SunBounce Micro Mini

Emily and I went out to take some test shot for a wedding on Saturday. I thought about using this as a possible location to shoot photos but we ended up canning the idea anyway. All that was used was a reflector from California Sunbounce and the cameras where a Canon 5D Mark II with a 24-70mm f/2.8 and a Canon Mark III with a 135mm f/2.

Portraits

Lately I have been shooting a lot of portraits. I just got back from Maine and realized that I have developed a much strong passion for portrait photography. Before I was really diggin' the landscape and fine art stuff but while in Maine I didn't have that much of a desire to shoot landscapes rather shoot portraits in the landscapes. My grandparents live in Maine in the summer time and I usually drive them out and help open up the house and get stuff turned on. This year I wanted to get a nice portrait of each of them for the family to remember them. With grandpa all the grandchildren have been fishing with him and one point in time and grandma has made all of us hundred of slippers. I ran with those ideas and was really limited to resources since all I had was my cameras, lens, and two flashes (Canon 580 II and Canon 550). I had no stands, no reflectors, no remotes, etc.

This is what I was able to mock up out of cardboard, tinfoil, ducktape, and a garbage bag...

Bay City Skate Park

Spring brings new life and new adventures. The weather is starting to take a turn for the better and its bringing life back into the city. The other day I ran down to the local skate park with my cousins. Rarely do I travel anywhere without my camera and its a good thing because there was some serious talent out at the skate park that day. Here are some shots:

Staff Portraits

Last week I had the pleasure of shooting the staff portraits for Bay Valley Christian Church in Bay City, MI. I have been attending BVCC for almost a year now and have had the opportunity to get to know some great people. They are currently developing a new website and needed portraits of the new staff members. I took the studio on location and set up in the lobby of the church. Simple set up 2 Nikon Sb-800 with umbrellas, triggered with PocketWizard transceivers. These were some of the best people to work with and had a great time hangin out with them. These are some of the out takes mixed with some keepers.

Research Project

Graduate school at Saginaw Valley State University has really pushed me to look at the photography industry from a different perspective. I have started a research project looking into how photographers are using Facebook.com. More and more photographers and other small businesses are jumping on this band-wagon. They are using Facebook to target specific groups of people. This is a new concept to alot of people but one that is pretty effective. There will be more to come on this topic.

New camera lens: Canon 24-70 f/2.8
I have been putting off buying this lens for a while, why, i have no idea. The lens is great and very universal. This was shot at my house this past weekend in terrible lighting conditions but that lens did a great job on the Canon Mark III.

Take The City · Michael Jr

From time to time Saginaw Valley State University puts on a good show.  Unfortunately, its the good shows that are the most over looked.  No matter how much time and energy gets put into advertising these event; they tend to be a flop.  Once again, a great show, but a short turn out.  Take The City a local band from Bay City came out and did the opening for comedian Michael Jr.