Michael Neerhof

Where the creative magic happens...

2011-12-28T12:53:00.002-06:00

Portraits

2011-11-24T15:16:00.005-06:00

Some photos I took at a recent family gathering:

Andrea Dawn on Kickstarter

2011-11-16T23:05:00.002-06:00

I put together this video for the talented Chicago artist Andrea Dawn. Click the link below the video to support her, and get some sweet stuff in return.

Andrea Dawn - Underground

2011-10-27T22:12:00.003-05:00

A video I produced for Andrea Dawn's new single "Underground", from the forthcoming album "Theories of How We Can Be Friends".

New Photos

2011-10-01T23:47:00.003-05:00

Check out more on Flickr.

Like my Facebook page to get updates.

Neal & Sarah

2011-02-02T16:14:00.000-06:00

Neal & Sarah from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Highlights from Neal & Sarah's wedding on September 24, 2010.

Music:
Keith Urban - Making Memories of Us
Keith Urban - Your Everything
Phil Vassar - Love is a Beautiful Thing

Elvin & Natalie

2010-11-05T10:51:00.001-05:00

Footage from the photo shoot at Elvin & Natalie's wedding on September 12, 2010.

Elvin & Natalie - Photo Shoot from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Footage from the photo shoot at Elvin & Natalie's wedding on September 12, 2010.

New photos

2010-08-29T19:35:00.005-05:00

I took a trip to the forest preserve across from where I work and took some photos. Since I haven't shared anything on here in a while, I figured I'd post these. Also, I re-edited a lot of old photos and posted them on my Flickr site, so you can check out more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/29672054@N08/.

Kaitlyn's One Year Photos

2010-06-13T15:46:00.008-05:00

On May 15, I took some one year photos of Kaitlyn at Lilacia Park in Lombard. Here are a few of my favorites:

Jake & Jessica

2010-04-12T21:13:00.001-05:00

Footage from the photo shoot at Jake & Jessica's wedding July 11, 2009.

Jake & Jessica from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Some video from the photo shoot for Jake and Jessica's wedding July 11, 2009.

Ron & Meredith DVD Art

2010-02-09T15:41:00.006-06:00

I wanted to share some of the artwork from Ron & Meredith's wedding DVD because I really like the way it turned out.

Here's the DVD case insert:

The image is a cake which was flown in all the way from Scotland (I believe).

Here's the DVD menu, minus the shadow highlights:

This structure was created by Meredith's father. Impressive huh?

And here's the DVD label:

I really liked how it all came together because it not only creates a nice warm feel, but it also represents some of the personal touches of the wedding day. And I'm all about customizing my work to match the personalities of my clients.

Ron & Meredith Photo Shoot

2010-01-28T12:59:00.001-06:00

Here's a short video from Ron & Meredith's wedding day photo shoot. Enjoy...

Ron & Meredith - Photo Shoot from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Some footage from Ron & Meredith's wedding day photo shoot.

Timothy & Amanda Photo Shoot Video

2009-11-21T23:07:00.002-06:00

My first video using Color to process the video. I only added some of the film look effect and boosted the contrast a bit. Enjoy!

Timothy & Amanda from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Footage from Timothy and Amanda's photo shoot May 30, 2009.

Footage shot on a Sony HVR-Z1U and edited in Final Cut and Color.

The Return

2009-10-07T21:49:00.002-05:00

It's been a while. I've been putting in a lot of extra time and efforts at my day job recently, which has left me very little time to pursue other creative ventures. I have the entire week off next week to work on wedding videos and other side projects, so hopefully I'll have some new content for you.

Thanks for your patience. More is coming very soon...

First Try at Goodbye

2009-06-01T21:45:00.004-05:00

Another shot from the recording session of Andrea Dawn & Jeremy Junkin. This video is from the song First Try at Goodbye. It's an unedited clip, but I really like how it came out...

Recording "First Try at Goodbye" - Andrea Dawn & Jeremy Junkin from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

A take from the recording process for Andrea Dawn and Jeremy Junkin's debut album First Try At Goodbye. I really like how this shot came out, even without any editing.

