Monthly Archives: July 2010

Wedding

Lafayette, CO | Gatehouse | Same Wedding Cake, Different Looks

Below are a couple of detail pictures of a wedding cake from a beautiful wedding at the Gatehouse in Lafayette, Colorado.

I find it interesting how different these two images “feel”. To me, the color image feels modern and vibrant. It is really all about those colorful flowers. Alternately, the black and white image feels timeless and almost delicate. You really notice the shape of the cake and the way the light falls on it. The flowers become much less important. I also really like the texture that we can see in the leaves and on the rear wall.

Having both of these images of the cake really tells us a lot more about the details of the wedding than either picture could on it’s own.

You can click on the pictures to see them larger. Enjoy…

Color photograph of a wedding cake at the Gatehouse in Lafayette, CO.
Black and white photograph of a wedding cake at the Gatehouse in Lafayette, CO.

Tech Info:
Sigma SD9
Sigma 50mm f2.8 Macro (@f2.8)

Portrait

Westminster, CO | Haircut+Warm Spring Day=Park Photo Shoot

Back in the spring, my daughter Molly got a nifty new haircut. A warm spring day and a delivery of fresh film provided a great opportunity for a photo shoot. We just took a quick trip over to our local park – Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO – and shot all these pictures in about twenty minutes. There is a pretty short window of opportunity when working with a two year old, especially when it’s your own two year old.

There are a few things that I really like in these photos:

  1. Molly’s pixie cut
  2. The vertical bars on the playset vs. the horizontal stripes on Molly’s dress
  3. All of the different settings that we were able to incorporate into the images
  4. Molly’s interaction with her surroundings as well as with the camera

You can click on any of the pictures below to see them larger. Enjoy…

A two year old girl looks through a playhouse window on the playground at Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO. Photograph from a documentary portrait session using Fuji 400H film in a Nikon N90s camera.
A two year old girl sits for a quick portrait on the playground at Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO. Photograph from a documentary portrait session using Fuji 400H film in a Nikon N90s camera.

A two year old girl peers through bars on the playground at Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO. Photograph from a documentary portrait session using Fuji 400H film in a Nikon N90s camera.
A two year old girl looks through a telescope on the playground at Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO. Photograph from a documentary portrait session using Fuji 400H film in a Nikon N90s camera.

A two year old girl standing on the playground at Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO points in to the camera. Photograph from a documentary portrait session using Fuji 400H film in a Nikon N90s camera.
A two year old girl goes down the twisty slide on the playground at Nottingham Park in Westminster, CO. Photograph from a documentary portrait session using Fuji 400H film in a Nikon N90s camera.

Tech Info:
Nikon N90s
Nikon 50mm f1.8 lens
Fuji 400H film
Straight scans from Richard Photo Lab

Wedding

Boulder, CO Wedding Photography – Rainy Day Details

Colorado has over 300 sunny days a year, so rainy days are pretty rare. Days that are rainy from morning to night are even more rare. June 12th, 2010 was one of those rare days.

Although rain is never a Bride’s ideal situation, when it happens, the keys are to embrace it and have a back-up location (if you had planned for an outdoor venue). For the wedding I shot on June 12th, the Bride did both of these things.

I really think that rainy days make for vivid memories and unique situations that can be fun to document, resulting in images that will standout here in the centennial state. For photographers, rainy days present their challenges; but if you keep your wits about you, you can be rewarded with some really beautiful and interesting photographs.

Below are a few detail images from the day, they will help set the stage for the pictures to come in later blog posts. Enjoy (you can click on the images to see them larger)…

Raindrops sitting on blades of ornamental grass. Black and white detail photograph from a rainy Boulder, CO wedding.
Wet sundial on a white pedestal. Black and white detail photograph from a rainy Boulder, CO wedding.
Overturned umbrella on the porch. Black and white detail photograph from a rainy Boulder, CO wedding.

Tech Info:
Nikon F100
Nikon 50mm f1.4
Legacy Pro 400 (AKA Fuji Neopan 400)
Straight scans from Richard Photo Lab

Portrait

Arvada, CO – At Home Family Portraits – Baking Cookies

Nearly any family activity at the family home can be a great occasion for a documentary photo shoot…

Here we have kids baking cookies with their grandmother. These images were shot in the family kitchen using only the available light. I really like the story that you can piece together with these images. Everyone has a purpose and is in their element. We are capturing a memory, not just recording how these people look at this moment in time.

For this self-assigned shoot, I was testing out a used medium format camera, and though I was not crazy about the camera itself,  I love the medium format “look” of these images. Even an in-use kitchen does not become a distracting background when you shoot with the 80mm lens wide open.

Family portrait of a Grandmother and grandson baking cookies at home in the kitchen. Shot on a medium format camera using black and white film.
 
Documentary portrait of a baby boy with a spoon in his mouth sitting in a walker in the kitchen. Shot on a medium format camera using black and white film.

Documentary portrait of a 5 year old boy frosting cookies at the kitchen table. Shot on a medium format camera using black and white film.
 
Documentary portrait of a 5 year old girl decorating cookies at the kitchen table. Shot on a medium format camera using black and white film.

Tech Info:
Mamiya 645AF
Mamiya 80mm f2.8 AF lens (at F2.8)
Ilford HP5 film

Personal Work

Documentary Portrait – Mother and Children

A mother and children sitting on an airplane.

Here is a fun picture from our recent family vacation. The image has a lot of layers to pull you in. The obvious focal point is Molly’s face, but what is making her smile like that? Pull back just a bit, and you notice the puppet on Julie’s hand. If you look past Molly, you can see the boredom that usually accompanies air travel all over Emma’s face.

Finally, there is the light. You don’t usually associate airplanes with flattering light, but in this case the cabin lights were off and the strong back lighting from the windows gave me great rim light on the girls, and bounced around the cabin enough to fill in the shadows. Of course, the wide dynamic range of medium format black and white film was a major help.

Tech Info:
Fuji GS645S Medium Format Camera with a fixed 60mm f4 Fujinon Lens – Wide Open
Ilford HP5 Film