I have several ideas for what could be some really interesting portrait shoots. I have the gear to get the quality of shots I want. I have a repertoire of models to use. Unfortunately I do not have the weather I want. I don’t want my models to freeze to death in the coldness that is Ottawa winters so let’s all start thinking warm Spring-like thoughts so I can get moving with my ideas. Okay, we are all in agreement – Spring needs to come now!
Read more...The final assignment for my Lighting Techniques course was to produce a Magazine Cover. We were allowed to make any sort of magazine we wanted, from wildlife to animal based or even crafting or carpentry. I however, chose to do a Fashion Magazine and am so happy with how it came out. Chris was my model and I was able to use my Bowens 400/400 lighting kit for the first time. Chris and I took the photo using the Bowens kit and then I manipulated the background and text in Photoshop. Slap in a fake UPC and create some clever/interesting article titles (thanks to Chris and Dave for the help there) and you have yourself a magazine cover. This can be found on Flickr as well. 
Assignment 9 was a little difficult for me to distinguish from my other photos as it was all about diffused or bounced flash. I say this because it is very rare that I use direct flash so almost any of my small flash portraits could have been used for this assignment. I ended up submitting the two below photos. The first was shot with the flash in an umbrella setup. The flash was bounced off the white umbrella and onto the subject. The second photo was shot using the small flash attached to the camera and using a diffuser on it while also bouncing it off of the white ceiling above the subject. Diffusing or bouncing the light often enables you to soften the light up which can be harsh and unflattering otherwise. As always, these photos can be found on Flickr as well.
Assignment 8 was another small flash assignment – specifically small flash while doing an environmental portrait. I like environmental portraits as it shows the subject in their surroundings (environment). These photos can be found on Flickr as well. 
Fill Flash was used for most of the remaining assignments. In this assignment we were to use it as Fill Flash in an outdoor photo. Chris came down for a few days last month and stayed with Dave and I. On the first day she was hear we ploughed through my assignments and the majority of them turned out quite nicely. The first photo below is the traditional use of fill-flash where the lighting on background and the subject are balanced with the use of a small flash. The second photo shows the technique sometimes called day-to-night where the flash and background lighting are not balance producing a darker background and therefore giving the feeling of haven taken the shot at night. The photos can be found on Flickr as well. 
I had been looking forward to the fifth assignment since the beginning of the course: Portraits. We had to shoo the same subject in the five different types of basic lighting (broad, loop/short, butterfly, Rembrandt and split). Kate was my subject and she did a marvellous job. I am really happy with how the shots came out.
The above images are the five I submitted for the actual assignment, but I finished others and plan on doing even more in the next little while. Check it out on Flickr.
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A few months ago I had a photo shoot with an upcoming musician, Corinne. We took several shots and the above was definitely one of my favourites from the session. To check out more photos from the shoot go here.
Chris got her tattoo last Wednesday (May 26) as a birthday present from Jerrica and Erin. She asked me to do some shots of her with it and I was of course more than happy to do so. I think it looks fantastic and the shots came out really nicely too. I have a few more shots to process but I think these were two of the best from the session.
Closeup shot done in the studio.
Wide (full) shot taken under fluorescent lighting using ambient light and my flash.
Semi-medium shot taken in the studio. 
Above is a closeup shot taken under studio lighting. I think this may be my favourite shot from the whole session, but that is hard to say as there are a lot of really good ones.
Wide (full) shot in one of the many Mac computer labs in Algonquin college. A lot of students used this class (so I am told), but I think Chris and I got some pretty original shots from here. I used my flash as a fill flash to lighten up Chris and get some interesting lighting.
Medium shot taken using my flash and ambient lighting.
Another closeup done in the studio using the reflector as a prop instead of a tool.Assignment #5 is yet another portrait assignment. We have to shoot 4 photos of the "Student Photographer of the Year" (whoever our model is) using three styles: wide/full (where the subject's full body is in frame), medium (where their waist up is in frame) and closeup (where only their head is in frame).
We spent the first hour of the class going through examples, which is when I learned the different terms, and listened to pointers from the instructor. He suggested we go vertical (portrait) and get really close, partially cutting off the very top of the head or bottom of the chin. These were not great pointers to me as I have to force myself to take some horizontal (landscape) shots every once in a while and also to get further from the subject to have some options when it comes to choosing my submission.
Chris came to the class with me and was my model all night. I was extremely lucky to have her and realized this most when we were in the studio doing some headshots. The other students were having their model pose with photo equipment and getting close, using telephoto lenses and whatnot - it looks like they will have good photos. But Chris was amazing - easily the best model in the class (and I think a bunch of the other students knew it as some watched us with great interest). She posed with equipment, giving me ideas as well as great images. She took direction when given and then went with it even further, making my ideas even better. She had her own ideas, as she knows photography and lighting and what works. It was wonderful. We used a few available light locations that other students did and I can guarantee they don't have the shots I have simply because of my model.
