Jabberwocky

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 VR Micro Lens, f/8, 1/15s, ISO 400, Nik Color
Efex Pro 4 with Photoshop CC and Lightroom 5.

Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
  The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
  The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
  Long time the manxome foe he sought --
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
  And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,
  The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
  And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! And through and through
  The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
  He went galumphing back.

"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?

  Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
  He chortled in his joy.

Man, I had a great time this morning with the Portland PAC (find us on Facebook) at Tryon State Park in Lake Oswego. Being new in town, I'm still getting to know areas, so I suggested we get together and go shoot in the woods. Tryon creek is such a beautiful park, and right in the middle of town, too, so it's super convenient. 

My pal Megan found us some willing models (more or less willing, anyway). As the day drew nearer I got thinking that something like Robin Hood would be a fun story to show. Then as we were sorting through clothes, this image came together. I'm reminded of the Jabberwocky, which I memorized in Mrs. Tuggle's class at Air Academy. It's supposed to be a retelling of Beowulf, which is one of the oldest English stories preserved in writing. I think I like Jabberwocky better, however. I really like the picture, and I really appreciate everyone helping me make it come together. I have some other ideas for finishing it, and if I pull it off well, I'll share it with you. 

Let's talk technical stuff, cause this picture is super simple, and it's totally a lucky happenstance that it...happened. See, when working with flashes off the camera, it's best to make the picture look good without the flash, then add the flash in the right amount for the subject. So, while doing my test shots I bumped the tripod, and it made the picture a streak. After I got the final frame of my awesome model, I combined the two with a layer mask in Photoshop. Super simple! I think it makes a dreamy, imaginary effect. Nik Color Efex Pro 4 helped with the finishing touches.

Light is coming from a single speedlight off to the left shooting through a white umbrella, triggered with Nikon's built in CLS. It kinda feels like a beam of light in the woods. Just the thing to make a vorpal blade pop. 

I love making photographs in Lake Oswego!

"Just Got Home From Illinois..."

The Chicago Skyline from nearby Navy Pier. I love Nightscapes like this.

I've been waiting four years to title a post for this song...

See, I spent last week in Chicago, Illinois, at Skip Cohen University's Sumer Session where I studied with the best photographers in the world to better my craft and make new connections for my business. It was a lot of work, a lot of late nights, a lot new information, and lot of fun. Stick with me a minute, and I'll lead you through some of my favorite pictures I made during the week.

Started it all with a venture downtown with my pals Sherry and Mark. Starting with a deep dish pizza at Gino's East, we spent the whole night shooting downtown. As we were shooting nightscapes, we met a man who's a broker for an international realty firm...and he asked to see our pictures! Needless to say, running into him shaped our evening's pictures and we started focussing more on the buildings in the neighborhood. That image at the top is a panorama I made from the pier looking back at town.

That was late night number one, but the walking and the shooting and the Pizza made it all worthwhile.

Next day we headed downtown again, this time with more people and we planned to wrap it all up by shooting the fireworks over Navy Pier in the evening. We started on the Mag Mile, a huge shopping district. Obviously, we didn't really make it into any of the stores...not with half naked skateboarders walking the streets and enormous panhandlers who wouldn't take 'No' for an answer.

Seriously, I saw some interesting light falling in the reflections from a sky scraper and asked the guy with the board if I could make a quick portrait, and he obliged. Next thing I know, this dude is telling me he can take off his shirt and run down the street and make an awesome picture...and it'll only cost me three bucks! Unfortunately, I didn't have any cash, but he said that's ok, other people will see how awesome it is and want to take his picture too, so my picture would just be the seed for a little street performance boom. Well, unfortunately, I didn't have the right lens for that kind of work. That's ok, says he, I'll just do some pull ups right here, then...and then Sherry walked up and said, "Let's do it! Let's see what you got!" So, there's me, the Reluctant Photographer, and Sherry shooting this dude in the alley. It was fun, to say the least.

What started that whole little exchange was the light I saw on this flower...

Which I thought would look great on a person. So I turned to Bob Coates, who I found to be a fine photo walking companion and incredible instructor at SCU, and asked if I could make a quick picture. See, I tested the settings on Bob before the skateboarder with the hairdo walked by.

We continued down the Mile, found a real Chicago style hotdog, and this guy waiting for custom at the pub next door. When I talked with him about a picture, he gave me the thousand yard stare that all professional tourist handlers have learned to adopt.

Fortunately, this officer hadn't quite perfected the stare, but was obliging anyway as we listed to this other fellow perform on the corner. The Police are important on the street corners of the Mag Mile: people are so often stunned by the sites that they forget to pay attention to traffic.

\

Also, Carlos Danger was walking with me, but he couldn't seem to hold still for a portrait. After hotdogs we headed back over to the waterfront to make our way toward the fireworks, and of course we stopped at Millennium Park to photograph the Bean. It's quite a thing.

I taught a class on Lightroom myself the next day, and we had another wonderful pizza at Giordano's. Monday kicked off with our class time with the incredible instructors. I chose to learn with Suzette Allen, and she opened my eyes to lots of new tools I'll be using to make my pictures and video really sing. In fact, we photographed a family of singers in her class.

