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by Sam Collins

11 months ago

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by Sam Collins

1 year ago

1. Design For Life - Trailer

by Sam Collins

1 year ago

This 15 minute documentary tells the story of Denis Smith. Two years ago he was in a high pressure sales job suffering with depression, debt and alcohol problems. Then he discovered light painting, and his life changed forever...

balloflight.com.au
samcollinsmedia.com

*Ball of Light is still available to license for broadcast/distribution in some territories - please contact info@samcollinsmedia.com for details / promo high-def DVD mailout.

Credits

Sam Collins
Writer/producer/camera/edit/music/coffee
Jenny Mayhem
Music (end credits)

1,020 Likes

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Tags

Starbird Productions 11 months ago

AMAZING!!! Extremely well put together...Thank you Denis for being so open and honest!
Bellographix 11 months ago

Very nice!
touchfood 11 months ago

Enjoyed watching your doc, simple and wonderful topic - change is good - BRAVO
Sam Collins 11 months ago

Thankyou very much for your kind comments guys
Julian Butler 11 months ago

Nice work. Feel bad for state Denis was in but he was saved by the power of photography! ;-)
Asif Saleem 11 months ago

Well done Denis for having the courage to let go of the bad stuff and embracing something as simple, beautiful and calming as photography :)
denis smith 11 months ago

Sam. It has been a stunning experience working with you on this project. From the day we met you have made me feel comfortable, safe and special. You have created a piece of film that I genuinely feel captures the past 2 years of my life. Thank you from my heart good friend, and that you have become. I only hope that the good vibes we seem to have created continue on into the future. Thanks Mate. Denis
Ross Howard 7 months ago

Mr. Smith, I love your work and this documentary. Your story and work are an inspiration.

I graduated with a degree in film and a minor in photography and have made several short films using light painting. Hope you enjoy it.
youtube.com/watch?v=ciu71WzKuNk
farid 11 months ago

its amazing, love the lights
Mr.LEE PICTURES 11 months ago

good ~
Kmicu 11 months ago

Really good story.
Viktor Pettersson 11 months ago

amazing stuff you guys've put together. Got to get my own balls of light now. Thx for the inspiration! :D
Aaron Morrell 11 months ago

Very Nice and encouraging!
A simple life and willingness or necessity to change is an amazing catalyst for beautiful things!

Thanks for the reminder.
Jeremy Jackson 10 months ago

Sam, you did an excellent job documenting Denis' story. Well arranged and paced.

Denis, your story was compelling and inspiring. I can imagine your appreciation for light painting knows no bounds. Carry on and as you often say, go hard.
Sam Collins 10 months ago

Thanks to everyone who is commenting here, it's great to know people are enjoying the film :)
Seagrey 10 months ago

Well done Denis! All the best.
Jenny Mayhem 10 months ago

beautiful story and breathtaking photography! i'm honoured to have a song here
Sam Collins 10 months ago

Jenny, it's a great track, people have been asking about it too. Do you have a preferred website to direct people to?

Thanks for the contribution, it's perfect! :)
Jenny Mayhem 10 months ago

it really seems to fit the mood at the end! the best site would be jennymayhem.bandcamp.com where that album is free to download.
there's also my daily song project at jennymayhem.tumblr.com/

glad to see this video is doing so well! i'll be following denis' work and travels online :)
Sam Collins 10 months ago

Cool, will pass those on to those who asked :)

We love your work!
François Mathey 10 months ago

I enjoyed this documentary, it's a good topic and an interesting story, full of positive vibrations. Thank you for sharing :)
Infinity Photo 10 months ago

Great stuff!
bmsweb 10 months ago

Amazing story and amazing passion, fantastic job of capturing this!
Shane Parker 10 months ago

Very inspiring story Denis and a wonderfully put together documentary Sam. Thanks to both of you for sharing!
Colortrails 10 months ago

Remarkable story and beautiful art. Congrats to you for pointing your life in a new direction and arriving at a more rewarding place.
JONDO 10 months ago

Extraordinary. Our entire office went bonkers for this.
HappyHourVideo.com 10 months ago

