Learning photography...

That hard first step

Doing anything new is always exciting and a big pat of that is learning everything you can about it.  If you are passionate about anything it's best to know all you can to enjoy it to the fullest.  Day one is the hardest.  You don't even know what you need to know.  Kinda' hard to ask questions at that point.  This is where curiosity and a lot of time comes in.  You have to understand the tools first.  What does every button on the camera so and how does it change the picture you are taking.  At first you don't have to know everything perfectly, just that they are there and what they do.  Later you'll have a need and you'll at least know it's possible and revisit exactly how.

Same with learning things like Photoshop and Lightroom.  Don't learn exactly what buttons to push to get a certain thing to happen.  UNDERSTAND what that function is...and then generally remember how to get to it.

The reason I really push the generalization of knowledge over button by button exact process is that it's very limiting and much easier to learn by feel.

The camera

To someone new to their camera there are SO MANY buttons and menu items.  Heck, even I don't know all of the features of my camera and this is 4 years into it.  The manuals are NOT the place to learn about your camera.  They tend to tell you specific things and assume

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you know why you'd need that.  Setting the shutter speed or fStop is, as you might guess, very important.  The manual will tell you how.  But not WHY you might set one at f8 and the other at 1/200 of a second.  If you know the WHY and how those functions work in your camera it'll make more sense.  It's more like learning by knowing how something works rather then memorizing buttons and thinking that's all you'll need to know.

It's a bit like a painter with his pallet.  Knowing the colors is one thing.  Knowing how to mix them to get exactly the right shades for a flower is another that doesn't come from exact measurements but from gut feeling from just doing and knowing what results have been in the past.

If you know your camera, and that comes from a hundred hours of pointing, playing, experimenting, and shooting everything that moves or doesn't move, then you have a tool you can walk into a situation with and know exactly what to do to get the shot you want.

I guess the point is, a single class isn't going to make you an expert.  But it CAN show you things you can do and give you those elusive questions you didn't know you had.  Now you'll know what you want to learn.

Post processing

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There are a few folks out there that insist that, in order to be great, you need to be able to take perfect pictures and not have to do anything to them to make them better right out of the camera.   More power to them.  I see them as coming from two groups.  One works very hard to make a shot look like reality with great lighting, and the other who are just to lazy to learn post processing.  Frankly, I'm not much of a fan of reality.  I'm an artist.  And I can't think of any camera that takes pictures the way I want them to be when I'm finished.  And even if you are a wedding, or senior photographer, you'd better clean up that shot.  People want to see themselves as they think they look, not with that pimple that emerged on their noggin that morning. Back to the point.  Learning by doing and feeling and not by keystroke and menu by menu memorization is the best way, in my opinion, of learning software.  Learn what it CAN do and not how to do it.  Anyone can figure out how.  It's knowing it can that is what you need to remember.

So, learning Lightroom or Photoshop, or any of the computer tools should be a matter of learning what it can do, not exactly HOW to do it.  Think about it, if you didn't know what it can do the how isn't important.

The other very important reason to learn all you can in all aspects of photography is that your personal style will develop from those skills.  When people can recognize your pictures from others you will then have a marketable product.

If you take one of my classes expect to walk away with, 'Wow, I know what I want to go practice and develop!'  I won't let you take a bunch of step by step notes because you'll leave not knowing what you can really do.  Makes little sense.

Of course, I give classes.  I highly recomend the one-on-one classes.  Learn more in the 'Learning Photography' part of this site.

Who's in charge here?!?

You Da Boss

In every shoot there needs to be a leader.  If it's a commercial shoot there is an art director running the show.  This is, no doubt, less than 1% of the shoots taking place on any given day.  Most shoots are Trades and of those many are for fun and practice.

We will be talking about those trade shoots.

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In every shoot someone needs to be in charge, someone who is watching it all and looking for opportunities to get a great shot.  This is not to say there shouldn't be collaboration of ideas.  Some of my best work came from the creative minds of others.  This is a good time to point out that the sooner you can surround yourself with the best makeup and hair talent the better.  It's always a mix of everyones style that make a shoot rock.

In any endeavor that involves a group of people there has to be someone guiding the group.  I think there are many reasons this needs to be the photographer.

The photographer has the rights to the images.   Why would the photographer allow a shoot to get out of hand and head in directions he or she knows are pictures they don't want or need?

There is only one person who can see what your camera sees, you, the photographer.  You can see how the light is hitting the scene, what angles don't have a telephone pole sticking out of someone's head, and can move to get just the right framing.  No one else can see what you can.  That puts the entire responsibility on you to take the time to think, look, and imagine what can be done in any given situation to get that shot.  Everyone else is counting on YOU to do just that.

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And, last but far from least, your reputation is on the line.  You are only as good as your last shoot.  The only direction you want to go is up.  Better.  More creative.

Democracy

I never hesitate to try something, my idea or someone else's on the set.  Some of what I thought were not stellar ideas turned out to totally rock.  And some turned out to be, well, not stellar ideas.

