Danny + Andrea

Beginning of July. Oregon Coast, enjoying some time family reunion-ing. I was taking pictures of sand and waves and footprints and other randomness when I hear the request, "would you mind taking a picture of us?" Of course I can't turn down family ... well I could, but I don't ... but the "golden hour" had certainly passed. The sun was setting and in a hurry. I flipped on the on-camera flash and grabbed a quick snapshot:

But then the photographer in me took over. "Want to have some FUN now?" Because I certainly couldn't pass up the opportunity to get a few of my absolutely, completely, most-favorite-ever type of shots. Yep, you guessed it.

Silhouettes.

If I ever got to the point in my photography career where I could completely focus on one type of photography, it would most definitely be silhouettes.

We started out with silly ...

and sweet ...

and then came ...

Simply Amazing.


And yes, I love this shot so incredibly much that of course I had to create a brand new blog header just to include it. It was time anyway :).

Photo Walkin': Katie

I ended up having the most time with the model Katie during the I Heart Faces Photowalk Across America, hence the abundance of pictures in this post! She was fabulous. Tons of personality and willing to do just about anything! We started out at the very-disgusting-yet-somehow-cool gum wall in Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle:


... before venturing off to explore other spots in downtown...





And yes ... I love this shot of Katie jumping! I told you she was up for anything!

I definitely hope to have another opportunity to photo walk in the future. I have to give a big thank you to:

I Heart Faces for coming up with the brilliant idea!
Irene Jones for executing the walk in Seattle. She put a LOT of time and effort into planning all the details!
and Salon Dolche for doing all the hair and makeup for our models.
And of course to our models Li, Simone, and Katie. You girls rocked!

Photo Walkin': Simone

Some of my favorite shots of Simone from the I Heart Faces Photowalk Across America that I was able to participate in. Isn't she beautiful? She has a great modeling career ahead of her, I think!

Photo Walkin': Li

On June 5, 2010 I had the amazing opportunity with spend the morning with photographers from all over Seattle and beyond (one couple even came up from Corvallis, Oregon for the day!) as part of the I Heart Faces Photowalk across America. I had a great time swapping tips, meeting others, and taking photos of some beautiful people. I'm sure we created quite the scene on the streets of downtown Seattle that morning ... several people stopped us to ask just what, exactly, was going on:

Yeah, kind of a paparazzi moment. But I loved it! You can see me right behind the umbrella, grey sweater, checking out one of my latest shots, I presume! Thank you to CNP Photography for capturing this pic and letting me share it!

We were able to work with three different models throughout the morning, in small groups of photographers. Here are a few of my favorite shots of the oh-so-beautiful Li:





And now I'm going to leave you hanging ... hopefully in breathless anticipation ... to see the other two models. I can't post EVERYTHING at one time, can I?! Check back tomorrow!

More of {should-be-supermodel} Terice

Remember yesterday? When I shared my venture into the unknown world of using an umbrella to bounce light outdoors? Here's a reminder:

ISO: 400
aperture: f/4.0
shutter speed: 1/200
Taken at 7:52 pm with Nikon D700 and 50mm f/1.8 lens

Well, this is the exact same evening. Just a couple of minutes before I started using the flash:

ISO: 1250
aperture: f/2.2
shutter speed: 1/320
spot metering
Taken at 7:50 pm with Nikon D700 and 50mm f/1.8 lens

You'll notice I had to bump my ISO up in order to get the natural lighting shot. That's because with the sun going down, there wasn't a whole lotta available light to work with.

I'm amazed at how you can get a totally different look with natural lighting. And honestly, I love both looks. Once again, natural lighting is easier for me ~ it's what I'm used to doing. But I'm definitely going to have to venture into this unknown world of flashes and light stands and umbrellas and reflectors and whatnot more often. Because it's fun.

Here are a few more of my favorite natural lighting shots ...

(And you all agree with me, right? That Terice should be a super model? It was very fun to have someone pose themselves ... all I had to do was make sure I was properly exposed and fire away):




I've decided it is my personal mission to get an all-out-laughing shot every time I take someone's picture. I just love seeing happy people:


So, now I have to ask ... which is your favorite? Artificial or natural lighting? Leave a comment and let me know! And it's okay if you are like me ... and hate picking favorites ... I really do love them both :).

Working with the Light

One seriously fun evening ... a little off-camera flash ... bouncin' off an umbrella ... some tips and training from a good friend ... a gorgeous sky ... a should-be-model (seriously. Isn't she beautiful?!) and the beach. Fabulous combination that resulted in ...

... some pictures I am absolutely crazy about.



In my attempt to learn it all (not that I ever will ... please note I said attempt) I've been trying my darndest to figure out lighting. I love shooting in natural light -- mostly because it keeps things simple -- but I also want to be as well-rounded a photographer as possible. So even if I choose to shoot in natural light, it won't be because it's the only thing I actually know how to do.

And so I headed out one evening with my friend Irene and begged her to teach me somethin'. For these shots we had one Nikon sb-900 set up on a light stand and bounced the light off an umbrella, which was a few feet in front (and slightly to the side) of Terice (the oh-so-lovely model). I was seriously blown away by how much one little flash and an umbrella can do. Amazing! My favorite thing about using off-camera flash in the evening is how I was able to capture that stunning blue sky and still have Terice properly exposed in the foreground. Photography is magic.

This last shot I captured on accident ... and love. I was standing to the side, watching Irene shoot and snuck a shot of my own in. And immediately said, "umm ... that was cool..." I love how I was able to get such extreme shadows from being on the side of the light source.

And yes ... I know what you're thinking (or if you aren't thinking it yet, you will be once I tell you what you're thinking ...). This picture looks like Terice stepped right off the set of Twilight and in front of my camera. A vampire on the prowl ...

Come back tomorrow for some of my natural-light shots of Terice. You will be amazed at how different they look ... and yet they were taken at the exact same time of day.

You can see Irene's shots from this same evening {here}.