Negative space in life and a portrait

Here is my pretty china doll Julia Rose...

I think the world's technology if overloading us with stimuli.  Our brains are truly wired differently now because of it. Unfortunately this is robbing us of our ability to be introspective.  Introspective people often look into what appears to be nothingness, and find the rich textures and beauty God has hidden in there for their enjoyment and enlightenment that others ignore.  While making these portraits with my daughter I was able to slow down just enough to explore what I was doing...the why...the how...the wonder of the moment before me.  Writing this article, and thinking about what I wanted to do actually made me go back and re-edit my photograph to make it more attractive..actually to make the nothingness more attractive and complementary of the subject!  I had set the stage, but only by self examination was I truly able to explore it.

Here is the story of the shot:  When I shot this portrait I wanted to explore the concept of negative space a bit.  I just finished reading about in in Bryan Peterson's book so I thought it would be good to practice.  This is one of those times where you purposely let a big set of space be empty...but in this case I filled it up with a rich texture.  Before last month I would be scared to do something with the space, wondering if I was "allowed" to by the photogurus of the world.  Bob Coates helped me walk away from that supposed stigma last month at a class I took with him.  "If the masters of art did it, why can we learn from them?" he said...and then he encouraged us all to play a little but with the concept.  Only through play can you learn, experience and find the your style in the wonderful world of photo development we have at our fingertips today.  It is a great lesson we should all grasp on in so many ways (Bob Coates website bcphotography.com)  I used Julia's eyes and body curve to compliment the negative space...she is looking at the negative space as if something is there you cannot see!  By moving Julia in the lighting space I also purposely created shadows to give the subject a three dimensional depth to match the texture.  If I had more space in the old basement I'd pull her further from the backdrop..but I am out of that vital commodity in the basement right now...to create more depth and contrast in the textures.  Next step is to do more with the lighting outside of post to make this easier.

So put down that smart phone, ipad or gameboy.  Look into the nothingness, and see what you've been missing.  Remove the man made stimuli, and look, listen and feel for the rich textures of life God prepared for us.  I think our lives will be much greater for it...I know this portrait of my daughter certainly was.

-ehw

P.S.  The Fujifilm X-E1 F5, 1/110, ISO1600, at 234mm(35mm equivalent) tripod mounted!

A tale of two portraits

It is that time of year when I need to catch up on things before the crush of school year life hits us with the power of a thunder clap.

So before my lovely big daughter grows out of her 2013 dance costumes I just had to take advantage of it to take her portrait!  This time I think she enjoyed it...at least for the first 90 minutes and four costume changes!  The last change is the one you see here.

I'll share some more over time, but this one has the emotion in the smile, the sweet innocence of a 12 year old, and the eye contact a daddy longs to get in the lens.  It was a wonderful time spent with my daughter.  This is an image I will not soon forget.

Now below you will see a photo of the little guy Kevin, he so wanted his photo taken with his dogs, the only dogs he'll ever get in my household.  I'm allergic to them, but he is not so far....and he reminds me of that every other day at least.  When these guys don't have breakfast with the two of us, one is smelling up my bed.  The miricle here is that he looked at the camera!  Grin is a little goofy, but everything at six is a little goofy for good reason!

So what do I take away from today?  Constant lights are perfect for kids indoors.  Set them and work them.  I just recommend you get as much power as you can.  I need more power from them to make the photos at a faster shutter speed, so I'll save up for a while and see what I can do.  I learned a lot, like I will not shoot portraits without my tripod.  Too much fun.  I also like how my mirrorless camera lets me back off the viewfinder and use the screen.  Much easier to keep eye contact with my subjects...and make them laugh!

Ironically the first two shots I am sharing are the only two I shot without my tripod!  The top is the Fujifilm X-E1 with 60mm Macro while I stood on a stool. The second it the Pentax K-5 shot head on a few feet back.  Both processed simply in Apple's Aperture using some Sara France Presets, and custom contrast curves.  I really concentrated while shooting to avoid eye reflections today in the glasses, and I think I did pretty well.  In both of these I actually thought through some classic posing rules as I worked the slightly more casual portraits.

