Mick Eidam Photography

Finally! After more than two years after making this headdress, I got motivated and put out the call for a model and makeup artist and completed this shoot. Based on a red theme we used an appropriate outfit and a vivid red background. I have a large table/box that I can paint in any colour to suit the shoot.

Here we have another composite butterfly shoot with Jade but this time with a different style of wings. I wasn’t originally thinking of doing another of these shoots but, hey, why not. I think the result was worth the effort and I added a crackle layer from a shot of an old car.

Another shoot with the wonderful Caitlin trying something a little different this time. Incorporating a headdress with a matching outfit. I had seen similar shoots done before and this inspired me to try the style with Caitlin and her beautiful hair. Fortunately I had the clothes already that were suitable and I think the vibe worked well.

Here we have a headdress shoot, with Jade, that was built with the model as inspiration with her amazing tattoos and body jewellery. We added some cool outfits and a chain on leather belt that continued with the theme in mind. Once again, Jade nailed the poses and with some cool background lighting we were able to create some great images.

Studio shoot with @elastimodel in my home studio with a couple of different backdrops and a number of outfit changes. I usually only do themed shoots these days with headdresses and such so it was good to do a bit of traditional studio work for a change and Amber did a great job of providing a huge selection of poses and looks to fill a couple of cards. It was a fun shoot.

First trip back to Tulamben, Bali for 2024 and once again staying at Liberty Dive Resort. Visibility was not the best I have seen up here but it was still good enough to do most of the trip shooting wide angle. Most people that visit the area stand by their thoughts that it is not a wide angle location but I always manage to find something. Looking forward to returning later in the year.

Jade approached me about doing a similar blur shoot as the one I did with Caitlin. I wanted it to be different but the tulle sleeves weren't shipped so we went with a different lighting style.
By moving the fixed light further to the left and rear I was able to light the tulle while still capturing her face and upper body clearly with the flash on rear curtain svnc.

A simple shoot this time with a nude Caitlin seated on a chair with colourful draped fabric and a shear length of material for flow and contrast. I like doing these styles of shoots as it keeps things simple yet gives a very artistic finish. Caitlin, once again, nailed the brief and brought many poses to the project and her hair is amazing. Highly recommend her as a model.

Back to Tulamben, Bali for a couple of trips. First one with no strobes so was very challenging but I made the best of a bad situation.
I merged the two galleries as I did not achieve much on the first trip but October was all back to normal after some long awaited servicing to my underwater housing.
Looking forward to going back.

Finally managed to get the Swan View Tunnel shoot done with Ashlea who did a fantastic job making the dress and preparing her hair in a manner that suited the shoot style.
It was a challenging shoot due to the lack of light but we managed to get some great images.
Will be working again with Ashlea in the future.

Another fantasy shoot but this time with crumpled tulle as the main theme and the use of a smoke machine as well as using a slow shutter speed and rear curtain sync flash to give a bit of blur.
This was the first time I have tried shooting rear curtain or dragging the shutter as they say and I will definitely need to do a bit more research.
All in all I am very happy with the result with Caitlin bringing the poses as usual.

Another fantasy shoot but this time with ribbons as the main theme and an addition of props including a lantern, skull and articulated fingers.I have been wanting to do this style shoot for a while now and, once again, Caitlin came to the party and did an excellent job. I will be exploring similar themes in the future.
I find these sort of shoots more fulfilling than standard studio work as it leaves more options open for creative styles.

On continuing with my headdress project, I found a model with beautiful dark skin tone and reached out to her. Shei was very interested in doing a shoot so I started on a design that that would work well with her look and the final result of the shoot something I am more than happy with.
Once again Lauren of Twist Creativ did a fantastic job with the makeup. She selected colour shades that were great with the colours in the Headdress.

Finally headed back to Tulamben, Bali after a long pandemic lockdown that affected the local people in a bad way. Relying on mostly tourism, their world virtually stopped. It is good to see people returning but more need to come.
It is a credit to the people of Tulamben who kept the area maintained even while going through this hardship.

Another studio shoot with Steph but this time we tried something a little bit different. Out came the face paint and a few props along with a nice body stocking and away we went.
I have always really liked this type of photography and have wanted to try it. I will do many more shoots like this as the opportunity arises.

Studio shoot with Steph in a stunning blue dress and displaying the Phoenix tattoo on her back.Not going to lie, it was another temporary tattoo which makes it easier to shoot what you want to shoot with any model. Shot in my home studio again with a standard grey paper background and my usual two light setup.

Caitlin once again worked with me to create this composite depicting the struggle we all have inside from time to time.
This was two separate shoots with different lighting and then later combined. The first images were shot only with candle light highlighting her beautiful hair.

Caitlin posted an idea she wanted to do on Facebook so I reached out to her to do a shoot and these are the results. I got some Butterfly specimens online and photographed these in high resolution.
I then photographed some fallen autumn leaves in Hyde Park and finally we did the photoshoot in my home studio.

Took an early morning trip down to the Golden Valley Tree Park near Balingup in the South West of Western Australia.
Unfortunately, we were a little early for the full Autumn bloom but we still managed to get some great shots.
I have been wanting to do this lantern shoot for a while now.

Another in the Headdress Series.
It has been a while since I did any of these and I had this Headdress for a long time. Along comes the remarkably talented Abbi who absolutely nailed the shoot.
It has rekindled my drive to create more of these headdresses and put together more shoots for this series.

A shoot I have been wanting to do for a while and had the opportunity to do with Dani Barker who absolutely nailed the poses in every way.
I used a black polyester back drop for the first time and am happy with how they perform, giving full blacks while also working well with a bit of back lighting.

