As an emerging photographic artist and travel photographer, it was an incredible opportunity for fresh inspiration and to connect with people from a culture I had not yet experienced. It quickly became clear to me the Mongolian nomadic way of life was fundamentally different from our own. Their land is fence-free, their possessions few and the doors to their homes always open to strangers. Their philosophy seemed to be ‘don’t ask, just do’, allowing me an exceptional freedom to engage in people’s lives with my camera. Mongolia in the Footsteps of the Nomads is my debut exhibition and a photographic exploration of Mongolia’s remote far west and select locations in the Gobi Desert and Terelj National Park.

I am indebted to the nomads I met there for their warm hospitality and openness towards my craft. I believe this series of photographs captures a sense of the Mongolian way of life, their connection with their animals and the beauty of the land for which Mongolians show immense pride. I invite you to explore the images on the gallery walls and share in appreciating a unique land and culture. All prints are guaranteed archival quality and framing services can be provided on request.

The exhibition is free, open to the public and will run from February 23 – February 29 and is conveniently located at the Matt Irwin Gallery in Scott Alley in Melbourne’s CBD (access via Flinders Lane close to Swanston St). For more info and to RSVP please visit the facebook event page.

Hi guys I’m just posting a quick update for those following the very exciting project in development ‘Picture 1000 Words‘.

The following images have been reserved from further submissions, 3, 5, 22, 23 & 31, having been snapped up by published and award winning authors Luke Wright, Jessie Cole, Tara June Winch, Maryanne Khan and Rijn Collins. I am receiving quite a bit of interest in the remaining images so if you are an author and would like to be involved you’d best get in fast!

I would also like to announce the following small but important addition to the terms and conditions of involvement in the project:

Authors are free to publish their work elsewhere given they retain copyright, however it is a condition of participation that the work not be published before the project is exhibited and that Cam Cope Photography and the Picture 1000 Words project is credited with the commission.

Looking forward to reading more submissions.

Cam.

Night soccer on Ipanema beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 70-200mm f2.8L IS USM lens. Exposure Details: 1/200 seconds @ f2.8 ISO 4000.

Hi Guys,

Just another small piece of news that this photograph from my recent Brazil trip just made Photo of the Day over at Light & Composition Magazine. Check it out.

Cam.

Can you Picture 1000 Words? I would like to invite writers to participate with me on a new photo-literary collaboration for the 2012 Emerging Writers’ Festival.

The Concept: To exhibit a series of 1000-word creative writing pieces paired with the images that inspired them.

Exhibition Details: The exhibition will take place in a Melbourne gallery in May 2012 and appear on the Emerging Writers’ Festival program. If successful there may be scope for the exhibition to travel to other cities or even internationally.

Writing Guidelines: I’m interested in original creative compositions of exactly 1000 words (excluding the title) in any style or genre that are inspired by or relate to one of these enigmatic images. Narrative, dialogue, poetry, prose, comedic, provocative, experimental or any other type of writing you might like to try will be considered. Submissions do not have to relate in any way to the real world origins of the photographs. You are encouraged to create your own characters and paint your own scenarios as much as you like. If you are interested in being involved but do not wish to compete with other submissions I may be swayed to reserve a particular image of your choice just for you. In this case I invite you to impress me with a brief bio of yourself, some high quality (preferably published) examples of your short format writing and a single paragraph concept for your idea and the photo which you wish to write for. You will also be subject to a tighter deadline. If any images become reserved from submissions I will post the information here on my blog.

*** Please note the following images have been reserved from further submissions: 3, 5, 22, 23 & 31 ***

Terms & Conditions: You may make only one submission per image (there are 36 images available but I will accept a maximum of 5 submissions per writer). I will not be accepting pieces related to any other photographs. Work submitted must not have been published anywhere before. You will retain copyright to your work and any sales resulting from exhibition will be split evenly between the writer and myself. By participating in this project you agree to grant me a license to reproduce your work to present in the exhibition/s that result from this project and for the purposes of promoting the project. Photographs and corresponding writing pieces will be mounted and sold together. If sold, profits will be split after printing and mounting costs are subtracted. If not sold I will retain ownership of the mounted pair of works (physical copy only, not the copyright) until such time as the work is sold whereupon profits will be split as previously mentioned. I reserve the right to include or exclude any work submitted for the exhibition at any time for any reason. These conditions may be subject to minor change over the coming months, any changes will be posted to this blog, In the event you have submitted work before they are changed you will be notified by email and given the opportunity to review. Note it is not my intention to make any changes to the copyright or sales details, but other elements of the T&Cs may have to change.

*Note the following has now been added to the terms and conditions:

Authors are free to publish their work elsewhere given they retain copyright, however it is a condition of participation that the work not be published before the project is exhibited and that Cam Cope Photography and the Picture 1000 Words project is credited with the commission.

Submissions & Inquiries: To express your interest or send me a submission you can write to me at pic1000@camcope.com or if you have a general question you can simply ask in the comments section of this blog post below. It may be in your interests to let me know which image you intend to write for so I can give you a gauge on the amount of interest I’ve had on that particular image. If submitting please follow these submission guidelines or your work may not be considered:

• Place your name and the photo numbers you would like to write for (see filenames displayed in the slideshow) in the subject line of the email.
• In the body of the email briefly introduce yourself and summarise your experience (links to your writing, your blog, webpage or published work would be useful here).
• Outline which photos you are writing for (again see filenames displayed in the slideshow) and the titles of the pieces.
• Attach each writing piece in a Microsoft Word 97-2004 .doc format document following these naming conventions: yoursurname_your first initial_photonumber eg. if I was submitting for picture 23 I would name the file Cope_C_23.

