About Me
My job as your photographer is to do more than just put a face to the name. I bring experience, professionalism, confidence, and a relaxed persona that produces photographs that instill a sense of trust and confidence in a potential client or customer. When you don’t do that, you will fail to get everything you can out of a brochure, website, or press release. The picture is critical.
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but you rarely hear about the reactions to a poor quality photograph. Professional photography when presenting yourself or company to the public is a necessity.
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Tag Archives: Photograph
Something soft & sexy, something mean and something in-between
Most every time I work with a new model I get asked the same question: What should I bring to wear?
There is no doubt that clothing, makeup and the ability to ‘strike a pose’ are important to a successful portrait/modeling session. However, the most essential asset a model can bring to the studio or location is the ability to interact with the camera.
My job at a shoot is to make them look as best I am able given my limited skills with lighting and equipment. I cannot, however, do it alone. You have seen that cell phone snapshot that drew you in; you have also seen a professional portrait that, although technically sound, just leaves you feeling that something misfired. A model must have an understanding they are not trying to tease/seduce/influence me as the photographer: They must make the connection with the viewer of the photograph.
They must make the connection with the viewer of the photograph.
My answer to the outfit question: Bring something soft & sexy, something mean and something in-between.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 50°F;
- Humidity: 53%;
- Heat Index: 50°F;
- Wind Chill: 48°F;
- Pressure: 30.18 in.;
Posted in My Photo; My Comment., People
Also tagged Ability To ‘Strike A Pose’, Amp, camera, Cat, Cell Phone, Clothes, Clothing, equipment, Flickr, Hoot, Interact, Interaction, Job, Jobs, Light, lighting, Lighting Equipment, Limited, Lot, Makeup, model, Modeling, Models, Nap, new, New Model, No Doubt, one, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photos, portrait, Portraits, Pose, pro, professional, Professional Portrait, Rig, Rkd, rkdauph, Sessions, Sexy, shoot, shot, Snapshot, Stan, stand, standing, Strike A Pose, studio, Target, Tease, What Should I Bring To Wear?
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Nikon D700 High ISO Test
A test of my D700 on the hotel deck: downtown Minneapolis. Camera set to Aperture priority mode, Auto WB, Auto ISO, AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 IF-D at f1.4. The photograph to the right is ISO 11200.
See additional photographs and the “More Properties” information on D700 high ISO Flickr set for additional details.
No post processing in Photoshop CS3 other than to resize for here. All noise reduction software applied at default setting.
See gallery below to see the effect of Noise Ninja, Neat Image and Topaz Denoise.
I did not speak to the result intentionally, each should reach his own conclusion.
larrygerbrandt on Flickr had a good idea on post noise reduction sharpening so I gave it a shot.
Added: Topaz Denoise then Nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 applied to the image.
Noise reduction applied to whole photograph added to the Flickr set here.
- 100%-crop and noise reduction test
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 64°F;
- Humidity: 77%;
- Heat Index: 64°F;
- Wind Chill: 63°F;
- Pressure: 29.87 in.;
Posted in Lighting tests, Places
Also tagged 100%-Crop, Additional Details, AF Nikkor 85mm F/1.4 IF-D, Aperture, Aperture Priority, Auto ISO, Auto WB, Blog, camera, Conclusion, Cs3, D700, Deck, Downtown, Downtown Minneapolis, F1, F1.4, Flickr, High ISO, Hotel, Image, Images, Iso, ISO 11200, Minneapolis, Modes, Neat Image, Nikkor, Nikkor 85mm, nikon, Nikon D700, Noise Ninja, Noise Reduction, Noise Reduction Software, Noise Reduction Test, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photos, Photoshop, Photoshop CS3, Post Processing, pro, Rig, Rkd, rkdauph, shot, Target, Test, Topaz, Topaz Denoise
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Sunrise on the Mississippi
I’m in Minneapolis, Minnesota on business for a few days. The fall colors are wonderful. I wanted to get out of my hotel room and try some landscape photography. Not my normal venue.
Where to go? How to get there? I was lucky enough to meet up with a local photographer, David Goldberg, who was not only willing to show me around but get up at 5am to do it!
It was a beautiful morning, crisp, clear and just a bit of fog hanging over the river and the couple of 10,000 Minnesota lakes I saw. We must of walked 3-4 miles through the woods and shorelines. The morning dew was thick and added a sparkling highlight to most everything.
Thanks David.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 70°F;
- Humidity: 49%;
- Heat Index: 77°F;
- Wind Chill: 70°F;
- Pressure: 30.25 in.;
Posted in My Photo; My Comment., Places
Also tagged 5am, 5d, beautiful, Beautiful Morning, business, color, Colors, Couple, Dav, David Goldberg, Fall Colors, Few Days, Flickr, Fog, Gold, Highlight, Hotel, Hotel Room, Landscape Photography, Light, Lucky, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Minnesota Lakes, Morning Dew, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photography, Photos, Rig, Rkd, rkdauph, Shorelines, sun, Sunrise On The Mississippi, Venue, Walk
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Young girls and tattoos
I have photographed many young females with massive tattoo displays recently. Most all of them were strikingly colorful; both the young lady and her tattoos. They have held all sorts of jobs, been from various backgrounds and nearly all under 21.
