I have been inspired to work on a certain editing method called Layering or Texturing. This is the process where you work with a photograph or most of the time, multiple photographs in seperate layers. With this effect you can create unique and unusal photographs and most of the times, fine works of art. Dave Linscheid is a flickr contact of mine who has given me great inspiration to better myself at working on this technique.

Sometimes the Layer can be a subtle hint as in Textured Cowboys. This subtly gives the photograph the feel that is has been printed on canvas. Texturing can also be as harsh as Horseless Carriage. This texturing was done to give a feel of an old photo that has survived much hardships in order to still tell us its story.

Sometimes I will be walking along and decide to take a photograph of some odd or unusuall thing that I have been asked numerous times of “What Are You Doing?” or “Why would you want a picture of that?”. When I am doing that, I am seeing a pattern or a texture that I feel may come in handy to use at some other time to combine with another photograph in order to give it a unique feel to it.

Sometimes staying up late is a good thing. I got a chance to go to the opening night of Alice in Wonderland. A fellow photographer and I decided to take our cameras to see what we could capture. It is amazing the fun that fans can have with something they enjoy. The energy that they brought into the theatre was amazing. I believe I will be attending more opening nights. It is a blast to see what the fans can come up with on the costumes they create. They are also very obliging to let you take their photograph.

The Amazing Photographer that Accompanied me.

The Hoodlum

One of the first family portraits I looked at was of a family in an abandoned building with graffitti. I was really impressed with that type of background and how the photographs turned out. One Saturday after watching my daughter’s soccer game and my son’s football game, I took them out for a photoshoot and decided to try this type of background.

Attack of the B

I would have to say that this was one of the easiest shoots I have done yet. Maybe it was because of the subjects being my kids. I believe it was because there was so much there, that we could let our imaginations run and come up with so many different posses, scenarios and possibilities, that we really just had a great time. The creativity just

Tough Love

flowed from all of us at this shoot. Many great portraits came out of this session.

Angelic

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One of my favorite photographs from this session is “Angelic”. I love how her eyes are sooo full of life and that they just “pop” right out at you.

Aunt "Morny", Aunt "Ray", "Granny Grump" & My Mom

These are the ladies who have made me what I am today. These ladies are as different as the 4 seasons that we have each year. I have picked up a little bit from each one of these ladies. Aunt Marne has the softest, caring heart that you have ever seen. Aunt Rayetta has shown me money sense along with the stubborness to never give up. My Grandma taught me to be a gentleman (and I probably picked up some of her stubborness also). And my Mom who showed me how to have fun and play and joke around. These ladies are the women in my life (besides my dear wife) that mean the most to me.

My Aunts live in Missouri and was back visiting with us in September. During this time, I was able to talk them all into getting together to take their portraits. They had become accustomed to the camera since I was blinding them with flashes almost every chance I got, but I am glad I was able to get these of them. I believe I thrive on their visits and that tends to recharge something in me.

Looking forward to the next get-together….

I had the opportunity of doing a photo shoot for the Pitchers. The last family photographs they had, Mrs. Pitcher was pregnant with the little one. These beautiful little girls are full of energy and are very curious about their surroundings. It was nice to see that I could capture people with “ants in their pants”. I have to say that Mr. Pitcher has his hands full and I do not envy him when his little girls start dating. 

All in all, this was a very fun shoot and I think everyone was happy with the outcome.

This weekend I did a photoshoot for some friends. Their children are getting older, therefore the times that they are all together is becoming fewer & fewer. Well, this weekend they were all together but only had a little amount of time. I had a little more than an hour to photograph this fun family before another event would have to interrupt them. 

This was also the first time that I have done an urban shoot. I have always been more of a nature photographer and have all kinds of ideas and poses for the outdoors. It was fun being able to look at the buildings around me and come up with new ideas. As I am starting my business, I know one of the things I will always have to be on the look out for is locations that will work with anyones tastes.

Flickr is filled with photos such as these. I even belong to a group that posts nothing but these types of photos. Out Of Bounds (OOB) Creations is a wonderful group with many of its members willing to help anyone with questions out. Flickr member, Serrator has even been gracious enough to create a couple of tutorials in PDF format. If you are interested, you can check them out here (they are zip files that you may download).

I believe I will be doing more of these in the future. Where will my mind take me next?

In 2007, we went camping on the 4th of July to get away from the crowds of the city. I was able to find out that Huntsville, Utah shot off their fireworks right next to Pineview Damn. What better place to camp than at Anderson Cove Campgrounds which sit right across the lake from Huntsville. I was excited to be able to see the fireworks lit over the lake. Another thing occurred to me was that this would be an excellent photo opportunity. I set up my tripod and shot away throughout the whole show. I thought some of them turned out rather nice, some did not. It was a great experience. 

This year we were able to revisit this same outing. One thing has changed since then, my involvement with flickr and the many contacts I have. It is such a wonderful community of photographers who are willing to help each other grow and learn. My knowledge of photography has grown tremendously and is still growing. My photos this year are no where near perfection, but I can see the improvement they do have. This year I knew what settings work best with the fireworks. I used a remote switch, so didn’t have the camera shake. I know next time to work on the focus aspect a little more.

One of the groups I belong to is Photowalking Utah. The members of this group are extremely awesome. We have members who set up class and teach whoever wants to show up. During the walks, you can constantly see the professionals walking with the hobbyist and giving them pointers. I am constantly writing emails to these guys and asking my own questions. They are always so willing to help out. Life is filled with learning, but it is a treat when you learn about what you enjoy doing.

Here are some links for tips about shooting fireworks:

Digital Photography School

Nicolesy Photography Tips