party not-so like a rock star portraits
12.02.08 | photo-resources
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.
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.