Happy Halloween

It is Jacob's very first Holloween today. He actually fussed way past his bedtime as if he knew he was waiting for something. He usually goes down by 7:20 but tonight he was wide awake until 8:30... just 10 minutes after seeing his first trick-or-treaters. It was like he knew they were coming and didn't want to miss them. HA! Crazy baby! Anyhow, these are some of the photos I took this afternoon in the outfit his Grandma Carol gave him. As you can see, Jake has a pretty big head. The hood barely fit!

Miguel and Marcy

Last weekend I worked with a wonderful couple, Marcy and Miguel. They had a beautiful ceremony that was entirely in Spanish. It was so sweet how Miguel was tenderly translating the service for his bride in quite whispers. It just made my heart melt! Here are a few from the beginning of the day. More to come as I edit through all the photos.

PHOTO 101: Wedding Photography Mistake #10

It is well know in the world of wedding photography that “a picture is worth a thousand words" ...only if you get the shot. All over the planet people are getting engaged, planning a wedding, and getting married right at this moment. It is no wonder this 72 billion dollar a year industry (and that amount is just for the USA!) has photographers jumping right in. There is money to be made, and a lot of it. The average bride spends $2,500-$5,000 on the photographer alone, not including an album or engagement session which can double or even tripple the cost. With the digital craze practically anyone can learn to shoot and practically anyone can call themselves a wedding photographer. The sad thing is, many photographers out there are monkey shooters, chimping after every shot. So, how do you, as a photographer, get the right shots? I will, over the next few weeks, count down the top ten mistakes photographers make.

10. The Narcissist
Every Couple is different. If you as the photographer don't get to know your client, how will you know what they want? Wedding photographers are sometimes a bit narcissistic as artists and they forget to ask the client the types of photos they are looking to get.
ADVICE: ASK! Make sure you find out what their expectations are of the final outcome and if there are any shots they HAVE to have.

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY MISTAKE #6 The Chimper
WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY MISTAKE #7 The Do-Over Guy
WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY MISTAKE #8 The Wrong Place Guy
WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY MISTAKE #9 The Partier
WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY MISTAKE #10 The Narcissist

Flintridge Prep Photo Booth

Photos sometimes work well as a collage. Images speak to one another kind of like the opening credits on The Brady Bunch. When I shoot high school photo booths, I think about the end product that will become a large double page spread collage. The above are two double page spreads stacked and the below is a double gate fold. I take photos of students looking up or to the right so the spread as a whole speaks to itself. It adds visual interest and helps your eye flow through out the spread.

Flowers & Pumpkins

I can't tell you why, but I love shooting flowers. There is something about their simple symmetry and beautiful lines that intrigues me. I also am a big fan of the circle. Flowers and Pumpkins. Perfection.

Jacob and the Pumpkin Patch

Today we went to the Pumpkin Patch. We found out quickly that Jake, like his dad, does not like to get dirty. Tim, of course, was thrilled. "Okay, time to go." I had to practically beg Tim to let Jake crawl around on the ground!

PHOTO 101: Camera Control

When you are driving down the road and someone cuts you off what do you do? You don't think about stepping on the brakes or turning your wheel away from the car... you just do it. It is instinctual. That is how it should be when you shoot. You should know your camera inside and out so that when you shoot you do not have to stop and think about what to do in any given situation. In speaking yesterday with an old professor of mine, Tim Bradley from my Art Center days, we got on the issue of teaching and the digital era. He was telling me how many an amateur photog is getting famous through flickr.com and how interesting it is that the human aesthetic is changing because of the digital camera. People now just keep shooting until they get the shot. The fact that the shots are "free" have caused a bludgeoning to the image world. Thousands upon thousands of horrendous shots are being burned onto our sensors in hopes of getting the one money shot. Interestingly enough, those money shots are coming to even the most novice of shooters. 5 minutes browsing through Flickr will prove this thought. You had to be a trained technician with an artist's eye to make it as a photographer not long ago. Us film shooters did not have the luxury of shoot-until-you-get-it before digital went mainstream. The digital phenomenon has, however, created a bunch of photo idiot savants: brilliant photographers who have a camera control IQ of 20. Does this matter? I'm not sure, but the one question I get from every new photographer is how do they master their camera and not let their camera master them. I have a friend who I have been helping learn a few things over the past few months. She just sent me this email last week and I think it could have been written from any one of the photographer's out there who are just starting out.

