Posts Tagged ‘Photo Tips’

March 22nd, 2010

MamaBloo Photo Tale: The Technical versus The Soul

For those of you who have been following Me Ra and Brian’s Thailand Adventures Part Deux,  you know – like I do – what an amazing (both in good and bad ways)   trip it has been so far.

I gotta tell ya, I had been working on a photo tale to share with you all that was about lighting.  But, after reading what has been going on in Thailand and Cambodia, it just wasn’t working for me to think about the technical aspects of photography right now.  I have been so inspired by the SOUL of photography after reading Me Ra’s posts.

And, frankly, my family and I have been put through the ringer these last few weeks.  Oh, nothing like almost perishing on an airplane or facing the harrowing reality of orphans being sold on the street for $10.   And especially nothing like facing some crazy jungle fever! But the kind of “stop and take stock” that is uncomfortable.  I described it on MamaBloo as losing my OOMPH.  But the bottom line is that it looks like my days as a Stay at Home Mom may be over.  I knew they would come to an end someday and I absolutely acknowledge and embrace what a gift the past five years has been.  But I haven’t been ready to jump back into working full time, and with a 12 month old at home, my heart just feels on the verge of breaking when I think about leaving her.  I mean, like big chunks of my heart falling off of my soul.

So, I picked up my camera. Hoping it would soothe me.

I looked at my baby girl and there she was dressed in her brother’s hand-me-down tie dye shirt, our only green option for St. Patrick’s Day:

 

And then I went back through my 100s and 100s of pictures.  Looking for just the right ones.  The ones that said, “this is my baby… my Emme.”

And I realized something.

That even if my white balance isn’t right:

Or the lighting isn’t the best.

Or something just isn’t quite a masterpiece:

Or I still need to work on how to set all the dials and knobs on my camera:

I can still capture the soul of my child.

And that is just what I needed to know.

(Stay tuned – that Photo Tale on lighting is still coming!)

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February 11th, 2010

MamaBloo Photo Tale: Turning The “Story” on its Ear

I feel like if you give me a laptop, a cup-o-coffee, and some time alone, I can tell a pretty good story.  Better yet, put me among friends, feed me, and give me the floor and I can PERFORM a good story.

 

But I am still working on telling the story with my camera.

I am probably being hard on myself.  Ugh, I say.  Do I have to “tell the story” or can I just line the kids up, put the camera settings on the dreaded green box, and yell “SAY CHEESE” and snap the picture.

I know, I know… I can just hear Me Ra’s gasp, can’t you???

What’s a mom to do?

Outsourcing.

So, I handed my $900 camera to my 4 year old son, Ty. “YOU take the pictures today,”  I say.  He beams.  I give him a quick lesson on the basics  –  viewfinder, thingy on back to look at the picture he just took, camera strap (a must!).  Then I set the camera on aperature priority and I turned on all the lights in our house and opened the curtains wide.  And I let him tell HIS OWN STORY.

Then I got out of his way.

How he sees the world made me stop.   One time a while back my then-8-year-old, Izzy said, “Adults get wrapped up in the craziest things sometimes.”  And that quote came to mind when I looked at Ty’s shots.

What he saw was not what I would have photographed.  But it was worth my time.  A fleeting moment of Daddy re-filling the ketchup bottle.

 

 

Mommy’s Desk.

 

Mommy, working on her blog and not looking her best.  But he tells me that I am the “prettiest mommy in the whole world.”  Het tells me I am “wonderful pretty.”

 

 

Part of a toy.

 

 

As Me Ra and Brian head back to Thailand, I think back to a post she wrote on how the people in Thailand really SEE kids and that Blaze noticed this.  He said he “felt invisible” in America. 

Then I thought, THIS is what my son sees.  This is his world.  This is the story he chose to tell with the camera. Although I have a need to photograph him from top to bottom AND in such a way that my love for him somehow translates into digital pixels, that is purely MY need.  HIS need is for ME to see his world the way he sees it.  And, today I did because I handed him my camera.  Today, photography taught me to slow down and really think about my child, my baby boy, and how he must see the world from only a few feet off the ground. 

He turned my paradigm of “Telling the Story” on its ear.  And I am so glad he did.  Because I think I’ll go a bit easier on myself next time I pick up my camera.  It’s not just about me afterall…

Click here to read Me Ra’s post mentioned above about Blaze feeling invisible.

Come visit me at MamaBloo and check in with my other tales!

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January 7th, 2009

Time to Vote and Clear 500 on Your Favorite Inspirational Object!

An object. Is it possible for an object to strike emotion in us? Can it move us even though it isn’t alive? If there is no face smiling back at us, can we still feel a deep connection? After seeing the awesome work from our Top Five Finalists for the Inspirational Object contest, you may say yes to all the above!