I was also able to use some of the (flash) lighting techniques I learned this past weekend in the absolutely amazing Small Flash Workshop I took (post to come in due time). I bounced light off ceiling and walls, I used my flash in remote mode and commanded it through my on-camera flash, I altered the exposure level of both flashes to decrease the harsh feeling they can give. I was really pleased with the results and how I was able to use something I had learned so quickly. I have almost 600 shots to go through now and the vast majority of them are really good. There are some where my flash didn't go off as I was out-running both my flash and the studio lights sometimes (knowingly) and there are others were I caught Chris in a not so flattering facial expression (eyes closed, mouth in the middle of a word, etc) but like I said, most of them are really great. I stayed up late last night working on them and got rid of about 100 quite easily. I marked another 20 or 30 as my preferred shots for the assignment and will work on them more tonight when I have fresh eyes and more time.
I had the greatest time shooting this assignment and it has given me some really great results so far. I intend on using these photos for not only this assignment, but also the portfolio at the end as a replacement of one other studio assignment I wasn't nearly as happy with. Thanks again Chris.
As previously mentioned, I enrolled in my fourth class for the Digital Photography certificate program at Algonquin College back in July. The class is called Composition and Design and I had the first class this past Monday evening and am really excited about it. As I am sure you are aware, I haven't been entirely pleased with the last two courses I have taken for this program (multimedia applications and photoshop for photographers). I learned things during these last two courses, don't get me wrong, but I wasn't happy with either the pace or the instructor and was therefore put off by them.
So far, this instructor seems pretty good. Sure he is a little into himself and his photography, but what professional photographer isn't? I mean, how are you supposed to teach without showing your own work, the stuff you understand the best? Anyway, I really hope I continue to enjoy this instructor because he teaches the lighting course that is mandatory for the certificate as well as two optional workshop courses, all of which I want/have to take.
The class has 6 assignments for which I am actually going to need a fair bit of help for as some of them are portrait assignments, but I will be speaking to my friends about this later. I believe we only have a week to complete each assignment as the class after it is assigned we critique each others work. I am both nervous and excited about the critiquing process. I am excited to finally get some third party opinions on my work at the level I feel is appropriate, but extremely nervous that my work won't make the grade and will fall short of everyone's expectations, including my own.
I will of course keep you all posted on my progress and will be posting my assignments here as I complete them. I have a few ideas for the assignments, some of which include the conference in Chicago I am attending later this month - hopefully they will turn out as well as I am picturing them in my head.
Erin Armstrong-Hivale as a 50s housewife for Hallowe'en 2008.
This photograph is of Christine Sweeton. It was taken during a portrait session we had to fulfill the assignment I was given in my photography course. I think this set of photographs, though incredibly 80s looking, turned out really well - although to be honest, it wasn't hard to make Chris look beautiful.
This photograph was taken using flash lighting. Two flashes on either side (one main, one fill) and the hot shoe adapator to have them go off in time with my camera was used.
The photograph of Jordan was also taken with the flash setup. She seemed to actually not mind being a model too much - not nearly as much as other students, including myself.
This photograph of Lucrecia was taken using available light (ie. no flash). We had two lights directed at reflectors (to soften the light) and had to adjust our cameras to deal with the low light settings. It took me a few shots to be able to get my camera set up just right for these situations, but I eventually got it. Lucrecia seemed to really enjoy being a model, actually she admitted that she was really liking it so I have quite a few good ones of her from the class.Unfortunately, I cannot use any of the images taken during the studio class for my assignment, but lucky for me I have a friend who doesn't hate having her picture taken and she is going to be my model for me - Thanks.
Last night the photography class was held in a portrait studio at Algonquin College. I was really nervous about it to begin with for multiple reasons.
1) I have never worked with studio lighting before,
2) I am not the greatest at directing people in terms of positions and feelings to express, etc,
3) There was the possibility I was going to have to model for the other students (eek),
and 4) I have never really taken pictures of people in non-candid. non-tourist scenarios before.
It turned out to be a really good experience and actually quite enjoyable. I didn't end up having to model for anyone as there were students there that seemed to enjoy being in the spotlight. The lighting situations were fun and made me use my camera settings in ways I never have before to compensate for the low or high lighting. I got to use a hot-shoe to connect to the professional flash setup which was neat as I have never used a hot-shoe or the flashes before. I enjoyed moving the lights around and eventually became more comfortable with doing so and with directing the model, though I never really did that too much as there were so many other people directing it wasn't entirely necessary for me to do it (kind of a shame really).
The only thing was that there were just too many people. It was hard to get the shot you wanted and whenever you did, someone would come up and mimic whatever it was that you just did - so that was frustrating.
A while ago I came up with this ingenious idea of making my own background setup out of PVC piping and some bed sheets and have had the love of this idea rekindled since last night. The idea would be especially appropriate since I now have a second assignment were I have to take 7 portrait shots of the same person under different lighting situations, with different outfits (to get the colour right on them as well as the person) and different places. I am really looking forward to this assignment as it is something I have never done before and will actually make me think and be creative. The first assignment was things I do on a regular basis with my photography and therefore no real effort was involved other than taking the pictures and making myself select a certain number of them. This one is going to be tricky though and will make me think outside the box and get out of my comfort zone and all those other things people say. :)
Now I just need to find myself a model...any volunteers??
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