Archive

On Set With RockStar Fitness

Over the last couple of years we have been lucky enough to be given all-access photo credentials with one of the most successful rock bands of all times. Def Leppard has sold over 100 million records and has more chart topping hits than most can imagine. Behind the gut shredding guitar solos, and even the occasional melodic ballad, is lead guitarist Phil Collen.

1

At 55 years old, Phil Collen is in the kind of physical condition you would expect a 25 year-old athlete to possess. Shirtless, and pacing from one side of the stage to the other, Phil rocks tens of thousands of fans for hours on end. He has gained quite a bit of attention for the fitness he maintains, and he is now working on sharing some of his personal training concepts with those wanting to make healthy changes in their lives.

2

This week we spent 2 days shooting with Phil at his house, and what an incredible experience it was! Phil and his long time coach Jean Carrillo are teaming up to create a program that promotes healthy minds, nutrition and fitness regimens. Jean is a world-renowned Muay Thai instructor and he has coached many fighters all the way to championship victories.

3

We always have a great time working with Jean and Phil!

4 

It is inspiring listening to their philosophies, and seeing what they do to hold back the hands of time is incredibly interesting to witness.

5

If you ever wondered what it looks like through the viewfinder of the ROF ‘news cam,’ here you go… see the pic above

Sidenote: That isn’t a black and white photo… it is actually easier to achieve sharp focus through a monochrome viewfinder. Consider that your fun ROF video-fact-of-the-day.

6

While shooting the nutrition segment, we were treated to some delicious bites of knowledge from nutrition and health coach Jeni Cook. She joined Jean and Phil on camera to discuss some of the benefits behind her approach to nutrition. What she shared with our cameras was PRICELESS!!!

7

Sidenote: Jeni is the wife of Paul Cook (seen above). Paul was the drummer for the historic punk band the Sex Pistols, and is also the drummer for Phil’s side project Manraze.

For more information on Manraze, check them out at manraze.com !!

8

It’s always great having Aaron Tru Teweles along for shoots. Besides getting to chat about what’s going on in MMA… the guy never misses a shot!

9

We had to break out the GoPro for this shoot… we really couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to get in closer on all the fitness, and guitar shredding action!!

10

Stay tuned for more as this project enters the editing phase!

 

Share This:

A Whole Latte Love

This weekend we had the honor of documenting April and Josh’s wedding ceremony! We have come to know April over the years and we were honored when she asked us to be a part of their special day!

We are currently editing the images from Saturday, but we wanted to share a few of our favorites so far!

Thanks again to April and Josh for an amazing day!

April Josh SunlightAJ all bouquetsJumpLimo KissRing Bearer With NamesVert Groomsman CircleAJ StarbucksAJ modelsAJ M is for Marriage_edited-1AJ Cell Phone

Send In The Troops

This blog is dedicated to some of our favorite subjects to work with in nature… PRIMATES!! In particular, we are focusing on those that travel or congregate in ‘troops.’

One of our favorite places to go for primate photography is Bosque del Cabo     (bosquedelcabo.com) on the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica. There you can find 4 types of monkeys traveling their highway of trees most any time of day. Some are loud, some are daredevils, and others are nearly impossible to spot if you aren’t paying close attention.

White Faced Capuchin (Cebus Capuchinus):

1 capuchin heads touching

You never know when these guys are going to do a mango sweep on the grounds at Bosque! The White Faced Capuchins are always fun to watch, and they tend to travel in large troops. Their antics are always amusing, and they are pretty tolerant of our cameras.

2 capuchin old

It’s so much fun watching them storm the grounds in search of fruit and coconut water!

Howler Monkey (Alouatta palliata):

Howler Monkeys serve as your alarm clock in the jungles of the Osa. These guys can be heard from miles around establishing their daily feeding territories to the other nearby troops.

3 howler monkey tongue

While these guys may sound like beasts, the larger alpha males are usually only about 36 inches tall.

Spider Monkey (Ateles geoffroyi):

If you see monkeys swinging effortlessly through the rainforest canopy, they are most likely Spider Monkeys.  Spider Monkey troops seem to always be on the move. They make bold leaps from treetop to treetop with the greatest of ease.

4 Dangling Spider

Their prehensile tails apparently really come in handy, they dangle like Christmas ornaments in the trees for hours. Spider monkeys seem to have a lot going on upstairs. We always see them staring at the ocean from treetops. They appear very pensive, and I am always left wondering what it is they might be thinking!

5 monkey thinking

Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri oerstedii)  

The Squirrel Monkey (Titi if you’re local) is the most elusive of all the monkeys on the grounds at Bosque del Cabo. But, there are rewards to reap for those with patience and attention to detail. When you are lucky enough to see the Squirrel Monkey troops on the move… don’t blink! They are FAST!! Below are the only 3 images I have ever been able to get of these pint-sized primates!