But I always call the shots.  Pun intended.  My camera is down at my side most of a shoot.  I have to see it in my head, then see it form up with the lights, and THEN I bring the camera up and start capturing it.  The constant nagging of that little voice asking, "Is there a better angle?", "How's the lighting look?" is always there.

Failure is an option

 To many times in the past I've sat down to go over a shoot at my workstation late at night, after all is shot and everyone has gone home to find myself saying, "What the hell is this!" or "What was I thinking?!?"

Failure is an option you can avoid.

So, now I'm also thinking about what I'm putting on that memory card and how my job will be to create from it.  If I shoot crappy work there is nothing Photoshop is going to help me out of.

All the more reason why YOU have to be in charge of a shoot.  Everyone is counting on YOU to bring out amazing shots from all the effort being put into it.  YOU are most likely the most experienced of the group.  You know your skills and limitations.  You know what you can do with that shot in post.

Say NO when the little voice tells you to

 One last thing, if you haven't guessed it yet.  Say NO when that's the answer.  Say this isn't working when it's not.

The finesse in saying no or this isn't working and not hurting anyone's feelings is a bit of a bedside manner and important to keep the creative energy and excitement high.  For me it's usually something like 'that's a great idea but I can't get the angle or lighting to make that one rock'.  I guess I take the responsibility of a failed idea on myself so it's not an issue for anyone to feel bad about, and then move to the next set quickly to keep it rolling.  After all, there are no bad ideas...except around cliffs and rail road tracks.

Just remember, the photographer is in charge of a shoot.  Period.  As the captain you are the one that's going down with the ship if it sinks.  It's on you.

There are times you CAN lay down on the job though....

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For satisfaction or just fun?

Motives

 Everyone has a motive for being a photographer.  For some it's obvious.  For some, not so much.  I find myself admiring the photographers that are in it for the satisfaction of creating something.  Generally something artistic.  Even wedding photos or new born shots can be amazing art.  Of course, there are photographers that spend hours just taking pictures without giving the slightest thought of how the light on the subjects look.  They don't learn lighting.  And their finished product, in my opinion, isn't much better than those cell phone shots.  These are the photographers where I just can't put my finger on why they shoot.  Don't get me wrong, as long as they are having fun I'm good.  Not judging, just wondering.

I think photography is very different from 20 years ago when there were far fewer cameras.  I think it's actually easier to stand out with art than ever before.  With the flood of cameras in cell phones and social media giving us those wonderful pictures of food, cats, and selfies it makes a great photo stand out even more.  In my opinion.  There may be a thousand times more photos out there but there certainly isn't even ten times more art.

String Light Test

My motive is to create artistic photos.  Art touches the mind, heart, or both.  It can bring out an emotional response.  A gasp, a tear, a smile.  That is what I shoot for.  Often I only make someone tilt their head and squint...and sometimes scratch it.  You never know if others are going to love, hate, or scratch.

In order to be creative and get results that don't look like yesterday's or last weeks, you always have to think about what might be interesting to try.  It might fail, but even failures usually lead to other ideas that work wonders.  Everything from finding an old wooden ammo box in the alley (thank you Linda!) to getting an email from an electronic parts/gadget store.  They can and should trigger a curiosity of how something you see can help you create something interesting.

Experiment

 The above shot of Caitlan with a light fiber going around her face was a last minute test shot to play with something I found for sale in an email.  Well, it was a 'LIGHT' after all and that's what we paint with in photography, right?  And even when I shot it I wasn't sure the test worked...until I got it in the software and started to play and this shot emerged out of the darkness.  Worth playing?

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And sometimes it's a test shot turned art.  I was testing the lighting and normally I'd have Cassandra have her feet up to catch more curves.  I told her to relax and I kept adjusting until I got the lighting I wanted.  Then we did all the shooting of legs up and other body scape work.  When I went to edit I found a set of legs making as straight a line as a female can make and messed with it until it turned into some art I'm really proud of.  It was a test.  I was playing.

Think

 If the pictures you take today look like the ones you took last month, or last year, your motive might be just taking pictures for the fun and not the satisfaction.  If it's for fun you can bet your pictures will look the same in 5 years.

Think about lighting.  Always!  Do something different by thinking of options.  Let your mind wander.  Set your camera down often and think about how you might improve or change up the lighting to give you something outside your comfort zone.  Hell, what's a comfort zone!?!

Enjoy!

Compositing...easier than your think

Lately I've been doing a lot of compositing.  I've seen it done for years and I've played with it in the past and I wasn't very happy with the end results much of the time.  Like anything else, it's a 'season to taste' thing and someone's style may or may not be interesting to you.  I'm starting to like my own work and that's all anyone can expect...liking ones own work. It's not as hard as it seems.  There are plenty of tutorials on how to select a person out of a picture and then paste them into another with a background.  I found what I like to do it differently and for me it looks more natural.

Masking is important.  You need to know how to do that for sure, and it's way simpler than you'd think.  By the way, when you learn masking you usually use black to paint in and white to reverse it.  Consider that a gray in the middle can also paint in with built in opacity.  It's that kind of playing that gives you options and options are good.

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Here's an example.

