Here are some photos from a recent golf charity event with NFL Cowboys legend Tony Dorsett – who, by the way, is the nicest football player I’ve ever met!
Photographing a Golf Charity Event…
I’m Back…
So, I never really left… I just didn’t focus on my blog this summer. I spent any free time with my boys, fixing up the house, doing things outside. I still shot a bunch of cool assignments. I just didn’t bother posting about them, because I had enough free time every week to go enjoy the summer weather.
It’s funny, because it’s getting super-busy as fall approaches, but that’s the easiest time to post an update on my blog! During the summer, I’d have a few shoots per week, and several hours each day to play around. With fall here, I’m shooting pretty much every day non-stop, multiple clients per day, and any extra time not shooting is spent in front of a computer doing post-processing, invoicing, etc. It’s easier to hop on the blog and put something up, since I’m stuck on the computer all day, I guess.
Anyway, I thought I’d post these concert pics before I head out for a shoot at the museum. Later this evening, I’ll be shooting some fancy event for FD Luxe…
Give The Drummer Some Credit…
Rock and Roll drummers often get overlooked by photographers. Maybe because they are tucked away at the back of the stage, or maybe because the lead singer gets all the attention. Either way, a good music photographer should always check out the the action back there… it can make for some pretty intense imagery!
Did you spot some famous faces? You might not be used to recognizing the creators of your favorite beats, but you’ve just seen pictures from The Police, Mute Math, My Morning Jacket, Secret Machines, The Roots, The Black Keys and more. Who knew percussion photos could be so fun?!?
Using A Fan With Portraits…
The use of a fan can do a lot for a photograph. There are companies that make fans specifically for professional photo and video use, but they cost a pretty penny. So, I decided to use a standard box fan for this demonstration – something that most anyone can pick up for under twenty dollars (if you don’t already have one in your closet).
The above photo is our model without any fan. She is very photogenic, and this photo is just fine on its own! These three photos are not touched up, so you can better see the effects of the fan. The only adjustments were a basic crop for continuity and a basic contrast adjustment – the same adjustment was done on all three frames to maintain continuity.
The above frame has some mild air blowing… nothing too strong or wild. There’s just enough wind to give the hair a little lift. It is a very appealing look. I prefer it over the first image, though ANY fan may be out of the question for more conservative subjects. For example, when I photographed the President of the United States, I didn’t even consider using a fan.
This is what I would call the Farrah Fawcett look. Lots of lift on the hair, which is very pretty – but way too much if you’re taking a conservative photo, like a corporate head shot. Of course, I have never used a fan for corporate head shots, but I could see the mild fan setting being acceptable for just the right CEO.
Now, if I were making some other post processing adjustments to this photo, I’d probably do the following: The hair in the red circle looks too thin. I’d clone that area to fill it up. The stray hairs in the blue area are a bit distracting, so they’d be cloned out. The highlights in the green circles are a touch too hot, so they’d be brought down some. The freckles in the yellow circles could be removed or softened. Also, a general softening of the skin and a minor vignette would be added to bring more focus to the model’s wonderful smile. You can see these minor adjustments below…
Of course, you can keep going and going with all sorts of post processing tweaks, nipping, tucking, liquifying, and adjusting until the photo looks like someone else entirely! I prefer to keep my images looking very natural and real, so I usually avoid going overboard. I think she looks great already, so why mess with success?!?
Pictures of Dallas 1977…
I didn’t make it to Dallas until the summer of 1979, so I won’t be in any of these photos. However, it’s still fun to look through the archives of Nick DeWolf and his trips to Dallas (and other cities). It’s mostly just casual snapshots, so don’t expect to see some sort of Pulitzer-wining documentary work here. However, it’s still a blast to dig through photos of the Texas State Fair dating back thirty five years or more.
Oil and Natural Gas Photos…
I admire these men. They load big rigs, haul water to and from fracking sites out in the middle of nowhere, lay heavy pipelines, get covered in dirt and mud, work long hours in the heat and cold and rain… all just so we can have natural gas to keep our modern conveniences running. The life of an oil and gas man looks brutal, but I’d secretly love to do it – just let me grab a flannel shirt and a thermos full of hot coffee!
I had a lot of fun photographing the natural gas industry, especially getting a chance to see what’s required to successfully complete the fracking process. I thought the thousands of bottles full of sample water (seen below) stored for testing was pretty interesting, too. And, of course , a day full of photographing giant semi trucks driving across the back roads of east Texas was a blast!
With all the natural gas and oil in Texas, you can bet that I’ll be shooting more of the industry soon. In the meantime, check out my other photos at www.janikphoto.com
Another Convention Photographed…
One of the main things you’ll shoot during a convention is what’s taking place on the floor. There are dozens of things to focus on, but one key subject is tight interaction between the different booths and the convention attendees. Look for people discussing products, testing samples, giving talks and listening to details.
These won’t be wide shots. You want to come in tight enough that the people interacting become a clear focal point. You still need a little background information to help “set” the shot, but it shouldn’t compete for attention with the people.
At some point, you’ll still need to get those wide shots that show an entire aisle or several booths in a row. You’ll still need some product shots, signs, banners and sponsor shots. You’ll still need to shoot VIP’s, grip and grins, etc… all those photos will be discussed another day. For this post, let’s just look at samples of the “interaction” shot.
New Posts Are Coming…
I promise! I’ll get some new posts up soon. I’ve just been so slammed with shoots over the last couple weeks, I’ve barely had time to sleep… forget about finding time to post on the blog! In the meantime, enjoy this photo link:
Merry Christmas!!!
My three baby boys are just as odd as I am, making goofy faces under the Christmas tree.
Nice Work, Jonathan…
He’s got some good stuff. Especially his video work: