First Family Photo Session

Well, I stepped over the line a few weekends ago.  I accepted an offer to take some photos of a family who will be moving on to their next destination in the near future.  I was incredibly nervous to take the job as I had never been under that kind of pressure before.  There were a few key learning experiences that I took away from the day.

First, I'm incredibly happy that I scouted the locations that I wanted to shoot.  It took almost a full day to get to them and determine where the sun would be and how I would want to shoot them but I can't imagine layering the complexity of determining a location on top of all of the other things that were going on that day. It was made much easier by having a fantastic family to work with, but still ... scout your locations.

Second, I took my lovely wife along with me.  She was amazing (as she always is) at helping.  An extra set of hands to hold up reflectors, block off direct sunlight or catch umbrellas from falling over was worth way more than I paid her.

Lastly, and probably most importantly, I realized that a day like that was about having a good experience.  I would guess that a lot of photographers would bury themselves behind their camera and play with their settings to achieve the perfect lighting ratios while ignoring the family and the relationship that they were building with them.  My biggest take away from this day was knowing when to put the camera down and talk.  I enjoyed it and I think it went a long way to getting some decent shots later on.  

Below you will find a few examples of the photos I took on the day.  Constructive criticism is always welcome and helpful ... especially since this was my first attempt!

  

Back to Basics - Maldives on Film

Our most recent trip for Spring Break was an amazing experience that Elise and I will not soon forget.  From huge Mantas to giant Whale Sharks, the underwater world of the Maldives is a playground for divers seeking large pelagics.

I would like to say that I decided to shoot my diving experience on my film camera (Nikonos V with two SB105s) in order to get back to basics.  The truth is that this camera is the only one that I own.  The price of an underwater housing in addition to the required strobes make it cost prohibitive for me to purchase a housing for my 5D III.

Before we left I reviewed the basics of using strobes underwater.  I went online and took a look at guide numbers of my strobes.  Other resources that I read suggested that in order to calculate the guide number for 2 strobes I would need to multiply the guide number by a factor of 1.4.  I then consulted the Essential Guide to the Nikonos System (portions are available free on Google books).  This provided me with enough information to calculate some starting exposure values.  I laminated this exposure chart and took it with me on dives to help me calculate my camera settings.  If you are interested in this chart, or want to know more about this process, please contact me and I would be happy to share it if you are interested.

I then set corresponding apertures, strobe power settings and distances according to this chart.  My general strategy was to set the camera for a specific type of shot and only shoot those pictures on that specific guide.  Later in the week I broke from this pattern as I started to memorize the chart and was able to adapt on the go.  These adaptations were mostly unsuccessful and I found that the shots that I took that were preplanned were much more successful.

I took about 200 photos.  The images that were most successful are posted below.  You can also see more images on my Facebook page.  The experience of going back to film was a good one.  It took me back to basics and allowed me to apply things that I have learned in the digital world to the film photography.

A Video Preview of the Maldives ...

For those that are following me here, Elise and I have just returned from the Maldives.  The trip has completely reignited my love of the underwater world and underwater photography.  Having yet to invest in an underwater housing for my new camera (which is now just a matter of time) I took my old Nikonos 5 (a film camera) along with me to record the underwater world.  It was back to basics for sure as I shot in manual mode most of the time and used an online exposure chart to calculate my exposures.  I'm dropping off the film today so keep your finger crossed for me.  I'll post any decent results I get back here at a later date.  Until then, here are two videos from other divers that we were with to tease you and possibly persuade to visit the Maldives.

Mantas in the Maldives

Snorkeling with Whale Sharks

Outdoor Portrait with the Girl On Fire

I've been wanting to get into portraiture for a while now but other than Elise, there have been few people who were interested in taking me up on my offer.  I can completely understand the hesitation.  You have to put yourself out there, meet someone you have never met before and then stand in a public area on a bright sunny day with people walking by as photos are taken of you.

Plami and I got in touch through one of the local modeling websites and decided to try a first shoot in South Park.  Plami is an amazing person and incredibly easy going.  Her name actually means "on fire" from what I can remember, which suits her hair to a tee.  She has natural posing talent and is very easy to work with.  That made my first experience at this much easier.

I my mind, I was going for a few back-lit shots with the sun as a hair light and a silver umbrella with a Pocket Wizard as a key light.  I thought this would be a safe and easy way to get some decent photos and not embarrass myself in front of the talent.

