Honeybees, Rainy Trees, & a Sleepy Newborn

The Busy Season

Wedding season is a wonderful time of year.  I honestly love getting to be a tiny part in the memories of a lovely day.  My time behind the camera is a reward for all the hard work I do on week days and all the hours of editing that it can take later.

It looks like August to September has been a slow month for wedding bookings, so I'll be offering more deals around that time for couples that need to book and any brides that would like to try boudoir.  Until then, I think I'm going to do some new floral photography when I don't have weddings to test out color works too.  Between weddings, wings, and flowers, I think this blog is beginning to look decidedly girlish.

Farmer's Markets Are Wonderful

This week is crowded with work.  Tuesday - Sunday I will be assisting my favorite florist with their busy Mother's Day ordering season, Saturday is my first beach wedding of 2013, and next week I will be meeting with fellow small business owners to discuss having some Weddings By Armando original designs on display at their boutique!

To get ready for all of that I spent Saturday back at the Farmer's Market in Portland.  My son and I enjoyed sampling and selecting our delicious local goodies and eating a healthy lunch in the park at the duck pond.  I apologize in advance that I will disappear for most of the week, but to get you all in the mood for some lovely summer weather I'll give you these beautiful images of fresh food and local goods.  Support your local farmers and visit the market yourself (or check out one near you).

Earth Day & Spring Blooms

The flowers starting to bloom in front of my door.

My "day job" has eaten up a ton of time this month.  I agreed to take on extra hours when a co-worker left unexpectedly and we needed to fill the gaps in the week.  The income certainly has not hurt, but it makes time to shoot harder to find.  With the grass growing and the snow all gone, flowers have started to appear on the little patch of green between my front door and parking space and this makes me want to shoot even more.  Spring has such wonderful light for catching the natural world. 

Taken to show the new dye and make-up purchased 
from my "other job" at LUSH: Handmade Cosmetics.

To go with the change of seasons, I changed my hair color again.  This time going darker and working with the shorter trim I have now.  My skin has the wonderful pink glow that means my fragile balance between too much sun (I'm a lovely Victorian alabaster most of the time) and not being able to resist going out into the garden has shifted to the sunny side.  I think over the next few days while I am home it will get worse.  I plan on spending much of my time outside starting the long task of preparing my garden and playing with the tiny monster boy.

All this and planning out a photo shoot for the little man's birthday.  I avoided Easter photos with him but I cannot escape that his second birthday is coming and as a photographer mommy I will have to think about what to do for this year.  Two years is a hard age to shoot as he wants to run, giggle, fidget, and generally be a crazy little boy.  His favorite object at the moment is his blue kickball, and I suspect that will appear in this year's photos as well as the "guitar" he so enjoys (my husband's old PS2 controller) and his favorite shoes ever (my gardening boots).

Check back soon for wedding shots and some great wildlife items from a trip to the rescue and rehab center for injured animals!  Tonight I leave you with a look at one o my favorite parts of spring... baby things!  These kittens are from our neighbor's most recent litter of fluffy toe nibblers.

Playing with Perspective.

New Hampshire's White Mountains.

Just playing with perspective and lines.  I felt this was not my best, but cannot get those wooden beams and lines out of my head.  Honestly, I like perspective images like this because they force the eye to adjust over and over to understand what it is they are witnessing.  It drives my husband crazy that i will take these over and over to feed my collection with more and more distortions and revisions.

Clarence Fahnestock State Park, Putnam County, New York.

Chuang-yen Monastery, Kent Lakes, New York

Chuang-yen Monastery, Kent Lakes, New York

Portland Headlight, Fort Williams Park & Lighthouse, Portland Maine

Crisp Red Apples

Some of the lovely red apples we picked last year.

I cannot begin to explain how much it has bothered me that my eyes are being light sensitive and giving me headaches when outside in really bright daylight.  I wanted to get photos of the baby playing out in the grass and perhaps going apple picking with my husband in the next few weeks.  Last year I managed to get a sitter for him so we could pick, but this year I think seeing him grab apples from the trees would be adorable.

Apples make great natural light subjects and I was able to get a rare photo of the elusive "husband not making a stupid face" last year.  I would love to think I could do the same this year, but that remains to be seen.  Perhaps they can be convinced to sit long enough for me to take a family photo of my two boys and be able to put it up here at the house.  I want something colorful and glowing to hang on the walls.  

The elusive husband.  This one is about to flee
from our camera as they are shy creatures.

Slow going this week on the final steps with this red wedding.  I took part time job at a favorite local store to help support the ever increasing diaper costs and it has eaten into the time I normally spend on editing.  The books are ready to send to the printer though and I am happy to say the bride did her final review and approved them this morning. 

