It is important to me to be able to offer my clients photo prints that are on the cutting edge of sustainability. As more people move towards a more environmentally conscious lifestyle, companies are able to deliver green options to consumers. As I come across outstanding products, I will be sharing these with you, here on my blog. I was seeking out the most eco way to print my photographs, and this bamboo product sounded fantastic. I decided to try out this new eco style of photo printing. The quality of colour and contrast in this bamboo print really make the image pop What I love: – The print looks really good. The texture of the bamboo has been maintained, so the finish has a beautiful, natural texture, reminiscent of art paper. The edges have a beautiful, unique look, and the keyholes on the back make it easy to hang. – It is made from bamboo which is incredibly sustainable. Bamboo grows fast, can sequester more carbon than trees and generally doesn’t require pesticides or herbicides. – The prints last for decades (or longer) due to the durability of bamboo, and the satin laminate protects against dust and UV […] Read More
Being an Eco Photographer means reducing the environmental impact of every aspect of my business, and working with (i.e. producing photos for) clients that have a positive impact on the environment. I was trying to formulate an explanation as to why I’ve decided to be an “Eco Photographer” and what this actually means. Then one day three things happened to me and I became so impassioned that I did what anyone would do… I got on my soapbox (i.e. my personal Facebook wall) and shared what I was feeling with my friends and family. I received such an overwhelmingly supportive response that I decided to include my little story on this blog. It gives you an idea of how I live my personal life, which crosses over into my business life. So here it is: I don’t often put unhappy things on Facebook but I feel the need to share this today It has 3 parts, and hopefully is inspiring: 1. James came home and told me, with a smile, that he had a song stuck in his head all day, the song of some beautiful girls from the Ashaninka tribe we stayed with by Ene River, in […] Read More
I was looking for a place to stop and do a bit of work and I wanted to make it a kind of retreat, to get my creative juices flowing. Lake Atitlan in Guatemala is the perfect place for a photography and writing retreat. I spent time at some beautiful hotels in Panajachel, San Pedro and San Macos – three different villages, all tranquil in their own way. I was doing work for hotels while also working on my own projects. Here are a couple of shots from one beautiful sunrise I spent in San Pedro la Laguna. Lake Atitlan has risen dramatically this year and buildings, shelters and lakeside recreational areas such as the one above have become submerged. Some of the local Mayans think the rising water is related to The 2012 Shift, some just blame the rain. These are the traditional fishing boats used by Mayan fishermen each morning on Lake Atitlan. They spear the fish with reeds then take their catch home or sell them in their villages. It’s beautiful to watch and a wonderful example of slow, simple living. To see more of my travel photography, check out my website www.AliciaFoxPhotography.com Read More
This week I have been shooting photos of women weavers in Guatemala, for an organisation called Vision Guatemala, a grass roots NGO that provides micro finance and support to women around Lake Atitlan and Guatemala. Above: Cecilia is weaving a table runner in the style typical to San Pedro. She spends a few hours weaving each day in between cleaning and making tortillas which she sells to her neighbours at lunch and dinner time. In Guatemala tortillas sell at 3 for Q1, which is about 13 cents. When she finishes weaving after 3-5 days, the table runner will sell for about $4.50. Camera Settings: 1/50sec, f/4, ISO 400, 28mm lens Above: The weaving loom, used by Guatemalan women. Camera Settings(Above): 1/50sec, f/2.8, ISO 800, 50mm lens Camera Settings(Above): 1/50sec, f/2.8, ISO 400, 50mm lens Camera Settings(Above): 1/60sec, f/4, ISO 320, 24mm lens, flash (bounced off wall) Camera Settings (Above): 1/60sec, f/4, ISO 400, 65mm lens Take a look around my blog to see more of my NGO & Humanitarian photos. I’ll have a new folio on my new website dedicated to the humanitarian projects I’ve been shooting over here in Central and South America. Thanks! Read More
I am thrilled to have an article printed in SURFGIRL Magazine, the raddest womens surf mag in The UK. The article is about my travels and photography work/lifestyle around Central America. I hope you like it. Let me know what you think at info@aliciafox.net and if you’d like to see more photos of Central America visit my website. Read More
My Article in EOS magazine EOS magazine is a great photography publication coming out of the UK, focused on the technical side of photography and specifically of Canon EOS cameras. I wanted to write an account of my experiences volunteering in Latin America, thinking it would appeal to EOS readers. The editor Angela August agreed and offered me a two page spread in the Nov 2011 issue. When the article went to print, it ended up as four pages. I was really pleased to receive an email from Angela saying “Very many thanks for your contribution. I must compliment you on your fantastic pics, sparkling, well-targeted copy and generally getting everything to me on time and in sensible order. You made my job very easy!” I put a lot of effort in to making the article as polished as possible, so it’s so nice to hear I could make Angela’s job easier. Here is a copy of the article. ……………. I love getting feedback, so please leave any of your comments here on email me at info@aliciafox.net If you’d like to see more of my NGO photography, please check out my website www.AliciaFoxPhotography.com Read More
