]]>
These are the best equine images from 2016 that were not already published. Some of my best memories from this past year were sharing my love of equine photography with others, shooting in the rain at the Vermont Dressage Days and the dust of the Vermont State Gymkhana Championship and especially shooting eventing. Thanks for making this a year to remember. Enjoy! - Ron
]]>
I've added a new section to the website announcing that I now offer headshot and other portrait photography. It can be found here:
Commercial and Personal Headshots
My session are more than just 'smile and say cheese'. I try to connect with my subjects and capture their best expression that exudes confidence with approachability. The image you project to the world should be top quality and combined with expression, you'll look your best.
If you or your business are looking for professional commercial headshots for use on your website, or advertising materials contact me for a quote. Further, even if you're looking for something better than a selfie for use on your personal social media accounts or for inclusion in a resume, I also have packages to meet those needs also. Contact me HERE
]]>
He needed a professional headshot for use by his employer and came to me. In just about a half hour, we created several shots like this that represent who he is: a fun loving, confident professional. I think he would describe his session as fun also since I like to keep it light and have a good time while we are making pictures. I promise your session will not be boring and we will make great images even if you're like me and don't like to have your picture taken!
Below are further examples from a headshot session last year with a local real estate company who were seeking to freshen up their web presence. I went to their location and in addition to individual headshots, we made a group photo for use in their advertising.
If you or your business are looking for professional commercial headshots for use on your website, or advertising materials contact me for a quote. Further, even if you're looking for something better than a selfie for use on your personal social media accounts or for inclusion in a resume, I also have packages to meet those needs also. Contact me HERE
]]>
Join me on June 19, 2016 at the beautiful Mountaintop Inn and Resort in Chittenden, Vermont for a one day class that will train and inspire you to create great equine images!
I'll be conducting a one-day workshop at The Mountain Top Inn & Resort, Vermont’s premier equine vacation and lodging facility in Chittenden, VT, with the focus on learning techniques to take your equine photos from snapshots to professional level images. Through classroom instruction, practical demonstration and hands-on practice, you will leave with a better understanding of how to capture great images of horses. The workshop will be a study of light and best practices to recognize not only the amount of light, but also the quality. This class is for all skill levels, beginners to advanced photographers. (All participants should have at least a basic knowledge of the settings of their chosen camera system). The day will begin with a short classroom segment where we will get a review of the basics of photography, equipment recommendations, and examples of how to ‘see’ light. We will then enjoy some of Vermont’s most beautiful scenery by shooting several photo set-ups in various locations around the Resort. Among others, shoots will include an environmental portrait session with a horse and rider, a shoot typical of horse show conditions, and a pasture shoot with horses on the move. Throughout, I will share tips from his experience on how photographer position, light direction and camera settings can be used to create better picture and give you inspiration to create better equine photos. Register and more information here
]]>
Mary and Andrew were married in August in St Albans. Their wedding was traditional in that it was a Catholic mass and this posed the usual challenges for me. Low light was the rule in the church and the D800e was up to the high iso needed. The pictures from the ceremony here were at ISO 6400. Mary is really into pictures and we did formals in three different locations. Inside the church, outside the church and on the waterfront in Burlington. Their reception was on the Spirit of Ethan Allen and since I have done weddings there before, I knew to expect the tight quarters. The previous times we had grey skies and this night wasn't shaping up for anything different when we embarked. During the dinner I saw the skies starting to break as the sun went down. I grabbed Mary and Andrew and we headed for the bow of the boat. The crew of the Spirit is always really accommodating and they not only turned the boat for the best background, they allowed us to shoot in the bridge. The night was capped by a sparkler send-off which is not very common here in the North but getting back to shore at the end of the night was a perfect time for one.
]]>
Danielle and John were married in July here in Burlington, VT. Their wedding at the Burlington Elks Club was one of the most unique that I have worked in that it included warm temps for Vermont, a rain shower during the ceremony, a first look that was special for them both, and a great location on the UVM campus for formals. That's before we even arrived at the reception. This was where we enjoyed a surprise song and dance from both the Bride and her Dad and also an appearance by Elvis. They were a great couple to work with since they were into pictures and were up for anything. They each had nothing but smiles all day! Enjoy some pics from their day.
