General update

Update:

1. STILL NO PHOTO ASSISTANT found for the wedding shoot. Let me remind you that it's in 2 weeks and that it pays $500. I'm starting to get nervous here. In other news, I contacted my local camera store to rent a Canon 7D camera. We'll see what lens it comes with; they'll say in the estimate. If not specified, I'll rent a Canon 24-105mm f/4.0. An aperture of f/4.0 is required for better focus, especially with moving subjects. The assistant will either use their own dSLR or my Canon T1i.
2. STILL NO HELPER found for housework. While most of the work is done, there's still some stuff left to do. So please come over help me finish cleaning up my house and backyard whenever you can.
3. STILL NO ONE came over for photo processing. My backlog just increased in length with my coverage of GeekFest Montreal 2013.
4. Anime North 2nd deposit paid! Otakon 1st deposit deadline is Sat, Apr 27. I have yet to submit panels to AN.
5. Otakuthon hotel problem: I was only able to book 1 room for 1 night - Saturday night rooms have sold out and I can only book 1 room at a time. I have yet to pre-register for the con.
6. proposes to rent the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 for Otakon, but I want it for Anime North - or at least June. If I don't get one by then (with a co-owner), I'll ask him to rent it.

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I'll forego with my custom Journal skin and just use the default Deviant Green one.

How's it going everyone? I've been busy like you can't imagine it... So busy that I didn't check my deviantART until now, with hundreds of notifications piled up!

Here are the subjects of this journal entry:

1. What's happening
2. Photo backlog
3. Convention status
4. Next cons: GeekFest 2013 and Nadeshicon 2013
5. Anime North 2013 plans
6. An ownership proposal
7. An upcoming marriage
8. Help wanted: Housework
9. Help wanted: Photo processing
10. Help wanted: Photo assistant for the marriage

Please bear with this wall of text!

1. What's happening

I'll say things to the point, I'm at a turning point in my life where I'm about to change residences, after living in the current one for 13 years. I bought a unit at a condo tower under construction and will move from my house to the condo. My brother, who lives with me at the moment, will do the same. As we can't own 3 residences at the same time, we'll sell our old one. To make our current house sellable, it has to be presentable. In its current state, it wouldn't sell for more than $405K. We've been improving, refurbishing, clearing and cleaning this house since mid-February. We already hired construction workers to finish our unfinished basement, and now we're doing the rest of the housework single-handedly. It's a lot of work and we're always tired at the end of the day.

Our goal is to sell the house for $525K. It was bought in 2000 at $195K(!) - see how real estate values have risen over the years! (My condo unit costs about $250K and my bro's one is about $350K.) The $525K is a reachable goal, but to make it happen, the house needs to be ready to be put on the sales market, ie. be presentable and open for buyers-visitors, as soon as possible, and with just me and my bro doing the housework single-handedly, we're really shorthanded with the huge amount of tasks to do. We sleep late every night, trying to do as much as possible. We would really appreciate any help that our friends can give, as the more tasks are done and completed, the earlier we can return to do other things. Our benefit of using your help to complete the housework faster and earlier will become a benefit for you to see us back to normal life, planned activities and relationships faster and earlier. The longer we're bogged down by doing the work single-handedly, the less time we can spend with our friends, socialize with them and do other things.

So if you have some time and energy to lend us a hand, please do so, as we really need it!

2. Photo backlog

My cosplay photo backlog goes very far behind... Months you say? No, more than that. YEARS. I have a huge amount of untouched, unprocessed and unpublished cosplay photos on my computer that have been piling up since the days I started to attend more cons and photoshoots, around early 2010. In 2007-2009, I used to able to finish an entire event's photos - including hall cosplay shots, private shoots, journalistic shots and live show coverage, plus random shots and collages - before the next one arrived. But I've been doing more things in my life from 2010 onwards, and this new cycle began:

1. I attend an event (con/shoot) and take cosplay photos.
2. I start processing the photos during my increasingly sparse free time.
3. Before I finish the photo set, a new event arrives and I must put on hold the processing of the current event's shots.
4. Repeat from step #1.

