Oh, That's Just Plain Cute

Gloria Estefan at Flamingo Las Vegas

My job is interesting sometimes. Lately, I've been shooting more celebrities. Being shoulder-to-shoulder with real photographers (who make their living at photography) is a world all its own. I like my world, thanks, but some of the photo ops make the scrambling and long periods of waiting (nothing involving celebrities EVER starts at the stated time) worthwhile.

Gloria Estefan and her husband got a star on the Las Vegas Walk of Stars. (Like the Hollywood Walk of Fame.) Here, she speaks with a reporter outside Flamingo Las Vegas. She and her husband were so gracious with the media and their fans. I suspect that's a big part of why some entertainers have more longevity than others. Glad I waited around until the hordes moved on AND glad I was one of the few that didn't use a flash.

Anything for the Shot

A friend caught me in action at a recent event at Paris Las Vegas. This ain't always easy, folks!

This Guy Makes Me Smile

This Ain't a Kid Portrait

But I like it.

Let Me Be Frank

OK, he's Frank (and yes, he's homeless), but I'm going to be frank, too.



Frankly, I'm so happy with this portrait. Why? Because it's in focus in the parts where it should be in focus, and out of focus where it should be out of focus.

One of the reasons I spent to much on this lens (50mm, f/1.2) is I loved the blur. But I quickly learned that the blur (called "bokeh") is tricky, and more often than not, an ear's in focus and an eye is out of focus. Or a lip is in focus, and not the eye. I've tried to learn how to wrangle this lens, but the results have been inconsistent.

But this is what I was looking for. I love the look, and I'm going to spend a lot of time trying to replicate it. I wish I were better, or knew what questions to ask in this area, but I'm not and I don't.

So, I'll take the little victories when they come. I count this as one of those.

I Don't Do Malls

But if I did, I imagine the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace would be the mall I'd do.



A little HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography. Three exposures, taken on a tripod, combined with Photomatix, and run through a Photoshop plug-in, Topaz.

Picking Your Moment

Sometimes, when you're shooting kids, you just have to pick your moment. This young lady was generally cooperative on the day of our shoot, but a slightly-forced smile kept creeping into her photos. (The photographer's fault, not the subject's!)

I tried the usual bag of tricks, but ultimately, packing up my camera bag was the first time she really seemed to relax. I said, "Hey, help me out. See that big window? That's really pretty light. Just have seat for a second before I go." She didn't have time to think too much, and we found a nice spot by a big window. We just kept chatting, and I think by that point, she was relieved to be done. I think it shows!

Bing!

Welcome Home, Daddy

I've been so lucky to be involved with a group called Operation Love: Reunited. It's a program where photographers volunteer to do portraits of military families before, during and after deployments. I recently got to shoot a family being reunited after nearly a year-long deployment.

Very emotional stuff, but also very rewarding!



One of the bittersweet parts of the recent family reunion here in Las Vegas was seeing the expression on this baby's face. Her dad had been deployed for almost her entire life, and wasn't quite sure what to make of this uniform-clad "stranger."

These folks in the military make sacrifices, on so many levels. It means a lot that I'd be invited to witness, and document, their journeys.

The Other Vegas

They Don't Call Me an Internet Icon for Nothing

People are so right about me. Got this today: "On behalf of publisher Bedford/St. Martin's, I'm writing to you to request your permission to publish screen shot of your home page, http://www.animalrightsstand.com. We wish to include the screen shot in the upcoming college writing textbook, 'Writing from Sources,' 8th edition by Brenda Spatt."

I'm the most successful lazy person I know.

Sometimes, I Just Show Up

My biggest secret to children's photography? Try to take photos of CUTE KIDS. Yep, it often has nothing to do with light or lenses or technique or Photoshop.

I got about three shots of this little pip at an event yesterday. Yep, I pretty much just showed up.

A Peek Into My World

My mom says I've been neglecting my blog lately. (Anyone else horrified that my mom knows I have a blog?!)

So, here's something to tide you over until I do the post I need to do about the fire at a local nature sanctuary.

We obviously have a bit of a sanctuary here, too.

The Shot Only I Got

I had a moment of glee last night. It happened at, of all things, a red carpet event at Caesars Palace.

I have been vocal about my dislike of flash photography. Partially because I don't know how to do it, and partially because even when done well, I don't love how photos of this kind look.

But last night, I got a shot that was special to me for a number of reasons. First, I used a flash to get it. Second, I know, for a fact, that nobody else taking photos on the red carpet got a shot like this.



I think it's special because it's something I doubt I'd have aspired to capture even under great conditions, with natural light, or in a studio.

It's special because I actually took the advice of a mentor, photographer Laurence Kim, who suggested that sometimes you want to point your flash BACKWARDS, despite the funny looks you might get. (That's also one of the reasons I know nobody else got a shot like this...everyone else had their flashes facing the right way. Ark.)

Also, no one got this close (people tend to do full body shots at red carpets for some reason...maybe because the fashion is of interest to magazines...but I still want to get in close!). And absolutely no one waited around for this moment.

It resulted in an image that looks like I had a full day with singer Matt Goss, posing, etc. This was captured during the frenzy of a red carpet event...with myriad distractions and horrible ambient light and comings and goings and a throng of photographers vying for position. All that. And I got this. The shot only I got.

Thanks for letting me share a moment of pride! It's those little victories that make the journey or learning photography so enthralling.

I Have a New Sister

My folks got a dog! At long last. We've always had dogs in our family, and I'm so happy they took the leap. I love dogs, but just haven't felt right having one. I don't think it's fair to get a pet when you're not around all that much. Long stretches of day without people aren't nice, and there are often nights I'm not around either. So, my folks' new dog is going to get lots of attention. Starting with some portraits, of course.

Meet Alton

Meet Alton, a homeless guy I met on Fremont Street, downtown.



I learned a lot about Alton during our chat before I took his $2 portrait. Alton used to train animals (and had a dog with him), including "ligers" and even an albino cobra.

He's from South Carolina, and having a rough go of it. He's looking for work as a cook. Go, Alton. Find out more about the $2 Portrait Project.

I Don't See Why Not

I don't see why, after all the photos I have posted on this blog, that I can't post one of me. I'm happy to say this is a full 70% of what I look like in real life.

Some Portraits Are More Miraculous Than Others

This would be one of those.

She Was a Feisty One