Michele and Eric were married at the Old Lantern Inn and Barn in Charlotte, VT. Their wedding had a fun, yet sophisticated feel with an outdoor ceremony on a perfect day. It was a short ceremony which, for a wedding photographer, made for a hectic few minutes in order to get the shots. The reception was very fun with great music and donut treats near the cake for the guests. We were able to get away with the bride and groom at one point to make some portraits of them just as the sun was setting and these are some of my favorites. The night was culminated with an antique car arriving to take them on a romantic ride. The video we shot of their departure made the wedding video ending perfect!
My schedule for the summer has filled up quickly and let me say that come next week, I will be busy and shooting lots of events throughout the summer! To give everyone a better chance to plan, a list of dates for horse events that I will be attending this summer is below. Thanks for supporting me everyone, I hope to see you at a show this summer!
Mini Sessions
I will also schedule mini-sessions at any of the events I am attending so if you'd like some one on one time with me, your horse and the camera, please contact me. Mini Sessions will consist of 20-30 minutes of shooting time, an online proofing gallery and five (5) finished images for $75.00.
Below are the dates that I have on my calendar so far. It's not a final list and I will consider other events as they are presented.
June 6 (NWRDC)
June 27 (LCS)
July 9-12 (VT State 4H Horse Show, Addison Fair)
July 19 (NWRDC Open Show)
September 3 (Vt State Barrels Championship CV Fair)
September 4 (Vt State Gymkhana Championships CV Fair)
Sept 13 (NWRDC Open Show)
October 10 (LCS) Tentative
]]>
Mary and Andrew are engaged to be married in August of 2015. They wanted to make some engagement pictures that were different from others so they chose to do them in the winter. We set up a date to meet on Lake Memphremagog where we found lots of great choices. Each of them is a pharmacist, and despite being dedicated to their work, love to ski and have fun with one another. Despite the cold and Mary's limited mobility from an unfortunate car accident we still worked with several locations. Not to worry, she's going to be 100 percent when she walks down the aisle! They were real troopers and agreed to be outside for the whole session. One of our locations was a cool ice maze near the lake. Using two flashes and a bit of creative white balance selection, I made the final image below. I love the blue colors of the ice and how it gives a winter feel to the image. This was a fun shoot and I can't wait for the wedding!
]]>
Lindsey and Patrick were married at Button Bay State Park in Vermont. They live in Massachusetts but chose to be married here in Vermont for the beauty. They had a casual ceremony that had a feeling of nature since it was outside with their friends and relatives gathered near Lake Champlain. The reception was right nearby and was a great time with a photo booth (provided by me), a great DJ and a touching send-off of lanterns for parents who could not be there. The sunset on the lake was fantastic that evening and we took advantage by taking some impromptu portraits of them. Thanks Lindsey and Patrick for allowing me to be a part of it!
]]>
Michelle and Michael were married at All Souls Interfaith Church in Shelburne Vermont. It's a very intimate location that is a great choice for a wedding. They also chose a great time of year in Vermont and the foliage did not disappoint. This venue has a great view of the Adirondack Mountains and if it had not been for some rain moving in, we would have been able to see a great sunset. Fortunately, it held off until the reception and we were still able to make images like the ones below. Their ceremony even included a vocal number by Michelle and I was very fortunate to be able to be a part of it!
]]>
The month of September has been crazy for senior portrait shoots. I started the month with Kyleigh. A pretty young woman with a great personality who will graduate in 2015 from Enosburg High School here in Vermont. Our shoot took place at a local State park and we found lots of locations to make images. Her parents even lent a hand with lighting and scrims. Congrats to Kyleigh and her family.
]]>
These images were made in their garage by using one speedlight for most of the shots and a second for some of them to light up key areas. My main light used one strip softbox and the other having a small strip box from Rogue Imaging. I shot tethered into my laptop so I could easily view the lighting results and used a Nikon D700 (haven't found a better replacement) and a new Tamron 24-70 2.8 VC. The interior images were lighted with one speedlight bounced from the back seat onto white paper gaffer taped to the ceiling.
Thanks so much to the guys at Special Services for making this happen and especially Dave Tift and Rich Kelley! I plan to do another shoot with Monty this summer. If anyone knows someone who has a similar aged vehicle (not police) who would like to help and be rewarded with pics of their car, please have them contact me. I am kind of diggin' this auto photography so if anyone likes these and wants some of their own, use the contact page. Thanks for reading, I hope you like them.
