Orlando Photography class

There are a lot of photography seminar in Florida so what makes Get the Picture unique? This fall we are planning a 5 city tour. Starting with the Orlando photography seminar on Sunday, October 24. Each day will consist of 2 separate photography classes. The morning session and the afternoon session.
The morning class,
will cover technical things like Shutter speeds, f/stops, getting the correct exposure, depth of field. What they are, how they work and how they work together.
Why is this important? Why not leave it on AUTO and just snap the picture? Until you are able to control the camera settings your camera will decide what the photo will look like when you snap the shutter. This is why you delete so many photos before getting the photo the way you want. Once you learn how to use the camera on MANUAL every photo you take will be good.
How this class will benefit you;
-Put the camera on MANUAL setting and take control of the outcome.
-Get consistent and predictable results.
-No more deleting half the photos
-use the settings creatively and get outstanding looking photos of ordinary things.
-make every photo a perfect exposure

The afternoon class
This class is all about lighting. I'll explain and show you studio lighting so you can master the techniques that will set you apart from every other photographer. Photography is all about creating your own unique style. Once you learn studio lighting you can apply it outdoors and on location. Turn every photo into a work of art. Unfortunate but true, most photographers today just snap. You will be one of the ones that create!
What you will learn;
-how to control light ratio
-light patterns
-which lights will help you be more creative
-which lights will make you the most money
-what to use on location
-which lights will give you more bang for the buck

Last year we had quiet a few people that came from the Orlando meetup groups and Orlando camera club. We welcome them and other photographers.
Whether you do photography for pleasure or profit this class will open up a whole new world of creativity and possibilities. Sign up now at www.getthepicture.tv

Photos by Missy at the 2 Day Workshop

Missy got some great shots in Orlando and Tampa. The one on the left was in Tampa at USF.

Using the Diagonal line in Composition within a horizontal format makes for an interesting composition.

Using no flash or reflectors the lighting on the model is also excellent. Not to mention the relaxed expression. Whether we took the photos in the day or at night you can see we all used a tripod for accuracy. Some of the photos were taken at a shutter speed as low as 1/4 of a second. After editing the photos she made the photo below into a black and white. This is one of the photos taken on the porch of the place we stayed at. The lighting is natural light without flash or reflectors. Directional light coming from the left and causing slight shadows on the right. I say slight because you can still see detail in the shadows. They are not black. The use of the Dominant Subject Rule and Informal Composition make this a Professional Portrait to be proud of.

Although a little cool in the shade the day in Tampa was a lot warmer than Orlando. Every now and then we got that little gust of wind to help out with the hair. Again, I really like the expressions. They are very natural and not forced or fake. Good rapport with the model is key. The more confident you are with the technique the more energy you can put to establishing a connection or rapport with the model. Lighting and Composition are important but it's the expression that sells the photo.

If you are wondering which camera she used or what lens I purposely left that out. Everyone at the workshop had Canon, Nikon, and Sony cameras. Lenses ranged from the expensive to economical. Yet everyone walked away with terrific photos. That's because Missy and the rest of the photographers invested in themselves and learned technique.

All the equipment in the world can't save you but a little equipment with the right technique will yield amazing results.

Great job Missy!

wedding photography

Had the pleasure to photograph Jeremy and Elizabeth's wedding this past weekend. I started out with Jeremy and the guys at the hotel. I like to use natural one directional light source whenever possible. So was the case here. I took all the photos of the guys in this spot.

I met the girls and Elizabeth at the A La Carte Pavillion in Tampa after finishing up with the men. Again I looked for a one directional light source. All this natural light would lead you to believe that I never use flash. Oh contrair, I use flash extensively. The photo below of the dining room was taken with 3 flashes and available light. Thank goodness for radio controlled flashes. One was on camera to light the tables in the front. One was held by my assistant to the left to light the tables near the background. Another was on a stand to the right of the room.

The dining room photo was taken with a fisheye lens. Love my fisheye.

Engagement photos

I just took some engagement photos of Erin and Michael at the University of Tampa in Tampa, Florida.

UT for everyone that is familiar with it. Michael, I found out, plays for the Marlins and went to school here. I like what everyone likes about UT and that is the architecture. Rain or shine you can always take photos because of the huge porch. The lighting is perfect because the overhang forces light to come from a low angle and not overhead. Great directional light.

When photographing couples I try to do poses that look real. I think of how a couple would hang out enjoying an afternoon together. Whether they are standing or sitting I like couples facing each other. Body language is important. When couples face each other it says a lot to someone looking at the photo. First it says they agree with each other and they are one. In contrast, have you seen photos where couples are standing back to back? That type of pose might be cute but what does that say about their relationship?

I also like the heads to just touch a little to show closeness.

Second, facing each other means you belong to each other. We wanted to go out on the field and do a few fun shots but there was a game. Oh well, we might stop hear on the day of the wedding. On the field with a tux!

Of course I had to get at least one photo with the Fisheye lens. The 15mm lens on the full frame 5D is just awesome! As a small image on this blog it might not look like much but enlarged this is great with detail everywhere. Depth of Field ? I focused on them but the minarets are tack sharp too.