wrapping up 2008 has brought back wonderful memories and has set the stage new growth in our photography and business. we couldn't have done it without the 100% trust of our clients who offered us a glimpse into their lives. between december 12 and january 1, we'll be revealing our kern-photo "best-of 2008 " awards.

and the winners are:

best portrait, male

best portrait, female

best engagement portrait

best pet portrait

best family portrait

best moment (wedding)

best wedding portrait

winning portraits exude personality, creativity, expression, and impact.

and here are the winners in the best portraits, wedding category of the best-of 2008 images by kern-photo (with a link to the original blog post & commentary):

#13. liz & ryan:


#12. julie & jru:


#11. katie & shawn:


#10. elyse & corey:


#9. angela & brian:


#8. danielle & chris:


#7. karina & brian:


#6. crystal & tom:


#5. kathryn & haibo (unpublished)


#4. jess & josh:


#3. megan & jeff:


#2. julie & jru:


#1. alisha & bryce:

and here are the winners in the best portraits, wedding moments category of the best-of 2008 images by kern-photo (with a link to the original blog post & commentary):

#13. katrina & brian:


#12. danielle & chris:


#11. jess & josh:


#10. elyse & corey:


#9. megan & jeff:


#8. leila & ben:


#7. danielle & chris:


#6. sara & eric (trash the dress):


#5. julie & jru:


#4. samantha & chris:


#3. shara & asher:


#2. elyse & corey:


#1. carrie & nick:

and here are the winners in the best dog portraits category of the best-of 2008 images by kern-photo (with a link to the original blog post & commentary):

#13. lady:


#12. tia:


#11. lucky:


#10. jessie:


#9. max:


#8. indy:


#7. tonzona:


#5. maggie & penny (tie):


#5. maggie & penny (tie):


#4. spencer:


#3. raven & mccloud:


#2. bella:


#1. dixie:

tonight after some take home sushi, we'll fire up "home alone 2" and begin decking the halls, decorating the tree, and giving dash his rudolf rain deer ears and a bright red nose.

our christmas card this year was nicole's idea. we got great evening light on green mountain (walking distance from our home), set up a single off-camera flash triggered by radiopoppers, and fired off about a dozen shots using a timer. (most have us wrangling dash to have him "look at the camera." okay, okay, not the normal thing to do, but it was we knew would make our parents smile so we made it happen :)

we designed the card ourselves and they were printed by our favoritemost lab folks at whcc on uber cool linen paper... if you would like a something uniquely different this holiday season for your family holiday card, contact us and we'll help you out!



flip open the card and here's what is inside:


and the back:

and here are the winners in the best portraits, engagements category of the best-of 2008 images by kern-photo (with a link to the original blog post & commentary):

#13. janae & derrick:


#12. nicole & kevin:


#11. amy & todd:


#10. carrie & nick:


#9. stephanie & jeff:


#8. jess & josh:


#7. katie & shawn:


#6. katrina & brian:


#5. carolyn & adam:


#4. julie & jru:


#3. angela & brian:


#2. danielle & chris:


and this portrait session was actually taken BEFORE they were engaged, but since taylor proposed (with a series of cupcakes spelling out "marry me") in april of this year, this images will still be considered official.

#1. lindsay & taylor:

after walking to my gate last night thinking of my next portrait cactus client, i stumbled upon this little guy... making for the cherry on top of my palm springs triparoo. i've never been to an airport where just outside my gate i can appreciate native cactus species with a sunset and distant mountain views and palm trees in the background.

that, in itself, makes the palm springs airport the best airport of the year (and i've been to about 15 different airports this year).

i couldn't decide which i liked best, so i am posting all three and would like YOU to decide (in the comments section below:)

#1.


#2.


#3.


shortly after take-off, i snapped this shot of the mountains near joshua tree national park with all the recent snow they got this week. i could have paid hundreds of dollars for a scenic flight of the area, and got this view for free with my $300 round-trip airfare ticket from denver. the key: 1). sit in the back of the plane in a window seat so you don't see the wing. 2) shoot with an-ultra wide angle lens smear against the window 3) shoot through the least disorted portion of the window, which on my window was the top 4) also, i like to shoot at least 1/1000 sec to reduce possible blurring from the airplane. also, telphoto shots can be cool and if you are using a vr lens like the nikor 70-200 f/2.8, click on the "active" vr mode made for shooting in airplanes... it is one of the few times we can use the feature to our advantage.

about a month ago i posted a few saguaro portraits from a new personal project i've begun intended to highlight the personality of cactus.

this week i've been in palm springs, ca, a stone's throw from joshua tree national park to continue a project with the intent towards publication of a fine art book.

joshua tree is a wild place. my interest photographing there started with studying the work of ansel adams. about 6 years ago i visited the natioanl park and took photos with a vintage honeywell pentax slr camera (that my father gave me) with some t-max 400 b&w film. i was disappointed with the results because i was comparing myself to ansel himself... mistake. this time around i came prepared with a wide-angle lens and my creativity and lighting style. i wasn't just going to photograph cactus, i was going to light them as i would light a portrait in a style i could call "me' using a single off-camera flash (a nikon sb-600 speedlight). if additional light was necessary, i was determined to push the limits of what this small flash could do.

