on Headshots and Niches

In my last blog I promised to feature the last model for our "not-so-recent" studio shoot. I saw a lot of keepers from the other model since I had a lot of shooting time. In this set though, I had to limit my shooting time to give the other guys a chance to shoot.

The set features Myla, who I had the pleasure of shooting before also in a similar studio setup. The only difference is that the last time we had strobes and now we have continuous lights. I am not really a fan of continuous lights and prefer working with strobes. But continuous lighting does have its benefits especially when shooting in a group. As a preference, I like using strobes or shooting outdoors in natural light.

 

 

 

Anyways, I have been watching a lot of Peter Hurley videos in recent days, and I have come to that realization that I like doing headshots. This set in particular is a good example. I had a lot of whole or half body shots but I seem to gravitate towards headshots a lot more. I am starting to think I have found my niche in the field of portraiture. And with this direction, I think my next project will be setting up a garage studio or something of that sort.

Wish me luck...

on Holiday Macro Adventures

Overcast days are perfect for photography especially when you go out hunting for macro subjects.

The country is celebrating it's independence day and it is a holiday. I took advantage of the holiday plus the overcast skies to shoot macro. I got about fifty keepers today; I will sort them out later. But as I have said before, one photo will make your day. And boy, did this one really make my day.

I was in my favorite macro spot where there is a pepper plant. It is home to huge and fierce looking ants and some predator flies. I was waiting for a bronze jumping spider to face me when I saw movement about three feet away. There was this fat jumping spider moving from leaf to leaf. It was one of the few times I saw a Jumping Spider really jump about a foot in distance. I quickly moved around the bush to where it was and found it already had something in its jaws. I would have been awesome to see it grab the wasp looking insect but I had to settle for a photo of it feeding. I only had three frames of this spider and this one is the best.

This is probably my current favorite spider photo. The details are awesome and I can clearly make out the prey too. It makes walking around in the bush for hours worth the effort.

Happy Independence Day to everyone!

on Summer Beach Getaways and Processing Portraits

Photography is like cooking, when you overcook something it wouldn't taste good. But leaving it raw can be a good thing.

We had our annual summer beach overnight with photographer, model and makeup artist friends in Talicud Island last weekend. It was yet another fun-filled stay in a beach where there is no electricity or running water and can only be accessed by boat. And of course we still had the usual sunset beach shoot. But this year we weren't so lucky because the sunset was shorter than what we normally expect during the summer months.

I decided to go against the norm for summer beach shoots and aim for black and white. I knew most photos from my photographer friends would come out in color because it is in the beach and around sunset plus you have a lovely model with nice skin tone. Well, going against the grain is what I am known for anyways so I might as well stay that way. And simple is always better for me. I don't need for it to be razor sharp or for the contrast to pack a punch. I just want my photo to retain the character of my model.

And I will never over process because I'd lose the essence of the portrait and get some sort of digital Frankenstein. It is a common mistake which photographers without their own personal styles make. They do all sorts of Dave Hill, Rarindra Prakarsa, Luko or Manny Librodo sharpening and stop only when they think its all there. For me HDR and portraits don't go well. And all those unnatural looking eyes and skin tone seem like they have been inspired by horror flicks. Funny thing is they spend hours and hours just to get THAT look. ** insert face palm here ** Experimenting is good but knowing how much post processing can be applied is what works best especially for portraits where you really have to retain the personality of the model.

A little color efex and totally rad action scripts here and there plus a bit of preset editing from lightroom and I am done. A good photo is a good photo even when it is unprocessed and no amount of post processing will make a bad photo look good. Just like a steak is good when it is rare or medium rare and ruined when it is well done.

Once again, thank you to Kate for being a fabulous model. To Karina Asetre and Kaye Garino for the makeup and styling. And to the Photobombers for another successful summer getaway.

on Portrait #24 in High Key Mono

"One very important difference between color and monochromatic photography is this: in black and white you suggest; in color you state. Much can be implied by suggestion, but statement demands certainty… absolute certainty." -- Paul Outerbridge

Most of my friends say I shoot better in black and white. I don't really intend to shoot everything in black and white but it admittedly does makes my photos more interesting. I have found that I tend to process my ambient light shots in color and my strobist shots in black and white. It probably has something to do with my preference in shooting. I tend to find it easier to shoot in ambient light than with strobes. Although I get more flexiblity when I control the light, I find it much simpler to just find a steady light source. Or probably I just hate setting up the lights. Plus it is easier to balance my lighting when it is an ambient light source.

Here is the latest addition to my portraits project in High Key Black and White. Simple white background, 3 lights and my model Aya. Shes still in highschool but works as a part time ramp model. Its always fun when you have a cheerful model who easily adjusts to the shoot. We had a ton of laughs while doing the shoot.

Portrait #24: Aya

   

And it is the first time that we used my house as location for a shoot. I started thinking of putting up a makeshift studio in the garage during the Christmas break. Hopefully, I find the resources and time to do it.

PS: special thanks to Karina Asetre, our MUA and Stylist for this shoot.

The Queen of the Bay (Festival)

"Your body's worth more than the expanse of the sea..." -- Urbandub (Gravity)

I've known War Queen (or Waqui) for almost a year now and have seen her mature in many ways. But in the last few months, with the help of Kaye (our very own MUA), she has transformed into a bombshell. She only models for the group usually in a casual setting and she's learned a lot on how to pose and project. And after the last shoot we had with her, I am convinced that she can really pull off those model photoshoots. And by far, this is the only shoot that we were really seriously shooting her; and the output speaks for itself.

I forgot to mention, she's not really a model but rather a photographer. She only does modeling for the group; and she's doing a real fine job at it. I'll be changing my portrait of her in the my project to one of the two photos here.