That means no more wedding related orders until the end of this month.  I will have to find time to select great fall poses and work with the bride at my next booking so we can really take advantage of her date.  Leaves will be in full color at that point and we'll be able to really make much of the colors.

Photography as an Art

Hiking purgatory chasm in 2007 while at JWU - taken with my pocket camera by a friend.

I remember being a teen, well some of it.  I remember thinking my parents knew nothing about the world, and that I was always going to be as cool as I was in high school.  And then I grew a brain and moved on.  I was told I could not march with my class at graduation because I had taken too many alternative courses for home schooling and did not meet the number of requirements for a diploma from the high school that had once told my parents I had no hope of ever going to college.

Macro Photography of college landscaping post rainstorm - my "artistic" period in 2005/06.

Three months later I started college and held a 4.0 GPA and a part time job in a huge city.  I relaxed by taking photos with a little P&S (point and shoot) at the school stable.  I excelled in business classes and learned skills that make running the studio much easier, but never really thought much about photography beyond taking some fun images.  I remember thinking that the exhibits in the art school across the street where a joke at times - I still have no idea how a toilet seat with a sledge hammer wedged in it is supposed to make me "feel" something or than confused.

I take my photography seriously only in how it is something that can always be improved upon.  I don't claim it needs to be an expression of the world, just that it should capture something worth a second look.  I certainly don't feel the need to go ruining perfectly good toilets just to make a pretty picture.  

I say this because I think there are some pieces of "art" that are not always worth sharing.  I don't think it is fair to go charging a person hundreds of dollars for images of their family taken with a pocket camera that you claim makes you a professional.  I also feel that there is something to be said for trying to hone your craft before going to charge.  I may not used the most advanced camera out on the market, but I do use advanced lens attachments and take the time to practice with them before using them on paid shoots.

Macro Photography from the New York Botanical Gardens in 2010.
This was taken as part of the test images for my back-up camera.

I enjoy taking photography of the natural world to relax.  On occasion I even sell prints of the rare shots that I am comfortable sharing with others.  I take portraits seriously though.  If I am paying a model, or being paid to make something that a client will hang on their wall, it had better look like it was worth the money they are paying for my time and services. 

I write this today as part of a a warm up to my next post concerning the photography of the American Olympic team that has been covered on Reddit and other major sites.  I will post an analysis that I have been working on later, but this is partially based on those images, and partially on a comment from a friend on her social media about how it seems becoming a "photographer" is the new thing to do.

Color Theory

Going to aim for a few small updates this week since I am a little scattered between having just held a birthday party for my husband, looking into renting a better studio space, and some family issues here at home. I'll be treating you to a few nice images in these updates, and be promoting another photographer with one of them.

Today I want to discuss how to work with colors. Not in terms of how to pair things in an image, but how to shoot for an emotional impact by using the colors inherent in a setting. This will be a very visually in depth process, so I will only touch on a few emotions and the best way to communicate them in color. This will be a post of strictly my own work, though the concept is not at all something I lay claim to as an original concept; many books, blogs, and other works exist based on this topic.

If you follow traditional thinking, water is an emotional element because it is so closely related to all life. We emerge from water through the process of birth, we require water to survive must faster than food, indeed we even loos what when we feel the strongest of emotions (both joy and sorrow). So it should be no surprise that water is often an essential element of using color to transmit emotion; water is naturally blue. Using blue and purple shades are an obvious progression and can make a basic shot even more commercially presentable.

This photo was a lucky catch while on a vacation with my parents and an ex-boyfriend of mine about four years ago. I point out that there was a UV filter placed on the camera for this, so it did tint the shot slightly, but only enough to prove my point. Below is the shot taken just prior; this time without using a filter and the default settings and basic white-balance. Just looking at the two quickly, it is simple to tell how there is a dramatic feel to the filtered image.

The lesson I want you to take from this is simple, editing is not always required, but can enhance an image to the perfect level to make a sale. In this case, I am discussing non-portrait images, but the same rule applies there too. If you can frame, light, and pose well, the image will simply need to be uploaded or printed. And for now, I leave you with a few more shots where a slight addition or filtering of color has an obvious effect on the outcome.

Next Lesson

Hello again,

Well, if you were not scared off by Monday's update I applaud your determination. Our blog appears to have crashed last night, so this week is a little off in timing. But with patience comes pay-off. To save time and sanity I will jump right in to the last two topics for this week...

Subject Focus:

If you did any of your research, you will be somewhat familiar with the “Rule of Thirds”. Of course, there are two applications of this rule, so we will cover the one most misunderstood first. In portraits this can most be explained with close-up images. Honestly, it is best to think of this in a grid form, so I will show you three methods of blocking to create thirds on different forms of head shot and close-up.

