Executive Board Chairman Ellis Williamson Ewilliamson17@nc.rr.com
President Rose Mary Cheek rosemarycheek@charter.net
President Elect Ned Winn studiomail@nc.rr.com Vice President Adrian Henson adrian@adrianhenson.com
Treasurer Tim Hester tim@timhesterphotography.com
CAROLINA PHOTOGRAPHER MAGAZINE is a monthly online publication of the Professional Photographers of North Carolina, Inc. Editor Rose Mary Cheek rosemarycheek@charter.net 828-322-2862 Sales & Business Manager Rose Mary Cheek Member Highlights Contributing Writer Catherine Kouri Articles & Sales Submissions First of the Month Publication 15th of the Month
Secretary Danny Daniel useralex2493@aol.com
Executive Director Loretta Byrd Loretta@ppofnc.com
PPNC 427 Greenleaf Road, Angier, NC 27501 919-796-4747 www.ppofnc.com
Acceptance of advertising does not carry with it endorsement by the publisher. Opinions expressed by Carolina Photographer or any of its authors does not necessarily reflect the positions of the Professional Photographers of North Carolina, Inc. Association financial information available upon request.
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Who Are We? The Professional Photographers of North Carolina (PPNC) is NC’s largest association for professional photographers. We are an affiliate of the Professional Photographers of America, led by an elected Board of working professional photographers. We are a non-profit, member owned association. We are a community in tune with each other’s challenges. Together, we help each other succeed. From a monthly digital magazine with numerous tips and techniques, to one of the state’s largest photographic conventions and trade show, competitions, seminars, and more, PPNC’s members are connected.
Contents From the Editor Page 4 From the President Page 5 Wedding Photography Digitial Files vs Alum by Cathy Anderson Page 6 On Line CPP Practice Exam Dave Goldman Page 10 Smart Phone Secrets Page 12 Tips on using Camera Angle Deborah Hendrix Member Sporlight Jerry & Willis Brown
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CAROLINA PHOTO EPO HIGHIGHTS Wedding Photography Made Simple Luke Edmoson Page 26 Photoshop Tips & Tricks Adrian Henson & Mona Sadler Page 34 Professional Imaging Group of Eastern North Carolina (PIGOENC) by Mona Sadler Page 36
On the Cover
An affiliate of
Fans of Professional Photographers of North Carolina
Page 16
Jerry & Willis Brown, this months Member Highlight.
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From the Editor Spring usually is the most difficult month for writing "From the Editor' column we are in between seminars and EXPOb but that was kind of good as I was away for two weeks the first part of April. I had the opportunity to photograph a convention in Las Vegas. Sure was a different experience. Event photography can be fun, but also very tiring. Afterwards I went to California to visit with my daughter, Jennifer, and my sister, Lynne Starling, who has progressive Dementia. It is so sad when we see our loved ones slip away, but I knew I needed to go see her as I still remember who she is. Be sure to read Catherine Kouri's wonderful Member Spotlight on Willis & Jerry Brown. Catherine is such a great writer and PPNC is so blessed to have her contribution to our magazine. Rose Mary Cheek, Editor
PPNC Directors & Seminar Chair Eastern Directors
Angela Blankenship abphotography2008@gmail.com Marie White Marie@turnerwhitephotography.com Seminar Chair - Tom McCabe tommccabe46@earthlink.net Seminar is Mar 18-20, 2016
PPA National Councilmen Cassie Stone Janet Boschker Joy Batchelor-King
Central Directors
Deborah Hendrix porbydeb@gmail.com George Joell george@gpjoell3photography.com Seminar Chair- Renee McCardell info@mccardellstudios.com Seminar is Jan 23-25, 2016
Western Directors
Brian Allen puregrit@hotmail.com Cathy Anderson Fabulous.photog@gmail.com Seminar Chair - Stephen Dey photo@charlotteimage.com Seminar - October 2016
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SEPPA Rep. Loretta Byrd
From the President I was reading the magazine "Classic Portraiture" recently, and was awestruck in how classis was defined. Classics, whether they are suits, movies, or books, simply never go out of style. If something is good - really good - it will stand the test of time. The magazine also defined: What is a Classic Portrait? The term "classic" brings up several questions. What is a "classic portrait?" Why is one portrait considered a classic while others are not? If a classic portrait a work of art? The word "classic" implies timelessness. There are five elements that elevate a portrait from one that is merely a pictorial record to one that has a timeless quality. 1. Design - Design is your concept or idea of where the portrait is going to be made, the space or background you will use, and what artifacts you may wish to include in the portrait to reflect the lifestyle or preference of the subject. Composition if also part of the design. It defines how you will arrange the subject and other elements in that space to form a complete visual statement. 2. Pose - The pose refers to your consideration of how and why and where the subject is positioned. 3. Color Harmony - This is the blending of the colors of clothes, furniture, plants, artifacts, and background, to make a pleasing portrait. 4. Expression - The finest portrait is a failure without a good expression. The expression should reflect the mood or personality of the subject that you want to show. 5. Lighting - The proper, artistic use of light can make a good portrait extraordinary. Is a classic portrait a work of art? Art means different things to different people and, like beauty, often is in the eye of the beholder. But a work of art is something that stands the test of time. I would say that a fine portrait is definitely a work of art. As you are preparing your competition prints for our upcoming print judging in August, keep in mind the Classic Portrait. Happy photographing.