]]>
]]>
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Many people might know that my wife and I have been in public safety for a long time. My wife has been an EMT and then a Paramedic for 17 years. These folks (mostly volunteers) are there, day and night giving comfort to the sick and saving those who are near death. Being around them for a long time gave me appreciation for the work they do. So having this in mind, I had the thought to do a shoot with one of the crews at Colchester Rescue and give them some images that they probably would never have seen before and could also use for their annual Family Fun and Safety Night. I told my wife that I needed a crew that was both willing to do it, and would have fun while doing it. She gave me a choice of a few crews and I definitely think I chose the right one. (Not that all of their EMT's wouldn't have been willing and they are all a fun-loving group!)
I wanted to do some individual shots and a group set up that would both show the camaraderie they have and the seriousness of their job. We started around 6:30 PM and I knew that the group shot I envisioned would include the spectacular waterfront that Colchester has. This meant I was fighting time against the sunset and had to get some of the individuals done before moving to the park near Lake Champlain. I set up a quick shot near one of their ambulances and tried to use it as the background for my models. Using just one speedlight through an umbrella I was able to light them with some great light and a simple set-up. As you can see from the production shot, I was trying to get a fairly low angle. I also used another gelled flash on a radio trigger to throw some red light light to the rear of one of the shots to give the background some depth.
After, we moved to the waterfront and set up a shot with the sun setting behind the truck. I posed the crew in a manner that would sort of give them an action figure feeling. I know they wouldn't agree, but I think they played the part well. I used a large 43" softbox with two speedlights this time since I thought I would need the power to light a large group. I was able to make them the focal point and still include the truck that is their office by using a 24-70 lens set to 35mm. Some tweaking in Lightroom in post and I had the shot I saw in my head.
The crew moved back to the station and since it was now dark, we wanted to try to make some cool shots as if they were responding out of the garage. The image at the top was shot with ambient light only, and one flash placed on the dash, again with a red gell. The two guys played up to the idea of this shot and gave me some great poses to choose from.
Finally, I shot the annual squad photo for CRS and had a ball doing so. They have such an easy going group of folks that it's hard to not make great pics with them.
Thanks to CRS for allowing me to shoot their event and especially to Ben, Katherine, Tonia, and Peter for volunteering to be models for me! You guys are the best and your work is very much appreciated.
I spent the last four days in Orlando, FL learning from the best photographers in the world. I entered a contest back in January with Kelby Training and won a full conference pass to Photoshop World 2013. This is a collaboration between Kelby Training and the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP). It features classes in photography, lighting, graphic design, and of course, Photoshop. The three days of classes are taught by photographers who have worked for the largest magazines such as National Geographic and Sports Illustrated, worked in commercial photography for many years and are experts in the field.
By the way, except for "Amelia", these are all iPhone snapshots.
The day before the conference, I was able to attend a day long session with Joe McNally. He has created spectacular photography for 35 years and is known as being the master of lighting with small and large strobes, having secured many covers of National Geographic. The class was called Characters on Location: Telling Stories in Light.
After a classroom discussion on how light works and what makes good and bad lighting, we were transported to a studio in downtown Orlando where Joe’s staff had set up five sets with professional models. The sets included studio strobes, small off camera flash, constant lights, and natural lighting outdoors. We were able to make our way to each set, direct the models, adjust the lighting and have fun creating great images. All the while, Joe and his staff were there to give tips, share their knowledge and help us get the most out of the class. The class was definitely worth the cost and as you might have seen in my recent Facebook post, I made some fine images. 
The next three days at the conference were hectic! Two 12 hour days on Wednesday and Thursday brought some tired feet and lots of photographic knowledge. I was able to attend classes on the business side of photography such as forms and copyrights and using social media to keep in touch with clients. Classes I attended also included using Photoshop to finish images, lighting for portraits and weddings, sports photography, compositing images, and using remote cameras. The last is something I plan to do more of this year in gymkhana so look out for those images this year.
Here's one of the pictures I made during the week...
