When you get clients who are Beautiful & Sexy but never felt that way ! (Jenn Urquhart)

Jenn, is one of my very favorite client's and now friend !

Can you believe that when she first called me and commissioned me to do a shoot with her, during the consultation Jenn actually believed that she was not all that sexy !!!! ????? LOL. I don't know about you but all I see is pure sexiness and Beauty radiating all over the place. Judge for yourselves !

Well for all you photography junkies, all of these images were shot with natural light !

Jenn had a sliding glass patio door, so that is what I used for my light source.

I used a good mix of what we would call window lighting, and flat lighting.

The very last image was created once again with an alternate lighting style. I used two 400watt/sec strobe lights from Opus lights. Only the reflector was mounted, with no diffuser. the flash was then literally aimed at her but feathered, and it was only used like a "hot light source" and not triggered as a flash.

More images to come soon on my website ! (http://www.therockphotography.com)

Enjoy !

Rockie

PS. Jenn you are still my most sexiest client ! Where can I find more like you ?

Alternative Portrait Lighting

So, have you ever had a portrait session where you used your flash right on your camera and your image looked like the image on the right ?

No matter how you twisted your flash or dropped the exposure to soften it or reflect it or diffuse it, the image just didn't seem to come out the way you envisioned it or imagined it.

Images like the one on the right are all to common in the photography. With this image, I simply bounced the flash up in the ceiling to soften the light but as you can see if you look right behind Jenn, there is still a shadow and the image is not really all that pleasing to the eye.

Another problem that I had was the lay out of Jenn's apartment.

It was basically the shape of an "L" and didn't give very many options to the natural eye. This would make creating various images with different looks quite difficult.

So what would some options be ?

LIGHTING OPTIONS ON LOCATIONS

I usually take the time when I arrive to a clients home to have a look at where the natural light is. And if there is no available light, then I start looking for alternative lighting and how I may use it in a portrait or commercial image. (in the following post I will show you how I used the natural light I found in Jenn's home to create some beautiful images !)

In this case, Jenn's home was primarily lit with this lamp you see on her right and a few halogen's in the kitchen. The problem with the lamp though was it's height, which was about 4 to 4.5 ft high. But I think I found a solution that would make for a great image, that I think is better than just flash on camera. Coolest thing is that I pulled off quite a few different poses just from this one area alone all from posing. But we will save that discussion for another time. Have a look for yourself and let me know what you think.

Rockie

The Truth... It hurts sometimes

Hey everyone,

Well after all my travels, I have heard and read alot about the economy all over the place. And I have to admit, if I were to only listen to what CNN says I would be depressed too.

I think that is why I don't listen to them as much and instead go on the blog sphere to listen to other people.

Well, here is a little Video clip that should shake the "beegeebees" out of you.

If it doesn't make you wanna get your butt up and get going on your business whether it is photography or not... then maybe you should do what this guys says at the end of the Video ... LOl.

Let me know what you think.

Rockie

So you think a group of 8 is tough hey, try 800 people !

This is a greeat vid from a photographer named Bert. And it is a very good snap shot at the kind of stuff most photographers have to shoot. Not always so glamourous is it ? Well here Bert has to photograph 800 people for a conference.

Have a look at it and tell me what cha think.

Cheers,

Rockie

SuperHeroes Rise in Tough Times

Just caught this article from Cnn.com on how the love or fancination with "Super Heroes" is on the rise once again.

It seems in the past when times where tough because of economics, people turned to "Super Heroes" for hope and inspiration. It seems that more than 70 years ago during the depression and beginnings of World War II, that such heroes as Superman, Batman, Wonder Women and Captain America became Legends. And it seems that it is again coming back.With the Success of Batman and Ironman recently, other Hero movies have been scheduled for production such as Captain America, Avengers, and Thor.

Guest Curator Jerry Robinson was quoted as saying ... ""I think heroes are back. I think you can almost chart it. The times are not so good -- we're looking for heroes."

So here are my thoughts for the end of the week.

1. Who are your "Heroes" right now whom are bringing you Hope and Inspiration ?
2. How might the public looking for "heroes" translate to something special with your career or business ?

Post up your Comments. I would love to hear What you all have to say.

Rockie

Diet Coke and Mentos !

Ok... just saw this on youtube and man this is hilarious. you gotta check it out !

Rockie

NEW: Pocket Wizards New TTL Flash Triggers !