If you are new to the blog, let me catch you up.

Way back when, we opened a photo contest for the most Inspirational Object. Remember that, feels like years ago! :)

Well, let’s fast forward to today! What better way to start the new year than be inspired by the Top Five Finalists for the Inspirational Object Photo Contest!

You will love these images, but you can only vote for one! See voting guidelines, FAQ, and prize info below.

For now, meet your talented finalists and be inspired!

Finalist #1, 1930′s Piano, by Julie

I wish I could do a post of all the piano images that were submitted b/c they remind me of the baby’s feet images from yesterday’s post. So many of you sent piano images, and each one was different in perspective. Each image was well done! We picked Julie’s as one of the five finalists b/c of the unique angle she shot from.

The piano fills the frame. The keys blur off the bottom corner of the image and you feel like the piano goes on forever and forever. I don’t know about you, but I also felt like I was sitting at the piano. The image composition is that inviting, drawing us in. The post process Julie chose was also well done. The vintage, sepia tones lends to that timeless feeling. But more than the timeless feeling, it makes one feel like the piano is magical, almost weightless. These are just a few things that come to mind when I see Julie’s beautiful image. What comes to your mind? Thank you Julie! Your image is wonderful! Check out Julie’s blog too!

Finalist #2, Asher’s Onsie, by Jennifer

The image alone is striking b/c of the meaning it holds. From a photography perspective, we loved how Jennifer composed this image. There are a couple elements that stick out to us that make her image stand out. I love that the onsie is hanging on the doorknob b/c it adds instant emphasis to how small this little one is. We already know the one who wears this is a baby, but Jennifer helps accentuate that point by hanging the onsie on the doorknob. And what I like even more than the doorknob is the blurred crib in the background. If this was intentional, BRAVO Jennifer! She also shoots down on the onsie to give the effect of it looking smaller and then there is a slight camera tilt which adds a little motion to the image. All these little details combined equal a great image. Jennifer also has a great blog! Be sure to check that out! And now to keep you from suspense, here is the story behind this sweet onsie.

Asher’s onsie is my inspirational object because it reminds me of how big miracles come in small packages. Asher is the son of a friend of mine who has overcome challenges he was born with. He had a heart defect and major open-heart surgery when he was born, and now at almost a year he is free of most of his medication and has a clean bill of health. I myself was born with a heart defect as a preemie twin born at 28 weeks weighing two pounds and two ounces and had life-saving surgery at two weeks old.

Finalist #3, Love and Coffee, by J.P.

J.P.’s image stuck out to us because of how warm his composition was (no pun intended :) ). The story behind why this coffee mug is his Inspirational Object will warm you right up. (pun intended :) )

My wife and I met in our favorite local coffee shop; I was 24, she was 19–far too young for me. I liked her an awful lot, though, and over the next year we spent a lot of time talking over coffee. Eventually, I realized that she was too amazing to keep at a distance, and so, sitting in our coffee shop, I asked her if she’d like to start seeing me romantically. She said yes, and a few years later said yes again when I asked her to marry me at that same table in the same coffee house. This cup and another like it were given to us by the wonderful owner of the coffee shop. They were the last two remaining of the old style of cups that had gradually been replaced by shinier, whiter cups that lacked the character of the old mugs. I love the chips and the stains in our matching coffee cups–they remind me that, although we’re bound to get banged up a little bit, we’re going to continue to bring one another warmth and comfort for years and years to come.

What did I tell you? Isn’t that a great story! But the story isn’t the reason why J.P.’s image was picked. A handful of you sent coffee mug images too, but J.P.’s soft lighting and buttery, blurry background guided my eye into the significance of this one mug. The lighting and blur played hand in hand in making this image give off a warm energy. J.P., was this window light that you used? I only ask b/c of how beautiful and soft the lighting is. There is also background in the image, but the background is intentionally blurred and the blur almost accentuates the solid colored mug. Even the light colored coffee inside the mug adds to the softness of the story behind this image. I don’t know if J.P. meant to, but it feels like he thought of every detail in composing an image of a single coffee mug. Great job J.P.! Thank you for submitting!

Finalist #4, Tic Tacs, by Ashley

The story behind this image reminded me of Brian and the kids, except we always buy little packs of gum. Not only are you going to love Ashley’s story, but don’t you love her composition of this image? It’s awesome. The low F stop with the tic tacs blurred in the foreground, and how Ashley filled the frame. Great job Ashely! You took a simple object and really brought it to life. Thank you for sharing! Here is Ashley’s story in the email she sent me;

The tic tac tradition started when I was a little girl. My mom would put orange tic tac’s in my brother and my Christmas stockings at first. Then she would hide them in my bag when I would go to my dad’s house on the weekend as a kid, go on vacation, or leaving home for college. Now, as a grown woman, she still hides tic tacs in my bag when I leave her house from a visit. Over time, orange tic tacs became a reminder of her love and strength when she wasn’t with me. A month ago, my husband and I went to see her for a visit. When I got home, I found these in my bag.