This gives me an endless collection of unfinished photo sets. As I now know I'll never finish a set unless the event is super short, I have to put certain types of photos in priority. They are, in decreasing importance:

1. Private shoots (scheduled, random, etc)
2. Hall cosplay shots (walkaround, gatherings, mini/micro-shoots, etc)
3. Collages
4. Journalistic shots (crowds/ambiance, interactions between people, random performances, etc)
5. Live show coverage (Masquerades, Skit Contests, Cosplay Chess games, Cosplay RPG battles, etc)
6. Random shots (funny moments, signs/stickers/posters/drawings, friends fooling around, other candid shots, etc)
7. Anything else (videos, etc)

I always push to have most privates shoots and all hall cosplay shots finished before my next important event. If I attend a con or shoot for the first time, I'll also try to publish a lot of journalistic shots. Masquerades take a very long time to process since I basically "machine-gun" the entire show, capturing action shot after action shot, and I have to choose the best shots among my bursts. Private shoots also take a long time to process since image quality is the most important factor, and I must determine among my albums which shots are the best and work extensively on them to eliminate as much defects as possible to provide the best-looking images.

I used to take 30 mins to process per photo, but I've been optimizing my workflow and now have reduced it to 15 mins. If I'm in a rush, I would lower my standards and spend only 5 mins per photo. But I would never do that for my best photoshoots - image quality is very difficult to sacrifice.

Hall cosplay and journalistic shots are straightforward to process, though the constantly-changing backgrounds and lightings force me to adjust each photo individually, since each environment demands different image processing settings.

I do video too. But to expand into this endeavor requires the creation and management of a film crew, which is extremely difficult for me to do at the moment since I'm more known for photos and less people are "video-versed". The best that I could do was this video (and our director was really excellent!): www.youtube.com/watch?v=_c1q9X…

I'm asking everyone who I owe photos to please bear with me as I catch up with this insanely-long backlog of cosplay photos!

3. Convention status

Current convention plans and status in their planning:

1. GeekFest Montreal 2013: Held on Sat, Apr 13, 2013 at Hotel Espresso. The new staff changed the date and location, and I only knew about it the other day. I'll be there, doing walkaround and journalistic shots only.
2. Nadeshicon 2013: Travel group is 4/4 (3M + 1F), lodging is 5/5 (previous 4 + 1M). Transport is by car (driver & car TBA), host is . My 3rd time at this con, which has now expanded to 3 days.
3. Ottawa Comiccon 2013: Not attending unless someone drives me there and hosts me at their hotel room. Alternately, an Ottawa friend can host us at their place.
4. Anime North 2013: Hotel room is 3/4 (2M + 1F). We're looking for a female, non-smoker to balance out the gender ratio in our room (to get 2M + 2F). 2nd deposit is due Fri, Apr 19, 2013. FYI, transport is $110 per person and hotel is $85.
5. Otakon 2013: Still haven't paid anything yet. The 1st deposit of $125 is due Sat, Apr 27, 2013. A reminder that transport is $210 per person and hotel is $115. The 2nd deposit of $200 is due Sat, Jul 20, 2013.
6. Otakuthon 2013: 2013 website not yet launched. Will book 3 hotel rooms at the Holiday Inn with 5 people in each of them. We're 11/15 at the moment (8M + 3F), with rooms #1 & #3 already full. We're looking for 4 more people to fill up room #2. Cost per person should be around $80.
7. Costume-Con 2014: Looking for 1 more travel/hotel/con mate, preferably female. We're 2M + 1F in our group right now. Badge is $49; hotel room and transport are TBA.
8. Japan Expo 2014: Is a go for July 2014! Cost per person all-included is a minimum of $2,000 - the more you spend, the more "comfortable" your trip will be. Contact trip organizer Pheli-Sora for details.

As you can see, I'm trying to travel farther and farther away from Montreal for cons. My farthest con so far is Katsucon 2013, at 963 km from my location.

4. Next cons: GeekFest 2013 and Nadeshicon 2013

I've been busy, but I'll attend GeekFest this weekend. I'm 90% sure I can make it. But I'll only walk around, taking photos "on a whim". Nothing serious. Perhaps the relaxacon I've been looking for.

Then a couple weeks later I'll be at Nadeshicon. I'll be staying at 's place, along with travelmates & Joey. We'll probably take Joey's car as it's a manual-transmission, which is more fuel-efficient. I know I've been approached to offer a ride to a 5th person, but that'll depend on their luggage.

