book review: I Am Jackie Chan

Image Credit: http://www.intermartialarts.com/sites/default/files/i-am-jack-chan-biography.jpg

I’ve been a fan of Jackie Chan from a very young age. Growing up in a Chinese family he was a house hold name and I remember the very first movie I saw him in, which was of course, Rush Hour. From there I continued to be an admirer of not just his work in his movies, but as a person as well. From seeing the way he conducted himself in interviews to his generous acts in charity he somewhat became a figure that I’d look up to, which made me really excited when I found out that he has an autobiography out.

The book turns out to be a bit older than I anticipated as it came out in 1998, right around the time the first Rush Hour movie came out. I’m not even sure if it’s in print anymore because I had to buy it used but none the less I was happy to get started on it. The book itself is a real page turner and full of action much like his movies. I love how it is written in such a way that you could really hear his voice through the writing. Throughout the book Jackie goes into many details of his life that is often not talked about in the media. One example of this is how his parents moved to Australia when Jackie was at a young age in order to find a better job.

My biggest take away from the book came from when Jackie was trying to make a name for himself as an actor. He had already made a name for himself as a stunt man then and landed a stunt role in one of Bruce Lee’s movies when Bruce Lee was one of the biggest stars around. After the death of Lee, the movie community tried to mould Jackie into the next Bruce lee, but all the subsequent movies were flops and never scratched the surface of the Bruce Lee originals. Jackie became quite frustrated at this because he never wanted to be the next Bruce Lee, he wanted to be the first Jackie Chan. Although they are both amazing at martial arts, their styles were vastly different. Jackie worked extremely hard to make a name for himself for the way he wanted to be seen; and as we know that hard work has surely paid off. 

Don’t be like brick, be like clay. Mould yourself in what is authentic to you and what you truly want to be.

-w

Distrikt Movement

Not too long ago I had the opportunity to photograph the soft launch of Distrikt Movement, which is a community studio created to satisfy all your sweaty pursuits from yoga to circuit training and everything in between. The night started from a warm welcome from the Distrikt crew as I took some environmental shots around the studio before the guests started pouring in. Once everyone was settled, they embarked on a cozy yoga class from Distrikt's very own, Alex. I really wanted to get some shots of the class, but at the same time I didn't want to disrupt their zen. Luckily there was a glass door to the studio so I managed to get off a few shots there. After the class everyone enjoyed a warm and welcoming soup and salad from Culver City Salads as the guests mingled amongst each other. 

Some of the photos appeared a good bit warmer than my normal work and there is a good reason why! The environment there, lighting included was very warm and for me to go in and correct that would have been unauthentic to the moment itself, so I just decided to leave thing's as I saw it. 

I had a great time working with the Distrikt team and hope to be back one day for a class, or even more photos!

-w

Siya & Rob Engagement

I was recently approached by Siya and Rob about getting some photos for them to use for the holidays. Since theyare engaged but have not yet had any engagement photos taken I approached this shoot in the same way as I would approach an engagement shoot. 

We met at the library downtown and started our shoot by working our way around the library. I like to start by getting my subjects to do something they're already comfortable with doing and isnt very out of the ordinary. In this case it was as simple as walking together.

Afterwards we headed over to Yaletown for more photos. I was having lunch in Yaletown the day before and scoped out some good spots for pictures. We were lucky that it was a cold Sunday morning so there weren't too many people around. 

As the day warmed up we made our way to Olympic Village where we finished the shoot. Before we started that day Siya and Rob told me that they were quite awkward in front of cameras but I told them not to worry about it. I feel like most people are and as soon as you get them comfortable it's like the camera isn't even there anymore. Together we ended up with some great pictures and I hope that they were able to get some good use of out them for this holiday season.

-w