I’m shooting a quinceanera today in Pharr. I usually don’t shoot events like this but I decided to do this one as a favor to a friend (who would also be good on paying me). I shot about 80 pictures during the afternoon ceremony, including group photos, and I expect to shoot about twice that many in the hour I’ll be at the reception tonight. Should be interesting. I’ve already caught two of the little girls looking at me. Eesh. I hope they were just looking at my camera; but probably they weren’t.

Belen was being silly in-between takes so I snapped this one for fun. I was using a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens inside a controlled studio situation which contained a large softbox on the right, an umbrella for fill on the left and a hair light aimed right at the back of her head which made her dyed-blond hair explode with apocalyptic proportions. The rest of the shoot was, of course, professional and serious but I like to show off this photo because it shows the personality of the model. She also has a nice singing voice. In the final images that made it to print, her wild static-electricky hairs were removed.

Adriana lost a bet: the Cowboys didn’t go to Superbowl XLII so she had to dye her hair blond. To celebrate her loss, she asked me to photograph her on January 21. I admit I made her sexy. From what I remember, I had an octabank on my right, an umbrella on the left, a hair light and a silver/gold reflector underneath.

The only real digital manipulation I allow myself to get away with on portraits is a bit of surface blur, matting out the eyes, hair, lips, teeth, nostrils, fingernails, certain lines that make up the jaw, and any bling the model may be wearing. All the skin is nice and smooth with just enough texture to show model really is human. I also make sure to get rid of any lens defects or sensor dust. I then add a bit of my secret weapon, then unsharp mask the whole thing ever-so-slightly. I don’t like to talk about my post processing because it really is minimal, and also because in the end, it’s all about the light.

One final note: that’s vegetable oil in the glass.

So there’s this girl Marla who likes how I photograph her and I do so on an intermediate basis.

For this, our most recent collaboration (January 19), I decided to actually try something other than the typical “stand here and look this way” method of posing, more than simply getting the feet and weight allocation perfect; I decided to try something more glamorous.

I thought I’d have her bend and contort her body until it gave me interesting shapes and lines. I decided to play more with my lights to give an idea of a model rather than just a simple depiction of one standing before a photo backdrop.

In this photograph I used an octabank on the right at full power, a gridded light on the left for tone and a hair light behind the model which also shaped her right side a bit. You can see the video of that photo shoot here. The grids and special placement of the octabank (as seen in the video) were necessary for rendering the white background I was using to black.

This past Saturday I ordered a portable power supply for my light kit so I can take studio shots anywhere I want. I may consider purchasing more wireless triggers as the monos’ optical slaves don’t respond well in bright sunlight.

In playing with Marla in front of my camera, I began to explore new ideas of model photography for myself that I had only previously seen in magazines. I’m starting to open my eyes to new methods of expression and I want to learn more. I like what I am becoming as an artist.

Well, it’s 2008. Which brings us all one step closer to the fourth Indiana Jones movie. Cheers!

12:30AM-ish — Spent up until around 3am on the air with Mike Quinn, Stryker and Jorge as we had a great big rock and roll New Year’s morning party on Q94.5 The Rock Station. We wound up doing skits, answering listeners’ calls on the air and generally engaging in Tom Foolery. We spent the last hour and change playing a non-stop block of Metallica. Afterward we relaxed at Whataburger and mused on how nice drunk rockers are.

6PM-ish — I decided I wanted a little point and shoot camera for day-to-day shooting; something that I could hold in one hand, store in my pocket and have a decent enough image whilst not attempting to rival my SLR rig.

Being a devout Canonite I was tempted to buy the new PowerShot A720 IS. The local Circuit City did not carry it in stock, no matter how much their website swore it was.

But I decided not to leave empty handed and settled on the Canon PowerShot SD1000. It was cheaper than the A720 IS and not as manually controllable. However, it is highly efficient and manual enough to let me have a fair amount of control over the final image.

Image quality is decent enough and I’m not expecting anything more than a simple point and shoot that I can photograph whatever with. Owning this camera will also lengthen the life of my SLR as it no loner has to actuate on every little annoying thing I want to photograph. I now have a toy camera to shoot the inane with.

Another plus is that being the opposite of a hefty, expensive rig, I can actually draw it out pretty fast from the little belt carrying case and whip out a shot with it. I think having this camera will let my brain settle down on the technical aspects of photography and just have fun taking the bloody picture. I’ll see what my creative juices come up with it, particularly as I recommitt myself to the 365 Flickr project.

So, behold my new Canon PowerShot SD1000 Digital ELPH point and shoot camera! How I wish I had it for New Year’s Eve.