I've been offered the position of Official Convention Photographer again. I submitted my interest but am still waiting for their approval.

5. Anime North 2013 plans

Just another Anime North trip, with the usual Otaku Anime travel group... or is it?

This year, they reduced to 1 bus and moved to the Marriott Hotel. That my friend, is a 20-min walk from the main con area. ProTip: Never stay at more than 20 mins away from the con. Being at the Marriott is simply borderline on that ProTip. I hope the AN bus shuttle do rounds at that hotel. On the good side, I can stay late for the Moonlight Ball, since it's held there!

Otherwise, I'm adding 30 mins to all my meal breaks since I have to "commute" between the resto strip and the hotel. Panels have not yet been submitted, nor my Press application.

6. An ownership proposal

I want to own a new lens, the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X DX AF (for Canon) ultra-wideangle constant-aperture zoom lens. But with prices ranging from $560 on eBay to $820 in stores, it's too costly for me to purchase it by myself.


The Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 ultra-wideangle zoom lens

So here's my proposal: I propose that me and another photographer (a Canon user) chip in some money together to buy this lens. I suggest 50-50 of the total cost. We would own 50-50 this lens; we would pass it to each other whenever one of us needs it. The order would be placed in my name and shipped to my place if we order it online, but I'll pass it to my co-owner whenever he/she wants it, and vice versa.

The lens would be a shared asset that each of the co-owners would use half the time during any given timeframe (1 month, 1 year, etc). We would have equal responsibility for its cleanup and maintenance.

If one of us really wants to keep the lens to him/herself, then he/she would pay the other co-owner the half-amount paid during the order. Ownership of the lens would then be fully transferred to the payer and be then 100% theirs to keep and use. The full owner can still lend the lens to his/her former co-owner, but that friend cannot keep it and must return it to the full owner after using it.

So, who wants to own a Tokina 11-16mm with me?

7. An upcoming marriage

Some of you may know that my friend and her boyfriend Roshy are getting married this year. Others may know that their wedding will be on May 4th.


Roshy (R) proposes to LeiLei-ko on stage at the Anime North 2012 Masquerade

But what you don't know is: I'll be their Official Wedding Photographer!

I don't do wedding shoots, but since they trust me and I know them, I'll do it, for the challenge. Plus, it'll be a change from all the cosplay shoots I've been doing.

But it won't be an easy task. Weddings are very important events in people's lives, and the coverage of them is of utmost importance. Wedding photogs are the creators of the memories of those fabulous days. It is therefore critical that the chosen photographers do their jobs without failures. There's relatively little tolerance for failure at these events, and the wedding parties count on them to provide the best photos taken at the most crucial moments.

To do this job, I'll rent a camera better than the ones I have right now. I'll get a better lens too. I should have enough speedlites (flashes), and I already have lighting gear.

I never did a wedding shoot before. I have no one to shadow to learn the ropes of wedding photography. The only thing I can do is, to learn from online tutorials and videos. It's not "how to take beautiful photos" that I need to know, it's "what to do at weddings and how to take those photos". I'll shoot Roshy & LeiLei-ko's wedding with absolutely no experience/practice, but with improved gear and some general knowledge. This is going to be fun but awkward, oh boy!

But they'll pay me! As friends, I'll only charge them 50% of what seasoned pros usually charge ($1.25K instead of $2.5K), but I'll do what I can to be as good as the pros, even if I ain't one.

8. Help wanted: Housework

- Description: We need to make our house presentable to be able to sell it. To do this, it has to be cleaned and refurbished. As it's only me and my brother doing all the housework, we're very shorthanded at the moment. Any help that we can get would be the welcome.
- Requirements: You have some free time in the morning, afternoon or evening. You have the strength and energy to do housework and chores. You know how to do these general tasks and are not afraid of dirtiness and messiness. You offer your help as a volunteer and good friend.
- Optional: The longer you can stay, the more work can be done; also, helping us earlier is better than later. You have skills in carpenting, painting, housekeeping or gardening. If you know things we can do to improve the house furthermore, you can offer those suggestions to us.
- How to help me: Send me a dA Note, an email or text message and I'll reply with my address. You can come to my place by public transit or by car. You can also bring tools and cleaning products, if you think they'll help us in our tasks. For a list of things to do, please ask me.