here are a few of my favorite images taken over the last 3 days...

some on-axis fill adds the 3d pop:


a 20 second exposure and light painted with a flashlight:


day #2. okay, it is snowing. in a desert. go figure :)


a flash was the only way to capture the snow coming down in a way that makes for a very holiday-esque feeling... me likey :)


i shot this like a groom with the groomsman in the background :)



day #3 (this morning). left at 5:15 and made the drive to joshua tree again. 18 inches on snow in one day happens once in about every 25 years, so there was no excuse NOT to go. while the roads were a bit slick, we made it safe and sound even though the park entrance was closed, so we had to walk into the park, which was totally fine with the rangers who gave us permission.

can you spot the moon?


the early morning rays:




three of my students came along for the adventure (we left a 5:15 am)... so they were treated for some updated facebook portraits:

here's gintautas ("mr. g"), who flew all the way from florida to attend my class. his son is named "juozas," so it was only appropriate that he had his photo taken in joshua tree.


then the cameras were turned and grabbed this shot... he's got a great eye and is wicked good in ping pong....

i lost a bet to him after he severly beat totally schooled me four games (in a row) of ping pong the night prior. he failed to mention his grandmother was a ping-pong champion and taught him a few tricks. the wager: a topless photo taken in the cold which was then to be used as a profile shot on facebook for 30 days. the shot was taken, but he conceded that it did not need to be posted on facebook.


lisa got the long-distance award since she traveled all the way from kodiak island, alaska to attend my week-long arcgis workshop.


here's the departing shot from this morning with the top down in the mustang convertible rental car (thanks to the fine folks at avis for the free upgrade!!!)

this was a very difficult category to narrow down from. originally i had 22 images nominated, and could only pick 13. sorry, ladies, 13 is the max for this year.

and the winners are...

#13. katie the bride:


#12. elyse the bride:


#11. carolyn the bride:


#10. maelee the senior:


#9. angela the bride:


#8. andi the ttd bride:


#7. molly the senior:


#6. 1 y.o. maren:


#5. crystal the bride:


#4. carrie the bride:


#3. karina the bride:


#2. kristen the ttd bride:


#1. jamie the ttd bride:

wrapping up 2008 has brought back wonderful memories and has set the stage new growth in our photography and business. we couldn't have done it without the 100% trust of our clients who offered us a glimpse into their lives. between now and january 1, we'll be revealing our kern-photo "best-of 2008 " awards.

and the categories include:

best portrait, male
best portrait, female
best engagement portrait
best moment
best family portrait
best pet portrait
best wedding portrait

winning portraits must exude personality, creativity, expression, and impact.

and here are the winners in the best portraits, male category (with a link to the original blog post & commentary):

13. nick the senior:


12. nick the groom:


11. john heisel (unpublished):


10. brian the pianist:


#9. jeff the groom


#8. kevin von qualen


#7. shawn the groom (and his brother) in the fun-booth


#6. jerry wilson


#5. owen


#4. brian martinez


#3. ryan otto


#2. the dixie trannie


#1. breckin "lungs-of-steel" myers

saturday we're hosting along with a few others a gala dinner, silent auction, and poker tourney to benefit the costa rican humanitarian foundation. nicole is taking a month off and volunteering during the month of march for a clinical rotation. we're hoping to raise $5,000 to help pay for medical related expenses needed for medical clinics run by a few doctors and the five third-year physician students (most of the communication will be done in spanish..). i'm also going down there for about 10 days to help kids learn how to brush teeth and the such... my medical knowledge never went past basic first aid/ cpr certs along with my emergency prepardness merit badge earned in the boy scouts!

the poker tourney shall be grand.... up for grabs is a weekend condo stay up in frisco among many other awesome prizes. if you are interested in only the poker tourney, there will be a $5 entrance fee along with the $15 buy-in.

we are donating a $550 family portrait session (starting bid at $200) and a $250 pet portrait session (starting bid at $100). there are massage & fine restaurant gift cards donated, a cool skateboard, a signed guitar, a videography package (for those wedding clients who haven't booked a videographer), among many other awesome things... just in time for the holidays, might i add.

****SCRUMPTIALICIOUS UPDATE ***

we had decided to sweeten the silent auction with one of our very own wedding packages. that's right! here's the deal. you'll be bidding on a $3200 wedding package credit, good for our basic package with bidding starting at $1500. if you decide to upgrade to a higher package with album, you would simply pay the difference. there is no "retainer fee" and the balance (if any) would be due 30 days prior to the big day. happy bidding!!!!

here are the fancy wedding-like invitations nicole did up with all the details:



and in case you are map challenged (like me):


rsvp in the comments section below. hope to see you there!