11pm-ish — I’m recomittng myself to the 365 Days Project on Flickr. I hope I follow through this time.

Merry Christmas. It’s Jesus Christ’s recognized birthday (in North America).

Get off the damn computer. Don’t watch TV. Go spend some time with your family. Have some turkey and ham. Drink some wine, but don’t get drunk. Moderation is the key. A stitch in time saves nine…or something.

Anyway, make it a good one. That’s what I’m gonna do. Well, time to play with my nephew Ethan. I’m babysitting tonight — that’s what I get for being single. Cheers!

Until next time, enjoy this picture I took last year.

This was a country/western-ish themed shoot I did for a hopeful teenage model, Angelica.

This is from a quick and dirty shoot I did this morning for a lunch favor from Angelica’s mom, Mimi (which is still pending). I shot Angelica in a little more than an hour. Almost completely ambient light except for the occasional use of a reflector/diffusion panel and the use of a Canon 420EX Speedlight for fill flash on this image.

The session was shot off of Highway 107 in Edinburg, Texas at World Harvest Training Center, a Christian church and school.

Angelica wants to be a professional model, so Mimi was hooking her up with some kind of pageant or something whose entry photo was required to be a country oriented full body shot. “Country” as in “country-western”, though use of a cowboy hat was not allowed for some reason.

The required photo is due on Monday, so they’re cutting real close to the wire hiring me so late. Mimi was planning on getting a coworker to help her with the print. Hopefully, they’ll be able to get it made over the weekend.

Being a teen, Angelica didn’t want her mom butting in, but I was totally in charge the entire time and wrangled up some nice setups on this particularly windy Saturday morning. Thankfully, I am also getting better at remembering to shoot my setups.

Post-processing was completed this afternoon and though I haven’t heard back from the client, I’m sure they’ll love the photos and have a hard time picking just one.

Click here to view the complete slideshow.

Last Wednesday I was shooting Annette for a billboard advertisement and popped these for fun after we finished.

Three 320 Ws monolights (AlienBees B800): one in 47″ octabank on right at 3/4 power, 45″ umbrella at left for fill at 1/32 power, 10º degree grid for hair at 1/2 power.

This was shot at the television station’s Studio B which is basically just a warehouse with a large green screen. I shot Annette in front of this green screen for the advertisement photos and I told her I wanted to do some fun shots after we were finished. I grabbed a chair for her to use as a prop and slightly rearranged my lights and we were off.

The series of black and white “fun” photos were done in about five minutes and Annette was feeling it because I had already loosened her up while taking the shots for the ad. The fence behind her is a group of collapsible tables that we use for our company meals, first used for the Halloween lunch and later to be used for Thanksgiving lunch this week.

Looking at these photos I’m seeing quite of bit of sensor dust which is irritating, of course, to say the least. I’ll have to take care of that soon. Also, I purchased that book Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait by Michael Grecco at the new Barnes & Noble in Mission and I’m feeling way, way inspired. Later this year I’ll get a Vagabond II battery pack for my monos which I’ll use to take some artsy shots of local progressive rock band Static Limit. I’ll probably do it in downtown McAllen all Dave Hill-style.

Laura, Claudia’s sister, is turning 30 in two weeks. Mariano had the idea to create invitations using a photograph and asked me to handle that. I was available after 7pm, long after the sun had set. Neither of us had any idea what to shoot and, over the screeching of a lonely cockatoo, I came up with the idea of using the pool as a backdrop. The sun had already set so I had my work cut out for me. After several different angles, I finally got the water to do what I wanted. I also came up with something relevant to Laura’s upcoming birthday…note her hands. Also, Laura is sitting on the diving board.

Two 320 Ws monolights used, one at camera left into a 47" octobox at 3/4 power, the other in the background at camera right illuminating the pool at full power. No Photoshop other than sensor dust and blemish removal and an exposure effect plug-in that I love. Otherwise, I try to get as much of the photograph in-camera as I possibly can at the time of the shoot.

I wish I had packed my other two light stands and had longer extension cords. Then I would have moved the background light directly behind Laura on the opposite side of the pool to more evenly light the pool and give Laura a rim. I should have also packed my stepping stool. At least I got the rubber duckie in the shot (had to move it into position with the pool strainer, net, thingie, pole).

If I had more time and gear (and had an assistant wearing swim trunks), I would have secured the rubber duckie with piano wire and lit it with a grid spot from the left. Also, with an assistant, I would have had a reflector on the subject’s right side to help lift the shadows. Oh, well.

Mental note: pack my other light stands, buy longer extension cords, a spool of piano wire, gaffer tape and some Bogen Super Clamps. And a Sekonic L-358 light meter would be nice. And a Vagabond 2 battery pack.