Autumn in the Mountains Recently, I was having a very interesting conversation with one of my closest friends in which she described heaven to me. I think of her every morning when I see the sun peek over the mountains and spread its long golden rays across the valleys before me, valleys that on most days are flooded by a thick layer of clouds. I’m staying in a beautiful part of the planet, where the intoxicating nature all around can let you forget about the developed, industrialised, fast paced world that begins down at the bottom of the mountain. Right now, the landscape here is making a dramatic transition from green to red to orange. It’s heavenly. Every day the fog seems to sit a little higher in the valleys as winter draws closer, and the deer, squirrels and jack rabbits are harder to spot. I find myself gasping in visual pleasure nearly every time I go outside. .I didn’t do any post production on these shots other than developing them from RAW to JPG in Lightroom. I guess my photography style is changing and I am gaining appreciation for getting the shot right in camera, because I was happy […] Read More
I downloaded this free handbook from Photoshelter. It’s full of lots of great info on blogging for Photographers, and the website has lots of other resources to help your photography business. Check it out. Read More
I often get emails from friends asking me what type of DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) Camera they should buy. There is so much information on the internet, but it is difficult to know what to trust. I hope this helps out anyone who is looking to upgrade from a compact camera to a DSLR....
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Last Sunday I was sipping on a $25 cup of herbal tea at one of Tokyo’s finest hotels, as I waited for my models and stylist to arrive for a swimwear shoot. Within less than 24 hours, I had headed down the coast to a farming town and found myself up to my shins in mud in a rice field, as I began my first WWOOFing experience on an organic/natural farm. Traveling provides me with opportunities to be completely diverse, random and extreme, and I can follow a path to wherever my life takes me. Of course I could be living like this at home as well, but for some reason I feel freer when I’m on the road. And that is one of the reasons why I plan to spend the next 2-3 years exploring the world. Pic: This is Nao, one of my farming friends. Technical: I shot this with a Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens, at f/2.8 @ 1/100sec. I chose the wide aperture to blur the edge of her hat, and the background. In post production in Adobe Bridge, I used a split toning effect to give the image a slightly old fashioned, yellow tone. I used […] Read More
Here are some photos of around where I live, in Ichinomya in Chiba, Japan… I got up at 4:30am to get some sunrise shots on the beach. It was Sunday, and even at sunrise the beach is crowded with surfers – many from Tokyo on their weekend break – quite possibly their one day off each week. Technical: I exposed for the background of this image to silhouette the figures against the back light. By setting the white balance to flash, I enhanced the colour temperature to an even warmer tone than the true early morning light. Black, volcanic sand with tetrapods protecting the land from typhoon swells and tsunamis. People leave their surfboards, bikes and shoes lying around, because nobody steals things in Japan. I love the morning sunlight on this boat. Technical: The hazy atmosphere diffused the sun to soften the warm early-morning sunlight. I shot at a fairly wide-angle to distort the shape of the boat and enhance the surreal feeling of the image. A few of our neighbours, with rice paddies in the foreground. Japanese people tend to have different taste in housing colours, to what I’m used to back in Australia. Pink is a bit […] Read More
Hi and welcome to my first blog entry. I am Alicia Fox and I’m a Professional Photographer from Melbourne, living in Japan. I live in a little coastal town called Ichinomya – the epicentre of Japanese surfing culture. Everyday I am surrounded by beaches and farmland, with Tokyo city only 1 hour away. It is the perfect balance of work, fun and inspiration. I moved my life to Japan for a cultural shock. I am inspired by extremes and new cultures. So far I have found Japanese people to be the most polite and generous that I have come across. Everyday things like vending machines on nearly every corner, and heated toilet seats are uniquely Japanese and still make me smile every time I come across them. Cartoon porn magazines and Maid Cafes are something that would probably never take off anywhere else in the world, but are just some of the things that make Japan so unique and exciting. I am currently working on a range of projects including my first solo photo book, photographic submissions for Australian and international magazines/newspapers, and stock photos for Alamy (U.K) and Gekko Images (Australia). On top of this, I am about to […] Read More
This is one of the last shoots I did in Australia. It featured local model Ava Jinx, make-up was done by Lysha-Maree and I did the styling and photography. It was done in my home-studio and we had a lot of fun playing around with paint, eyelashes and props. Please note: there is a little bit of nudity in this video. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c03fEUcNo-w TECHNICAL: I kept the lighting fairly simple, with one light illuminating the white backdrop, one main light to camera-left and a hair-light skimming Ava’s hair on camera right. Check out my website for more fashion photos: www.aliciafox.net Read More