"Ok, so I am really trying (and getting frustrated) to get a better handle on my camera and using the manual mode instead of the darn handy green box!!! Is there are good rule of thumb for your shutter speed when you are shooting pics? For example - when outside the best shutter speed is . . . or in the shade a good SS would be . . . Does that make sense? I know that I can mess around with it, but I get overwhelmed wondering if this is the best shutter speed for this particular locale. I don't know if I am making any sense - i know that most of this is learned from doing and I am trying to "do", but am scared to do it with clients right now because I don't want to spend all of my time messing with my aperture and shutter speed when I should be just taking pictures. Aye!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Who knew doing it the right way was so mind boggling?!?!?!?! Will my head actually explode at some point????"

If this is you, then my blog is officially dedicated to you. For the next several posts I will be covering the basics of camera control. Your first assignment: Pick up a film camera, buy some film (yes, they still make the stuff) and go shoot 3-5 rolls in an afternoon. You need to slow down and get some foundation if you really want to learn how to use your camera. Sadly, you might say, "I just don't have the time or money to invest in shooting film." If that is you, then be prepared to have the above statement be your mantra. If you are dedicated to truly learning how to control your camera, you have to start with the basics. Your digital camera is only holding you back from learning what you want to know. I have enclosed a little "cheat sheet" with regards to basic starting points for shutter speed and aperture to help you get off and running. Good luck and joy to all your shooting adventures!

PHOTO 101: ISO Offenders

The above was shot hand held at 8:12pm, 15 minutes after sunset, so it was quite dark outside to the naked eye. It was shot at ISO 100 f/4.5 1/8 sec.

ISO offenders... The worst kind! This is quite possibly my biggest "pet pieve" when it comes to other photographers. You know who you are. You use high ISO like it is going out of style. Not enough light? Everyone jumps to bump up the ISO. Now, I am not saying using your ISO is bad. When used properly, it can work to your advantage. I often simulate film grain by shooting at 1600 and then changing the photo to a black and white. If you are shooting in daylight, like at dusk, then, fine, use a higher ISO (AS LONG AS YOU HAVE THE CORRECT EXPOSURE!!!) You might think that natural light is best. Well, it is... if you have some. In dark situations you will need to use some sort of lighting, most likely in the form of an on or off camera flash unit (strobe). If you are shooting in very dark or dimly lit situations, use your flash and keep your ISO to 100 with a shutter speed of 1/4 to 1/30 depending on what you are shooting. Your main subject should be lit by the flash and your background will be exposed with the longer shutter speed. As long as everyone or everything is fairly still you will not get much blur (tungsten blur) at shutter speeds from 1/8 to 1/30. The below shots are examples of what I am talking about.

The above was shot with a flash at ISO 100 f/4 1/6 sec. The photo has slight Tungsten Blur because the couple was moving in for a kiss.

Best Wedding Photographer

A little over a month ago on September 19th I was nominated for Best Wedding Photographer through My Fox LA's City Voter. I have received some really great comments over the past few weeks and I wanted to thank everyone who has been supporting me in my efforts to the top of the list. I am currently in 2nd place thanks to all my supporters. There are a couple of weeks left for voting, so let's see if we can get Save The Date Photo to #1. Go to My Fox LA to place your vote. If you have more than one email address, you may vote twice! Thanks, again, for your valued support.

Jake the Entertainer

Jacob is the funniest little guy ever. He has been such a joy and an endless source of laughter for me and Tim. I hope you enjoy my silly little videos of Jake!

