Using Speedlights off of the camera to create more exciting, interesting photographs.

Future posts will highlight some of the photographs and stories behind them. As a lifelong photojournalist it’s interesting that I was commissioned to write a book about flash photography. Certainly back in the day, a true photojournalist would turn their nose up at the thought of using a flash to help light the subject.

Never say never.

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Full Page Ad in USA Today

I love what I do. Photography has been my only job since entering college. It’s exciting, creatively fulfilling, and has paid the bills. I’m passionate about it, often feeling like I eat, sleep, live, and breath photography.

Setting up for the first shot

Keeping everyone warm.

In the past 1/2 dozen years or so, many of my assignments have met the above criteria and also provided an even bigger reward. The photographs taken are helping others and making a difference in lives. Foundations, charities, and non-profits share the story of their work through my photography.

This ad campaign for the Ronald McDonald House Charities is a great example. It’s running in USA Today, full page in size, and I’m thrilled to have played a part by photographing Elizabeth and her family for the ad.

The last set-up.

A great stand-in, waiting for Elizabeth and her family to arrive on location

With a cold wind blowing in from the west, the creative team from DDB Chicago kept everyone warm between shots on a hillside with Pikes Peak in the background. Son Matthew Staver played a big part in this successful photo shoot too.

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"Off with their heads" resonated thru the camera room. Successful portraiture depends a lot on the subject's willingness to "give it their all".

It was fun having the Red Queen stop by for her “Official Portrait” on Halloween. My friend Kellie  from Professional Restoration played her role to perfection complete with accent. As the Queen, she projects an awesome, “Off with their heads” command that’s for sure.

I asked her to stop by the studio for this official portrait to use in my current book, Advanced Flash Photography. Deadline is near and this image will be a good addition to the chapter on “How to find photo subjects and models”. We’re both Affiliate members of the South Metro Denver Realtors Association and Kellie brought the house down at our weekly Marketing Session with her costume and performance.

Shooting from slightly above brings the eye right to the Red Queen's expression, hair and crown.

It was a no brainer to use the reddish colored background for this Session. This second and wider shot shows more of the Iron Oxide muslin backdrop from my friends at SilverLake Photo, my exclusive supplier of backdrops and flooring materials. I always order the 10 x 20′ size of muslin. It allows for full floor to ceiling coverage plus enough additional length to bring the photo subject away from the back wall. That gives me greater control of the light and depth of field.

Wonder what she’ll be next Halloween?

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One of the best cardio workouts around.

And I wasn’t even kicking or boxing, just photographing. The only favor asked of instructor Dianne Bailey was, “please don’t kick me”.

While this class is a serious cardio workout, it’s also fun as participants banter back and forth between punches and kicks.

Shooting through this window provides the wide-angle "scene setting" image to the photo story.

This is but one part of the Conditioning Classroom offerings for personalized fitness. Dianne and her son Grant specialize in personal training at their Centennial, CO facility. We recently completed photo sessions to showcase their training and the gym.

The intensity you'd expect from a 4th degree Black Belt.

My “storytelling with a camera” style of photojournalism kicked in (so to speak) because this class produced it’s own photo essay as people wrapped their hands, did warm-ups and put on the gloves. The bags were rolled into place (there’s a secret to moving these 250 lb bags – I’ll share it if you want to know – because you can’t just muscle it across the floor – I tried) and the fun began.

Class ended with a cool down plus additional ab work. A future post will feature other photographs taken in the weights and conditioning area of the private personal training gym.

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"Moonrise over Clement Park".

Shooting the moon has more than one meaning and sorry to say, I’ve not participated in the other one… yet. Lots of experience photographing both sun and moon rises and settings. The image above is icing on the cake, taking the more traditional moon rising over the lake shots (see below) to a much higher level.

We always hear about the “lucky shot” and I’ve always maintained that photographers make their own luck, it’s not happenstance at all. This full moonrise session is a great example of that. We saw the moon rising an hour before sunset during our Tuesday night stroll around the lake. Too much light in the sky for a great shot and a quick check of the SoLuna iPhone app told me the full moon was still 1 night away and it would rise at 8:40 p.m. – just after the official sunset time of 8:29 p.m.

Perfect!

The Tuesday preview showed me where the moon would again rise against the horizon on Wednesday night and a check of the LightTrac iPhone app confirmed that.

Gear choice was simple: Canon 5d with 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS lens and the “sticks” (tripod). As I walked toward the corner of the lake to set up I noticed two fishermen at the water’s edge. In my mind I could visualize a shot silhouetting them against the moon and lake so I filed that idea and walked over to them. We had a great conversation, I checked out the hefty string of fish they’d caught, and I told them about the upcoming moon rise.

Sure enough, the big orange ball appeared at the horizon in the perfect spot. Several onlookers stopped behind me to “oowww” and “ahhhh”, take photos themselves with camera phones. After shooting the bread and butter photographs I set up behind the fishermen to include them in the scene.

