Corey Luke Photography

Play it again, Sabrina

2011-06-02T00:03:00.001-06:00

Play it again, Sabrina, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Most of the time when you hear people talk about Karma it's bad. This time for me it wasn't.

I was asked to help photograph some costumes for the art council I'm on. Seems someone in Seattle is inquiring about renting some of our costumes.

I put a couple things on hold and began shooting the costumes. Now I don't get paid for this, everything I've done with the Lehi Arts Council has been strictly volunteer and no charge.

I don't mind because it keeps me shooting and the council gets to keep what little money there is and spend it in more needed areas.

As I was wrapping up the shoot and preparing to pack it all up, the reigning Miss Lehi came into the room I was using, and began playing the grand piano. And man can she play. Beautiful music filled the room the entire time she was there, my first gift from Karma.

Now I was a day late in creating an image for a photography group and when I saw her hands flying up and down the keyboard, I knew I had to get the shot.

This is the image I used for the UtahStrobist challenge. I have it because, I believe, Karma paid me back for donating my time/talents.

Thank you Sabrina, and
good Luck in representing Lehi in the Miss Utah pageant!

Sombrero.

2011-05-31T12:29:00.001-06:00

Self, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Sometimes it just doesn't work out. I took a bunch of pictures with a sombrero. I'm having a really rough time picking any that I like. This is about as close as I can get to picking one.

What a smile!

2011-05-16T21:57:00.001-06:00

Tamara in Cheongsam, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

I had to post another of Tamara in her Cheongsam. I really like the colors.

Monthly Inspiration

2011-04-25T23:32:00.001-06:00

Little Shooter, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

A new challenge I am trying with the Utah Strobist group I belong too. We have a different theme every month, this month it was "small." This challenge is going to be a wonderful thing to keep me moving forward to create images that I WANT to shoot, not necessarily those that I HAVE to shoot.

Next month is "motion" and I already have a bunch of awesome ideas flowing, stay tuned for that!

Teenage Singer

2011-04-09T15:18:00.001-06:00

Teenage Singer, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

My Daughter and her guitar.

Self Portrait - Cameras Are So Vain

2011-04-09T10:39:00.001-06:00

Self portrait, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Camera's are so vain.

Open Mic Night

2011-04-08T23:43:00.001-06:00

Open Mic Night, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

I'm no pin-up, but @RubySnap named a cookie after me.

2011-04-07T21:07:00.000-06:00

I use twitter. I usually only follow colleagues in photography, by choice. However I also follow a few other folks. Two celebs, a bunch of photo vendors, local news, and @RubySnap.That's right, I follow a gourmet cookie maker.

With the exception of my wife's chocolate chip cookies(love you Tamara), RubySnap has, by far, the best cookies I have ever eaten, period. And their store is just walking distance from Pictureline in Salt Lake City, so I can hit two of my favorite places in one trip.

So as I said earlier, I tweet. Sometimes a lot, sometimes not very often. Well a few days ago @RubySnap sent a tweet out about creating a cookie using carrots. Instantly I envisioned a classic ginger & nutmeg carrot concoction. I sent a reply to Tami, the owner & creator behind the deliciousness, about how good the idea of a carrot cookie sounded. She replied that she would be "going non traditional because that's how she rolls."

Now I have tried nearly every cookie she has created and I can honestly say there hasn't been one I didn't find absolutely delicious. So needless to say, I was intrigued. I figured that was the end of the conversation, but the next morning Tami told me she had made the cookie. She was going to put it out in the case that day and she had thought about calling the cookie the "Corey." I was flattered, all I had done was send out a tweet, no contests, and definetely no "follow me & win a xxxxx."

So I called in an order for a dozen of those delicious cookies(apparently they were selling fast), and headed over to pick them up.

So here is the beauty. The Cori Carrot Cookie. It is a carrot cake cookie with macaroons and cherries topped with a simply divine cream cheese frosting. This image is from the store when we picked them up. I should've taken a few of these and did them the justice they deserve and photographed them properly, but I'm afraid they just didn't last. Between myself, my wife, and three teenage daughters they didn't stand a chance.

I chatted with Tami for a couple minutes when she admitted that she didn't realize I was a guy. I didn't care, still don't. Come to find out I wasn't the first guy to have a cookie named after them anyway. :)This is definitely an event that I will never forget. Thank you very much Tami!

20 years this September.

2011-04-04T19:28:00.001-06:00

Tamara, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

My gorgeous wife, this September will be 20 years. I look forward to at least that many more.

Via Flickr:
©Corey Luke Photography.

