Photo Exercise: Natural Light + Vinyl Toys

A few months ago, I was brainstorming ways to shake the dust off of my photography chops. Sure, I take pictures for a living, but news journalism is quite different from what I would consider "pleasure" shooting. News is raw and the key is capturing that "in the moment" shot.

However, photographers face similar challenges across the board: being in the right place at the right time, adjusting to a limited location, physical zooming and uncooperative subjects. Whether I'm shooting a concert, a wedding or a hard news story, my goal is the same: get the job done and do it well.

To exercise my creative side, I was trying to think of an activity that would encompass a number of elements: 1) Create a boundary line for my shoot- this would limit my resources and I would have to adjust accordingly 2) Keep the subject consistent, but varied- this would add another level of difficulty 3) Uphold a set of rules- this would also increase my critical thinking and lastly, 4) Get outside involvement- this would allow for more freedom and thinking outside the box.

With my 4 requirements in mind, this is what I came up with:
1) Boundary Line- any room in the house or the front porch; nothing beyond our patio would be usable
2) Subject- any toy from our vinyl collection
3) Rules- only natural light would be acceptable and there could be no use of a tripod or monopod; time limit for the shoot would be 30 minutes
4) Outside Involvement- post a Facebook status calling for adjectives (I received about 70 suggestions)

I took 10 adjectives from the feedback on Facebook and created a scenario for each vinyl toy somewhere in our house (or the patio). With all of the rules in place, it took me about 26 minutes total,  to capture each setting. Check it out:

Humorous

Creative

Paradoxical 

Swaggerific

Feisty

Adorable

Jolly

Morbid

Stellar

Fantabulous

Channeling the "World's Greatest"

I had a day off, so I decided to do some pleasure shooting. I've never been to a boxing club before nor have I attempted to shoot the sport. There's a first time for everything, right? I thumbed through some historical images of Ali and noticed a pattern. In newspaper clippings and other publications that captured "the world's greatest" in action, there is a certain degree of static (grain, if you will) in the images. To imitate history, I turned my ISO up to a number I've never even used before. It worked.

I'm hoping to get out to an actual match for some shooting some time in the near future. A big thank you goes out to 4th Street Boxing Gym and Community Center for letting me play yesterday.

Homemade: NOH8 Campaign Shoot

In November of 2008, Proposition 8 was passed in California. The passing of Prop 8 put a ban on same sex marriages, which had been "legalized" just months before. In response to the slap in the face, the NOH8 campaign was organized as a silent protest to lawmakers and citizens against equal rights. Adam Bouska and Jeff Parshley are the founders of the organization and three years after its birth, NOH8 had spawned more than 20,000 faces branded with the black and red logo. Celebrities like Kat Von D, Kim Kardashian and James Van Der Beek have all had their photos taken in support of the campaign.

Charlotte and I believe, in our hearts, that the discrimination against homosexuals in the United States is un-American and more than that, it's just wrong. We were both raised with morals, values and compassion only to find that countless others were not. Our hope is to pass on the positive traits to the next generation through our actions, words and courage.

Enjoy our homemade, NOH8 photos and upload your own to the NOH8 website, here.

Snow Patrol + Jannus Live = SOLD OUT

Recently, the ever popular band Snow Patrol played a sell out show at Jannus Live in downtown St. Petersburg. With thick Irish accents, talent to boot and thousands of screeching fans, the guys of Snow Patrol brought the heat, despite their name.

A true mark of success is exceeding the capacity of a music venue. Snow Patrol did just that when they visited sunny St. Petersburg. A lot of big names wait until 10-10:30 to take the Jannus stage, but Snow Patrol went on around 9 p.m. or so. As an avid concert go-er at Jannus, I was impressed with the band's stage presence, poise and overall ability to keep their fans captivated.

Check out the full story on Patch and enjoy some of the captures from the show:

Charlotte Gets Her Feet Wet

It has been a little over two years since I last worked with a model. I miss the creative aspect of producing images with timelessness and edge. Recently, Char and I decided to utilize her modeling abilities and begin the process of shaking the rust off of my "pleasure shooting" skills.

We shot at sunset on the beach. The wind was ridiculously rough and the water was quite chilly, but obviously a photographer has no choice but to adapt to any situation. Charlotte is not a fan of being cold, so she had some adapting of her own to deal with.

As a team, we hope to continue working with models in the future, even if it is just for pleasure.

Island Time Wedding: The Fernandes Ceremony

Although our schedules are jam packed from our full time gigs, we still find time to shoot for Rachel Jolley and Charlotte. When we were approached to do a wedding a few months back, it was a no brainer. It happened to fall on one of our days off, so we jumped at the opportunity.

The Fernandes Wedding was a beautiful, island-themed celebration. The main accent color was a deep blue which blended well with the Gulf of Mexico. From the time we arrived at the wedding until we shot our last images, we knew the results would be nothing short of amazing. We were right.

Knowing that the Fernandes family was satisfied with our work made everything come full circle.

Best wishes to the Bride and Groom!

Badfish Jams, Bradley Would be Proud

After the untimely death of Sublime's frontman, Bradley Nowell, the band's cult following continues to grow. The popularity of the group is at an all time high, especially in tropical locations- like St. Petersburg, FL. Sublime with Rome performed two, back to back, sold out shows at Jannus Live about a year ago which proved the longevity of the music.

Badfish, the ultimate Sublime tribute band, is the closest imitation of the real deal most of us will ever see. Originally named Scotty Don't, Badfish has grown a fan base all their own. The Jannus Live courtyard was jam packed for their most recent visit to the 'Burg. The memorable show was a topic of conversation for at least a week after Badfish was long gone.

Here's a glimpse of Badfish doing their thing:

Bassist, Joel Hanks

Badfish frontman, Pat Downes

Joel Hanks of Badfish

Opening act: The Sheffield Crew