Finalist #5, No Place Like Home, by Yvonne

Red slippers was another popular image that was submitted by many of you. Yvonne’s image really jumped out at us. The sun flare captured in this image added a magic to the shoes. When we think of red slippers we think of the Wizard of Oz and all the magic of the movie. I remember watching the movie as a little girl and having my own pair of red slippers that I insisted on wearing with my white flower girl dress. :) The shoes were magical to me, and Yvonne has done a great job of capturing a magical element through her use of sun flare. Can’t you almost see those shoes tapping on their own? :) I also like how Yvonne filled the frame with the shoes. The background is free of distraction and all our attention is on the magic of the shoes. Yvonne, I would love to know how you set up this shot! If you are comfortable with sharing that would be great! Thank you for submitting your image, and congrats on becoming one of the Top Five Finalists!

There you have em’! The Top Five Finalists for the Inspirational Object Photo Contest! Each on is truly inspiring. Now you have the tough job of voting for ONE!

FAQ #1: How do you vote?

Answer: Just click on the pink word “Comments” at the end of this blog post. Put the # of photo your voting for first (it makes counting the votes way faster), and then add a few words about why you like their image the most. Remember, your comments and feedback give to the Five Finalists more than any prize from us. Please be kind, encouraging, and share all that you can with these wonderful Five Finalists! Your feedback on their images is priceless! That’s why we do the Random Voter Awards, because we appreciate your voting and feedback so much. So spread the word to family and friends! And ask them to vote!

Please vote only one time for one image. Thanks!

FAQ #2: Is there a Photo happening right now? And when is the Deadline?

Answer: Yes! We picked the theme Simple Gifts Theme right before the holidays. You must send an image that in some way conveys the theme Simple Gifts. The deadline was January 4th, but since I forgot about the contest during my “unplugged” time off, we should extend the deadline. Don’t you think? :) Let’s make the Deadline for Simple Gifts, Sunday, January 25th 2009 PST . Send your images as an attached JPG (small in size) to contest@merakoh.com . Prizes will be as good as what you read below!

FAQ #3: What are the prizes?

Answer: Scroll on down!!

Click here for Seven Quick Photo Tips to photographing your own Inspirational Object!

Prizes for the Winning Finalist and the Random Voter Winners!!______________________________________________________________________________________

Don’t forget to vote before you leave! You could be picked as a Random Voter and win a gift card to Starbucks or a copy of ‘s ! :) Yep, that’s right! You heard me say it correct! (but FYI, remember to check back when I post the Random Voter Winners so you know that you’ve won and can claim your prize! :) )

In our last photo , we had over 487 votes by the cut off time! It was amazing! You all spread the word, and the votes came rolling in! If we clear 500 votes (that’s only 13 more than last time) on this , we are going to pick a Random Voter (not necessarily #500, but a RANDOM Voter) to win a copy of ‘s software again!! And then we’ll keep going and pick two more Random Voters who win a $25 customized, cool looking Starbucks card! So that’s one Random Winner of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and TWO more random winners of $25 customized Starbucks cards, if we clear 500!

Deadline for all voting is this Monday night, 5 days from now, 1/12, at midnight PST!! That means we have to clear 500 votes by that time for two Random Voters to be picked and win !

Prize for being the Winner of the Five Finalists!!!

Now what about the finalist’s prize! What will they get?

Great question! The finalist will get their choice of one of our 101 Kits or the downloadable version of our Refuse to Say Cheese/Beyond the Green Box DVD series. And then , and THEN (we’re hooking our Finalists up for 2009! :) ), they also get to choose between one of two MORE things!

1. Their own copy of Adobe’s Lightroom Software

2. Or the most unique prize ever, a copy of the newly released DVD “See the Light” by Carlos Baez! Watch the trailer by clicking the title. Carlos is not only a dear friend, but he is also a PHENOMENAL photographer who has years experience in the fashion and wedding industry and is now sharing his knowledge on lighting with the wedding and portrait world. This guy is loaded with tips and strategies on lighting. We just got our own copy of his DVD, and I can’t wait to watch it. Carlos is a master with lighting, and on top of that he has a HUGE heart for teaching people. Just watching him work with his clients is amazing. Your business can’t help but go to the next level with this new DVD. Check out his blog! To purchase Carlos’s new DVD, check out the Photography Mentor store. Retail Price for “See the Light” is $175.

Enjoy! VOTE AWAY!!!

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To see our day job , visit here.