Yeah I know I photograph her a lot. Do you blame me?

Strobist:

One large rectangle softbox above the model, one smaller softbox below.

One Umbrella softbox behind the model to create the pure white background.

Self Reflection

2011-03-31T20:33:00.001-06:00

Self Reflection, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Sunday Portrait

2011-03-27T21:26:00.001-06:00

Smile, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

HDR in Photoshop CS5

2011-03-22T21:45:00.000-06:00

I've been playing with HDR Pro in CS5. This image is from nearly two years ago, just goes to show you should never throw out your RAW files. You never know what technology is just around the corner.
Feel free to save this image and use it as a desktop if you like.

Utah Photo Print Mixer

2011-02-03T08:00:00.002-07:00

Coming this February 26th is a unique opportunity for local photographers to get together, mingle, listen to a presentation or two, and discuss photographic prints. It is the inaugural Utah Photo Print Mixer.

Why should you attend? The simplest reason is to hang out with other cool photographers, even if you don't bring a print this time around. Another reason to attend is to enjoy the "gallery" of prints that will be on display. One way to appreciate the art of photography from local talent. Also, there will be local vendors in attendance, a great way to network with them.

Why should you bring a print? You've got to bring one to take one home. Pixels had made this part really easy by offering a fantastic deal to attendies, read below to find out what. We all know it can be unnerving trying to decide which print to put up for colleagues to see, but no matter where you are in your photography skills someone will appreciate what you've done. Bring a print, take home a print. Enjoy an evening out.

What can you expect? Beside the main event of trading art, we will have the opportunity to be joined by some fantastic vendors.

1.) Smugmug has sanctioned this event as the February Utah county smug and will be providing refreshments. www.smugmug.com

2.) Backlitbox.com based out of Pleasant Grove, will be there demonstrating their product. And they are holding a special contest just for those who will be attending the mixer. Head over to their website,follow them on twitter(@backlitbox), here on FB, and enter the contest to win an 8x10 backlit box of YOUR print. These products are simply amazing! Imagine your image looking like it did on your monitor! http://www.backlitbox.com/?page_id=7

3.) Pixles Foto & Frame has given us all a fantastic opportunity. They are offering to print any image you want to use in the print swap in 8x10 for $7 or 11x14 for $15. And that's mounted folks. This alone is reason to get a print made up for the mixer! Even if you don't end up trading at the end of the evening you've got a fantastic mount for yourself! Call 801-233-9090 and ask for Pamela or visit their website at pixelsfoto.com

4.) iPrintCanvas.com will have special discounts available to those who attend the mixer. This local company puts out very high quality work. If you've ever wanted to print on canvas or even velvet or cotton rag they can accommodate you. Visit their website here www.iprintcanvas.com

We are lucky enough to have the Utah County Studio Co-Op host this event. The address is 122 N 1800 W #8, Lindon Utah. The studio is available for rent so check it out while your there.

1. You can put your image in a "free trade" pool of prints to be traded freely toward the end of the evening. You may choose the same amount of prints that you contributed on a first come first served basis among all of the prints in the pool. Please be considerate and fair.

2. You can put your image in an "owner trade" pool. This is a one on one trade where you as the artist/owner get to have final approval over your print swap. The idea behind this trade is if you bring a print much larger than 8x10 you may receive one in a similar size if YOU choose.

3. You may also try for the "lottery" pool. Here your print will be assigned a number and drawn "out of a hat" by a lucky attendee. You will also receive a number of lottery chances equal to the amount of prints you enter into the pool.

Please bring a print at least 8x10, preferably mounted on mat board(but not necessary). Color and black&white, film or digital, even those made on a pinhole are all acceptable. You may bring as large as you like, and on as many different types of papers as you'd like. Please print and fill out one information card for each of your prints before arriving. And most importantly, sign and date your work!

We are lucky enough to have the Utah County Studio Co-Op host this event. The address is 122 N 1800 W #8, Lindon Utah.

There may be some very light refreshments, but please bring whatever drink/dish you like and that you think your fellow photographers might like. Or just bring yourself, it's not a requirement.

Please send your questions and RSVP to corey @ coreylukephotography.com so we may have a somewhat accurate head count. Please let us know which pool you're interested in, and if you would be willing to help out with the event.

Tell and invite all of your photographer friends and we hope to see you there!

Links;
Flyer
Information Card for Prints
Address

Foggy Night

2010-12-27T21:47:00.000-07:00

Tonight as I was bringing in my gear from a family shoot, I noticed how the fog seemed to surround the streetlight across the street from me.