The best way to tell is break the photo into thirds and plan on having the subject's eyes in the top third, nose in center, and the lower line should run right about the middle of the mouth. Though my subject in the example photo here has a slightly tilted head, you will notice this frame is very even all the way around. Using the top, middle, and lower thirds you can ensure that you are clearly focused on the subject as a whole.

You might want to refer now to the earlier lesson update when I said this week would be full of “well, Duh!” moments... because yes, the first application of the “Rule of Thirds” is just that simple. Now... apply it; suddenly it becomes so much more difficult to achieve. Don't worry, we've all had those days.

Alright, next application is slightly more abstract, so I'll try not to make you feel like this week was a total let-down. This time the idea is making your subject the obvious main feature in your photo. Again, it sounds simple, but think of how often you see a vacation photo with the less-than-thrilled kids crammed in the corner and about 70% of the frame is a blurry backdrop of nondescript scenery.

Below are two methods of using thirds to position a subject for dramatic effect. The first set show the subject being brought to attention by using the majority to their advantage. You can also see how this works to the benefit of landscapes.While not all three are exactly set to two thirds, you can see the general cropping intended and how it promotes an attention grabbing detail

There is a time and place for photos with an off-set subject.  Even in portrait photography a well placed profile or posed model with dramatic lighting can make a statement.  That said, you should remember that a framed photograph is meant to be a keepsake.  Telling a story can be great, but does not always have to be done with abstract posing or placement.

The opposite set of thirds can be used to create an ideal image for later editing. Think if this in terms of advertising and you can understand why it is a favorite trick of visual marketing firms. The key here is to use a less imposing backdrop so that the focus can be placed on later additions to the image. Text is a common addition so that a product or spokes-image can be displayed along with company details. For additional reference I suggest looking at a magazine, billboard, or marketing campaign poster.

Focal Length:

I apologize completely right now for any ranting I am about to do on this topic. This may well be the one thing that most drives me insane when looking at the pictures many people post online. I am sad to see many photographers who do not know what focal length is at all; or who appear to simply not care about the distortion that it can cause.

I am not talking about a fish-eye lens being used to purposely curve and alter an image, but the awkward exaggeration that comes from standing too close to a subject and zooming out to fit it into the frame. I often refer to poorly executed focal length in portraits as “Myspace Pix”. I know this reference has become slightly outdated, but it is based on the popularity of these shots really beginning with the rise of social media sites. In particular, this was (and is still) a favorite of teen girls as a self-portrait can be achieved with any form of camera in any location.

To explain what I mean, I have included two examples of such a self-portrait in the examples of poor execution. This is done by holding the camera up over one's head or at eye level and moving it back until the arm is fully extended before snapping the shutter. You will note the enlarged appearance of the forehead or nose in each image. The third example here was achieved by simply standing quite close and zooming out as the subject moved in for a look and failed to fit in the frame.

The solution to this whole problem is simple. Step Back. I know you want to get that ultra-tight cropped shot of the baby and her beautiful blue eyes; but your camera can zoom in for a reason. Start at least two steps farther away from your subject than you believe you will need to be. From there you can move in physically or with your zoom options to get the cropped image you want. The very first image on this lesson is tightly zoomed and cropped, but taken without distortion by using this exact method of control.

As you can see, the angles explored in the first sequence can be achieved without distortion. The next step is training your photographic eye to work on selecting a particular location in the photograph to focus on. This is done by planning where in the image you intend the audience to direct their eye.

Most artworks are made by placing the focal point in the foreground and creating a blurred backdrop. Occasionally a prop or two may be added to tell a story, but there items are placed at or near the level of the subject so they remain in similar levels of focus. However, a truly unique image can be achieved by positioning the subject so that the foreground is not in sharp focus, asking the viewer to “step in to the image”. Think of it as leading your audience down a path by using your setting or subject pose to the advantage.

Here I offer two images taken in sequence.  The only change was made through the use of manual focus to select the foreground or background as the focal point.  Notice how they display a different sense of motion even being taken with the exact same elements in frame.

Finally, I want to present a sample of how pose can be used to create depth of field when correct focal length is applied. In this situation, the viewer must look along the horse's back and up to the focal point centered on the animal's eye. Again, it forces the audience to follow the visual cues from foreground to focal point while still managing to have a backdrop that is not completely in focus either.

And with that image, I give this final advice; remember that once you know how to apply the rules you can start to break them for specific reasons.  Keep in mind that there are many elements to a photo and bending one of the basic rules works, but intentionally breaking several at once hardly ever ends in a presentable photo.   In general, try to follow the technical guidelines and always test a shot before you try something in a “one-time-only” setting.  Never promise something you cannot deliver, you will only loose clients that way.