Michael Bradley Photography - www.mbphoto.co.nz

ANZ Champs Head Shots 2012

2012-03-04T14:27:00.000-08:00

Just for a bit of fun - thanks to all the netball players.

Time for a facelift.

2012-02-21T00:12:00.000-08:00

It must be the time of year, but I decided it was about time for a facelift for my website. I wanted it to reflect the work I have been doing lately and more importantly work I am passionate about.
Please have a look at the results at www.mbphoto.co.nz

Squash NZ

2012-02-15T13:41:00.000-08:00

A little while ago now, New Zealand Squash asked me to shoot a number of images to update their marketing material. The players were fantastic to deal with and made for a really enjoyable shoot..... however they did fire the ball a little too close to me for my liking!
I can now share some of the images from the day.

Looking up...

2012-02-09T14:57:00.000-08:00

Sydney and the X100

2012-02-02T15:12:00.000-08:00

A couple of Sydney's best restaurants treated us well over the weekend including Quay and Tetsuyas. Now back to work to pay off the debt.
Following are some snap shots taken on my little camera - the fantastic Fujifilm X100.

Fine-dining finance.

2012-02-01T13:47:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to a story that ran in the Sunday Star Times recently.... plus a couple of extra pics.

Its always a lot of fun to be in a professional kitchen trying your best not to get in the way while firing off a few snaps.
Fine-dining-finance

Merediths Restaurant - new photos and website

2011-12-20T22:15:00.000-08:00

I have had the pleasure of shooting images with the talented owner/chef of Merediths, Michael Meredith for their new website.
All of the images on the new site, bar a couple, were shot by myself over two photo shoots at the restaurant and I can now share the results of our labour.

To see the new site please go to http://www.merediths.co.nz.

Champions Trophy - Hockey

2011-12-14T19:29:00.000-08:00

Just finished photographing the Champions Trophy Hockey tournament for the French news agency AFP. Australia won the event for the fourth time running, with NZ finishing 4th.

Jack Ralston - The Sports Insider

2011-11-16T13:46:00.000-08:00

I had the chance to meet and shoot the cover for Jack Ralston's book - The Sports Insider (written with Steve "Killer" Kilgallon,).
The book was released at the start of the week and was all over the media last week due to a couple of lines about two of 1990's All Black's. I am sure the free publicity will help with sales. I look forward to having a read once I finish Steve Jobs' bio.

Tale of Two Tarts

2011-10-31T15:15:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of different takes on a tart shot for Laura Faire's food page in the Sunday Star Times.
The second image was used in the paper but I really do like the first shot as well.

All Blacks Parade in Auckland

2011-10-25T20:28:00.000-07:00

The AB's celebrated their win with a parade up Queen Street in Auckland and then in Christchurch and Wellington.
The fans in New Zealand really came out in big numbers to show their support.

24 Years.......

2011-10-25T11:10:00.000-07:00

Finally after 24 years we can again be called the Rugby World Champions.
I think some of the fans would say the last 5 minutes of the match felt like 24 years....
Here are some pics of the fans at the cloud in downtown Auckland watching the 2011 RWC and celebrating the final.

Sir Richard Branson....

2011-10-24T15:21:00.000-07:00

I had the chance to walk the Rugby World Cup fan trail with Sir Richard Branson... well me and 50,000 others. I would like to think I was the only photographer taking pics but Richard was happy to stop talk and have pics with so many people along the way. He seems to be a really nice guy who just happens to be worth a few billion quid.
Here are a couple of my pics and a link to Richards personal blog where he has posted some more of my pics, but forgot to credit them to me..... oh well.
Unfortunately I somehow missed out on the invite to his daughters wedding next month on his island.

http://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/blog/fairytale-ending-for-all-blacks-new-zealand

Watching the All Black bus heading to the stadium.

Elections 2011

2011-10-16T15:23:00.000-07:00

It must be election time when politicians start posing up for photos. With only weeks to go until the election it has been some what lost with the rugby on at the moment. But no doubt as soon as the rugby is done there will be many babies and politicians getting together for photos.

Here are a couple of images of Pita Sharples that worked out OK, shot on location at the parties launch with natural light and in record time (about 3 minutes).

Irene Van Dyk's 200

2011-10-09T18:47:00.000-07:00

Silver Fern Irene Van Dyk played in her 200th test match last week when she lined up against England.

When you think that the Ferns play around 8 tests per year in a non World Cup/Comms game year and then about 12 tests during those years you are looking at one amazing achievement which I do not think will ever be surpassed.

Irene again showed she is a world class shooter and I would not bet against her making 250 tests..... 300?? maybe.