The young never see themselves growing old or their bodies wearing out and loosing its youthful firmness. Although I do not have tattoos, almost got inked one night in Army boot camp back in ’72 though, I can understand one, two or a few tats to mark an occasion, person or event. To have massive, highly visible sleeves at 18 or 19 is not looking beyond the rebellious 
moment of youthful freedom.
I did encounter a young woman about 2 years ago, she was in her late twenties, who realized life, to include her body, moves on. She asked if I would photograph her tattoos, after a short discussion we agreed on date, time and place. During the session she explained to me her body was ‘failing her’, her words and she wanted to memorialize them as her body is now and not as her children and grandkids would eventually see them.
I am not against tattoos, I enjoy the photographic challenge of lighting them and posing the model to achieve the best effect. I never mention my thoughts about the years to come and how I have learned life and bodies change. I simply take the photographs for their grandkids.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 79°F;
- Humidity: 42%;
- Heat Index: 79°F;
- Wind Chill: 79°F;
- Pressure: 30.1 in.;
Posted in My Photo; My Comment., People
Also tagged All Sorts, Amp, Army Boot Camp, background, Backgrounds, color, Colors, Displays, Duri, Emily, female, Females, Flickr, girl, girls, Grandkids, Heir, Ink, Job, Jobs, Light, lighting, male, man, Memorial, Memories, model, Modeling, Models, Nathalie, Night, Oment, one, person, Personality, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photos, Places, Pose, Rig, Rkd, rkdauph, Sessions, Stan, stand, Target, Tattoo, Tattoos, Time And Place, woman, Young Females, Young Girls, Young Lady, Young Woman, Youthful Firmness, Youthful Freedom
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Should I use a light meter with a digital camera?
I was recently asked the question in the title, there is only one answer.
Get one, use it.
Simple really, as a photographer you paint with revealed light and shadow, that’s all. Why would you hesitant to utilize a tool to designed to report the variances you cannot see in a way you can use?
Do I shoot without one, yup, sometimes. Do I rely on the camera’s metering, yup, alot sometimes. But I never leave home without a light meter in my bag.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 91°F;
- Humidity: 42%;
- Heat Index: 93°F;
- Wind Chill: 91°F;
- Pressure: 29.82 in.;
Posted in Just a quick thought
Also tagged camera, digital, Digital Camera, Get One, home, Hoot, Light, Light And Shadow, Light Meter, lighting, Lot, one, Paint, Paint With Revealed Light And Shadow, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Shadow, shoot, Tool, Use It., Variances, Yup
2 Comments
Playing with black and white again
I started in photography shooting only black and white on film while stationed in Schwäbisch Hall, West Germany at Dolan Barracks, with the US Army. I enjoyed the entire process of taking the photograph and then spending hours in the dark room developing the print. My mentor back then was a German WW II photographer, Herr Ritter. I would spend a lot of time selecting the paper, cropping the picture and playing with the time under the light and developer only to have Herr Ritter walk behind me and give me his, usually one word, assessment of my work. Now every time I start to produce black and white imagery I feel Herr Ritter in the next room; about to walk in.
Today, I shoot digital, have a computer, Photoshop and the associated plug-ins. The subject of my photography has changed, I enjoy portraiture, I like to simplify the female face to the essence of femaleness; to show basic beauty. Sometimes that is a hight-key process, sometimes an ultra close-up. This image of Barbara is another, different, attempt.
I wonder what Herr Ritter would say.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 71°F;
- Humidity: 83%;
- Heat Index: 71°F;
- Wind Chill: 71°F;
- Pressure: 30.03 in.;
Posted in My Photo; My Comment.
Also tagged Amp, art, Attempt, Attempts, B&W, beautiful, beauty, black, black and white, Developer, digital, Dolan Barracks, Essence, face, female, Female Face, Females, film, Flickr, German Ww, Germans, germany, Hoot, Image, Imagery, Images, Light, lighting, Lot, male, man, Mentor, one, paper, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photography, Photos, Photoshop, Playing With The Time, portrait, Portraiture, Prints, pro, Rig, Ritter, Rkd, rkdauph, Schwäbisch Hall, shoot, Target, Ultra Close-Up, Us Army, Walk, west germany, WW II
3 Comments
Post Processing Fun
I like high-key ultra closeups. I like to work with an image, not just high-key, until “I” see an aha picture. I know a lot of folks don’t care for the treatment I afford an otherwise acceptable normal photograph.
I do, however, also use post processing to salvage an image, or at least part of it. The half face of Barbara here for instance; another photographer placed his big mitt and light meter into the frame and covered the other half of her face as I puller the trigger on the picture.
