bobbi of bobbi+mike posted on facebook that they would be speaking at OSP Indy.  I stalk bobbi so I registered for the event and booked my room at the Omni Severin Hotel.  The Omni was a perfect location for the event.

OSP Indy is a sharing and networking opportunity for photographers.  Speakers present on a variety of topics, breakout sessions with shooting opportunities, and a creative exercise round out the two day event.

A special thank you to Sara Parent and Mike Wise who organized the event this year.

bobbi’s presentation on “being yourself” was entertaining and inspiring.  I was flattered when shortly after bobbi started speaking she pointed to me in the crowd and commented on an email I had sent her.  That’s a blog post for another day.

I can now add Polina Osherov to my stalker list.  Uber talented fashion  & commercial photographer.

No post is complete without a photograph.  Here is one from the creative challenge.  We were split into three groups.  Each group was given a bucket and a list of 10 descriptive words.  The challenge was to capture the word and include the bucket in the shot.

The group was setting up a love shot.  This is what I captured.  Love the composition.

XO-S

Pure newborn bliss.  Meet Miss B.  She is the first newborn in the new studio.

Miss B has two brothers, the oldest is 12 years older.  Her momma is 12 years younger than her older brother, and you guessed it she has two brothers.  What a coincidence.

See the cute little doll bed, it’s mine.  I’ve hung on to it all these years.  Can’t remember what year I got it, vintage goodness no doubt.  I need newborn twins to photograph, the bed is one of a bunk bed set.  This set up is shot on a side wall in the studio.

I’ve known Miss B’s momma all my life.  For the first few years we lived across the street from one another.  When I was five my family moved a few blocks away.  Miss B’s momma and I walked to school together.  At graduation we planned to walk together, but we were split up because she’s taller than me and we had to walk in according to height (boo).

Say an extra prayer for Miss B, her family, and her medical team.  She has a medical complication that was discovered shortly after birth.

Miss Z was in the studio for her first year photos.  I started photographing Miss Z when she was a baby bump.

We ended the session with a Cake Smash.

And she’s done.  She was not thrilled about getting messy.  Happy Birthday Miss Z!

XO-S

In honor of today’s holiday I thought I would post a little something green…  I’ve spent the day pondering what I wanted to photograph.  The vintage shamrock pin I was wearing earlier that was given to my be my great uncle Jerry McCarthy, some of the vintage green buttons I have from my grandmother…  Then I remember what I had photographed last night!

Ike broke his collar bone a week ago today.  Last night I asked if I could document his injury.  He willing obliged (he is over having his photo taken).  Injury occurred on the first nice day/evening we’ve had this year.  A game of hide & seek in the back yard.  One nasty spill landing on his right shoulder.  Spike came running in the house with an accurate diagnosis “I think he broke his collar bone, I heard it snap”.  Thankfully our neighbor was home.  She is a PA who works ER.  We were able to get him in a make shift splint and head to the pediatricians office.  X-ray’s confirmed Spike’s diagnosis.  It is a complete separation.

How this was shot:  One strobe light with a 10 degree grid on cyc wall.  Modified ghetto style… whole cut in black construction paper.

They put him in a figure of eight splint which he wears under his shirt.

How this was shot:  Three strobe lights firing.  Key light with a large softbox.  Shot on cyc wall.

If you’re enjoying green beer tonight, hope you stay on your feet!

XOX-S

This winter M&M decided he wanted to build a cyc wall for me.  I was blown away when he suggested this.  It opens up so many opportunities.  I am no longer limited by time of day, weather, etc…  And I can shoot high key photography.  I set out to learn about studio lighting.  The plans for construction came together.  The process has taken longer than expected.  We were able to make adjustments along the way based on what we were learning & experiencing.  Have a peek at the cyc wall.

From the beginning we knew our space had to be multifunctional.  I think we’ve accomplished that.

Our space has a cathedral ceiling.  So height was not an issue.  We were limited by the width of the room.  The overall size of the cyc wall is roughly +7.5 feet high x +10.5 feet wide x + 13 deep.  The wall is a platform with a deck, we were limited in our space and could not build out the floor to be level with the existing floor.  We also decided to not go with a cove design, we didn’t want to slow the process.

