Low Light Situation

Okay for class we were learning how to take photos in a low/no light situations.  Me being the curious fellow that I am thought I need to practice this.  See my thinking is as a photog all we do is chase light so if there is no or very little and you can master that then when you have a lot it should be easy.  Right!  Well not quite but my friend N really helped out on this one.

She works in Salt Lake and knows the area very well.  It was dusk well night time by the time I got there, and she suggested we walk to Memory Grove.  For those of you that do not know in Salt lake there is a whole grove that is dedicated to the memory and honor of the fallen soldiers from Utah of almost every war America has been in.  It was a very special place for me as my father served in the Air Force.  There were a couple of chances and this is what I captured.



This is one of my favorites of all time.  There was a ring of trees around a stone bench that you can sit on and contemplate.  N sat on the bench and I had her move until her eyes were in a small stream of light from a street lamp on the other side of the tress.  I did not believe it was going to work as it was very dark and holding still while a little cold is not easy.  Incredible shot I think.



More Photos of Big D

I just did not have enough room for all of them in The previous post so I am creating a second one.  For those of you joining in mid-stream go look at Photos of Big D the Man to get caught up.  This series will feature black and white photos only.

Though it was way cold we had a lot of fun on this shoot cemented our friendship better and helped update his portfolio.

Men and Ping Pong

Okay get a bunch of men in a gym with 4 tables and what can happen right.  Well not much actually but a nice friendly tournament.  It was really surprising the amount of competition that was there.  Here are a few of my favorites.  The lighting was not good and I am still learning how to get what I want so there are some amazing effects as well.

R the first place undefeated Champion!



J second place looks like good eating to me




Why is Mickey Mouse on the table during the game?



J and R are battling I think this was one of the longest rallies of the night.



S and J contending for the right to play R at this point everyone else is eating.



Photos of Big D the man

Okay let me fill you in on the story I guess.  I met D back in 1989 in a whole different place than we are now.  No I mean that literally you see we met wile in Taiwan.  I was always amazed at D and have the utmost respect for him.  Through the wonders of Facebook we reconnected last year and have been keeping in touch.  This last summer he asked me to sing at a special event for him and well my respect has only grown.  We have a common goal and I am looking forward to the day we will accomplish it.

Well all that being said I noticed one day on his FB page he had a picture of him on a street in a black leather jacket.  On the picture it had 24 and a Fox logo.  You see D is good with making graphic stuff so I was like yea yea what ever.  Well to my amazement he actually was on 24 and can even be seen in the episode he showed it to me as proof.  I was amazed and even more shocked when he asked me to take some head shots of him for his portfolio.  Well 444 shots later these are some of my favorites.  Please bear in mind that they have not been post processed in anyway yet, but I do not think they need a lot done to them as you will see. 

This is just the beginning as we had several wardrobe changes and some dynamic stuff going on.  I will continue to work on some other ones and post them as well.  Thanks D for being a great friend motivator and having fun on a very cold day.

A Promise is a Promise

I promised D I would be fair... so here ya go.  Yes I am still working on Big D hey I have 444 photos to go through so just know I will get there.  But in the mean time with work we have been having a lot of help so I took some of these.



This is R a co-worker helping us out right now.  I have been told he does not take pictures.  I think he did just fine see I have proof.




This is J he is doing some work in our shop right now and asked a question this was his response to my answer...



Cross Roads

For those of you that know Robert Johnson and the fabulous music he made, yes he is playing right now, he has a song called Cross Roads Eric Clapton has covered it but the father of blues did it first.  I am at a cross roads right now as well.  You see I really enjoy photography it is fun to be able to capture a moment in time freeze it and record it forever is amazing to me.  I have created art in some of my photos and captured special moments for all to enjoy, but the deeper I get into this the more I realize my skills are so lacking when compared to others.  I am not looking for compliments nor having a pity party it is just a fact.  There are some amazing photographers out there.  They do really good work and really make pictures pop.  I know with the right tools and equipment I can learn and gain the skills, but the cost to buy that equipment or tools is quite expensive.  So at a cross roads do I keep it a hobby or jump in with both feet get what I need to do this right?  Well as I face my dilemma in the mean time enjoy these moments in time...



I was invited to a town Christmas party.  This baby had some of the funniest faces, but every time (I mean literally every time) I pushed the shutter he would go blank like this.  I do not know how he did it, but in looking at it I think it is a fun picture.





This cute one was at the Ugly Sweater Christmas Party.  I know I promised pictures but none of them turned out, but I was amazed how similar the 2 babies faces were.  Maybe the shock of having a camera with a big lens in their faces was too much.



Once again at the Ugly Sweater Christmas party I got to keep the fire going.  Can you tell I like fire it is so cool to look at and enjoy...



Ah the partying was just too much for some.  This was a fun family that is in limbo between two places right now.  I am glad I had the chance to get to know them.  I really liked the way the mom was looking at her daughter in this picture.  Her husband and other daughter will be in my later blog about fathers.

Big D The Man

Okay this is a teaser.  Yep look for it.  I am working on some photos of D amazing they will be.  Keep checking for it but in the mean time here are a couple of fun ones.



It was the strangest thing I was just taking a nap on the stairs with the sun shining on me to stay warm...  Yep the things you do when you are bored but I loved the shadows coming through the door.




This is D also a good friend of mine and a co-worker.  He has been visiting with us this last week to help us out.  During a conference call he started laughing...  I think they were discussing LSU football???



GEARHEAD

According to my friend A that is the name if you have no idea what a GEARHEAD is then check these out!



This is Gearhead a fabulous cover band based out of the Northern Utah area but will travel to where the money is!




Drummers get no respect.  In the back out of the way so I shot this photo first just to honor "The Drummer"




This is A he plays the bass well most of the time well all right he tries really hard.  Just kidding A.




This is R with his lightning fast crisp solos what more can be said...




Is this the voice of the group??? 

 Okay for reals the band sounded great and I know I messed with the guys in the captions but they have a really tight sound and it was a joy to hear them playing.  It was a tough shoot for me though as the lighting was really really bad, but we had a lot of fun and a good time was had by all dancing and enjoying the music.  There are more photos but hey that is for the band to release so enjoy these and if I can post more at a later date I will.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Wow between New Years Eve traditions and New Years day gatherings.  Then all the excitement at work after coming back from the holidays.  Enjoying Hillary's visit and doing all I can to meet life's demands I have neglected to post for yall.  Forgive me as it has been a very hectic few days...

I read a sign today and it said "The only way to make your dreams come true is to wake up" as I pondered what it said I have decided to change it a little to the following:

"The only way to make your dreams come true is to wake up and do!"  You know as the new year has dawned I have decided that the only thing keeping you from your dreams is yourself.  I know more deep stuff but hey I have a lot in my little mind that sometimes just needs to be let out.

That does not mean I have not been busy.  I had the honor and joy of going out with Hillary during her visit over the Christmas holidays to take some senior pictures.  The main issue is that there was a blizzard outside I mean literally on the day it was scheduled.  So we had to find a way to compromise as I wanted to take the photos and Hillary did not want to freeze.  Here is what we came up with.  She is a wonderful person a great  daughter/step-daughter smart and as you will see very beautiful.  I am glad she was able to visit see her friends and spend some time with me. 

No I am not crying just got something in my eye...