Respectfully, Rose Mary CheeK
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Digital Files vs Album Wedding Photography by Cathy Anderson, CPP Searching through bridal magazines, you’ll find yourself bombarded with advice on how to save money and create the ultimate wedding on the thinnest budget possible. It seems that one of the most popular targets recently has been advice on how to cut corners with photography, from not feeding your photographer to not hiring a photographer at all. Take a step back though—do you really want to cut corners on the only tangible memory that will remain of the most romantic day of your life? Probably not. A big misconception in the wedding world is that if you purchase the digital rights to files, you will save a ton of money—on printing, albums, wall portraits, etc. I mean, why would you spend money on an album that costs thousands of dollars when you can go to a cheaper printer and create your own? You’re saving money, right? Not really…here’s why:
ting things off because of how overwhelming newlywed life can be. The one thing you do not want to table is the creation of a beautifully designed album that will be the only record of your special day. TECHNOLOGY MOVES ON. Remember the CD your friends got a few years ago of their engagement session? It is getting harder and harder to find computers with CD drives anymore because computer manufacturers are not installing them in the most modern desktop and laptop computers. As technology progresses, you are not guaranteed that the CD or USB you receive with digital images will still be relevant, or even work, in ten or twenty years. An album is something you will cherish—a printed piece of history that will illustrate the memories of your big day, standing the test of time, no matter how fast technology speeds ahead. A CD IN A DRAWER NEVER GETS PRINTED. Don’t let your memories collect
LIFE HAPPENS. As soon as you get married, your life will go into hyper drive…trust us! From Christmas parties to football games to paying bills, the list of things you have to do after you get married can feel somewhat colossal. Many brides forget to do things and keep put6
dust. More so, you cannot frame ahttp:// CD and hang it on your wall. Having an alphotography. bum with printed photos makes sure that the images on your CD or USB get printed and do not fade into a dark oblivion inside a drawer somewhere. A PHOTOGRAPHER IS HERE TO HELP. Even through the hustle and bustle of your first year of marriage, we are here to help. We understand how overwhelming it can be as a new bride, so we take the stress of designing your wedding album off of you. We design albums on a weekly basis—it’s what we do. Would you hire a car mechanic to give you open heart surgery? Just because someone can use tools doesn’t mean they can fix a heart. It is incredibly important to trust a knowledgeable professional to create a beautiful, custom album based on what you want and not just throw together a slew of images into a few templates that were pre-designed by a big box album company. Each album that we create is unique and different, because we know that each bride is unique and different. We want incorporate your own style and what is important to you. Most importantly, we will walk you through the design page by page to make sure it is perfect. Your album will not get printed until you approve each page. After all, its your album, not ours. We guarantee that you will not find this level of care and service in an automated album design company. TPS Photography | (828) 433-t0111 http://tpsphotography.com/ 7
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OnLine CPP Practice Exam by Dave Goldman, Cr. Photog., CPP, CPP Liaison
Over the last few years there has been so many questions around are there online CPP tests that you can take. The answer is ‘Yes’. PPA has some flash cards that can be used, however not many more resources beyond that. There are two great resources with real world questions and they come in the form of study guides. One guide is from Al Audleman and the other is from Steve Kozak. I wanted to work on a project that I felt would benefit the CPP community, and I created the CPPPracticeExam web site (www.CPPPracticeExam.com).
