It’s been a while, dear readers! An explanation might take too long to write and I already chastise myself daily for not blogging more regularly, so let’s just move forward…
Here are a couple shots I created during a portrait session with A., who is cute and sassy and outgoing. I love both pictures…
Thanks for not being afraid to make faces at the camera, A! It was fun to work with you.
I am obsessed with thoughts of spring and summer. Seriously. It’s as bad as a six-year-old waiting for Christmas. Visions of warm sunniness torture my days and makes me cry myself to sleep at night (kidding). Unfortunately, neither of these seasons has arrived yet in the area where I live, so I’ve had to find ways to bring green and flowering beauty into my life while the snow refuses to melt outside and temperatures stubbornly remain at 40 degrees.
About two weeks ago, I received a calla lily plant and I put it on my dining room table (good light there) so I could enjoy the beautiful pink flowers. Then, a few days ago, a strange thing happened. A white calla lily flower began to grow in the midst of the pink ones and then shot up Michael Jordan-esque heights in a very short period of time. Leader? Over-achiever? Vanity? Purity? It was an irresistible image full of fun metaphors, and I knew I had to shoot it.
I’ve made a series of images from that calla lily plant on the table in my house. Which is your favorite?
(Name the awesome movie that line came from.) I am sharing the latest bit of humor from Aaron Johnson, my favorite photography cartoonist, that illustrates the negative experiences I was talking about in my last post.
Aaron is another person that I give credit to for helping me in my photography profession progression, because his oh-so-accurate comic strips have brought me much-needed laughs and relief from the stress of it all. It really helps that someone truly understands the daily struggles of the professional photographer, the creative blocks, and the, uh, quirks of potential clients.
So, a shout-out today to Aaron Johnson! Check out more of his awesome comic, “What the Duck”, here.
Kick-butt vehicles in fog = gorgeousness! Awesome. Stunning, even. (I just love tossing vocabulary together in unexpected ways, like using “gorgeous” and “kick-butt” and “vehicles” all in the same sentence. It’s fun.)
Those of you who know me well know that I’m a big supporter of the good men and women in law enforcement and public safety. As one of my service projects during the holidays, I shot one of the local “Shop With a Cop” events for free. It was a terrific experience, and one that probably would have brought tears to my eyes had I not needed them to be blur-free so that I could see through my viewfinder. 😉
Even though I was shooting on assignment for a client, I made sure to look out for personal work/fine art print opportunities. And I found a great opportunity as I watched a very long line of law enforcement vehicles drive through the early morning fog to the store where the kids and cops would shop. I’ve shared three of those prints on my website. (Here’s a little preview, too.)
Officers! Deputies! Chiefs! These prints would look KICK-BUTT in your office! They’d look AWESOME! They’d look GORGEOUS! Contact me if you want a picture that will make you the envy of the department…
B & C’s family Christmas portraits are now up on my website! You can view the images here. Warning: looking at these photos may cause an increase in holiday joy and involuntary audible exclamations of “Awwwwwww!” at your computer desk.
Still trying to figure out how I can get C’s perfect skin and teeth….
On the day after Thanksgiving, I had the opportunity to do a portrait shoot of a gorgeous couple and their baby boy, who is a clear contender for Gerber’s Next Top Model. The shoot was inside of a historic mansion (think gorgeous architecture, but very, very dark inside) and had its share of adventurous moments, but I think the pictures turned out well. Both stunning AND adorable.
I will be posting these pictures on my website in the next day or two, so check back soon for Christmas family gorgeousness. In the meantime, here is a sneak peek:
My new teen portraits are now up on my website! It was incredibly fun working with these girls, and I found each of them to be unique and beautiful. There was definitely no stuffiness or formal-ness allowed on our shoot, and I think that came through on camera. Thanks, girls, for letting me work on this project with you! 🙂
Readers… check out the new pictures using the link above and then let me know what you think!
I had a really fun time recently creating portraits for a group of seriously cute young women. I will post more pictures on my website soon from the shoot, but in the meantime here is a teaser of all of the quirky cuteness I got to capture with my camera.
I have had or overheard numerous conversations regarding professional photography when a person has said something like:
I am going to take the optimistic road and assume that these folks have simply not been educated in regard to the real meaning and value of professional photography, and how much goes into producing professional photographs. I am going to assume that they don’t actually intend to denigrate another person’s work and career and fail to recognize that the photographer they are talking about probably has a mortgage, taxes, and self-employed medical insurance premiums to pay.
So, in the spirit of education this morning, I am going to share the Photographers Manifesto recently published by the American Society of Media Photographers. I hope that you will read the ten points and, if you don’t feel this way already, adopt a new attitude toward professional photography. Respect the photo, and you respect the artist/human being behind that photo. Isn’t that what you would want for your own work?
#1 Photographs are Intellectual Property and therefore have value to the creator. If you are tempted to steal, that is because you recognize the value of the IP and are not respectful of the value of the efforts of the creator. That’s not right.
#2 Just because a photo is posted on the Internet, it is not free. It wasn’t put there so you can simply take it. It was put there to share an idea, promote talent, and gain attention. You can’t walk into a museum space or gallery space and walk out with whatever strikes your fancy. Cyberspace is no different.
#3 There are laws in place that protect Intellectual Property and they come with penalties. These penalties are exponentially worse than paying to use the work and acknowledging the creator. Exponentially is a lot.
#4 Professional photographers are just like you. We have families to feed and mortgages to pay. Stealing takes food off the table. Times are tough enough thank you very much.
#5 If contacted directly, a professional photographer can be very accommodating, get involved, and help you make your project better – making you and your client look better. And who doesn’t want to look better?
#6 Stealing. Not cool. How did you feel last time someone pirated one of your ideas or advertising concepts. Sucks huh?
#7 That photo you are thinking of stealing took time to make. Sure the shutter snapped in a fraction of a second, but there are years of hard work, education, and talent invested in it. Stop for a moment and consider that please.
#8 Speaking of investments. That photo wasn’t taken with an iPhone or a disposable camera. Not that the iPhone isn’t great for snapping pics of your BFF. Professionals have significant investments in cameras, lights, computers, and software. These things are costly to own, upgrade, and maintain. Remember that next time you are looking at our work.
#9 We are passionate about what we do and we hope you feel the same way about what you do. Passion brings respect. We respect that you are potential clients and future collaborators. We want to work with you. We hope you want to work with us too. By the way, if the project is Work for Hire please let us know upfront. We can’t respect you if you try to sneak one by us.
#10 Some things were meant to be free. Human beings, primo parking spaces, unsolicited advice about your love live. And yes, even occasionally photos. Just ask.