Above: The fog was in the original shot...much easier that way.  Obviously the contrast and saturation was bumped and a little liquify was used to add motion to her hair and coat.  I masked the background from a layer but I didn't select her and place her in as is usually done.  I actually did a simple brush in so that her hair wasn't choppy.  I find this is often a preferred way for me because I can let a little of the color of a background fad into the skin or clothes around the edges.  For example, if there is fire in the background, having a little bleed into an arm on the edge shows a bit of light reflection and adds a LOT to the look.  You can also not blend in where there should be a shadow and it works well.  Main thing is to play and have fun.

Mermaid

If you look close at Katrina's left arm and some of her belly you'll see that I intentionally blushed some background ocean in and it looks like a fade.  This is because mermaids aren't really real...or so they say.  So I wanted to add some subliminal wistfulness to the shot.

I simply use a brush and carefully run around the subject and with a fuzzy edge on the brush I've found I can get close to the skin and it looks fine.  Sometimes you might see a slight dark edge were I didn't get that close but unless you are looking for it it's not that noticeable to the casual viewer.  The story should keep their minds eye on the pictures as a whole and not the details.

I don't use a lot of layers.  When I have the composition pretty much like I want it I might use a layer adjustment to make the brightness match like I want.  There is a neat way to make an adjustment layer only affect the single layer under it.  When it's good I flatten it and then start playing with filters.  Usually the NIK Color Effects Pro.

Once done I save it back to Lightroom where I hit the Basics one more time adjusting contrast, shadows, and whites and blacks to get the look I like.

Enjoy.  Play.  And you know where I am if you have questions.

The three C's of a great shoot

At first it was a bit annoying when I went into a shoot with a preconceived idea of what I wanted and others would make suggestions.  Of course, there is a time you need to have a focus on a specific look and idea for a client.  But if you are shooting for the fun of seeing what you can do and honing your skills, this is what I've found makes a great deal of difference in the outcome.

Communication, Collaboration, and Creativity

A photo shoot isn't a good place to be shy.  If you have an idea, speak up.  And no, not all of your or anyones ideas will be used, but often even a lacking idea sparks a thread of thought that creates better ideas.  I often let the makeup artist and hair stylist chat with the model and see what they have always wanted to try.  If they come up with an idea everyone is happy with we head in that direction.

For example, this mermaid shoot wasn't something I would have actually considered.  I'd shot for 4 years and avoided the seemingly required 'mermaid' shoot but they wanted to do it and I figured it was a good place to get creative.  So sure.  It became a lighting challenge where I had to envision the final scene.  My creativity contribution.  This, for me, was a LOT of fun even though the model had to take my word for it.  Trust is good.

Mermaid

So, with some communications the ideas flowed.  Everyone was creative in their own way.  The makeup artist, Erika, brought bras with shells and pearls glued to them and did some neat little scale type patterns on Katrina, the model. While they were doing makeup I started digging around in the prop room looking for things we could use and found a net hammock that worked just fine.  And, of course, Katrina did some wonderful under water type poses with my explanations of how she will be in the water with light from above.

All three Cs were using full steam in this shoot.

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In the pirate example above Rebecca and Raygan, her mother, collaborated with Rubii, the makeup artist/hair stylist and came up with the idea of a ship in her hair.  I had the ship!  So, we made it happen and it came out wonderful.  Another very creative day indeed.

Looking over any very creative shoot I've done it was full of communication between all involved and that lead to energetic collaboration in every aspect.  Everything from hair and makeup to lighting to props to what music we listen to while we create.

Then again, it's those three Cs that set the mood and it becomes fun and creates the energy in the shoot.  And the energy is very important.

Perception of affordability...

The story you are about to read is true.  The names would have been changed to protect the innocent but I can't remember them anyhow.

When I was a young snap I worked for Radio Shack.  Back when they actually had radios and it wasn't a cell phone store.  It was actually a lot of fun and I enjoyed it.  I was fresh out of high school and as most my age I lived from paycheck to paycheck with usually $3 in my pocket at any point in time.

It was typical for the district manager to come spend a day in the store just observing and working with the manager.  I was not the best salesman by any means but I did pretty well.  I had no idea just how close I was being watched on this day.

At the end of the day, John (might actually be his real name), the district manager came over to chat with me as I cleaned the display cases for the next day.  He said, "I noticed you sell a lot of the $7 and $14 multi-meters."  Now, we had meters from $7 to $150 all lined up nice in the display.  He was right, I sold a ton of those puppies.  He then asked me why I didn't sell the more expensive ones.  I explained that the cheaper ones did the job for the customers needs and he agreed that they probably did.

Then we chatted about some other things going on with the company and some upcoming training and such.  Pretty typical visit.

Then, just before he left he reached in his pocket and took out a $100 bill and handed it to me.  He told me not to spend it.  Just keep it in my wallet hidden away and forget I had it.  This was a strange request and he gave no answer as to why he wanted me to do this.  But, John was a cool guy.  I just shrugged and hid it away in my wallet.

A month goes by.

John comes for his usual visit and everything went as it always did as he wandered around with the manager and they left me to care for customers.

At the end of the day we chatted again.  The $100 had been totally forgotten by me.

