Network Sabotage

What is it? And why would a studio blog about it? One day offline in a multimedia/photography business can result in major revenue loss, not to mention incredible frustration and panic.

We recently experienced a hack into the network which prevented online access; or access at a very slow rate if at all possible. Frustrated to say the least the research begun; someone had set up a firewall... share the love and make sure it doesn't impact on your business.

A firewall is a piece of hardware and/or software which functions in a networked environment to prevent some communications forbidden by the security policy, analogous to the function of firewalls in building construction. A firewall is also called a Border Protection Device (BPD), especially in NATO contexts, or packet filter in BSD contexts. A firewall has the basic task of controlling traffic between different zones of trust. Typical zones of trust include the Internet (a zone with no trust) and an internal network (a zone with high trust). The ultimate goal is to provide controlled connectivity between zones of differing trust levels through the enforcement of a security policy and connectivity model based on the least privilege principle.

Proper configuration (or reverse engineering) of firewalls demands skill, and requires considerable understanding of network protocols and of computer security. Don't become a statistic of network sabotage, protect your most valuable asset.

"It's all about the music," she said

"It's all about the music," she said. Its more a case of what came first the chicken or the egg.

Is it the photo that sells the DVD, or the music... or really, it could also be the animation. An argument ensued, both were passionate that they were correct.

We thought it's about time to really blog about the musicians behind BISON. Ben Hense, Musical Director for BU leads a star studded group of talented musicians.



Ben successfully took his studio work which he developed onto the live music scene, testing the tracks with success that had been garnered from punters moving to the sounds of groove based tunes played live. He then fused into new heights with a full scale live music ensemble of local Melbourne musicians.

His work for BU incorporates vocalists, bass, guitar, percussion, drums, flute, keyboards, analogue synths and samplers to provide an captivating sound quite unlike anything the corporate sector has seen!

Sales and Success

With the release of the DVD series just over a week ago, we've been flat out fulfilling requests for samples (go online), taking and delivering orders and best of all getting it into the market. A friend recently commented on how much he loved multimedia and would have preferred to get in to the field (rather than working in marketing)... but it was 'too hard' to get to the commercialisation stage. Too hard or too exhausting ;) We say:

If you feel fear, plunge ahead!

Who says your first order can't be for the Victorian Government for export to India, Asia, China and Japan? We did it :)

At BISON we have a sign in the studio spelling out: "We persist with the knowledge that each failure to sell will increase your chance for success at the next attempt." Bring it on!

BISON's new DVD series is a hit!

Congratulations to all that contributed to the first animated still photography DVD on the market! Original, dramatic soundtracks, spectacular photography and technical brilliance. A big pat on the back to BISON's core team of talented artists Darc, Oliver and Ben and of course, a big thanks to all family, friends and our great business network. Without your input, it would not have been possible.

The feedback, endorsements and overall good energy around this project has been overwhelming. We made the deadline one day early (who would have thought?) got the DVD's uploaded for the www to view, and had our most hits ever ;)

Check out BISON's new DVD series, and let us know what you think!

Still the best...

BISON sets sail for India!

What is this about India you may ask?

Yes India... the second most populous country (after China; although some say, India is set to overtake China as the world's most populous nation by 2050). India is also the largest liberal democracy in the world.

Karnataka's capital, Bangalore, with a state seal ripe with colour, is a diverse, rich culture, with a population of more than 6 million. Bangalore is home to Victoria's new Government office. Speaking to our Indian Commissioner at an export conference last week, possibilities of BISON exporting to India became all the more real. Exporting our DVD's to promote business in Bangalore, creating a DVD series over there featuring the famous Taj Mahal... the options are endless.

The next step? We've signed up for an "Expressions of Interest" for Victorian ICT Trade Mission to India in October... This year our State Government will sponsor an exhibition stand to showcase the capabilities of the Victorian ICT industry (of which we are part) to a worldwide audience at Bangalore IT and at TiEcon India 2006.

You never know what's around the corner!

2 weeks and counting!

Sneak preview!

One of 3 DVD's in the series, this title, 'Melbourne's Famous Landmarks' is sure to be a favourite for Aussie locals and tourists.

2 weeks 'til release and counting!

The musical genius behind BISON.

A lot of you keep asking, "Who creates the music on your DVD's?"

Keeping it all in the family we have partnered with Ben Hense and his creative, very talented team of musicians at Mr. Jigga to produce all original soundtracks to accompany our wonderful postcard DVD's.

