2017 Top 5 Highlights
2017 was a year that contained many milestones. The first being my first purchase from Red. The last few years I had frequently toyed with the idea of buying a Red camera, so naturally I decided to kick the year off right by finally committing. For those who are familiar with Red cameras, you understand that buying a Red really is a big commitment. At the end of January, I purchased my first Red Camera, an Epic W with a helium sensor. I chose this camera based on it's ability to shoot in high resolutions up to 8K and because it has 16.5 stops of dynamic range.
Fortunately for me, I purchased my new camera just in time for my first video shoot outside of North America. This brings me to my second highlight of 2017. I was contacted by Motorhead Magazine in Japan to film and edit for Gentleman Drivers Club. Japan was one of the top countries I had always wanted to visit, so I was excited for this opportunity and extremely nervous because not only was this a new client, but I also had a new camera that I was learning to operate. The video featured a factory OEM BMW 3.0 CSL arriving at Fuji Speedway racetrack. Upon arriving at the track the driver switched into his race modified 3.0 CSL. The purpose of the video was to advertise and sell both of the cars featured in the video.
The third highlight of my 2017 year was another shoot and edit with Gentleman Drivers Club, this time we went to Europe for the Gumball 3000. The Gumball 3000 is a 3,000-mile international celebrity motor rally which takes place on public roads going through multiple cities and countries. This prestigious car rally is an event that I never thought I would have had the opportunity to participate in, and it was one of the coolest experiences and most memorable shoots I've been on. The rally began in Riga, Latvia and went through Warsaw, Budapest and Dubrovnik. The rally then continued on to Tirana, Albania then into Athens, and finished in Mykonos, Greece. Gumball 3000 consisted of world-class cars, beautiful scenic views, fun night life, and diverse cultures.
Before returning home, I ended my time in Europe with a quick pit stop in Frankfurt, Germany, where I took a day trip to Heidelberg Castle. Those who are familiar with Heidelberg Castle know that the Castle is home to the world's largest wine barrel consisting of 220,000 liters. I thought the Gumball 3000 was impressive, then I saw the world's largest wine barrel.
The fourth highlight of my year was SEMA Show 2017 in Las Vegas, NV. SEMA Show is an event I look forward to each year, because I not only get the opportunity to see the latest and greatest of the automotive industry, but it's one of the few events my wife helps me with. Fun fact, the Las Vegas convention center has 2 million square feet of show space, so you can probably imagine why I look forward to my wife's help with this shoot. During the 2017 SEMA Show, I shot videos for Savini Wheels, Grid Off-Road, and Caffeine and Octane, to name a few. Naturally, everything I needed to film was spread out across the convention center, so I probably set a personal record for most steps in a week. I was also given the unique opportunity to shoot the Gran Turismo Award party for BOLS films at Marquee Nightclub. This was a fun party to shoot because the night club makes filming a fun challenge due to the low light levels and I got to see T-Pain in concert, so I can check that off my bucket list.
My fifth highlight of 2017 and coincidentally my last video shoot of the year, was with Monster Energy for City is my Playground, with Ernie Vigil and Nick Apex. This shoot took me to the grand island of Aruba, which was just in time considering I'm from the Northwest and was in series need of some sunshine and vitamin D. This shoot was a lot of fun because we had the support of local authorities for Ernie and Nick to do some cool and risky tricks around the island on it's public roads. This was a great gig to wrap up my 2017 year, I got some sunshine and got to film a motorsport that I don't always have the opportunity to film.
