SHOOT! Workshop Details
Posted on August 6, 2011
This month I am teaching a workshop class with two other great photographers. Details can be found online at www.shootclass.blogspot.com See flier below, I will be covering shooting fashion in natural light and later walking you through some of my workflow on editing fashion images.
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Marcie and Ryan – California Engagement Session
Posted on August 2, 2011
This summer I was flown out by one of my couples to shoot their engagement session in the Hollywood Hills. They are having their wedding here at Sanctuary Resort but the groom lives in a pretty cool house. They thought it would make a great location for shooting. Of course it did, it was Paris Hilton’s old home! This place was quaint and beautiful. We were short on time as I had to fly right back, but I nabbed a few shots of the property and of course my amazing couple Marcie and Ryan. I am so excited for their upcoming November wedding. These two love birds were one hot couple!
I am willing to bet Paris was a Marilyn Monroe fan because there were pictures of her all over the house.
I loved the front of the house. Small play pool with these two beautiful canopies. Felt like a spa as you stepped right off the open kitchen.
Marcie and Ryan make the (as I mentioned) hottest couple.
When I arrived off the plane I was coming from 110 weather, it was 70 that day, I need a light jacket. I love California.
I often ask couples to get realy close., to embrace as they do when I am not around. Ryan had no problem with this request.
Check back in November for some wedding shots of this couple, another day after Thanksgiving wedding!
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To wash or not to wash?
Posted on June 12, 2011
One of my fave photographers to follow did a blog post recently on the use of washes in her work. Melissa Jill’s blog post can be found here. Not to copy her post, but I do get asked quite a bit about my feeling on washes in final editing. A wash is a color cast you put on a photo in post processing. I have such mixed emotions about my feeling on this. When I first started I really fell in love with the look of it. It add a more emotional feel to some photos. However as time went on I found myself being draw to the actual original photo. I do have a few washes I still use on photos, but they are really slight…again for the emotional feel or maybe to slightly enhance the softness and grace of a photo. Melissa refers to Totally Rad Actions in her blog, they are my die hard fave actions for washes. Totally Rad Actions.
Some example of good times to use a wash: Babies. I feel that some moments with a new born can really be enhanced with a wash. Especially if the nursery colors are softer. See example. A little wash added a little something and wwhen printed it is very slight. I really like this look for canvas wraps.
I do also like to use for Maternity sessions however sometimes it’s not right. Like this maternity the top shot…YES! It adds a pretty color to the white sky.
Below, I wanted nothing but the original as this is a stylish Mamma and a wash would have looked odd. Same Mamma as above, different feel from the session.
Weddings. Now this one is really “Ify.” You don’t wat to go changing the color of a bride’s dress when she so carefully selected that shade in the first place. However there are helpful times. This is a past wedding and it was near dusk, cool colors in the air and a very “green” surrounding. Camera can tend to pick up on that. I wanted to warm it up without that “orangy” look. So this wash is perfect for that. This is one of my go-to washes. It’s meant to make a photo look vintage but I just lower the opacity to around 10-15% and it’s perfect.
For the bottom shot of their bridals, I would not have DREAMED of using a wash. Anything is possible with this photo but the clean and classic look of the Parker Hotel in Palm Springs and the stylish couple screams “Don’t touch me…I’m perfect the way I am.” Plus, this is one groom that paid as much attention to his suit as she did her dress. I wanted to make sure that I captured the color accuratly!
So there is no magic answer and I will probably always keep my TR Actions in my back pocket. But a clean, classic photo will always be (as Melissa Jill puts it)…timeless.
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