For more fun photo exercises, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese , our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a in , click on the words of your choice!

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December 3rd, 2008

The Hardwoods, Last Day Of Sale and Surprise Press!!

You would have laughed if you saw us at 5:45pm last night. Our dinner guests were coming at 6:30pm, we had just returned the Uhaul, ran through the grocery store, and took light speed showers. By 6:15pm we were starting to make dinner, setting the table, attaching the bathroom door back to it’s hinges (which was never completed :) –good thing no one had to go!). When the doorbell rang at 6:30pm, I had wet hair (I never push it this far!). But I was so excited for dinner! The funny thing is that we could have rescheduled, but all the wives will get me on this. If there is a deadline to get the house put back together, deadline being that company is coming, my husband just moves so much faster on his “Honey Do” list. And Brian, moved SUPER fast down that list! He was a rock star for sure! :)

So check out the hardwoods! Before sanding the main floor, the hardwoods were the dark color of our dining room chairs!

I can’t tell you how much BRIGHTER the whole main floor feels! I love it! And you know we need all the light we can get in the Northwest.

Quick reminder, today is the last day of the sale on all our products and the discount for the Atlanta Workshop!

Sale ends at midnight tonight PST! For details, click here!

Again, if your having issues with using your coupon code, email Brian at brian@merakoh.com.

And check this out!!

My publicist just emailed me and said the Sacramento Bee ran an article on our photo tips called “Take Perfect Pictures of a Newborn”. What a treat! I had to share it with you! To read it, click on the title!

But I almost forgot! Here is that promised peak of what I did with those 8 ft branches! I can’t show you a wide frame shot because I want to surprise my family this Christmas. But this gives you a small idea. We mounted the branches on the walls and hung photos underneath with glass balls hung by Christmas ribbon from the branches. The glass balls have candles inside, and at night the room glows. I love it! And the best part, Brian isn’t giving me any more grief about those branches. He’s a believer now too! :)

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The ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY Sale is happening on all our products and the Atlanta Workshop!

It ends Wednesday at midnight PST!!! To see the details, click here!

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October 28th, 2008

Q & A, Segment 2: Top Six Poses for Senior Portrait Shoots!

The Hawk Girl costume tips are great! Here’s my thank you! :)

After last week’s posts on what photography questions do you have, a number of you emailed me about photo coaching teenagers for Senior Portrait Sessions.

Let me start by saying, Seniors are rarely, if ever, impressed with you.

I remember doing a Senior shoot a couple years ago after we had finished working with VH1. I was relaying the story to this Senior and her mom. We had just got back from Maui, and worked with a VH1 film crew for crying out loud. Was this girl impressed? No way. Her mom thought it was amazing, but her daughter seemed more interested in watching the traffic go by then listening to any thing I had to say. And that is how it often goes. Not always, but often enough.

So here’s the post tip: If your Senior seems unimpressed with you, don’t sweat it. Once they see their photos, you’ll see their face light up.

Having said that, what kind of Photo Coaching do we do with Seniors? A mom barking like a dog isn’t going to fly this time. :)

There is so much to say on the topic, but here are the Top Six Photo Coaching Poses we shoot during a Senior Session. Let me know what you think!

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Gina Sook, our Associate Lifestyle Photographer, shoots most of our Senior Portrait sessions. She’s awesome! She has been with us for four years now, and her work is beautiful! Last night, Gina was showing me a recent Senior portrait session. Her photos were awesome! AND, Gina demonstrated all the things I wanted to blog about. She said I could use her images as examples, so here we go!

The TOP SIX PHOTO COACHING POSES for Senior Portrait Shoots!

1. Hands Behind on the Wall and Leaning Forward!

We always do a series of shots where we ask the Senior to place her hands behind her at hip level against a wall. Her hands don’t have to be flat against the wall, just gently placed there. Make sure her bottom is touching the wall too. Then have her lean a bit forward into the camera. This is a slimming pose because it elongates her neck and waste.

This is hard to explain to a Senior, so I advise demonstrating it for them. Don’t touch the Senior. Once you touch them by moving their shoulder or chin, they feel like they can’t relax unless you place them. So keep hands off, and model, model, model.

Sometimes a subtle tilt of the head works nice with this pose too.

2. The S Curve Face On!

This pose never feels natural. Be prepared for your Senior to look at you with a frown and say “Is this right?” When she says that just smile back and say, “Yep! You look awesome for the photo even though it feels weird.” Then gently keep adjusting her pose until it’s where you want it, telling her how well she’s doing the whole time so she doesn’t stiffen up on you.

What we’re doing is showing a nice S curve of her hips and shoulders. I usually start by asking the Senior to rest their forearm on their head. Then I ask her to put her weight on the opposite foot to the arm that is up. See below. This creates a curvy line that looks like a S. If I need to, I’ll have her lean into the camera ever so slightly.