John then mentioned casually that he'd noticed over the last month I'd sold a lot of the $75 and $100 meters.  Since I was the one who ordered them I could confirm that we kept running out of the more expensive models now.  I found it strange indeed that the customers were, all of a sudden, buying the better meters.

He then asked, "You really don't know why you sold the better meters?"  I shook my head no.

What he said then changed my life to this day, some 40 years later.

"Dave, you sold those more expensive meters yourself.  Nothing about the customers changed at all.  They came in wanting a meter and you sold them one, plain and simple.  It was you."  Now I looked more puzzled than normal.  "Do you remember that $100 bill I gave you to hold in your wallet?"  I did.

He went on to explain that before he'd given me that bill I had very little money in my pocket.  And I just assumed people walking through the door probably didn't have much more.  It's human nature to assume that even subconsciously.  So, I would sell them meters I thought they could afford.  $7 and $14 meters.

Since John had given me that $100 bill I subconsciously thought everyone had a $100 in their pocket.  I had put it out of my conscious mind but it was there.  So, I started selling the bigger and more expensive meters because, well, everyone could afford it, right?  Sure, I still sold some $7 meters but from that point on, I sold based on what's best for the customer, not what I thought they could afford.

It's not our place to determine what others can afford.  It's up to us to provide the best product or service and price it fairly and let the customer make the choice.

And yes, you can ask me at any time to see my $100 bill.  I always have one in my pocket...and for the last 40 years.

What's the point to a point and shoot?

I visited a wonderful photographer in California a few months ago. Gregory Moore. We had a nice dinner and as we walked along the evening streets chatting about photography (imagine that) he kept pulling out his little point and shoot and clicked off shots of walls, town streets, store fronts, and anything that caught his eye. I've loved his work because of his subdued lighting.  Especially when it's obviously a location shot.  Well, not really a location shot.  I think he often does a shot in the studio and lights it impeccably.  Then in post he adds one or more backgrounds in and then uses yet another set of amazing skills to blend them so perfectly that I can't really tell that it might not be on location.  Then again, I've been with him on a location shoot where he used even more of the same background to add more flavor and emotion to a shot.

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So, there is still a good reason to have a good P&S in your pocket at all times when wondering around.  Just the other day I was walking the mall and there was a wall between stores that was seemingly out of place.  Beautiful wood or different colors.  Now I have it as a possible backdrop in a future shot.  And it's mine, I don't have to pay anyone for the right to use it.

Speaking of rights, I always make sure there isn't any 'prior art' in a shot.  There was a photographer that took a picture that was published and in the background, blurred out by the DOF, was some graffitti.  Now, the graffitti wasn't legal but the tagger who created it sued the photographer for $10,000 and won.

The first thought is, why not just use my cell phone?  And I have before.  But, having a camera that has enough lens to capture some good light, has a nice ISO range, and in the case of the camera I'm looking at, the Canon S120, the low fStop of f1.8 will make evening pictures rock.  But, most important, is to get one with at least 12mp and RAW so the image can be manipulated a LOT after the fact.  This is also the difference between the $100 camera and the $450 camera.  But, worth it.  Pick whatever you like but so some serious research to make sure you find what you like and it has good reviews.  Sony seems to lead the pack but it's a close call these days.  Canon is hot on their heels and I didn't see anyone talking about Nikon at all.  Which is odd because Nikon was hyping their P&S cameras in ads not long ago claiming that if you had their P&S you didn't need a photographer.  Yeah, that impressed me too...really?

So, work on those masking skills in Photoshop and start building up that background library.

Vanishing acts...

Okay, so, you have chatted with a model and you set a date and time for a shoot.  Now you are sitting there, camera ready, maybe a studio rented, and even a makeup artist standing by.  And....

nothing...

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The model doesn't show.  She doesn't answer the phone.  She unfriends you on Facebook and blocks you.  No excuse, no reason, just what we call a no show.

The photographer sits and wonders what happened.  He doubts his work for a bit wondering why this model wouldn't do everything possible to get a chance to shoot with him or her.  Then the anger at the lack of professionalism sets in.  Just common curtesy of a simple phone call or text would be all it took.  But no.  Nothing.

What probably happened here?

Well, there is no definitive answer because we are diverse human beings.  But here are some guesses and suggestions.

Realize, it will happen again.  That's a given.  Reducing that is what we need to talk about.

Part of it is youth.  Many youngsters (18-30) have time management issues.  They look into their future as far as the expiration date on the milk carton.  Well, actually, milk lasts way longer these days.  So, forgetfulness, better offers like a trip to the mall, or they find $20 in the laundry and it's party time.  It's hard to tell.

I tend to work with people I've worked with before who I have found are reliable.  Getting to that point was a rocky road.  There are still speed bumps.  Talk with other photographers and see how their experience was with a perspective model.  A good model is checking your references so why not.

When talking with the model an actual phone call the day before would be good.  If you don't have his or her phone number shame on you!!  Your fault!!  Last minute questions, answers, outfits needed, etc. is a good reason to chat.  And a human voice on the other end of the phone isn't the same as a text.  Texting and social networking is actually very de-humanifying.  It's easier to be a no show to a string of text messages than someone you have actually talked with and heard their voice.  Telling someone with your voice that you will 'be there' and then not show is a lie.  Saying it in a text and then not isn't a lie.  Well, it is, but hey, they were just talking to someone with their thumbs on their phone...that's not the same, right?

