This month I was fortunate enough to have an article of mine included on the Tuts+ network. 

It is always great to have a fun shoot an end up with some results that everyone is pleased with, especially the client.  It is another when you are able to write about your experiences and share them with others who are interested in achieving the same results.  Here is an excerpt explaining the purpose of the article:

I have long been a fan of rim lighting and, given the opportunity, would prefer to use it over a single light source. Rim lighting, which is often referred to as back light or even hair lights, is simply light placed on your subject which gives the appearance of a light outline. This technique pulls the subject off the background and offers some depth and dimension to what you are shooting.

This article outlines how to setup your lights to achieve such an effect and also covers some simple post-processing to help improve the final product.

My article “Make Your Subject Stand Out With a Rim Lighting Effect” is now available on Photo Tuts+.

“Sad Times” | 52.7

Despite our President’s claims that the “economy is back from the brink“, it most certainly isn’t.  Businesses are closing on what seems like a daily basis.  This week, a local newspaper, The Henry County Times, announced it would be closing up shop, after serving the community for years.Who cares, right?  Just another paper.  Just another form of dated media biting the dust.  Print is dead.  Blah, blah, blah.

It hits home with me more than it would have a year ago.  As of right now, I am also a small business owner, and operate in the same community that this paper served.  So it is sad to see them make the decision they have made.  While I understand times are tough, it doesn’t make it any easier. A fellow citizen, Beau Kelley, has put it better than I:

You might ask: Why do you care so much about this?  Don’t you have more important things to worry about?    Yes, I do have other things to worry about.  But being a good citizen means more than worrying only about yourself.  I care because I am tired of seeing our community disintegrate.  I’m not comfortable losing the things I love that make our community special.  I’ve lived in Henry County all my life.  This is my home.  And I am willing to fight for my home.  I am not willing to sit back and watch Henry become just another place to live and work.  It’s time we start supporting each other.  It’s time we become a better community.  This is a wake-up call.

That same citizen has taken it upon himself to setup a website, www.savethehctimes.com, in order to help keep the paper alive.  I applaud his efforts. Since opening our photography studio, local business is vital.  Our family does the very best it can to spend our dollars locally.  It feels like we spend our money wiser that way.  It feels good supporting other local merchants and to keep other businesses going.

Equally sad to me is the fact that The Times was a community supporter.  Mickie is a great person and I am thankful to have met her.  She also supported the arts.  While president of a non-profit art organization, I knew she would run press releases about the group, and she did.  In fact, she always supported the arts and anything that made the community better.

On to some positive stuff, below is the setup:

I took this in my garage while my girls took a nap.  The setup shot makes the garage look horrible and messy.  I almost didn’t post it.  Regardless, with the camera on a tripod/timer, I used the ABR800 as the main light and a Calumet Genesis 400 with shoot through umbrella as a fill light.  I had another Calumet Genesis setup as rim/hair light, high camera left.  I put a little card on the ground to remember where to stand once I get the settings the way that I wanted them. Camera settings were: f/22, ISO 200, and shutter of 1/250th.  Lights triggered via CyberSyncs.

Also, this was not what I had planned for this week at all.  I had something Halloween related in mind, props purchased, etc.  But the loss of another local business was just on my mind.

Last, but not least, gotta give moiht a shout for the inspiration. Prints can be purchased as well.

Here is the shot out of the camera (D700, 50mm, f/1.4, ISO 200, 1/2000 shutter):

Not too shabby, but it could benefit from a little punch.  First, I started with the sharpening and then threw a solid color adjustment layer on top (I used #ac49da as the color).  I masked out the middle portion of the adjustment layer to let the green come through a notch.  Here is the final image:

If you are interested in the sharpening action, you may download it here. Prints can be purchased here.

“Back to Work” | 52.6

This past week I have been looking forward to a little down time with my wife and daughter. The drama and retardation of others that has surfaced lately was almost causing my brain to shut down.  I needed a break.  My wife needed a break.  So we hit the road on a weekend trip and got some fresh mountain air.  It was great.  We hardly had any cell service, which turned out to be a bonus, except for needing the GPS on our way to the cabin.  It was nice not to feel so connected.  I did not feel like I had to respond to anything on Facebook, or had to respond to any Twitter message, or had to respond to any email.  I just had to spend time with my family.  Toting the camera along, I also snuck some recreational photography in.