Having Ben write the music specifically for the photography and animation, not only avoids licensing issues (which most people producing DVD's seem to have), but more importantly allow the BISON team to adjust, create and refine just they way we like it.

Also a big thanks to Cherry, the very talented violinist in our new series. Her work truly is uplifiting, and many of our clients have commented how interesting it is combined with the 'electronic beats'.

All recorded live in the studio, this is an invaluable asset to the BISON united team. Well done!

Fed Square DVD Promo release!

BISON present the Fed Square DVD promo! Hot off the hard drive ;) The first of 3 DVD postcards, the Fed Square promo is an example of the great things yet to come. With originally composed music, crisp photography and the best in animation, all that's left is to TURN UP THE VOLUME, sit back and enjoy!

Well done Ben, Darc and oL - superb achievement, we can't wait to see the final cut.

Construction Art

It's interesting to note that more and more organisations are interested in buying our photography, especially the iconic city shots, to 'blow up' and frame for their offices...

It's more than showing off to their clients their successful projects, it's more than creating an inspiring workspace.

These are a few of the construction photos from our new Spencer Street Station folio (Southern Cross Station) shot last week. Evoking curiosity and emotion; they're serious power shots, have great symmetry and pure colour.

Who's ever seen machinery look this good?

We call it construction art.

Multimedia in the limelight

It's interesting how your niche finds you, rather than the other way around as so many marketing texts and experts proclaim, 'Positioning... it's all about positioning!'

We think it's actually reversed, you become positioned.

A lot of you have now viewed our DVD produced for the National Geographic Channel in May.

Thanks to your feedback, we've gone out on a limb and are in the middle of producing a series which will be available for sale in retail outlets across the state. We're keeping the details under wraps for a little longer.

In the meantime these are a sneak preview of some of the superb new pics that will be animated in our new series. Can you guess their location?

PS. It's all about risk and hard work... of course! On the flipside it seems the rewards will be great ;)

The world is moving faster

The world is definitely moving faster and getting smaller for us here at the BISON studio.

We now are a united front, working with two of the most talented creatives. Introducing Ben (our new musical director) and Darcey (chief animator).

Welcome to the BISON UNITED team!

Last month we joined the AIBC (Australia India Business Council), chatted online to our creative friends in Canada, got IT advice from North Carolina and were on Global Consciousness.

What has this got to do with photography and multimedia you may ask?!?

We're reaching for the next rung, drawing in likeminded people and just starting to realise the internet is not about searching but building global communities.

Our dream of a virtual office is slowly taking shape ;)

The wait was worth it...

Absolutely gorgeous.

Oliver has had one of the most challenging photography commissions yet... Last month we were asked to produce a koala folio for one of Australia's leading tourism operators.

Having researched the 'koala photography scene', we now know why the same photo has been used by EVERYONE for the past 20 years.

Let me fill you in on a secret... koala's sleep for 20-22 hours a day, that's why it's so hard to capture them on film animated. So for all of you wildlife enthusiasts, we challenge you to send us a few koala photos!

These three pics are the results of hours of patiently waiting, and waiting.

The wait was worth it.

Interested in helping save our koalas? Consider supporting the greta work the Australian Koala Foundation do (our link is left)... foster a koala.

Thanks to this program, koalas in captivity are now able to help save their cousins in the wild. For as little as $20 a month you can foster a koala and in doing so help to save Australia’s wild koala population.

They also have a great section on what you can do in a practical way to help preserve our precious planet.

NAB and the WOW factor

Most of you have probably already strolled past the NAB's new head office in the Docklands...

For those of you who don't live locally, NAB is the National Australia Bank, and they've just relocated to the waterfront location in the new commercial precinct of Melbourne.

Love it or hate it, everyone has an opinion about this new way of working. Complete with internal cafe's, serious 'chill out zones' where you can have a game of scrabble or UNO with your workmates (aka brainstorm), this building is certainly redefining the way we work.

NAB was committed to extensive international research, both in terms of the workplace and state of the art sustainable architecture design, and came up with one of the first low energy consumption buildings in Australia. With the creation of internal landscape environments, i.e. palm trees and sunny walkways, it's a little city in itself.

Oliver spent a few days, braving the icy mornings of our winter, and was rewarded with the most magnificent blue skies...

(We all think that the night time shots are pretty good too...).

They say that in coming years the 'inflexible model' of the city skyscraper will be demolished and replaced by 'highly flexible groundscaper buildings...' which require less energy to build, to run and maintain and will last longer.

