Portrait: Rogers CEO Nadir Mohamed
Nadir Mohamed, CEO of Rogers Communications poses for a photo at the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald in Edmonton on October 7, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
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Portrait: Fort McMurray municipal councilor Phil Meagher
Posted by ryanjackson on Oct 24, 2010 in portrait
Phil Meagher, Deputy Superintendent for Fort McMurray Public School District is running for re-election as municipal councilor for Fort McMurray. Meagher poses for a photo in his office in Fort McMurray, Alta. on September 27, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Portrait: Farmer waiting for his crop to dry
It was a beautiful sunny day and I had the pleasure to drive about an hour out of town to photograph a farmer with his crop. The quality of his crop is great but it has way too much moisture from all of the rain and cool weather. He can’t harvest until we get some warmer weather to dry out the crop.
Farmer Albert Wagner stands in his unharvested barley crop near Stony Plain, Alta. on September 22, 2010. Wagner says it will be a good year if we get some warmer weather to dry out the saturated crop so he can harvest it. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Farmer Albert Wagner stands in his unharvested barley crop near Stony Plain, Alta. on September 22, 2010. Wagner says it will be a good year if we get some warmer weather to dry out the saturated crop so he can harvest it. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
To light the image I used a single Alien Bees ABR800 flash at full-power and shot on a Canon 5D Mark-II with a 24mm TS lens.
Group Portrait: Young Public School Trustee Candidates
Public school trustee candidates (left to right) Darryl Lagerquist, Heather MacKenzie, Michael Janz and Sarah Hoffman pose for a photo at McKay Avenue School in Edmonton on September 21, 2010. They are all under 30 years old or younger, and don't have kids. But all believe strongly that schools need to be more connected to the community and that school boards need to take that broader community into account when they make decisions. They are among a crop of candidates who break the traditional school trustee candidate model. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
I got an assignment to photograph four younger candidates who are running for school board trustee. (Read the story Young trustee candidates defy stereotypes ) Since they were younger I wanted to use edgier lighting and have more of a magazine look.
To light this image I used an Alien Bees ABR800 ring flash powered by a Pure Sine Inverter and an 18Ah Battery since there wasn’t a power source outside. I placed two 550EX flashes behind them at 45-degrees and zoomed the flashes to 50mm. They were set to full power. The ABR800 was at 1/4 or 1/2 power I think. It was a cloudy day so I didn’t need much power to overcome the ambient light.
The first few images had bad lens flare from the side lights so I taped tinfoil to the sides of the lights to block the light from hitting my lens. Tinfoil and tape is very handy to keep in your lighting bag!
On the camera side I used a 5D Mark-II and a Canon 24mm Tilt-Shift lens. I had the lens tilted all the way to keep the lines straight on the building as well as the people since I was shooting from a lower angle. I shot at 1/60sec, ISO200, f13.
Typically I shoot at low apertures however, since the Tilt-Shift lens blurs the top and bottom of the frame when you tilt the lens you need to shoot at a small aperture to make the image sharp. Notice how the legs and steps are a little bit softer and the faces are sharp.
Portrait of Dr. Holger Buchholz
Dr. Holger Buchholz, pediatric ventricular assist device (VAD) specialist poses for a photo at The Mazankowski Alberta Heart Institute in Edmonton on September 15, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
To light this image I used an Alien Bees ABR800 ring flash in front and a Canon 550EX flash with a 1/4 CTO (orange) gell and a Honl Grid behind him hitting the wall. I used a Canon 5D Mark-II and a 24-105mm IS lens at 60mm. When I asked him to smile the first time he said “Germans don’t smile…” It was pretty funny. He smiled for the rest of the shoot but I liked this one the best. Read the story VADs keep hope alive for ‘sickest of the sick’
Photo Story- Fort Chipewyan Water and Health Concerns
I spent August 23-27th in Fort Chipewyan with Edmonton Journal environment reporter Hanneke Brooymans. You can read her stories and see my photos and videos at edmontonjournal.com/fortchip
If you don’t know about the issues surrounding Fort Chipewyan I suggest you check out CBC’s special section and also their timeline which is about a year old now but will get you up to speed.
You back now? Great 
Basically cancer rates in Fort Chip are higher than they “should” be and there is a lot of controversy and confusion over why that is. Many attribute health problems to the fact that Fort Chipewyan is downstream from Fort McMurray and thus the oilsands development. Dozens of news agencies have reported on Fort Chip and about half a dozen documentaries have been done about the issue as well. It’s a big story and an important issue and I was lucky enough to spend a week up there and capture how the residents of the town feel.
Watch my short documentary of Fort Chipewyan resident’s concerns.
Fort Chipewyan residents have for years suspected that industrial activity upstream of them was connected to cancers and rare illnesses in their community. See Fort Chipewyan for yourself, and hear what residents have to say about the health problems. Video by Ryan Jackson/Edmonton Journal
Another issue is water quantity. In the late 1960’s a large dam was built in B.C. which dropped water levels in the Athabasca.
