ESPN

To get more inspiration to for my final project I decided to do some research on ESPN’s website, and google to see what their covers look like an how I can take inspiration from that.

 

This first thing I’ve noticed that I don’t have in my photos is the model’s personality. I think I’ve reflected great energy in my photos but not necessarily the actual personality of my model, Angel. I think what I need to do is to come up with some ideas for covers and think about the way I want to do design the cover in a way that shows who she is.

 

Looking at the ads for ESPN magazine I noticed that a lot of them have high contrasting colors and big sans serif typefaces. A lot of them have darker background which I shot on the product table with white so I think I would want to reshoot some of them on the black background. I do like the pops of color that they have in these shoots which I could use the gels to do.

 

Overall these research is helping me a lot to hone in on my project and see what I still need to make it great!

Series Part One

 

The following photos were shot in the studio on Sunday afternoon with model Angel Prater. We did a few different set ups, but mostly with one light directly in front of her, one light at 45 degrees to the left at full power, and one on the right at 45 degree at half power. We tried a few with different gels which came out really, really cool looking. Overall I really didn’t have any problems with the assignment. This was the first time I’ve shot on the black backdrop and it’s definitely a little harder to make the background disappear on the black than it is one the white, which was an unexpected challenge, but overall I’m super happy with how the first round of edits turned out.  Angel was such an AMAZING model. In hindsight I wish I would turn the light to the right up to a higher power so there would be more separation between her and the background and make the lighting more even. But overall, I think the photos turned out how I wanted them to!

 

 

Streaming thru America

I came across this blog earlier this week while looking for some travel blogs for inspiration for my next big trip. Streaming thru America is a blog run by a retired special needs high school teacher who has spent the last year traveling throughout America in a mobile home. He has been documenting his journey through his blog in the form of essays, poems, and photography. One thing that really struck me about this blog was his photography. Most of his photos in the blog are quite obviously edited. At first I thought it looked really strange and unnatural (and it kind of does) but then after sorting through a few of his posts, I decided I actually really liked his photography. He is consistent in his style, which is important because if he toned any of his imaged down then it would show how much he edits. It is an interesting take on photography because in my opinion it seems taboo to have your editing show and it should be subtle and natural. I actually really like his style and I think he takes a risk by breaking many “rules” but I think it is working for him and it has made an impression on me and it’s something that I will remember which is of course always a goal. Taken in my hometown, Mount Pleasant, by Streaming thru America.

Taken at an Airshow in San Diego by Streaming thru America.

China

China was our second to last stop on SAS. I went to the Great Wall near Beijing. The light was very grey and dull which made it harder to take vibrant pictures despite in reality the leaves were changing and full of color. Check out a few of my best pictures!

 

Myanmar

Continuing with my trip around the globe, I made a stop in Myanmar. While in Myanmar I traveled to Bagan, home of thousands and thousands of Buddhist shrines. On our way back to the ship to head onto Vietnam we made an impromptu pit stop at an elephant conversation camp at 6:30 in the morning. This was one of my first time taking pictures of animals, so I got to learn some of the challenges that come with that, such as eye contact, respecting the animals space, while dealing with lighting challenges, movement and more. Overall I was so happy with how my pictures from Myanmar turned out and I actually enjoyed photographing animals so much more than I thought I would!