Depending on the personality of the Senior, I’ll either have her look away with a big smile, or look right at the camera with no smile or somewhere in between. Even if you don’t use this pose, the S Curve should always be in your mind when it comes to posing women. However they are standing, you want to accentuate motion and curves.

3. The Hip Shot!

This is one of my favorite poses b/c it looks great on so many different body types. It’s a lot like the S Curve above b/c your being thoughtful of accentuating her curves. But it’s a little different. The palms rest on her low back or even lower, depending on her height. Have her push her hips forward and be leaning on one foot more than the other. Then have her look straight at the camera.

Or accentuate the curves by putting a little more sassiness in her hip, elbows and tilt of the head. It’s a flattering pose because the arms behind her are a slimming effect which draws out confident shoulders, her chest and curved lines of her hips.

4. Wide Angles Help Ease the Nerves!

It’s also nice to start with wide angle shots before you move in closer. This gives your Senior a chance to get used to the camera being on her, the sound of you clicking your shutter, and all that other non verbal stuff that makes a Senior tense.

With a wide angle, we still want to be intentional about shooting the shots from a slimming spot. Meaning, we don’t want to shoot straight on. Gina demonstrates this well in her photo. See how it looks like we are looking just a little bit down on the Senior? You see it more in how the railing seems to be descending down.

The Senior is also not standing face on for a reason. Having one shoulder closer to the camera than the other, slims your subject down too.

After Gina grabs her wide angle shot, she moves in for the close up.

The Senior doesn’t have to move anywhere.

5. Teeth, No Teeth and Laugh!

I always take a handful of close up shots whether it’s a Portrait Session or Bride. And I will specifically give these directions, “Can you give me a small smile? Perfect. (click) Now, can you give me a smile with no teeth, only lips? Wonderful. (click, click) Now, close your eyes and go to a quiet place. When you open them, I want to get a shot of you with no smile at all, just your bright eyes looking right into the camera.” (click, click, click) We go through this a couple times so I can capture the many expressions she possesses. Then I end with the Fake Laugh that you already saw us demo on the recent video. :)

6. Try Something Out of the Box!

Gina has done countless portrait shoots at this campus. But the other day, she thought of a new pose that was out of the box. And the results are fantastic! I love the lines of the Senior’s arms and neck and how the shadows help bring definition.

Don’t be afraid to try something new at the end. It’s important to push yourself out of your comfort zone. And once you’ve covered all your basic shots, why not try something totally different. If it works, it works. If not, it’s okay!

There is so much more to say on the subject of Photo Coaching Seniors, but let’s pause for now. Are these tips making sense? Any questions come up for you on the subject?

A BIG, BIG thanks to Gina for letting us use her images as examples. Gina, your awesome!

For booking a session with Gina, email our Studio Touchpoint lady, Genie! (genie@merakoh.com). Genie is happy to answer all your questions.

Question: How do we price our Senior Sessions?

Check out our Portrait 101 Kit to see what my Senior Portrait Pricing is and what the package includes. We also have new packages that we created this year for Gina to offer. We like to change it up every so often for her, and these three packages have been going over well! If you buy the Portrait 101 Kit (or if you have bought it in the past), email Genie with your email receipt. Write “Gina’s Senior Packages” in the subject line, and Genie will forward those to you. (please note: These are Gina’s new packages and are currently not in the Portrait 101 Kit, but just ask Genie and she’ll email them to you once you’ve purchased the 101 Kit.) Also, give Genie a day or two to get those to you. The kit also comes with Photo Release Waivers, Marketing Ideas and Much More!

Click here to see Segment 1 : How to Coach a Family Session!

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Upcoming Workshops: Two more spots were bought this weekend! If your considering the Seattle December Workshop as your Christmas gift to yourself or loved one, now is the time to register!

Click HERE to register!

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October 22nd, 2008

Photography Q&A, Segment 1: How to Photo Coach a Family Session!

Last week, I did an interview with Pictage and a number of photographers asked for suggestions on how to Photo Coach a family session. What is Photo Coaching?

Photo Coaching is a term Brian and I came up with when we realized we are not photojournalists. We are not the fly on the wall. Our clients look to us for direction in how to relax in front of the camera. And we love using a number of strategies to help this happen. Whether your client is paying you $200, $2K or $20K or is a high fashion model, at some point they look at you and your camera and say “Now what do you want me to do?” Photo Coaching is our answer to that question.

Since the issue of Photo Coaching a Family Session has come up a few times in your comments and emails, let’s make this topic Segment #1!

Read this over and then tell me what other questions it stirs for you.

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I find that Photo Coaching my family shoots happens before the session as well as during.