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I purchased the domain name and created a fully functional online testing website which I coded myself. Currently the web site will allow you to be asked as many questions up to 257 or a subset. You have the ability take just one section of the test, have the questions asked in random order and even have your testing results emailed back to you for later review.
I am currently in the process of adding more questions and also integrating the 100 from Steve’s study guide. Currently the web site is restricted to candidates that have purchased either study guide or who has been a part of my monthly CPP Online Prep Class: for more information: www.davegoldmanphotography.com/cppmentor. If you have any questions or would like to be a part of the web site for testing purposes just reach out
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Smart phone Secrets You’ve had your smartphone for a while, but let’s face it: You’ve never read the manual. You take great pride that you know how to use it, and then it happens: You see someone do something extraordinary with his or her phone that you did not know was even possible. Friends don’t let friends have smartphone skill envy. Here are some of my favorite secrets buried in your phone settings that you probably don’t know, but will use now. 1. Take a screenshot Have you ever wanted to capture something on your phone’s screen? Maybe it’s a hilarious text from a friend, or an interesting Facebook post, or you want to send someone an image to show her how to do something. iPhone Press and hold the Home button along with the Sleep/Wake button. You should hear a shutter click. The screenshot will appear in your Camera Roll or Saved Photos section. Android Hold the Power and Volume Down buttons at the same time. The image is saved to the “Captured Images” folder in your Gallery app. That only works in Android 4.0 and higher, though. For Android 3.0, 2.3 or earlier, use an app like AirDroid. 2. Block calls and texts Have you ever had someone who just won’t stop calling or texting you, even after you asked nicely? Here’s how to block him.
iPhone To block calls on an iPhone with iOS 7 or later, open the Phone or FaceTime app. If the person is already a contact, tap his name, scroll to the bottom of the page and tap Block This Caller. Then tap Block Contact. If the person isn’t a contact, tap the Info button, then scroll to the bottom of the page and tap Block this Caller. Then tap Block Contact. If you want to block texts, open the Messages app and tap a message from the person you want to block. Tap Contact in the upper right and then tap the Info button. Scroll to the bottom and tap Block this Caller. Then tap Block Contact. You can edit your blocked contacts later at these locations: Settings>>Phone>>Blocked Settings>>Messages>>Blocked Settings>>FaceTime>>Blocked Android On Android, go to Settings>>Call settings>>Call block. Under “Incoming calls” tap “Call block list” and then tap Create. You can enter a number, or tap the picture icon to find the number in your Contacts list or in your call logs. If you don’t see these steps or want more blocking options, check out these call- and text-blocking apps. 3. Use a real password iPhone and Android both default to a 4-digit PIN for unlocking the phone. That’s OK as long as 12
you don’t use something simple like 0000 or 1234. However, I know some people who want even more security. iPhone To set a real password on an iPhone, go to Settings>>Passcode. From there, swipe off the option that says Simple Passcode. Here, you can set your passcode with letters and special characters for better phone security. Android Go to Settings>>Lock screen and tap Screen lock. You can set what level of security you want, from a simple swipe to a password. Select Password and type in the password that you want. It should have a mix of letters, numbers and special characters to be really safe. 4. See text more easily Having a hard time reading things on your phone’s small screen? Bump up the font size to something a bit easier to see. iPhone Go to Settings>>General>>Accessibility and turn on Bold Text and Larger Text. You can choose either one or both, depending on your preferences. You will need to restart your phone for Bold Text to take effect. Android Go to Settings>>Accessibility. Under Vision, tap Font size and set it to Large. Some phones include an even larger Huge option. 5. Read things out loud Want to keep your eyes off your phone for a bit? Have it read things to you out loud.
