Here are the family photos from Amy and Julianne. The sun was setting quickly and we had to hurry to get these photos taken – I hope we can schedule another shoot soon so we can get the golden sunlight during sunsets. But these are still fun photos. When giving any situation you make the best of it. Often people will discuss what lighting conditions are best – and really that is a moot point. The best light is the light you have or the light you can create.
Here are pictures from Taylor – you gotta give props to someone who is a teenager and has his Moms watching his whole photo shoot. That has got to be the most uncool thing in the world. But he went with it and now he has plenty of pics for his myspace or facebook or whatever teens are using today for social networks.
Good golly I sound old! Now where is my metamucil?
Julianne and Amy are two of my best friends and they are a gorgeous couple. And for Amy’s birthday present I gave them a photo shoot – very generous of me 
We met up at the International Peace Garden in Salt Lake City and we were able to get a few good shots. Someone was running late – I won’t mention who – but it was Amy and Julianne. We missed the golden sunlight but we were able to use the twilight as there was still light for another hour.
This is the first of 3 blog posts that will feature the photos. Another will be their son Taylor – he is so cool he needs his own blog post. And then another post for all three.
Amy and Julianne never had engagement pictures – so maybe these could work. And couples should have more photos taken after they are married. Why are your best photos your engagement photos? Capture your married years as well!
Saturday was a busy day – in the morning there was the Walk for Life and the Utah AIDS Foundation. In the afternoon I went down to Orem/Provo and participated in my first Photowalking Utah activity.
This was rather cool – we had 50 photographers meet up at a huge studio where we learned a few things from Kenneth Linge. After that we went down to the courthouse in Provo to photograph the area. It actually turned into a giant photo lesson.
Here is a photo of the group taken by Rich Legg. You can see me in the red shirt and goofy shorts.
Here are a few photos I took:
Rain! Rain can be pretty cool. Farmers need it so it must be good for something, however, it sort of sucks when it rains during the Walk for Life. Fortunately it only rained in a few short bursts. Naturally I would have to hide my camera to keep it dry – it has weather proofing but why take chances. The good news? I was able to capture a few shots with a rainbow.
So here are a few photos of the Walk for Life. It was a huge fundraiser by the Utah AIDS Foundation. And it is great exercise – especically for me. Of course I walked the whole way and covered the entire event. But I also ran back and forth trying to capture everyone during the whole course of the walk. Gotta photograph everyone. And I only used one lens – my lovely Nikkor 85mm f/1.8.
Click any photo or click here to see the gallery of 471 photos.
The photos for the Equality Utah Allies dinner are now online! Woo hoo! I am getting pretty good at posting these galleries within a day or two of the event.
Equality Utah is a local Political Action Commitee (PAC) that works for the equality of Gay, Lesbian, Transgendered and Bisexual people. Something that I whole heartedly support.
I want to thank Equality Utah for asking me to cover their dinner – I had fun. And to the people who offered me a drink, thank you, but I can’t drink and photograph. You get blurry photos and who wants a tipsy photographer? No one 
I look forward to next year! Click here to see the gallery or click any of these photos.
For the photographers…
This was a challenging photo shoot. I was the lone photographer and there were more than 1500 people there – by my estimate. And it was dark inside the Grand Ballroom. So I used flash – with my Gary Fong lightsphere which I love. However, any chance I had I would use 2 Nikon SB-800 speedlights triggered wirelessly with my Alien Bee Cybershot remotes. I had them on each side of the ballroom on Bogen Lightstands. And the flashes were set manually pointed up to the ceiling. It worked pretty well. I could switch back and forth by swapping the trigger from the hotshoe and use a third SB-800 instead if I needed to.
I would review shots on the LCD and change ISO and exposure settings so I could get better shots depending on my location
There are so many photographers in the world. Even mobile phones today make people photographers. What sets the professional apart from the rest? Or even, what sets professionals apart from each other? For me – it is my artistic vision when we first take the photo as well as the digital vision I have as I turn a photograph into a unique creation.
Here are two versions of the same photo. The first is how the camera captured the photo. I used a softbox to the camera’s right and I used a second light with a honeycomb grid to the left. With light coming from the left and the right we have an almost 3D appearance for the subject. Muscles are defined by the light.
The second photo has been through dav.d photography’s digital processing. I dodge and burn the photo bringing detail out in some shadows. In some cases I create more shadow to help boost contrast. I add a coloring effect to that creates a burnt brown color similar to the movie 300.
Not to sound to rude – well maybe a little – but can your “uncle with a camera” do this? Probably not. And this is what turns a good photo into a great photo. From a snap shot to something that looks ready for a magazine.
One problem with being a photographer? I don’t have as many photos of myself as I should. At events with friends and family I am the one with the camera. Rarely do I think that someone should photograph me, moreover, I am not always excited to hand my camera to someone and hope they can take a picture.
So here is a photograph of me by my friend Ben Bamba. He is developing some mad skills as photographer. He has a background in art and design and he is expanding his empire to photography. Check out his flickr page.