We are talking about trade shoots here.  When the model is going to make $50 per hour they tend to show up.  95% of the trade is for fun and not really a portfolio, so it's not as important to them as the photographer in most cases.  And they don't really understand the work involved in prepping for a shoot.

If, as some point in the conversation about shooting, the model starts talking about money issues, like bills, affording gas, etc., you are being asked to pay them something.  This is where you either explain that you can pay for gas, or pay them $50, or politly cancel the shoot.  They need to spend their time making ends meet by being productive.  Move along and find someone else.  Otherwise, you are asking for a 'no show' or cancel  because any other opportunity that would make them money would over ride your shoot.

If a model communicates with "yes", "sure", "perfect", "super", and other one word responses you can expect a no show.  Lack of communications is a bad sign.

Understand they have a life and life happens.  Emergencies, illness, cars that don't run all the time, job schedule changes.  Don't hold those against someone and try to reschedule.  The second time that happens I tend to move along.  Your call.

Here's hoping for no flakes...but know they will continue to happen until everything you do is a paid shoot with agency models.

Go to your dark place...

If you've picked up on the idea that good photography is all about lighting then you got it. You don't need a studio full of lights or modifiers to make it work either.  I do believe that the popup flash on any camera should be ripped out or duct taped down.  The light has to come from somewhere other than the direction of the photographer to make it look like a natural photo.  Heck, even crime scenes are shot with a ring flash and that's probably the only example of good light coming from the camera.  Not my favorite, but in their case functional, and in any other case it's a nice fashion statement.

To learn lighting so that it comes natural to you it might be best to find a dark place and use one light and play.  Playing is very important to become comfortable with anything.  Consider that we would sit and play with blocks, and puzzles, and colored in books, and ran around on a playground to learn basic physics and textures and shapes.  We never stop learning.

So, with just you and a light and a subject you can see just how one light will bounce around and how the shadows appear.  We all knew how it would react but now YOU are the one placing the light to make it react and that's the difference.

Reflection

Some people use hot lights...that's a light that's always on and usually bright...because they can very easily see how it's going to look.  I prefer flash because it's more portable and the subject never has a bright light in their eyes.  And with a pocket full of AA batteries I'm good to light all day.  Yes, flash is way harder because you don't really see the light until you've taken the shot.  Hence the need to know your light and how it's going to look at different power levels and different situations.

A hint here would be to have a small pocket flashlight you can put next to the flash to see how it is generally going to look.  It'll be harsh, but telling.

I never do an important shoot with a brand new light.  I will play with it at times during the shoot to get comfortable with it, learn it, but not rely on it until I have 5-10 hours of playing with it.  You'll find it amazing how you eventually show up at a location, plop the subject down, stand back and look at the sun angle, trees, background, and with plenty of confidence plant your light where you know will make a picture you have in your head and find it did just what you expected.

So, go to your dark place and find your light!

A little touched?

There has been and always will be different opinions on how much retouching to do, if any, a good photographer should do. Some claim all shots are perfect out of their camera. Some retouch every shot and would never allow anything to leave their hands without adding their touch, their style. I do both. Sometimes I get way to artzy with a shot making it gritty, B&W, flip it, blow out the whites, whatever I feel to make it art that I enjoy. I always try to keep it beautiful and interesting.

But I think just about any image can use a little help only because to make it interesting it should look slightly better than real life. Real life is raw and unforgiving and a bit harsh. Adjusting the light after the fact to put more focus on the subject isn't a bad thing. My opinion.

Kim in the stream

Here is an example of a shot that seemed just fine...the original is on the left.  I'll admit, although a bit biased, that this shot rocks.  It was worth wading out in the stream and putting $5K worth of camera and lens within inches of a cold fast running creek.  Spooky but you do what you have to to get the shot.

When I looked at the shot in Lightroom 4 I thought it looked just fine.  Then I thought about what i could do to it to make it more powerful.  Draw the person into the shot.  One thing that always works and I like to do is to bring the light up on the subject and down surrounding them.  It's a good way to focus the viewer where you want them to look.  Lightroom 5 comes with that feature actually.  I used NIK Color Effects Pro 4 and the filter is called Darken/Lighten Center.

When I'm not getting 'artzy' with a shot I rarely retouch it beyond what it MIGHT have looked like from the camera.  I could have an even lighter hand sometimes but that comes with practice and constantly learning the tools I have.

So, if you are one of the folks who feels all of their shots are 'dead on perfect' good for you.  Ask yourself if there is anything that could make them just a touch better.  Or ask yourself if you don't retouch because you don't want to spend the time to learn what it takes to do it well.  It would be a shame if that were the case considering how much time a photographer and model(s) spend to get the shot.

Copy Cat?!?

This was a posting I did on Facebook on April 1, 2013.  I rather enjoyed putting it together so I wanted to keep it here for future reference. *****

I'm SO tired of all you photographers out there copying my work. So, from today on here are a few rules you all need to follow. Pay attention.