iPhone Go to Settings>>General>>Accessibility and turn on VoiceOver. You have the option to practice with VoiceOver, set the speaking rate and more. You will need to do some playing around to get used to it. For example you can touch and drag your fingers around the home screen to have it read what’s there. Double tap to activate an app, while one tap will give you details about it. VoiceOver will read directions to you in Maps, have your camera tell you how many people are in your shot, and get spoken photo descriptions. You can also handwrite notes and letters on the screen and have VoiceOver translate your messages into text for Mail and other apps. Android Go to Settings>>Accessibility and tap TalkBack. If you don’t see it, you can download it from the Google Play store. Turn it on and your phone will read whatever you touch on the screen and incoming notifications. Hint: To perform a regular swipe gesture, you have to use two fingers instead of one. To adjust your TalkBack settings, go to Settings>>Accessibility and tap Text-to-Speech options. You can adjust the voice engine and speed rate. Then go to Settings and turn on Hands-free mode. This will tell you who is calling or messaging. 6. Customize alert vibration patterns You’ve set a custom ringtone for each of your contacts, but that doesn’t help when you have 13
your phone on vibrate. Fortunately, you can create custom vibration patterns as well. iPhone Go to Settings>>Sounds>>Ringtone>>Vibration. You can tap out patterns to record. Or, you can go into your contacts list and hit Edit and select the Vibration option for each contact. Android Go to Contacts and tap on a contact name. Under Vibration Pattern, tap Default and choose a preset pattern. Or tap the Create button and tap on the screen to create your own pattern. If you don’t have this built in, there are third-party apps like Vybe that can do this as well. 7. Flash camera LED for notifications Need a quiet alert about notifications and don’t want to use vibrate? Have notifications trigger your phone’s LED camera flash instead. Just make sure you turn this off or keep your phone hidden when you go to the movies. iPhone Go to Settings>>General>> Accessibility and turn on “LED Flash for Alerts.” Now every time you get a notification, your phone’s rear camera will flash. Android Go to Settings>>Accessibility and turn on “Flash notification.” 8. Better ways to take pictures Tapping your phone’s screen to take a picture sounds good in theory, but in practice it can make shots a little shaky. Here are some better options. iPhone Point your camera and press the phone’s Volume Up button. Android Open the camera app and tap the gear to see the settings. Scroll down to Voice control and turn it on. Now you can take 14
pictures with the commands “Capture,” “Shoot,” “Smile” and “Cheese.” 9. Take multiple pictures at once If you’re taking pictures of a moving object, squirming kid or people who tend to blink, you often want to take a bunch of pictures at once. iPhone 5, 5s, and 5c Open the Camera app. Tap and hold the shutter release button on the screen – or press and hold the Volume Up button – and the camera will start taking multiple pictures. Release the button when you want to stop. The iPhones can take up to 10 pictures a second. It will group the photos for you automatically so you can quickly find the best ones. Android Open the Camera app. Tap the gear icon to open the settings and turn Burst Shot on. Then tap and hold the shutter release button and the phone will take multiple images until you release the button – or it hits the preset limit for your phone. The photos will be grouped for you in your gallery. 10. Turn off music automatically A lot of people use their phone to listen to music as they go to sleep, or as they’re doing a project. But you don’t want it running forever and draining your battery. iPhone Go to the Clock app and click on “Timer,” then “When Timer Ends.” From here, scroll all the way down to the bottom of the screen and select “Stop Playing.” 15
6 Tips on Using Camera Angle to Photograph people by Deborah Hendrix The first thing to acknowledge here is that large people know that they’re large. As with any body type (skinny included) their body image may cause them to believe that they’re either larger or smaller than they are. You can tastefully discuss body image with them clients which is something I may be inclined to do with any type of person. Understanding how a client feels about their body is always a great thing to know. And if they’ve scheduled a photo session, they’re probably already pretty confident people.
1. Using a telephoto lens or the longest zoom that you have is important. This will compress the shot and keep it from suffering from wide angle bias. Experiment with the distortion correction in Photoshop to see if there’s any barreling that you don’t notice on first inspection.
As a society, we try to find ways to make people look smaller and we think that smaller = more attractive, but this doesn’t need to be our primary focus when shooting large people. Making them appear comfortable? Now that’s important. And I agree, laying on the ground is usually a no-go. Here are a few tips I’ve found helpful:
2. Do not photography from a low angle. 3. You can photograph from higher up angle, looking down, but do not overdo this tactic for photographing larger people. Be sure to include a variety of poses.
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4. With couples, you can use one subject’s body to shield another (if one is lighter than the other)
make a high school senior or anyone as far as that goes look their best using different techniques. In addition to the six we’ve listed, these additional items are also important during pre-consultation. The chat sessions, especially defining proper clothing and of course good lighting.
5. Obviously, you have the option of not photographing their whole body. Try different varieties of head-andshoulders shots, but beware that they may feel that you’re saying that they’re unattractive if you don’t also provide them with body shots. Your job is to photograph them like you would anyone else so don’t think you’re doing them a favor by completely ignoring their entire body.
