Hello All,
I thought I'd take a few minutes and post some photos from a few recent outings, that show a sort of cross section of the work I do. As a freelancer, I'm pretty used to a mixed-bag - after all, you've got to keep the bills payed, right? Seriously, though, I wouldn't have it any other way - I find it an exciting challenge to move from one type of shooting to the next. I'm also looking forward to the wedding and mountain bike racing seasons, which for me, start very soon. It should be a pretty busy summer!
Now, on to a few photos...
This one is from a shoot I did for the Legacy Chorale of Greater MN. I headed up to Brainerd and spent a dress rehearsal with the choir, where we did a full group shot, and individual headshots of the board members. We did the group shot first, and while I was setting up and actually shooting the headshots, they finished their practice. It was easily the best background music I've ever had for a shoot!
If you've read this blog before, you may have seen this little guy, only in a slightly smaller version...His name is Hayden, and I've had the pleasure to photograph him since he was only a day old. A few weeks ago was his second birthday, and I snapped this shot while he was enjoying his birthday cake (Don't worry - the knife wasn't sharp, but it sure was tasty!). It's been fun to see him growing, and I look forward to lots more opportunities to photograph him.
This lightpainting was commissioned by Midwest Mountaineering for their Spring 2007 Outdoor Adventure Expo newspaper. The Expo paper is published twice a year (Fall and Spring Expos) and highlights all the various clinics, seminars, speakers, sales and activities offered during each event. For this issue, Rudi, the photo buyer/art director/designer/etc. was looking for an image that would showcase some of the various products Midwest carries, without looking quite like the standard catalog shot. I had the solution - Lightpainting! I always enjoy a challenge, and this was a good one. Doing a shoot like this is kind of a gear-junkies dream/nightmare - I had free reign to choose the gear in the shot, which was great, but the torturous part was knowing that at the end of the night it all had to go back on the shelf and not follow me home. Oh, well - I'll just have to enjoy the outdoor stuff I already have, which according to my wife Maisi, is far more than plenty...
This one is of Sean, one of the riders on the Hub Bike Co-op's team, called the Hub Cycling League. We did their team shot last Sunday (see my previous post) and also took individual headshots as well. The guys from the Hub were a lot of fun, even though they were a bit antsy to finish the shoot so they could head out to Lebanon Hills for a demo ride. If you are looking for a good shop in Minneapolis, be sure to check them out.
On a side note, (and a bit of a tip) I had an unfortunate experience the morning of the Hub shoot. First, let me tell you that I have a personal rule, one which I almost never break. I will never walk alway from one of my camera bags without being sure that it's zipped up - I just don't do it. It's too likely that I'll forget that I didn't close it and come back later, pick it up and spill the contents all over the ground. Well, I broke my rule that morning. I was setting up some lights and left my bag open, sitting on a table. A few minutes later, I decided to move the bag and upon so doing, I heard the sound a photographer never wants to hear. CRRRUNCHHH!!! Yep - I had broken my rule, and the result was dropping a thousand dollar lens three feet straight down onto the pavement. Ouch. This was not good. I was fine to finish the shoot, as I've always got enough back-up equipment to carry on, and in the back of my mind I was silently praising the fact that all my gear is insured by a full-replacement business policy, but seeing broken glass spread around the lens still wasn't an image I hope to run into again, at least anytime soon.
But here's where the story gets better - when I saw the lens on the ground, I quickly looked around to see if anyone else had seen it happen, and found that I was alone in this drama, which was good, because I didn't want anyone else to have to feel bad or guilty or whatever. I then proceeded to scoop up the lens, and the glass pieces so I could inspect the damage. It was then that I saw that my B+W filter had taken the hit for the rest of my lens. Now, B+W filters are very high quality filters made of top-notch German glass, and as such, are quite expensive, but nowhere near as expensive as a new lens. Situations like these are exactly why I choose to buy the B+W filters over more affordable, but lesser quality filters. My filter had done exactly what it should have - it had protected my investment admirably, from everyday things like dust and moisture, to the more traumatic side of things. So here's my advice - if you're a shooter, your camera is only as good as the lens on the front. It follows that the lens is only as good as the filter, so buy a really good filter - someday you'll be glad you did.
Have a great day, and always zip your bag before you walk away!
John.
Well, I don't have too much to say right now, but I really wanted to post a shot from my ride last evening. I like the photo, but mostly I wanted to post to say how much I enjoyed myself last night. The trail was a bit wet from the recent mini-monsoons that have been rolling through, and so I knew I wouldn't be able to go really hard, or I'd risk damaging the hard work of so many volunteers that built and maintain the trails at Theodore Wirth. Instead, I took my camera and a little bit of gear, grabbed my mountain bike and hit the road. The ride over was pleasant and reminded me that summer is just around the bend - it even smelled like summer. When I arrived at the trail head, there were a few others around, but it wasn't too crowded. I set off and rode the first few twists and turns, then I stopped and pulled out my camera. I didn't really have anything specific to shoot - I was just playing around with my camera in a place I've really grown to love. I ended up just walking my bike along a pretty decent portion of the trail, trying to notice little things I miss while riding. After a bit of that, I put the camera away and remounted my steed. I finished the rest of the trail at the slowest pace I could muster, and again, concentrated on my surroundings more than usual.