On the trip, I had my sketchbook for ideas (which did not get used) in case something interesting crossed my mind for this week’s image.  I had a lot of ideas actually.  None of which I felt like doing when I got home.  None of which felt the way that I felt when I got home either.  I dont want this project to be just a quick snapshot of me.  That takes no thought.  Even if it is not readily apparent to the viewer, I want each image to convey something, and if possible, I want that “something” to be an emotion of my own.  I love vacations but hate coming home because going back to work lurks on the horizon.  I am usually somewhat ready to go back and in other ways totally unprepared.  Either way, I can rest assured that I will have a full cup of coffee in the morning!

The setup was pretty simple.  The camera was tripod mounted and set on timer.  Facing me was an Alien Bee ABR800 at full power.  Behind me for rim lighting were two Calumet Genesis 400s set at half power.  Everything was triggered with CyberSyncs.  The camera settings were f/14, 1/200th, and ISO of 200.  The setup shot is below:

I tried my hand at a new sharpening technique.  Not sure if I like it completely or not, but it is certainly growing on me.

And I realize that this might be a bit stronger if in a different environment.  But you have to cut me a little slack in not taking it in a more public place.  It was a little more comfortable taking this shot in the privacy of my back yard!

Now that my vacation is over, I am ready to get back to work.  Well, not entirely…

Drowning In It | 52.5

Some days you are the toilet.
Some days you are the paper.
Most days you are just drowning in it.

Many times working off of some type of feeling makes it easier to get an idea out.  I am sure I am not the only one who grows tired of drama and theatrics from those around them.  It is a drag.  Its lame and it drains you.  Thus the image.

In wondering how to best visually represent this theme, I stumbled across Snorkel Salad by Black Scarlet Love and was more than impressed.  I often times see images that I like and to learn, I will do my best to recreate something similar.  But what fun would it be to get a toilet image and do the exact same thing.  I wanted to put my own twist on it, however, in an attempt to learn but also make it my own.

I went to Target and bought a mask and snorkel and the rest was history.  But I have to say, that this project has really helped me learn.  This week I learned some limitations.  I had three lights setup in the house for this shot until I later realized that I could not use them.  With an ABR800 in front and two Calumet Genesis 400s behind me to blow the wall out, I just could not get around the huge glare from the lights on the front of the mask.  Getting frustrated, I turned the strobes off and shot this with ambient light (f/2.8, 1/30th, ISO 400)
 After all, my goal was to bring the photos into an existing image for further processing.  Given that the final image would be textured, I didn’t need the sharpness of a professional studio shot.

The urinal image was purchased from iStockPhoto and modified to fit the layout that I had in mind.

One of the great things about the inspiration image would be the fact that he included links to the resources that he used.  Several of them I opted to use as well, in addition to incorporating some of my own.  Here is my list:

• Brown Stain: http://greeneyezz-stock.deviantart.com/art/Brown-stain-90745436
• Swamp: http://naughty-ang3l.deviantart.com/art/Swamp-52507533
• Crack: http://skornedwolfe-stock.deviantart.com/art/cement-crack-9732124
• Skeletal Mess: http://www.flickr.com/photos/skeletalmess/
• Stains: http://illusionofperfection.deviantart.com/art/Yellow-Drops-I-52601937

Anyway, still seem to be coming up with images for this 52 Weeks project.  At least for now!

Target Acquired | 52.4b

Deep in the furthest mountain recesses, I conduct my secret missions.  Void of curtains, plants, family photos, my bunker decorations consist of bullets and schematics.  Under the security of night, I roam.  Yet lately I feel eyes of the enemy, possibly scanning my location.  I need to be more careful in maneuvering the countryside. Whole out on patrol, ensuring my sector has not been breached, I hear rustling.  Subtle, but I certainly heard something.  My training will not let me avoid it.  Could the enemy have found me?

So this was an accident.  In setting up for the “Not Tonight, Honey” image, I took a quick shot of me with the facial mask on.  Using the ABR800 (@ ¼ power) I took a quick self-portrait using our bathroom door as a backdrop. This was not shot with the end result in mind.  This was not shot with the intention of ever doing anything with it at all.  After stumbling across a night vision image while researching another project, I wanted to see what could be done with this image.

Camera Settings: D700 | Nikon 24-70mm ƒ/2.8 | ƒ/20 | 1/250th | ISO 200

October 8th was a date in which I would reach a personal milestone.  The annual juried photography show at Arts Clayton gallery is one that I have regularly participated in for nearly 5 years now.  Each year it gets better.  Each year it gets tougher.  To be awarded Best of Show for the event left me speechless.

The 6th Annual Juried Photography Show and Competition opening reception was held on October 8th.  The event is always well attended and the work featured is inspiring to me as a photographer.  This year’s competition saw nearly 170 entries, 56 of which were juried into the show itself.  Out of those 56, my piece was selected as Best of Show.

