You should meet Rick

Rick Wargo is a guy you should know. His job is to help people have a great time becoming fit, and he's made some terrific programs to make it happen. If you'd like a fun way to get in shape and really LIVE then you should head over to Club Sport and talk with Rick. I see him at Lake Oswego Chamber of Commerce events, and it's always a pleasure. His smile is infectious and you'll be looking forward to living life more fully in no time.

My Friend, Jonathan

Panasonic GH4, Olympus 75mm f/1.8 lens, f/6.3, 1/200s, ISO 200.

This is Jonathan Puskas, and I think you should know him. He's a Navy man, and a he has a powerful business mind. His is the first portrait I made this year.

His wife, Rachel, and I are both on the board for the Young Professionals of Lake Oswego (a division of the chamber of commerce), so she introduced us, and I'm very glad that she did.

Jonathan has Efficiency and Proficiency, with capitals--you can just see it in the way he moves and talks and the twinkle behind the sparkle in his eye. It's clear that whatever he puts his hand to will become successful. Plus, he's a dedicated cyclist and he uses cycling to move more than his heart rate. I hope to be involved with him in some charitable ventures later this year. I'll keep you posted.

Panasonic GH4, Olympus 75mm f/1.8 lens, f/6.3, 1/200s, ISO 200.

Panasonic GH4, Leica Notcicron 42.5mm f/1.2 lens, f/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 200.

Panasonic GH4, Leica Notcicron 42.5mm f/1.2 lens, f/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 200.

Seoul Searching

Alright, that's a lame title, and I'm almost sorry about it...but I just couldn't resist. I happened on these pictures I made in Seoul a few years ago, and I don't think I ever shared them here. Seoul was a pretty incredible place. Having lived for two years in Taiwan, and one year near Beijing, I found Seoul to be the perfect mix of the two. It had all the modern amenities and open minds of Taiwan, with the great weather, atmosphere, and tasty foods like I found in China. I highly recommend visiting and spending more than the few days I had while working. Definitely check out the old palace while you're there, which is where I made all these.

The Steve Jobs Portrait Project

I'm just tickled Pink. Today I was featured as the guest blogger on Scott Kelby's Blog where I wrote about my Steve Jobs Portrait Project. I introduced you to it when it first started almost three years ago. These days, it's taken on a better course. Head over to Scott Kelby's site and have a look, then head over to Photofocus.com where I've written how to do these type of pictures for yourself.

Sometimes You Just Gotta Shoot

I'm in Chicago--rather, I'm in the airport at Chicago. I've been here photographing a medical seminar for one of my favorite clients. I made pictures of the conference room all decorated and setup, and I did some executive portraits, and that's all fine. I'd love to have had time to get into the city to shoot, but that'll have to wait for next month when I come back for the Out of Chicago Conference (you should come, too!).

But I just can't have all this stuff setup for executive portraits and not do something a little different, a little more fun, a little more...me! So, I pulled J. into the studio and made a few frames with her, and then I nabbed M., as well. I hope I bump into you next time I've got the studio on location so we can make a frame or two, as well...

Nikon Df, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/8, 1/200s, ISO 200.

Nikon Df, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/8, 1/200s, ISO 200.

If you read the captions, you noticed that I got a new camera, and it's a pretty terrific one. These portraits christened the old boy. This camera is both a cool looking retro silver bodied monster, and a really excellent low light tool. I'm excited to get it broken in.

Tetons in the Morning

I'm co-authoring a book on using Lightroom's Develop module to finish photographs, and it's a much bigger endeavor than I ever imagined. It's amazing how hard it is to make time to write! There are so many other things that one could do instead...like write blog posts...

This is an image I may or may not include in the book. I made it last summer when my family had a reunion in South East Idaho, just a stone's throw from the Tetons. I awoke very early, prodded my Mom and Dad out of bed, and we headed up the road to the Park. It was a terrific morning, and I think we got back in time for breakfast.