1. Do not shoot with any models I've ever shot with or may shoot with for the next couple decades.

2. I shoot with studio lighting so no shooting with studio lighting…it might look like my work. Oh, and no natural sun light either…I do location work and I'm sure your work will be the same basic light temperature as mine and that's not acceptable. You may use infrared or exactly 5423 kelvin…I don't plan to use those.

3. I have a full frame and a crop camera. So, obviously, those are out of the question. Use your cell phone but only 5mp or below.

4. If you post a picture on Facebook (given rules 1-3 that would be of your dog or cat in the dark with your cell phone) and you get even one 'like' you must pull it immediately. After all, that's a like that should be on one of my masterpieces.

5. I will assume any picture you take as a copy of one of mine. After all, imitation is the sincerest for of flattery and we all know how important flattering me is, so I'm sure it's a copy! There you go!! Proof!

Above all else - have a wonderful April, starting with, naturally, April fools day.

Magic words - "What's your rate?"

The beginning - where we all start This installment is about the ladder we all climb in this business of fashion, photography, makeup, and modeling.  There are ways to skip some rungs and move quicker but for the most part this is how it works.

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In anything we do when we first start, we are clumsy, we haven’t found our style yet.  We are hard handed on things that we will eventually have a light experienced touch.  And we haven’t worked with many people yet to learn those ropes that only come from doing it.  Photographers struggle with lighting, post production, and communicating with the models.  Models are unsure how to pose or take direction.

In every way the first year of our work is the hardest yet monetarily worthless.  But it has to happen to gain the seemingly endless skills we need to actually be worth compensation.

For everyone, to start with, it’s all about building a good portfolio.  Yes, your first pictures are going to be far less than perfect.  No matter what end of the camera you’ll be on, the first year will not look good.  Those that get into it and in a couple months get all depressed that they aren’t a world class model or photographer are amazing only in their confidence.  It takes an enormous amount of work and continued growth to get to a professional level.

An intern once asked the long time photographer how to have a beautiful portfolio.  His response was, “Take pictures of beautiful people.”  This is true.

What you’ll find starting out is that the beautiful people who are experienced know their worth and will give you their rates if you ask to shoot with them.  If your a model the same holds true with pro photographers.  They will give you rates.

So, how do you know when you are getting there?  Getting to pro level?  Ready to quote your rate?

Well, I shot for 2 years learning, practicing, shooting everyone and anyone who would shoot with me.  I was never satisfied with my results and kept trying new things and improving and developing my style.  Then one day the magic words came to me.  Someone wanted to shoot and they said....

”What are your rates?”

There you go.  Of course this isn’t a signal to stop growing, learning, tweaking your style, and improving.  But, it’s an indicator that your work now has monitory value to others and you should start charging.

You never will get to the top of the ladder though.  There will always be people who are more successful who will quote you rates to work with you.  So it gets a little more confusing but you just have to weigh the advantages.

Skipping some rungs...

If you are a model and want to jump at least to the middle here’s a quicker way to the ‘pro’ point.  You simply have to have a better portfolio than the new ‘trade’ photographers can give you.  You need a pro to take your pictures.  And yes, that means you need to invest in yourself by paying a few great photographers for their images in your portfolio.  That, in turn, will get you to a time much faster where you will also hear those magic words...”What are your rates.”

If you are a photographer the same is true.  If you want a beautiful portfolio you need to shoot those beautiful people.  Those models that know what they are doing, know how to strike a pose that rocks your shot.  You’ll need to pay those people because they are there, they are real, they are pros.  Your portfolio will shine and in a much shorter time you’ll hear the magic words asking your rate.

I’d still suggest you train with at least a few trade shoots before hitting up the pros to help your portfolio.  You still need to know how to drive before jumping behind the wheel of that race car.

Of course, if you are going on location tomorrow with a crew of 50 support people to do a million dollar shoot please disregard the above advice.  You’re there.

Acting or modeling...

Yeah, that's a trick title.  They should be one in the same.

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We see a lot of actors that would not make for interesting models because it's their presentation, their passion, their character presented 'in motion' that makes them stellar in their art.

Models have a slight advantage...or disadvantage depending on how you look at it.  One frame.  One walk down the runway.  Just a moment to express that emotion, that glare, that slight smile, the tiny tilt of the head.  As small a time frame that emotion or look has to be, it's still very important that it happens.

I'm not saying that every shot has to look like a Shakespeare tragedy.

It can be as simple as taking a lot of deep breaths, shaking your body like a wet dog to relax, run around the block once if it's fitness, something other than the OMG the camera is pointed at me look.

Models I love to work with know their jobs.  And yes, we all have jobs in a shoot.  Mine is easy...light it, compose it, and know what I want.  If I tell them what I'm looking for I can go back to my job and they just flat out make it happen!

Tips for modeling...

