Photographers Roth & Ramberg launch their beautiful new calendar for 2008.

Shot entirely at the world famous Coney Island Amusement Park, this beautiful calendar captures the essence of a fun filled day at the park.

View it! [PDF] 1.97MB | Download it! [ZIP] 1.87MB

News posted - Wednesday, January 2nd, 2008 | Visit - Roth & Ramberg's profile..

Dale Roth and Michele Ramberg established Roth and Ramberg Photography in 1993. They formed their business plan one evening over beer and pizza. Their plan was simple: work as hard as they can and have as much fun doing it. Since then, they’ve established an impressive roster of clients including: Blackberry, McDonalds, Bell, CN, and Toyota. On the editorial side, they work for publications such as People, Forbes, Report on Business, Enroute and many more. In 2006, they were chosen by Hasselblad to participate in the Hasselblad Masters calendar.

For more information, visit www.rothandramberg.com

News posted - Monday, January 8th, 2007 | Visit - Roth & Ramberg's profile..

The last day of September, I finally received Dale’s answers. I have not edited them, except for typos and spelling errors. What I found particularly interesting is that Dale says they currently don’t need much in terms of Digital Asset Management. I — and I’m sure that I’m not the only one — always think of photos in terms of ‘saving for history’. It is the main reason why we get so involved in software such as Adobe’s Lightroom and Apple’s Aperture. Not all photographers think that way, at least not yet, and I find that very refreshing.

Roth and Ramberg, Hasselblad Masters.

Written by Erik Vlietinck and originally posted on IT-Enquirer.com

IT-Enquirer: How important was becoming a Hasselblad Master to you?

Dale Roth: It was unbelievable being chosen as a Hasselblad Master; we’ve always striven to push ourselves to be better, and it was such a nice honour and surprise to be chosen by Hasselblad.

IT-Enquirer: What is the drive behind your photography?

Dale Roth: We’ve always tried to have fun, and I think it makes our subjects relax and enjoy themselves. That allows us to build at least some time of bond between us and the subject, and they tend to relax into a more natural state which we believe makes for a better photo. At times we will let the technical aspect slip a bit in order to get the expression.

IT-Enquirer: What is the message a good photo should convey? Does it need a message at all?

Dale Roth: I think a good photo has to be able to convey whatever message you are trying to show, simply and quickly. You should be able to look at the photo and have some type of emotion instantly.

IT-Enquirer: What sets a professional photo apart from an amateur shot?

Dale Roth: Good question. Perhaps it’s something as simple as experience. At least in our work we’ve photographed hundreds of CEO’s and you just learn to “feel” the person out and photograph them according to their personality. That could be friendly smiley, or serious hard worker. Perhaps amateurs don’t have that day to day experience of handling and sensing people. It’s the same old advice, but the more you shoot, the better you will be.

IT-Enquirer: Do you shoot in colour or in B&W mainly?

Dale Roth: We shoot mainly in colour now, but we have always had a passion for black and white. The advertising world goes through phases of one or the other, and we adapt. I do think however that a black and white portrait will always stand the test of time. One of my favourite photos is Dorthea Lange’s Migrant Mother… I don’t think it would have had the long term impact if it were in colour. I guess there’s just something about black and white the reveals just a little bit more about a person.

IT-Enquirer: Do you often edit photographs afterwards?

Dale Roth: We always edit our photographs. We are 100 percent digital now and experience tells us that if we include something that isn’t up to our standards, the client always seems to pick that one. We still make that mistake over and over but keep trying to learn. I also think it’s better to control which images are going to be sent out. Being the photographer should give you the advantage of knowing what or who it is you photographed and which images best capture the mood, i.e. generally if you are the only one there, then only you know the limitations.

IT-Enquirer: Which are the technological issues that face photographers?

Dale Roth: Technology changes frequently in our world. We are always striving for a faster computer, better software. etc. We think it’s important to have the knowledge but we try never to deviate from what we do best (taking photos). Sitting in front of a computer hour after hour isn’t very productive. We have someone who handles all our files and does a wonderful job. To take photos and go through the whole process until the final image is done may be spreading yourself thin.

IT-Enquirer: How deeply must you get involved in it?

Dale Roth: We think it is important to have some basic understanding but like I said in the previous question, we can’t know everything; so do what you are best at and let others take care of the rest. Now that’s not saying it’s not important, it’s more being there, overseeing the process instead of doing every step.

IT-Enquirer: How far do you need to go in understanding printing?

Dale Roth: Printing, photography, and design are in the beginning stages of working together. We are all trying to understand each other’s language. Hopefully there will be a standard for every industry to use, but I don’t think it is there yet. We have the Epson Stylus Photo R2400 which is quite a good printer. Most of our work is sent out to our clients and they handle the final printing. Colour management is just one of those areas that we don’t delve into but know that sooner or later we better understand. I do think if we were to do some gallery printing, we would probably send it out, but for basic portfolio etc, our Epson is just fine.

IT-Enquirer: How about Digital Asset Management? What do you use?

Dale Roth; Fortunately for us, most of our clients require the photograph for a very short time period. Photos are ordered and generally that is the end of it. I do see a problem down the road with archiving and like probably most photographers we have to find some sort of a solution. We currently store our files on DVD which works fine for us as there is no need for long term storage for most photographs. It’s a problem that will show up down the road when the next generation of storing files changes. It will be like owning an 8 track or cassette and having no place to play it.

IT-Enquirer: What do you demand of your photo shooting equipment? What do you use?

Dale Roth: Most of our work is with the Hasselblad H1D digital camera. It is fantastic and we love it. A lot of our work is on location and it certainly handles the abuse we give it. I guess the key for us is whether it can work in all locations whether studio or in the middle of the oil sands.

IT-Enquirer: Thanks a lot for this interview, Dale!

News posted - Friday, October 6th, 2006 | Visit - Roth & Ramberg's profile..