What an amazing story and production. Great job!!
Johnny A! 10 months ago

very cool video denis. Its nice to see who is behind all those perfect orbs!
Andrew McWilliams 10 months ago

I really like this video. It's nice to see a human story attached to this technique... very nice work!
Michael Palmer 10 months ago

liking this alot. very well made documentary, and stunning photographing from denis...
Sam Collins 10 months ago

Again, thankyou everyone - I've been blown away by the response!
Andrew Darlow 10 months ago

Outstanding documentary and story. It really illustrates how passion for one's craft (in this case, photography with a unique twist) can change one's life, as well as the lives of the viewers of the work.
David Croxford 10 months ago

Very nice documentary Sam! Super cool Photographic work Denis. Totally Awesome!
Bashar Alaeddin 10 months ago

u've inspired me to venture into light painting now... great great story!
Per Zangenberg 10 months ago

Absolutely mind bogling images! It looks out of this world.
Bpositive 10 months ago

Wow, those images are as stunning as they get. Very inspiring video :-)
Greg Naughton 10 months ago

This resonates with me in every imaginable way, thanks.
Jason Wingrove 10 months ago

great stuff mate. thinking i can work your thing into my thing :-)

vimeo.com/channels/seapool

cheers
jas
Mathias Eis Schultz 10 months ago

Incredible!
Benjamin Chagneux 10 months ago

SOrry to reject your video from
vimeo.com/groups/dslrlensesdatabase
This is not a video lens test !
Check out the terms of use at homepage.
Regards.
Alden Leatherman 9 months ago

To see human creativity take such bends and turns, to see how a life can change and grow and settle into a moving arc of beauty and connection, to imagine where our hearts and minds can lead us. Inspiring. My first thought when you talked about other places to find a ball of light, Denis, was the arctic, maybe under the Aurora Borealis. Or how about under a giant sequoia or in a sitka spruce forest? Or on the deck of a boat, with reflection, in a fjord...moving? I most like your softer, airier paintings. Thanks for giving this to us, Sam.
Antti Roos 9 months ago

Beautiful video. Very inspirational and encouraging. Takes a lot to open up to a camera with such a story.

Thanks Denis and Sam.
AndréG 9 months ago

This is just incredible. Thank you Sam for creating & sharing this touching portraiture. And of course, thanks to Denis for letting us have a look into his heart.
Markus Zeeh 9 months ago

Wow. Respect!
Red Square Visual Arts 9 months ago

I thoroughly enjoyed that. Everything about it. Great work from you and your subject (and your subject's subject).
B Bonar 9 months ago

Thanks Sam. I first watched this a few weeks ago. Commenting now. Firstly, I love Denis' photography. Secondly, what a great job you've done with this subject, by finding what was really behind the pictures. Great work!
Sam Collins 9 months ago

Thanks, commenters and likers! The past couple of months have been great - Denis has been receiving lots of correspondence from fans/friends/admirers who appreciate him sharing his story - he's making sales too! Vimeo is a powerful force : it's such a kick loading up the stats and seeing how far and wide this film has spread. We have plans to push the film out even more. Thanks again everyone!
Kat Shamash 8 months ago

This moved me so much... the combination of technique, vision, and hope makes these photographs visually interesting. I am constantly amazed at the courage of those, like Dennis Smith, who find the courage to face addiction and find ways to give back to the world through their art. I'm a fan!!! :-)
Martin Hopkins 8 months ago

Hi Sam,
I have just stumbled onto your doco by chance whilst I was surfing around on Vimeo. Great job, very inspiring.
I met you and Denis a few weeks ago, coincidently, at the Railway Hotel in Pt Adelaide with Cindy Drennin. We were there doing the test run with the projections down Lipson St.
I was looking through Denis' book with great interest at the time. Thought his work was fantastic.
Watching your doco has also got me inspired with all the various footage that I have shot that is still sitting on my hard drive.
Well done,
Regards,
Martin Hopkins.
Sam Collins 8 months ago

Hey Martin,

Thanks for your kind words :) That night, it was great to see how you guys responded to seeing Denis's work for the first time - I've seen that happen a few times now, and it's always good fun. Also, I am looking forward to seeing the projections on Lipson Street when it all goes ahead - what you guys were doing that night was amazing.
Sounds great - re: creating something from the footage you've got...is that all footage of light projections etc? Hope to see something when you've had a chance to make it!