First Try at Goodbye was recorded at The Alley in Valparaiso, IN. Engineered by Dennis Tousana for Absolute Audio. Produced by Zach Goforth and Dennis Tousana, with help from Marc Nelson. Mastered by Dan Stout at Colossal Mastering. I tagged along to record the experience.

myspace.com/andreadawnjeremyjunkin

andreadawnmusic.com

jeremyjunkin.com

Andrea Dawn and Jeremy Junkin Recording Video

2009-05-19T20:00:00.002-05:00

Recording "Over It" - Andrea Dawn & Jeremy Junkin from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Footage captured during the recording process for Andrea Dawn and Jeremy Junkin's debut album First Try At Goodbye. The album was recorded at The Alley in Valparaiso, IN. Engineered by Dennis Tousana for Absolute Audio. Produced by Zach Goforth and Dennis Tousana, with help from Marc Nelson. Mastered by Dan Stout at Colossal Mastering. I tagged along to record the experience.

www.myspace.com/andreadawnjeremyjunkin

www.andreadawnmusic.com

www.jeremyjunkin.com

This government needs more creative people...

2009-04-27T21:59:00.006-05:00

Really? They scared everyone in New York and wasted thousands of dollars in jet fuel and emergency response personnel for some photos of Air Force One in front of landmarks? Have they not heard of Photoshop? Check it out: In the last 10 minutes I made this image of Air Force One behind the Statue of Liberty:

Here are the two original photos, which I found on the internet by googling Statue of Liberty and Air Force One (All credit goes to their owners):

They could have hired me for 10 minutes of work and saved hundreds of thousands of dollars. The photo in front of Mt. Rushmore looks fake anyways. The government doesn't need more taxes - they need more people to think creatively.

Man, I should get a job in government...

Paul & Bethany Bridal Party Pics

2009-02-21T18:33:00.002-06:00

A montage of video and photos from the bridal party photo shoot for Paul and Bethany's wedding July 12, 2008. More to come.

Paul & Bethany - Bridal Party Photos from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Matt & Jenni Wedding Videos

2009-01-11T18:19:00.002-06:00

Here are some videos from Matt and Jenni's wedding 10/18/08. Enjoy!

Matt & Jenni - Hair and Makeup from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Matt & Jenni - Preparations from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Matt & Jenni - Photo Shoot from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Competitive Eating for Charity

2009-01-05T12:30:00.004-06:00

Here's a video I put together of a cheeseburger eating competition I took part in at my work. People pledged money for the Ronald McDonald House charity, and with all donations being matched by the CEO, we were able to raise about $1000.

Warning: I do not recommend trying to eat as many McDonalds cheeseburgers as possible in 4 minutes. Your digestive system will not appreciate it.

NSA Media Cheeseburger Eating Competition from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Best Albums of 2008

2008-12-31T15:23:00.004-06:00

Here's my list of the best albums of 2008, in approximate order of best to "least best". Check them out if you feel so inclined. The list may not be complete, but I just put it together by sorting my iTunes by Year while waiting for a wedding video to compress. Feel free to leave comments with albums you agree with or feel are missing.

William Fitzsimmons - The Sparrow and the Crow
Every song is like a story. No one captures the feeling of a particular moment in time like William Fitzsimmons.

Amos Lee - Last Days at the Lodge
This guy's voice is amazing, so full of soul and yet so smooth. Each album he puts out gets better and better.

Radiohead - In Rainbows
This was released so many times - I think one of the dates was in 2008.

Snow Patrol - A Hundred Million Suns
Another surprise gem from a band that never ceases to amaze.

Jack's Mannequin - The Glass Passenger
I fully expected this to be the album of the year after hearing a couple demos from it. It only slightly missed its mark due to over-production. I think most of the demos sounded better than the finished versions.

Seven Mary Three - Day&NightDriving
This band is constantly reinventing its sound, from the grunge band of the mid-nineties to the pop-rock band of the late nineties to the rock band of the 2000s to the introspective indie band of 2008. This is an amazing inprovement from the disappointing Dis-Location.

Shawn Mullins - Honeydew
When Shawn Mullins goes for an upbeat southern soul sound, he does it better than almost anyone. He tends to mix in some slower, somewhat boring songs to his albums, but this one is still overall a great cd.