Hearing my name was a complete and total surprise.  I had not felt strong about my submissions this year and the piece that won (see below) I had entered actually thinking it would not make it beyond the initial jury process.

Despite my apprehension, it was awarded and in the letter I received from the gallery they were kind enough to include some of the comments from the judges:

“Technically superb – perfect print quality. Incredible creative point of view and uniqueness of subject.  Compelling story.”

As part of winning Best of Show, Arts Clayton will use the image in advertising for the 2010 Juried Photography Show.  The piece was purchased by Arts Clayton for their permanent collection and in 2010, I will have the opportunity for a solo exhibition with the subject of my choice.

From a “behind the scenes” perspective on the photo, it would not have been possible with Mary, of course, who was superb to work with.  Not only was she willing to go along with a crazy idea of mine, but she also managed to pull off the make effects needed.  Then there is Matt Miller, someone who is able to harness a creative power many dream of.  Matt stayed after a model shoot to offer his expertise in lighting to make this what it is.

Last, but certainly not least, this is Melissa.  She is as talented as she is kind.  Gifted with “the eye”, Melissa effortlessly captures the world around her and presents it in a new light.  It is great to see her get recognition for her work as well.

View the article in the Clayton news Daily.

Download Photoshop Action here.

Installation
In Adobe Photoshop CS4, open your Actions palette (ALT + F9) and then click on the drop down to the top right of the menu.  Select “Load Actions” from the menu.  Browse to where you saved the Skin Softener action and load the action.

It will then appear in your Action Palette.

Given what the action does, it is recommended that you begin with a flattened image.  Select the “Dub’s Skin Softener” action and click the “Play” icon to fire off the process.

Follow the dialog boxes and you are done!

“Not Tonight Honey, I Have a Headache” | 52.4 | Larger view

Into week four and thankfully a few ideas are still milling around in my head.  This idea was one that I had the entire week but waited, due to a grueling schedule, until the very end to shoot. As with a lot of my images, I enjoy humor, and it is easier to poke fun at yourself than worry about offending some oversensitive person.

As with last week’s image, one might argue that the post-processing removed any hint of off-camera lighting that was used.  My argument to that is I wanted the foundation image to look a certain way prior to working the image in post.  That “certain way” could not be done with the ceiling fan light or night stand lights. Each week I am trying to do something a little different with the lights as that is the only way that I am going to learn them inside and out.

For the setup, I used an Alien Bee Ring Flash (ABR800) and Nikon SB-800 Speedlight.  The ABR800 was shot into a cloud diffuser, high camera left and the SB-800 was shot into a Calumet reflective umbrella, high camera right.  The camera was tripod mounted dead center, pointing toward the bed.  The camera was set on a 10 second timer.  Lights fired with CyberSyncs. Here is a setup shot:

My challenge with this was not the lighting or the setup, but getting everything in the shot that I wanted.  I wanted the nightstands, entire bed, some of the wall, and both of me.  I wanted it obvious that I was in bed, so I did not want to zoom in too far to do that.

Had a lot of fun processing this one as well.

Oblivion | 52.3

Falling from grace cause I’ve been away too long
Leaving you behind with my lonesome song
Now I’m lost in oblivion

This shot was relatively simple to setup.  The biggest part of this image was not setting up and taking the image, but the post-processing once the image was taken.  Though the processing somewhat obliterates the lighting used, a single ABR800 was shot into a 56″ Moon Unit directly toward me.  Behind me was a Calumet Genesis 400 shot bare to blow the wall out from the “peach” color to white.  Here is a setup shot:

Strobist
A single Alien Bee Ring Flash was shot (at 1/4 power) toward me into a 56″ Moon Unit.  A Calumet Genesis 400 (at full power) was shot bare into the wall.

Shooting with the D700 is a little different in that I don’t have a handy little remote as I did for the D80.  Wanting to take the shot quickly and not wanting to enlist any help from my wife, who was wondering why I wanted to take such a shot in the first place, I scribbled on a Post-It note and stuck that on the wall.  This would give the camera something to focus on when I hit the button.  With the timer set, that gave me enough time to step into frame for the shot.

Camera settings
D700 | f/22 | 1/250s | ISO 100

Post-processing here was several steps and involved textures by Ghostbones, Skeletal Mess, and one from my own “Meat Stick” set. The cord wrapped around my mouth is a long sync cord.  The plastic was saved from my latest dry cleaning pickup and pulled over my head.