Deborah says "I loved working with this high school senior". Ava told me how wonderful I made her feel, by my comments as I clicked the shutter". Comments like, "awesome, come look at this image", I would say. "Now, let's just turn a bit this way or that". She placed a $1300 order. She and her Mom were very pleased with the images.
6. With groups try the ‘huddle’ and ‘squeeze in’ poses, which eliminates full body shots and concentrates of head shots. When I photographed Ava, she weighed over 200 lbs. Our goal was to
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Member Spotlight Willis & Jerry Brown
As Benjamin Franklin famous-
ly remarked, “If you want something
towns in Louisi-
done, ask a busy person.” I certainly
ana. Jerry is from
found our Founding Father’s statement
Cheneyville and
to be true when I called Willis Brown
Willis from Tioga
recently to interview him for the feature article for Carolina Photographer. Willis was deep in the trenches preparing a
Orleans. They met and fell in
few thousand dance studio portraits for
love at Louisiana
the lab as well as being committed to
College where they were both pursuing
spending a long day photographing a
undergraduate degrees: Jerry in ele-
pickle festival for the Chamber of Com-
mentary education and Willis in biology.
merce in Mount Olive.
Education is obviously
And yet… somehow this
important to the Browns
busy and generous man
and they both went on
took the time to gra-
to attain graduate de-
ciously supply me with
grees. Jerry has masters
the information needed
degrees in elementary
about his and his wife
education and reading
Jerry’s long careers in
from Campbell University.
photography. Thanks,
Willis earned graduate
Willis!
and later New
degrees in zoology, biolo-
Willis and Jerry are
gy and science education
both natives of small 18
1967, Willis taught zoology at Louisiana Tech while in graduate school. In 1967, the young couple moved to Mount Olive, North Carolina, where Willis taught biology, zoology, botany,
from Louisiana
genetics, general chemistry, organic
Tech University and North Carolina State University.
chemistry, biochemistry, human anatomy, human physiology, ecology, and, oh yeah, some photography courses at
Willis and Jerry
Mount Olive College (now the Univer-
taught in schools
sity of Mount Olive) until 2006. (Note
for many years.
to self: next time, name the science
Jerry taught first
courses he didn’t teach.)
and third grades and reading classes
until she retired in 2003. From 1965-
Speaking of photography, Willis
has been interested in the art and sci-
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ence of photography
ry and Willis took the
since his junior year in
plunge into their own
high school. He and
photography business
some friends began
full time. They pho-
capturing images with
tograph everything
any available cameras
from babies to seniors
and then develop-
to brides/weddings to
ing and printing the
dance studio related
photographs. After
subjects. Babies are
moving to Mount Ol-
particularly enjoyable,
ive, Willis worked with
says Willis, because
a local photographer,
of parents’ and grand-
Charles Kraft, as one
parents’ interest in the
of his wedding photographers. He also
traditional baby panel. The Browns’
gained valuable experience working in the dark room of Kraft’s studio developing and printing both black and white and color photographs. Willis says that Charles Kraft, a past president of PPNC, now deceased, was not only an inspiring professional mentor but also a good friend and neighbor who lived two homes away from the Browns. “He helped raise our children and was a wonderful example of how to live life at its best in a small community such as Mount Olive.”
When Charles Kraft retired, Jer-
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baby panel is quite a
local historical society.
photographic tradition
The society purchased
in Mount Olive.
the files, negatives and
prints, from the Kraft
The dance studio
events, both recitals
Studio where Willis
and portraits, are quite
began working in 1970.
intense and time con-
The bulk of their resto-
suming in their “sea-
ration business comes
son”. Fortunately, Willis
from having access to
says the dance culture
the Kraft Studio files.
is interesting and busi-
Since Willis and Jerry
ness is growing in that
enjoy working in many
area. The Browns also
areas of photography, Browns Studio also provides head shots
enjoy doing restoration work with the
for the Mount Olive Area Chamber of Commerce directory as well as head shots for the board of directors of a local community college. As Willis puts it,”We specialize in variety!” While Jerry and Willis enjoy many styles of photography, Willis admits that perhaps the heart of their work is inspired the by traditional posing styles and classical composition of artists such as John Singer Sargent. They have found that
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even in our current age
software. Willis finds his
of “on the fly” snapshot
Nikon D800 camera with
style photography, there
the 80-200 VR telephoto
is still a market for the
lens to be invaluable. He
classic “old master” style
also relies on his Sekonic
of great artists which
light meter as well as
many people wistfully,
Lightroom and Photoshop
but incorrectly, assume is
for post processing. As
dead. The Browns “ideal”
might be expected from
client might be a mother
their backgrounds, the
or grandmother who has
Browns consider ongoing
seen their work and is excited about the
photography education to be a neces-
possibilities they offer. These clients
sity for themselves and certainly for
realize that even though they will spend
aspiring photographers.