If it’s a family, I make sure I know how old the kids are (before I go to the session). I tell the parents prior to the session, at the beginning of the session, during the session and after the session (seriously!) that “I know you don’t feel like we’re getting any shots, but I promise we are. Don’t worry. Your kids are doing fine.” Parents ALWAYS freak out about how their kids are behaving or not behaving. And thus, they tend to be the most stressed out looking subjects of all. I know you know what I mean!

So with the kids, I strategize my session in how I set up the shots. I get the group shots often done first b/c these are the toughest when kids are tired.

And this is often what kids expect to do when a photographer shows up. But once we have those out of the way, I do sibling photos (brothers together, sisters together, etc).

I have them sit cheek to cheek and model what I mean with their mom.

I have the younger ones tickle the older ones.

I have dad stand right to the side of me and make goofy faces right above my lens. I have mom bark like a dog when the kids least expect it. No matter how old the kids are, they always laugh when mom jumps out barking like a dog. And the most reserved of moms will do ANY THING for a great photo of her kids.

It’s the opposite of weddings, I find that if I’m being goofy for the kids they don’t respond as well as when their own parents are being silly. If I have a high energy child who can’t sit still, I have dad hold him tight and tickle the crap out of him.

I then split them up and take one parent with me and one child. I have them sit on the ground (I like cement best because it casts up a great grey light) and take close up shots of them individually. Then I get the parent in there for some shots together, and I work through the whole family this way, one child at a time.

At the end I use my zoom lens and shadow the kids. I used to do this in the beginning and try to capture them “just being kids” but they take advantage of the freedom really fast and need direction. I found the situation would unravel faster than if I let them do this at the end when nothing else is really expected of them and now they are free to roam and play.

Does any of this help?

For info on how to start up or beef up your Portrait Business, check out the popular Portrait 101 Kit.

And then if you want help with the actual shooting, see the DVDs.

What questions does this post bring up for you?

Also, Steph asked yesterday about who should attend the December workshop. All levels, and I mean ALL levels. In every workshop we have women who are total beginners to women charging clients. But I found that there is a common thread with each woman: a lack of confidence in the technical side of photography which breads a lack of confidence in their overall photography aspirations. We tackle the technical stuff head on (from a women’s perspective in digesting tech stuff), aside from many other topics we discuss. But really, all levels gleam from the workshop. Steph, we hope to see you in December! Women are flying in from all over, and we are going to start the Christmas season off with a blast!

Chicago ladies! We are counting the days! :)

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October 20th, 2008

Seven Photo Tips for Shooting Objects!

If you haven’t heard, our current photo contest theme is an “Inspirational Object“. This means your picture has to be an object that inspires you. It cannot be a picture of any living things; flowers, pets or people. The image must be a picture of a non breathing object that gives you life in some way.

I know this is not an easy task, but such a good photo exercise to try. Objects, or should we say Details, are important to being a Story Telling Photographer. Whether you are capturing the objects in one’s home that describes who they are, or the details at a wedding, you are telling their story.

We’ve had a handful of photo submissions for this contest. But I’ve noticed there aren’t as many as we usually have. I think it’s because the theme is a bit more challenging.

So I thought I would post some tips on how to photograph objects. See if this gets your creative juices flowing!

Here are Seven Photo Tips for Shooting an Object when trying to bring still life to life!

1. Get up as close as you can to the object so that you’re filling the frame. Have as little background as possible. And if you do have any background that is recognizable, make sure it strengths your object.

Pascaline and I had our own little date yesterday and went to a local ceramic painting studio. What a blast! On a side note, while we were painting she looked at me and said, “So how is it going being a mom?” You have to love it!

Little did I know, it was the perfect place for taking pictures of objects! In regards to this first tip, I could have shot the paintbrushes even tighter, but I kind of liked clipping the side of a paint bottle to make the paintbrushes that much more powerful.

2. Set the object (depending on size) on a light colored surface. For example, if you have a white or marble cutting board try that as a background.

Or go the opposite direction and use a piece of black velvet. Black velvet is a great backdrop material because velvet soaks up all the light and creates a rich, deep black background.

3. Where is your light? Set your cutting board or black velvet next to a window for natural light. Keep that flash off. And don’t forget to play with shadows too. Sometimes shadows can enhance the drama of your object. Notice the shadows in the fork above.

4. Go as low as you can in your Fstop/Aperture to get the most buttery, blurry background possible. Low Fstops would be 3.5, 2.8, 2.0, or even 1.4.

5. If you are not comfortable shooting in Manuel, put your camera in AV or A mode (Aperture Priority). This way you get to decide how low that aperture is and your camera decides how fast your shutter speed needs to open and close.