I've had my Canon G12 with me nearly every moment since receiving it so I decide to grab a photo. I'm going to be writing a review of the camera soon but here is an image processed in LR3.

Baby Taylor

2010-10-18T08:00:00.001-06:00

A lot of people tell me I'm crazy because I truly enjoy photographing babies. This is baby Taylor, take a look at these images and I think you'll understand why I do enjoy photographing babies!

Salt Lake Valley At Night

2010-09-20T08:00:00.001-06:00

This image was taken in Draper, Utah at traverse ridge. It was during an event put on by Photowalking Utah.
I had forgotten my tripod that evening and decided to use my camera bag as a prop. The exposure time on this image is 15 seconds. I found it interesting that on the original high res file you can see all the way to the Great Salt Lake. It is in the upper right hand corner under the darkest orange part of the sky.

Real Salt Lake vs New York Red Bulls

2010-09-10T08:00:00.002-06:00

Saturday September fourth I had the opportunity to shoot the Real Salt Lake soccer game. I love shooting action so this was an amazing night for me. I was able to shoot from the end zones during play and midfield during the coin toss and an awards ceremony.

This is Leo the mascot for the Real. After this shot he smacked me on the back. Later on while I was shooting he smacked me on the butt. How many of us can say they've been smacked by a lion?

Soccer players have a tremendous amount of stamina, running up and down the field constantly while the clock runs.

Kyle Beckerman, midfielder and captain. Gotta love the white guy with dreads look.

One of the action shots of Beckerman I like.

I really like how this image reads left to right. Then you get to Jaun Pablo and Olave, gotta love that.

You see some pretty good faces during time of action. Including some I'm sure the players wish they didn't make, like the one below.

The Real won this game 1-0 to tie the MLS record home winning streak at 22 straight wins.

My Neck Turns A Shade Of Red

2010-08-28T12:40:00.000-06:00

One thing in my life that constantly amazes my wife is that I seem to know a lot of people. It seems that no matter where we go I seem to run into someone I know either as a friend or an acquaintance. One of these people is a race car driver. And a pretty good one at that.

Eric Rhead drives the ITT sponsored #66 late model race car in the Rocky Mountain Challenge Series. His team races a car over a few state lines and on Aug 21st they raced at Rocky Mountain Raceway(the same place Tamara and I went to the drag races) in the Napa 125.
Tamara and I got to attend the races that day and we had a great time. Photographically speaking it wasn't the best for me. I don't have an access pass so all of my images have some sort of the fence in them. Please try to enjoy them anyway.

Its still Salt Lake City, so the pits aren't the fabulous ones you seen on TV.

Off we go...

Eric Takes the lead after only two laps. He holds it for over 60 laps.

Some cars didn't fair to well. This car and another collided in a heat taking both cars out and leaving them watching the main from the grandstand.

Due to brake fade earlier in the race, Eric was running third with a handful of laps left when the cars in first and second had an incident leaving Eric in the pole position with 5 laps to go. And as you can see by the image above, he won the race. He is performing the obligatory burn out for his fans. That's racing for you.

Here Eric is giving a speech and accepting the trophy.

There were a few other classes running races that night. These are the trucks that ran. There were mini sprint cups that look like the full fledged Nascar vehicles but are 1/2 scale. Also they ran the track in a figure eight for two other classes. Stock cars and the very famous "trains." This class consists of three vehicles chained together. The front car has a driver and an engine but no brakes. The middle car has no driver, no engine, and no brakes. It is just a shell. The last car or "caboose" has a driver that is the brake man, trying to slow the whole thing in time not to slam into another train in the intersection of the race track.

There is a huge amount of carnage during these train races. Cars sliding sideways, tires squealing continually, and the crunching noises of sheet metal being abused turns into a constant serenade during the race. As you can see from above, some times they end up with the tires pointing up. The winner of the race finished the last few laps with the hood plastered to the windshield.

Sorry about the fence in the photos, but sometimes its better just to have the pictures than not taking them at all.

Focal Length For Portraits

2010-08-18T08:00:00.010-06:00

I've been putting together a presentation on the basics of photography for the past couple of weeks and I decided I could share some of it here.

My wife and I went out looking for leading lines to use as example photographs in my presentation. We found a wonderful bridge that had outstanding lines, but what I didn't realize until half-way through the shoot is that I was accomplishing a second task at the same time. Using the correct focal length. More after the jump.

I have two examples of different focal lengths using the same subject, my beautiful willing wife. Now these images have had some editing, but they are not "glamour" shots or intended to be judged as "merit" images. They are for examples only.
First is the image taken at a focal length of 70mm. And according to the meta, my subject was 1.29 meters from me. Notice the bokeh, or blurred background, is pretty good but it is a little busy and detracting from the subject.