Counting Crows - Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings
Although overall a bit of a disappointment, this cd contains two of the top songs of the year in 1492 and Cowboys, so I'm including it anyways).

Augustana - Can't Love, Can't Hurt
An amazing collection of songs. Unfortunately every Augustana album feels like it's missing something. The songs seem so flat, like it needs a bass guitar or some additional instrumentation. Still a great cd though.

Ray Lamontagne - Gossip in the Grain
Not nearly as good as his first two albums, but still far superior to most of the crap out there.

Dave Barnes - Me and You and The World
Not his best work, as you can tell it's more pop-oriented than past albums due to the new record deal, but still contains some amazing songs.

Kanye West - 808's and Heartbreaks
I usually hate it when singers/rappers use synthesizers on their voices, but this album is too catchy not to like. Sounds horrible live though.

Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Cardinology
The song Fix It is stuck in my head about 65% of the time.

Disappointing albums of 2008:

Marc Broussard - Keep Coming Back
Marc really seems to be moving towards a motown/pop sound and away from the southern soul sound I liked so much about his other albums. This one was pretty forgettable.

Coldplay - Viva La Vida
I don't understand the hype behind this band. I really liked their album Parachutes, and everything since sounds pretty much the same to me. I like the songs Lost! and Violet Hill on this album, but that's about it.

Hint for Higher Quality YouTube Videos

2008-12-13T21:17:00.003-06:00

So I've always had issues with YouTube because of their compression, as even if you follow their own, very specific guidelines, it always seems to make your videos look all pixellated and crappy. I also always hated that they didn't display videos in true widescreen. Well this has all changed ...sort of.

YouTube now displays videos in widescreen. In fact, now it makes any full screen videos look a little ridiculous. This is a welcome change.

I also learned that you can watch a better quality version of any video on YouTube by typing &fmt=18 at the end of the URL and then hitting enter. What I don't understand, is why they just don't make this better quality version standard. It can't really be a storage issue of them not having the capacity, because they obviously have the higher quality video stored if you can use this work-around to get to it. Maybe they want to maintain faster download speeds, but I think they should leave that choice to us.

Anyways, so you can now enjoy watching some of my videos in higher quality by going to my YouTube page here. But remember to stop the video, type &fmt=18 at the end of the URL and hit enter so you can enjoy higher quality video and less pixellation.

I still think Vimeo is a far better site for hosting videos. It just doesn't boast the same audience yet. Someday...

Anyways, enjoy some videos.

Busy Season

2008-12-03T21:34:00.003-06:00

I have been ridiculously busy lately and struggling to stay motivated to get everything done. I took off today and next Wednesday to work on completing some wedding videos and wrapping up some other small projects. My goal is to have everything I'm currently working on done by New Years so I can get started on some new projects and embark on some new creative endeavors, which I'll probably share with you sometime soon as I develop ideas. So the posts will likely be sparse in the next few weeks, but then I should have a plethora of new material to share with you. For now, enjoy this picture I took from the ice rink at Millennium Park on Thanksgiving Day. I really like this photo - it seems to have a great depth to it which makes the buses seem tiny yet makes the city look like it only goes for a few blocks before fading into nothing. Click on it to see the large version for the full effect...

Enjoy the holidays!

Jeff & Bekah Video

2008-11-15T17:28:00.001-06:00

Here's a video of the photo shoot for Jeff and Bekah's wedding October 11, 2008. Enjoy!

Jeff & Bekah - Park Photos from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Jeff & Bekah Preview

2008-10-22T21:18:00.003-05:00

I was working on editing Jeff and Bekah's wedding video and I love this picture so much I thought I would share it with you. Click on it to see the big picture. Enjoy:

Josh & Amy

2008-10-13T21:39:00.003-05:00

Some footage from the photo shoot before Josh & Amy's wedding September 12, 2008:

Josh & Amy Photo Shoot from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Much more to come. For some reason October seems to be the new wedding season...