more money and invest more time in
They encourage photographers
their portrait project, the
seeking advice to join
heirloom quality result
PPNC and PPA for the
will be timeless and deep-
myriad of educational op-
ly satisfying.
portunities available both
on the creative and the
In creating their art,
whether classical portraits
business sides of pho-
or contemporary com-
tography. While there is
posites and collages for
certainly good education
dance students or high
available online, it is
school seniors, Jerry and
sometimes difficult and
Willis rely on twenty-first
unsatisfying to interact
century equipment and
and share with strangers 22
on the internet. As pro-
from PPA and a Fellowship
fessional teachers them-
degree from PPNC. Jerry
selves, the Browns know
has been studying and
the value of face to face
working in retouching,
educational encounters
painting and photographic
with skilled and generous
enhancement since the
photographers willing to
late 1900’s.
share their knowledge
The goal of Browns Pho-
and network. Through
tography is to provide its
their active participation
clients with an experience
in ongoing education
and a product that goes
offered by their professional organi-
well beyond their clients’ expectations.
zations, Willis earned the Certified
To this end, Willis and Jerry offer their
Professional Photographer certification
clients a guaranteed satisfaction war-
23
ranty on their photographic products or a full refund is given without question. They themselves are rewarded and inspired by clients’ comments about how thrilled they are with the results from the time and money spent.
When you meet Willis and Jerry
Brown, if you do not know them already, it will be quickly obvious that they truly enjoy all the varied aspects of making their living in the field of photography. Surely theirs is an inspiring example for us as photographers as well as to their own two sons and four
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WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY MADE SIMPLE with LUKE EDMONSON
H http://www.edmonsonweddings.com/ fellowship/Luke-Edmonson
Are you new wedding photographer searching for consistency? Maybe you are a seasoned wedding veteran looking for some inspiration. While many won’t touch weddings for a myriad of reasons, I’d suggest to you it’s one of the easiest, fun and significant forms of photography out there. I’m no different than many of you; my first wedding was shot in a barn in Louisiana for $300. 20 years later, I’m further down the road than some of you and others I’m still learning from and chasing. To get some insight as to where I am today, check out my Wedding Photography Fellowship Panel & Statement that was unanimously passed by the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers in London.
Before The Wedding • Getting The Job • Assisted Sales • Presenting Ideas • Setting Expectations • Wedding Day Timeline Wedding Day • Preparation Details • Bride Preparation • Groom Preparation • Bridal Groups
• • • • • • • • • • • •
During our time together we will walk through the wedding day as I provide insight to help you get depth to your details, work faster by building modular, and be more intentional in your shot selection. We will also look at how to evaluate lighting opportunities, the power of our voice, solve visual problems through strong Posing and InCamera Artistry. I will happily walk you through my mental approach to each part of the wedding day and why it’s directly tied to the wedding album we storyboard in our minds as we shoot. Some of the areas we will look at are:
Family Photos Connected Couples Processional Ceremony Recessional Hugs & Kisses Family Formals Transition Shots Mr & Mrs Reception Details Cocktail Coverage Entrances 26
• • • • • • •
First Dance Parent Dances Table Shots Speeches/Toasts Garter/Bouquet Dancing/Party Exit
After The Wedding • Wedding Night • Album Conundrum
around the world is remarkable. No doubt, his signature style is unmistakable. But it’s his “Iron-Sharpens-Iron” philosophy that has fueled his art and professional success.