Now this second image was taken at a focal length of 200mm. I had to back up to frame the shot exactly as the first. This time placing my subject 3.41 meters away from me, again verified by the meta-data. The first thing you'll notice is the bokeh. Again very smooth, however this time it's much more blurred and less of a detraction.

If I were take this image again, I would probably move either my subject or myself in order to get the railing from the bridge completely out of frame. And I also would try to get my subjects head surrounded solely by the orange/yellow bokeh, which would remove the darker patch to the upper left. At 200mm it doesn't take much maneuvering to accomplish this.

Here is one of the final images from the day that we really liked.

By the way, if you own or are looking to buy a Canon 7D you should check out this book written by my friend and fellow photog Nicole S. Young.

Or if you want to see some outstanding visual stimulation along with an excellent history lesson on one of the United States best highways, then check out this book by another photographer friend Ann Torrence.

The King And I

2010-08-15T16:00:00.000-06:00

The King and I. A classic musical put on by Lehi City Arts in which all three of my daughters were players.

This was a personal shoot, just me taking pics of my daughters musical. So I took some liberty in how I processed these images. I like how they seem to coming off of the big screen instead of the stage.

An Evening At The Drag Races

2010-08-01T10:48:00.000-06:00

An Evening At The Races

Saturday night my wife and I went to the Rocky Mountain Raceway to watch some drag races. We been to races a few times, it's as much fun to watch the tremendous amount of horsepower these engine create as it is to watch the wide range of people from all walks of life.

And the Heavens Rained Down

We started to watch a few races and as luck would have it mother nature decided that a welcome rain, thunder, and lightning storm was in order. So we sought shelter under the concrete walkway rather than the steel building we were sitting by instead.

Double Burn-outs

Since my wife and I had tickets to the hospitality tent, we decided to eat dinner and wait out the weather. It was a good choice, as you can see by the above image. The weather cleared up enough to get the track dry and create an amazing backdrop.

My father used to race when I was younger. I remember going to the track and spending nearly the whole Saturday there. I remember how much I loved getting a hamburger from the concessions stands, I can still taste them. I remember watching my father roll over the embankment and hoping everything was OK and how ecstatic I was when I saw him sitting on the roof of his car holding his helmet up high as the tow truck pulled him back onto the track. I remember the times when he would build up a car to compete in the demolition derby event. And the time when my mother drove it in the "powder puff" demolition derby.

It's because of these memories I chose how to edit the following pictures, exactly how I remember seeing my dad race. I hope you all like the images.

Chevrolet Chevelle

150mph motorcycle

West Coast Pro Comp

2010 World Wide Photowalk

2010-07-25T12:36:00.001-06:00

Utah State Capitol, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Every year Scott Kelby hosts a global photowalk. This is the second year I've participated. It's a great time getting together with people with similar interests and catching up with old friends.

This image of the state capitol is my favorite of the day.

Utah Tour de Donut

2010-07-19T23:49:00.000-06:00

The American Fork Rotary Club hosted a cycling event on Saturday July 17th. It is call the Tour de Donut and I was able to attend and photograph the event.

It was estimated to be near 500 cyclist of all ages and types showed up to participate.

These girls were all smiles as they prepared to embark on the "Ride for Bunny" lap.

There were a hand full of character riders in attendance including the cavemen above.

Last years race winner ate a total of 31 donuts, this year he was able to best 25. But he was overthrown by the perseverance of a young man who downed 26 to take the coveted "Donut King" award.

The finish was exciting as a handful of racers pedaled furiously to cross the finish line.

Reciprocity And Understanding Exposure Value

2010-03-11T23:50:00.000-07:00

In my pursuit to understand everything photographic, I recently ran across the word "reciprocity."

Merriam-Webster defines the word as "mutual dependence, action, or influence." In photographic terms that means the relationship between shutter speed and aperture. Change one of the values and you must also change the other to maintain proper exposure. For example, lets assume a proper exposure with ISO 100, shutter of 1/125 and an aperture setting of f8. If you need more depth of field, you'll have to stop down your aperture.

For an example, let's assume we're taking an exposure of a landscape and we need a very deep depth of field. Let's stop down the aperture setting and move to f16. In order to stay in the same EV zone, we must adjust our shutter speed to compensate for the loss of light. Since we lost half of our light, we must allow roughly twice as much time to obtain the same exposure. So our new shutter speed will be 1/30.

