The Beautiful Katy

I am loving my new camera! It has transformed my ability to capture the types of images I have dreamed of capturing. I never realized how limited I was with my old camera gear until now! Everything is sharper, clearer, brighter. And I can achieve great images in low light (hooray for ISO!)
This might sound cheesy- but I feel lucky to have started on such basic equipment and moved up. I didn't have the technology to fall back on in the beginning as I was learning the basics of photography. And now that I know what I am doing- I have the equipment capable of achieving the results I want. It's a beautiful thing.
These images are of my gorgeous (inside and out) girlfriend Katy at Centennial park. We headed there on the weekend for a relaxing 2 hour shoot (which ended with a well deserved cappucino for each of us- if we do say so ourselves)! A lovely afternoon.
I wanted to practice shooting in some of the locations Israel went through with us at our practical training session this week. I will definitely be doing more family shoots at Centennial Park in the near future!

For those of you who are interested... here are a few tips Israel swears by in order to achieve fantastic portrait shots:
1. The back ground (in most cases) should be darker than the subject
2. The lighting should be interesting
3. There should be a very shallow depth of field
4. There should be good separation between the subject and the background
5. Speaking of background- keep it simple

Anzac Day Parade 2010

I picked up my new camera (a Canon 5D MkII) yesterday- just in time to have a play with it today at the Anzac Day Parade!

My latest assignment with Israel is to do a photo-documentary story. I've chose to cover Anzac Day since Chris and I planned to attend all of the festivities.

Our day started at 3:15am. We woke that early in order to get to the dawn service on time. It was a rainy, miserable morning. But I kept thinking that if men and women can train as hard as they do to serve at war, and then go and do it- I can bust out my umbrella and brave getting a bit wet!

We moved into the city later in the morning. Chris went off to march in the parade and I enjoyed nearly two hours of capturing interesting people with my new toy. *Note: It's not really a toy ($$$). We may not eat for a few months!

I've posted a couple of my favorite images from today. I'm loving the depth of field I can achieve now. And the fact that I can go above 400 ISO and not get any noise! So long tri-pod. Hello whole new world of photography!

Children's Photography

Some of my favorite children's photography to date.

Boy oh Boy!

Boy oh boy... we're having a boy! A tree climber. A sports player. A dirt digger. Or maybe none of these things? But it's got my mind racing with possibilities of what our little son will throw at us in the upcoming years.
Now that we know the gender of our un-born baby I have reached a new level of excitement in my pregnancy. We're talking about names. I'm shopping online. Everything seems more... real!
Those of you who have gone through this will probably be able to relate to that period of time where you almost have to convince yourself that you are pregnant. It's what other people go through. Not you.
Well, it's me! And Chris! And Moe & Rowdy! We're going to add another darling boy to the family. And I'm going to be out-numbered even more than usual! (... but loved and protected more than most women on the block also)!
We can't wait to meet you in 5 months baby boy!

Say Cheese... PLEASE!?!

Here's another photo of Magdalena, (shot at Bronte Beach). Of about 20 photos that I shot of her I think she is smiling in 3 of them. You wouldn't know it- but she doesn't like having her photo taken.

It makes some people very uncomfortable. Which is an issue for portrait photographers when we are trying to bring out the best in people. To capture them looking natural and happy. Not like they want to run away and hide.

There is a real psychology involved in shooting people. As if we don't have enough to think about with lighting, exposure, composition, etc. We've also got to say the right things and give off the right vibe to put people around us at ease. It's a bit of a song and dance that you can't really be taught. You just have to get out there and learn what works best. I find it takes a lot of concious effort to ensure I conduct a shoot in a way that clients leave having enjoyed themselves.

So I encourage portrait photographers to get in front of the lens once in awhile. And remember exactly how it feels to have that under the microscope feeling. And for those of you having your photo taken... say cheese PLEASE?!?! We're not trying to hurt you. Promise!

Location, location, location!

We had a great session with Israel yesterday at Bronte Beach. He took us around to different locations he normally shoots at and explained how the light behaved in each spot and the types of images he is able to achieve there.

Magdalena and I went around afterwards and shot each other with some of Israel's recommended locations. Here is one of my favorite shots of her...

Afterwards I had the opportunity to watch Israel in action at Coogee Beach. He had a shoot scheduled with a family (2 parents and 2 twin boys- 2 years old). Hilarious! I held a stuffed tiger and a stuffed dog for most of the shoot and acted as "smile inducer". This shoot involved a lot of racing after toddlers and a lot of bribery. But I think the final images will be amazing- I can't wait to see them!

Lessons learned:

1. Take time to make your clients feel comfortable during the shoot. Talk to them about their kids, their jobs, their hobbies.

2. Get parents to tickle their kids. The smiles are incredible!

3. Prop a stuffed animal on your head or your lens if necessary!

Love Your Pets...

A friend of mine lost her dog in the last few days. He passed away very young and (I'd imagine) left her feeling like a piece her heart was missing. That might sound extreme- but those of you who have pets who you absolutely adore will understand.

We have two dogs. We feed Moe & Rowdy and walk them and pat their enormous heads. We throw them a ball and let them sit on the couch. We tell them they are "good boys" every day.

In return- they have made us their entire world. They follow us around the house like furry magnets. They want to be with us always. They sit beside us and place one big paw in our hand to be held. Not shaken. Held. They wake us each morning with a long pink tongue that runs from our chin to our fore-head in one quick motion.

They warm our hearts with their sweetness. They make us laugh with their antics. They bring us more joy than we ever realized they would on the day we brought them home from the dog shelter.

We want them to be with us forever. But the reality is- they won't. One day, for what-ever reason... they will leave us.

So this post is for Milo. The dog I never met- but who resembled Moe & Rowdy with his long legs, his expressive face and his black & tan markings. He was a special friend. And this post is for every pet owner who might need a gentle reminder that their furry family members are a gift- one that won't last forever. So love them constantly and don't scold them too harshly when accidents happen (on the floor, the bed, in the laundry hamper). There will come a day when you even miss their mishaps.

I See the Light!

Lighting is something I thought I learned enough about in photography school.
But my most recent assignment with Israel was to photograph a person using all different types of light. Side light, back light, front light. In sunlight and in shade. Even indoors.
And I realized... I just haven't been observant enough when it comes to light. I am always more focussed on the background and composition than the actual lighting of a subject.
Duh!
I've been missing something pretty important here, people!
So I'm approaching my portraiture a bit differently now- and that's exciting.
Here's a photo of Chris. Side lit. In sunshine. In Brisbane. :)

This is my favorite portrait photograph that I have taken to date.
This lovely creature is my niece, Izabella. She and her parents spent plenty of time with us over the last two years while we were living in Melbourne. I did a few scheduled photo shoots with Izabella, however, this wasn't one of them. This shot was taken spontaneously one afternoon because I happened to look up and see that Bella looked so darn cute. And the lighting was pretty. *Snap*
My biggest goal over the next 6 months or so is to learn how to capture quality images like this one more often. To be able to plan for results and not just hope that everything goes my way through luck and circumstance. I've been a bit guilty of that in the past- lack of planning, that is. I'm hoping Israel will be able to help me with this.
A photographer needs to know how to make things happen to his/her advantage in a short ammount of time. To anticipate results. To plan for lighting. Be certain of a location. To make people comfortable. There is so much going through a photographer's head during a shoot... I'd like to learn to make it all feel a little more natural. Basically, to have more of a strategy.
And THEN- there will always be those very rare moments when a beautiful shot appears before you. And if you're lucky enough to have your camera handy... *Snap*.