OK, so I am going to cheat a little with this tutorial.  I did not take this photo for the purposes of writing something up about it.  Yet, the more that I think about it, the more it makes sense to use such a photo.  How many times have you put something before a client that you really thought out and they passed right over, yet they rave about something you took in passing?  So this tutorial covers some basic and quick steps you can take to give a quick portrait a little more pop. Read more »

So today on the way home, I realized that for this site, I rarely post any of my work.  Not really sure why it hit me or why that is the truth, but it is.  So why not change that? From here on out I will do my best to inject some of my personal/non-client work here in addition to the resources and other madness that is going on. Read more »

After reading through Maciek Lesniak’s Flickr stream I found it to be overflowing with helpful diagrams and setup shots.  You see, if you are a photo geek like myself, you enjoy the setup shot almost as much as the shot itself.  It is great seeing what someone came up with, how they positioned their equipment, and what settings they used to produce the final image. In several setup shots I saw a DIY beauty dish for Nikon Speedlights and became intrigued, which led to a trip to the store, and obviously to this post. Read more »

OK, not really art news, but cut me some slack. It’s Thanksgiving and the dessert table is usually pretty full.  This year I wanted to make something unique rather than just eat.  A month or two ago I found the cheeseburgercupcakes.com website through Flickr and thought it was such a great idea that I just had to try it.  Totally got the idea from that site so I am not attempting to claim this as my own.  However, I am also a photographer and just couldn’t help but take a few pics as I made these. Read more »

“Back to Work” | 52.6

This past week I have been looking forward to a little down time with my wife and daughter. The drama and retardation of others that has surfaced lately was almost causing my brain to shut down.  I needed a break.  My wife needed a break.  So we hit the road on a weekend trip and got some fresh mountain air.  It was great.  We hardly had any cell service, which turned out to be a bonus, except for needing the GPS on our way to the cabin.  It was nice not to feel so connected.  I did not feel like I had to respond to anything on Facebook, or had to respond to any Twitter message, or had to respond to any email.  I just had to spend time with my family.  Toting the camera along, I also snuck some recreational photography in. Read more »

Target Acquired | 52.4b

Deep in the furthest mountain recesses, I conduct my secret missions.  Void of curtains, plants, family photos, my bunker decorations consist of bullets and schematics.  Under the security of night, I roam.  Yet lately I feel eyes of the enemy, possibly scanning my location.  I need to be more careful in maneuvering the countryside. Whole out on patrol, ensuring my sector has not been breached, I hear rustling.  Subtle, but I certainly heard something.  My training will not let me avoid it.  Could the enemy have found me? Read more »

“Not Tonight Honey, I Have a Headache” | 52.4 | Larger view Read more »

This is a quick video from a South Atlanta Flickr model shoot held at our studio, Studio 42.  This was not compiled with any intentions of winning some filmmaker award, but merely to show some of the fun that we have at the monthly model shoots.

If you are anywhere near the studio, you should join us.

[vimeo width="600" height="400"]http://vimeo.com/6043259[/vimeo]

While this is not a complete, step by step tutorial, it does give you a little insight into some of my typical creative workflow when working on postprocessing photos.  This image, which is a self-portrait, was merely an experiment with my new lights, trigger, with a bit of make-up thrown in the mix. Read more »