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @28mm, f/16, 1/60s, ISO 400.

The Desert Again

Nikon D800, 14-24mm f/2.8 lens @24mm, f/10, 1/8s, ISO 200, Nik HDR Efex Pro 2, Photoshop CC, Lightroom.

I know, I know, it's another Tesla picture, and you may be thinking I've given up photographing people. Well, I'm glad to tell you that's not the case. Here're a few other portraits I made at the same time we photographed this Model S in Red Rocks Canyon in Las Vegas the other day. The first is E., the local Tesla rep, and the other are my friends M. and C. who were out shooting with me that day. 

Whispbar

I spent all day Saturday making portraits with folks who own Tesla cars, mostly the Model S (pictured) but also a Roadster or two. A really fun bunch of people from a huge variety of backgrounds and careers. This is one of the pictures I made last, of my friend Gary's car with the new Whispbar roof racks and accessories that are quieter and more efficient than other racks. 

Nikon D800, 14-24mm f/2.8 lens @24mm, f/5.6, 7 frame HDR, ISO 100.

I enjoyed finishing this image. Nik's HDR Efex Pro 2 helped me put seven images together to provide more detail and vivacity. I added movement blur and my favorite oil painting settings from Photoshop.

Happy New Year!

Gosh, it's been a great year, and 2014 is really looking up, as well. If you're reading this, thanks for sticking with me. It's not that I've quit writing, it's just that I've been writing so much for Photofocus.com. Follow this link to see what I've been doing over there.

In other news, I got to make some pretty cool picture in Michigan the other day. I met up with my friend Bryan, who I met on the Photofocus page on Facebook, and we went shooting on the streets of Grand Rapids before work one morning.

While in Grand Rapids, I also got a minute with Breck to make a fun portrait.

Lastly, after shooting with Breck I was walking down the hall of the hotel and saw a horse and carriage pull up outside in the blizzard. When I got to the elevator, a couple jumped in, and told me they had just gotten engaged! I suggested we make a quick portrait, and they obliged. Congrats, guys!

I hope things are going well for you all, and I hope you get out and make some pictures with family and friends before the holidays are over.

Alvey's Candies

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/11, 1/200s, ISO 100. Photography's greatest gift is making pictures of chocolates!

When I was in high school, my pal Jenny and I spent our evenings after school working at Michelle's in Colorado Springs. We entered the cafe and confectionary shop at street level, meandered passed the candy counter, grabbed a taste at the ice cream counter, stole a fry from the kitchen, and washed our hands in the sink at the back. Then we roped up and rappelled down the stairs to the dungeon basement. Well, we didn't actually rope up, but the old stairs were so steep and slippery with chocolate crumbs and kitchen grease and ice cream toppings that it really felt like we should be lowered down on a winch for safety's sake.

Having descended into the very bowels of the city, we put on our aprons and hair nets and turned on the flickering light over our work table. In the next room the ladies were running the conveyor and dipping the chocolates and putting them on big steel trays to cool. Our job was to transfer them to boxes for storage until they needed to be packaged for sale. Our process was something like this: soak hands for several minutes in a bucket of ice water (mustn't leave finger prints!), grab two chocolates, put in box, grab two more, put in box, oops dropped one, put in mouth, soak hands, repeat. 

During the various seasons we specialized in different kinds of candies. We made a game of figuring out what the abbreviations were supposed to be. Ch'Butter was a favorite. Ch'Bacon would be a hit, we were sure. We also explored the truly creepy limestone caverns of the building and wondered what skeletons were hiding in the shadows.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/11, 1/200s, ISO 100.

Michelle's is closed now, but imagine my excitement when Alvey's Candies in Richmond, Utah called and asked me about making pictures for them to use on their website and marketing materials! We chatted and I was proud to know something of the production process and talk about how we could make the pictures look tasty. Finally, we made a date, and I headed to their facility in Richmond, with my pal Bob on hand to help.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/11, 1/200s, ISO 100.

