NATALYA

BEN

ROBIN

COMMERICAL

This is a photoshoot I did with Kristin. I think she has a very pretty face and I was look to do something very commercial. The pictures are very sweet and don't have a lot of contrast to stay away from the edgy feel. However I wanted them to be commerical not boring. I believe I achieved what I was going for.

BALLET

This is a photoshoot I did with Erica. I've photographed a ballerina be for but I really love these new ones. Erica was great. She gave me a variety of different poses to work with and was so sweet and cooperative. Despite the fact that headshots are my fortay, I still enjoy shooting ballet and dance for some reason. I've found that even in my headshots, I especially enjoy movement or voice in my photographs. Maybe that's why I always return to dance every once in awhile. It's full of movement and has a beautiful atmosphere about it.

Enjoy.

IT'S BEEN AWHILE...

So it's been awhile since I've been on my blog but I just wanted to update it and put a couple more pictures up.

Here's one I took of Kevin. He was amazing to shoot. He gave me so much variety in his face and had tons of energy. I really like the finished product.


Also, here's a really old picture I took in one of my first years starting photography. Nevertheless, I still enjoy it.

SATURDAY

Regarding the Music Center Spotlight Awards, the Awards Ceremony was Saturday afternoon. My picture won Honorable Mention and $250! It really was an amazing experience and great to have my work recognized.

Also here's a picture I took of my grandfather the same afternoon.

ASPEN

These pictures were taken over the summer, I just forgot to put them up. I went to Aspen in August and took a day hike up to the Maroon Bells. This is the beautiful sight I found. 

KIDS

I originally took these pictures because I was entering in a photography contest that I wanted to use kids in. The contest required me to come up with an idea for a greeting card and then illustrate it in any way I wish. My greeting card involved the first two pictures below. The front of the card had this first picture on it and it said at the bottom, "When it comes to best friends..." When you opened up the card it had the second picture below on the left hand side and on the right hand side it said, "Your it. Happy Birthday." It's a little hard to explain the card but I hope it makes sense.


I actually had a lot of fun shooting these kids. I was a little worried because I've never really photographed kids and as I discovered, it's a lot different then photographing adults and teenagers. You have to simplify your poses enormously and even then, they may not get it. In addition I was afraid the pictures would come out looking too commercial and when I think commercial, I think boring. I had to shoot them twice but I think the second time was a huge success. Even though the pictures are commercial I don't think they're boring. They're absolutely adorable kids and I had a lot of fun.

MOVEMENT

These photos are actually all pictures I took in 2007 and 2008. They're definitely not some of my best work but reflect on something I was definitely focusing on at the time: movement. In 2007 photography was fairly new to me and I was yet to find what I truly loved and was good at. Nevertheless, these shoots were a lot of fun and I do enjoy the finished products.

AUTOMOBILES

I really enjoyed taking all of these pictures. They were taken towards the end of 2008 or the begining of the new school year. By this point I had discovered my niche in photography and wanted to branch out just a little to discover some new types of photography. It's extremely different then portraiture but still holds some similarity. When taking portraits I do like getting close to people's face to really capture the grainage in their skin and lips. I appreciate detail. In this way, it related to car photography. When shooting cars you have to focus almost specifically on detail. A picture of a car pulled back can be very boring but pulling in and focusing on specific parts of a car can transform it entirely, making it at times unrecognizeable. Being abstract can be a lot of fun. Once in awhile it's nice to make people pause and have to think, "That's cool. What is that?" With some of these pictures I hope I accomplished that.
Another way in which car photography relates to portraiture is with how crucial lighting is. When photographing people, the way you light someone's face is absolutely key. You can make someone look 10 years older all depending on your lighting. I've had entire shoots be wasted all because my lighting was off and I didn't realize it. In the same way you can make a car look extremely unflattering depending on your lighting. All of these pictures were taken in various Rusnak dealerships so I definitely struggled with their flourescent lighting. Nevertheless, I enjoyed myself and enjoy the pictures I produced.

Rolls Royce

Audi

Rolls Royce

Rolls Royce

Rolls Royce

Porsche

Bentley

PORTRAITURE

I think it's safe to say that portraiture is my first and pretty much only love. I adore photographing people. It's always interesting because not one person looks like another. I prefer taking head shots mostly but I'm definitely in the process of broadening my scope to full body shots. It's a lot more difficult more for the model than for me because they have to make sure their entire body is perfectly in pose, not just their head. Nevertheless, I'm in the process of making a coffee table book of my portraits and I'm definitely putting full body shots in there. Also, if is anyone is interested in purchasing a copy of the book, please let me know and I'll be sure to order one for you. It should be completed and ready to be bound by late May to early June. In any case, enjoy the following photographs and feel free to leave any comments or feedback.






I won Honorable Mention in the 29th Annual Photographer's Forum Magazine sponsored by Nikon for this picture. I'm also one of 15 finalists in the 2009 Music Center Spotlight Awards. I just had an interview with the judges and I'll find out May 1st if I placed. Wish me luck!