Deadline for entries: March 31st 2012.

I’m really looking forward to reading some unique takes on these photographs and as mentioned if you have general questions don’t hesitate to ask in the comments below or send me an email at pic1000@camcope.com.

To keep up to date on all announcements and updates about this project you can subscribe to this blog by adding your email address in the ‘email subscription’ field on the right hand side of this page. For more information about my photography you can read my bio, check out my website and find me on facebook.

Hiking into Little Waterloo Bay, Wilsons Promontory National Park. Panorama stitch of 25 separate images using Photoshop CS4 and assisted by Jack Metier. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 24-105mm f4L IS USM lens. Exposure Details for all 25 images: 1/125 second @ f20 ISO 400.

Hi guys,

You’ll have to again excuse the interruption to the Bolivian Fiesta theme. Another of my shots just made Photo of the Day over at Light & Composition Magazine. Check it out here.

For more details on the hike where I shot this check out the blog post.

Cam.

A performer participates in the 'dance of the llama herders' and waves the Aymara flag during a fiesta in Copacabana, Bolivia. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 24-105mm f4L IS USM lens. Exposure Details: 1/500 second @ f4 ISO 400.

Amongst the hustle of packed streets and endless processions of dancers I came across this troupe of performers who said they were doing the ‘dance of the llama herders’. Don’t be confused, this flag represents the Aymaran people of western Bolivia, southern Peru and northern Chile. This is not a gay pride flag, though the colours are similar.

Getting this shot was partly persistence but also partly luck. I had been trying to shoot some backlit stuff in this street but was having trouble as the intensity of the sun was very strong and the performers were moving quite quickly. I was trying to set my exposure for the people and catching moments when they blocked the sun so as to avoid over-exposure. Failed attempts were totally blown out while others often turned out too dark as the light reflecting into the space was inconsistent. This shot I accidentally underexposed, but was lucky enough to catch the moment right when the flag was waved in front of the sun. In that split second the sunlight reflected perfectly off the white flag into the face of the dancer, fixing what would have otherwise been an underexposed shot (all the shots before and after of this particular dancer were underexposed for her face). I love the composition of this shot, particularly where the girl’s eyes are just caught inside the flag while the sun projects a partial silhouette of her profile onto the flag. The moment is nice too because she is engaging with me (I was quite close shooting wide at 24mm) and because the flag is perfectly displayed. I could never have planned this composition precisely, was another occasion where just being out there and trying stuff lets luck sail your way.

Saludos.

Cam

Two members of 'El Autentico Union Juvenil de La Paz' (The Authentic Youth Union from La Paz) lug their instruments up the hill in Copacabana, Bolivia. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 24-105mm f4L IS USM lens. Exposure Details: 1/500 second @ f4 ISO 400.

I grabbed this shot during the fiesta in Copacabana, Bolivia I’ve been blogging about for the past couple of weeks. These two guys (amongst others) were lugging their gear up the hill towards another churchground and the main area for the night’s festivities. I think a number of things make this shot work. One is the kind of Abbey Road symmetry going on with the two subject’s legs. Another are the kind of compositional triangles that are formed between the main points of interest (the legs, heads of the two figures and the red drum). Finally the glance in my direction that the front drummer made is what completes the moment. The lighting was not ideal but everything else seems to make up for it. It’s not a wow shot, but I somehow kept coming back to it browsing through my collection so I threw it up here. I find it subtly pleasing, and like my last post from this fiesta it could work as an album cover. Was the music affecting my composition that day?

Still a ways to go before I’ll be moving on from Bolivian fiestas.

Cam.

Staff and guest riders on a 'Bogong Packhorse Adventure' in the Victorian alpine country. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 24-105mm f4L IS USM lens. Exposure Details: 1/250 second @ f11 ISO 400.

Hi guys,

Another quick news flash to again interrupt the Bolivian Fiesta theme. One of my shots from my work with Bogong Horseback Adventures just made Photo of the Day over at Light & Composition Magazine. Check it out.

Cam.

Four of the musicians from the band Marisma Mundial take a break in the shade in Copacabana, Bolivia. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 24-105mm f4L IS USM lens. Exposure Details: 1/320 seconds @ f4 ISO 200.

I nabbed this photograph of Bolivian musicians taking a break from an uphill march and the relentless sunshine pummeling our heads during a fiesta in Copacabana, Bolivia. Like most people at the fiesta -performers and spectators alike- taking a break was essential to recharge after all the beers, marching, dancing, singing, and in my case: running, ducking, weaving, crouching and clicking (and some of those other verbs too of course). As soon as I noticed these guys I had to grab a shot because the light was reflecting beautifully right into where they were sitting and the colours of their suits matched the street well too (blue shirts with otherwise warm tones). The square crop works well, makes this look like a record cover for the band Marisma Mundial, who according to their drum print have an intercontinental latin sound.

As always, more on the way.

Cam.

Jordan Houghtan makes a grab during his winning appearance at the 2010 Thredbo Freeride Series Big Air competition. Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon 24-105mm f4L IS USM lens. Exposure Details: 1/1000 seconds @ f6.3 ISO 500.

Hi guys, just a quick news flash to interrupt the Bolivian Fiesta theme. One of my shots from the 2010 Thredbo Big Air competition just made Photo of the Day over at Light & Composition Magazine. Check it out.

Cam.