If my experience at Michelle's felt like working in a dungeon, then walking through the doors at Alvey's was like entering the Pearly Gates. It's a bright building, and though it's packed to the gills with milk chocolate and dark chocolate and cashews and peanuts and pecans and cherries and mints and creams and everything nice, it's also clean and well kept. The contrast with my experience was incredible, and it was a joy to work with the Alvey's team, too.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/11, 1/200s, ISO 100.

We setup our studio in the shop and made pictures all day long. They just kept bringing out mouthwatering candy after mouth watering candy. I felt like I couldn't make a bad picture.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/11, 1/200s, ISO 100.

Finally, we finished making pictures, and Bob and I departed with plates full of delicious samples ("Uh, I touched this one, too--better send it with us at the end!" ;). It was a good thing, too, since those candies kept me alert during the drive back to Lake Oswego, Oregon.

I hope you'll call Alvey's this holiday season for some of your gifts. They have some terrific boxes for companies, too. I mean, nothing says, "I love you" like a box of delicious chocolates.

This post corresponds with another on Photofocus.com.

The Painted Desert

The Grand Canyon, aptly named, is a revelation of hundreds of millions of years' worth of history. It's incredible to see and consider. Besides the geologic grandeur, the sun's setting painted a continuously variegating pallet of colors right in front of me this evening. 100,000,000 years of change before my eyes, and 10,000 Maniacs in my mind.

Nikon D7100, 70-200mm f.2.8 VRII lens @ 70mm, f/8, 5 seconds, ISO 400. Photographed at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA.

New Family

This little family was so much fun to make pictures with. She's due in February.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 VR Micro Lens, f/9, 1/200s, ISO 200.

Yellow Lightning

In case you've been living under a rock, Tesla makes electric cars...very nice electric cars. I'm not a car guy, but if I were, I'd be a Tesla guy. They are comfortable, and very spacious. They've broken ground in so many things. I'm really a big fan...maybe I am a car guy....

I recently met Sean, a manger at the Tesla store in Washington Square Mall, and made a picture of one of his cars during the Scott Kelby World Wide Photowalk. 

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @170mm, f/8, 1/640s, ISO 800.

Shortly thereafter, Sean introduced me to Scott, a Tesla owner who also runs AutoTopia.com, where his team applies protective wraps to all kinds of cars. Well, I heard he was wrapping his Tesla, and one thing led to another. These are some of the photographs we made this morning, with my pal Chris helping, too.

By the way, these are computer desktop sized, too.

Nikon D800, 50mm f/1.4 lens, f/8, 1/5s, ISO 100.

A Horse With No Name

Jesse and I were heading across Utah to Delta to make pictures for USU a couple of months ago; it was a lot like this video. Jesse remembered a friend telling him about a ruins that was pretty cool and nearby. We found the old mineral kilns west of Santaquin right at sunset and had a good time hiking around them and exploring the graffiti. This was a favorite. 

Nikon D800, 14-24mm /2.8 lens @ 24mm, f/4, 1/100s, ISO 200.

Velvia

Autumn is traditionally seen as the end of the growing season, time for harvest, pumpkins, falling leaves, turning over fields, and readying for winter. But not in Lake Oswego! Nope, around here we prefer to let the Fall colors become vibrant and warm, red and orange and yellow, and then sprout new growth right next to the discards of Summer. I love it.

This one is sized for desktop wallpaper...click to make it large, then right click to copy.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 VR Micro lens, f/8, 1/4s, ISO 100.

Velvia is a film that has traditionally been favored by landscape and nature photographers for it's vibrant greens and blues and saturated colors. You can just tell images that were made using it, and it's a classic. I have a process that also produces rich colors in my digital darkroom. Unfortunately, there're no songs about Velvia, so you're stuck with Kodachrome again, and that's not too bad.