Highlights
A relentless pursuit of excellence through competition. Selfless mentorship. A hands-on benevolence with his passionate charities. At each point, I’ll present you little A-Ha moments and nuggets of the myriad of lessons that I’ve over the past 15 years. I’ll also show examples of how I did it wrong before I learned a more refined approach. Showing my mistakes makes it easy for you to feel like you can do it The Edmonson’s have been called a “Master Photographer to Master Photographers” and with good reason. With a lifetime spent growing up within the industry, the indelible impact Luke Edmonson leaves with clients, students and peers
Simply put, the “Edmonson Way” means that giving is a both a privilege and a path to self-improvement; for himself and those he encounters. In 2015, Luke, a Double Master of Wedding & Portrait Photographers International, presented his father David with WPPI’s Lifetime Achievement the organization’s highest honor. Luke is also one of the three founders and a graduate of WPPI’s Certification Program for Wedding & Portrait Photographers, the first ever of its kind. Professional Photographers of America recognizes Luke as Master of Photography (M. PHOTOG), Photographic Craftsman (CR. PHOTOG) and Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) among other no27
table designations. He is also a PPA Diamond Photographer of the Year, multiple winners of the Kodak Gallery Awards and Fuji Masterpiece Awards. As a member of the Australian Institute of Professional Photography, in 2014, he won the International Photographer of the Year in the APPA competition, an individual award presented to the overseas competitor with the highest scoring collection of prints. Most recently, he achieved his Fellowship in Wedding Photography with the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers in London. Luke is an invited member of the Camera Craftsman of America, one of the oldest, most prestigious groups in the world dedicated to advancing the profession of photography as an art form. Luke Edmonson is a sought-after speaker and educator locally, nationally and abroad, teaching workshops to the up and coming aspiring photographer, to share his talent and know-how to
help others hone their craft. He also serves as a print judge at various international print competitions and served two terms as President of the Dallas Professional Photographers Association. It’s often said that Art Imitates Life. If you’ve ever seen the work of Luke & David Edmonson, this is clearly true: Profound with dimensionality, ingrained with emotion and compelling in their beauty.”
…This is the Edmonson Way Websites: Wedding Photography: http://www.edmonsonweddings.com Professional Photographer: http://www.lukeedmonson.com Connect: Twitter: https://twitter.com/lukeedmonson Instagram: https://instagram.com/lukeedmonson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lukeedmonson Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/+LukeEdmonson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukeedmonson 28
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PHOTOSHOP TIPS & TRICKS ADRIAN HENSON – & MONA SADLER Pre-Con Class Friday August 12 Being successful when using Photoshop involves doing things fast and efficiently. With the fast and efficient criteria in mind, this course will cover many techniques for retouching eyes, skin and hair. We will also show you some Photoshop fixes for body shape, color saturation, and light. Other topics for this course are extractions, changing background, color changes and modifications, maximizing the use of your drawing table (Wacom), and file maintenance. We will also cover using add-on filters such as Nik and Topaz. For this course you will need your laptop or computer loaded with Photoshop CS 5 or greater and at the minimum Nik Filters, Topaz is optional. You will need to bring 5 or 6 portrait images to work on since the best way to learn something is to do it. This course will also include using Photoshop painting techniques that will help you in retouching so a Wacom or similar tablet is recommended but not required. Be Adrian Henson owns and operates Adrian Henson Photography in Eastern North Carolina with his wife Heather. Their studio specializes in Highschool Seniors, Commercial Photography, and Dance School Photography. When not
producing great photographs, he enjoys traveling and sharing his knowledge of image making. Today, Adrian is heavily involved with his state organization (Profession Photographers of North Carolina) as well as PPA as a council member. Adrian regularly travels throughout the country, and even overseas, teaching and speaking. Adrian has been accepted as an International Print Committee Juror by PPA. He is also very committed to print competition and has been honored with the Diamond, Platinum, Gold and Bronze awards as well as NC’s and SEPPA’s Photographer of the year awards multiple times, just to name a few. Adrian won the Overall 20X16 print award in 2014 and was the Natural World category winner in 2015 at The Societies convention in the UK. 34
Mona Sadler owns and operates two businesses, Coastal Pet Portraits and Mona Kay Sadler, PC, CPA. Her studio specializes in pet photography as well as people. Her accounting practice serves individuals, small businesses and non-profit organizations.
Highlights
Mona holds a four year degree in Accounting from East Carolina University. This was a result of getting sidetracked many years ago where she started out going to college for a degree in Photography at Daytona Beach State College. Her goal was always to return to photography which was facilitated when digital cameras arrived.