6. Since this object doesn’t smile back at us, we need to create as much movement and energy as possible. Sometimes a simple tilt to your camera will do this. Push the lines in your image to evoke emotion. Make the lines of your teacup smile back at you. :)

7. If you process your images in Lightroom, try your vignette feature (under Lens Correction) so the four corners are a bit darker then the rest of your image. To get to this feature, put one of your images in Develop mode and you’ll see the Vignettes feature on the right hand side toward the bottom. Experiment by moving your “Amount” into the negative numbers, and then try moving your “Midpoint” into the negative numbers too.

Vignetting highlights the subject of your image even more. The slight vignetting that I did on the image below helps give the illusion that the paint bottles go on and on as they fade into the distance. The vignetting also brings more focus to the center of the frame.

One more challenge that I hope doesn’t offend anyone. A lot of the submissions have been of Bibles or crosses. There isn’t any thing wrong with these two objects being your Inspirational Object. But if you’d allow me, I’d like to challenge you to submit a second photo of a second object. We usually ask that you submit one photo only, but if you’ve submitted a photo of the Bible or cross we are making an exception.

Why? I want you to challenge yourself to think of an object that is out of the box. An everyday thing you pass everyday, or maybe something hidden away. When you first thought of what your Inspirational Object would be, an idea popped into your mind. Now put that idea on the back burner and try to think of something else. Trust me on this, you’ll get much more out of this photo exercise if you push yourself to get out of the box on what the second object could be.

The deadline for the Inspiration Object Photo Contest is this Sunday, October 26th at midnight, PST.

Have fun with this exercise. When we were shooting in Cape Cod last weekend, Brian looked at me and said, “So much of getting better at photography is just trying new things and be willing to experiment.” He is so right.

Try something new.

Experiment with light, shadows and unusual objects.

And enjoy!

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For more fun photo exercises, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese (see the downloadable version that is now available if you live outside the US!), our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a business in photography, click on the words of your choice! To read a great review done on our DVDs, click here!

Upcoming Workshops: The Seattle December Workshop is open for registration with only a few seats left!! Click HERE to register!

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May 30th, 2008

Great Idea for Building a Portfolio!

We head back to Seattle today after a wonderful week in San Diego. But first, I have to give a huge shout out to Dana, our fearless San Diego Workshop hostess!

Dana, you went above and beyond the call of duty for being the hostess!! Thank you so much for all your help!

On Monday we had our Add On Day that covered Business and Marketing. It was held at Dana’s house. We covered everything we could in our time from pricing, structuring your business, when to outsource and what to outsource, marketing strategies and much more. It was an amazing time together (and thank you Dana for letting us use your living room!).

But we have to thank Dana for one more thing! She had the BEST idea for building a portfolio that I’ve ever heard!!

For those of you who want to build a portfolio but are not comfortable with charging people just yet, Dana did something you could do too! She told her friends that to take their pictures takes the same amount of time to make dinner. So if they wanted to compensate her, they could make her a dinner. Last year, she ended up getting handfuls of gift certificates to all different restaurants with credits ranging in $50-$150! Her family loved it! The kids are already asking her to take pictures again this year! Don’t you love that!

What a great idea to give your friends so you’re not “giving” your time away. Your time is precious, valuable, even if you’re in the “building” stage of your business. Plus, it’s a great way for friends to show their thanks to you!

Dana, you are the Queen Bee!! Love you and so thankful for you and ALL your fabulous ideas!!!

(thanks for the photos too!)


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May 28th, 2008

Advanced Off-Camera Lighting with Recipes!

If yesterday was about climbing, today is all about JUMPING!

Last night we got to have dinner at Carey’s house, and it was a blast!

Carey has a big ol’ trampoline in her backyard. Let’s just say a few of us went crazy on it. :) Can you imagine who that would be?

Notice Blaze crying in the background with Brian. Do you know why Blaze is crying? Because Brian was bouncing to hard and flipped Blaze. :)

But this shot is my favorite one!

We were using Carey’s new Alien B1600 light. These lights range in price and you can find them at Alienbees.com. I think her light was around $360. But without the light, this is what the pictures would have looked like.

So now for the recipe!

We did these shots at 7pm. We still had plenty of light outside, so we had to be in Manuel Mode to trick the camera for this type of dramatic lighting. We wanted the camera to think we didn’t have any light outside and that’s why we needed the off-camera lighting.

Our ISO was 100 so the color of the sky would be as blue as possible. The Shutter Speed was 1/250. When using strobe lights like this, you’ll want your Shutter Speed at 1/250. Now the Aperture was a little tricky because we don’t want it dialed down low like I usually like. Remember, the lower the aperture gives more blur in the background. These shots don’t have any thing to do with getting blur in the background. These shots are all about dramatic lighting with strobe lights.