For those of you getting interested in off camera flash photography and those of you who are already doing off camera flash photography, you need to check this new product out.

This is Pocket Wizards new TTL flash Trigger. It has the ability to Hyper sync which basically means that you will be able to chose any shutter speed you want out side of your natural in camera sync speed.

And to top that, you now have the ability to trigger your off camera flashes with the tried and true pocket wizard radio wave and not just an infra-red sensor ! Makes for some pretty amazing photography in any kind of condition.

Have a look a the vid and see what you think. I know I can't wait to get my hands on a set of those !

Rockie

Did you know your Canon 30D can do this !

Notte Sento (English subtitles) from napdan on Vimeo.


So... a fellow photographer I know, Bandele, posted this great video today about a short romantic movie of a girl who misses her train to Milan and is set to wait overnight in Rome until Dawn.

What blew my mind about this short story was how it was made from 4500 + photographs shot on a canon 30D ! Thats right !!!! A canon freakin 30D !!!!!!!!!!

Folks this goes to show that there really is no limit as to what we can do as photographers if only we would think "out of the box".

Have a watch and let me know what you all think.

Cheers.

Rockie

Vanessa Sequeira

Here are some images from a session I did with Vanessa. All these images were done in natural light with no flash or reflector. Believe it or not, the images look like we shot on a warm day but it certainly wasn't as both Vanessa and I cand testify. It was so cold, and I do mean freakin' cold that we were only able to stay outside for an hour and that was really pushing it ! What a trooper Vanessa was !

But hey we got some great images though and that I must say was worth it. Oh and check out Vanessas dress... now is that hot or what ??? Gotta love it. More images to come.

cheers,

Rockie

10 Things you could do better today

Chris Brogen posted this a while back. I love it. Why? Because it is short and sweet and straight to the point.

When life gets busy for us, really we have only have 2 options.

1. Stay status quo
2. Make changes and better our life

(more on this in my next post about HABITS)

So have a look at the list below that Chris posted. Are there at least 1 that you can focus on in the coming next moth to better your life and your busines ?

Rockie

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10 Things You Could Do Better Today

1. Improve your response time to requests.
2. Improve the brevity and simplicity of your email correspondence.
3. Connect with five new people and seven existing colleagues or friends each day.
4. Inspect your business process cycle from start to finish for improvements.
5. Rethink your approach to helping others succeed.
6. Increase the amount of times you connect others together to build new relationships.
7. Resolve three pieces of unfinished business, no matter how painful.
8. Live closer to your goals and your main points of focus, and less by reaction.
9. Take time to thank the people who make your life possible.
10. Rest and unplug.

Vegas Workshop (Part 3)

Ok.. LOL.. I promise this will be my last post on my Vegas Workshop !

What can I say... I had a blast there with all my photog friends and took some wonderful images to boot. But here are some more for ya.

Thanks so much for dropping by. Don't forget to leave a comment.

Blessings,

Rockie

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This is Tiffany. One of our many beautiful models who not only graced us with their presence but were so patient with us as we practised on them. The only Model I never had a chance to practise on surprisingly was Nancy ! So Nancy, your coming up to Vancouver so we do Vegas Part 4 !!!

[Tech info: back lit the subject in broad daylight. No flash and no reflectors]

This Wonderful couple were not even our MODELS ! LOL. What had happen was Scotty and I were talking about this concept for this shot, but at that moment all our models were occupied. So when this couple walked by I asked them if they would be willing to stop for a few moments and model for me ! Man was I blessed. ! What cha' all think ?

So I loved this concept so so much that when I saw Tiffany not doing anything I shouted out to her to come on over and I went and recreated this once again. Only this time I just could not decided which color tones I wanted to finish the image with so I did both.

Which one do you Like the Most ? Post me a comment.

[Tech info: both these 2 with Tiffany and the couple right above were created with secondary lighting. I used a 580ex flash, and the ST-E2 infra-red flash trigger to bring the flash off camera. Brynn from Vancouver held the flash on the Left hand side and the rest was just finding the right exposure to match the back ground with the subject. Also these images were takin' in broad daylight outdoors !]

This final shot of Tiffany is one of my favorites. I am such a sucker for "prayer" poses ! When we had all arrived and I saw these super cool big huge Bronze type doors, and then saw the saree that Tiff was wearing I knew I need to get a "prayer" pose.

[tech info: this was all natural light shot, and hand held.]