• When asked to move something like your head or hand, do it ever so slightly.  Then the photographer can say a little more, a little more, until it's where they want it.  If you make sweeping changes it's VERY hard to get together on where we want you.
• While you are posed you have two things to be working on.  Think about everything from the expression on your face, the tilt of you head to were your hands are to how your toes are poised.  And, you have to think about what you plan to do after the flash.  The next pose should be just slightly different.  Again, no Kung Fu sweeps.
• Always know where the light is coming from.  It's not always obvious and don't be afraid to ask.  There is nothing wrong with asking to see a test shot so you can do your job better.

Have fun!!  Make art!

first 30 minutes

Have you ever noticed that the first 30 minutes of a shoot is a waste of time? Everyone involved is getting comfortable with the location, the sound of your voice, a feel for the directing and actually, in a subconscious way, the mood is being set for the rest of the shoot.

If it's a model it's a good idea to find out how long they have been modeling. And what they plan on getting out of the shoot. For example, if they want pictures to submit to an agency, don't ask them to pose in lingerie the whole time. Those are self esteem shots only. Unless it's a male model and I don't EVEN want to hear about that.

In a trade shoot the communications has to be there to make sure everyone walks away with something to show for the effort. As important, if someone is new at modeling, give them all the advice you can about posing. In a positive manner talk with them about angles, which ones are best for them, how to think through poses between flashes, how to hold their chin out, and how it's not personal when we point out that wrinkle on their side and have them stretch to take it out. (grin) If they walk away with some great pictures AND some advice and tips to consider to make their modeling just a little bit more focused and refined, it was a great shoot.

Planning a shoot..or not

So, how much planning goes into a shoot?  Well, if it's for a client there is plenty of planning.  After all, there's a goal in mind and someone is paying to get it.

How about a basic one-on-one model and photographer shoot?  How much planning is to much and how much is not enough?

Here's how I do it.

First, I consider who I'm shooting.  Hair color and style, eye color, skin, freckles, dimples, just about everything about the persons face goes into the first pass in my mind.  What can I do to make those best features stand out and make it a shoot about them?  People should look at the pictures and either see that I brought something out in the person that they know, or sometimes even better is to show someone in a way no one has ever seen them.  Both are wonderful fun!

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So, there are several models I've worked with for over a year now and have over a dozen shoots with.  Often we just plan a day and time and get together to shoot.  Very little planning other than some different wardrobe discussed.  We know each other and know the looks and styles we have to bring to the shoot.  We'll just use the energy and imagination of the moment to come up with something on the fly.  It never fails to be fun, exciting, and far more creative than we expected.  Always.

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These two shots are a good example.  Dawn and I have plenty of shoots together.  Probably more than anyone else.  Yet we get together and the ideas start to flow and we knock out a fine memorable shoot.  These two pictures are from one such shoot and there were many other looks in just that one shoot.

That, to me, is a key.  In about 3 hours we did 13 different looks...or what I call sets.  495 images total.  Mixing it up and moving from one look to another can be fun and it keeps the energy flowing in a shoot.  Then, when the shooting is done, I have a full bag of different looks to work with to create my art.

So, bottom line and advice that people might try....don't plan so much.

Do you want to play in a sand box or a beach?

Slightly surreal...

Those who follow my work...err...play, know that I get all grungy and dirty in some of my shots.  Well, not me, the finished shot.  I love that look in some cases.  As always, it's season to taste and it doesn't work for everything, but when it does, it rocks a very thought provoking look. I've had a few people ask how I do this look so I thought I'd share here.

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This particular shot was done totally using Lightroom Basic settings all contorted beyond typical and reasonable settings.  Many people never go off the edge to see just how far it can go and that's to bad.  It's fun to go to the extremes and find how each changes a shot...and then how they change a shot in combination.  I never teach 'step by step' because that doesn't work with something like Lightroom or Photoshop.  It's like painting with brushes and tubes of paint on a blank canvass.  Knowing how to 'feel' the painting in your mind and then applying the tools to make it happen are the way to do it.  Step 1, step 2, step 3, etc. just doesn't work.

So, here you go.  How THIS particular shot was made and the settings used.  Try it on a few shots...some will work and some just won't.  It's not a magic setting that I use all the time.

Enjoy...good luck...and let me know how it works for you.

Green Jelly Bean

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Here's the deal.  If you shoot models, and you are serious about your work, you will get jealous from time to time for many reasons.  It's human nature. You might get jealous when you see a model you've shot with work with another photographer who just totally nails a wonderful look.  Everyone would like their work to be the best the model has.  It's human nature.

Sometimes models get jealous when a photographer they shoot with regularly knocks out some great ideas with another model.  Even knowing that they have also shot unique killer sets with that same photographer.  It's human nature.

I've struggled with this and from my conversations with other photographers and models I'm not alone.  Whew!  We all seem to be human...

Here's the deal.  We are all growing and expanding what we know, who we know, how we do things, how to improve on what we've done, and not one of us has done it alone.  We all work together to help in each other's growth.  This is how it should be.  It's human nature.

What about that green jelly bean?  Well, personally, I acknowledge it because that's always the first step in fixing anything.  And, at least in my case, I'm more upset about being jealous than actually being jealous.  But that helps too.  I know it's dumb and selfish.

