Going from A to Z

Here is a classic example of post processing, which is photography lingo for improving the overall quality of a picture.
Step 1. Remove distracting elements (such as people in the background)
Step 2. Make the sky blue-er ( if that's a word)
Step 3. Use a special plug-in (on-one skintune) to soften the skin and give it a glow.
Step 4. Perform a color and contrast shift on the sand to bring out texture.
Step 5. Put your logo on it so people can hire you to take great portraits of them!
(Click on picture to see larger version)

About the photo: This picture was taken on the shores of an Indiana state park (yes I was surprised to learn that Indian has shoreline on Lake Michigan too). The model Erin has great skin to begin with, which saves me a lot of time on re-touching. Erin has always wanted to go to the ocean, for the time being she settled on lake michigan. I felt this was a successful shoot in that showcased her natural unkempt beauty.

The Overlay Logo

This photograph is of an adorable little flower girl at the Lafleur wedding. She was waiting patiently in the hallway while the attendees took their seats. This is a test image for my business logo. My great friend, graphic designer extraordinaire , Ashley Sako designed this logo for me.

Perception is fragmented

About this photo: This mirror was found roadside. Some of the best objects are "found objects". I thought it was interesting that the mirror reads "OBJECTS IN THE MIRROR ARE CLOSER THAN THEY APPEAR", especially since the mirror is reflecting the sky and clouds. Is the sky really closer than it appears?
Looking at this photo makes me wish I had taken the mirror with me and made it into a photo-series. Perhaps I will find a junk yard this summer and try to locate a similar mirror. I love how the cracks and fissures in the broken glass are contrasted by the soft organic lines of the rocks.

Take time to stop and smell the flowers

 I was in a very long, very slow bank line today and the woman standing in front of me was fidgeting restlessly back and forth. She finally stepped out of line and went to find a manager to  see if she could expedite the line. She came back with a smile on her face and said, "sometimes you just have to complain to get something done". I replied "Oh, I'm in no rush". She looked at me with a puzzled look and said "And why is that"? I explained to her, It is my belief that the universe is out to support my happiness and if I have to wait in a long line, then maybe  I needed to slow down for a moment. She laughed and said," well that seems like a much better outlook on life, I should try that some time".
Afterwards, I went to pick the girls up from school and when my youngest wanted to stop and smell the flowers, I told her I thought that was a fine idea and we should all take the time to stop and smell the flowers (even though I knew tulips weren't scented). She would have never know that unless I let her smell them for herself.
About the photo: I shot this with my point & shoot Sony Cyber-shot.
Soft blur on foliage using Onone focal point.

Exploring Relationships-part 2

The coolest thing happened,

I was out shooting on tuesday, working on my "relationships" series. I wanted to take my "models" on location around the city. This shot was taken on a fire hydrant. As I was shooting a nice man on a bike & trailer stopped to ask me about my photo project. I was only to happy to depart from my current task and share with him. I am always so pleased when someone (anyone) takes an interest in my creative endeavors. After a 15 minute conversation, Dave asked me if he could make a post about me in the Ann Arbor Chronicle. I was completely flattered. So I thought I would share the shot he found me taking. The link for the article is below, you can see the fire hydrant behind me. Now you all know the secret to my elaborate landscapes (fire hydrants) lol. I will be continuing this series over the next month so please share your thoughts & ideas.

Ann Arbor Chronicle article

Exploring Relationships

We often draw from previous life events to make sense of new information. I created this series in hopes of exploring the dynamics of relationships and the interaction of human beings. I hope that others are able to identify with these images & find comfort in visual story telling. Please feel free to leave comments and share what the story means to you.

About the image: Experimenting with macro photography " creatively".
I found these little plastic figures at a shop downtown and thought they would make for a nice photo series, since I am wanting to explore macro photography. However I don't yet own a macro lens so I tried to recreate the function of one.( I used a magnifying glass) I narrowed it down the image from 7 to 3 but still couldn't choose just one, so I decided to do a tryptic. The aspect ratios are different, creative problem solving.. add a film border (I think it lends to the feeling of a series of events).

Earth Day

The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970. This was 7 years before I was born. I was just a twinkle in my mothers eye but I'm sure I was there in spirit. I'm just glad someone had the sense to say "Hey you guys are making a mess of things."

About the photo: I am always looking for heart shapes. I suppose you could say I'm looking for love in all the wrong places, ha-ha. On this morning I got up with the sun. When I saw the dew on the grass outside I grabbed my camera and headed to the back yard to try and shoot my roses. On my way to the flower beds I saw this single leaf laying on the ground.
It was just one of those moments where nature surprises you by giving you something better than you could have asked for. I felt this image was appropriate for Earth Day, hope you enjoy.

Processing: Lowered the luminance levels on the green, shifted the hue (orange to red) on the leaf & added a round vignette.