then mirrored or flipped them with some extra key frame movements to give each one it’s own personality. The noise makers had the same treatment. While this spot went to the northern Wisconsin and Minnesota markets, I also do freelance animation work for the Milwaukee and Chicago television markets. You can read more about the spot under the Digital Animation section of this blog. I also have a few more samples posted at http://www.youtube.com/user/StudioN51?feature=mhee .
This is an animated commercial I did for the 2013 Auto Show Gala put on by ADAMM. If you’re interested in some of the details, I’ve posted additional information under the Digital Animation page.
I just completed this freelance TV animation project for an ad agency in Wisconsin. This is a reworked spot from one I did a few years ago. The motion graphics animation was originally done in SD – standard definition – so I needed to update any footage used and reformat for HD – high definition broadcast. The beach footage and the remodeling image were purchased stock items while the rest I created from scratch. It was a little hard to look through hundreds of beach video clips when I was sitting in a snow covered farmhouse studio. I used a clip that provided a nice warm sunset tone to contrast with the cooler snow colors within the spot. In the original TV animation, I had a couple envelopes with the words “bills” on them but it looked a little like cheap clipart. For the new TV commercial, I created a couple 3d ornaments with some cash skin wraps and had them consolidate into the 2 main ornaments. While the VO was pretty quick, I wanted to show a visual that conveyed a winter vacation. The 3d beach ball animation I created fit well. It bounces in at the “vacation” mark and leaves just in time to reveal the remodeling image. If time allows, I usually like to drop something in at the end that maintains the flavor of the spot. The beach ball was small enough and with a little snow, the spot wraps up nicely. I also added a couple small sound effects for the 3d beach ball I created and the loan super. The rest of the audio and VO was supplied by the ad agency.
This is a product photo of items produced from disarmed and recycled nuclear weapon systems. Photo taken 12/8/12
The group product shot was for BrightandBold.com. The product line is made from a unique copper alloy created from disarmed and recycled nuclear weapon systems. Bottle openers and jewelry make up this group shot. One of the more unique freelance web product photos I’ve done. The company deems the products are safe to handle but it was still a little odd to handle items that were once a part of a nuclear weapon.
Front entrance to Pitman Theatre. Photo taken 8/22/12
South walkway to Pitman Theatre. Photo taken 8/22/12
North walkway to Pitman Theatre. Photo taken 8/22/12
These architectural photos were shot for a construction company’s portfolio. Most times I would avoid a noon hour shoot but this one worked out well. The design’s long lines reminded me of some of the buildings from the early to mid 20th century. The northern exposure provided some nice shadow areas for contrast. The landscaping provided a nice compliment to the building’s front entrance.
Kenosha County Courthouse architecture photograph. Photo taken 10/7/12.
I shot this architecture photo a couple times. The landscaping was in process during the first two visits so I ended up retouching the image a little to help it along. The grass was partially finished so I cloned some of it into place being sure to provide a compressed and softer look as the grass moved out of the focus area. The flags were at halfmast so I needed to bring them up for the client’s final photo. On the final visit for this shot, the landscaping had wooden stakes with bright orange ribbons to keep pedestrians off the new grass. Great for the grass – bad for the photographer… These were shot on the weekends to avoid any parked cars or people around the entrance. While this shot had the dramatic wide angle look, I also provided a couple with a normal look. The street lights were a little tricky to shoot around so I provided a couple options.
The first frame of the medical animation showing a carpal tunnel procedure.The images are from a medical animation showing a carpal tunnel procedure.
The internal anatomy was rendered from scratch and imported into Zaxwerks Proanimator 3d. The external effects were rendered in After Effects and exported to an HD movie for the final output. While I had to keep this basic for budget reasons, as a medical animator, attention to detail is extremely important. I kept the nerves and arteries fairly simple so they didn’t take away from the procedure area. I also made the ligaments and the muscles one basic piece to keep the animation to a minimum. I kept some of the textures to a minimum. The smoother finish has a little friendlier look for a potential patient.
Closeup view of the medical animation revealing the carpal ligament procedure. The opening takes pressure off of the Median Nerve (yellow line).
Mitchell building cupola in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photo taken 10/27/12
I shot this photo for Langer Roofing. This is from a series of architectural photographs for a calendar used to promote the company’s visibility. The company handles high and steep roofs like church steeples and high rise buildings.
Studio N51- Digital Artist 