... unless they are as cute as 7 m.o. abigail:




photographer’s notes:

above images shot with the nikon d-700, 85mm f/1.4 d af, iso 400, f1.4, 1/500 sec. no strobes, flashes, or fancy dancy backgrounds were used, just a simple round reflector providing fill light bounced from a south facing window (located behind and camera-left of abigail).

one of my 101 goals in 1,001 days was to explore a new photographic genre and push myself beyond what i would “typically” choose to photograph. becoming a versatile photographer is important to me. while kern-photo roots in are wedding photography, the genre of “wedding photography” to us is like photojournalism, portraiture, fashion, landscape, advertising, and kid photography all blended into one. i dig the stealing appropriation of techniques from each genre into our wedding shooting style.

as a photographer, we should be able to take pictures of ANYTHING using our own creative tools and wisdom. in our industry, being the “jack of all trades, king of none” isn’t advised. however, being the “king of one and a jack of a few” can’t hurt.

pushing the depth & breadth of our skills to the maximum isn’t nearly as impossible sounding as having major league pitcher hit a home run in the world series. when pitcher joe blanton hit a home run the world series game on october 26, 2008, his homer was the first of its kind in 35 years! in fact, only 13 pitchers have hit a home run in a world series game, which accounts for less than 2 percent of all world series homers.

now, people, i’m not saying i hit a home run or anything. i’m just excited to produce something my clients want and love.

bright, cheery, colorful. that’s what i see of the slater family and one of the reasons they are up for the planets coolest families award. not to mention you get some killer fun when you blend a photographer (christina) with a wake/snow/skateboard entrepreneur (b. j.) at liberation.

christina asked me to shoot her family portraits. you bet, i told her, but under one condition: but you can’t get your images until your blog is done. and it doesn’t have to be perfect, just done. i’ve been telling her all about the benefits of blogging to the photography industry for many moons now. all she needed was a kick in the pants and some time sans kiddos to get the job done. her husband, b. j., loved the idea and set up his own blog.

armed with a camera, tripod, lighting set-up, christina has tried many times to take her family portrait using a camera timer to trigger the shot. her goal: to get at least one shot of everyone looking at the camera. wowza. not an easy feat. just as doctors need their own physician, photographers need their own photographer. and i appreciate being chosen :)

we got warmed up with some fresh. modern. fun. individual portraits starting with the dynamic duo, 4 y.o. abigail and 1.5 y.o owen.


own checks out the christmas balls while i check out his reflection.


boys are so curious.


girls can’t have enough red. i let abigail pick her background and she liked this one the best:




i can only imagine owen’s thoughts of his older sister (“she’s always on my back!”).


watching sunset.


owen liked the rock balancing on my head.



and here’s christina’s “money shot.”

personal work is freeing.

i’ve been giving some thought of what exactly the “pursuit of personal work” means to me. it boils down to random photos shoots that make me and my friends/family happy. personal work allows for experimentation and exploration of new techniques and ideas, which is the nutritional equivalent of protein shake after a good workout, except without the pressure. personal work doesn't necessarily pay the bills or replace the need for steady income.  it is just enjoyable.

while each assignment i shoot there is a component of "personal work" and most of the time after the "safe shot" we step out of the norm and try something to please the innter creative self. perhaps it’s lighting, mood, attitude, or just the courage to create.

not long ago we were invited to a 60s, 70s, and 80s party by our friends. nicole pleaded me not to take the camera. i compromised and only took one flash and one lens (actual ingredients included a nikon d-300 with 12-24mm f/4 lens, a single sb-600, and an extra-small soft box). i dig the unconventional wide-angle lens for portraits and the inherent distortion :)

as the night progressed, it began to think more about on-axis fill using two small flashes. thanks to the strobist for planting the seed in my head. i used the pop-up flash on the d-300 at minus 2 stops ttl and the sb-600 at ttl (diffused via softbox). this created a strong main light and the pop-up flash provided just enough fill to see shadow detail. guys like dan winters and peter yang excel at the technique.

enough jibber jabba... one with the photos. here’s mike, the host.




our uninvited guest that didn’t get the memo, but was a colorful character:


nicole grew pink hair just for the event (thanks to a spiffy wig).


see the full not-so rock star portrait gallery here. also, partial exposure metadata included in the gallery descriptions.

boycot the nikon D3X.

why? while the 24.4 megapixel nikon d3X may be the greatest nikon, it is not worth $8,000. over-speculation and inflated market value just sounds waaaay too familiar given the current state our nation’s finances.

even if you shoot fashion / advertising / landscapes for a living and would normally use a medium-format digital back, chances are you probably have tons more life in your big guns and see no reason to sell it

nikon is leveraging efficiency, bulk purchasing, average fixed costs, and advantages due to expansion from 18 months of d3 production. i’d bet the new nikon d3x is cheaper to make than the d3 back in 2007.

here’s the big question: does twice the resolution mean twice the price AND twice the value?

to answer, let’s do some quick math.... figure wholesale for the larger sensor size might be $400 or perhaps $1,300 retail. that might justify a $5,500 price tag, not $8,000.

you can get a d3 for about $4,200. the d3x is about twice that, yet has only half the frame rate and 1/4 of the ISO performance as the d3. if image resolution is your bag, you could buy a decade’s worth of film for $8,000.

wait until it drops to about $6,000 next year, then consider it.