9. Help wanted: Photo processing

- Description: My cosplay photo backlog has grown to a size that's no longer manageable and it must be downsized immediately before photos end up in the "catacombs" of my computer. Moreover, cosplayers are asking me EVERY DAY when I'll send them their photos, including ones taken years ago. I'm unable to keep up with all the things I have to do, so anyone who can offer their help to clear up this backlog would be the most welcome.
- Requirements: You'll have to travel physically to my place, where I'll share the photos with you. You'll work on those photos next to me, side by side. You must have a basic understanding of my cosplay photography workflow, which is explained here: fav.me/d58fv0x fav.me/d5b6s8n Part 2 is the relevant part for photo processing, but part 1 is important to read too.
- Optional: You can use my laptop or bring your own, or even bring your desktop PC. You should have knowledge of Adobe Bridge, Camera Raw and Photoshop. You should have those software installed on your laptop; if not, you can use those on mine. You should have experience in processing cosplay photos; if not, I can show you how. In fact, I'll show you everything that I do with cosplay photos before you start editing them. Lastly, if you have to leave early, you can keep the image files on your laptop and continue working on them at your home, sending me the finished files once you're done.
- How to help me: Send me a dA Note, an email or text message and I'll reply with my address. State whether you're bringing your own laptop or not, and if you have Adobe Bridge, Camera Raw and Photoshop installed or not. If you can bring a computer monitor, please do so, as editing on small laptop screens doesn't produce good results (unless you own a large Macbook or something!). I'll transfer some of the image files over to your computer (or mine if you don't bring one) and you'll edit those photos on it. At the end, you send me the resulting XMP files, which I'll use to "develop" the RAW files with the adjustments and croppings you made.

10. Help wanted: Photo assistant for the marriage

- Description: Roshy & are getting married on Sat, May 4, 2013 and I've been selected as their Official Wedding Photographer. As most wedding photogs act as teams of 2 or 3, I'll need the help of a photo assistant for that day. It's essential that I have a team of 2 because some situations or events of wedding days require photographers to be at 2 separate locations at the same time.
- Requirements: You're available on Sat, May 4th for the entire day; you cannot leave between the ceremony and the reception. You have some photography experience, especially with journalistic, portrait and candid shots. If we're together in a passive situation, I'll cover the main couple while you cover the other guests. In active situations, we both cover the center of action, with you acting as my backup in case I miss crucial moments (better to have 2 important shots than none). For photoshoots, you should know how to handle my lighting equipment; please follow my instructions on how to operate speedlites, lightstands, umbrellas, etc. Lastly, you should be shooting while I'm taking a break, and vice versa - we can't both take breaks at the same time as there'll be a gap in coverage, where unexpected important moments might happen, and it would be "disastrous" to miss them!
- Optional: You don't need to own a camera; I can lend you my Canon T1i or XS. You should be female, in order to cover the Preparation Morning segment (dressing up, hair styling, makeup application, etc) of the Bride and her group. (I'll cover the Groom's Preparation Morning at the same time.) You should understand and speak French, as they're a Quebecer couple - however, the Bride is very fluent in English. You should be able to direct groups of 2 to 4 people, for group poses and action shots. You should own a car and be able to drive between residences and wedding venues (TBA); however, if you don't have a car, transport can be arranged with the Bride's group.
- How to help me: Send me a dA Note, an email or text message and give me your email address. I'll put you in contact with the Bride, who's arranging this job with me. The wedding shoot pays about $1,250 (exact amount TBA) - I'll give you a generous 40% cut while I keep the other 60%. That's $500 for you and $750 for me. The couple will pay us in 2 deposits (amounts TBA). You'll have the freedom to use your own dSLR camera (if you have one) or use one of mine; I'll rent one for this job for my own use. After the wedding, we'll pool our photos together, pick the "keeper" shots and process our photos together. ETA for preview shots is 3 days after the wedding, and ETA for the album of best shots is 3 weeks. For the rest of the photos, we'll deliver them over the next 3 months, as time permits.

Well, this is all I have to say for the moment. Please stand by for my Anime North 2013 private shoot timetable!