A second example would be taking a portrait. We want a nice buttery smooth bokeh behind our subject. So we will open up the aperture to a setting of f4. We've now double the amount of light being let into our sensor. Now have need to reduce the time of exposure by half, or 1/500. This leaves us still in the same EV zone and having a correctly exposed image.

The math seems off, but there are many examples of charts on the web to use as reference.

The understanding of reciprocity and usage of an EV chart can help a photographer properly expose and determine the appropriate depth of field needed to capture a desired scene.

In my own personal opinion, I feel that the "program" mode on most new digital SLR's use the EV chart to gain correct exposure. I think there may have to be some testing on that in the future.

On a side note, EV should not be confused with Ansel Adams' "zone system." Although similar sounding, Mr Adams' system uses 11 different zones based on tonal values and he adjust exposure according to which part of the scene has the most impact.

This post a little long and somewhat "dry." I apologize if it bores you, I just really think it's a basic concept that gets forgotten about.

Here is a portrait taken during an "un-wppi" party.

Brayden's newborn Shoot

2010-03-10T12:00:00.005-07:00

Newborn shoots are one of my absolute favourites. The children are just so precious and beautiful. This is Brayden, we spent a little over an hour during his shoot.

Attending Kenneth Linge's Photographing People Seminar

2010-03-07T23:42:00.001-07:00

On March 6, 2010 I attended Kenneth Linge's Photographing People part 1 seminar. I can easily say it was one of the most exciting and informative photography related days of my life.

Mr. Linge is an award winning international photographer, with a huge list of credentials, that practices his philosophy of "No Secrets." He teaches with a passion and without reserve.

Topics discussed ranged from methods of compostion, types of light, color composition, and correct use of focal lengths just to name a few.

Different methods of lighting the model were taught during different times of the day. Harsh middle of the day sunlight was used as a tool, not to be feared. Evening sky was used with the correct Kelvin color temperature to create a beautiful contrast between sky and model.

I had more than a few "light bulb" moments during the day. Including why I seem to favor one of my reflectors over the others.

If you have the desire and opportunity to attend I highly recommend it.

Happy Valentines!

2010-02-14T10:57:00.003-07:00

Happy Valentines!, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Happy Valentines Day to all of you.

My beautiful wife and I attended Photowalking Utah's studio lighting event yesterday. We got our picture taken by Nicole Young with her lensbaby expertise.

Tamara

2010-01-24T00:00:00.002-07:00

Tamara, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

Once again I have to throw my appreciation to my beautiful wife. Not only does she put up with my constant barrage of photos taken of her, she actually shoots a little herself.

Saturday the 23rd we both attended the Utah Strobist club meeting. It was a great turnout, both on the photog side and the model side. However, there was a bit of time where there wasn't enough models to go around to the photogs set-ups. So being the sweetheart she is, my wife put down her Canon and stepped onto the other side of the lens.

And someone once said indirectly that she's "just a married woman trying to be a model." Too bad they don't know her like I do.

Grandpa Tell me a Story

2010-01-11T23:14:00.001-07:00

Grandpa Tell me a Story, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

This photo was inspired by Norman Rockwell. It is a pretty quick "snap" of grandpa in between setting up family portraits. There is a large softbox camera left, and processing was done with both Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop.

Stallone in a triptych

2009-12-21T22:07:00.001-07:00

Stallone, originally uploaded by CoreyLuke.

A friend and her son were at the house as I was taking pics for her foundation. I finished up early, so I gave her son my helmet and jacket and had him stand by my camo backdrop. I lit him with a single soft-box camera left. Processing was done in Lightroom.

Temple Square

2009-12-19T13:05:00.001-07:00

Temple Square, originally uploaded by TamaraLuke.

This is a beautiful image taken by my wife. It was a great evening with family and 140+ of my closest photographer friends. We're looking forward to next year already, just hoping for about 10 degrees warmer temps.

You're Not ________ Enough.

2009-12-15T21:17:00.000-07:00

Are you ________ enough? Do you have enough _______? Are you using the right _________?
I've heard these questions put out there with a number of ideals, objects, and theories filled in the blanks.
Some are meant to be condescending, some are educational, and others seem to be plain judgmental.
You can fill in the blanks with whatever you like, I'm going to rant a bit about my past.

I started shooting with a slr camera as a junior in high school, a Pentax K1000. I loved it, with its complete manual controls I was forced to think about every frame. I took every photography class my school offered, and was a photographer for my senior class yearbook. I love the process of taking something so mechanical in nature and using it create an object that can stir emotion. From the initial framing of an image to the darkroom watching the emulsion reveal its secrets during the develop bath. I can't even begin to think how many rolls of film and packs of paper I went through.