I actively encourage the people I work with, models, photographers, support, to work with as many good or great people as they can.  That's the only way they can grow.  This is how portfolios are built and careers lauched.  And that's what it's all about.  I often tell myself that what I'm doing, maybe just one shot I take, will be the one that opens the door to something amazing for that other person.  That's why we do it.  That's why I do it.

Will we still be jealous, even knowing it's silly and wrong?  Oh yeah.

It's human nature.

Tight depth of field in the studio

After getting the Canon 85mm f1.2 lens for my 6D I found it hard to use in the studio.  Of course, outdoors I have more control over the camera because I can increase the speed enough to cut the light back and use the beautiful narrow depth of field that the lens affords me.  But in the studio the modeling lights were not bright enough and the flash was ALMOST to much light with the flashes set at their lowest settings.

To get that same beautiful DOF in the studio I needed to cut the light back.  So, I added a Tiffen 72mm Variable Neutral Density filter in front of the lens.  This is a 2-8 fStop filter so I can adjust it for just about anything in the studio.  At f2 it gave me the example shot below.  Notice how fast the DOF dropped off because I was at f1.2 on the lens but blocked the light by 2 fStops balancing it all out well with a flash.  The flash was still low but not at the lowest setting.  This allows me the options to have multipal flashes at different levels to create the moods I want yet still go to f1.2 if I so desire.

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Of course, the first 30 shots were pretty much out of focus because I was getting a feel for it.  I've found that I can't use the center focus point on the eyes and then re-frame each shot like I normally do.  I actually have to move the focus point in the camera to be about where the eyes are in whatever frame I want to have.  One at the far end for a full body shot for example and then i can still focus on the eyes.  This, of course, is only important under f2 or so.

If I needed to do autofocus but wanted to crank the filter to a much darker setting I would hold the filter ring and turn it to wide open so I could focus and then just before taking the shot I'd rotate the filter to the darker setting.  The results were a very warm and creamy set of shots.  These examples came from a 2 hour shoot with Michelle were I never changed the camera from f1.2 the whole night and we caught some wonderful shots.

Here is a second example of the beauty of using lower fStops in the studio.

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I doubt I'm the first photographer to come to the conclusion that the ND filter can be handy this way...heck, I may be the last one to figure it out.  But, I'd never seen anyone talk about using one in studio so I wanted to share my experiance.  I'm not sure my ND filter will be coming off my 85mm f1.2 anytime soon.

Shutter lust...

Sometimes someone new to photography asks me for advice.  It's a lot like walking into a grocery store and asking, what tastes good here.  Not an easy question since it's really self exploration that will help someone find what they love and as a result usually get good at that. To learn what tastes good (to you) in the store you have to try it...all.  So, I usually suggest this.

Go to a place where you've been many times before and sit down and just start looking at it...really look. Developing the eye for interesting backgrounds, views, seeing how the light is playing through the trees on the side of a building, or how a path in a park is shaded by trees. All of these things we have seen and just take for granted in a literal sense and not in the artistic sense. The artistic lines in an old man's face, or the colorful and delicate pattern of the iris of a young girl's blue eye...

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Just walk and look with your heart and not your head and you'll see a whole different world to shoot.

Don't look at the back of your camera either.  Just shoot and keep your head up and eye looking for something interesting.  While you might be looking at your pictures you are probably missing a moment in time, an elusive shot, that is lost forever.  Shoot bracketed and you'll be fine.

Leave your technical self behind and just look at the world through your creative eye.  Through your childish eye.  And discover what's been there all along.

Soul shooting

When I see a photo that I love it's not my mind that's loving it.  No, it's my heart. My mind would check for rule of thirds, exposure, see the wrinkle in the dress, and analyze any post production to figure out how it was done and how it was lit up.  My mind would run the logic and statistics if I let it.

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This photo of Jay was the last one for the day.  We'd done some fashion and some boxing shots and pulled a lot of great emotion out for those.  Jay worked on his end and I made sure the lighting helped reflect the emotion as much as I could.  At the end of several hours we knew we were done but I had this one last vision that came to me.  There was Jay, buff as they get, and the lights and mood at my disposal.

So I sat Jay down, told him to lean forward and place his hands on the top of his head.   I placed a couple lights on him.  One on the backdrop and on almost right down on his head and shoulders from the front.  And I took this shot.

I didn't measure anything.  I didn't think about anything technical at all.  I had a vision and just created it with my eye and heart.  And I like it better than anything else we shot.  And it's kinda' fun knowing it wasn't planed, worked out, fretted over, or metered to be perfect.

Light meters, color charts, white balance, tape measures, and rules make for perfect 'ho hum' photos in my opinion.  It's not because I don't understand those rules and tools, I actually do.  I have just found they make the pictures boring and lifeless when followed to the letter.

I guess what I'm trying to express here is that we often over think a shot.  Sometimes to a point where it becomes impossible to do.  Or it doesn't come out like the 'book' said it should.  I like to shoot with the creative side of my brain, the emotional side, the one where creativity comes from.  If you shoot from that side you'll create pictures that inspire that side of other people's brains.

When another photographer tells me what's technically wrong with one of my shots I smile and nod.  I don't care however.  I'm OCD about creating things I love but not OCD about how to create them.  Does that make sense?