365 Project - Day 47

I've fallen behind in posting again, but I have another excellent excuse. First things, first. I never forget to take the daily photo (boy, I sure hope I don't have to eat those words someday), I just have a difficult time getting to the blog each day.

Now, to my excellent excuse: In 5 hours, I photographed 70 children between the ages of 5 and 18 yesterday. They were being measured for costumes and taking cast headshots for upcoming Winter performances. One studio, 3 shows. It was crazy. I was exhausted and passed out when I returned home. All the details will be shared in the next blog.

Today is about the prep. By now you know, I am operating with a broken leg wrapped in a lovely cast. Everything I do takes extra planning, care and feeding. Head shots are not in my wheelhouse. So, I took care to plan and get organized, particularly since this was for such a large group. I spent the 2 days prior in my basement preparing. As I shared in my last blog, my 17 year old son was terrific about helping the first day, but no one was around to assist with the final prep. I wanted to ensure I had all of my camera settings pre-loaded; the Einstein and speed light pre-configured; and everything documented along with detailed packing and unpacking lists. I also created cast / shot lists for tracking.

I decided to take self portraits as part of the preparation. The small prep space was awkward with my crutches, however, and I could not make it work. Also, the photos kept coming out dark. I studied all of my manuals and could not find an explanation. Frustrated, I texted my husband (hee-hee) and asked him to come downstairs to help. He reluctantly sat for two photos and then offered to get Jamal if I needed more. I said "no, thanks. I will figure this out without Jamal." I did eventually throw up my arms and drag in Jamal. His portrait is below. He's big and heavy, but he's a colorful fellow who doesn't complain, always has a smile on his face and does whatever I need ;-)

I was very proud of everything I accomplished in my prep work and felt ready. In addition to the work I did in the basement I read a lot and watched videos. I was in great shape. I packed everything away in canisters and a suitcase and called my son and husband to carry it upstairs. It was at that point, when I mentioned to my son that we needed to be mindful of an item during the set-up, that he said, "mom, what you're saying makes no sense." Then I realized my entire work effort that day was a spectacular failure. All of my settings were incorrect, but it was too late. I could not unpack and set up the mock studio again. I was going to have to assume I knew enough to sort it out on the spot. The problem? You can see it clearly when you look at Jamal. If you do not, write a comment and I will explain.

One thing's certain, I will never make this mistake again. Resolving it cost me a good 10 minutes yesterday. Plus I had to listen to my son's version of how the world turns. All in a compressed time period. The good news is I am better for the experience.

Best wishes!

Today"s Photo: "I'm going to be a star!"

Churchill said, "success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm."



EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 160
50mm
f4.0
1/180 (headshot lighting kit)

365 Project - Day 46

New toys always bring me joy and discovering them with my children double the fun. I keep turning down opportunities to shoot head shots. Well, I finally succumbed and agreed to a rather large gratuitous piece of work, but this falls in the core of what I love to do. More about that later as the session is tomorrow. I have been studying a variety of lighting configurations and finally settled on the combination of my SB-700 speed light as a filler and a Paul C Buff Einstein E640 as the key light. My son and I played around with these lights to sort out the details given the small space we have tomorrow. He hates to have his picture taken, but obliged me with many uneasy expressions as we sorted out how to coordinate the strobes.

This Einstein Flash Unit is fabulous. I've spent 2 days playing around with it and am anxious for the "live" session tomorrow. I will be taking headshots of loads of children from the ages of 5 - 18. I will use only the speed light shooting through a Westcott umbrella with the small children and the fancier combination with the older kids. Wish me luck!

Best wishes!

Today's Photo: "Brilliant !"

"The Lord will work out His plans for my life" Psalm 138:8

"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be." Lao Tzu




EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 100
50mm
f1.8
1/60

365 Project - Day 45

Snow! The late afternoon and evening snowfall was gentle and beautiful. My younger son jumped in the car after the holiday show and immediately checked his school cancellation app. "60% odds of cancellation tomorrow, woohoo!," he exclaimed. What he received instead was a 2 hour delay and he seemed content with that. My husband urged me to photograph the snow at 11PM and cheat on the next day's photos. I can't say I blame him, the late night scene outside our front door was fantastic, but I was way too tired to focus and besides, I had already completed my 365 Project for the day. Yes, perhaps, a true artist would not have missed such an opportunity. Seriously, though, I was really tired.

I went out to take photos before eating breakfast the next day. Oddly, I was determined to take them using the 1.4x teleconverter on my 70-200mm f2.8 lens. I suppose I wanted to check out both devices. Still not convinced my telephoto lens survived my break and not happy with the first round of photos I took with the teleconverter. Years ago when I had more time to take photos, I used teleconverters often with my Nikon FE2. I actually forgot about them when I returned to photography a few months ago. I'm still nurturing my skills and not 100% satisfied with the 1.4x results, but can't put my finger on the problem.