Vegas Workshop (Part 2)

Here are some more images from my Vegas Workshop I took this February with Scott Robert Lim. Scott by the way is our wedding instructor at Image Explorations Workshop. Unfortunately his class is already sold out, but if you want to be put on the waiting list for 2010, just contact our office at: don@macgregorstudios.com and request to be put on the list for 2010. Just remember that a deposit must be made for spot to be held.

Enjoy Rockie

Vegas Workshop (Part 1)

I was recently in Vegas taking a workshop from famed wedding photographer Scott Robert Lim. And let me tell you, it was a blast ! Not only were we in Vegas (a place where I have never been), but I also met some of the best up and coming photographers around ! (more on them shortly) I was blessed to say the least.

Check out the follow images I made while down there. Some were from the Neon Boneyard (kind of a neon sign graveyard) and the others where made at 2 different hotels.

It was an investment that was well worth my time and money. More Images to come !

Blessings and enjoy !

Rockie

Success is linked to 10,000 hours !

One of my fav reads this winter has been this book called "Outliers" by Malcom Gladwell.
In essence, this book is about Success, and people who have become successful. But what makes this book different from all the others is how Malcom brings it down to 3 main components that all successful people have in common.

Once of the main common denominators with all successful people has been 10,000 hours.

It seems that everyone who has become successful in their craft, skill or career, has committed to over 10,000 hours in their field. In fact Malcom mentions how Bill Gates and the Beatles even invested themselves in well over 10,000 hours.

So here is the just of the story I am telling.

We often view success and failure from a view of what I did right or wrong.
What if it is merely the fact that you have not finished your 10,000 hours ?

When I think of all the successful people in the world right now, I find it hard to think that they had gotten to where they are merely by accident or because they were just so gifted. I think the fact that they invested and worked hard at their craft and skill helped in getting them there.

So as a photographer, where are you right now ?

Are you one who has finished his/her 10,000 hours and if so, are you maybe ready for a "swing change" much like Tiger Woods, and take your game to another level ?

Get this book and have a break. It will not only inspire you but give you much food for thought during this time where the economy is rough.

Peace,
Rockie

NEW UPDATES AND IMAGES COMING !

Hey everyone...

Sorry it has been a long time since I have posted. Things have been just crazy ! I was pretty much away for all of Feb doing shoots. Some of which I will be posting up for you to see. Also I have been trying to finish my wedding and portrait website and blog so stay tuned for that.

I just recently got back from Vegas from doing a very awesome Scott Robert Lim workshop ! Those images will be coming soon !

Anways, hope you are all doing well. Keep the Peace and Stay in touch.

Rockie

Nicole DeMarinis - Second shoot !

So don't know if you remember me introducing you to my fav italian model... but here she is once again in another great shoot. Enjoy.

Rockie

NOTES About the Comparison Test !

Ok......

So there you have it. The images and Vid's are up and running. Now here are some side notes and things to think about.


BASIC NOTES:

1. click on the images to see a big view of it and hopefully see the digital noise.
2. once again the noise is found in the shadows to dark area so look there.
3. all cameras were tested with the 24-70mm L 2.8 lens, HAND HELD.

DXO MARK LABS:

The following is also a link that you should look at. My buddy Michael Iwasaki, another photographer friend of mine found this from a great company called DXO Mark Labs that did the very thing I did, and put the cameras to a test. What makes there end result better is how each of their 4 major tests is charted out on a graph.

If you run your mouse at the very Right Hand Side of the Graph, you will see an image show up and as you scroll your mouse up and down, you will see the exact effects of the iso on the image as I have been seeing. It really will give you a better feed back to the exact test results that I have been getting.

FINAL COMMENTS AND SUMMARY OF THE TEST:

1. All 3 cameras handled well and performed well.
2. Not one of them out shone the other.
3. Clearly the 5Dmk2 and 1DSmk3 have a better Dynamic range than the old 5D, but not by much.
4. The best iso performance seems to be around the 3200iso range (based just from the parameters of the test). In reality I have photographed as high as 6400iso and have not seen much noise. Could be due to the variance of light in the background.
5. The catch is that in most real cases, the high iso range of 6400iso, seems to give you the same amount of digital noise at around the 3200iso of the old 5D.

What I am now interested in testing is whether zooms or prime lenses have an affect on the resulting digital noise in the cameras performance.

Let me know what you think.

Rockie

Canon Comparison (6400iso)

Canon Comparison (3200iso)

Canon Comparison (1600iso)