There was also an expo for shopping (yeah!) with even more free classes. I didn’t spend much here but I am sure that I’ll be looking at some of the products soon. One of the ones I plan to buy is from Image Wizards. They print on metal. That’s right...aluminum sheets. Their products are so detailed with such rich colors that it’s hard to believe they are printed with ink. The prints are just spectacular and I plan to get one soon for a spot that has been reserved in my office.
Finally, the session titled ‘The Art of Digital Photography’ was an evening of slides from eight of the best photographers including McNally, Dave Black, Moose Petersen, Jay Maisel, Julianne Kost, Joe Glyda, and Jim Divitale. 
This was a night of inspiration and creativity with everything from a slide presentation on making a project out of a closet light pull chain (seriously) to climbing the tallest building in the world in Dubai just to take a photo.
I left the conference with lots of new ideas for shoots and a better knowledge of how to make your (and my) pictures better. Thanks for reading.
]]>
So a few weeks ago, I posted a blog with shots from a shoot with one of the police cruisers at my other job. The idea was to use them as promotional items and for our display boards at the local home show. The pics were a great hit and we had a great time making them. So, I decided I wanted to do some portraits of a couple of our tactical officers in full gear. I wanted to give the pics the look of what you might see in ESPN the Magazine or something similar. Sort of the grungy, manly look, that is so popular with athletes now. So we set up the shoot in the basement of our City Hall since this had a rough, worn look that would give the impression of the types of areas where our tactical team might be used. Our team is used to serve warrants, resolve barricaded subjects and respond to critical incidents that have the potential to turn violent. If these guys come knocking on your door, you've done something you shouldn't have!
The shoot turned out to be very fun and both of my team-mates were really cooperative. You wouldn't know it from the serious looks on their faces, but they were having a blast between mugging for the camera and the other officers off scene giving them grief! A few of the out-takes are priceless but I have been sworn to never show them.
For those of you wondering about equipment, settings and such: All shots were done with a Nikon D700 with between one and three small flashes for lighting. I used a softbox for the main light and the others as accent lights from the rear. The rear ones had grids attached to narrow the light and keep it directed. The images were processed in both Lightroom and Photoshop, using extra sharpening and other filters to give them the look I wanted.
I really enjoyed working with these guys and we made some great images. We don't often get the chance to be photographed and portrayed in a good light in our line of work so I know the guys liked the final product. My plan is to do more of this type of work to include other emergency workers such as Fire and EMS. I don't believe we appreciate what these folks give of themselves everyday to keep us safe. Look for more of this in the future.
As always, thanks for reading!
]]>
If you didn't attend the 2013 Big Change Round-up last weekend at Jolley Stables in Colchester, you missed a great time! This event was for charity and is the project of Fletcher Allen Health Center and local radio station WOKO to benefit the Vermont Children's Hospital. It was organized with the help of Erin Longworth of Erin Longworth Performance Horses in Milton. We had plenty of competitors from kids who were trying gymkhana for the first time to riders who are experienced on the local gymkhana
circuit. One of them is Ashely Rae Smith who asked me to attend and try to get some great images from the day. I agreed and then offered to donate a 2 hour portrait session that came with a free 11x14 print. There were lots of great prizes given away that had been donated by several local businesses. It was the first competition of the season for most and although at first you could see there was a little rust on the horses from the long winter, it soon was gone and they looked like they were back in the game. From the smiles on the faces I saw, I think this was a success and will be held again next year!
For those that are not aware, gymkhana is a series of games that involves pole bending, barrel racing and jumping. The action is usually challenging enough to capture, but this event being held inside made it even more so. The darkness of the arena and the windows at the top of the walls made the exposures pretty challenging. I was faced with either lighting the area with secondary sources (not easy and the horses might be affected by flash) or high ISO's. I chose the ISO's and my Nikon's were up to it. A little noise reduction in Lightroom and we made some great images. 
(Left) This pony gave his opinion of gymkhana... must be an open show horse!
(Right) Ivy obviously having a good time, but then, when doesn't she?
Thanks to everyone who have already bought pics from this! See you next year. More info on the Big Change Round-up can be found here. Make sure to leave me a comment if you like what you see or have something else you want to see, or whatever.