Adrian considers print competition the greatest informal education and owes the bulk of his photography success to it. Adrian is devoted to making photography better. He encourages sharing and openness among professionals and believes that “the rising tide lifts all ships”. He believes that through education, we can return confidence back to the photography profession. Adrian has earned his Master of Photography Degree, Master of Electronic Imaging Degree, Photographic Craftsman Degree, Image Excellence medallion, Fellow of The Society of International Nature and Wildlife Photographers and is a Certified Professional Photographer.
As she worked her way up through print competition Mona’s interest in Photoshop grew when she painted a bird that made it into the International Print Competition loan collection. She has been learning and painting in Photoshop ever since with enough images to earn her many photographer of the year awards in each level including a diamond for her 2015 Photographic Open case. Mona is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Professional Photographer. She is a Master Photographer, Master Artist, and has the Craftsman degrees and the Image Excellence Award. Her other interests are birding, fishing, and camping. She lives with three rescued dogs and enjoys doing a lot of painting in Photoshop. -Mona Kay Sadler Coastal Pet Portraits 252.675.1146 www.CoastalPetPortraits.com
www.adrianhenson.com
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Professional Imaging Group of Eastern North Carolina (PIGOENC) by Mona Sadler At our Professional Imaging Group of Eastern North Carolina (PIGOENC) meeting last Monday I spoke about print competition and a perfect storm developing for folks wanting to get their feet wet for the first time in print competition.
entering I suggest six, which is considered a full case. This would make you eligible for the President’s Award which is given to the highest case score to a first time entrant. So you enter and get your scores and feedback. Then you have from August to January to iron out the wrinkles and enter the PIGOENC competition. The fee for a new member is $20 which is your dues for the first year. The competition is totally online and includes critiques. You get more feedback and have a few weeks to be ready for SEPPA. After that you have to wait until August to enter the International Print Competition. By then your images should be awesome because they have been judged 3 times.
Here’s the setup: In August at the PPofNC Convention there will be a print competition. In February 2016 in Raleigh PPofNC will be hosting the Southeast PPA (SEPPA) regional print competition. In between the two of them will be our local group’s print competition. So here’s the perfect part of it. If you have never entered before you can jump in the water in August. You have time to get your images ready, plenty of time. You can enter 1 or 6 because your entry fee is per image. Of course if this is your first time 36
Poor Choice of Media Type, Too much Contrast. (Any time you want to find this list go to Photographer Friends on Facebook and search for “Blocked up Shadows.”) If you need a visual on this, here’s a link to a video I did on this list: https://vimeo.com/141234868
Folks, this set up will likely never happen again. So what should you do. The very first thing is group up with a few folks that also are entering and work together. Let a Master Photographer look at your images and give you some feedback. You can even show then a LOT of images and let them pick their favorites. More than likely they will pick the same ones you pick but there may be a few ones they pick that will surprise you.
Once you have put it through the “list” put it through the most important list of all: The 12 Elements of a Merit Print. This is the gold standard that we compete by. The PPA website has loads of information but start here: http:// www.ppa.com/competitions/content. cfm?ItemNumber=1792.
Once you have the selected six put them through the first wringer. The Adrian Henson list of things to avoid in order for a print to merit: Sensor Dust, Halos, Over-sharpening, Crooked Horizons, Color Banding, Out of Focus, Bad Composition, Bad Posing, Poor Skin Tone, Clone Tracking, Poor Presentation, Over Retouched, Too Processed, Artifacting, Depth of Field Too Shallow, Boring Subject/No Impact, Too Many Subjects, No Subject or Center of Interest, Bad Print Quality, Blocked Up Shadows, Blown Highlights, Too Easy, Repulsive Subject Matter, No Color Harmony/Balance, Improper Lighting, Wrong Technique For Subject Matter,
So give this some careful thought. Think you’re not good enough, skin too thin, don’t want to step in a pile of poo? Well, I have stepped in lots of Print Competition Poo so please do not worry. In your photographer journey you will travel 1 mile a year down the road of improvement. With attending classes and schools you will travel 2 or 3 miles. With print competition you will travel 10 miles or more, and leave all your competitors in the dust. Just stick your toe in the water and get started on a most wonderful journey. 37
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Mona Kay Sadler Coastal Pet Portraits 252.675.1146 www.CoastalPetPortraits. com
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ONLY 16 weeks
New Members
Barara Bell Lea Hartman
Carly Fogleman Chelsea Mehalek
Memorial
Tracey Winn Hogg, sister of PPNC member Ned Winn, died at the age of 65 46
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www.carolinaphotoexpo.com