Mike Basher

2010-04-02T14:57:00.002-06:00

Paradise Found

I just got back home from a shoot in the Southern California desert, on assignment for ESPN...two great days of shooting purely analog. Enjoy.

2010-04-02T13:52:00.004-06:00

Airwalk Video

Here's a video from the Airwalk shoot two months ago. Thanks again to Ronnie and the folks at Collective International for making it all happen.

2010-04-01T16:12:00.005-06:00

Still Life...

Been messing around in the studio with some flowers. Pretty fun...the little details. Here are a few from a recent arrangement we had pass our way.

2010-02-19T15:36:00.005-07:00

Cutting room floor...

Here's a shot we never ended up running at the mag. Real back-alley-ish. Scary. Boulder, CO.

2010-02-10T16:28:00.006-07:00

Ronnie Renner for Airwalk

I hit the road late last week for a day in the desert with freestyle icon Ronnie Renner. Airwalk just signed him as their sole FMX guy, and needed images for their upcoming campaigns. I can't leak too much, but here's a few cool ones.

2010-01-20T11:26:00.006-07:00

More drop shots...

...a few more drops...

2010-01-14T12:22:00.003-07:00

Watch this...

Here's a shot from yesterday...just messing around.

2010-01-13T09:47:00.003-07:00

Carmelo Anthony Shoot

A little while back, I had the pleasure of working with Carmelo Anthony on some images for his new site. The goal of his updated site was to let people see the softer side of the gentle giant. He's a genuine guy, on and off the court. Here's a behind the scenes video about the shoot, as well. I'm the guy that's not so good in front of the camera...oh well. Check it out.

2010-01-08T08:43:00.014-07:00

Road Trip.

My wife and I hit the road for 10 days in December for a few reasons.

1. To get out of Dodge.

2. We had a little baby shower in California.

3. To see a few corners of the Southwest.

Keeping #3 in mind, I packed the cameras. I've never been to the Grand Canyon, since I'm always in a hurry on my cross-country drives, priding myself in my efficiency once I get to my destination. Example: Tallahassee, FL to Riverside, CA in two, yes two days, flying solo. I don't like to pull over, and take it all in. But, this trip, we made time.

We got a late jump on Saturday's return, and unfortunately made it to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon just after dark...bummer. I had big plans in the area, swinging by a few other parks before returning home on Sunday evening. No harm, though. We grabbed a pizza and a hotel, and hunkered down for the big day ahead.

6am...alarm. Cold as hell. We piled into the car, and drove into the park, pre-dawn.

The sun popped over the horizon, and the red canyon walls glowed with intensity, of course, you'll have to imagine it, because these are black and white shots.

Next stop, a few hours through Navajo land was Monument Valley, just before sunset. The monoliths spiking from the valley floor are breathtaking. Wish we would have had more time, but at least we pulled over a few times to capture it all. Enjoy...

2009-12-24T09:33:00.010-07:00

Breckenridge Dew Tour.

Snowboard contests are tough to shoot. There are banners everywhere, TV cameras, and a lot of riff raff. It's different with a "unique" medium. I've never shot action with 4x5, so this was a first go. Marginal shutter speeds and slow lenses are interesting to work with, but re-thinking things never hurts. Here are a few shots from the event.

2009-11-08T21:53:00.007-07:00

Still life.

Black and white isn't my forté, but when you simplify things, well, it's more simple. Out of sheer boredom and a recent kick to put some "artwork" on the walls around here, I borrowed the neighbor's orchid to work with for a bit...since ours is dead.

2009-11-04T18:54:00.004-07:00

Scanning party. I've been taking a trip down memory lane lately scanning old film and slides. Pretty interesting, really. I'll be posting more images from back in the day, when a photo was a physical object. Here's one from a trip I did with the Metal Mulisha for Motocross Action Magazine through Central California. Getting the date printed on the slide cost extra, so I opted out, leaving me clueless about when it was taken. I'm guessing 2003.

2009-10-29T08:56:00.004-06:00

ESPN.com just did a sweet interview with Dane Herron, who is a master at pushing dirt...and riding his creations, as well. Check it out.

2009-10-28T21:19:00.004-06:00

Panoramics. Everyone loves a panoramic, and the more extreme they are, the better. I've been in search of the perfect way to make panoramics with my 4x5 more economical. Calumet, Horseman and even Shen Hao make good 6x12 backs that all operate with the ease of use that comes along with using 120 roll film, but it comes with an expense. Some are more than others, but the step towards shooting panoramas led me to this idea. Why not make a film back that takes 35mm film? After a brainstorming session, I devised a back that does the job. It's not too efficient, but for now, it'll do the trick. Here's the first frame out of it. Looking forward to more of these...

2009-10-26T19:03:00.007-06:00

Photographing snowboard boots is fun, but it's been done before. This time, we came up with something different. At Snowboard Magazine, we've tossed paint at products and dropped them in water, but this shoot would have a different theme: SMOKE. After puffing on five cigars over the course of an afternoon, we had what we needed, and it only took three weeks for the bar smell in the studio to disappear.

2009-10-25T21:12:00.006-06:00

4x5 put to use.

Although it's just for fun, I've been getting into shooting big sheets of film...maybe because it is just for fun. Anyway, even though it's been done a thousand times, and has become cliché with the medium, grain mills here in the midwest are incredible to photograph. Under coats of paint, partially burned off by the baking sun, chipped away by driving summer hail storms and cracked by the dry winter, each mill is unique.

This summer, while exploring eastern Colorado and the southwest corner of Nebraska on some of the area's scenic backroads amidst sweeping corn fields, where every town can be identified on the horizon by its towering grain mills.

This photo was taken late on a hot summer evening in Lorenzo, CO, in the middle of a drive that swung through Sterling, CO, with a stop in Lorenzo, on the Colorado/Nebraska border, with a population of zero. Then, up to Sydney, Nebraska, and finally back West, through Eaton, CO, via CO 85 South (top photo).

2009-10-24T19:23:00.013-06:00

FILM.

Like most photographers who have been shooting for a while, I learned the ropes on film. It wasn't until five or so years ago that I started shooting digital, and ever since, haven't turned back to film...until recently. In college, the 4x5 was my favorite tool. It was the clarity, control and technical advantages that the format had over the other two options at the time. 35 was so user-friendly, but didn't hold up to the quality I wanted. Medium format was clumsy, and not enough of an advantage over 35...if you ask me. So, 4x5 has always been an interest of mine.

This spring, I happened to come across a deal on a field camera posted on Craigslist that I couldn't refuse. Two lenses from KEH.com later, and we're back at it...stoked.

Thanks to my buddy Steve Jones for the photo.