]]>
OK, so maybe not everyone will think this view of a police cruiser is beautiful, especially in your rearview mirror. But. this week I did a shoot that was something new for me. I have never thought I would be into automotive photography, but after watching an online class, I decided to try it. I wanted to try a subject that would be really cool, and yet be accessible. Not knowing anyone who owns a Ferrari or Lamborghini or other exotic cars, I decided to use a subject that only I would have access to. Since my ‘other’ job allows me access to police cruisers, I thought I could do a shoot with one of our newest. Further, the shoot would be used to promote the Police Department and to update our display boards for the upcoming show season.
The 2013 Ford Police Interceptor is a really great vehicle. While it’s only a 6 cylinder, Ford has really gotten the most out of it and it can accelerate with the Dodge Charger. It only loses out to the HEMI on the top speed category. Even better, it’s all wheel drive and in this part of the country, we need it, believe me. The black and white paint scheme would make for some challenging, but attractive images and we wanted to capture shots that would be dramatic. This car is equipped with an automated license plate reader. You can just see the cameras on the trunk in the pic of the rear of the car. The technology that's inside today's police vehicles is really incredible. From in car video cameras to laptop computers (the next generation will be tablets) and better radio equipment; Officers have to be familiar with many different pieces of equipment.
I say we in that I had my friend Jason assisting. We used only one light, a small hot-shoe flash, for this whole shoot. It was placed inside a 10x36 strip softbox with Pocket Wizard Plus III’s. We also shot tethered into Lightroom the whole time and this allowed us to see the details of the shots as we took them. Most of the shots were done with a Nikon D700 and 24-70 zoom but Jason even used his D3100 and an 18-55 kit lens for the side view, which goes to show that you do not need an expensive camera to do great work. We went around the car trying to get details and overviews of the car that could be used to show the technology of the car and yet capture the style also.
Thanks for reading. If anyone has any questions or comments, be sure to leave one at the bottom.
Are you boarding at a barn? Maybe a barn manager who wants to offer something different? How about friends who all own and love horses? This year I am offering a group rate for barn owners or groups of friends that want to have pictures with their horses. Here's the deal:
- Gather at least three people. (Possibly more depending on travel)
- Choose a contact. This can be the barn owner, or anyone who wants to be the person who signs others up. This person may get their session discounted or even free depending on how many people sign up. I can supply you with materials to promote the sessions but you sign up the people.
- We will choose a day to shoot, then each person will choose a session time. If you don't all keep your horses at the same place, that's OK, we can decide on a location that works for everyone.
- On the day, I go to your barn or where ever the group chooses and we make great images!
The session fee will be $100 each (a 33% savings off my normal rate) with a non-refundable deposit of $50 at the time we book. The fee is on a per horse/per person basis. What's this get you? At least an hour of shooting time, a DVD with all of the images suitable for the web (Facebook, etc), your own gallery on my website where you can view the images for 6 months and can order prints and all kinds of other great stuff with your horse on it! Plus a great time taking pics with your horse, your friends and their horses!
Email me if you are interested in setting up a group or for more info.
]]>A tip for anyone ordering prints. If you want extra protection and to give them a real quality look, specify lustre coating when you order. It gives them a satin sheen that really makes them pop.
Also, my site managing company has added a new vendor that produces screen printed items from digital images. In addition to prints and such, I now offer book marks, keychains and Iphone and Ipad cases that can be printed with your favorite photos.
Finally, I've gotten a few requests for CD's with bulk images on them. People have asked about picking out their favorite images and being able to obtain a CD with all of them on it. Well, I now offer that, but in digital form minus the CD. If this is something you'd like, here's the instructions:
- register an account on my site
- Go to the top right of the gallery page and click 'select photos'. A series of black dots will appear on the pictures. Just click the ones you want, then click 'add to favorites'.
- At the top left, you'll see 'my selection', click this and then 'edit my selection'.
- A page will come up with all of the photos you have selected. Then click 'send to...' in the top left.
- There will be a pop up that says 'send to photographer'. Fill this info out and the ones you selected will be sent to me as a notification.
- Now go to the Home Page, select Investment, then Purchase Bulk Images.
- Hover over the 'Buy" button at the top right and then click 'select product.
- A window will pop up and ask you to choose either up to 50 images ($30.00) or up to 100 images ($55.00). Choose the one you want with the number of images you selected before and then follow the checkout process. You can pay with Paypal that will allow you to use a credit card if you choose.