You’ll notice at the top of the wall a seamless roll of paper and room for another roll.  I want to execute a couple of creative ideas and the seamless paper will save us M&M from painting the wall after the project.  I’ll be adding a roll of black seamless soon.  Under the paper holder running the width of the wall is a steel cable.  I knew I wanted to be able to hang backdrops.  Just gives us more options.

The space has 3 windows which allows an amazing amount of north facing natural light.  We have two rows of steel cables. Sheers to diffuse the light and black panels to cut the light.  Plus I have open wall space that I can hang additional backgrounds.

Behind the wall is much needed storage.  Camera left is where I have props…vintage baby scales, rugs, etc.  Camera right is all the tech gear…strobes, light modifiers, cords, etc…  We originally had the cyc wall positioned against the structural wall, thanking my lucky stars we changed that.  I filled up the space in no time!

I had no idea when I showed M&M photos of  ATJ’s studio and cyc wall he would be inspired to build one for me.  I think he was missing the smell of sawdust… or was up to a challenge.  Either way… I think he’s awesome and I love my new cyc wall!

If you notice the tape on the floor I was doing some lighting studies.  All the scuff marks on the floor are going to be a pain.  That’s what I’ve heard from fellow photos who have cyc walls.  Always painting the floor.

Do you want to know what materials M&M used, paint finish, how he built it, etc… leave a note in the comments are send a direct email.  Maybe we can get M&M to do a guest post.

In the coming days look for posts with lighting set ups.

XOX-S

In the studio with one light.  Putting into practice some of the things we learned at the One Light Workshop.

For this I needed the subject to be still.  That ruled out the dog and boys.

This is shot with one light, a speed light with a #10 honey comb grid (ghetto style).  M&M was my VALP (voice activated light pole).

I hope to get back to Italy soon.  My photography skills have improved since my trip to Florence.

XOX-S

I recently attended the One Light Workshop by Zack Arias in Atlanta.  The experience was beyond anything I could have imagined.  Zack and his wife Meghan Arias were the most gracious hosts.  And you can only fall fast for Hawke Danger.

Zack is one of the most humble people I’ve ever met.  He shares so much of himself.

If you are interested in photography go spend some time on his site. Better yet, attend one of his One Light Workshops.

We had amazing models to work with.  Meghan and the models did a fabulous job styling the wardrobe, hair, and makeup.

This was shot using a speedlight modified with a shoot through umbrella.  We were outside and temps were dipping below freezing.

This was shot with one speedlight modified with a soft box in the studio.

Same set up as previous photo.

This was taken with a speedlight modified with a shoot through umbrella.

Same as above photo.

Photographed the same as above, the only difference is the amount of ambient light had increased as street lights came on and increased light from head lights. While this photo isn’t perfect, what is amazing is that I hand held with a shutter speed of 1.0 second.  AYKM.  Rest of the data for those that want to know ISO 800 and 2.8 f stop.  I had to trust Zack that I could shoot with a shutter speed of 1.0 second hand held, it took a bit of convincing on his part!

I’ll leave you with one of Zack lines from the workshop.  “Where do I start?” “Somewhere”.  When you are trying something new just remember to start somewhere.

XOX-S

I hope your day is filled with all kinds of sweet surprises.

XOX

S

We are in the process of having a studio space available on a limited basis.  M&M has been working hard to build out the space for me.  One of my requirements is that I want to be able to shoot high key photography.  Cosmo likes to go to work with me, he likes to be wherever I am period.  M&M is in the process of finishing the cyc wall (how lucky am I).  Cosmo loves to play on the cyc wall, he’s even willing to pose on occasion.

I have had a really difficult time getting good photos of Cosmo, especially inside.  That is until I met Paula Wessells of Doxzen Pet Photos. Paula has given me several tips on how to photograph a black dog with all black features. Take a look at her portfolio, her photography is inspiring.

In the studio we’re still making decisions on lighting.  Hope to have something on order when I get back from the One Light Workshop with Zack Arias. Lights and a few more construction details and we’ll be booking studio sessions.

I was having a conversation with Spike through the window.  He was messing around.  I had my camera (trying to photograph Cosmo).  Spike messing around + camera+a sprinkling of post processing= A R T.

I love that his left eye is prominent.  (Spike, Ike, and I are all left eye dominant and right handed).

I’ve been wanting to mess around with ttvf and haven’t had a chance.  This will have to satisfy the want for now.