During this time I shot simply because I loved it. No worries about what person I was going to be judged by, except maybe the subjects. But life goes on and I gained other priorities and responsibilities. I didn't shoot as much, but it was ok. I was starting a family, and had other ways I needed and wanted to spend my time.

I started shooting seriously for the second time in my life about 2-3 years ago for a couple specific reasons. My family responsibilities were not as time consuming, and I needed a way to fill some of my day. I found myself wondering one day what I was doing to leave something of myself for my family, friends, and the world. My job is mostly sales and logistics. No creation, research, and very little entertainment value. So I wanted to do something creative, and I know I have at least a little talent in photography so I grabbed my first dslr, an Olympus E-500, and off I went.

I started eating up any and all photographic media I could get my hands on including social media. Twitter to be exact. I followed just about every photographer in my local area and quite a few "celebrity" photographers. I've learned a tremendous amount from just about every single one, and love when they share their work.

But lately I'm starting to notice something, and that brings me back to my original thought. "Are you ____ enough?" As my skills have grown and my work is getting more attention I'm seeing more comments directed at photographers from other photographers. "If you want to be a real photographer you need to _____." Again, fill in the blank. I've heard everything from not having the best gear to not marketing my brand to not being educated enough. I believe these thoughts can be productive and educational, but I also believe they can detrimental to a photographers future. It can lead a person to believe that no matter what they do there seems to always be another hurdle they must overcome to be accepted by their peers.

I would like to say to any of us out there not feeling ________ enough, to not worry about it so much. Enjoy the process of creation and learn everything you feel like learning. Don't worry about about what equipment, education, or even shoots another photographer has lined up. Enjoy your own path. Learn your own equipment no matter what level it may be and enjoy your results.

As for me, my next adventure is to bring my digital world back to the beginning of my photographic journey and make black and white images that anyone who is in my life can enjoy. Not so that I can become infamous or even rich beyond my wildest dreams. But because I love it, and I want to increase my skills and knowledge for my own desires.

So I ask you, "are you __________ enough?"

The following picture illustrates one of the most important reasons for me to be a photographer, the smiles.

Thank You Veterans!

2009-11-11T11:51:00.002-07:00

Veteran- A person who has served in the armed forces: "Privilege, a token income . . . were allowed for veterans of both world wars" (Mavis Gallant).
Today we honor those who have served in our armed forces. Being a vet myself, I personally appreciate all of the work our fellow Americans in uniform do on a daily basis.

Thank you! Even if your just "sorting the mail." You are all important.

The following image is from my uncle's collection. He served honorably in Vietnam and survived with all limbs intact only to have his life taken by a drunk driver here in the states.

My latest model has more than two legs or my daughters science project.

2009-10-11T17:35:00.001-06:00

My daughter's science project is one that she has to collect a variety of insects, 20 to be precise. Imagine my surprise to see this little guy in our garden as I was checking my sprinklers.
I documented a few photo's for her, but since it's nearly Halloween I decided to have some fun with them.

Meet our "Praying" Mantis.

This could be a post about the "strobist" part of the shoot, but I wanted to make it more about the spookiness Halloween can entail. So this next images should help.

This is an unfortunate event, both for the wasp and for my daughter. You see now she is down another insect.

You could almost hear this guy belch with satisfaction after consuming nearly all of his prey in just under 5 minutes. Only a wing a couple legs remained.

Hope you enjoyed our "Halloween Special"

DIY On Camera Beauty Dish

2009-09-28T20:04:00.000-06:00

This photo was not taken with a ring flash though it has a catch light similar to one. The subject was only around three feet away from the camera and the flash was on camera and the shadows are virtually non existent. This was accomplished using the widely available DIY beauty dish recipe you can find on the web.

We then moved outdoors to test the light modifier against a pretty harsh setting sun. You can tell how bright it is by the models squinting eyes! With an unmodified flash we would have had harsh shadows across her face but instead the light "wraps" around her.

One final image, I moved into trying a macro type shot in a very shadowed area of our "weed" garden.

ƒ1.8 Is a Waste of Aperture

2009-05-04T08:47:00.017-06:00

Ok, so not always, but I seem to rarely use it any more. And when I do, it's usually for artistic results. On my Canon EF50mm ƒ1.8(yeah, the cheap one), the DOF(Depth of Field) at ƒ1.8 is barely over an inch. However the bokeh is outstanding, even with the 5 blade pentastar look.