- Once I am notified payment has been made, I will send an email with the password for a gallery created specially with your selected images. You'll be able to download them from there.
I can also send this in the traditional form on a CD if you'd like and if you want this option, specify this in the comments section when you send your favorites to me. The images will be in a low resolution format (72 dpi) suitable for using on a computer screen. Since I normally charge .99 cents for each picture, this is a great way to get all of the images you like from an event or or whole year!
Thanks everyone... see you soon!
]]>
I cannot tell you how many times I and other photographers hear those words. It seems that some people believe that the more expensive camera you own, the better the pictures. And while it's true that more expensive cameras have more features and probably use interchangeable lenses, it's more about the technique of the photographer and most importantly...their creativity! (Don't tell the camera manufacturers who want to sell more cameras) So, how can someone with a point and shoot or basic digital SLR make pictures like the pros? That's what I'm going to discuss in this blog.
First some basic info about photography and cameras in general. Cameras work by exposing something to light. Whether that's traditional film or a digital sensor, all photography is done in this manner. Photographers control this by adjusting three elements: ISO, shutter speed and aperture.
- ISO is simply the sensitivity of the sensor or film to light. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the sensor. So if you increase the sensitivity of the sensor, you can take pictures with less light. But, the higher the ISO, the lower the quality of image is captured so you need to be careful with this. With the newer cameras, such as my Nikons, this is almost a non-issue as they can produce images with very good quality at higher ISO's.
- Shutter speed controls how long the shutter, or curtain, is open. A shutter speed of 1/60th is slower than one of 1/2000 since the shutter is only open for 1/60th a second versus 1/2000th of a second. Faster shutter speeds of 1/800th a second or faster are needed to capture moving subjects such as the one at the top.
- Finally, aperture is the size of the hole that light is allowed to come through before reaching the sensor or film. Without going into a huge explanation of this, basically, a smaller aperture such as f16 will allow you to keep more of the image in focus versus f4 where only the subject is in focus. (f4 is my basic aperture for shooting sports such as Gymkhana)
So, knowing these basics, I can make some recommendations for better pictures from any camera:
Take it off automatic and try different settings! With digital, we no longer have to worry about buying film and processing. If you don't like what you see, just delete it. Practice, practice, practice... it applies in everything we do in life.
Use good shooting technique to steady the camera. Shooting pictures is very similar to shooting guns in that is the camera is not steady, you may get blurry photos or miss the target. So, hold the camera in close to your body, use your left hand to steady it underneath and use a rest whenever possible. If you've seen me shooting at a show or other place when I have a long lens on the camera, I eithe
r have a monopod or am using something to steady my shot. This is key for sharp pictures.
Remember to check your background. Distractions and objects in the background will detract from your pictures since it draws the viewer's eye to the background instead of the subject. Try to use an angle that eliminates distractions. This includes making sure their isn't a tree branch "sticking out" of the subject's head. Sometimes, using a larger aperture will allow you to keep your subject in focus and throw the background out of focus.
Along these lines, using a lower vantage point when shooting subjects will make them seem more imposing to the viewers. Children should be shot (no, not really) from their level. Looking down on a small subject just makes it appear that much smaller. So, the next time you take a picture of your child, get down on one knee or the floor.
Use good composition. There are volumes of books written on this subject alone. This essentially involves trying to compose a picture that will be pleasing to the viewer's eye while including the parts of the photo that are important. A good starter is to avoid "bulls-eying" the main subject in the middle of the frame. Try moving the subject to either side or up or down and see what you like better.
Finally, remember to look at the direction and quality of light. The most pleasing pictures will usually be taken either early in the morning or later in the evening. This is because the light at those times is lower in the sky and is softer. The harsh light of mid-day can put shadows on a subject's face and cause them to squint. If you have to shoot in these conditions, try to find shade or face the subject away from the sun.
I hope this is a quick guide to taking better pictures with any camera, including the one you already have. Even a cell phone camera can take some really nice photos if you use great technique. And remember, pro photographers don't just use more expensive cameras, they have the knowledge to use them to take the best pictures. Now get out there and shoot!