Pacific City

I hate to do it to the locals, but the world must know: Pacific City, Oregon is incredible. The beach is simply a wonderful place with incredible surf (point break characteristics?), and the most splendid tide pools on the planet, plus luscious dunes and caves and enormous rocks. 

I spent an afternoon there last week, and I can't wait to go back. I got to go make pictures for a wonderful family from Idaho, and everywhere I turned there was a great image waiting.

Highly recommended and totally worth whatever drive it takes to get you there.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Macro VR lens, f/4, 1/1600s, ISO 100. Pacific City, Oregon's beach is stunning, and Lake Oswego is just a two hour drive away.

Midnight Motorcycle

I was visiting in Logan, UT a few weeks ago when my friend Bob called and asked for some tips for shooting a motorcycle. He was at the Fairgrounds, and I was nearby so I headed over to see if I could help. Bob's classmate was visiting from Chicago and had ridden this gem across country, including a stop in Oregon (which I missed). 

Well, here's what we ended up with. Not bad for the fairgrounds at midnight. One of my favorite things was our bucket brigade from the canal to get the street nice and shiny.

Nikon D600, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @85mm, f/8, 1/90s, ISO 800. 

We used one SB-700 speedlight in a 24" softbox and moved it around the bike making pictures with the light on various parts of the bike. Then we combined them together right there in the fairgrounds using this method I wrote about for Photofocus.com. We ended up using seventeen pictures to make this image.

Damsels Wanted! Have Hero, Will Travel

I gotta admit, this song has been running through my mind while I've been finishing this image; it's good to be finished...so I can get a different song in there. Making pictures with these kids was so much fun, and then drawing my monster in was a whole other fun thing to do. I can't wait to do it some more!

Tryon Creek State Park in Southwest Portland/Lake Oswego is a wonderful place to make pictures.

*Sigh*

It's just what I needed. A relief. A pleasure, really. I got to photograph F. and her new little L., today. She's just a month old, but look at all that hair. Thanks a bunch for a fun time making pictures, F.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 VR Macro lens, f/8, 1/200s, ISO 100.

Technical stuff. We made this picture on the side while making portraits for the Portland Urgent Care clinic where F. works. Effectively, that means I had the lights setup in a specific manner that helps ensure the portraits are all similar, which means I couldn't easily move it to make a piece of art for mother and daughter. 

I had a black backdrop, a small octabox up front, and a barebulb strobe with a reflector in the back. Without changing my light settings, I brought F. a little closer to the octa to wrap her and baby in a softer light (the closer, the softer). We made several frames here, but this was my favorite, shot with me on a chair so I could see from a little above.

Brothers Walking

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @135mm, f/5.6, 1/125, ISO 1600.

I was fortunate enough to attend Photoshop world in Las Vegas last week, and also to lead a photowalk with a bunch of terrific photogs. Lemme tell you, Vegas is different from Lake Oswego, but photography is the same everywhere. It was 100 degrees at night and all we could do was keep walking and shooting. It was a blast.

As we walked, I noticed this bright, soft light shining on R.'s face, so I begged a portrait of him. He was a little reluctant, but incredibly patient as we waited for the huge sign overhead to cycle through different ads and different colors of light. I love happening on this kind of thing, and I love that R. let me make a portrait with him.

R.'s brother, R., was also along on the walk, the two of them visiting from New York. There's this wonderfully lit stairwell we passed, and I just had to have a portrait with R. Funny thing is, as we made a few frames we gathered quite a crowd of international tourists. Apparently, R. resembles one of Bob Marley's sons who lives in Vegas. Who knew?

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @112mm, f/5.6, 1/80s, ISO 1600.

Walking The Strip at night shows all the lights of Vegas, and it's really fun to see. However, most of those lights are not the best for portrait lighting. In situations like this I search for light to make my subjects stand out, and that often means the portrait will be a few highlights on a black field. I like that. It fits my mood. High ISO's are my salvation when photowalking at night.