I liked the half I could see, I liked the the slight tilt of her head (she was starting to move away from the intrusive hand and meter), I liked the expression of her eyes and face.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 71°F;
- Humidity: 83%;
- Heat Index: 71°F;
- Wind Chill: 71°F;
- Pressure: 30.03 in.;
Posted in My Photo; My Comment.
Also tagged art, Closeup, Closeups, Expression, eyes, F1, face, Flickr, frame, Fun, hand, Head, High-Key, Image, Images, Light, Light Meter, lighting, Lot, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Places, Post Processing, pro, Rig, Salvage, Stan, Tilt, Ups
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Using the Nikon Creative Lighting System
This photograph was taken using a Nikon D-300, the Nikkor 28-70 f2.8 and 2 SB800s. One SB800 was placed high picture right behind Emily the other was hand held slightly high picture left above her head. Although I have the equipment to mount the flashes to either an umbrella or softbox, this session was done with only the Nikon defusser on one of the strobes.
I am becoming a real fan of the Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS) and the ability to control the SB-800s using the Commander mode on the D300. I’ve now used them in studio sessions as fill or hair lights, outdoors from as far as 30 feet away or the sole source of light as in this photograph.
The two cautions when using the system is to remember to have the sensor facing toward the camera and don’t step to far in front of the flashes. I spent nearly 10 minutes on one outdoor shoot trying to figure out why the flash wouldn’t fire, gave up and realized, the next day, that I had the IR receiver facing away from the camera.
CLS is a great tool, take the time to learn it.
Read about us being hassled by the Park Rangers in Washington, DC during this shoot.
Also see Damien Franco’s expansion of my photo tip about Seeing the Shadows over at www.yourphototips.com.
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 81°F;
- Humidity: 71%;
- Heat Index: 85°F;
- Wind Chill: 81°F;
- Pressure: 30.02 in.;
Posted in My Photo; My Comment.
Also tagged Blog, camera, Cat, CLS, creative, Creative Lighting, Creative Lighting System, d300, door, Duri, Emily, equipment, face, Feet, flash, Flickr, Franco, hair, hand, hassled, Head, Hoot, Ir Receiver, Light, lighting, Lighting System, man, Modes, Nikkor, nikon, one, Park Ranger, Park Rangers, Photo, Photo Tip, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photos, Places, Rig, Rkd, rkdauph, Sb, sb-800, Sb8, SB800, Sessions, Shadow, shoot, Sole Source, Source Of Light, strobe, Strobes, studio, Studio Sessions, Target, Tool, Umbrella
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The model’s husband
This entry is not about the model shown.
In the last three or four months I have allowed several models to bring their husband to the shoot. I set clear guidelines with the model, I spoke with the husband when they arrived at the studio about not getting in the way; please don’t distract me or the wife. If it became a problem I would ask them to step out of the studio and/or stop the session. Of course they agreed.
Most went very well. In two cases the husband, during a set change or a break, started talking about nudes, implied and full. Neither model appeared to really want to do full nudity and both agreed to do some implied. Although the session wasn’t booked that way, we would start doing mild implied shots.
Both times the husband continued to suggest/ask his wife to take more clothing off; undercover more. I never witnessed a real argument but could sense the tension between them. The model would exchange a look with me that I read as seeking a little intervention.
The first time I simply reminded the fellow of our agreement not to interfere. He said ‘Oh, okay, sorry’ and we finished the shoot.
The other guy just floored me. Pretty much the same scenario as above. Except during my second reminder that I would stop the session if he continued to disrupt me, he politely asked me to step out of the room to talk to him. I gave his wife a puzzled look and followed him out the door. In the hall he basically asked me to help him get his wife naked so I could get the photographs for him. When I expressed my puzzlement about his request he said, and I quote; “But she won’t let me take these kind of pictures of her at home.”
I really don’t remember my exact reply except for something about I’d see what I could do. The session came to ‘routine’ conclusion about 10 minutes later.
Lesson learned: No more husbands or significant others allowed.
Posted in Rant
Also tagged art, Break, Clothes, Clothing, Conclusion, Conclusion About, door, Duri, Expression, Fellow, Flickr, Four Months, Full Nudity, Heir, home, Hoot, Intervention, Lot, model, Modeling, Models, Nudes, Nudity, Photo, Photographer, Photographers, Photographs, Photos, pretty, pro, Puzzlement, Reminder, Reply, Rig, Rkd, rkdauph, Sb, Sessions, shoot, shot, Significant Others, studio, Tension, ttl
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Setting the mood in photography
Portrait photography is not photojournalism or even about realism; it is an attempt to portray an idealistic view of a person, place or thing. It is the way we see the subject or want the setting to be seen by the viewer of the photograph.
The emotions/memories/ideals we, as photographers, can draw from the viewer are powerful tools.
-- Weather When Posted --