Go out on Lake Athabasca with Metis elder Raymond Ladouceur and see the changes he attributes to industrial development. Video by Ryan Jackson/Edmonton Journal. Read more about water issues with Fort Chipewyan at edmontonjournal.com/fortchip
Now here is what my still camera saw. A couple pictures were taken in Fort McMurray when we had a layover.
University of Alberta scientist Dr. David Schindler poses for a photo at the Journal office in Edmonton on September 1, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
This is the living room where Hanneke and I slept in during the week we were up in Fort Chip. We didn't find a place to stay until the last minute and were prepared to camp there if need be.
Moose meat smokes over a fire near in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. during a cultural gathering on August 25, 2010. Many residents still eat traditional meals from the land such as moose and fish despite possibly elevated levels of pollution. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Elder Cookie Simpson during an interview in her home in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 25, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Allan Adam, Chief of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation looks out over lake Athabasca in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 26, 2010. Adam remembers diving off of the dock when he was a young boy and the water levels were much higher. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Elder Steve Courtoreille poses for a photo in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 26, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Elder Steve Courtoreille poses for a photo in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 26, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
The sun rises over Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 26, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
FORT CHIPEWYAN, ALTA.: AUGUST 26, 2010 -- The sun rises over small islands surrounding Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 26, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
The receded shoreline of Fort Chipewyan, Alta. along lake Athabasca on August 26, 2010. Residents recall once being able to sail their boats right up to the main steet. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
A view of Syncrude's base mine which is now a tailings pond near Fort McMurray, Alta. (Ryan Jackson/Edmonton Journal)
The sun rises on Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 26, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Dr. John O'Connor poses for a photo above Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 25, 2010. O'Connor first voiced his concerns in 2006 of elevated levels of rare cancers and diseases with the residents of Fort Chipewyan which is downstream on the Athabasca river from oilsands industry in Fort McMurray. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Dr. John O'Connor poses for a photo with his wife Charlene above Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 25, 2010. O'Connor first voiced his concerns in 2006 of elevated levels of rare cancers and diseases with the residents of Fort Chipewyan which is downstream on the Athabasca river from oilsands industry in Fort McMurray. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Dr. John O'Connor in poses for a photo at the Fort Chipewyan Nursing Station in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 25, 2010. O'Connor first voiced his concerns in 2006 of elevated levels of rare cancers and diseases with the residents of Fort Chipewyan which is downstream on the Athabasca river from oilsands industry in Fort McMurray. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
![Melody Lepine, Director of Government and Industry relations for Mikisew Cree First Nation poses for a photo in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 25, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal). [Note: image was shot with a tilt-shft lens]](http://punkoryan.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/13-FortChip-0R9Q1429.jpg "Melody Lepine, Director of Government and Industry relations for Mikisew Cree First Nation poses for a photo in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 25, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal). [Note: image was shot with a tilt-shft lens]")
Elder Gracie Thacker poses for a photo in front of her home in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 24, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Metis fisherman and trapper Raymond Ladouceur points to the exposed rock along shore lines to show how much water has dropped along Lake Athabasca near in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 24, 2010. Ladouceur says water levels have dropped significantly over the years due to the Bennett dam and industrial water consumption around Fort McMurray. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Metis fisherman and trapper Raymond Ladouceur looks at the low water levels on Lake Athabasca near in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 24, 2010. Ladouceur says water levels have dropped significantly over the years due to the Bennett dam and industrial water consumption around Fort McMurray. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Dr. John O'Connor and his wife Charlene walk along monument hill in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 23, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
A view of Syncrude's base mine which is now a tailings pond near Fort McMurray, Alta. (Ryan Jackson/Edmonton Journal)
A scenic view of Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 23, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Signs left over from a 2008 rally at the Alberta Legislature sit against the wall in a community multi-complex in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 23, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
A pole at the Fort Chipewyan airport shows the distance to cities across Canada in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. on August 23, 2010. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal).
Portrait: Legally blind Engineering Student
Mikkel Arnston, a mechanical engineering student at the University of Alberta who is legally blind. He poses for a photo at the U of A on June 3, 2010. Photo by Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal Read the story: U of A student loses sight, gains courage to finish degree
Portrait: Journal Staff writer Ben Gelinas
Journal Staff writer Ben Gelinas in Edmonton on June 2, 2010. Photo by Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal
Portrait of Canadian actor Paul Gross
Canadian actor Paul Gross poses for a photo at the Hotel Macdonald in Edmonton on April 21, 2010. Gross is in town to promote the release of his upcoming movie, a Western spoof called Gunless. Photo by Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal
I shot this 35mm f2.8 on a 5D Mark-II, available light.
Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority Girls
Kappa Alpha Theta sorority members (left to right) Kelin Flanagan, Caitlin Phare, Emily Shimbashi, Lauren Greaves and Hana Laura Yamamoto pose for a photo at the sorority house near the University of Alberta in Edmonton on April 1, 2010. Photo by Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal
To light this image I used two White Lightning 1600 strobes. Both at full power. Shot with a Canon 1D Mark-III. 1/320sec, f9, ISO100, 16-35mm L.
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