We kind of like the fact that Melbourne has the best of everything ;)

Bushfire beauty

Every year we hear about the devastation of bushfires that sweep through the Australian wilderness. Houses are lost, and people are often left stranded.

A little known fact is one of the great features of the Australian bush is the way it regenerates afterwards.

Oliver set out to capture the aftermath of the fire that rampaged through Victoria's Grampians, racing north east towards Halls Gap.

What caused them?

People often ask if they were lit, or if they're a natural phenomenon...

The bushfires in the Grampians are generally thought to be caused by lightning, camp fires or occasionally fuel reduction burns that get out of control.

Many native species rely on bushfires to open their protective seed pods so that their seeds can germinate.

When Oliver arrived not long after the grass had started to grow, there had been some good rains, and the trees began shooting out again. Best of all, he even managed to find a few little waterfalls tucked away between the boulders.

The World Cup - GO Aussies!

GO AUSTRALIA!

Some of you asked that we post our recent email promo... so here it is!

And yes, we know it's cheesy ;)

A dog (and one eyed cats') life.

I couldn't help but blog about our life companions... where would we be without the company of our pets?

From the ever faithful German Shepherd dog, respected and admired throughout the world for its versatility, intelligence, and loyalty, to the one eyed (one toothed) wonder that regularly visits Oliver's house... Australian's really do love their pets.

As a nation of pet lovers, we share our homes with all sorts of cats and dogs, with half of all households owning a pet. It will come as no surprise to animal lovers that research shows that pets are good for our health.

Pets can play an important role in people's lives and they are often referred to as 'one of the family'. As well as providing a constant source of enjoyment, friendship and fun, many pets thrive in a family and household environment.

What's this got to do with our business? Well, apart from the commercial work, we love taking photos of our domestic friends :)

Disney's - The Lion King

Last week we were fortunate enough to be commissioned to shoot the spectacular Regent Theatre in Melbourne's Collins Street. Disney's award winning broadway musical, The Lion King, has been an incredible success.

Sadly, on June 4th it leaves our shores and will open the following month to Beijing. Ticket prices in China are said to be around $250!

For those of you who haven't seen the show, eBay have tickets for sale, and there are also a few being released daily (see the official Australian Lion King site).

We couldn't believe our luck when Marriner Theatre's asked we photograph the exterior of the theatre, print and frame a photo to be sent to Disney's head office in the USA!

Another year dawns...

It's been another year of highlights, with the expansion of our architecture and interior design work, to capturing the individual personalities of our beautiful wildlife... but most of all the milestone of airing our first DVD. We just want to say THANKS for your support!

To our family and friends, and clients alike, we'd all like to say thanks, without you it would not be possible.

The humble tap

It would seem that Oliver likes photographing taps! And have you ever seen a tap look so good as in these three shoots?

As interior designers and architects agonise about details, it seems photographers go to extrordinary lengths to highlight them... Who would have though the humble tap would become such a feature?

Visiting the home show in Melbourne last month, and watching thousands visit exhibition stands showcasing all sorts of kitchen and bathroom accessories, it would appear the humble tap has come of age!

Out of interest I researched a little more into the history of taps (yes - strange), and the Beijing Waterworks Group also have a mild interest, having established a museum which reviews the history of tap water since its beginning in 1908.

The official The Beijing Tap-water Museum writes, "The imperial families of the Forbidden City used to drink spring water carried from Mount Yuquanshan in western Beijing, while everyday folk had to use wells with bitter, salty, or sweet water (if they were lucky).

When Empress Dowager Cixi agreed to a proposal from officials to build a clean water supply system, many people had doubts, deeming it foreign and strange tasting, due to bleaching powder and chlorine. It was even dubbed "foreigners' soap water" because in winter it had a milky appearance when pumped out of the water tower." Hmmm...

To Stand Out, Stand Out!

Companies like Kimberly-Clark spend millions of dollars a year keeping people from calling tissues kleenexes.

Why is branding so important? People want their company to have an identity, one that's remembered, a name that stands for their product.

Here at BISON our identity and brand was quite controversial. It seemed everyone had an opinion.

People argued, "What has it got to do with photography? People won't make the connection." Other's were very supportive, "Great name, love it... easy to rememeber." And, "it's got grunt."

Either way, it's not generic. We (and you also) should not want a generic name as your brand.

Looking at these construction photo's recently taken in Melbourne, the Abigroup also want us to remember their name. It seems their choice of name is different, and fits in with the idea that you should never choose a name that describes something that everyone expects from the service.

Brands are alive - and everyone can use one.