6 Titi

Oh well, better luck next time!!

Of course if for some reason seeing all of these monkeys in the wild isn’t putting you close enough to all the action, you can always visit the Santuario Silvestre Wildlife Sanctuary. It’s just a quick boat ride over from the marina in Puerto Jimenez, and the staff at Bosque del Cabo can arrange a ½ day or full day trip over to see some of the Osa Peninsula’s most incredible inhabitants up close and personal.

7 Howler gaze

Macaque (Macaca)

Of course Costa Rica isn’t the only place where you can see eye to eye with monkeys. Below are a couple of images I took in Bali, Indonesia. This location was particularly cool because of the temple where several large troops of Macaques had taken over.

8 Monkey Temple 2 

Unfortunately, people have been feeding the Macaques for years now and problems are beginning to arise from this practice. Now the monkeys approach you and climb on you fearlessly when you walk on the temple grounds. They are expecting handouts and if you don’t give them what they want….they steal from you.

The Macaques will then gladly accept food in exchange for your sunglasses, car keys and/ or water bottles. Smart, but frustrating! This is one example of why you should never feed animals in the wild.

9 Monkey Temple 

If you want great shots of primates, but you don’t want to dust off the ol’ passport… you can always head down to the local zoo. While I hate seeing animals in captivity, your admission does help care for and feed the animals. Plus, you never know what you might get when you break out the telephoto lens at the Gorilla exhibit!!

10 Gorrilla

Whether it’s at the zoo, in Costa Rica or anywhere else in the world that monkeys can be found (We know…gorillas are apes. But they too hang out in troops!!!), make sure to keep the cameras rolling because you never know what you’re going to get when these guys start “monkeying” around!  <———— Do you see what we did there?  🙂

Trash the Dress!

What an incredible day we had with Jennifer and her family!  The Trash the Dress shoot was just too much fun and as you can see below, ended in a very dramatic fashion.  Thanks to Jennifer and her beautiful family for letting us be a part of such a special day.

TTD 5

TTD 6

Looking Down

TTD 1

TTD 4

TTD 8

Vert Warm OTS Distant Birds

Bride Out To Sea

Vert Family By Fire

Burn Dress 17

Share This:

Musical Magic In Costa Mesa

This weekend we were lucky enough to be asked to document a special recording session in Costa Mesa, CA. Bobby Pittman from Hit What’s Hot and MMA Worldwide teamed up with local music producer Lewis ‘Lewdog’ Richards to create a musical score for the upcoming Battle Of The Bars video. This shoot took place at 17th Street Recording Studio and we were blown away by the talent that showed up to collaborate to make this epic musical masterpiece.

Below are a handful of ‘screen grabs’ from the video log that day!

1 Studio

The Players:

Bobby Pittman: Bobby has long kept his musical prowess in his pocket, only sharing his creative stylings around the house, at the beach or around a campfire. On this day, it was clear Bobby came into 17th Street Studio to create something that would transcend bonfire guitar picking and breathe life into his upcoming video.

2 Bobby Wide

Lewis ‘Lewdog’ Richards:  ‘Lew’ is a local legend when it comes to music, and Bobby knew that he could provide the right flavor to bring this track to life.

3 Lou At Comp

‘Susie Q’: Believe it or not, we truly only know the vocalist for this project by the name of ‘Susie Q.’ Apparently, Mrs. Q is an ace-in-the-hole for Lew and he got her involved once he heard the direction Bobby wanted the track to go.

4 Susie Q

Susie came to the studio with about only 45 minutes of time to lend, and WOW can that woman make the most of each minute!! She came in…knocked us all down with her vocals…and walked back out the door as if her stunning performance was simply business as usual.

5 Vocals

Bobby was next in the booth, and NO ONE wanted to follow Susie! Bobby easily rose to the challenge and layered in some great melodic solos.

6 Bobby 5D

It was in fact so difficult to follow Susie, one of the original vocalists ‘D’ stepped aside saying he felt she already gave the song what it needed, and that he would love to see the song continue with the vibe she created. D is a talented freestyle rap artist, and for him to yield to Susie was a sign of great respect. We hope to work with D in the future!

7 Rapper

After a full day in the studio, the song took shape and is now in the final stages of mixing. Lew says it should take about a week for the final mix down, and believe me… it will be worth the wait!

8 Lou Booth

9 Bobby Light

This has truly been one of the coolest projects we have been involved with to date. Not only was it an honor to document the musical chemistry in 17th Street Recording Studio that day, but we got to break out some of our new cameras for the shoot!! Stay tuned for the behind-the-scenes video coming to the ROF blog SOON!