]]>
I was asked this past winter if I would consider covering the 2012 Trail Challenge at Everything Equine and I immediately said yes! Little did I know that I would have the opportunity to meet so many great people and watch a really challenging event. The event is held inside the exhibition hall at the Champlain Valley Fair and this in itself made my work more interesting. Limited available daylight from one end and primary lighting from flourescent lights above made getting the correct white balance and keeping a high enough shutter speed real issues. Thanks to Nikon and Adobe Lightroom I was able to deal with it pretty well. I found that my cameras are able to deal with ISO's of over 2000 without a problem. For those of you who use D-SLR's I can testify that in challenging lighting like this, shooting in RAW is the way to go. The images from the shoot are here.
As I started the day, I wanted to capture the emotions of the competitors and the first few images show the seriousness of their faces. You could tell they were anxious about the course and during the pre-event meeting, they were no different than NFL players on Sunday afternoon. All business. (With over $2700 in prize money and a top prize of $1500 at stake, who could blame them!) The competitors did a walk through with their horses and found some interesting obstacles that simulated real-life problems they would have to deal with when trail riding. From the simulated forest fire where the horses would be blind folded, to the 14 inch balance beam, to the dreaded 'rhoaguephotography' pedestal, they would have their hands full.
One by one, the competitors went through the course, the object being to complete the course the fastest (each obstacle in under 30 seconds), while scoring points with the judges for doing so using proper technique. The balance beam and the pedestal turned out to be the toughest portions as you can image. Asking a 1200 pound animal to walk over a beam or stand with all four feet on a pedestal and getting them to do it still amazes me. I thought the organizers of the event, Northwest Riding and Driving Club's Extreme Cowboy Race Committee, were very creative in the design of the obstacles with the simulated fire (fans with red/yellow paper streamers blowing upwards) being my personal favorite.
You could tell as the event went on that the competitors started to get a little more comfortable after seeing some of their peers go though it. Smiles started to appear on those serious faces and by the end, you could tell that win or lose, everyone had a great time!
Congratulations to Michelle Hoyt and her horse Cayenne in taking the top prize and winning the event! She and Cayenne made the course look easy although you could tell how much time she has put into training for these events. Time well spent I'm sure!
So thanks to the Extreme Cowboy Race Committee for having me and I hope to be there next year. I'd encourage everyone who reads this to attend also.
]]>
My interest in photography began in 1986 when I signed up for a photography class in high school because I figured it would be a great class that would keep me near the graphic arts room I loved being in. Little did I know that I would begin to love photography so much that it would become a large part of who I am. Being able to create images furthered my artistic ability and to this day I get excited about looking at an image for the first time. My teacher, Mr. Queary, (anyone who went to MVU will know who I am talking about) was great in that he imparted knowledge about not only f-stops, iso's and shutter speeds, but also about succeeding in life. The darkroom was a place where I learned to make chemicals and silver work together to make prints. A Pentax k100 and later an Olympus OM were my first experience with real cameras and they were fantastic to learn on if you wanted to know more than point and shoot. Rolling your own film and processing it gives you a great idea of what to expect from a processor when you start relying on them to do it for you.
The picture below is of a friend of mine who volunteered to be a subject while learning different portrait lighting techniques. Thanks Becky! I found this last week and it brought back a lot of memories of those days. We had a simple set up with two incandescent fixtures, a white sheet background and the camera on a tripod. In these times of 50000 point auto focus, 1 million ISO and 100o megapixel cameras, I found myself thinking about Tri-X black and white film.
Since then, we've had the digital revolution and this peaked my interest in new technology. Learning Photoshop, Lightroom, printing and all of the other things that go along with it has been a real process and as any photographer will tell you, an expensive one. It sure is tough to keep up with the latest cameras, computers, etc. But being able to fully control what happens to your images after they come out of the camera was one of the greatest developments (pardon the pun) ever! No more do we have to rely on what the print machine at the Photomat thinks our prints should look like or depend on the new kid to process our slides. We can do it all at home!
So then one day, I was asked to shoot a wedding for a friend and realized that I could make money with my camera. I liked it so I shot a few more and even started with stock images. I was published when I sold a digital copy of a slide that I shot of carrots and horse grain to Horse Illustrated Magazine. In addition, I have shot landscapes, portraits, macro, sports, and anything else that I thought was interesting. Life changes slowed me down some but I now have time again to concentrate on making this a business and while starting slowly, I am hoping to expand more in the coming year.
]]>