I have had the pleasure of shooting Irene shooting, for nearly half of these matches and she is a always an absolute pleasure to deal with.

Above - One day out from test match 200.

200

Taking it to Aussies

Smiling, but ready for a fight...

New Zealand Fashion Week

2011-09-11T23:52:00.000-07:00

NZ Fashion week has come and gone, a little in the shadow of the Rugby World Cup starting so soon after.
I was only able to shoot one of the shows, which was a shame, as it is always a really interesting assignment. In the past I have had the opportunity to photograph the whole event, with an open brief, which means long days but some interesting images.
Here are a few photos from the Shoe of the Week show, shot for and also sponsored by the Sunday mag in the Sunday Star Times.

Kumeu Hot Rod Show.

2011-08-31T20:41:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when a job does not go the way you thought, it is best to look at it from another angle.
When I had an assignment to shoot the Hot Rod Show out West, the pics were just not working out, so I decided to do a simple series of portraits of the people at the show.
I was pleasantly surprised that I did not get turned down once when asking people to pose for a portrait.
It was mid day and the sun was out, so I asked the subjects to pose in the shade, in front of a simple wall with very little direction from myself.
The images were planned for a picture page in the Sunday Star Times before that page was dropped in a paper redesign, so here they are.
Lots of fun and a big thanks go to all of the people who kindly posed for me.

Well worth the 3 minutes of my time.....

2011-08-16T01:04:00.000-07:00

A great video I came across on Vimeo, I hope I see more by this filmmaker.
I am always amazed by the stories people have to tell and then the photographers/filmmakers have the pleasure of sharing them with everyone. Inspiring story and well shot.

Josh, food and a camera phone

2011-08-14T21:08:00.000-07:00

Just for fun - photos taken on my phone... my middle son Josh (2) doing his favourite thing, getting up close and personal with food.

SKYCITY - Baccarat.

2011-07-31T15:18:00.000-07:00

I recently saw the finished product from a photo shoot I did a while ago for SKYCITY. The image was on a billboard at the Auckland Airport along with a number of other SKYCITY images.

The shoot was to illustrate the game Baccarat, lots of fun with the team at SKYCITY and helping me on the day was Matt Crawford, who was invaluable.

Once the shoot was finished I handed over the images to SKYCITY and I was really happy with the great retouching done by Dan Coroian-Vlad from D2 Creative Retouching, who gave the image great impact.

World Netball Champs 2011

2011-07-24T21:52:00.000-07:00

Here is a slideshow of my images from the World Netball Champs.

Merediths - final of the 3 part series.

2011-07-17T21:57:00.000-07:00

Here is the final part to my three part series on Merediths restaurant in Auckland. This is a slide show of still images shot over a few days at the restaurant.
Many thanks to Michael Meredith and all the team at the restaurant.

World Netball Champs 2011 - Grand Final

2011-07-13T21:10:00.000-07:00

The Silver Ferns v Australian Diamonds rivalry has reached a new level over the past few years to something rarely seen in sport.
With the double extra time win last year at the Commonwealth Games for the Silver Ferns and now the extra time win for the Diamonds at the WNC 2011 the teams could not be closer.
It was heart breaking for all of the Silver Ferns to come so close to their goal of G2 (Gold at both the Comm. Games and 2011 World Champs).
I have been lucky enough to photograph a number of these matches and look forward to witnessing the ongoing battle in the coming years.

Just one goal.................

World Netball Champs - the tall and short of it

2011-07-07T21:56:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you are defending someone that is 36cm taller than you?

Get your team mate to help you out.

World Netball Champs - Half way

2011-07-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Its all been a bit of a blur but I am half way through the champs and looking forward to the semi's and finals.
I had a very small window to have some fun and this is what I ended up with.... somehow I do not think they will end up on page one of the sports section anytime soon.....

World Netball Champs

2011-07-04T19:12:00.000-07:00

The WNC011 started a couple of days ago in Singapore, with the opening ceremony, followed by one match on Sunday night. The Silver Ferns then played their opening match against Fiji on Monday.
I am lucky enough to be shooting the matches both for the Silver Ferns and the official photographer for the tournament. So 6 games down and around 25 to go in 5 days.

It always amazes me who turns up to cheer along their team. This time it was Fiji's leader Frank Bainimarama.

Meredith's Part 2

2011-06-27T23:37:00.000-07:00

The second part to the work I have been doing on the Auckland restaurant - Meredith's.
I will be posting one further video which will be a series of stills.
I hope you enjoy.....

Meredith's Restaurant

2011-06-18T15:22:00.000-07:00

A project that I have been working on over the last little while which I am finally able to share. The photo essay was published in today's Sunday Star Times.
A lot of fun shooting both video and still and a fantastic restaurant and chef.
There are as couple more video's and slide shows still to come and I will post these in the coming weeks.