Had a fun shoot with Shannon and Dani at the Paparazzi selfie studio. Great location for a bit of themed photography with in house change rooms and accommodating staff.
Will try here again in the future as they change their themes on a regular basis.
Many rooms with different themes as you can see in the gallery.

I have been waiting to do this style for quite a while and I am very happy with the results.
Once again, Steph, proved to be the right model for this concept. Shooting high key with a white background and minimal props created the mood for this set of images in a series I will explore further in the coming future.

Went for a mid week shoot to S&R Orchids with the beautiful Shannon, first shoot at the location and with this model.
We tried to get in earlier in the day with no success so had to deal with some harsh sunlight but were lucky enough to get a few clouds to filter the light.
Very colourful location and wonderful outfit choice by Shannon.

Another shoot with my beautiful niece Steph. This time we tried a new style going after an old times theme using a corset, skirt and some props to suit the general look of the period.
I also re-dyed an old backdrop that I was no longer using and I find this colour more useful and pleasing.
I now have a number of great backdrops to create just about any theme that I like.

Back to work on my Headdress project with a new shoot with Steph based on a Medusa theme. Great makeup once again by Lauren from Twist Creativ.
It has been a while since I have done one of these so I forgot how much work was involved in getting it all together but I have really enjoyed the process.
I will enjoy doing more in the future as ideas come up and, of course, I can find the right model for the theme.

Great session down at Bunbury back beach with Natalie. Weather conditions were not fantastic but we managed to create some good work.
Spent a couple of hours dodging wind gusts and waves but had an enjoyable afternoon. An easy thing to do when you have the services of a model that is full of enthusiasm and spirit.
Will be doing more of this type of work in the future.

I have added a page to highlight my portrait photography work including maternity shoots. This is something I might offer in the future as a paid package at reasonable prices to cover my costs. I am finding the maternity work as something that captures an important time in a couples relationship that can be something to share with their offspring at a later time in their life. It is an important a moment to record for any families album and displays the beauty of pregnancy.

This is something I have wanted to do for a while in mixing my underwater photography style with my work with models. It is something I will be doing more of as the opportunities arise.Quite challenging on first attempt but I learned a lot in the process and look forward to trying this again in the near future. A new challenge that gets me in the water locally but also something I may look into on my Bali trips as the sites up there lend themselves to this type of photography

My Two weeks back in Tulamben and, once again, Liberty Dive Resort.
After diving here so many times I feel that my next trip will require that I try something different. It is something I will have to think about before I return and I might spend a bit of time looking at different aspects of underwater photography. Although I enjoy what I am doing I feel that it is becoming a little bit repetitive as I get a little bit more lazy in my later years.

My first trip back at Liberty Dive Resort for this year. Although I was only able to stay ten days it was a very enjoyable trip which saw me stick with wide angle for the entire duration. Although Tulamben is mostly considered a macro location apart from the Liberty Wreck I managed to shoot in many locations to highlight the fact that it is also a very good place for wide angle. All that is needed is an eye to this type of shooting and to use a model in your shots where possible.

Another home studio shoot but this time using a cello as a prop and, once again, using low key lighting. Productive shoot using a new octogon softbox with grid and shooting with Malvinita as the model again. Backdrop was an old mottled red one that I dyed to a much darker level and I feel it works very well for this type of shoot.

Two and a half week trip Back at Liberty Dive Resort with 24 dives. I, once again,  spent a bit more time shooting wide angle and am starting to enjoy it more and more. I still did a lot of macro but I am a bit over the tiny stuff. I don"t find any fun in it at all. Visibility was a bit lower than normal for this time of year but still pretty good and also managed a day in Amed. Did a day trip up to Ubud with family for some shopping and lunch.

I got back into some studio shooting recently with a couple of black and white shoots. The first was a high key shoot with Steph and the second more low key with Malvinita. Both resulted in some images that were different to each other but very satisfactory. I recently made the switch to paper backgrounds and found they are much easier to work with.

I returned to Tulamben for the first time since Mount Agung erupted last year and stayed once again at Liberty Dive Resort. The village is a bit quieter now as many people are still worried about coming back and as the alert level is still at three it is hard for many to get travel insurance. Even during my three week’s stay there were a few small eruptions and the day after I left there was a bigger one that closed the airport.

Completed another headdress after a long year and put together another shoot with the ever reliable Hayley Beardman along with great makeup ( once again ) by Lauren Ranger of “Twist Creativ” fame. Really happy with the results and may even attempt another one some time in the future if I can come up with another crazy concept.

Finally got together with one of my nieces for a bit of a portrait session in my home studio while trying out a new background. Slowly getting a few rolls of paper to add to my gear and they are certainly good to shoot with. Will pick up a black one next. Always enjoy shooting indoors but will head out into the bush with Kayla in the near future.

Travelled back to Liberty Dive Resort in Tulamben with my wife for some long earned rest and relaxation. Spent a lot more time travelling around the Island than diving but had a great trip. There are many places to see around northern Bali and if the diving is not so great or you have a bit of spare time then talk to some of the locals and see what sights are around the area.

Have been getting back into my composite work while trying some new image blends. Happy with the way it is going but need to do some more shoots to get base images together. All in good time.The process works at its best with darker skin and hair but it is extremely difficult to find artisitic nude models in Perth with these features. I am working on methods that work with lighter models.

Today marked the launch of my new website which I put together to promote the path I have taken with my photography in recent years. Although I still shoot underwater I have finally moved to areas that have interested me for many years. I tried to keep this site as clean and neat as possible so that navigation was effortless and I also kept the number of images limited to, what I feel are, my best shots for a particular shoot or theme. I have enjoyed putting this site together and hope you all enjoy viewing it.