PHOTO OF THE DAY FLASHBACK – 2009 Ironman

KAILUA-KONA, HAWAII – OCTOBER 9: Lava flows from the Kilauea volcano during the Ironman World Championships in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii on October 9, 2009. Considered one of the most grueling races in the world, competitors must brave 95 degrees temperature and 90 percent humidity to complete a 3.86 km swim, 180.2 km bike, and a 42.2 km marathon with in an 17 hour time cutoff to be called an “Ironman”. (Photo by Donald Miralle) Canon EOS-1D Mark III Lens: 70-200mm Aperture: F4 Shutter 1.0 sec ISO:250

Paula Finlay Cover Shoot

Triathlete Paula Finlay of Canada poses for a portrait in Maui, January 2011. (Donald Miralle for LAVA)

If you don’t know who Paula Finlay is (I didn’t until I had the assignment to shoot her for the cover of LAVA) come next summer’s 2012 London Olympic Games, you probably will. The 21-year old Canadian Triathlon prodigy is the forerunner to win the Olympics next year, coming out of anonymity until a breakout year in 2010, winning five races and two back-to-back on the ITU circuit. I spent a couple days with Paula and the LAVA writer/editor Jennifer Ward in the beautiful Maui, and we made the best of being stuck in paradise and came away with a nice mix of images. Below are some of my favorites from the shoot, enjoy and as always your feedback is appreciated!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

2nd Issue of LAVA

Mirinda Carfrae of Australia, 2nd place Ironman finisher 2009, runs for the cover during a LAVA shoot in Boulder, CO. (Photo Donald Miralle for LAVA)

The 2nd issue of LAVA has hit the stands and once again the crew managed to fill the mag with great content and ad space. I was stoked on how the main feature and cover of Mirinda Carfrae and Julie Dibens came out, and it’s representative of the great day we had shooting both these amazing athletes on location in Boulder, CO. We had rad locations outside completely different from last issue, then once again used Mark Doolittle’s studio space on the farm to create some of the light painting shots using led lights, a couple profoto lights and a black felt duvateen. Remember these are all single frame shots with no post! Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I did, and always your feedback and comments are much appreciated!

1st doublepage spread for feature story in LAVA edition #2. About a 12 second exposure using lightpainting and some strobe pops. (Photo by Donald Miralle for LAVA)

2nd doublepage spread for feature storu in LAVA edition #2. A beautiful location near Mark’s studio with an endless field of sunflowers and the mountains in the background. (Photo by Donald Miralle for LAVA)

3rd spread. Shot coming out of resevoir with Canon 5D Mark II, Profoto 7b’s with reflectors and grids, (Photo by Donald Miralle for LAVA)

Spread #4. Shot laying on hot conrete with Canon 200/1.8. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Spread #5. Lightpainting in studio, camera on tripod. (Photo by Donald Miralle for LAVA)