Amazing Commercial

2008-09-22T18:08:00.002-05:00

I know this blog usually contains my creations, but this is too cool to not share:

Andrea Dawn & Jeremy Junkin Recording Session

2008-09-07T19:26:00.006-05:00

Last weekend I had the pleasure of being present for the recording session for the upcoming CD from Andrea Dawn & Jeremy Junkin. I recorded some high def video of the day to test my new camera, so hopefully I'll get some of that posted up here in the future. It might be a while with all the weddings and events I have coming up, but I'm excited to see the results. In the meantime, here are some photos I took during the day. For more, add me as a friend on Facebook and check out my photos. While you're at it, check out Andrea and Jeremy's music.

Jeremy recording his big guitar solo

Andrea dubbing over some piano

Zach laying down some acoustic guitar

Dennis and Mark doing some mixing

Andy & Melissa Highlight Video

2008-08-23T17:23:00.002-05:00

The highlights of the day from Andy & Melissa's wedding May 31, 2008:

Andy & Melissa Wedding Highlights from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

Finally, a better option!

2008-08-23T00:10:00.003-05:00

So here's my final presentation of the Andy & Melissa photo shoot video. I found a site called Vimeo which doesn't screw with the compression ratios, so all new videos will be posted there and then shared here. Enjoy!

Andy & Melissa Photo Shoot from Mike Neerhof on Vimeo.

2008-08-16T23:55:00.003-05:00

More Lombard Auto Show photos...

2008-08-06T21:37:00.004-05:00

These are from last Saturday, after a little fun in Photoshop. First, my new dream car. 0-60 in 3 seconds. Good times...

And check out this sweet ride:

Wedding Video Sample #2

2008-08-02T09:20:00.003-05:00

Here's a slightly higher quality version of the Andy & Melissa Photo Shoot video discussed in the last post. YouTube's process of reformatting your video sure sucks, so just imagine the video isn't all grainy. I compressed this using YouTube's own standards at the highest quality that their limits allow, so I'm disappointed by the graininess. Anyways, enjoy!

Wedding Video Sample

2008-07-31T22:19:00.005-05:00

Here's a sample of one of the recent weddings I filmed, Andy and Melissa's wedding May 31. This video is from the photo shoot with the photographer. I tagged along and took some pictures and video to include in the final DVDs. The YouTube video ended up quite grainy despite very specific formatting, but I'll hopefully fix that shortly. For now, enjoy!

Inspiration

2008-07-27T22:12:00.005-05:00

"It has to start somewhere. It has to start sometime. What better place than here. What better time than now."

I watched this clip after seeing a link to it on this blog http://exposurecompensation.com/
and I think it says some pretty inspirational things. It's part of a whole series on YouTube, so if you have a chance check out all four 5 minute or less clips. It caught my attention because I've been thinking a lot about my future and how my creative endeavors fit into it. Sometimes it's frustrating when you have a vision and you can't seem to capture it, or when time/money constraints keep you from accomplishing everything you know in your heart you can do. So it's always inspiring to hear from someone who had a dream and kept at it, even when it didn't go as well as he'd planned. Someday I will conquer the world as planned...

I took some cool pictures this weekend, and I'll post some in the coming days. Right now it's time for sleep.

Explanation and Challenge

2008-07-22T18:57:00.003-05:00

Since I don't know the best way to respond to comments on here, I'll just answer Jordan's question in a new post. The Viper picture from Sunday was created by taking the following original picture and then doing the following:

Adding a Levels layer mask, adjusting the darkest and lightest points to show the desired amount of color and contrast.
Adding a Curves layer mask and dragging the curve into a "u" shape to darken the exposure a bit, then erasing the bottom half of the mask (the car and the pavement) using a brush with 0% hardness to hide the difference so the adjustment only effects the background.

That probably sounds a lot more complicated than it is. It took me about 5 minutes. I thought the original picture was pretty cool by itself, but I wanted it to look a little more Hollywood.

This gives me a cool idea I tried once before during the reign of Xanga blogs. To the few people who read this, send me a picture, post a picture, or leave a comment with an idea for a picture and I will make the coolest image I can from it. I like challenges like this because it keeps me creative and experimental. I can't promise quick responses since I now have 4 wedding videos I'm working on editing, but I will do my best to complete each request in a timely manner. If someone wants to make it a competition for coolest image, just let me know.

Dream Car

2008-07-20T15:31:00.005-05:00

My ultimate dream car was at Lombard's weekly car show a couple of weeks ago. The old style Dodge Viper - black with silver racing stripes. A thing of beauty...

