A Little Music... (pic)

[Doug Barber]

Greetings all:
Just back from the great white north and now I’ll spend the next several days going through a couple photos...
One image that I did do is this one of some musical instruments.
Not that it's that great a photo but the circumstances that the shot was taken in and why is kind of interesting.

Last week I’m in northern Canada in what many would consider to be the middle of nowhere. Well even for me this place as so darn close to the end of the world that I’m sure you could see the world's end just over the hill.
I'm walking over this hill and all of a sudden I see a guy sitting on a rock playing a guitar.
To say this is a strange site would very much be an understatement, as you just never see anyone in this part of the world.
So I walk up to the guy and start up a conversation with him. He tells me he lives there and plays music as a hobby. Then he invites me to his home to show me the little music studio he has built… in what looks like an old "ice fishing shack"...
I get to the shack and the high Tec. gear that this little plywood shack has in it blows me away. Without knowing a darn thing about recording gear and music in general I'm sure there was $100,000.00 in a room that was no bigger than 12ft. by 12 ft with a wood stove in the corner.
All the gear is being run by a diesel generator, as there is not hydroelectric power within hundreds of miles. My newfound friend tells me that he is recording a CD and has been working on it for (3) years. He plays me a couple tracks and I'm sitting there with my mouth hanging open at the quality that I’m hearing. He has played every instrument on the recording and mixed it all together.
He asks me if I could take a photo for his album cover.... He explains what he wants and I put my brain to work to see what I could come up with.
The interesting thing with this shot is its 100% natural light being (directed) into the scene from different directions and angles. I used a (thin) red shirt to substitute as a filter and tried to create a "studio type" shot without any gear or lights or help from PS.
I’m quit happy with the results I got and my new buddy is tickled pink...
Heck I even got caribou stew for supper before I left.

Hope you enjoy….

Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)

 

[Leigh]

Doug,

Not only do you have a beautiful photo, but as usual, you have one heck of an interesting story!!! Leave it to you to wander up on some guy in the middle of nowhere and get a job shooting a CD cover! Way to go...job well done as usual.

 

[Flew]

Very cool pic Doug, and a very cool story. If it had been me, I would have had visions of Deliverance, and run away as fast as I could. :biggrin:

 

[andreasb]

Awesome!

And it proves one can get great results with less, given some creative thought. Very inspirational!

What about getting some samples of the music?

 

[greyflash]

Your story is fascinating and the image you took exceptional. To think of running into someone at the end of the world and then to find out that he has a diesel powered recording studio is almost more than one could believe. Next thing you know this CD will be a big hit and your cover will be famous. Only in the frozen tundra on the north country. Way to go. :smile:

 

[Doug Barber]

Doug,

Not only do you have a beautiful photo, but as usual, you have one heck of an interesting story!!! Leave it to you to wander up on some guy in the middle of nowhere and get a job shooting a CD cover! Way to go...job well done as usual.

Thanks Leigh...
But remember I might be (wandering) up your way one of these days and then I'll trade the Caribou stew for some of that cake you do.....
Thanks again

 

[Doug Barber]

Very cool pic Doug, and a very cool story. If it had been me, I would have had visions of Deliverance, and run away as fast as I could. :biggrin:

you know Frank.... when I'm in the bush I'm right at home... But get me in a city or anywhere that you have more than about 500 people and I'm as nervous as a "Mouse in a pet shop full of cat's"

 

[Doug Barber]

And it proves one can get great results with less, given some creative thought. Very inspirational!

What about getting some samples of the music?

Thanks Andrea:
With the first 1/2 of the CD taking this guy (3) years one should not hold your dreath for him to finish it.
But I did get a sample disk of what he has done so far and it's a hit in my house...
Thanks again for the kind words.

 

[Leigh]

Thanks Leigh...
But remember I might be (wandering) up your way one of these days and then I'll trade the Caribou stew for some of that cake you do.....
Thanks again

Just say the word and I'll do better than just cake! If you are ever in our area, I'll fix you an entire dinner...and end it w/the cake of your chosing! (all I ever need is 24 hours notice).

 

[Doug Barber]

Your story is fascinating and the image you took exceptional. To think of running into someone at the end of the world and then to find out that he has a diesel powered recording studio is almost more than one could believe. Next thing you know this CD will be a big hit and your cover will be famous. Only in the frozen tundra on the north country. Way to go. :smile:

Hi Gordon:
You run into the strangest things some times... I guess every corner of our globe has people fallowing their dreams and hoping to be located in a place for that dream to come to the surface.
I once met a Chatholic Preist who spent 35 years in the Actic Islands above Canada photographing the Eskimo people. All his shots were in B&W and the quality of the images were unreal. But yet his work has never been recognized and it must be sitting in boxes some place.
Just another guy following a dream.....

 

[Doug Barber]

Just say the word and I'll do better than just cake! If you are ever in our area, I'll fix you an entire dinner...and end it w/the cake of your chosing! (all I ever need is 24 hours notice).

Now that sounds real fine....
But just remember that the road bewteen us has traffic that goes both ways.... I will not have the cooking skills you will but I (might) have the ability to tour you around to a fun spot of two....

Thanks

 

[Steve S]

What a story Doug!

Very creative work, I must say. To say the whole story is incredible, is an understatement. So, no pic of the musician himself? :wink:

 

[Jarrell]

Doug, you remind me of my

good friend, Bubba Quackenbush. You both could strike up a conversation with a fence post and it would be interesting! I'm glad he liked the photo and he's thinking about how he's just sitting there minding his business, wondering what he's going to do for an album cover when a photographer walks up..
My two questions are, what type music does he play and what the heck are you doing hiking around way up there?
Jarrell

 

[Doug Barber]

My two questions are, what type music does he play and what the heck are you doing hiking around way up there?
Jarrell

Greetings Jarrell:
I'm not sure he even thought about an album cover till I asked him if he was going to take a picture of his recording studio for his album cover....

His music seems to be a cross between country blue grass and a little jazz. (At least thge pieces I heard.)

I was up there on (non photo) work and just took some time one day to do a bit of a walk about....
Good to hear from you again.

 

[Frits]

Nice picture, Doug and one helluvva story.
Thanks for sharing.