I hope you enjoy them!  These are two of the five lights in my life!  Go capture some images of your blessings today!

-ehw

Just the way it clicks

Coming to the water?  Can you imagine how John felt when Jesus asked him to baptise him?  Here was the man sent to lead us to heaven asking one of us fallen ones to lead him by example!

The good people of Victoria, Kansas have this lovely statue giving us a look into that moment of service.  What I enjoy the most about these statues is the ability to walk around, below and above a scene.  When I remember or read the story of John the Baptist and then view this statue, I feel that I am starting to live the moment.  I find it easier to put myself in the scene, watching the interplay of these two great men...the great prophet and the one he was to announce at the River Jordan.

As with all things spiritual and artistic, the moment it clicks comes not from reading the story but rather from the moment it touches your personal soul.  Maybe your mind can grasp it from the words, maybe a picture might make it stick...or just maybe this three dimensional image puts these two men into our lives with the same power those people at the river bank received.  As fellow Christians we must all help each generation find the path that will connect them to Christ.  There is no right or wrong way...there is just the way it clicks.

-ehw

P.S.  I forgot the Holy Spirit dropped down and added an audio dimension to the story the statue does not..but hey we can add that today when join the chorus to sing our praises to God on high!

Three Portraits

Up in Chicago I spent the last few days working on my portraits and marketing skills. One additional challenge I put before myself was to start asking people to pose for a portrait for me. In each portrait I wanted to try and start capturing a part of my subject's personality....and why they are such special people to God and me!

In the first photo you see my friend Richard. He was my table buddy during the group talks and we shared a few wonderful meals together. He is from Mayberry, NC..the real one. He and his loving wife worked hard for years as a husband/wife team in a two person law firm. Now he and his wife are retired...and he is now adventuring. I hope the photo reflects his wonderful, peaceful, calm and friendly personality.  I'll never forget the vegetable rolls he ordered the last night there!  Even when surprised he was so calm!

The second photo is Levi Sim; now of Portland, Oregon. I hope you see the energy in those eyes. He is a man of seemingly superman energy. Actually doesn't he look like Clark Kent?...well anyway the energy in those eyes is nourished by a wonderful wife and a little girl they are adopting. I loved seeing him well up over a child he loves so much...made me think of how I felt each of the four times a child entered my life. I hope you can see the joy in his life right there.

The final photo is of my friend Adrian. He and I were table buddies last year at Skip's. We renewed our friendship this week.  He is smart, direct, and one of the more encouraging people you'll ever meet. He is a U.S. citizen from Romania ... .and if he does not give you inspiration about taking a risk in a completely new land and starting with nothing no one will. He gave me help last year, and this year in the encouragement realm...thanks buddy.

Now I hope you enjoyed my little set of portraits. A little tip to the People of Calgary blog...he is inspirational at meeting and introducing interesting people up there...and one day I hope to add some more jock stories like this.

-ehw P.S. All with the fujifilm x-e1.  Edited in Snapseed while I waited for the airplane ride home.

Superstar

Isabelle was a superstar for us in our portraiture class yesterday...she sings, dances, entertains and doesn't let happiness leave her heart. Lovely gal.

Well today in Bob Coates fine art class we do discussed finishing effects you can put into photos through applications such as photoshop, On One software and others to add to the artistry of the image. Did not take many photos, but I did learn how much more one can do if you want to take the photo beyond normal and evolve it into a hybrid art form....it was almost overwhelming for a guy like me who doesn't know photoshop at all.

Well I took a few of those techniques and added them to the photo I took of Isabelle yesterday...it is already on her family web page...Dad threw it right up...so I got one happy customer this week!

So thanks Bob for a wonderful eye opening day!

-ehw