Reflections

A common technique people sometimes over look when taking pictures are items that reflect. For instance, this picture of Lady Liberty holding the flag was taken across the street. It is a picture of a store front window & the image captured in the reflection. This creates images that are not as easy to create with just taking a picture of a subject directly.

Correct Lenses Matter

Having the correct lens can make all the difference in the world. For close up or low light occasions I go to my trusty 50mm lens. It has a wide aperture to let lots of light in & a shallow depth of field to blur the background. Here is a classic example of how a 50mm (aka prime lens) can work for you. This photo was taken in extremely low light. I love how magical the background looks while still being able to see our subject (Hunter) in the foreground.

The Fun of Collages

Collages are a very simple & fun way to express the personality of the subject you are shooting. This is especially true of young people. In this example we see Lilly being her silly & fun loving self. You also get to see how a simple prop, such as a hat can add an extra special element to your photos.

Taking pictures of children has certain challenges. They are fun challenges & I enjoy taking their pictures - children are some of my favorite subjects. I love their expressions & energy. I suggest when taking portraits of children; you take the posed photos first. Also, you do not necessarily have to make them smile. More often than not, their natural facial expressions are way more fun & interesting than a simple smile.

It is important to know when to switch to the candid shots. If the child wants to run & let loose, do not stand in their way. Let them explore their environment, you just might be pleasantly surprised by the results.

Spring Lanscape Tip

I love taking pictures this time of year. The early morning light is great & the colors are fantastic too. One tip I would like to share is when doing floral pictures, is to get close & to switch to manual focus. In fact, I recommend manual focus for most landscape pictures. This will allow you to better control the focal point from within the picture's field of view.

The Eyes Say It All

When photographing pets; I tend to try to focus in on their eyes & capture them in a pose that is out of the ordinary. In this shot, I captured our cat, Canasta up on our fence. In post production, I made everything monochromatic, except her nose & eyes. This draws the eyes right to her eyes.

Silly Faces

I am often pleasantly surprised by the facial expressions kids come up with. Here are a couple of sweet shots of Taytum. I love the crazy expression she took on the left side of this diptych.

Hey, Look This Way

Photographing children is fun. I tend to take candid shots instead of posed pictures. Recently, I have started posing my subjects. Getting children to pose can often be tricky as they love to wiggle & run. I think Madeline did just fine in these pictures.