I felt like playing around with Photoshop a bit, and I think it made this picture look really cool. Looks like it was taken on a sunny day in California.

4th of July

2008-07-06T20:22:00.007-05:00

I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday weekend. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the festivities. (Click on them to see the large versions)

If you want to see more you'll have to become my friend on Facebook, as long as you're not a stalker or rapist. Please let me know if you are...

I'm back...

2008-06-21T09:56:00.005-05:00

I know, it's been a while since I posted. So what have I been up to? Well since I now have internet at my new place, I'll hopefully post some new stuff in the next few days to show you.

I filmed the beautiful wedding of Andy and Melissa on May 31. Once I finish editing the video maybe I'll get a highlight video uploaded on here. For now, here are some photos I took while filming:

More to come. Stay tuned...

Oh the po-pos

2008-05-28T19:37:00.002-05:00

I just sat in traffic for 45 minutes to go about 2 miles. "Was there an accident?" "Did a tanker fire start on fire?" you are asking yourself. Nope. After 45 minutes of waiting, divided by a wonderful stop for a couple $1 double cheeseburgers, I arrived at the cause of the delay - a police "Seatbelt Enforcement Zone. Seriously? During rush hour? This is the third time in about a month I have waited over 30 minutes for the po-pos to check for seatbelts.

Isn't wearing a seatbelt a rule which punishes itself if it is not obeyed? I don't think a $75 ticket is going to change someone's habits if the risk of almost certain death in the event of an accident hasn't been able to.

The location and timing of this "Seatbelt Enforcement" probably didn't work out too well for the cops either. I think people might have realized that they should put their seatbelts on while waiting for 45 minutes in front of a giant sign that says Seatbelt Enforcement Zone. If anyone still got caught without a seatbelt tonight I hope they just killed them, because humanity is better off without such fools.

I got an idea for the suburbs: Cut back on the number of cops, lower the taxes since you have so much extra money from all the salaries and pensions you won't have to pay, and stop wasting my time.

Life and Baseball

2008-04-23T20:58:00.007-05:00

Wow... what a weird few weeks it's been. I promise to post more often in the future, but I've had a lot going on recently. The past few weeks have held a bizarre mixture of amazing and terrible things, leaving my head spinning...

Maybe more on all that later, but for now I have to pay attention to the greatest baseball team on earth. Enjoy some related photos:

The greatest ballpark, when it works...

...and one of the greatest players.

Music Time!!!

2008-03-13T21:41:00.002-05:00

What an awesome ad. And an awesome musician. I've found so many amazing bands/musicians in the last few months and so many good cds have come out from old favorites, it's making me go broke. I miss Napster...

Here are some recent albums I've discovered which you should check out. Not all of them were released recently, but all are amazing. Go to www.free.napster.com and check some of them out (not all of them are on the site).

Seven Mary Three - day&nightdriving
Shawn Mullins - Honeydew
The Frames - The Cost and Fitzcarraldo
Matthew Ryan - From a Late Night High Rise
William Fitzsimmons - Goodnight
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Joshua Radin - Unclear Sky
Cary Brothers - Who You Are
Chris Holmes - Get Yer Yum-Yums Out
Will Hoge - Draw The Curtains
Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers - Glassjaw Boxer

That's enough for now. Now go forth and enjoy!

Freedom

2008-02-25T16:06:00.004-06:00

Oh summer, where art thou?!

2008-02-20T22:22:00.003-06:00

I can't wait until it gets above 45 degrees.
I say we all become migratory, like geese.
In order to prevent the entire population from being down south in the winter,
We should make all of the elderly people move north when it's cold.
It's not like they go outside anyways...

The grass is always greener...

2008-02-19T21:46:00.004-06:00

New Blog!!!

2008-02-17T16:16:00.000-06:00

I'm gonna try this out for a while as a spot to post some creative works, humorous observations, and other general awesomeness. So you may want to make this your homepage so you can tell your friends in a couple months that you were reading Mike's blog before the rest of the world had even heard of it. Enjoy, and remember - feedback is always welcomed and encouraged. If you want to see something in particular on here, just let me know.