7FT Gundam Papercraft

After nearly a year, the 7ft gundam papercraft project is finally complete!

Big props to my brother Taras Lesko , aka the VisualSpicer, for creating this amazing project.

When I first saw the completed papercraft, I knew the photography would have to match the project in terms of wow factor. Growing up being a fan of the gundam cartoons, I wanted the imagery to have the same futuristic and animated feel as the series. After a couple nights of shooting at midnight on location, gathering lens flares for two days, and getting the perfect picture of steam, the result is a series of images that took this papercaft to a new level.

Rock Climbing

Here’s a recent personal project I just finished up for my portfolio.  My aim was simply to put a twist on rock climbing photography that hasn’t been seen before by incorporating my style. Here’s a video I put together to show the process of how the image was made. Thanks to everyone who helped out on this project.

Talent: Matthew Konsmo
Thanks to: Lily Warner, Taylor Grant, & Andre Malski for the help.

A7 Papercraft

My brother (aka the visualspicer) recently put together one of his papercraft’s for Audi’s new model, the A7, to present at the New York Auto Show. The video went viral soon after the release and looks like it has surpassed 1 million views.

The studio photography towards the beginning and end were shot by me prior to sending the car out. Be sure to check out his website to see more of his papercrafts. There is enough to keep anyone entertained for a while.

Move Over Mumford

A short performance from one of the street corner bands at this year’s Seattle Folklife.

Ivan Lesko, Seattle, Folklife, Photography, Commercial, Personal, Conceptual, Canon, 60D, 28-135

Ivan Lesko, Seattle, Folklife, Photography, Commercial, Personal, Band, Conceptual, Canon, 60D, 28-135

Hiatus

I used to think whoever who said it was too easy to get comfortable assisting was lying.

Turns out he was right.  It’s been a while since I’ve shot any personal work.  There’s a whole batch of personal work coming up shortly, stay tuned.

Looking Back

Every artist’s goal should be to continually grow and improve their skills whatever their craft might be.  If you’re not progressing, you’re mostly getting stale which is bad in any case.  I thought it would be fun to go back about 5 years into the past and reflect on how my work and attitude towards photography has evolved.

More after the break.

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Ellensburg Write Up

Every once in a while it’s great to just go out and take pictures for the fun of taking pictures.  I headed out to Ellensburg, WA with two other photographers, a truck bed full of equipment, and the intention of having fun.  It’s been a while since I’ve shot any landscapes.  After 12 hours of shooting and unpredictable weather, here are some of my favorite shots from the trip.

how a picture is made pt. 2

Following up on my previous post on how the little things can inspire a picture to be made, here’s the second in the lobby series.  A larger version can be viewed on my portfolio.

..and a few details..

Pool Time

What better way to celebrate Seattle’s  Spring weather than spending some time lounging by the pool?

Five models, a great location, and an 8-inch Chi-wee-wee later come these two shots.   Enjoy!

How a picture is made

I’ve been thinking about what gives me ideas behind the images I create.  I can usually narrow down one moment in time, a song, piece of wardrobe, a certain model’s look, an event that inspires an entire photo shoot.  In this case, it was a location.  When I first stepped into this plaza, I knew it would be a great spot for a shoot.  About two weeks later and countless hours of retouching the shot is finished.  The size here doesn’t do it justice, take a look at my portfolio for the larger version.

The second shot in the series will be in the days to come.