This is fine if your photographing insects, very small items, or even landscapes. But if your shooting a portrait, your model has to be facing the lens. If you try to pose them in a side shot, or even a look over a shoulder, the near eye will be clearly in focus while the far eye will be consumed in bokeh.

In studio, I rarely use a wider aperture than ƒ5.6 when photographing people. I like to have their whole head in the DOF.

The first pic, and all pics on this post, was taken with my EF50mm ƒ1.8 at an aperture setting of ƒ10.

This next pic was taken with an aperture setting of ƒ5 outside with a shutter speed of 1/400th. The bokeh is pretty smooth looking throughout the background. If you look close near the upper left corner you can see the 5 blade reflection off of a vehicle. No ƒ1.8 wide open aperture here.

Here is a pic of one of my lenses at wide open ƒ1.8 and a shutter of 1/125.

And another to show how shallow the DOF really is. ƒ1.8 and 1/1250th

As you can see, ƒ1.8 is a great tool to have. I just won't be employing it that often.

Working on headshots

2009-04-27T13:52:00.004-06:00

This weekend I worked with a model to create a head shot and full body shot for her portfolio.

For the headshot, I knew that I needed her eyes to be the focal point in the image. I had her pose sitting down and leaning forward with her elbows resting on her knees. This seemed to "separate" her face from the dark color of her shirt. I then posed her head in a position so that when she looked at the lens with her eyes only, it would "open" them up and be bright and beautiful. It was difficult for her to look up at me with her eyes only and not raise eyebrows or wrinkle her forhead. I think we found a happy medium.

Here is how I set up the studio.
Looking back at the shoot, the lights on the backdrop were probably unnecessary since it was cropped out in post processing.

All processing was done in Adobe Lightroom 2.3

My Favorite Model

2009-04-23T23:39:00.002-06:00

Today I'm posting to write a huge thank you to my most favorite model, my wife.
She puts up with my constant prods and pokes and fancies my whims.

Thank you sweetheart and I love you!

Lightroom With Mr. Jarvie

2009-04-17T14:46:00.006-06:00

I attended a Lightroom workshop last Thursday hosted by East Bay Studios and put on by Scott Jarvie. It was an event where people who use the lightroom editing software to get together and learn a few more tips. Scott Jarvie was joined by David Terry, Suzanne Plant, and Jeremy Hall.

All four of them elightend the attendees with individual knowledge of different aspects of the lightroom software. I used a bit from each of them in the photo above. Jarvie educated us about templates and presets, Dave taught us about the graduated filter functions, Suzanne showed us all how to get incredible looking eyes, and Jeremy demonstrated how he uses the keyword functions.

I anyone has the opportunity to attend any of the event held by these great photographers, I highly recommend you do so!

Stock Music

2009-04-14T12:48:00.002-06:00

I just received a referral to this company on music to use for slide show's and podcast's. This is the correct way to put music on dvd's that you sell or give away. Copyright infringement is so easily overlooked, you could put yourself in trouble trying to be nice.

Stock20.com lets you download one music set for $20 and that includes the license. It's a small price to pay to be legal.

Stock20.com creates high quality music for media production. If you create a free account using my referral link, they will give you one free song.

Here's how:
Click this link, then create a free account (it takes about a minute):

http://www.stock20.com/gvr.php?rc=65xl2nv17828asd5v2x

Note: Stock20.com will not share, sell, or abuse your personal information.

Yashica-Mat EM

2009-04-11T18:31:00.004-06:00

Thought I'd throw up an image of my Yashica TLR medium-format.

Just picked it up and I was shocked to find a roll of film inside. Who know what could be on it.

I'll post some pic's from it after the film gets developed.

Metallica Guitar Hero Night

2009-04-06T10:45:00.003-06:00

Had a great night with friends last Saturday, this is one of the pics I took with nothing more than ambient and my trusty strobe.

My Review of Adorama 24" x 36" Softbox for the Budget Series Monolights.

2009-03-31T11:52:00.003-06:00

Adorama

Adorama 24" x 36" Softbox for the Budget Series Monolights.

Nice Softboxes-Works with JTL J-160

Pros: Attach Securely

Cons: Storing

Best Uses: Portraits, Product

I have used these softboxes for portrait work. I believe they would work well in certain product shots as well. They do attach nicely to my JTL J-160's. There is an inner diffuser that is easily removed if you need more power out of your lights.
For the amount paid, they are a great buy.

()

Rock on..

2009-03-22T23:58:00.004-06:00

Took some pics with my new softboxes. This is my youngest daughter rockin on her guitar.