I confess this session was a physical challenge. I photographed from our front porch, while leaning on one of the posts. I asked my husband to come back and get me in 10 minutes to help me back inside. (It was cold outside and he was not interested in waiting alongside me.) My camera was heavy and I was unstable whether leaning on the post or on my crutches. I could not get comfortable and it felt like a futile exercise. I was finished and counting the minutes, long before my husband returned! I thought about sitting on the wet porch to wait for his return. When he did return, I was not sure I had the energy to hop back inside the house. Oh the endless joys of my broken leg!

Today's Photo: "Life's Remarkable Adventure"

"Some journeys take us far from home. Some adventures lead us to our destiny." C. S. Lewis



EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 100
105mm (70-200mm f2.8)
f/4
1/350

365 Project - Day 44

What joy to hear the music of the talented youth of the Newtown High School Choral department! Last night's holiday performances were delightful and put us into the spirit of Christmas. The evening kicked off with an entertaining performance by their male a cappella group, XY Chromotones, singing an original arrangement of Feliz Navidad. Unfortunately, I was using my 70-200 f2.8 and could not get the entire group in the shot. On top of that, there was a huge mic stand in front of the group. Nevertheless, I love the dynamics of the group captured in this shot. You can certainly tell they are having fun.

We enjoyed it immensely! It was fun to see both of my children hamming it up! Such a blessing.

Best wishes!

Today's Photo: " Holiday A ca-Jammin'

"Trouble knocked at the door, but hearing laughter, hurried away." Benjamin Franklin



EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 1000
70mm (70-200mm f/2.8)
f2.8
1/350

365 Project - Day 43

"If you don't have garbage, you have nothing to use in order to make compost. And if you have no compost, you have nothing to nourish the flower in you." Thich Nhat Hanh

Ah hah! I thought as I read this on my Facebook this morning. We must embrace our compost, our messiness, our garbage. It is that, after all, which makes life interesting, exciting, and beautiful. Something I know very well!

I finally took out my flash for this round of flower photos. I placed the flash off camera about a foot to the left of the flowers and bounced the flash to the left as well, no diffuser, no gels. I used a white foam board to manage the reflection and minimize shadows. I was no more patient with this round of grocery flower picks than the last. I just received a coupon for flowers, however, from an online delivery service. I'm anxious to try something more exotic than the grocery bunch my lovely husband selects.

Now that I am having so much fun with these flower photos, I'm starting to get the itch to do more macro work. I have added a macro lens to my growing wish list. If only money really did grow on trees.

Best wishes !

Today's Photo: "Moonlight Melody"

"Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have." Eckhardt Tolle



EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 100
50mm
f/11
1/60 (off camera speed light)

365 Project - Day 42

Why is the end of the year is so crazy? Christmas shopping, cards, insurance decisions, school events and more all before the year ends. It's a wonder we don't all go a little bit crazy each year end. All that is to say - Oops, though I took the photo on time, my blog is behind!

For this photo, I was looking around my home for something interesting and different to shoot as a still life photo. I pulled together several objects for this treasure. I'm not exactly sure why, but I have a box filled with masks, some porcelain, some feathered and some bedazzled! There are also hooks packed with the masks. I clearly had planned to display them, I believe in our guest bathroom, but never got around to it. The first few photos were with two masks, but the scene was crowded. This one, while simpler, is more intense. I collected the stones with my boys somewhere near the Grand Canyon and the coins are from my travels around the world. Sorry to disappoint - they are not real pirate booty! The light is natural morning light from a large second story window. This is just a fun photograph.

Today's Photo: "Masquerade Treasures"

I have a slightly lighter version of this photo. I could not decide which was better. I like the intrigue in this one, but you can see more detail in the other. Happy to have your comments.

Thanks and best wishes!

"I would rather die of passion than of boredom." Vincent Van Gogh



EXIF: Nikon D7100
ISO 100
50mm
f/4
1/8

365 Project - Day 41

I am back to working on flower photography. I wanted to work on a series of traditional flower photos with the grocery store bouquet before they wilted. After yesterday's disappointment, I really needed something to conquer and to cheer me up. I also have to say, I continue to be so inspired by the photographs others are producing that I'm anxious to do the same.

Naturally, I tried a little creative license with the flowers, including a "de-constructed vase of flowers." Yep, I am just that nutty. Candidly, I would not have thought to photograph the backside of a Gerbera daisy until recently seeing many Fine Art photos. I also originally kept tossing the white flowers in the second photograph aside, thinking they were throw-away fillers. I'm as happy with this session as I was disappointed with yesterday's. Now, how's that for a turnaround?

I still shied away from the flash, but I was armed with a few lessons learned. I waited for bright natural afternoon sunlight. I used my tripod and the timer and kept ISO at 100. I played with a variety of aperture and shutter speed settings. I am limited because I do not have a macro lens and I'm not a fan of the auto macro setting on my camera. Nevertheless, I am excited about my first couple of attempts and will continue to explore this as a winter hobby.


Today's Photo: #1 "Beautiful Dreamer"

Today's Photo: #2: "Come to Me"

"Everything has beauty, but not everyone can see." Confucius



EXIF: Nikon D7100
#1
ISO 100
50mm
f2.8
1/750

#2
ISO 100
50mm
f/3.3
1/1500