We all spent Monday evening at the hotel, but that doesn't mean we didn't stay up late! We had a great time making friends and making plans. My Tuesday class was with Ryan Schembri, Australia's photographer of the year, and a hugely decorated artist, and I had a wonderful time and learned some things that I have never seen before, and that's not common. I should explain, also, that at this conference I got to choose two instructors to spend the entire day with, and there were fewer than 20 people in each class. That's unheard of! These are people who usually speak to groups numbering in the thousands, and I'm on a first name basis with them now. Skip Cohen has really put together a wonderful program, and it's truly the best education on the planet in the Universe! 

NO photoshop work here--isn't that amazing?!?! I learned so many new things.

I can't wait for the next program. It's going to be amazing, and I'll be sure to let you know about it here. Finally, here's a little time lapse video I made at the Bean...

Venom

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/4.5, 1/200s, ISO 100.

It's time for summer block buster movies, so I thought it might be good for SEO to have a blog named for a famous comic book villain. Plus, this Ph.D. knows more about venom than you realized was possible.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/16, 1/200s, ISO 100.

She's a biology professor at USU's Uintah Basin Campus, and studies venom. Evidently, these little salamanders are deadly; if you eat them. Touching them benignly is no problem, just don't put them in your mouth and bite down (apparently, that's not common sense to certain frat boys). As a rule, don't put any brightly colored salamanders in your mouth, just to be safe. Newts, too.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 100.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 Micro VR lens, f/16, 1/200s, ISO 100.

The Mayor

USU is working on a campaign to show off their satellite campuses all around Utah, and they've asked me to help. I make portraits of students and faculty and staff and graduates, while a video crew does interview with all the same. The campuses are really wonderful and are fully equipped--students don't go there because they couldn't get into USU Logan; they go there because they are good schools, and I've enjoyed getting to know them all and photographing all around the state.

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII lens @ 70mm, f/6.3, 1/200s, ISO 100.

This is my favorite picture from the five campuses I've visited so far. This is the previous mayor of Vernal, photographed in the bookstore/cafe he and his wife run on Main Street.  My wife and I arrived first (the rest of the crew was lost in the desert after our session with the wild biology teacher) and we got to spend a few minutes with this great couple. We came in, ordered sandwiches (best lunch in town by a long shot!), coaxed his wife into being in the picture with him, and we were finished shooting before our delicious paninis were ready. They had a portrait on the wall of their progenitors, and I hope this one goes up, too.

I loved setting up this portrait. From the moment we walked in I knew I was going to photograph them in front of the books. I chose the 70-200mm lens because I wanted a little more environment than the 105mm would give me and I was already standing in the bathroom to get a little more space as it was. I could have used a wider lens, like a 50mm, but that would bring too much other stuff into the picture and make it too busy for the graphic designer to use and too busy for me to love. Aperture was set at f/6.3 in order to have enough depth of field to get both faces in focus, but still have some blur to the background and save my flash batteries a little. There was a window behind me to the left and another waaaaay at the front of the store to the right, and florescent lights over head. That means three colors of light and none of it very flattering. I used a small speedlight behind and to the right to put a pop of light on the bookshelf and as a gentle hairlight. The main light is a speedlight through a white umbrella from directly over the table. I wanted it to feel like the kind of light you often see over tables in a cafe, and I think it worked out nicely. The fast shutter speed ensured that those other lights in the room wouldn't influence this picture.

This picture is presented just as I got it from the camera, including the black and white; which just shows how silly it is to brag about not using Photoshop. I shot this image as a RAW image, which always comes to the computer in color no matter the settings on the camera. However, I wanted to leave a print with them, so I needed a jpeg image I could take to Walmart and have back immediately (my first, and hopefully last, experience printing at Walmart. I made two prints in black and white; one was yellowish and the other wasn't. I'm a snob about my prints for a reason.) so I used the in camera RAW processing to create a BW image with a red filter applied to add contrast and ease the skin tones and I brightened it a touch, then saved a jpeg copy. So, my camera has photoshop built in...but it's still right out of the camera! Sigh.

Aim High

This is B., and she's a pilot, and a cheerful, yet determined person. She's also in the running for Miss Cache Valley, which draws the most talented women I know.

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII lens @ 160mm, f/8, 1/160s, ISO 100.

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish...

People kept asking, and Laura just kept answering, "Because we can!"

I've said it before: it's just plain fun when creatives get together. There'll be more of these to come, but here's something to tide all those involved over.

Nikon D800, 105mm f/2.8 VR Micro lens, f/10, 1/160s, ISO 100.

A Little Sunshine for the Eye Guy

I made this last night. Matt Hammond is a terrific doctor. You've probably seen his ads in the HomeTown Values Magazine each month: he's the Eye Guy. And he's really a terrific fellow; I love working for him and his family. 