While I like the two photographs below because the reflection in the water adds depth and more drama to the moon rise than had it been shot without, I love the image with the fishermen. Far more depth and interest, don’t you think?

Moon just cresting the horizon. Clement Park, Littleton, CO

Johnson Lake in Clement Park.

Barry Staver Photography is all about “storytelling with a camera” exceeding expectations with eye-catching photography.

Use of a telephoto lens with aperture set wide open (f/2.8) takes your eye to the center of attention - man rolling the rug.

Both of the photographs on my current postcard stand out for the same reason: they were shot wide open. This technique puts emphasis on one part of the image, thus drawing your eye directly to it.

As the “storyteller with a camera” it’s one way for me to tell you a visual story. In fact, clients have relied on Barry Staver Photography to tell these stories for decades. Even though light is THE key ingredient  to making great images, “Shooting Wide Open” comes into play at a strong 2nd place for successful photography. This phrase is but one of many used to describe the technique of having only 1 portion of the photograph in sharp focus while everything else is out-of-focus. “Depth of Field” is the traditional term used and shallow depth of field refines that a bit.

By only focusing sharply on the man, letting the foreground fall out of focus, the viewer’s eye is led up the hallway to the main subject. Had all of the rug, with it’s busy pattern, been in focus the impact of the photograph would be greatly diminished. Two other factors contribute to the success of the photograph, in my opinion. First is the lighting. I came upon this scene in The Penrose House while on assignment for the El Pomar Foundation. Not wanting to interrupt the work, I began to photograph the rug rolling in the darkened hallway. Not much of a photograph UNTIL light from an open doorway at left brought life to the scene. Notice how this light is also reflecting off of the wall on the right.

This wonderful light has illuminated our subject perfectly. The foreground remains dark which also helps focus our attention to the center of the frame.

The second bonus comes from the candid nature of the photograph. It’s not posed, I didn’t stop work or ask anything of our subject. There were only a few seconds to get the best shot while he was being lit by the doorway. Notice the motion blur of his left hand and arm as he lifts the rug. It adds just a bit of action to the scene. Real work if you will.

Tight focus on the glasses with a telephoto lens set "wide open".

The second example of shallow depth of field captures the concentration in a board of directors meeting. The only thing in super sharp focus is the edge of her glasses. Her hand and the pencil in the foreground and the paperwork on the table are out of focus. Doesn’t your eye go straight to the glasses? Does it make you wonder what’s going on in the shot? What’s she pondering?

By using a telephoto lens I was able to shoot from a distance, not interrupting the meeting.

1st Annual SMDRA Copper Bottom Chef Competition

Another fabulous after hours event with the South Metro Denver Realtors Association. Based on the Food Network Iron Chef Competition, 9 teams competed for the traveling trophy. The “Secret Ingredient” was coffee.

It was a great opportunity to put my signature “storytelling with a camera” shooting to work because I’m much better with a camera than a bowling ball.

Thai Bodywork gives the "extra" stretch you long for.

My friend Michelle Bressette is not only a wonderful yoga instructor but is equally outstanding at her Thai Yoga Bodywork.

When the teacher's not looking...

These photographs were taken at a recent Thai Movement for Couples Workshop she conducted at Rishi’s Crossing Yoga Studio.

This was a tough assignment to photograph because I’d have rather been a participant. You owe it to yourself to experience Thai Bodywork.

Michelle working with KT at the workshop

The strong sidelight streaming thru the south-facing windows was all I needed to capture these storytelling images. No need to set-up any additional lighting. A good thing because inevitably when I light a scene and begin moving around to shoot from the best angles one of the light stands ends up in the middle of a cool shot. Please see other naturally lit images at Barry Staver Photography.

President and Mrs. Reagan, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip at Presentation of the Colors, Santa Barbara, CA.

My signature “storytelling with a camera” has been around longer than I realized. It shows up in a subtle way in this photograph made in the 1980′s. President Reagan’s 100th birthday is upon us, reminding me of this assignment for People magazine.

“Hitting the Mark” is a term from the film and television industry used when actors walk into a scene or move about in the scene. A mark was placed on the ground indicating the spot the actor was to stop so they stayed in focus for the camera. Since many scenes are shot tighter than waist level, these marks are never seen by the viewer. Even the most powerful world leaders are subject to the constraints of tv, as seen by the “marks” on the red carpet for the Queen and President and on the floor for the Prince and First Lady.

Reagan and the Queen clearly hit their marks. I’m guessing their spouses wanted to be “just a bit closer” to the front line, thus both of them overstepped theirs.

Queen Elizabeth and the Prince, traveling aboard the Royal Yacht, toured the west coast beginning south of the border in Mexico, stopping at several CA cities, ending in Canada. Air Force One taxied into a hanger at the Santa Barbara Airport where the entourage deplaned, walked to the end of the red carpet for the “Official” photo-op welcome to the U.S.

The experience gained from 20+ years as a Contributing Photographer to People and the other Time-Life magazines serves my clients well today. I’m able to be in the right places at the right times to capture their storytelling moments.