Baby crocs hatch.

2011-06-04T16:41:00.000-07:00

Further to my post about eggs a little while ago - eggs of a different kind.

Butterfly Creek had six Saltwater Crocs hatch this week and I photographed the last one that came snapping into the world.

Silver Ferns - two tests and then the WNC 2011

2011-06-04T16:32:00.000-07:00

The Silver Ferns look like they mean business.
With the ANZ Champs having just finished, the Silver Ferns are now in camp for two tests against Australia and then off to the World Netball Champs in Singapore in early July.

Early mornings are sometime worth the effort.

2011-06-04T16:20:00.000-07:00

Why can we not have lovely light like this at mid day?

Firebirds win the ANZ Champs Grand Final.

2011-05-22T19:02:00.000-07:00

The Firebirds continued their unbeaten run in 2011 to win the Grand Final in Brisbane against the Northern Mystics.

Firebirds v Mystics - ANZ Champs Grand Final

2011-05-16T11:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend the Queensland Firebirds will host the Northern Mystics in the ANZ Champs final.
The Mystics will be hoping to be the first New Zealand team to bring the ANZ Champs trophy to this side of the tasman and it will be one tough netball game....and hopefully some nice pics as well.

Not too tough, as netball is a non contact sport.....

Friends will be made......

with interesting match-ups across the court....

Annabelle White - Baghdad Eggs

2011-05-11T00:36:00.000-07:00

One of the dishes I photographed recently for the Sunday Star Times, a really good looking dish and a sad reminder to myself that I cannot eat eggs, be they poached, fried or scambled.

Eyes on the ANZ Champs Finals

2011-05-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

The ANZ Champs now moves into the final series with two teams from Australia and two teams from New Zealand into the finals.
In my role as offical photographer I should be impartial however it would be great if a NZ team was able to lift the trophy in a few weeks time and bring it to this side of the tasman for the first time.

The Magic's Irene Van Dyk and Pulse's Katrina Grant in action during the last match in Taupo.

Silver Ferns - 2011

2011-04-28T14:22:00.000-07:00

The Silver Ferns have a full on year this year including the Netball World Champs in Singapore and a number of tests both here in New Zealand and Australia.
The team for the champs was named last week and the members of that team and the wider squad got together for photo shoots, media commitments, measurements for their number 1's and TV promo's.
Starting at around 7.30am and finishing around 5pm it was a busy day with the results to be seen on the TV screens and papers in the coming months.
I was lucky enough to be shooting some behind the scenes, head shots, a promo shoot for New World and some portraits (some I will post here soon).
Having worked with the Ferns for over 10 years as the official photographer its always fun to work with them even though they are quick to keep a photographer in his place in front of his clients. I have learnt never again to ask Maria, Laura, Casey or Katrina to 'pop' over here for a photo or 'pop' that shoulder forward.

The Food Photographer.

2011-04-17T16:45:00.000-07:00

One part of my job I really enjoy and am lucky enough to be doing more and more of, is food photography.
I happened to find the following video featuring Sjan - a food photographer for the big 3. A very interesting watch.
After watching this I realised I still have a lot to learn about the art of food photography, I wonder if Sjan is looking for an assistant.
Enjoy.

The Practical Photographer - 1893.

2011-04-17T00:21:00.000-07:00

I came across this book when I was looking for something to read in my bookshelf.
I started flicking though the pages and found some interesting insights which seem as relevant today as they were back in 1893.

I really like the quote on page 207 - "Something of fresh interest every day is the lot of him who is convinced that he has found his vocation in photography"

ANZ Champs netball - time lapse

2011-04-13T11:40:00.000-07:00

Another timelapse video, mainly shot on the Canon 24mm tilt shift lens.
The Tactix v Mystics fundraising match following the massive earthquake in Christchurch New Zealand.

Benjamin Bradley

2011-04-11T22:56:00.000-07:00

One of the things I need to do more, is to photograph what I see every day.
Benji on his first day home.

Round the Bays Fun Run 2011

2011-04-11T20:00:00.000-07:00

A fun time lapse video I did while covering the Round the Bays for the Sunday Star Times.

The dark side - a blog

2011-04-09T14:28:00.000-07:00

I have entered the dark side - blogging.
However it will be more of a showcase of my latest photographic work than a blog talking about myself and also a place to showcase some personal projects that I am working on.

I am not sure if its the best time to start a bog as I do have a few things on my plate at the moment..... but I hope I can use this to share some of my latest and personal work that I am working on. This will also give me a small kick in the right direction to keep up with these projects.
I hope you see some images that you like.