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII lens @

Last night we made some new head shots for Dr. Hammond, and as well as senior pictures for his son (those to come). I just couldn't pass up this picture, though, as he held his littlest girl in his arm.

These are some you may have seen in the HTV Mag. We made these last Summer. Let me tell you: Dr. Hammond's family is great to work with...but Big Blue is a riot!

Nikon D800, 28-300mm VR lens @250mm, f/8, 1/250s, ISO 100.

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @62mm, f/9, 1/160s, ISO 100.

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @250mm, f/9, 1/160s, ISO 100.

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @96mm, f/9, 1/160s, ISO 100.

Ivan

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VR lens @155mm, f/2.8, 1/200s, ISO 800.

Ivan is one of a hundred terrific new friends I made this week at the newly established TAP! conference this week. We came together to make great content available in great packages--things like books and apps and blogs. I've learned loads, and I can't wait to get some projects finished off using my new tools. Ivan was good enough to let me make some pictures of him to use to create an app...it's in the works...I'll let you know when I've got some things ready to share with you. In the meantime, you should join me at the next TAP! conference in April.

Headless Chickens

Ever feel like one of those? It's been the busiest summer of my life. I returned the other day from a wonderful conference in Chicago where i got to teach alongside one of the greatest photographers in the world, I just photographed the birth of a brand new baby girl (all natural for mom--wow!), and I finally moved past my stigma of winning third place in the Logan Summerfest Plein Aire Photography Competition.

I initiated the competition three years ago, and for the last two years I've earned third place. Heck, I picked the judges and couldn't win! Well, this year, I didn't pick the judges, and not only did I not get third, but I did get First and Second places. I was floored and honored. 

And someone just reminded me that didn't even post those images here! So, first and second respectively. 

Margie Johnson

Don't you love Ella Fitzgerald? I love imagining that I'm at a party, and there's live music with a wonderful vocalist singing favorite songs. Well, that's what Margie does. She and Irv are just wonderful people who'd you want to have at a party anyway, but then they get together and make lovely music, too! You should book them for your next event--you'll regret it if you don't.

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII lens @ 200mm, f/8, 1/125s, ISO 200.

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII lens @ 102mm, f/13, 1/125s, ISO 500.

"Sing us a song, you're the Pizza Man"

It's just about lunchtime today. I'm gettin' hungry. I'm jonesin' for something tasty on a Saturday afternoon...and I reckon some sour dough pizza would really hit the spot. Maybe I'll go see Irv; it's only fair--he came to see me yesterday.

Irv Nelson is quite a fellow. I'm sure you've seen him around, maybe toting a bass guitar or other stringed instrument to support another musician. You'll see him supporting another singer at Summerfest (more to come). Maybe you've heard his classic rock band, The Fender Benders. Or maybe you take piano lessons from him--he's a passionate fellow and you can't help but become passionate along with him, which makes him a great teacher. 

And talk about Passion! You should try his pizza! He owns the Pier 49 Sourdough Pizza shop in Providence, and those pies are so good that I sometimes awake with a hankering. I love the Embarcadero...and the Tourist...and the Little Italy...and the Ghiradelli...

You've got to give it a try if you haven't yet. You really will "Fall in Love with Pizza again"!

Nikon D800, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII lens @ 155mm, f/10, 1/125s, ISO 200.

Forest Spirit?

So, you're sitting there with seventeen rainbows worth of colorful paint, a slew of fun clothes and accessories, a willing model, and a creative painter who's eyes are bulging with the possibilities: I dare you to not have fun.

M. got all kinds of made up and we headed to the grassy fields nearby to make some pictures happen. Always pleasure working with M., and Laura from Jacana Parties keeps things...colorful. More to come.

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @ 180mm, f/5.6, 1/800s, ISO 400.

Grey Crowned Crane

I sure do appreciate Laura from Jacana Parties--she's a creative with a penchant for painting her expressions on other people. We've worked together before, and we always seem to turn out some interesting images. Today was no exception, and K. was good enough to allow us to transform her into a crowned crane. M. also came, and pictures form her transformation will be coming soon.

Nikon D800, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens @ 135mm, f/8, 1/200s, ISO 400.

My Latest Ad

Here's the thing: I like making ads. I think it's fun. So, when the Home Town Values Magazine asks me to make pictures for their cover art, I jump to and make it happen. I love meeting the business owners and getting to know their business through them. We have some really terrific businesses here in Cache Valley--like Anderson's Garden. They will be on the cover of the Magazine this month, and I highly recommend them to you for any kind of garden/lawn/plant/obscure-arboreal-knowledge you might be in need of. See, Mark knows just about everything about all kinds plants-- you've probably heard him on KVNU on Saturday morning. Go in there and ask him anything and I bet he's got the right answer.

Well, for their cover image and inside image this month, we actually made pictures last fall in their bounteous garden. With their help, your garden can look as good this year. In fact, you need to go to the store at 50 West Center Street just to see the refacing they've done! They are restoring the facade to a historic look, and it's really nice. Go check it out. Tell 'em I sent ya.

Part of the deal with the magazine is that I also get an ad, so here it is...