10 B&W GoPro

Wedding on the Greens

What a day we had with this couple and their amazing family!  We were honored to be a part of their special day and we had a blast doing photography for them!  It’s so nice when you get to know your customers and they wind up becoming friends for life.  Below are some of our favorite shots from that day…

Stare B&W

Tough

Blade

Shoes B&W

Candid Two Shot

A Kiss While Driving1

On the Course

Serious Moment

Vert Bride's Personality

 

 

Wild Alaska!

A few years ago I was lucky enough to go on a photography trip with Roy Toft Photo Safaris.  I dragged my poor Mom (Karen) along with me and we truly had the trip of a lifetime!

We started our adventure in Anchorage.  It was a beautiful city and perfect for a Moose tour!  We got so close to the Moose. It was a bit scary but totally worth it!

moose 5After a quick layover we were off to Brooks Camp in Katmai National Park.  We had never been on a float plane before and the experience was incredible.  The second we landed at Brooks Camp we had Brown Bear right by our plane.  I was excited but was also wondering what I had gotten myself and my Mom into!

float & bear

beach bears

We had an amazing experience at Brooks Camp!  It is an incredible destination for those interested in viewing Brown Bear in their natural habitat.  We camped in tents, which overlooked Naknek Lake and were surrounded by an electric fence for safety. What I loved was that at Brooks, bears had the right of way and were respected at all times.  We cannot wait to go back soon!

bear 29

cubs

stretchy fish

bear watch

bear silouette

claws

 

 

Share This:

Hola Argentina!

Argentina is a country that constantly surprises you.  From exotic wild birds to shrines on the roadside dedicated to saints, Argentina never disappoints.  We have been lucky enough to visit and plan on heading back in February to capture more images and video.  We hope you enjoy these shots from one of our favorite countries!

Arg road

We landed in the capital of Buenos Aires and did some serious exploring.  We saw all of the hotspots thanks to our tour guide- my wonderful stepdad Marcelo.  The photo below shows a protest that was taking place in front of the cathedral.  The protesters were trying to free prisoners from Paraguay.  They were calm and we never felt threatened in any way.

Protest

Another favorite was visiting The Boca Juniors Museum and Stadium.  To say that Argentines take futbol (American soccer) seriously is an understatement.  Here, it is a way of life.  Diego Maradonna is just one of the many amazing futbol players to have graced this phenomenal futbol team.

Maradonna

As we drove to the town of Villa Gesell we were amazed by all the wild birds we saw along the way.  Unfortunately for Marcelo, my Mom (Karen) and I made him stop for every single bird so that we could take photos.

hawk flying

owl lover

Another thing we noticed while driving were all the shrines on the side of the road.  Some Argentines worship various folk saints and we were lucky enough to see shrines dedicated to 2 different saints.

The first was Difunta Correa.  It is believed that she died of thirst while trekking through the desert in an attempt to reach her husband who was battling in the Argentine civil wars.  Some hours later local villagers saw birds circling a small hill and, upon inspection, found the body of the dead woman with her still living son at her breast.  The miracle is that her son was still alive.  At these shrines they leave bottles of water in an attempt to “calm her eternal thirst.”  Her devout followers believe her to perform miracles and intercede for the living.

recycle saint orig

The second saint was Gauchito Gil.  Considered to be similar to Robin Hood, Gauchito Gil was part of a political battle between 2 political parties: the “red” and the “light blue.”  He was thought to belong to the “red”, hence the red flags, ribbons, etc.  He is regarded as the most prominent gaucho saint in Argentina.  The Catholic Church has not declared Gauchito Gil a saint, but many Argentine people are promoting him.

rojo saint

Around the town of Villa Gesell and other small towns, we saw many beautiful sights and had the time of our lives!  We got to see locals at Mar del Plata dancing Tango on a sunny Sunday afternoon.  We also got to eat incredible food like Argentine BBQ, empanadas and anything that included Dulce de leche!  We cannot wait to return to Argentina!  On one of our future trips we would love to visit Patagonia to see the glaciers, penguins and whales.  We’ve also heard that Iguazu Falls is not to be missed!

guy quilmes

Food

Tango

windmill orig 2

house with trees

Recent Project

It really is so important to love where you work.  We spent a lot of time making sure our 2nd location represents our creativity and style.  Great videos & photos are all about how creative you can be and how you can showcase your client’s individual style.  It’s so nice when potential clients come to […]

Read More...
as seen on
become a stalker

© 2024 ROF Industries Inc. All rights reserved. Orange County Web Design by iCreativeCanvas