Since these shots are about dramatic lighting, we want our aperture to be really high–maybe F11 or F16. We want the little hole that the light come through to be super tiny. This means if we took the photo without the off camera lighting, the image would be really dark because the aperture is so small. But that’s okay because we want the off camera light to be our main source of light. Does this make sense? If you’re feeling confused give yourself some breathing room because it is a bit tricky when you’re not familiar with it. But don’t let the confusion keep you from thinking it over and mulling it around because playing with light can be so fun!

We had one light for the images above. But Carey got together a couple months ago with an awesome photographer named Rob Benson. He is a master at off-camera lighting and for the shot below used three lights. Wow! Take a look at what drama he is able to capture! Is that the coolest soccer kid picture in the world!! And to see how Rob is setting up these shots, check out Carey’s wonderful blog post. And be sure to check out his website (it’s hyperlinked to his name)! It is SO COOL!!

For more help with lighting, shutter speed, aperture and all that good stuff, check out our crazy fun DVDs!

Enjoy! We are off to Legoland!


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March 31st, 2008

Shoot from the Hip!

Today is a fun blog post with a workshop announcement and fun photo tips on “Shooting from the Hip”!

but first things first…

I have to tell you I woke up Saturday morning, and Brian yelled “MEEEE RAAAAAA! THERE HAVE BEEN ALMOST ONE THOUSAND PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOOKED AT THIS BLOG POST IN THE LAST 12 HOURS!!!”

Oh, I couldn’t stop laughing! Thank you for all the comments, you had me laughing all weekend! (and Brian too–he’s such a great sport)

So here’s some fun news! We’ve got our Sonoma Wine Country Workshop coming up at the end of April, and we had a few spots open up last minute. Our policy is that we don’t issue refunds for workshops once someone has signed up b/c we have to budget accordingly and put down deposits for the location, restaurants, etc long before the workshop. But a few of the women had some really tough things unfold in their lives–things you never plan for. Brian and I felt the best way to support them was to give them a refund.

With that said, Brian and I thought ‘Why don’t we offer a special discount for the Sonoma Workshop since we have new seats open.’ Here’s what we came up with!

We’d like to offer 25% off to those of you who sign up with a friend! Yep! That’s right! 25% off for each of you who sign up for the Sonoma Workshop! So find your favorite girlfriend and see if you can talk her into spending a weekend in the wine country, sharing a hotel room with you, sipping wine, nibbling on cheese, eating grapes and BEST of all, learning all about photography! We have women flying in from Florida, Colorado, Virginia, Missouri and Washington!

A new addition to our Sonoma Weekend is The Red Grape! We’ve reserved this quaint, sweet little spot for our Friday Night Meet and Greet! Gathering starts at 6pm, AND drinks are on our tab! Check out the awesome reviews for The Red Grape at the website.

this is all just something to think about….:) If you’re interested, email me at mera@merakoh.com, and we’ll set you and your friend up with the discount!

That being said, let’s talk about SHOOTING FROM THE HIP!

Garrett Burdick is a great photographer and friend. He is actually the mastermind behind our Sonoma Workshop. Garrett will also be with us all weekend to help out and offer coaching on taking better photos. Seriously, Brian and I love this guy. We can’t wait for you to meet him.

Garrett has two boys, Walker (5) and Cooper (3) and he says that they know dad would give anything for a great photo of his boys. But they are NOT interested in helping those photos happen. Anyone relate? :)

Even though Garrett is a professional photographer who does photo shoots for families, brides and many of the Pottery Barn catalog spreads you see every month–he’s super down to earth and agrees with the fact that photography doesn’t have to be as hard as some make it out to be.

Here are his top four photo tips with some beautiful samples of his little ones!

1. Use a SLR Camera with Auto Focus Lens

2. Keep Auto Focus ON with Auto Selector

3. Use a Wide Lens (28mm to 50mm)

4. most important, Have Fun

Garrett says, go for it and Shoot from the Hip!! This means, with all your auto settings going, take a break from even looking through the lens and get crazy!

Shoot from under the table!

Use that wide angle magic and shoot from the side!

Or even under the water!

Request for Garrett! :)

Garrett, when you hop on the blog today, will you share your recipe for these shots in the comments? We know you mentioned having your settings on Automatic but we would still love any recipes. What was your aperture, shutter speed and ISO? Thanks friend!

Okay ladies! See you in Sonoma!!

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Later this week we’ll post the Top Five Finalists of the “Darkness and Light” photo contest! The Winning Finalist gets to come to the Sonoma Workshop for 50% off! The random voter will get to have their pick of any one of our five 101 Kits!

We are also working on announcing the Running on Empty Contest Winner for San Diego, so stay tuned in for that.

And a few other fun things coming–like shoe shopping with a seven year old! :)

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