Film photowalk

2009-03-21T16:45:00.004-06:00

Last night I went on a photowalk with a small group of photogs from the photowalkingutah.com group. This event was to be a "film only" walk, although most of us had our digi's with us.

We walked a small area of downtown Salt Lake City and found quite a few things to snap a photo of, and a few people. Even a homeless gentleman ran a camera for our group shot.

What is film?

2009-03-18T16:47:00.002-06:00

I'm going to be creaking open the case to my old Pentax K1000 on Friday to go do a photowalk in downtown Salt Lake City Friday.
I haven't used that old film camera in so many years I'm afraid I may not remember how to do all the calculations in my head anymore. Should be a good time, I only wonder if I were to go to a big box retailer and ask for film if they would know what I'm asking for.
I'll try and post some pics when I eventually get the film developed and the prints made. Wow digital has made the workflow so fast!

Hit the title for the link to the photowalking group.

Old Building

2009-03-16T23:33:00.003-06:00

Another from the Goldfield Ghost Town. Imagine calling this home!

Lightroom Presets

2009-03-16T22:00:00.004-06:00

This is a photo from Goldfield Ghost Town near Mesa, Arizona. I used a Lightroom preset I got off of the web. I kinda like the red shirt.

New Post For Where In Utah Group on Flickr

2009-03-15T23:50:00.004-06:00

I just posted this to the group "where in Utah" on Flickr. Click on the title to go to the group and give it a shot if you know where! This was taken with my Canon 40d and a 20-700f4L. Post processing was done in Lightroom2.

Picture of Tamara

2009-03-15T16:05:00.004-06:00

Just a quick snap-shot of my wife. Good filtered ambient coming through our window shade.

Photocamp Utah 2009

2009-03-14T21:47:00.002-06:00

Today was a good day. I attended the first annual Photocamp Utah workshop. From 7:30 a.m. until around 5:30 p.m. a small group of individual gave of their time and talents in order to instruct and inspire a group of nearly 300 like minded individuals.

The topics they covered spanned from simple posing techniques to using blog software and getting into stock photography. Imagine teach your peers lessons you've learned knowing that they may become your competition someday.

Sepia Tree

2009-03-11T23:15:00.001-06:00

Had some fun today with lightroom2.3. I love the new develop tools.

I'm back from spring training.

2009-03-02T00:55:00.004-07:00

Well we made it back without any problems, and I took over 800 pics during our 3 day trip. I haven't had a chance to do post processing on any images, but I'll be working on that this week. In the meantime, here's a pic of Ryan Theriot turning two against the dodger's opening day.

Off to see the Cubs!

2009-02-24T17:16:00.001-07:00

I'm of to Mesa, AZ to see the Chicago Cubs in spring training. I'm hoping to get a lot of good pics from the game and also the local sights.

2009-02-22T18:28:00.003-07:00

My wife and I went out taking pics not far from home. I ran this one with a high contrast action I've been working on.

Photowalking Utah

2009-02-22T11:52:00.002-07:00

My wife and I attended a studio clinic hosted by www.photowalkingutah.com saturday. What a great time, this is one of the few final pics I liked.

New PocketWizard

2009-02-16T20:57:00.001-07:00

Wow, this looks to a great new piece of technology! Put me on the waiting list!

She Picked!

2009-02-06T23:30:00.001-07:00

Out of the 94 different shots, she picked this one.

Upcoming

2009-02-03T22:28:00.001-07:00

Looks like I'll be heading to AZ at the end of the month. Should be some great opportunities!

2009-01-25T17:49:00.002-07:00

Another pic of my nephew with a 28-135 lens. I like the surprised look.

Nephew

2009-01-18T18:55:00.001-07:00

Just finished looking over proofs with my sis-in-law. Looks like were going to try and find a contest or two.

2009-01-17T00:58:00.003-07:00

Just finished this one of my nephew.
Love the expression.

2009-01-15T22:41:00.003-07:00

Had to post this, it's from my uncles collection. Vietnam 1971

2009-01-15T22:40:00.003-07:00

Our little dachshund, domino. Canon 40d, f1.8 50mm lens.

2009-01-11T22:30:00.002-07:00

This is a pic of my nephew. Done with a canon 40d, and some monolights.

2009-01-05T22:13:00.001-07:00

Not much today, feeling sick. Tomorrow I'll be trying out some new lighting.

The Vineyard

2009-01-04T14:54:00.003-07:00

We visited this vineyard in August just as the wine festival was about to begin.

First up

2009-01-04T13:31:00.000-07:00

Just a pick from our cruise. This was taken with a nikon p80.