New Home!

I have moved!

Blog posts by Carmen Cheung Photography can now be found on my new blog: 

http://blog.carmencheungphoto.com/

Thank you for checking out my posts over the past eighteen plus months. Your comments, feedback and support have been very much appreciated. 

Farewell Blogspot, thanks for everything!

Maakbaar Leven - Still Life in Amsterdam

Still Life will be featured in the next issue of Q Magazine, a quarterly published in Amsterdam which drops today. The theme of this issue is pensions (and subsequently life planning, etc.) so they thought my series would fit nicely in there. Here's the tear sheet of the opening page, and the blurb they wrote which they tried to translate for me from Dutch:

Makeable Life

Those freeze frame moments in a man or woman's life are all to recognizable. Down to the smallest detail. From school to honeymoon to first child. Young Canadian photographer Carmen Cheung has taken these moments to an almost cliche like extreme. How special is a person's life. How real are our choices. The series STILL LIFE (2010) is like a mirror to the soul that softly asks one to consider what is the best path along the road we all travel.

(Close enough :) I was told it sounds poetic in Dutch.)

G20

Model Home - first tests

Fun sunny sunday test shoot for an upcoming project, Model Home. I think I need to find a more wall sconce looking wall sconce amongst other things. 

Rob Van Exan

Nick's dad braved the chill of an early spring night a couple months ago during a lighting test. We've since made plans to shoot again in warmer conditions.

Tom Ambrozaitis

I posted this a few weeks ago but decided to repost it now so I could put the other outtakes with this first image. Spent an afternoon with Tom who talked to me about WWOOF, organic farming, and social work.

Erika Jacobs

I couldn't help but photograph Erika with her buck painting (done by herself and Marco Avolio) in her fur hat and checkered jacket. We did this right before the Tribute to Women portrait, but decided this wouldn't quite fit into that series. It's a good look for her though in my opinion.

The Shrine Down the Hall

A very quiet but powerful portfolio by war photographer, Ashley Gilbertson, of bedrooms of fallen service members seven years after the Iraq war began: 

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/03/21/magazine/20100321-soliders-bedrooms-slideshow.html?src=tptw

A Seven Day Tribute to Women: Jennifer Cheung

My mom is a superwoman. When she was my age she moved away from everything and everyone she knew to start a  new life in Canada with my dad. She persevered and worked diligently to learn English and start her career here. With her hard work and determination, she has built a life and a foundation for our family in this country over the years. She is a selfless woman who makes countless sacrifices for the benefit of our family, and always puts the needs of her kids first. She is upfront, straight forward,  and never hides how she feels or what she thinks. In the same breath, she will offer both criticism and praise, and always insists that you earn the latter rather than have it handed to you. My mom has always put up with my antics, and supported my endeavours. And she has  raised me right. Cheers to you, mum. :)

China's women struggle for a foothold in power
BEIJING - Chairman Mao famously said women hold up half the sky, but in today's China, the half that matters, the economy, often remains out of their reach. (http://www.internationalwomensday.com/)

*Thank you for following my tribute to some of the amazing women in my life. I hope you've enjoyed meeting them. - Carmen

A Seven Day Tribute to Women: Vera Santillana

Vera is a vocal person - she sings, she cheers, she debates, and she advocates. She is never afraid to voice her opinions, and if ever you find difficulty in that area, she isn't afraid to step in and voice yours as well. She is a strong team leader who can get behind any project or cause she commits to one hundred and ten percent, and has the ability to motivate anyone to do so as well. Vera has a wide range of interests, and is passionate about each one - from music, to international development, to environmental sustainability. Vera is one of my main go to people for advice and support, and though she spends so much time being vocal she always makes time to listen. Cheers to you, V. :)
 
EU to tackle gender pay inequality

Men are still paid more than women in Europe but the European Union is promising to narrow the gap. (http://www.internationalwomensday.com/)

A Seven Day Tribute to Women: Donna Griffith

When I first met Donna last year, I was struck by her warm demeanor and quiet confidence. Though she is a talented and successful photographer who is well respected and admired by both colleagues and clients, Donna always remains humble. More often, you will hear her promoting the work of some of her colleagues, friends, and even assistants (thanks Donna!). She is self assured, but never boastful. She has carefully formed opinions and is conscientious when she speaks, whether it be about photography, design, feral cats, or cottaging. Cheers to you, Donna. :)  

Battle over wages: the male-female age gap
Women have often been given a bad deal when it comes to work, whether we like it or not.That, to me, is encapsulated in the fact that despite there being an Equal Pay Act in place in the UK since 1970, women still earn on average 17 percent less per hour than men for doing the equivalent role in the workplace, according to figures from The Fawcett Society. (http://www.internationalwomensday.com/)