Amazingly, we worked for almost two hours taking shots in different places with a simple one light setup (umbrella off to one side, 45 degrees up and over) with the sun behind for some rim light.  I adjusted the power of the strobe and shot in manual to get a balance of ambient and flash as I thought I saw fit.  Both of us enjoyed it so much that we continued to work after the best light was gone.  The images that were taken are below.  Editing was done in a combination of Lightroom and Photoshop.

Please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions for improvement below.  I'm always looking to get better and open working with people any time.  Enjoy your Sunday!

Knowing the Location

Last night I had the opportunity to see Hilda Kazasyan at Studio 5 in Sofia.  The show kicked off a month long parade of jazz coming through the city that will be topped off at the end of the month by a weekend long concert at Mixtape 5.

Playing to a more mature, yet overall diverse crowd, the Big Band Brass Association opened with one or two songs before Hilda arrived.  Her personality and stage presence provided a glow that lit up the room.  The intimate venue of Studio 5 was the perfect location for her personal and welcoming show.  The audience stood feet from her microphone and took in all the show had to offer.  

My slow ... very slow ... development of the understanding of how to light venues has led me to the following conclusion.  You have to know your venue ... duh.  I arrived at Studio 5 last night a touch late and realized that I had no idea what the venue looked like, where I could position lights or what the house lights were like.  After flashing a few poor customers directly in the face with some side stage lighting tests I realized that I would be forced to use the stage lights.

It turned out that the high ISO capabilities of the 5D Mark III were up to the task.  The photos below are from the Hilda Kazasyan concert at Studio 5 last night.  I managed to adapt to the conditions on the fly but next time I will definitely be scouting the location beforehand and considering all the lighting options.

The second realization that I have come to recently is that photographers have a detrimental effect at concerts.  During my three most recent shoots the number of photographers/videographers has been ... intrusive.  Flashes going off, photographers pushing for "the shot" and polite concert goers not wanting to interfere with the "professionals" has, in my opinion, taken away from the event.  Part of the art of event photography is blending into the background and not interfering with the actual event or the event-goers.  During the Ruth Koleva show at Mixtape 5, I was so disappointed with amount of media there and how they were interfering with the show I took down my equipment and left.  I did not want to contribute to an already awkward situation.  While recording images of events is an important and worthwhile, the event photographer must realize that he/she is there to record it, not affect it.

That being said ... here are some images from the Hilda Kazasyan concert last night ... hypocritical or not?  You be the judge.

 

  

Chasing Trams

Yep, I've been known to almost be run over by a tram or two.  Mostly due to looking through the lens too long ... and who knew that a tram's "horn" was a little cheery bell, huh?  Not much of a warning before they actually run you down.

Today I took a walk downtown and went for some shots of Sofia's trams.  Part of it was inspired by Dola, who wanted a shot of her tram 10, but I also find myself fascinated by the public transportation system in Bulgaria.  Considering the local economic situation, the system is well maintained, efficient and timely.  It really is the way to get around the city if need be.

The pictures in this post were taken with the 70-200mm f4.0L and the 17-40 f4.0L.  I've been waiting to get my hands on a full frame camera and I was excited to see what the 17mm end of the range would offer me.  As you can see by some of the photos below, the 17mm focal length distorts buildings to make them appear to have walls that slant together as they approach the sky.  Some true architectural photographers don't like the look, but I feel like it gives you a sense of location and space and provides a view that not everyone has seen.

The photos taken with the 70-200mm will show less distortion (as seen below).

While the photos taken at 17mm will appear as below.  I have found that the 17-40mm f4.0L shines most brightly at f8.0 and above so most of these photos were taken in that range.  Below this f-stop the lens tends to produce quite soft and unpleasing images.  Enjoy!

Beloslava at SLC

Damon Rickett Photography

From talking to the promoter, Beloslava is a private individual who makes few public appearances and plays fewer shows.  When we were asked if Elise and I wanted to come to one of her concerts we jumped on the opportunity.  Her smooth sound was a perfect accompaniment to her welcoming yet aloof stage presence.  Knowing glances and deep smiles gave the audience reason to enjoy the pleasure she derived from her art.  It is always exciting to see artists that enjoys what they do.  The video below is an example of one of her past pieces of work.

The photos of this event were taken using cross lighting.  I used my typical cross lighting setup by snooting one speedlight (stage left) and gridding the other (stage right) so that the light would not spill onto the background of the stage.  The speedlights were set to ETTL and I used a combination of the 70-200mm f4.0L and the 24-70mm f2.8L II along with the new 5D Mark III.  I limited my post production this time to simple exposure and contrast adjustments. Enjoy the photos!