EXIF: 50mm 1.2 lens • 1/200 • f/4.5 • ISO 400

SOOC Image

The second image shows just the darkening of the background blanket as described above, plus fixes to the skin and luminosity changes with curves. 

Going a step further, I added a funky texture to the background to create an artistic feel and add more of a surreal look. Play around with the blending modes when adding textures, as you never know what you’ll get with a lesser used blending mode. One of the very best places I’ve discovered for FREE textures that ROCK is Shadowhouse Creations. Jerry Jones is the incredibly talented and generous creator behind a slew of awesome textures. You must check out his site and if you do download his textures, LEAVE HIM A COMMENT thanking him. Generous souls like him are few and far between and he deserves to be thanked. Hope you’ve enjoyed this before and after. Cheers!

Check out this little beauty! I’m not sure what’s in the air, but I’ve had a slew of 8-month-olds lately. Baby Maryn is the 3rd 8-month-old this month to grace my camera. Isn’t she beyond precious? Scroll down and look at her gorgeous parents and it’s easy to see where this angel gets her stunning baby blues and adorableness!  Here’s a few (okay, maybe more than a few) from our session last week. Thanks guys for a lovely morning. Hope you love your biggie sized sneak peek.  

These beauties simply blew me away. Sweet, cute, silly, fun loving and oh so easy to photograph. Traveling all the way from Washington, we had one shot at this session. The skies were a dark grey and foreboding as we drove to our location. We said we would do the best we could given the horrible light and impending thunderstorm. As I drove, I prayed the entire way for the skies to open up and the sweet evening light to shine through. And you know what? Prayers were answered as the intense dark clouds miraculously lifted and the warm setting sun shone its glorious rays upon us. It’s moments like that, when my heart is filled with gratitude and I can’t thank God enough for His provision. On top of that, I had been incredibly sick the night before and even that entire day of the shoot. Come session time, all ill feelings were gone and I was ready to rock and roll, crawling around in the grass and playing with these darling sisters, capturing some of my favorite images to date. Thank you Maci for driving out of your way for a stop in Sheridan and a photo session with me. My hope is that you love the preview. And stay tuned, as this just might be my next featured session with all the images posted in a slideshow. Here’s to answered prayers and beautiful girls.

By the way, THIS is a perfect example of what to wear for a photo session…. colorful and perfectly coordinated (never matchy matchy)!!!

Baby Gabby was such a sick little girl the first day we shot. She ended up going to the hospital after the shoot. I had no idea she was as ill as she was. But what a trooper, as she still gave a few precious smiles that first day. And I bet you can’t tell from the photos which day was which. Even sick, she was lovely. However, needless to say, we met back up a week or so later and what a different little peanut she was! This is session two in her baby plan. You can see her 3 month shoot here. I just adore this sweetpea. At 8+ months, she’s such a gem and the kind of baby that makes me rethink having another.

One of the things I walked away from the workshop realizing is just how valuable one-on-one learning really is. Sure, the workshop was an amazing and positive experience in a fantastically beautiful location and the synergy that was created among all the ladies that attended was undeniable. But, in a group setting like that, there’s never enough time to address all the specific needs of each individual person; to really hone in on what each of them needs and cover the massive ground of editing for a group with disparate knowledge. This really hit home to me and simply reinforced my belief in how valuable a one-on-one, in-person workshop or online mentorship really is. It’s just you and me. All your questions addressed. It’s based on and designed with your specific needs in mind. There is so much more to be gained by having a learning experience tailored specifically for you. If you think mentoring sounds like something that would benefit you and your business, please click on the mentoring icon at the top of the blog for more details, then email me for specifics. I’m booking about 1.5 months in advance.

•••••••••

With all that in mind, I think it’s important to feature some before and after images here on the blog more regularly. So, beginning today, I’ll be posting before and after edit shots once a week with a little info on them. Hope you enjoy them, I know I always find before and afters fascinating and informative, even without explanation.

EXIF: 70-200 2.8 lens • 1/320 • f/3.2 • 80mm • ISO 640 • distance of 2.5 meters from subject.

During post processing, the image was warmed up to give an ethereal feel, keeping the greenery from becoming grossly vibrant and distracting. Focus is brought to the subject with a darker, softer background that fades away. Using a long lens and a wide aperture helps to create that feel. Cropping is essential and this crop places her nearly in the rule of thirds, creating a pleasing composition.

ETA:

I was asked why I shot at such a high ISO. (640 on the Mark2 isn’t really a problem when exposed correctly) In order to have an acceptable shutter speed for a moving baby (believe me, she bobbled a lot) and an aperture that was almost wide open, the ISO had to be that high to expose properly. Shooting people in shade and underexposing will result in nasty grain and grey noise on their skin that isn’t easy to PS away. I ETTR (expose to the right) when shooting, because it gives nicer, creamier skin tones in post. — hope that helps.

Please let me know if these before and afters are something you’d like to see more of. Your comments and feedback are what bolster me to what to share. Thanks!!!