Brooke, Taylor, Alexis, and Seher

The twins, Brooke and Taylor along with their cousin, Alexis came over the other day for a portrait session. Their babysitter, Seher, wanted to do a portrait session of the girls as a gift to their parents. Pretty nice gift! I wish I had a babysitter like Seher. : )

Off Subject, On Life

Life is so fragile and precious. I am faced every day with what seems like story after story of loss. From loss of life, to loss of health, to loss of property. It seems like things are crumbling around us. I am, however, in one of the best networking groups in my area called Team Women. We are meeting tomorrow morning and it is one of the highlights of my month. It is a group of highly motivated and skilled women entrepreneurs. Our group represents everything from mortgage to finance, from home decorating to home aligning, from home cleansing to body cleansing. I love the fact that I can refer people who can truly make a difference in other's lives in this stiffened economy. Here are just a few of the great women in my rapidly growing group:

Chapter and Founding President:
Elaine Giftos Wright: The Wright Way of Feng Shui
661-799-0607 www.way2fengshui.com egwright@way2fengshui.com

Secretary:
Jen O’Sullivan: Save The Date Photo
661-513-0253 www.savethedatephoto.com jen@savethedatephoto.com

Treasurer:
Amira Mendias: Total Financial Solutions
661-753-9683 www.tfswealth.com amendias@tfswealth.com

Leticia Glenchur: Juice Plus+
661-268-1760 www.bktobasics.com tish@socal.rr.com

Trish Grinnell: Melaleuca
661-259-4715 healthnwellness@sbcglobal.net

Marcy James: Rock Creek Mortgage
661-755-4883 www.rockcreekmortage.com marcy@rockcreekmortgage.com

Katie Trebilcock: Tuscan Interiors
661-433-5274 tuscanme8@yahoo.com

Jake: Hanging with Mom & Grandpa

My dad came to visit this week and was able to get some quality time in with Jacob. We went to the park and the pumpkin patch. Jake gets his blue eyes from my dad. They had some good times together!

PHOTO 101: Composition (Tangencies)

Another buzz work with photography is "tangency." You know, when someone takes a photo of you and you have a tree shooting out from the top of your head. That's a bad tangency. One of my good friends got married many years ago and I was in the wedding. We set it up so that I was able to photograph them after the wedding and reception down at the Santa Monica Pier. This is one of my favorite photos, however there was a trail of tree tops climbing up her back. I don't mind this tangency all that much, however I think it looks cleaner without the trees. I was as low as I could get on the rail so there was no re-framing. I always suggest re-framing to correct for bad tangencies. Most people don't even notice things around the edges of the frame because they are so focused on what they are shooting. The best thing to do is to start using what I call the "5 point dart" when looking trough your viewfinder. Upper right, upper left, lower left, lower right, center. You must condition and train your eye to view EVERYTHING in your frame and not just what you are focusing on. This technique will help you catch bad tangencies and other things that do not belong, as well as strengthen your over all composition skills.

Jacob: I think we need new clothes

So, if you are a mom, or have kids, or know anyone that has kids, you will understand. I finally get it. When I did not have kids I swear, my sister used to (and still does) put her kids in what seemed like the same clothes every day. What I now know is that I like what Jake looks like is certain things so I tend to gravitate towards only a few choice outfits in his closet. The blue shirt being one of them. If you look through old posts you will see this shirt on him quite a bit. I think that every time I see him in it I think, "he is so cute, I have to photograph him." So now he is starting to look like the baby with one shirt. I guess I should just throw it out and find a new shirt.

Matt and Crystal's Engagement

I met with Crystal and Matt tonight to go over their wedding plans. I threw in a fun mini engagement session before we sat down to business. Matt is in the Navy and will be heading back in just a few days so I wanted to get some shots of them while he was still around. Here are a few of the ones I liked. Crystal is going to make one beautiful bride!