See you again soon around town I'm sure, all the best, Sam
Andrey Ramkulov 8 months ago

Thanks a lot for this video your story.
Great job you've done!
Don Burns [[ECHOPIX]] 8 months ago

very inspiring story. thank you!
Kate Howard 8 months ago

Can't believe Denis was ever the person he described being two years ago. Absolutely beautiful work, look forward to seeing more of his lighting alchemy!
Kym Fielke 7 months ago

Brilliant piece on Denis and his stunning local work Sam! Thanks so much for exposing SA's talent and unique beauty to others.
Chris Johnston 7 months ago

Did he do those 6 balls of light as 1 exposure?
Sam Collins 7 months ago

Yep, he sure did.
Kyle Lyons 7 months ago

Well done Sam! What a beautiful story! Blogged it to vjvault.com/blog and vjloops.tv/blog
Sam Collins 7 months ago

Great! Thanks Kyle :)
Kodi Fletcher 7 months ago

Very cool video! I had to share it on twitter! Thanks for sharing!
Sam Collins 6 months ago

Thanks Kodi, every bit of buzz helps :D
Denis 6 months ago

Amazing!!!!
Digital Media Jockey 6 months ago

They are a portal to the real you. Thank you for sharing your awakening with us. The role of art is to save mankind and I can see its doing its job well. Keep creating and sharing. Would love to have a print of the photo at 11:11, magical. The best to you always.
Sam Collins 6 months ago

Hey, glad you enjoyed the story. Prints are available to buy here:

denissmith.bigcartel.com/
Lloyd Barnes 6 months ago

Inspiring video - great story!
Kanukayyu 5 months ago

Amazing video, thank you for teach how to do this balls.
After saw the video I bought like 4 lamps and I started to do the same.
So I went to a village destroyed by civil war (1936-1939)
This is the result

panoramio.com/user/2341043/tags/Belchite

Thanks again

Greetings from Spain
Susie Buckley 5 months ago

tremendous
Edward Rocha 4 months ago

Saw this some time ago and just loved it, my gf got so inspired she began giving this a go!. I'm sharing this around, fantastic job!

world-canvas.blogspot.com
Sam Collins 4 months ago

Great! Thanks Edward, glad you guys enjoyed it :)
Parachutix 4 months ago

Amazing Photographer and amazing production, congratulations Sam !!!
Ray Hailey 3 months ago

wonderful!
phil langham 3 months ago

just found this wonderful story. fantastic spheres,nicely put together.thanks
Michael Penney 3 months ago

Fantastic doco - well done Denis amazing work
josef novak 3 months ago

Nice, but bit boring video about bit boring photographic activity.
Michael Sutton 2 months ago

Being a light painter I totally connect with this story in more ways than I wish to admit.
denis smith 2 months ago

Hi Michael. I hope some good came of it for you. Peace mate.
Ole C. Salomonsen 2 months ago

A beautiful and inspiring story, presented in an excellent way! Liked it a lot! Thx!

Best,
Ole
jay 2 months ago

Hi Sam, really enjoyed this video, what a fab story! I can totally relate; balls of light, or "Orbs" as I call them, were one of the first things I discovered when I moved from my crippling career as a classical musician, into photography.

flickr.com/photos/cosmicgirlie/4003610701/in/set-72157622564438430/

This video (and whole story!) has been a reminder to get back to the things I enjoyed doing when I first started 2 years ago. Many thanks. :)
linelein 2 weeks ago

amazing!!!! i love south australia and your work! perfect!! looks amazing!!
Alessandra Boeri 1 week ago

amazing work!
William Brisbane 1 week ago

absolutely amazing!
KubajZ 1 week ago

Amazing photos Sam and great story. I really like the work Denis is doing. I think I will try to make similar thing. Thank You for inspiration.
arif wicaksono 1 week ago

It's very very inspiring. Thank you.