“lighting within the frame” opens up a whole new case of flash flavor to photography.

you will not wan to miss this next coffee-shop class! we'll go over the techniques as taught by john michael cooper at the image-x ’08 workshop a few days ago. after spending a day picking his brain, learning some new lighting techniques, i am excited to share them with you.... alt-f has given me the two thumbs permission to teach this special class!

part 1: we'll cover the basics of using a continuous light sources, such as a video light, modeling lights, or even a simple flash light, to light the subject with ease in ANY conditions with minimal equipment. folks, this is the strobist philosophy we totally subscribe to! we’ll start with something simple as i explain the technique employed to create my image of the “queen of hearts” here:


then, we’ll take one step further with a simple technique of light painting (as scene down below) and talk about creative options to lighting different people at different times and paint them into a single composite. my snap shot below was taken aside john while explaining his technique of lightpainting. this is really HIS idea for the shot, but i using it to explain what we’ll be doing.


part 2: we'll explore the post-processing in photoshop to merge the series of photographs into one stellar image in less than 10 minutes. we’ll go over briefly some CS3 creative tools the boutwell's totally rad actions that are paramount to our post-processing “look.”

who: those wanting to step outside the box and light within

when: wednesday, october 15, 2008 from 5:30 - 7:00 pm

where: Ink! Coffee, 1590 little raven street in denver, 80202. for those who like to get lost explore, here's the map.

why: to teach and learn and have fun, plus an opportunity to network with other denver photographers

cost: *free,* as always.

what to bring: (optional) camera, tripod, video light, flash light/tissue paper, or small softbox with strobe with a modeling light.

RSVP: in the comments section of the blog below. class size limited to 10 due to the size of the coffee shop & technical nature of the material.

homework: have a look at some of john’s visionary work from new orleans to get an idea of some of the techniques we'll be employing.
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to learn more about the kern-photo 'coffee-shop class,' click HERE.
if you are lost, call r. j. kern of kern-photo at 303.474.0983.

introducing 2 y.o. frankie...


2 y.o. jack...


and 4 y.o. pyper...


the gang playing:


just before the shoot, i asked them about if they were to have just one image of their family... what would be. the answer: get the ENTIRE family smiling at the camera. wow. not an easy feat, but i was our super challenge to make it happen: and it did!


and our signature fresh. modern. fun. take on the gang:




just before packing up the car, we spotted a black cat on the fence...


...so they made a trip to the field...


which turned out to be a perfect field trip to watch the cat play.

a fall getaway has taken over our free time as of late (thank goodness). here are a few favorites from crested butte, taken earlier this week at sunrise.


dash spots the first peek of dawn:


sunrise in crested butte, colorado with the aspens on fire!


dash spots a female red fox...


no, really, a female red fox.


a self-portrait in vail a few days prior.:


on a side note, we’ve been working on the kern-photo blog v 2.0... about to go live any week now.

a few more favorites from last week’s trash the dress session with andi & brett:

view the radtastic slideshow HERE.




featuring a homemade psuedo-macguyver 60-inch umbrella-turned-octabank fired at full power for fill light at sunset with denver’s front range in the background.


last, but not least.... one of my favoritemost shots from our session.

photography contests are not the end all be all. they are great if you win, and a slight bummer if you loose... especially when you don’t know WHY you lost. we realize is most important is what our clients think about their images. however, being measured up by the industries finest is a great thing to boot.

why wedcomp?

- judges are paid for jurying the competition (the way it should be!).
- the judges know their stuff. big names like zack arias, jennifer bebb, rachel lacour niesen, and cliff mautner will be judging. learn more about the judges.
- you don’t have to be accepted & buy into a money-making organization to participate.
- they are investing a portion of the proceeds into thirst relief. we like!
- the contest got great image categories: getting ready, ceremony, portrait, reception that are NOT bottlenecked into one style of photography called photojournalism.
- cool prizes

to learn more, check it:

just to show you things get better with time... one year later + a fresh burned mountain at 6300 feet + and kern-photo light...

thank you for such a wonderful evening tonight you two!

the big day - 09.20.08
wedding & reception - the barn chapel at evergreen memorial park
weather & atmosphere - 4 stars!

after many years, their day was finally here. they savored the feeling all day long.


danielle grew her wedding flowers in her backyard garden.


a perfect bridal bouquet:


shoes made for dancing:



chris, the most super chill and laid back groom, helps his father get ready about 4 minutes before the ceremony.


the excited couple!


free reign for portraits...


i like to think a shot like this could have been taken a generations ago. in 50 years, i’d be safe to bet that not much would change here. and that would be a wonderful thing!


the bridal party.


a special thanks to third-shooter trish eberlein for her infectious enthusiasm and intellectual-photographer curiosity! we like these two she shott:


with a slightly different perspective:


fancy footwork with her brother:


i went outside to check out the sudden downpour and snapped the ring bearer playing the rain :)


kids know how to have fun at weddings, too!


sign the guestbook & view more images HERE.

i found this piece by john michael cooper on jared wilson’s blog and thought i’d post it here. based in vegas, john is among the industry’s leading wedding creatives i’m and looking forward to spending an entire day with him at image-x ’08 workshop held in new orleans in two weeks.

the “zero” wedding package offered john & dalissa 100% artistic freedom to produce this:



mark twain once said, “never let school interfere with your education.” the above illustrates real-world learning inspiration at its best!

after decades of receiving mail-order catalogs from l.l. bean, we finally voyaged to freeport, maine not long ago to see the goods in person. once upon a time, i was a cartographer for national geographic maps and design trail illustrated maps sold in outdoor stores across the world. funny seeing a sample of a map that i worked on for a few hundred hours of the adirondack state park hanging in the entrance of the flagship l.l. bean store.

a goosebump experience:



my dad, moi, my aunt and uncle with the famous boot in the background, fit for a giant:


in lawton, oklahoma, where my folks live a “sporting goods” store generally sells high school sports gear and guns & camo, NOT skis, bikes, kayaks, climbing gear, and freeze dried ice cream. that’s why we love rei. however, at this flagship store, it is a combination of the two :)


the place is more like an rei campus on steriods, complete with fish ponds, archery range, fireplaces, you name it!


what’s wrong with this photo? no door locks. that’s right, l.l. bean is opened 24/7 365. cool factoid.

two favorites from saturday... stay tuned for more in a few days:


our take on a fresh. modern. american gothic.